Christmas Issues

Hello wonderful people, so it’s getting nearer to Christmas, I hope everyone is looking forward to it, or whatever you celebrate in your religion at this time of the year. By the way if you are new here I am an aspiring vet who has had the set back of not getting the grades first time but I'm fighting to get those grades this year and I'm documenting my journey to maybe help people in the future and hopefully provide some useful knowledge to the pet owners of the world .So, on this build up to the festivities there are a few things that we need to keep in the forefront of our minds. Today I’m going to be talking about a few of these and some of the things that have come up in the news due to the time of year.

 

On a side note an update on my university situation, well this year has been tough last year I got 4 interviews and 3 offers, this year so far, I’ve had 1 interview and I’ve already been turned down from the RVC and Nottingham. I feel quite silly about reapplying to Nottingham because they didn’t give me an offer last year so why should they this year. I have to say I got quite down after I got the second rejection just because last year I was never in this situation. I had a day where I thought that I just wasn’t ever going to be enough for the universities, people keep saying I'm a great person and the universities will realise that, but they did last year when I got the offers, but I didn’t get the grades and no matter how hard I tried and how good a person I am that’s not enough for the universities. Anyway, despite that day of doubt I am now in the mindset that if I don’t get any offers this year then I will prove those universities wrong and I will reapply next year with awesome grades and see what they say then!

 

On with the show! The issues about Christmas;

·         Puppy smuggling; due to some recent data collected by the BVA the amount of puppy trafficking on the lead up to the holidays has risen. Now I want you all to remember the old saying “a dog is for life not just for Christmas” or something like that. Anyway, my point is that if you are thinking of buying a puppy or any pet at this time of year make sure that the person who is going to be responsible for this living animal is prepared and that they are registered at a vets practice and know what they are doing and how to care for the animal. Also for the person buying the animal make sure that you ask the right questions to make sure the breeder is legitimate and that these puppies/kittens have been vaccinated and are the right age. For more information on this and how to spot an illegal breeder or smuggler of puppies I’ve done another post on this call Puppy Farms, this will give you information about what to ask a breeder and how to see if the place you are buying the puppies from may be suspicious. Please feel free to check this out if you have any queries, I'm not saying I'm a professional in this area I just want you all to be careful and be weary of this major issue and remember puppies and kittens aren’t just for Christmas, we don’t want more dogs and cats in shelters this winter, go adopt rather than buy a new puppy or kitten.

·         Cheeky snacks; So over Christmas and the holidays in general there is more food around the house and this can pose a threat to the cheeky dogs and cats around the house. Now as you probably know chocolate is poisonous to dogs and if you want the full detail on this and all the scientific stuff then I have another blog post on this from right back when I started the blog. Also here is a list of the foods that both cats and dogs should be having because they could be toxic or just cause irritation for the animal, Xylitol which is found in sweeteners, candy, gum and toothpaste, avocado, alcohol, onions or garlic, caffeine, grapes or raisins, excess dairy, macadamia nuts, chocolate, fat trimmings or bone, peaches and plums, excess salt and yeast. For cats also lilies are highly toxic so always be careful if you have lilies in the house and you own a cat. It is important that you keep on top of this over the holidays because not only could things be poisonous to your pet but, the odd treat here and there can add up to a lot of extra calories and for a smaller body this can convert to a lot of weight which can be dangerous for the animals’ joint health and organ function. So please make sure that, the treats don’t go too OTT and the poisonous foods are kept out of harm’s way.

·         Cold weather; now this doesn’t apply to cats quite as much as it does for dogs. If your dog is as old as mine or aged as mine should I say, this is important for you. When your dog’s age they lose muscle mass now this can mean that they are weaker when it comes to moving around and hence must go for shorter walks. This also means that when they get cold, where muscular younger dogs would normally shiver to increase their body warmth, the elderly dogs can’t do this as well, so they are more susceptible to the cold. Along with the fact that their circulation may not be great, so they really feel the cold therefore it’s important to keep them warm we have a coat for my dog and we also make sure that her bed in by the AGA in the kitchen, an alternative to an AGA would be a radiator or a cosy blanket in the bed. My dog also has a bed by the fire so that on cold evenings she can stay by the fire and keep warm. In the winter we also try to feed her more so that she does have some extra fat on her. Now I know this contradicts what I just said in the point above, however due to my dogs’ weight loss and muscle wastage she is rather bony and though she isn’t underweight she could easily put on a bit of fat and still be fine. If your dog is like this too I would suggest just increasing the portion sizes the tiniest bit just for a few extra calories to burn in the cold weather.

·         Feed the birds; besides from this being one of my favourite Julie Andrews songs ever (please look it up it’s from Mary Poppins) it is also something I feel is important through the winter months. What you have to remember is that all of the little birds in your garden have to live outside all winter and for them their extra layer of fat is vital to survive, when it gets around to winter in our garden we often put out fat balls and suet for the birds along with seeds and peanuts, this small offering just helps them have enough food to keep warm through the winter when it gets so very cold. Though this isn’t a vital thing to do in the winter I like to think out it as important because depending on the summer and autumn the birds may not have been able to fatten up enough for winter.

·         Cracked pads; now for cats and dogs going outside in the cold weather it can really affect their pads on their feet imagine us walking outside barefoot in the freezing mornings! Cold right? Well for our pets yes it’s slightly different because their feet were evolved to do that.  However the cold can dry out the pads of their feet and cause them to become raw and sore, the dry and cold of outside then the warmth of inside, can have a major affect so make sure that your pets paws are dried after walks this winter and try to check them when you can just to ensure that they aren’t becoming sore and inflamed.

So that’s it for my list today guys I hope you enjoyed this, I’m sure there are many more things that you need to look out for over Christmas. I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your week remember to be happy and smile at people, don’t judge and be kind. Thank you so much for reading I will see you back here next week hopefully, well I’ll definitely be posting it just depends if you’re here too.