Dogs with a short coat need to be kept nice and warm when the weather is freezing, long haired dogs don’t feel the cold so much.   In their natural state they’d be running about and hunting and then curling up in a grass den.   It’s much more chilly on a sedate walk in the park.    There are a lot of other hazards though for pets at Christmas time:

Keep poultry bones out of reach – they are so appetising to a dog but if they splinter and get stuck inside you’ll be spending Christmas at the vets.

A dog or cat who is slavering, pawing at his mouth or suddenly stops wanting to eat, may have a bone stuck behind a tooth.   The vet is the best one to find out and remove it.

Chocolates are deadly, even choccie biscuits can cause real illness.  Dogs can’t excrete one of the substances in chocolate, it’s toxic to them and goes round and round their system.   Keep all chocolates (and don’t forget the decorations on the tree) out of reach.

Watch out for small toys – some dogs play with them, chew them and swallow them.   Despite heroic efforts one of the vets had a westie die in his arms when a small piece of lego couldn’t be got out in time.   Small rubber balls easily get stuck.   Don’t throw anything sharp, especially the thin hide chewsticks – they can pierce the throat.

Open doors and friends coming and going – your dog might slip out and try to find Santa on his own.   It’s best to settle your dog down in a secure place when you are having a party.   He might be a stray otherwise.

It’s nice for your dog or cat to have a bit of christmas fare but no stuffing, onions, grapes, raisins, cakes or mince pies  - these will definitely upset him.    An extra portion of meat, a yorkshire pud and some veg and gravy though?   yum yum!

Blake is a great little dog except for one thing – every time you get him out he bites the lead.  Not once or twice, he is obsessive about what he sees as a form of play.   The big problem is that he sometimes misses – watch your fingers!    This is a dangerous habit and one we have to re-train him not to do.   It is most likely why he has become a stray, a dog who bites at your hands as well as the lead is never going to be safe.   We never give dogs pulls and tugs for this very reason, they teach dogs that it is fine to pull against you and grab whatever you are holding.   They are fine for throwing and retrieving, drop it, good boy, but should never be used as a battle of strength.

How to stop Blake biting his lead?  It’s quite a problem and one that can take a long time to solve.   Blake has been encouraged to pull on a tug toy, why is a rope lead any different?     Humans are crazy! He’s excited when he’s going for a walk and jumping around and wanting to play.  Changing his lead is the first thing to do, a chain is not so much fun to grab.   He might go higher up and get the leather bit at the top though, so watch out for that.   All chain is the answer if you can get one.   These leads are cold and might hurt your hands so wear gloves.    Don’t have any tugs around or anything fabric that he can ‘worry’.   Solid toys are alright so long as they don’t have loops.   It’s best to avoid toys altogether for a while though, this dog has been damaged by playing so he needs to forget all about it for now.

When you put the lead on, have something ready for him to grab as the instinct in him to do this will be ingrained.   A rubber bone would do or maybe a very large chewstick that he may decide to gnaw at instead.  It’s all about distraction and breaking the cycle of tugging.   If he does grab the lead or anything else you will have to growl at him – ‘bad boy, leave, no’ – whatever your reprimand, it should be a consistent word or phrase and said in a very fierce voice.   You have to talk his language and a growl is what he will understand.

Lots of exercise will help, not with the specific problem but he will benefit overall and become calmer if he’s had a good run.   All dogs (except young puppies, seniors and any who are unwell) need to run free and walking on a lead just isn’t the same.   The benefits of running around and letting off steam are considerable and make all the difference to any training programme.   Unless you live in the country it’s difficult to let dogs off the lead nowadays, but if you have a dog you need to let him have free exercise.   A walk through the woods is great, he’ll be in and out of the trees and chasing squirrels and having a great time.

Every time he stops tugging and biting it’s all praise – ‘good boy Blake, well done, good fella’ - a big hug and a fuss and a titbit perhaps, again be consistent with the tone of voice and words of praise.    If he does accidentally nip you, and remember that this dog isn’t intentionally biting, don’t be stoical, a huge ‘ouch!’ and outcry and shriek of pain (might be real!) will get you his sympathy.   Left to their own devices, dogs don’t play silly games, it’s human interaction that has ruined (temporarily we hope) this good young dog.

