Be prepared to cover the costs of the animal is important. Guinea pigs aren’t the most expensive animal you can keep, in fact the running costs are very low, but they are there. If you can’t afford the food, a proper home and the pet insurance then you should think twice before taking one on. They can be kept indoors or outdoors, so again think about where you are going to keep your animal before buying or building its home.

Most of all, make sure that you really want a Guinea Pig before buying one. You are going to have to look after this animal for years, so please don’t get one if you think that six months later you are going to end up ignoring it, and the animal will end up in a state of neglect.

Well first of all, you should know that the microchip isn’t like something in your mobile phone or computer.  It’s actually about the size of a grain of rice.  As it’s planted under the surface of the skin it can’t move around and create health issues for your dog, and it’s a quick and relatively painless procedure for your veterinary to carry out.  Costing around £20 it’s not too expensive, especially as it’s a one-off fee, and once the chip is inserted you can move as many times as you want – all that changes is the information that’s held on the national PetLog database. 

Although you benefit from the peace of mind of knowing that if your dog wanders off, as dogs occasionally do, any police station, RSCPA rescue, or even veterinary will only need to scan the dog to find out where you are so that you can be reunited, your dog is the one who benefits most from the microchip.  A collar and ID tag is only good as long as it’s not removed or falls off.  If your dog is lost in a unfamiliar area, and becomes separated from his collar, that makes finding you almost impossible.  Anyone who does pick him up will take him to a dog rescue area where he faces an uncertain future as a stray, no matter how rounded and well fed he looks they won’t keep him forever. If you've paid out for pet insurance and your dog is injured, expensive treatment will not be given unless the vet knows his fees are going to be covered by the vet insurance company.If he has a microchip however, once they scan him (rather like the handheld scanners used at the supermarket) they will find that he does indeed have an owner, will contact you and organize how to get him back to you.  In short, that microchip could save his life.

So if you’ve got the £20, next time your pooch is at the veterinary’s office for his annual booster shot, seriously think about having a microchip inserted at the same time.  You may still keep the collar and tag for “accessories” but at least you’ll know that if he goes missing, it doesn’t matter if his collar is removed or not, the microchip is what will identify him as your dog and hopefully have him back to you within a relatively short period of time.

When you start to train a puppy you there are three main strategies that you need to apply that are similar to ones you would use when teaching toddlers.  These are:

Keep instructions simple

Keep instructions consistent

Keep your patience

With both toddlers and puppies the best instructions use only one word.  This means that the little one can more quickly associate that one word with the action that you require.  As both children and puppies usually want to make you happy, and so carry out your instruction, the more simple it is, the faster they’ll be able to make the connection and so deliver what you require. 

Instructions should be consistent.  If, for example, you are teaching your puppy to sit, then the instruction should always be “sit”.  Don’t confuse the issue by saying “please sit”, or “sit down”.  Even if it sounds as if you’re repeating yourself, keep the word the same.  A simple “sit” said in a controlled voice, as you press lightly onto him so that he’s in a sitting position will get him to realize that when he hears that word, he immediately sits down – thus getting him rewarded and praise.  This shows him that when he heard that word, and did the action, he made you happy and that’s what he wants.  At first it may not work every time, but if he doesn’t sit when you tell him, go back over the exercise with the same word and same controlled voice you first used.  Consistency is the key with both kids and dogs!

Patience is a primary quality that both parents and dog owners need to develop.  If you don’t have it, then you need to fake it!  Practice deep breathing exercises before a training session.  Don’t even think about trying to teach your puppy – or toddler – something if you are already stressed out.  They’ll both pick up on your agitated state and this will affect how they interact with you.  If you approach the training/teaching session calmly it’s much more likely to go well. 

Remember that both youngsters and puppies aim to please.  They want to do well.  They want your positive attention and praise.  If they aren’t getting what you’re trying to teach them, take a look at how you are trying to teach it – it could be something as simple as changing the tone of your voice that’s needed in order to see some degree of success.

