Copdock Kennels & Cattery

17/01/2025

Unless you tried to book a stay for your pet, you may not be aware that we've been closed for maintenance this week. We're so busy these days we can no longer fit the work in to the cracks but have to give ourselves time to concentrate

The team have repaired and restored, they have pressure washed and painted and they say they would very much like to go back to looking after animals, please

Every kennel has been mended where necessary, cleaned and painted. The cattery has been thoroughly tidied up. But our pièce de résistance is that, thanks to the guys from Legends Of Resin, our kennel yard has gone from looking like this to looking like this. Smart, huh?

And we thought we'd take the opportunity to tidy up Reception while we were at it

We can't wait to see how it works in practise. So bring on the new season, we're ready to welcome you

17/01/2025

Read this in tandem with The Naughty Dogge's latest post which I will find next

Accidental attachment ‘parenting’

Taking on a tiny 6 day old puppy unintentionally taught me a great deal about attachment and how crucial secure attachments are for our dogs’ emotional health.

It’s pretty easy to meet our dogs physical needs and that was even quite easy with a tiny puppy- she needed feeding, she needed help toileting and she needed to be kept warm.

It was apparently straight away that meeting these physical needs and leaving her on a heat pad in a pen was in no way going to meet her emotional needs. It’s not just warmth that puppies need, it’s physical contact with a living being. Heat pads, fake heart beats in toys etc for a solo puppy, just doesn’t do it. She was more settled and content in close physical contact- she preferred with me but any other human or dog would do. She wanted to be next to skin and near a heartbeat, at all times and so that’s where she stayed, for as long as she needed it.

The option of close physical contact with someone they are attached to is such a basic need. I’m sure most of us remember hearing about the awful Harlow experiments where monkey babies had the choice of a wire ‘mother’ (with milk) or a soft, cloth ‘mother’ and would choose the soft mother even at the expense of milk, such is that basic need.

I have children and it felt so similar to when my kids were tiny babies too. I certainly didn’t deny them a need to be near me and I didn’t with this tiny puppy either. When they are developmentally ready (human babies and tiny puppies), they choose to be more independent from you and they spread their wings.

Of course it’s not just about the need for physical contact anyway when they are tiny- it’s about the need to feel safe too and that’s a fundamental need that must be met.

When puppies go into new homes at 8 weeks old they don’t suddenly stop having this need for physical contact and to feel safe near a living being. They go from feeling safe near to mum and siblings to being totally dependent on their new human family. It breaks my heart to think of them relegated to a crate in a kitchen. Of course they stop crying after a couple of nights as they give up any hope that anyone will help them. It certainly doesn’t help them to feel safe and secure in the world.

The same goes for an adult rescue dog who has often suffered so much upheaval and broken attachments along the way and who needs more than anything to just feel safe and secure and to have a bond with someone. This need for connection is a basic need that must be met, the same as being fed and watered.

I know people worry that if you ‘pander’ to them and give them lots of company they will become clingy or overly dependant but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Letting them develop a secure attachment results in resilient and confident individuals who feel safe in the world.

I see so many clients who’ve had awful advice and who have been told that their dog has behavioural issues as they are too nice to them, love them too much etc. it’s all absolute rubbish and they won’t turn into a monster if you meet their needs for safety, it’s quite the opposite and you help them to develop to their full potential ❤️

Laura McAuliffe, Dog Communication 2024

16/01/2025

NOT Merlin, but . . .

Archie is being called the "little vampurrr" by rescue staff desperate to find him a new home.

16/01/2025

“What’s the hardest part about having a dog?” they asked, their tone casual, like it was just another question.

I glanced at the worn leash hanging by the door, my chest tightening. “Letting them go,” I said quietly.

They frowned a little, waiting for me to explain. “They come into your life like they were always meant to be there,” I said, trying to find the words. “They make everything better—simpler, brighter. And you think it’s always going to be that way. But it’s not. One day, they’re gone, and you’re left with all the space they used to fill.”

They nodded, but I wasn’t sure they understood. “It’s not the messes they made or the routines you have to let go of,” I continued. “It’s the absence. You walk into the house, and it feels... wrong. The quiet is heavier. The mornings don’t feel the same without them nudging you awake.”

“So why do it?” they asked, their voice softer this time.

