Although he’s relatively young, Jack Spratt suffers from arthritis. It’s because he puts so much pressure on his legs because of his disability – he lost one of his front legs when he was a puppy and suffered breaks to his pelvis and a hind leg. He can have painkillers prescribed by the vet […]
Biscuit’s kids are doing well and love to snuggle up together. They are suckling milk from their mother but when they are not feeding they spend most of their time asleep. At this stage, only days old, they have a lot of growing to do and while they can easily stand and follow mum […]
Dogs need water to maintain their health. Keeping their fluid levels constant is essential, sometimes when they are unwell they don’t drink so much and become dehydrated. How can you tell? Pull the skin up on the back of your dog’s neck – if it’s loose and doesn’t spring back straight away […]
Some cats, like Della, are naturally laid back and relaxed in almost every circumstance. This permanent sanctuary resident has an easy going and confident nature and nothing seems to stress her. A great many cats are prone to anxiety however – going to the vet, illness and even minor changes can upset them. […]
Most dogs love getting into the car, it means outings, walks and good times. Others, like the Miss Whippets, don’t like car journeys at all, at an early age they were invariably sick. True motion sickness is rare in dogs, the problem is anxiety and apprehension. It’s a strange experience for them […]
This hen is a Warren and will always lay a pale brown egg. The colour of the egg is determined by the breed although many people think that free range hens lay brown eggs and intensively kept hens lay white eggs – this is not so – the way they live has nothing to […]
Our lovely golden oldie Tortie has recently had a very sore eye and this is a fairly common condition in cats that go outside. It might be caused by a fight with another cat, an allergy, something in her eye (a grass seed?) or an infection the cat has caught. Eye troubles should never […]
Chickens make delightful pets with the added advantage that they’ll lay you an egg for your tea. Whilst you have to learn how to look after them, there is nothing too difficult about their care. You can either study the different breeds and select a certain type – large, small, fluffy, speckled – […]
When you get a new kitten the first instinct is to rush out and buy lots of goodies for the new ‘baby’. Is this really necessary though? Kittens do need a den of their own but improvising one is best. We find that it’s the more sedate older cats who like the […]
We found a tick on Rackham’s ear last week. It wasn’t easy to spot because it was grey and blended in really well. Rackham likes to go out ‘wild-wooding’ so he is a cat who is especially at risk from these nasty parasites. It’s possible any pet to pick them up though […]