Letting Go

Readers of my other blog will know that last week I had to say goodbye to my Buddy. He was 15 years old and had a stroke. Unable to stand up and showing no signs of recovery we called the vet and he went to sleep peacefully at home. It is a responsibility that we have when we own dogs. When to think of their welfare before our own. We want them to stay with us just a few days more, we want them to get better, we want them to keep us company for just a bit longer...we want..we want..we want.
In fact, the whole act of having a dog live with us in our houses, to keep us company is selfish. A wonderful book I read on the subject is 'The Culture Clash' by Jean Donaldson. We expect dogs to come into our houses and live with us as humans live. We give them human names, even sometimes dress them up in clothing (oh how I hate that!).
So, letting go of a beloved pet is a real bereavement. A big hole in our lives, an empty space, no one to lick the plates clean! So in their best interest, when the time comes, we must let go. With dignity, at peace and just one day too soon, and never, ever... one day too late.

What Dogs Need

What do dogs need in order to fulfil a happy life? Well, the basics are obvious - the same as for us, food, shelter, water, company... but what else can you do to make your dog happy? Well that depends on what breed of dog you have.
For thousands of years we have chosen dogs for what the could DO for us. Could they catch vermin? could they help us manage our farm animals? Could they guard us and our families while we sleep? So dog evolved along those lines and the genetic make-up of different breeds became more divided. So it then becomes a bit clearer.

Well, the clue is sometimes in the breed name. German Shepherd.... (that's obvious), Labrador Retriever.... (that's obvious too!), or Terrier (from the French 'terre' meaning ground) terriers used to catch rats and vermin down in their holes in the ground.
I'm not suggesting that if you have a greyhound you lay on little baby bunnies for it to chase after and catch, kill and eat - but you have to give a dog what it needs.

So think about an approximation of what a scent hound does for a living... perhaps you might scatter it's daily food all over the garden and let it go hunt for it !! Perhaps your Jack Russell Terrier might enjoy chasing a tennis ball instead of a rat! Your Retriever might like it if you hid his favourite toy somewhere and he had to play a game to find and retrieve it?
Be creative and get your dog to engage it's brain. These exercises don't always have to be physically exhausting either. You can wear your dog out by doing training and tricks in front of the television in an evening if you are feeling like a couch potato. I doubt that you really can't think of anything at all... so here's one for starters. Cut up little pieces of cheddar cheese (about half an inch) and hide them all over your living room while you are at home one evening. See how many hours of fun you can both have!!

Moulting - The Facts

Do you have a dog that seems to moult brushfulls of fur from time to time? I do! It can be alarming to brush and brush and seemingly endless amounts of fur come away and I worry sometimes I will be left with a bald dog! You might be reassured therefore to read the following explanation from guidelines written by the Blue Cross. Unless your dog has obvious bare patches, then moulting is not usually a sign of illness. Dogs can lose up to 180g of fur per kg of body weight over the course of a year. Hair growth is in two stages, 'anagen' is when hair growth is active and there is little shedding. 'Telogen' is the inactive stage when dogs shed fur. This varies between breeds, body location and hair length. Shedding fur is normally associated with day length, and mostly happens in Spring and Autumn, but if your dog lives mostly indoors with steady temperatures and steady light levels this is likely to be less apparent.
There is no remedy to alter shedding, but a balanced diet, regular flea control, frequent brushing and fish oil supplements can help

An Enduring Friendship

I have just returned from a short trip to Rome. Of course the main tourist sights were on the menu but I could not help but look out for local dogs... well anything doggy! This man was begging on the bridge over on to the Tiber island. I don't think I've ever seen anyone begging with 4 dogs before! Part of me is always sceptical that money given will be used to buy alcohol or drugs, but these four appeared calm and happy. It got me thinking about how close a relationship with a dog must be if you have lost your job, family and your home! But this is not a recent phenomenon.

There was evidence all over Rome that thousands of years ago people had affectionate relationships with their dogs. When you go to the trouble of having a marble statue commissioned of yourself, it is interesting that dogs feature quite frequently in these ancient works of art.

Dogs have been man's friend since time began. Not just recently, not just in ancient Rome, but way, way back to when humans lived in caves. They feature in our folklore and our history since time began.

Despite the change in human lifestyles over our history, the change from living in caves, to mud huts, to high rise city flats - dogs have changed and adapted to live with us. We think we are the clever ones.....

Firework Fear!

It is about this time of year in Britain that dog owners begin to worry about how their pets will cope with fireworks. In an ideal world a dog breeder could do so much to accustom a litter of puppies to firework noise. Breeders of gundogs will do this at an early stage in a puppy's development, ensuring that they are used to the sound of gunshots while they are still very small. Most dogs, however do not acquire this ease with loud noises and will get upset to a certain degree. Last year I remember our neighbours must have used a grenade launcher to set their industrial strength fireworks up into the air! The foundations of the house shook!