Writer: I wrote this as someone believes in the owners responsibility towards their pets, a good owner provides a healthy diet, has bought things like pet insurance to cover medical expensis, and most importantly has trained their animal. The better behaved a dog, the more freedom you can give to that animal.

Most dogs love water so bathing them isn’t such an ordeal as regards getting them into the bath, but the process of actually getting down to business and getting your dog clean may be another issue completely!

The first thing that you need to do is prepare.The more prepared you are for bathing your dog, the easier it’s going to be.You need to prepare for getting your dog into the bath, then the bathing, and then the “after bath” process.

Before the Bath

Put the water into the bath tub so that there’s enough to cover the top of his paws.Your dog is likely to be more heat sensitive to hot water than you are so be careful to keep it tepid.

Place any items such as dog shampoo, anti-flea preparation, jug with bucket of clean tepid water for rinsing the shampoo off your dog within hand reach of where you’ll be standing when bathing the dog.

Put towels on the floor to protect against excessive water, and also ready to do a quick dry of the dog as soon as you’re finished.

Put down clean bedding for your dog, and add a towel so that when they return there after the bath they have a clean, dry place to rest and you can remove the towel soon afterwards so that their bedding isn’t left damp.

During the Bath

Bring your dog into the bathroom in a controlled way.Keep your voice low and steady when you talk to him.Once you’re both in the bathroom close the door so that he can’t get out before you’re ready to let him out (this stops him from racing around the house soaking wet).

Pick him up and place him so that he’s standing firmly in the water.Use the rinsing jug to dampen his fur.

Follow the directions on the shampoo or preparation that you’re using to clean his fur – being careful not to get any of the liquid around his eyes or in his ear canals.

Rinse off carefully and thoroughly – you may find that using a damp face cloth helps you get the shampoo off his face easier than trying to rinsing with water whilst avoiding it getting into in his eyes.

After the Bath

Depending on the type of coat your dog has, the drying process could be quick or lengthy.If they’ve got quite a lot of fur, and are happy to continue standing in the bath, towel dry the top of their coat, head and tail before lifting them out.

Once they’re out, gently towel-dry the excess water off their fur.Be warned, as soon as they’re out they’re going to shake themselves!Depending on the breed of dog you have, you may want to brush your dog’s fur when it’s still damp, or wait until it’s completely dry (check the grooming instructions for your particular dog breed for advice on what’s best).

When you’re satisfied that there’s not going to be a trail of water droplets in his wake as he runs through the rest of the house, open the bathroom door!

Feline diabetes is as hard to diagnose in cats without a medical practitioner as it is in humans.  There are many cats that have some form of the condition, but until their symptoms become more acute, it’s probable that their owner has no idea that there’s a potential serious health issue building up in their otherwise seemingly healthy cat.

As with human diabetes, the cat’s blood sugar levels are higher than they ought to be.  Once identified, this condition can be controlled and monitored by a veterinarian in partnership with the cat’s owner. 

So how do you know if your cat has diabetes?  Well the symptoms that are most likely to be seen are an increase in their both their need to drink, and urinate.  They may also have a poor appetite (more noticeable in a cat that was initially a good eater), their fur will be less healthy looking and they could look as though they’ve lost weight.  The problem is that you can easily link a weight loss to eating less (loss of appetite), and the urinating to the increase in drinking.  This is where it becomes tricky knowing when to take your cat to the veterinary to be checked out. 

The best time to do this would be whenever you see multiple symptoms occurring that “could” be attributed to a potentially serious health issue.  At the very least, ring your veterinary clinic and speak to someone about the way your cat is acting. They will either tell you to monitor some of your cat’s habits and ring them back in a few days, or have you take your cat to the clinic to be examined by the veterinary.

If you haven’t noticed the preliminary diabetes symptoms, then you’ll see the condition take hold of your cat’s energy levels and regularly vomit.  The most serious, and perhaps fatal, time is if your cat falls into a coma and this means you need to take the cat to a veterinary immediately.

