Author: Andrew

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Why do dogs chase their tail?

polar bear

Have you ever had this zoo experience? It takes a careful and patient observer. You’re enjoying watching an animal moving around their exhibit (after all, many animals are asleep or aren’t even visible) when suddenly you realise “hang on, this animal is doing exactly the same thing over and over again”?

This is stereotypic behaviour and it’s the bane of every zoo. Here’s the polar bear at Seaworld on the Gold Coast in 2007 who would do this for hours on end.

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Myth 31: You can hold a cat by the scruff of the neck

holding cats properly

I received this lovely message the other day from some clients who moved with their cats to Europe.

message about scruffing cats

I remember seeing their two cats for the first time.  I was told one of the cats was ferocious and required sedation to examine. I finished examining the easier cat, gave him his shots and put him back and said, “OK, now for the difficult patient”.

The owner says, “That was the one you just did.” There was a mix up and I had got the names muddled. It could have ended so badly.

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Help! My Dog Has Heat Stroke

heat stress dog

‘At A Glance (Details Below)’ Emergency Care

How To Treat A Dog With Heat Stroke

  1. Move the dog from the hot area and provide water if the dog can drink
  2. Wet the dog with cool water and apply cold packs to the neck and groin
  3. Travel to your vet as quickly as safe to do so; call them on the way

Now dive deeper.

Every dog owner needs to know how easily heat stroke can harm their dog.

Heat exhaustion is caused by excessive body temperature. Anything over 39C is abnormal but heat stroke typically occurs at over 41C.

Why are dogs at risk of heat stress?

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Myth 29: The runt of the litter

puppy choice

Runt. What a powerful word. It instantly brings to mind images of poor, sickly puppies destined to never be as healthy as their brothers and sisters.

What if the whole idea of the runt of the litter is a myth?  Well that’s what I think, anyway. My 20 years tell me you can take home the smaller puppies without having poorer health, as long as you follow a few basic rules…

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What koala cuddling can teach us about pets

woman holding koala

Having pets is such a rewarding part of being human. But have you ever thought how it is we can keep animals as pets? Why are some animals great as pets and others often a complete disaster? What’s going on? Today I want to explain why a small group of mammals are literally made to be our pets and why you should think very carefully before owning any others.

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Bathing Dogs: How Often To Bath, How To Do It

dog sponge bath

“I thought you can’t bath a dog more than once a month”. We hear this almost every day when we tell someone how the right bathing strategy can help their dog’s skin (read how to bath dogs later). This has to be the most common and widely held myth of all and it deprives dogs of a great way to soothe their itchy skin. However, there is an element of truth to it.

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Myth 25: Heelers, Kelpies and Collies are crazy

“Watch out. Those dogs are crazy, they bark and dig and destroy things.” This is what Daisy’s owner was warned when he told his friends he wanted a heeler.

Luckily for him and Daisy he didn’t listen and followed his instincts. And he is now able to enjoy one of the closest and happiest dog-owner relationships you will ever see. Read how he did it.

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Dealing with the loss of a pet

devon rex cat

Going through the grief of losing my beautiful old cat made me understand how we shouldn’t go through this alone. To avoid thinking about the death of our pets is natural but it leaves us terribly unprepared when the moment arrives. I know these discussions will be unwelcome to many and understand if they create feelings of anger or distress, for which you have my sincerest apologies.

Here are my suggestions to help you or others through this terrible time. Remember that everyone’s individual experience of grief is different and not all these will apply to each case. And it will get better.

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Myth 24: You feed a dog by following the instructions

dog given food

hamish the cavalier king charles spaniel
Are Dog Food Instructions Accurate?

I’m going to start with an admission; my dogs have been fat. This will come as a relief (and possibly a delight) to those thousands of dog owners over the years to whom I’ve discussed their dogs’ weight. Today I’m going to explain why this happens to all of us, how to judge your dog’s weight and how to decide how much to feed them.

The guidelines written on dog foods are almost never right for your dog.