There are some things you can start to do now in order to try to calm your dog a little, but a serious desensitising programme should usually take months. You can go and have a look at a brilliant website www.dogsandfireworks.com here you can play or download a film clip of a short firework display. Start fairly quietly and praise and treat and stroke your dog calmly for listening to the bangs. If he reacts to the noise then just ignore him, and don't cuddle, talk, reassure this behaviour. Just act as if nothing is wrong. This exercise needs to be repeated over and over again, for several months.
Make sure your dog has a safe place to go if he feels scared, a cubby hole, a bed, crate or behind the sofa. Don't follow him in there, that's his safe place. Don't cuddle, pat or talk to your dog while he is scared. Make sure your dog has been out to the toilet during daytime hours so he won't need to go again. If your dog does want to get under the duvet with you, or jump on your lap for reassurance, then let them but don't make a fuss of them.
If you are a fan of alternative remedies, then some people have found the Bach Rescue Remedies helpful, or scullcap and valerian. You might also talk to your vet about a DAP (dog appeasing pheromone) diffuser or collar.
Of course the obvious things to do are to close all the curtains in the house, turn the lights on and turn the TV volume up high! Make sure all the doors and windows are closed, and just in case, make sure your dog has an ID tag and microchip (because some dogs might be frantic to escape!). Avoid leaving your dog alone during fireworks, he will feel safer if you are around.
Something else you might like to try is a tight Tshirt or jumper. www.mekuti.co.uk make a specially designed doggy body wrap which has been found to calm anxious dogs.
Hope this helps!

Walkies! - Why?

Have you ever stopped to think why we take our dogs out for walkies on the end of a leash? Well, the obvious answer to that would be to keep them safe from traffic, to keep them under control which is of course, a good thing. But do they really need to walk at our pace, next to our left leg, when we want to go, and where we want to take them? What do they get out of it?
Going for a walkies is usually the highlight of a dogs day. If they are cooped up in a house, it is their opportunity for relaxation, recreation and entertainment. Imagine if someone took you to a wonderful art gallery and then ensured that you were blindfolded as you walked round. Imagine if you went out for a sumptuous meal with a group of friends, but you were forced to watch them all eating, but were not allowed to eat anything yourself! I suppose that must be what it is like for a dog being walked on a lead at your pace, at your side and at a place and time of your choosing.
Think of it from their perspective for one moment. Sniffing a particular gate post might be like catching up with your favourite episode of a TV soap! A dog can tell from the scent markings left by other dogs who has just had puppies, who has just been castrated, if there is a new kid on the block, and who has just come into season! It is just like picking up all your e-mail... or should that be p-mail! And of course, male dogs will want to overmark and reply to the messages! Sniffing other dog's pee is just like catching up with the latest episode of Eastenders, Coronation Street, Emmerdale...take your pick. Your dog also needs doggy company, so they will want to sniff other dogs' bottoms and really embarrass you. Some of them will want to eat poo! some will eat a week-old kebab packet, a mouldy sausage roll or the contents of a dustbin bag left out for the bin men once a week! (bin day is the most exciting time to take my dog for a walk, it takes twice as long as usual!).
So next time you trudge along the road with your obedient fido glued to your leg, just ask yourself why you are doing this. Is it for his benefit or yours?

Dogs - A Universal Language

I've just come back from a holiday around the Coast of Britain and Ireland. I met a lovely man and a lovely dog on the Giants Causeway in Co.Antrim. We had a chat about dogs and went our separate way. I was on a cruise ship and one day at lunch time an old lady came and sat next to me. She was a widow in her 80s, from South Africa and she was travelling alone. She was dripping in tasteless gold jewellery! this was an extremely wealthy lady. I made polite conversation over lunch but never thought we would have anything in common. She had acres of land, a large house and quite a few staff. The conversation was polite but a little dull until I mentioned that I had just trained as a dog trainer and behaviourist. Her eyes lit up, we actually made eye contact and she smiled. She began to tell me all about her 3 little dogs that she rescued from hunger and abuse to come and live with her on the farm in Pretoria. I shared the story of how we rescued Buddy from Battersea dogs home, and before either of us knew it we were having a friendly, animated and interesting conversation.
This got me thinking. Could this happen to any two people from anywhere in the world? Just finding something in common, that special intimate bond we share with our dogs can be recognized by another person anywhere. A personal experience we could share with anyone in any country, of any religion or background. Just think if the World's politicians could do that!