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Pet New Years resolutions – part 2

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Pet

Image by The Paw Company

Pet New Years resolutions – part 2

Your pets can be healthier and happier in 2024 with some or all of these pawsome pet new year’s resolutions!

A new year brings new goals and more than 300 days of opportunity for you and your pet to bond, develop healthier habits and discover new ways to live a full life. Your pet can live a better tomorrow with your help. An important first step is to avoid becoming overwhelmed thinking you need to make big changes overnight. Baby steps in the right direction are the way to go. The important thing is to make a plan and move steadily forward.

Re-publication: Originally published 11 January 2023

TRY A NEW ACTIVITY, LOOK AT THINGS FROM A NEW ANGLE OR GO ON AN ADVENTURE

You see so much more of the world compared to the animals in your care. To them, you, your family and your home are their world. Let them see more! Do you have an adventurous dog breed? Or a curious cat? Try a new activity with them. Find something you both love doing. Many restaurants are now offering dog-friendly seating areas and during the off-season, more beaches are open to dogs.

INCORPORATE MORE PLAY AND FUN TIME

Besides being fun, playing has a vital role in their development. It promotes confidence. If they are confident, they tend to be less anxious or fearful. You should also play breed-specific games including scent & track, eye & stalk, chase, grab-bite, kill-bite, possess, dissect, and consume. Resolve to get at least one new toy and play with your pet, even just 5 minutes a day. For cats, you can also buy a new scratching post or build a new cat tress. Most dogs love car rides.

SCHEDULE A WELLNESS CHECK-UP WITH YOUR VET AND IMPROVE YOUR PET’S HEALTH

  • Regular appointments are so important for ensuring that your animals enjoy many happy and healthy years. It can help detect any potential problems early. So, consider adding more wellness appointments to your New Year’s resolution list, but do at least one a year.
  • Make sure your necessary vaccinations are up-to-date.
  • Around the age of 8, their wellness and nutritional needs can require fine-tuning every 4 to 6 months.
  • In older animals, it’s very important to review weight, muscle tone, joint range of motion, diet, supplement protocol, and exercise habits at least semi-annually.
  • Through a healthy diet, exercise, enrichment and keeping your home safe and toxin-free, their health can improve drastically.

SEEK MORE NATURAL WAYS TO SUPPORT YOUR PET’S HEALTH

‘Integrated’ health care for domestic animals can combine the best of conventional Veterinary medicine, alongside diet and nutrition, supplements, herbal and homeopathic formulas, physiotherapy and acupressure and acupuncture. All of which can improve our pet’s quality of life.

Schedule an appointment with a natural health care practitioner to see how a more natural approach to your pet’s health care could benefit them this year…… and for every year in the future.

ADD YOUR PETS TO YOUR WILL

What is the immediate and long-term plan for your pets if you die today? Are they included in your will? Will they be taken care of? It is important to list specific instructions in your will! Is there someone in your town who will be responsible to take care of your pets in case of an emergency? You can also LEAVE A LEGACY, by donating part of your estate to an animal shelter.

Pet

Image: pexels

MICRO-CHIP AND REGISTER (OR UPDATE) YOUR PET’S MICROCHIP & ID COLLAR INFO

If your pet doesn’t have a microchip, get one now! There are affordable options and it drastically improves the chances of reuniting your pet with you if they get lost. You have to register your details on a database (preferably more than one) so it can be linked to the microchip number. Otherwise, the microchip means nothing. Make sure your details are up-to-date if you moved or changed numbers. Have a recent photo ready in case they get lost.

CLEAR OUT OLD TOYS & GET CREATIVE BY MAKING SOME NEW ONES

Take a fresh look at their toy collection and stop holding on to old, tatty, and often germ-infested pet toys. Now’s the perfect time to do a good clean and clear and to give your pet something fun and new to play with. Choose safe toys made of natural materials and clean them regularly.

Other things to toss as shared by Bark & Whiskers:

  • Toss this: Retractable leash | Replace with this: 6-foot flat leash
  • Toss this: Plastic food and water bowl | Replace with this: Stainless steel, porcelain or glass food and water bowls
  • Toss this: Old, stinky and ill-fitting collar | Replace with this: New collar
  • Toss this: Dull nail trimmers | Replace with this: Freshly sharpened or new nail trimmers, or a battery-operated rotary tool (e.g., a Dremel)
  • Toss this: Broken or chewed-up toys | Replace with this: Repaired or new nontoxic toys

SCHEDULE SOME DAILY DIY GROOMING TIME

Grooming is important to keep the coat shiny and healthy. Like playtime, grooming is something that most pets look forward to and it’s a bonding activity. Grooming your pet is also a great way to notice if something is off. Make sure their coat/skin is in good condition, nails are trimmed, eyes and ears are clean as well as maintaining good dental hygiene.