Once diagnosed, you’re going to have to work to ensure your cat maintains the eating/medication plan that is prescribed by your veterinary, but by doing so you’re ensuring your cat lives a good life that’s not cut unnecessarily short because of a treatable medical condition.

There’s a wide variety of signs that your cat could be suffering from constipation, and many of them are also a symptom of something else being amiss with your cat’s health, but having a number of these signs together is a good indication that constipation could be at the root of your cat’s litter box misery.  If your cat seems to be spending longer than usual with his toilet visits, then you should be alert for any, or a combination, of the following:

Crying whilst on litter box
Straining whilst on litter box
No (or infrequent) bowel movements
Runny diarrhoea (this could be tinged with blood)
Vomiting
Signs of stomach pain or discomfort
Less, or no, appetite
Bad grooming habits but constantly licking anal area
Lack of energy

Having identified that your cat is constipated you need to contact your veterinary so that they can examine the cat and see how big of a problem it is.  It could be that it’s a one-off occurrence that can be cleared up with some form of medication and then adjusting his diet if necessary to ensure it doesn’t happen again.  Or it could that the bowel is so packed up that the veterinary much do a procedure to help clear the obstruction.  Once clear you will be given advice on a diet plan that will help ensure that this doesn’t reoccur. 

Occasionally however it happens that the constipation isn’t the diagnosis.  It could be that the cat is suffering from a much more serious condition such as feline urinary tract disease (FLUTD), and this is why it’s important that you have the veterinary look at your cat rather than try to handle the constipation yourself.  Other problems that would give similar symptoms as those related to constipation include: abscesses (especially around the anal area), tumours, injuries – as well as weight related ones such as lack of fibre in the cat’s diet and not getting enough exercise.  Hair balls can also create problems if the hair is ingested as this can become matted and create an obstruction.

As in humans constipation can start off as an annoyance but quickly escalates to a painful crisis which requires some form of treatment to release.  As your cat’s guardian you need to be on the look out for the signs that create this problem, and then get veterinary attention for your cat as soon as you can.

Hay and Grass

A horse has an extremely small stomach compared to other animal, which is only suitable for digesting a fairly large amount of grass and hay. Mold-free hay must be available to the horse around the clock.

Water

Naturally, horses need water too. Be careful though after a ride or exercise. An overheated horse should not be allowed to drink fast or a lot at once, or you run into danger of having to treat a colic. Allow the horse smaller amounts with a few minutes in between until he has cooled down.

Many Smaller Meals during the Day

Because of the fact that the a horse’s stomach is so small, he can’t digest much at once. This is the reason why the horse needs to be fed more than once daily. The recommendation is 3 times a day or more, in addition to the hay and grass.

Grains

Many horses do not need to be fed extra grains, because it is high in calories and fat. Muscle problems as well as joint diseases can develop if too much grains are fed. Best is to consult your veterinarian to make that decision on individual basis.

Amount to Feed

3 % of the horses body weight daily in hay and/or other feed.

Salt

One of the most important supplements a horse needs is a salt block. Of course this makes theneed for fresh water even more important.

Feed Slowly

Did you know that horses can’t burp nor vomit? This is what makes them vulnerable for a colic. Feeding a horse too much or switch feeds too fast, and you put your horse into danger. The same goes for letting your horse gorge itself outside after a winter in the barn. Remember: a colic can be fatal!

Exercise

Exercising your horse on regular basis will keep him in good shape physically as well as mentally. This ritual will also strengthen the bond between you and your horse.

Travel

As already mentioned above, switching feed too fast can lead to a fatal colic. That also goes for water. If you have to travel with your horse, take enough local water and feed with you so you can make a slow and gradual switch and enjoy your trip.

Jennifer has emailed and asked if we can improve the vet insurance page.
The current design is working really well, so why they are trying to… I know I know, must remember I'm being paid for this, nothings ever going to change anyway, aye!?

Cats are curious, and even though they’re reputed to always fall on their feet as well as have 9 lives, there are still times when you need to step in an apply some degree of first aid to a cat that’s got itself into some kind of mess.  Although most times you should at least ring your veterinary practice and speak to either the vet or his/her assistant, having a first aid kit at the ready means you are prepared to deal with anything that needs immediate attention until you can transport kitty to a place she can receive proper medical attention.

