CANINE BHAVIOUR
Parlez Vous POOCH?! Blogger and qualified ‘Dog Listener’ Julia Collins helps us to consider the needs of our canine chums this festive season
T
his Christmas, before you go up to bed (awaiting Santa’s visit), do make sure that in addition to your stockings being securely attached to the mantelpiece, the following are safely and entirely out of canine reach; grapes, dried fruit, nuts, mince pies and chocolates. These festive items rank highly amongst toxic canine foodstuffs.* Don’t just think toddler height, factor in the altitude attainability of a potential pet pyramid plus accessories, chairs, tables, piles of presents and so on. Holiday time veterinary attention does not come cheap and imagine the shadow a sickly pet would caste over your celebrations! On a far lighter no ote, many dogs enjoy the festive season mightily, and it’s well worth giving a little thoughtt to how our sensitive and loyal com mpanions might comprehend Christmas. A general increase in hustle and bustle accompanies the arrivval
of interesting packages, with plenty to investigate and carefully log in the canine mind. Days are much shorter and frequently cold and wet but, no matter how busy you are, don’t stint on your dog walks. If it’s really inclement, one heroic outing could suffice with some indoor play and attention to replace the afternoon outing. (See October/November ‘ParlezVous Pooch’). Walks and meals mean everything to your dog. We set a lot of store by Christmas and expect our dogs to behave well, even faced with a range of visitors and activities. The least we can do is lovingly preserve their routine with plenty of exercise and down time, if the house is noisy with boisterous visitors. Don’t let good habits be sabotaged by supposedly wellmeaning guests feeding your dog from the table, encouraging them to sit on furniture (if this is something you don’t allow) and letting visiting children whip them into a frenzy. In fact, if your dog is used to an adult household, better not to leave them alone with children, no matter how gentle and placid they are (the dog I mean!).
Not too many leftovers — a few by all means, but cut back on the kibble. Preserve his sleeping area as a sanctuary. Meet up with unfamiliar canine visitors outside first, their coming straight into the house is a mistake. Give plenty of thought to a ‘strange’ dog actually staying over. Don’t be all over your dog during the day and then go out, leaving them alone in a silent house. Make sure they’re well exercised, fed as appropriate, have fresh water and a chance to nip into the garden before you go. Leave a radio, lights and the heating on. * Look up ‘foods toxic for dogs’, some of the items will surprise you.
Parlez Vous POOCH?! articles are also availaable on the Oracle, an audio info ormation magazine for visually im mpaired listeners, which is partt of Wymondham and Attleborough h Talking Newspapers. To access all the Talking Newspaper re ecordings, go to ww www ww.watn.or w rg.uk
Julia Collinss @walkso oflifessuffolk www.walkso oflife.co.uk 49