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Help! My Dog, Cat Or Rabbit Is Lost

stray dog

‘At A Glance (Details Below)’ Emergency Care

If Your Pet Is Missing In Adelaide

  1. Check your pet’s microchip registration details are up to date
  2. Notify the RSPCA and Animal Welfare League
  3. Ring the nearby local councils and vets
  4. Post a recent picture to the lost pets Facebook pages
  5. Print fliers, post a free Gumtree lost ad and consider a paid Facebook ad

Now dive deeper.

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What Causes Bad Breath?

dog dirty teeth

Do you have a friend with ‘cat breath’ or ‘dog breath’? We joke about it, sometimes tell them off for it, perhaps even suspect them of eating something foul.

The truth is that bad breath doesn’t come from the stomach and it isn’t just from the food. Instead it’s often the only sign of a painful dental problem.Thankfully, more and more owners now bring their pets in just because their breath smells bad.

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Myth 21: Tea Tree Oil is good for my dog’s skin

toyah the boxer

This is Toyah’s gift to all dogs with itchy skin. She had mild dermatitis for a while and her owners quite rightly thought a bath would help. They found a nice-looking soothing shampoo with tea tree oil and gave her a good clean. Instead of getting better, her dermatitis got dramatically worse, and three days later when she came to us her skin was looking angry and sore.

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Myth 20: My dog is too old for surgery

mia old malamute

We’ve known Mia since she came bounding in to the clinic twelve years ago and started stealing our soft toys.

These days she still has a go but though she’s a puppy at heart, she’s old and has significant arthritis. However, her quality of life is good. A few weeks ago, her owner noticed Mia being a bit unsteady and wondered if it could be the arthritis treatment. We thought that was unlikely and so did a home visit to check on her.

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How Micki’s seizures were fixed by a new diet

This is Micki. He’s so happy and active that this is the best photo we could take. But he wasn’t always so perky. Last year he started having seizures and his very concerned owner brought him to us. There was nothing remarkable found on his physical exam, so we took blood for haematology and biochemistry, as we always do when dogs are having seizures.

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What’s Wrong With Feeding Stray Cats?

feral cat on street

It all starts innocently enough, An unknown cat starts hanging around the house and looks like she doesn’t have a home. So the householder starts to worry that she’s hungry, and puts out some cat food for her. The next thing she’s hanging around every day and sometimes even coming in the house. Before too long she can always be found somewhere around the yard.

So what’s wrong with this?

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Help! My Cat Is Constipated: Treating Constipation

feline stool softeners

‘At A Glance (Details Below)’ Emergency Care

How To Treat Constipation In Cats

  1. See the vet as more than 50% of male cats who are thought to be constipated actually have a urinary obstruction.
  2. True constipation often has very few visible symptoms other than poor appetite and weight loss.
  3. Treatment is via dietary fibre, hyperosmotic laxatives, lubricants, diet & grooming.

Now dive deeper.

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Poisoning in a puppy. Yes, the vet’s puppy.

sick puppy

Just to to prove it happens to us all, here is Loki’s recent health emergency and some advice on how to identify and avoid pet poisons.
Four days ago Andrew’s 9 week Jack Russell Terrier was doing his usual morning routine of running around the garden seeing what could be destroyed or eaten. He was of course under supervision but all the same was darting in and out of sight among the bushes. All seemed fine but only ten minutes later he suddenly looked extremely unwell, vomited and passed diarrhoea. It was obvious something was terribly wrong so he was immediately rushed to the surgery.

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Cat Tree Climb IKEA Hack

homemade cat tree
IKEA cat ladder


One of the saddest things I see is indoor cats living in houses with FANTASTIC vertical territory that they just can’t reach. My kitchen, like most, has wall cabinets which create a high gallery for a cat to patrol. The only problem is there’s no way to get up there.

In this construction, an off the shelf IKEA product undergoes cat-friendly modification. Alternate shelves are offset to create a simple and elegant way to give your cat access to high places.

I can’t promise, but if you live in Adelaide and want a hand, I’ll do my best to help.

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Myth 11: All Vets Charge The Same

This article aims to save pets lives and improve owners’ awareness of their rights. While I believe it  is a discussion we need to have, it includes topics which may be upsetting to some. It in no way is intended to be read as criticism of the business practices of any veterinarian and is not referring to any specific surgery, clinic or hospital. At the end is a series of recommendations for what to do when faced with the need to make a quick decision.

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