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Anamazinglife

deserves amazing end of life care.

Mobile vet practice specialising in end of life care.

All veterinary services are carried out in the comfort of your own home or garden.

01773 302 220 www.vetcarehome.co.uk

w or k ers K ey Thank Y ou NHS &

Made the hardest time so peaceful.

Walkies & Cuddles®

Dog Walking & Pet Services Alfreton & Surrounding Areas Mob: 07908 304614

Email: alfreton@walkiesandcuddles.co.uk www.walkiesandcuddles.co.uk www.walkiesandcuddlesfranchise.co.uk

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Vintage Rambles with rafa and Flake

This walk dates back to March 2014. We took the boys out last month to re-walk the route and found one part overgrown and blocked off, so to avoid you getting as badly nettled as we were we have re-routed a section. It’s a shame that public footpaths get blocked but we have to adapt and do the best we can and the walk is well worth it! It begins in Doe Hill Country Park, which has some lovely paths to explore before we pick up part of the Silverhill Trail. From here we head up along one of the Five Pits Trail paths before we loop back to return to Doe Hill Country Park.

5½ mile circular walk from Doe Hill Country Park A moderate walk for you and your dog. The route should take around 2½ hours. Whilst a large part of the walk is trails and paths there are some fields to cross with uneven and potentially muddy sections so a good pair of boots or wellies is a must. There is a section of road and roads to cross, so please take care and keep dogs on leads at these times.

Start: Doe Hill Country Park Car Park, Doe Hill Lane, between Tibshelf and Stonebroom, DE55 6JS

1. Take the path that leads directly from the car park (by the poop bag bin). Follow this path as it winds around until it joins with another path from the right, then take the next left, almost immediately, heading uphill. Follow this path again as it winds until it joins with another path from the right and again take the next left, almost immediately. Follow this path until it brings you to Alfreton Road. 2. Cross the road and take the wide track (Gloves

Lane) after a metal barrier on the other side.

Follow this track for approximately 100 meters before taking the second of two paths on your left (the Silverhill Trail. 3. Continue along the trail until you meet a sign on your right. Take the horse stile on your left towards the ‘Five Pits Trail’. Follow this path until you meet a cross roads, taking the first path on your right. (This route can be fairly muddy. If you are keen to avoid this, you can continue ahead here on the Five Pits Trail to take you to point 5.) 4. Follow this path until it joins Saw pit lane, bearing left. After another 200 meters take a signposted footpath on your left. Follow the path as it joins Wetton Lane and follow until you reach the main road (B6014). 5. Turn left here and cross the road at the crossing before joining the five pits trail directly ahead. Keep to the main path downhill until a crossing of a small path. Turn left on the small path, cross over a lane and pass through a width restrictor. 6. Follow the path, ignoring steps on the right. Continue onto a road (Monsall Crescent) and keep ahead. At a T-junction, turn left and follow the road as it bends round to the right. Ignore roads leading off and then, as the road bends round to the right again, take a short road onto a wide track footpath off to the left, just before a play park. 7. Keep ahead to the end of the path where there are turns left and right. Take the turn on the left to immediate pass through a gap in the hedge on your left. Turn right to walk alongside the field with the hedge on your right. At the bottom corner of the field pass through a kissing gate and turn left to walk alongside the field to cross a stile in the corner of the filed, onto Doe Hill Lane. 8. Turn right here and follow Doe Hill Lane back to Doe Hill Country Park. Where appropriate cross the road to make use of the footpaths available.

This walk is for illustrative purposes only. Voice Magazines takes no responsibility for anyone who chooses to follow this route and encourages all walkers to obey all byelaws and signs and to respect the area they are walking in, ensuring they pick up all dog mess and obey the countryside code at all times.

DOE HILL COUNTRY PARKSTONEBROOM

SILVERHILL TRAIL FIVE PITS TRAIL TIBSHELF

Tips to help your dog post-lockdown!

It’s great news for us all that COVID-19 restrictions are beginning to ease. However, this may not be the case for some dogs, especially if you’ve acquired a furry friend during the beginning of lockdown. For them, all they have known is a limited number of people who have been able to have close contact with them. Their walks have been quiet, with limited noise, people and traffic. They haven’t experienced new places, different areas and new smells. With changes becoming more apparent, what will post-lockdown life for dog’s entail? After all, it’s been an unusual year or so. Below are several tips to help your companion adjust to life post-lockdown.

New situations

Too many challenges will overwhelm them and can cause nervous behaviour which could develop into a fear phobia. It’s therefore a good idea to gradually introduce your dog to new situations. To prevent a fear phobia occurring, slowly build up new experiences by providing lots of praise and rewards. Linking new exposures to positive training methods will enhance your dog’s ability to cope. For example, instead of inviting friends into your house where your dog is not used to having strangers, you could arrange to meet up with friends and go for a dog walk which exposes your dog to new people paired with fun distractions.

Out and about

Take a trip to an outdoor shopping centre where you and your dog can sit and watch the world go by. Take treats with you to reward calm behaviours in a busy environment. Staying too long may overwhelm your dog so it’s a good idea to keep visits short but often until they get used to different environments.

Slow and steady changes

Have you been working from home during the pandemic? Slow changes to your routine will help your dog to adjust to their new way of life. Dogs often find it difficult to be left on their own as they’re very sociable, hence why they make great additions to the family. It’s a good idea to prepare them to cope without you at home. Start by leaving your dogs when they are sleeping, eating or playing – Try closing the door behind you and sitting in another room.

Keeping your dog company

If you haven’t had time to get your dog used to being left alone, or you’ve recognised that your dog is not coping well, don’t ignore the situation. Act quickly to prevent it from getting any worse. While you go out, ask family or friends to sit with your dog or arrange for a dog walker to walk your dog when you go back to work. This will limit the time your dog is left on their own. If you are going to be away for a long period of time possibly look into a doggy daycare facility.

Training

Training classes can help you to deal with the adolescent teenage years of your dogs’ life. It is part of their normal development however, it can sometimes be a difficult time for dog owners as their beloved friend seems to have forgotten lots of what they were taught. A little help from a dog trainer can really help get your dog get back on track. At Scarsdale Vets, we offer a 4-week puppy training course. It’s designed to help with a range of puppy challenges such as toilet training, socialisation, play biting and chewing plus much more. For further information or to book, please call

our Park Farm practice on 01332 554422.

The last year has been challenging for us all. Let’s make sure your four-legged friend can cope with post-lockdown life.