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I remember so well the day Martus came into my life… In those days I was managing a vet clinic on Magnetic Island, and one of my less pleasant jobs was to euthenase feral cats trapped in the local rubbish dump. Then in came this huge black tomcat, with a baby possum clinging to him. I sedated him and removed the possum, and then we desexed him, and he moved in… And left several pound of dirt and fuzzy black hair on my bed end over the next 6 years!

Over the past few weeks, Martus started sneezing blood, and then one side of his face and head swelled out- most probably a tumour in his sinuses- and then, just the other day, I could see he was in distress, just not happy…

So… How do you know when it is time?

Sometimes it is easy, sometimes a little harder to know- animals don’t ’suffer’ with pain like we do- they just seem to accept it, and be. However- I know that (as long as you are not too attached to your pet- but more about that in a bit) you can nearly always tell when they reach that point- suddenly they will seem to be ‘not right’, or ‘not happy’. This can happen gradually, which may make it a bit harder to discern, or they may be going along ok one day, and then quite clearly NOT ok the next. Every pet is unique.

There are a few signs that it is definitely time though…

• When your pet stops eating altogether.
• When your pet can no longer get up to go to the toilet.
• When your pet is crying out in pain.
• Or… when you simply look at them and know it is time.

Take heed of these signs! And if you are not sure, please talk to your vet.

And now we will step back to the attachment issue…

Our pets have no fear of death- for them it is as natural as breathing.

It is usually us who have a fear of losing the unconditional love that our pets so freely bless us with. And sometimes this can make us keep our pets alive longer than perhaps we should. I also believe our pets love us so much that they will hang on through any amount of suffering for us.A good question to ask yourself is if you are willing to let your pet go. I encourage you to be willing to.

So- It’s time… What next?

Now you need to either take your pet to the vet, or have a vet come to your home, and gently put your good friend to rest. I prefer in home euthanasia, as it is so much less stressful for our good friends- since I started home visits, I have helped many a gallant old soul pass in the peace and love of their own home space.

Afterwards it is normal for you to be sad, and to grieve- our pets are members of our family! You may need to dig a grave, and bury your friend, or in some areas there is access to pet cremation and burial services. I find it is a lovely thing to have some sort of ritual or ceremony to celebrate the life of your good friend.

I also think it is a good idea to involve the whole family, kids if you have them. I believe that one of the greater reasons that pets share our lives is to teach us about life, and death. It’s a great opportunity to learn about the reality that we all must face one day. Some people avoid being there, or keep their children away… And whilst I honour their choice, my truth is that it is better to face, accept, and embrace the feelings of sadness, grief, and pain that come up- otherwise one tends to lock them inside, and this is not healthy.

What if I don’t believe in Euthanasia?

It’s ok to let old humans die naturally, so I can’t at all see how it can’t be alright for you to allow your old pet to do the same, as long as you make sure that adequate pain relief is provided. I actually think we are more compassionate with our pets, to be honest.

Life Goes on…

I always encourage people to consider getting another pet, especially if they only have one, and even more so if they are old and live alone. Who knows- if you believe in reincarnation, they might even come back again!

I hope you enjoy every minute of the time your pets share with you…

Until next time,

Dr Edward

This is my Dog- Pearl- when she was a big puppy- we had a LOT of fun together.

First Things First!

It might be worth reading my previous post about choosing a new pet.

When your new puppy arrives, it is a HUGE change for them- they have been happily living with mum, and their litter-mates, where everything is familiar. And then this strange smelling person arrives, and picks them up and takes them away to a totally strange place, sometimes where there is no other dog at all, sometimes where there is another dog who is very put out at this little intruder- or maybe there’s this huge, scary cat. And these people are starting to do puppy training stuff already, and he is missing his mum, and…

Imagine what it must be like for them! Pretty scary…

There are a few little things you can do which will help your new friend settle in.

• Make sure he has a safe haven, or a den, to retreat into- a crate, or a box, or sometimes just under the couch! It would be a great idea to ask the people you get him from to give you a cloth the puppies and mum have been using to sleep on, so there is something that smells like home.

• Find out exactly what he has been fed- and try to at least start with a familiar food- offering a little feed as soon as he gets home is a great way to make him feel at home. Make sure he has clean water as well.