Keep a sturdy box in an easy to reach place in your home that contains your feline first aid kit.  This should be far enough out of reach to stop your children from using it on their dolls, but close enough to hand for you to grab if your cat has an accident.  It should be easy to open and you should be able to take the items out of the box with one hand (whilst holding your cat with the other!)  Inside the lid of the box tape the phone number of not only your veterinary practice, but also a 24-hour 7-day a week practice within your area so that you know you can always get medical advice for your cat when it’s needed.  Periodically (at the time of your cat’s annual injections for example) check that these numbers are still valid and if not, make sure you update them.

The first thing you should have in your cat’s first aid box is a towel.  This will have two purposes, it will not only keep your cat warm if she’s going into shock, but it will also shield you from defensive claws whilst you administer any treatment that’s required.

Other things that you should keep in your box are:

Bandages (both 2.5cm and 5cm gauge variety)
Tape for securing the bandage
Cotton wool
Gauze pads for stemming any bleeding
Blunt edged scissors
Tweezers
Rectal thermometer
Silver nitrate pencil (useful if you draw blood from a nick when claw trimming)
Eye wash
Fur ball treatment
Tick remover (if you live, or are holidaying, in an area that has ticks)

You should also have a small booklet of how to treat emergency first aid situations such as bleeding and poison ingestion so you know the steps you can take to prepare your cat for transfer to your veterinary’s practice.

As with first aid on humans, this is not meant to take the place of proper veterinary care for your cat, but it does allow you the security of knowing if your cat does have an accident you do have some form of kit available that you can quickly get hold of and so try to help your cat as soon as the incident occurs.

Christmas is a great time of year, and if you’ve got children it’s also a time of great excitement.  However, if you’ve got a cat, it’s also a time when you need to be extra vigilant so that you don’t inadvertently put your cat at risk from some of the Christmas traditions that seem harmless.

A beautiful Christmas tree is one of the most visual signs of the coming celebration, but to a cat it’s a dazzling array of sparkling toys to be played with.  Your cat will stalk the various baubles and try to knock off anything that’s dangling temptingly down.  The lower branches should therefore be free of anything that’s expensive and fragile as you can expect to put anything that’s at this level back onto the tree almost daily!

The tree itself needs to be secured from both the ceiling and the wall behind it – some parcel string and small hooks should be enough to withstand a probably assault by an active cat who attempts to climb right up the centre of it!  Tinsel should be firmly attached to the tree branches at both ends, and none of the light wires should be accessible to curious paws.  Finally, avoid the string tinsel as this can seriously, if not fatally, injure any cat that swallows it.

Gift wrapping is another source of potential hazards for a cat owner.  When you’re wrapping your parcels keep an eye on what your cat’s doing.  Make sure that he doesn’t start chewing tape, or curling ribbon that you’re using to dress up your parcels.  When it comes to packages that you are intending to put under the tree, don’t use curling ribbon at all – this is just too much temptation and your cat will shred your beautifully gift wrapped parcel in no time, and could even end up at the vets if he swallows some of the ribbon or tape and it gets stuck.  Never be tempted to wrap anything that contains catnip and place it under (or worse, in) the tree.  

Cats can smell catnip anywhere and they’ll dig with their claws through all the other gifts until they find the source of that wonderful smell!  Keep their gifts in a drawer that they can’t get into until it’s time to open them – think of them as toddlers who don’t understand the idea of waiting for the right time, or the fact that they shouldn’t destroy other packages to find their own!

On Christmas Day make sure that the cat isn’t playing with any dangerous gift wrap or packaging that comes from the gifts, and make sure that the turkey bones are disposed of securely so that the cat isn’t tempted to look for them.

Cats are both playful and inquisitive by nature, and Christmastime is a fuel for both of these traits so keep the above tips in mind and minimize the scrapes your feline friend can get himself into this year!