Sherri's Helpful Hints

Dog Hints and Tips

"Vicks" spread on wooden furniture stops puppies chewing.

For young puppies in a new home, place a warm hot water bottle under a blanket and a radio or clock for company.

Dilute dog shampoo with water in an empty squeezy bottle, this way it lasts longer and goes through the coat easier. Start at shoulders and work backwards, leaving the head until last as it is this area which makes them shake.

To ease an upset stomach, put a little warm live yogurt and a drop of honey into bowl and this will help line the stomach.

Spayed female dogs can "leak" and cause a smell. A pinch of bicarbonate of soda on food stops the smell.

If your animal suffers from fleas, a natural remedy is garlic in food (a tiny amount of garlic powder sprinkled on food will suffice) as the fleas don't like the odor emitting through the pores.

To clean dogs' teeth put a baby's gum cleaning brush on your finger, dip it into bicarbonate of soda and rub on teeth.

To administer pills to a dog, sit it down, put a little butter on the pill, place inside the side of the mouth (at the back of the tongue) and hold jaw closed with head in a vertical position. The animal has no option but to swallow and the pill slips down easily.

For getting dogs to swallow pills: fold pill up in a small piece of cheese. The dogs swallow the cheese whole, take it happily, and you don't have to force the pill in! Works like a charm every time.

To remove dog hairs after bathing, leave wet hairs in bath for about thirty minutes, then they will wipe off easily with a dry cloth.

A trash bag makes an ideal apron when washing dogs.

If your pet suffers an insect sting slice a raw onion and apply to the sting as soon as possible, this takes the "sting" out of it and calms the pet.

ANIMAL SECURITY

It is essential that pet owners carefully consider the safety of their pets. Below is a list of some essential security precautions you should take. This list is not complete and extra precautions should be taken as and when the circumstances require.

Dogs :
You should never leave your dog alone in the car. It can cause distress if the dog is left for long periods which could be fatal in hot weather, and secondly, your dog is a target for opportunist thieves. Pet Detectives have had many reported cases of stolen dogs which were left alone in a car.

Do not tie your dog up outside shops. Tying your dog up outside a shop leaves them in danger of being stolen by opportunist thieves. Many dogs are stolen in this way.

Never kennel a dog for extended periods in the garden. If you do so, it is a must to ensure they have adequate security and are provided with food and water.

Your dog should be microchipped. A microchip is a very small chip, about the size of a grain of rice inserted between the shoulder blades. The cost of microchipping your animal is minimal, about $40.00 and includes life long membership to the pet log register and is incredibly important. All rescuers and dog catchers (depending on where you live) carry scanners, so any animal that is found by them will reveal a 12 digit number which can be rung into pet log (24 hours a day). This number will link to your own details, linking the lost pet to you. Further details on microchipping can be found on the Pet Detectives website, or you could enquire with your local vet.

Cats: Microchip your cat! Microchipping means one scan of an animal will link your pet to you via the pet log and enable your pet to be returned safely to you. If a pet is found and not microchipped, it is virtually impossible to link that animal to yourself.

If you have your cat from a kitten, keep them indoors as long as you can up to the age of 1, this is well after males have been neutered and will ensure he is a home loving cat and uninterested in straying, where he may get lost or hit by a car.

Never leave your cat outdoors when you are not at home.

It is important your pet always has access to water and shelter.

Always ensure a cat's collar is elasticized so if it gets caught he can escape without injury.

Warning - do not use Febreze on your animals. This product is for taking odours out of fabrics. It says on the bottle it will take out animal smells but does not say it is harmless to animals.