• Be clear about the boundaries from day one- if he is going to be an outside dog, make sure you get him in the morning (to allow heaps of time to settle in). If he is to be an inside dog, plan ahead where you will sleep him- and remember that he might be small and cute now, but he will get a lot bigger. Have a place all ready for him to sleep. Be warned, he will most likely feel lonely, and yell for mum. Only go to him when he is quiet- No matter HOW long it takes. He will eventually run out of steam. If you want him in your bed- start NOW to teach him that YOU own the bed, and he must get off it when you ask. (I had one Veterinarian friend with a client who was owned by a small, white, fluffy dog- and if the dog got on the bed first, this lady slept on the floor! I kid you not…)

• Give him a hot water bottle in bed (not too hot, mind )- he will be used to snuggling up with something warm, and a ticking clock can be a great help also (it sounds like mum’s heartbeat).

• Give him plenty of healthy attention, and make sure you have plenty of good toys to play with. They will give him something to do when you are not available. Play is great bonding.

• Make sure you give him regular opportunities to go to the toilet- probably take him out every 15-30 minutes to start with. (And if he does make a mess, be kind to him!)

• DON’T give him attention all the time, especially every time he asks for it- You are the boss dog, and he needs to learn to respect your personal space from the very beginning! Turn away, ignore him until he goes out of your space and stops hassling- then give him the reward of your attention. (This is VERY important!)

The Most Important Thing…

Is to be kind, and patient. This little soul you have chosen to share your life has a huge learning curve with you, and he is NOT doing anything more than being a normal puppy when he bites your fingers, or he messes on your floor, or he chews up you good shoes, or… You should be getting the picture by now. Kind, gentle, firm teaching is the way to go, preferably reward based, rather than by punishment.

Socialization, and why it is VITAL to do this well!

Hopefully he will be between 8-10  weeks of age when you get him- the period between 8-12 weeks is a very important window, when puppies can easily get used to new things, and people. I advise taking your puppy everywhere you can at this time, meeting as many different people, dogs, cats, and places as is possible. It is also a great time to get into a puppy preschool, and start learning a bit about how best to teach your new friend all the things he needs to know to be a happy member of your family.

There is always the issue of  vaccination at this age- many vets will advise that you don’t take you puppy anywhere until they have had all of their shots. I know that the benefits outweigh the risk of catching something. Another thing you can do is to treat your puppies with Homeopathic Nosodes for the dangerous diseases- You can do this in addition to standard vaccination, and it seems to give an equivalent protection (and without the potential harmful side effects of vaccinations). You can see a blog report on the (very successful) use of homeopathic nosodes  to treat and prevent Leptospirosis outbreaks in Cuba here. This is with humans, it works just as well for pets!

I don’t vaccinate my pets at all, but I will discuss that thorny issue in a later post.

General Health Tips.

Make sure you feed a good quality food- as little processed food as possible (by this I mean especially tinned food, and also dry biscuits)- as much as possible raw, and maybe healthy home cooked food, or table scraps. NEVER cooked bones though. Worming every couple of weeks until 3 months old is advised.I worm my adult dogs little or not at all if they are healthy- though if you live in an area where hydatid tapeworms are present, you MUST worm your pet regularly.

Vaccination… is widely recommended- as mentioned before, you may wish to use Homeopathic Nosodes as a stand alone protective measure, or you may elect to use them in conjunction with vaccination, or you may simply choose to vaccinate your pet. Please NEVER vaccinate your puppy if they are in the slightest way unwell or off colour. Some places mandate vaccination- eg for rabies in the USA- Nosodes will help reduce adverse side effects, and there are other remedies one may use which help even more on this front. Please contact me for further information- and I will post at length around this topic in the future.

I recommend:

Revolution for flea and heart worm prevention.

Taking time every day to roll him on his back, get him used to you opening his mouth, and touching his paws (important if ever you need to give tablets etc)- if he doesn’t like it, be gently persistent, try using food rewards to help him learn…

Regular bathing.

Lots of exercise.

Training.

Fun games…

and most of all, lots of LOVE and ATTENTION!

Enjoy your pets!

Until next time, Dr Edward.