CANINE DEPRESSION

Do dogs suffer from depression? You bet they do! This is one of those- morning- walk topics of discussions that arise every so often. People will say "Oh! Ditzy is a bit depressed today and I don't know why?"

 I can hear you saying “Don’t be ridiculous! That’s not possible! How can a dog get depressed when it has a five -star life style with  every wish taken care of by an adoring and indulgent owner?”

 

It is not uncommon for pets to get the blues once in a while. Just as humans get depressed, dogs can be affected  by winter blues, same old kibble, illness, change of atmosphere in the home, moving furniture around, loss of someone they love. All these things can make a dog feel insecure and depressed. Don’t worry! Its usually short term. The pouty, mopey, lethargic behaviour doesn’t go on for very long, so no need to start re-naming your pet Gloomy.

The classic  symptoms to look out for are tail between its legs, following you around, off food, not interested treats or in a walk, ( even if you rattle its lead in front of it), doleful looks to make you worry and feel guilty, sleeping more than usual and no bounce. Nothing is of interest and they behave like they have given up on living.

*Tip

Talk to your dog in a gentle  cheerful voice while stroking it. Then give it a cuddle but don’t reward the moping.  Take five minutes and have a little game by tickling your dog and lots of laughing. Once you are up beat, the dog will find this infectious and will think “Oh! OK then, life isn’t so bad after all.” Put the fun back into its life. Leave the radio on when you go out then the dog doesn’t feel alone all day. Dogs are pack animals and being left on its own is like punishment for some dogs. I always organise a 'play date' at my house for any depressed or sad dogs. Just being with other dogs perks them up no end.

Change the routine a little by going on different walks so that they can get stimulus from new blog sites and pee mails. Change its food for a few days – introduce yummy things like chicken or tinned sardines - we all get bored of eating the same thing day in and day out. (I know I get bored of eating the same thing every day!)

One drop of Bach Flower Rescue Remedy twice a day  for a couple of days, given in the side of its mouth, or in the food, is a miracle worker  because this perks up the dog, brings back its confidence and  immediately changes its attitude. (By the way dont listen to people who say its not good because it has alcohol in it. You would have to pour 1000 little phials of the stuff into the dog's mouth to cause drunkenness.)

The other good depression-lifter is a product called Zyklene. This is dried mother's milk that is often prescribed by vets because it is a good calming agent for nervous, depressed, aggressive and frightened dogs. You can get it from the vet or on the internet from MedicAnimal.com.

Enjoy your week, here's a  cute little video clip to make you chuckle.

 

Thought for the week
"Anyone who has never tasted shampoo, has obviously never given a dog a bath"

Dawn (")

Its flea time in the city ....

IT'S FLEA TIME IN THE CITY .........

Sign in a Chinese Pet Store: "Buy one dog, get one flea."

The first signs of fleas on your dog is constant scratching behind the ears, biting the base of the spine and furiously playing the banjo under the armpits. Other signs are little bits of black grit on the body which feel like coal dust. In extreme cases, red patches and coat loss. Flea bites are painless and by themselves aren’t always itchy but these days cats and dogs are sometimes allergic to flea saliva. One bite can trigger a scratching frenzy that makes their skin raw and infectious. Fleas live in nice, warm places, especially carpeted centrally-heated homes. When a dog walks by their vibrations activate the fleas who probably yell “Dinner” in flea-speak as they hitch a ride. 

Everyone says the same thing "But I put Program and Advantage on them regularly so how can he get fleas?"  During warm sunny days, the fleas lurk in grass or carpets and the moment they sense a warm body going past, upsa-a-daisy and on they jump. They then lurk along the skirting boards and corners of every room that the dog visits.  

*Tip

Vacuum the house from top to bottom; wash the pet’s bedding and run oil of lavender or anything with citronella along the skirting boards and in the pet bed.  I find that putting anti flea powder dribbled along the skirting boards and gently brushing it in helps to keep the eggs from hatching.  Oil of Olbas also works brilliantly as it is eucalyptus based and quite strong smelling. It’s always good to run some oil of lavender along the dog’s back. It’s quite soothing and the smell calms the dog down enough to stop the scratching.

Then buy a special flea repellent shampoo from the pet shop and give your dog a thorough dousing. That usually kills off the flea eggs and flushes them down the plug hole but you haven’t won the battle yet. This can go on for 3 weeks or more.

Drive off the fleas by feeding your pet garlic tablets and Brewer’s yeast in their food. This makes their skin repellent to a high flying flea.

Spotting a flea?

Fleas are parasitic insects. They are very small but can be observed with the naked eye; once they reach adulthood they are usually 1.5 to 3.3mm (1/16 – 1/8”) long. They are brownish black color, with no wings. They serve no purpose in the food chain except to cause their hosts — your cat or dog — as much discomfort, illness, and worms as possible.

Fleas cannot fly, but they can leap incredible distances for such a small insect. In fact they are the world’s best leapers according to their size. They can make vertical leaps of seven inches (18 cm) and thirteen inches (33 cm) horizontally. A flea can sense a warm body as soon as it comes into jumping distance and if there isn’t a dog around, a juicy human ankle will do just as well.

Inspection time. 

Part the fur with your fingers and you may spot  a little black creature scurrying fast through the fur, that's the enemy.  And if your fingers feel a sand -like texture on the dog's skin, that's the eggs  resembling black grit.  Stand the dog on a white cloth or piece of paper and then run the comb through the fur.  The cloth or paper will have bits of black grit on it. (See pic above). These are flea eggs. Crush one and it goes red. That's blood!  Put them into a bowl of clean water and they turn red. That's blood!  These are signals for  the speedy eviction of fleas and its unborn offspring. (Bet you're feeling quite squeamish and itchy now about the whole idea of fleas on your dog!)

Shampooing the dog is a must, followed by washing all the dog’s blankets, cloths, bean bags and dusting out the basket outside the house. Then give the home a thorough vacuuming. I’m afraid getting rid of fleas takes a few days and needs a strict and disciplined hygiene regime of Hoovering the rooms every single day for at least 10 days.

I keep up a maintenance programme in my house by running flea powder along the skirting boards, edges of carpeted steps and along furniture legs. So far, touch wood,I have been a no-flea zone. Fingers crossed!

Nothing to do with fleas ........but here is the saddest video ever. Get a box of tissues ready because you wont be able to stop the tears at the end. It's heart warming when strangers take the time to show kindness to an animal.

"Friendship isn't about who you have known the longest.
It's about those who came and never left your side ........."

Ta ta until the next blog!
Dawn (")