Most of our stray dogs need some form of re-training and can’t be offered for adoption until they are rehabilitated.   A donation towards their care, no matter how small, is a great help.  [donate]

It’s great when your dog sleeps all night and rises when you do, but not so good when there’s a whimpering at the door at 2.0am, ‘Get up mum, I want to go out.’ Cinders, shown above, used to get up late but now it’s like having a young baby and she doesn’t sleep through.    The first thing is to have a vet check up to see if there’s a urinary infection.   Cystitis can be chronic and sometimes has only occasional symptoms.  One of our older dogs had incontinence problems that cleared up completely when she was given antibiotics for a cut foot.

If it isn’t an infection then it may be that the dog feels chilly or isn’t comfortable enough.  Especially a thin skinned dog or a golden oldie with a touch of arthiritis might not enjoy bedtime.   Those plastic baskets aren’t that comfortable and providing plenty of cushions, pillows and duvets can make all the difference.   A dog needs to be able to stretch right out.  Curling up is alright for some of the time but watch the deep sleep patterns – the dog will have head and legs splayed.  When a dog wakes up it’s the trigger for a toilet stop,  get the bed right and your dog will sleep much better.

Try putting a warm jumper on your dog, feeling warm and cosy is comforting.  You don’t have to spend a lot, find an old jumper and cut the sleeve off and make two leg holes and there you have a snazzy polo neck.  It’s better than a dog coat because there are no belts and buckles and ties to get in the way.   We wake up if we feel cold, so do dogs.

Feeding routines can make a difference to sleep patterns too.  A hungry dog is unlikely to sleep through so a nice dish of comfort food may help to break the wake-up pattern.  Try a spoonful or two of porridge oats with some mince or diced meat.   Nature Diet is good too, it’s a natural moist food and dogs love it.    We don’t feed dry biscuits/complete food for the evening meal, because they are dry they swell up in the dog’s tummy and are harder to digest.  Would you eat a bowl of dry biscuits for supper and sleep well after?     We think natural food is best.

Exercise – has your dog had enough free running time during the day.   A walk on the lead is alright but all dogs need to be loose and get rid of some of that energy.   Young, fit dogs have an enormous capacity for exercise and a tired out dog will sleep all night.   In the house, in the garden, a stroll to the shops just won’t do it and when the moon is bright and the stars shine and the wind is blowing in the trees…….. an urge to run and hunt and go wild wooding is sometimes hard for a house dog to resist.

Jack and Nolene hate loud noises of any kind, they are terrified and cower pitifully if they hear them.   This is a difficult time of year for all pets who are scared of big bangs, we have Halloween at the end of this month, then the dreaded fireworks week and on to New Year and more bangers are let off.    Helping dogs to relax naturally is the best way to manage the ‘noise phobia’ condition.   You can get sedatives from the vet but we find that herbal products work really well.   We start giving Scullcap and Valerian tablets several weeks before the event, they are a fully licensed herbal product that are effective in relaxing both cats and dogs.   Cats suffer from anxiety when they hear loud bangs just as much as dogs and these herbal tablets help them too.

Scullcap and Valerian tablets help to decrease the activity of the central nervous system without sedation or chemical muscle relaxants.  They do not cause drowsiness or alter normal behaviour, nor do they lose effectiveness over time.    If a dog or cat is naturally anxious or nervous they are an effective every day solution.   They can be given long term so it’s not just for bonfire night.  We find that all nervous or easily stressed dogs benefit from.    The dose is 1 tablet per 5kg of bodyweight daily, given as 2 split doses, in the morning and again in the evening.   At times of crisis you can double up the dose and it’s advisable to give this higher dose at the beginning of the problem time.

BUY NOW FROM US :   You can obtain Dorwest Herbs Scullcap and Valerian tablets from our onsite shop ‘In the Dog House’ open 11.00 to 4.0pm or buy online and we’ll post them out to you.   Dorwest Herbs holds the only licensed veterinary herbal medicine in the U.K. to reduce anxiety in cats and dogs, giving reassurance that they are safe, pure and effective.