Your pets didn’t have a choice when they came to stay with you and since you chose to have them, it is your responsibility to meet their every need! Next week we will continue with the final part of this three-part series on the pet new year’s resolutions. Do better for your pets in 2024!

Do you have a New Year’s resolution for your pet?

WHEN YOU KNOW BETTER, DO BETTER!

Source: The Bulletin

Filling Those Stockings

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Filling those stockingsDo you want to add a stocking for your Bully on the Christmas Mantle? Not sure what to fill it with?
There is nothing as rewarding as watching your adopted Bully enjoy their very first Christmas with your family. Especially if they have their very own stocking filled with interesting goodies to enjoy.

We thought it would be a good idea to list some items that you can possibly get (or make) your Bulldog, that are stimulating, fun and will keep them busy for days to come. The most common, and perhaps easiest, to find stocking fillers are items easily bought from your local vet shop, pet shop or even grocery store. These include plush toys, squeaker toys, indestructible balls, store bought dog treats or dental sticks.

You may even want to add a comfy blanket or maybe some rope toys, a new harness, or a Christmas themed outfit. These would be things
most people think of when they consider making a doggy stocking.  But if you know your dogs and what they like, it truly becomes so easy to buy or make them something more unique.

It all comes down to what your dog enjoys. If you have a dog that enjoy mentally stimulating games and toys, then consider treat puzzle toys or a snuffle mat that will force him to use his nose to find his favorite treat. Snuffle mats can easily be made at home if you don’t mind spending a few hours with some old cut off material.

Another popular item for many dogs is an empty plastic bottle. Quick and easy – just remember to remove the cap completely so they don’t chew and swallow it. You can even add a few stones in there if they like noisy toys (this one is to be played with under supervision, of course, and removed once done playing).

Licker mats are also amazing! You can smear anything yummy on there and it will keep them busy for ages.

Other items for bullies to consider is a good nose butter and paw soother to take care of their paw pads. The options are endless – sometimes we just need to think outside the box.

Source: English & French Bulldog Rescue SA

Fish or feline? How to choose the right-sized pet for your home

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The dachshund is becoming more popular – partly because they are a good fit for our increasingly cramped dwellings. But how much space do animal companions actually need?

They were once bred for flushing out badgers, now the sausage dog is becoming popular because it’s an ideal fit for small flats. According to the Kennel Club, there were 9,000 new registrations last year, up 40% from 2015 (raising concerns about the spinal problems the breed can suffer from, and unscrupulous breeders). It has partly been driven by fashion – dachshunds have been regularly used in advertising, and popularised by celebrity ownership – but also because homes are getting smaller. While the first question of pet ownership should always be: “Am I the right person for this pet?” – rather than the other way around – it may be worth rethinking how much space, or not, pets need.

Chickens

You don’t need a farm or smallholding to keep chickens. Although they would be happier with as much space as possible to roam, the recommended minimum for a chicken run is one square metre, and preferably two, per hen. Chickens like company, and three is recommended for a small garden.

Goldfish

Once considered an easy first pet, goldfish need more than a bowl and a few fish flakes. Bowls are a terrible choice – they are too cramped, oxygen-poor and basically mean the poor fish is swimming around in its own filth. It is a myth that goldfish grow to “fit” the tank, but the small fish you get from a pet shop will get bigger (up to 30cm) and they need space. They are also social, so they need friends – and therefore even more space. The It’s Not Just a Fish campaign group suggests a tank that is a minimum 120cm long for fancy varieties of goldfish.

Cats

It is possible, though not necessarily recommended (unless they have a medical problem or disability), to keep cats indoors. The RSPCA recommends indoor cats have access to several rooms, including places to climb, stimulating toys and lots of interaction to stop them getting bored. They will also need enough exercise to stop them putting on unnecessary weight.

Rabbits

There has been a recent trend for keeping indoor rabbits, but the Rabbit Welfare Association and Fund stresses that while they can make good house pets, it is not a simple undertaking. At least two rabbits (they like company) will need space – minimum 3m by 2m, perhaps the size of an entire room – which will need to be rabbit-proofed (no electric wiring or poisonous house plants they could chew, for example). Lots of toys should be provided, but they will also like to chew anything in sight, from furniture to door frames.

Source: The Guardian