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16 January 2020

Keeping your dogs safe…

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Keeping your dogs safe…

Keeping our dogs safe
Increasingly, dogs are being stolen throughout the UK. You need only to take a look at Facebook to see distraught owners looking for help. Of course, some dogs are found but most aren’t. I, of course, feel for the owners who have ‘lost’ their dogs. However, prevention is always better than a cure. There are a number of things to consider when thinking about the security and safety of our canine companions.

For instance, is it sensible to leave your dog outside in the garden, unattended for long (or any) periods of time? I would suggest this is making it very easy for a stranger to steal your dog with ease. I see a dog, who is always in the garden with no humans about; the house in on a quiet lane – it would be very simple for me to take this dog if I had a mind to. So here are a few specific suggestions:

Do not put names on your dog, either on a tag, collar or a harness. This makes it simple for a stranger to use the dogs’ name to entice it away.
Do not leave dogs unattended in the street, no matter for how short a period. This, again, is an invitation for someone to take your dog. (I once saw a dog in an open hatch of a car, in an unlocked cage, just left while the owner went shopping).
Train your dog in the recall. This is essential. A dog with no recall is going to get lost; it is inevitable.
Do not leave your dog unattended in the garden, particularly the front garden.
Vary your dog walks. Keeping to a familiar pattern can make it easier for someone to take advantage of the situation.

I could go on but, you get the picture. By being a little more vigilant and thoughtful we can keep our dogs safer.

It can be, of course, a little inconvenient for us to change our habits in relation to our dogs. But, surely, it is worth it to keep our dogs safe?

6 January 2020

Dogs do it for kids (or how living with a dog when a child can lower the risk of Schizophrenia)

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Dogs do it for kids

(or how living with a dog when a child can lower the risk of Schizophrenia)

Given my interest in the impact of dogs on human mental health, I was very interested to read a recent study published by John Hopkins Medicine suggesting that living with a dog from an early age can lessen the risk of developing schizophrenia in later life.

I have, long believed that living with a dog can have, significant, beneficial effects on human health, both physically and mentally. This study would appear to support this in the types of cases identified by the researchers.

The potential, impact of living with a dog or a cat in early life was examined. Two, fairly common, mental health issues were considered – schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Robert Yolken MD and his colleagues at Sheppard Pratt Health System in Baltimore, US looked at how exposure to a pet cat of a dog during the early years of life, up to age 12 impacted upon a later diagnosis of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Researchers were surprised to find a significant reduction in the risk of a person developing schizophrenia when exposed to living with a dog at an early age. However, there no impact on bipolar disorder. The researchers also noted that living with cats had no impact on either condition.

The study was quite large and the full paper can be found here.

Work such as that described above convinces me that dogs can have a significant impact on human mental health, that is why I developed, with my wife (a mental wellbeing professional – First in the Q) Paw Support, an initiative working with Walnut Tree Health and Wellbeing to bring together rescue dogs and sufferers of mental health conditions that can benefit from canine companionship.

4 January 2020

Mental health in our dogs – a disturbing trend…

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Mental health in our dogs – a disturbing trend…

Increasingly, insurance companies are paying bills for dogs, diagnosed with mental health issues (as reported in The Sunday Times 29/12/2019).

Certainly, my behavioural studies and experience make me sceptical about attributing human mental health issues to dogs; such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression. I would agree with Daniella Dos Santos, the president of the British Veterinary Association who says ‘using the term ‘mental health’ is inappropriate for pets, as they are responding to environmental changes.’ Indeed, the owner and the dog featured in the Times article would appear to demonstrate this.

This owner had paid a Small Animal Hospital, £550 for a diagnosis of probable ‘anxiety-induced obsessive-compulsive disorder. The owner, actually, thinks the dog has agoraphobia. Again, a very dubious conclusion. The clue to her dogs’ problems comes from the owners’ statement about her dog ‘she is overindulged in everything and we have done everything we can think of to make her life easier.’ This dog is fed M&S chicken and sleeps on a memory foam mattress. You get the picture.

The dog has developed a twitching eye when worried or hungry, shakes and shifts from side to side while scratching her paws (this scratching is a form of repetitive behaviour known as a stereotypy). These are behavioural problems, probably, resulting from an owner not understanding dogs and anthropomorphising them. This is not uncommon, however then subscribing human mental health diagnoses to our dogs is not, in my opinion, helpful to the owner or the dog.

Daniella Dos Santos makes an obvious and important point; behavioural issues can often stem from physical conditions causing a dog discomfort or pain. She gives an excellent example of the dog becoming, seemingly, aggressive while being stroked. This was not a behavioural issue, it was simply the dog letting humans know it was in pain from an ear infection, therefore, uncomfortable when stroked. It is, clearly, important to have a dog checked for any physical or medical problems before proceeding to, potentially, expensive treatments that may not be necessary.