If you’d like a leaflet giving more info please let us know.    We’ve used these for years and know they work – a recent testimonial:

Last year I was very concerned about how my dog was reacting to the nightly firework noise building up to Bonfire Night.   She was always very distressed and there was nothing I could do to comfort her.   I was recommended Scullcap and Valerian Tablets by my vet.   I bought some but was not really confident in seeing much improvement in her behaviour.  How wrong I was!   Although still frightened, she coped with the firework noise much more calmly and stayed with me instead of trying to get behind the television or hiding upstairs.   There was no panting and gasping as there had been before.  I used them again on the build up to New Year’s Even and again she was much less distressed than on previous years.  I cannot thank you enough. (D.Callinor, Liverpool)

We’ve had a lot of strays in this week and all ages, shapes and sizes.   When they are not claimed it’s usually easy to see why – because they are hooligans!    They jump up, won’t walk on the lead, aren’t responsive, chew, bark….. and so on.    Dogs don’t train themselves although some people obviously expect them to do this.   Our job is to tame these tearaways and help them to be happy and well adjusted members of society, then they can be re-homed.   What about the older dogs who are set in their ways?   It’s a myth that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks – all dogs can learn to behave well, it sometimes take a bit longer when they are already teenagers!

Understanding your dog and learning to communicate with him is the key.  It’s important to accept that dogs are a different species (although lots of people treat them like humans) and they have an entirely different view of the human world in which they find themselves.   They are perfectly adapted to running wild and living rough and hunting and this would be a natural and very enjoyable life for them.   Now we want them to live in a house and only eat when we allow it and burying bones and fighting with other dogs is not allowed.  What sort of crazy place is this?    We are asking them to go against a lot of their instincts but dogs are friendly souls and well disposed to pander to the strange ways of humans.

We must have realistic expectations of them though.   Choosing the right breed or type of dog is essential;  you can train all you like but if the temperament and personality are at odds with your lifestyle, you will find it hard going if not impossible.   That same dog may well be perfect for a different set up.   Helping your dog to understand what you want him to do is the first stage and all training should be positive and enjoyable.  Rewards are an important part, when he gets a treat he knows he’s done well.   After a time a hug or praise and ‘good boy’ will be enough a lot of the time.   Talking to your dog and praising him is very important.   The titbit you give as a reward should be something very tasty.  What does your dog absolutely grovel for?   A piece of bacon?   A sliver of cheese?   Chopped chicken?   Whatever it is, that’s what should be in your goody bag.  Yum, yum!   This is one time when a dry biscuit won’t do.

If your dog is feeling slightly hungry when you start a training session that is all to the good.  He shouldn’t be starving though as he will then be too focused on food.   Be consistent with the training words - sit, good boy.   To me, good boy. The tone of voice is important too – down (a bit growly), good boy. Shouting at him or bullying him and hitting him (heaven forbid) are all things you should never do.   How does a dog communicate with another dog?    Facial expression is one way and this is something your dog will pick up quite quickly.    When you’ve reached the peak of your dog training just one dont-do-that glance will be enough!

We don’t find that training is something to make a huge fuss about, it goes on around daily life and dogs learn to understand and behave themselves fairly quickly.   Some ingrained behaviour, such as biting and endless barking, is more problematic and takes longer to solve.   Keeping it fun and friendly and laid back is the answer, most behavioural problems sort out in a few weeks, sometimes with aggression and extreme nervousness it can take up to a year.   Suddenly you realise that the former problem dog has let all his cares fall away and life is good again.

Please help us to go on with our work rehabilitating the stray dogs, we never put any healthy dog to sleep but sometimes the only answer is patience.  We always need dog food, blankets, towels and bedding and if you can manage even a small donation that is greatly appreciated.    We have a standing order form and £2.00 per month is a great help.  Let us have your name and address and we’ll send you the form.   Many thanks.  [donate]