Of course, this is a, potentially, lucrative area. Some professionals may be tempted to reach inappropriate diagnoses, resulting in expensive ‘treatment’, more readily than others.

In summary, I would suggest owners learn to treat their dogs as dogs, not babies or humans in any way. It is important to fully understand the needs of your dog including general health, socialisation, routine, diet, exercise and, generally what it is to be a dog.

7 December 2019

Run away!…

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Run away!…

Fearful dogs are of particular interest to me. I see an awful lot of them. Often, owners are making the problem worse. Not deliberately of course, They are, simply doing things that reinforce the fearful behaviour. I saw another example of this today.

I met a very nice lady, again, today with her canine charges. Two were running free and two where on extending leads (a pet hate of mine). One of these dogs on the lead, a small terrier, had a ball in her mouth and was zigzagging, clearly desperate to be anywhere but where she was. The owner explained to me that she was scared of the noise, to be heard in the remote distance, of gunshots or farmers’ bird scarers in the fields.

The first thing to understand here is the acuity of a dogs’ senses. Their hearing is much more keen than humans. So, that distant noise, to her dog was much clearer and appeared closer to her. Her response because of her fear was to try to escape from it (fight or flight).

The extending lead was allowing this dog to try to escape from a perceived threat. As we continued with our walk, this dog continued with its’ efforts to escape, becoming more distressed as it did so. This behaviour had been allowed to persist for a number of years, indeed, sometimes the owner picked the dog up to comfort it (a compassionate, human action); entirely, the wrong response for the dog – this only serves to reinforce the fear this dog was feeling.

So, was there anything that could be done to help this dog? Of course. The thing to understand here is that a behaviour that has gone on for some time, a number of years in this case, can prove a little more difficult to deal with. However, in many cases, this just means it may take a little more time and effort to correct.

Clearly, this little dog, was in a state of distress, one that was being allowed to persist. It was important to interrupt this mindset and behaviour. In this case, I asked the owner to stop at one of the many park benches, sit down and shorten the dogs’ lead and to just relax. The response from this frightened little dog was almost immediate. The pulling on the lead stopped, the tail that had been tucked between the legs started to wag and she started to play with her ball. This took a couple of minutes of just sitting calmly and waiting. Nothing else.

In the future, this owner will be stopping regularly at park benches for a sit down if her dog is distressed. By the way, she had a spray collar alleged to calm her dog; this had zero effect. By, simply, understanding what the dog was doing and why, she was able to start to help her dog with her fearful behaviour.

In these types of cases the most important things for success are understanding and taking time to work with your dog. Often this will achieve good results. But, you have to stick with it.

Remember, if you have dogs with problems such as described here, the person to help is a qualified canine behaviourist. These are not training issues, they are behavioural problems.

26 November 2019

Mummy, mummy! Get me a puppy for Xmas!

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Mummy, mummy! Get me a puppy for Xmas!

Ho, ho, ho. It’s getting that time of year again. Families, overjoyed with the festive season think it’s a great time to get a dog. Although there are exceptions, most of the time I would say getting a dog at Xmas is a very bad idea. This is true, particularly for the poor dog.

I am a great believer in re-homing dogs and giving them a calm, happy environment to live in. However, homes, over the Xmas period are often far from calm, peaceful environments that are suitable to bring a new dog into. It doesn’t matter whether the dog is a puppy or rescued. Great care should be taken when homing a dog.

Over the Xmas period, there will be hundreds of dogs, young and older, finding themselves in new homes only to be taken to re-homing centres when the fun, festive period is over and the realities of having a dog sets in. A sad situation repeated every year. I realise this is an often repeated refrain but it is worth covering again and again until it gets through.

Why does this keep happening? It’s quite simply really. Dogs are a serious proposition and long term responsibility. They need homes that understand this and can commit to their new dogs needs including, love and affection, training, physical and mental wellbeing, exercise and happiness, in fact, being able to live as a dog in a human home. These are the basics that many dog owners fail to realise or achieve. I would suggest a dog is NEVER given as a present. They should be thought about by all family members before they are brought into a home.

Back to Xmas for a second. Try to imagine an adult dog or a puppy being brought into their new home during the festive period. They have been taken either from their mother or have been traumatised by previous owners and endured a rescue centre (most of whom do a great job) that is really not a place where they wish to be. These dogs are thrust into the hubbub of a home filled with strangers, some who come and go, frequently, parties, food, noise – you get the picture. For the dog, this is an extremely stressful and, often frightening time.

For a new dog to be able to settle into it’s new home it must be treated with respect, understanding, calmness and given time. This is just not going to happen over the Xmas period in most homes. We are, in fact, setting the dog up for failure and the inevitable visit to a rescue centre in many cases.

So, my advice is simple. If your family really want a dog, go visit a rescue centre after Xmas, take advice and find the right dog that needs a home. Don’t do it over the Xmas period. Don’t buy a puppy for your loved one. THINK, carefully about what a dog means and what they need.