I sighed, glancing down at my hands. “Because the love they give you is worth every bit of the heartache. They teach you how to love without holding back, even when you know it’s going to hurt in the end. And you keep choosing that love because you know it’s one of the best things you’ll ever feel.”

R.M. Drake 🐶 from the book ' Dog People'

Artist Credit : Iain Welch

15/01/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/19XSBbS4wU/

That sound isn't the wind 🙄❗
It is the collective sigh of dog trainers when it's windy.
Windy days can be really problematic for dogs.
It can make an "ordinary" pleasurable walk turn into an anxious or stressed one for you and your dog.
Many dogs don't like the wind, it's confronting for them.
They may no longer be able to tell the direction of where those scents are coming from and they swirl and churn around them.
It can be disorientating for dogs as they know the usual smells and scents in an area they are familiar with, but on a windy day they are whirling around. and mixed. That dog they dislike that lives in the house on the corner, now that dogs scent can be circling them or just confronting them head on.
You are not imagining it, some dogs really do dislike windy days.
This dog training handout is available abcdogsnz.com

15/01/2025

Accidental attachment ‘parenting’

Taking on a tiny 6 day old puppy unintentionally taught me a great deal about attachment and how crucial secure attachments are for our dogs’ emotional health.

It’s pretty easy to meet our dogs physical needs and that was even quite easy with a tiny puppy- she needed feeding, she needed help toileting and she needed to be kept warm.

It was apparently straight away that meeting these physical needs and leaving her on a heat pad in a pen was in no way going to meet her emotional needs. It’s not just warmth that puppies need, it’s physical contact with a living being. Heat pads, fake heart beats in toys etc for a solo puppy, just doesn’t do it. She was more settled and content in close physical contact- she preferred with me but any other human or dog would do. She wanted to be next to skin and near a heartbeat, at all times and so that’s where she stayed, for as long as she needed it.

The option of close physical contact with someone they are attached to is such a basic need. I’m sure most of us remember hearing about the awful Harlow experiments where monkey babies had the choice of a wire ‘mother’ (with milk) or a soft, cloth ‘mother’ and would choose the soft mother even at the expense of milk, such is that basic need.

I have children and it felt so similar to when my kids were tiny babies too. I certainly didn’t deny them a need to be near me and I didn’t with this tiny puppy either. When they are developmentally ready (human babies and tiny puppies), they choose to be more independent from you and they spread their wings.

Of course it’s not just about the need for physical contact anyway when they are tiny- it’s about the need to feel safe too and that’s a fundamental need that must be met.

When puppies go into new homes at 8 weeks old they don’t suddenly stop having this need for physical contact and to feel safe near a living being. They go from feeling safe near to mum and siblings to being totally dependent on their new human family. It breaks my heart to think of them relegated to a crate in a kitchen. Of course they stop crying after a couple of nights as they give up any hope that anyone will help them. It certainly doesn’t help them to feel safe and secure in the world.

The same goes for an adult rescue dog who has often suffered so much upheaval and broken attachments along the way and who needs more than anything to just feel safe and secure and to have a bond with someone. This need for connection is a basic need that must be met, the same as being fed and watered.

I know people worry that if you ‘pander’ to them and give them lots of company they will become clingy or overly dependant but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Letting them develop a secure attachment results in resilient and confident individuals who feel safe in the world.

I see so many clients who’ve had awful advice and who have been told that their dog has behavioural issues as they are too nice to them, love them too much etc. it’s all absolute rubbish and they won’t turn into a monster if you meet their needs for safety, it’s quite the opposite and you help them to develop to their full potential ❤️

Laura McAuliffe, Dog Communication 2024

10/01/2025

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1180918116215457

03/01/2025

I have tags for your keyring and a card for your wallet so you can inform those who need to know that we would look after your cat if necessary
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19fNRPxtMA/

02/01/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19XLgM7Toq/

Happy new year to all my lovely followers. Wishing you love and happiness in 2025. 🎉

Here are my ‘Top Nine’ posts from 2024. Can anybody spot a common theme?! 😂🐾
Apparently my posts got 1.6 MILLION ‘likes’ on Instagram in 2024!
If even a fraction of those ‘likes’ mean a drawing made someone smile - well, the thought of that makes me feel so happy. ❤️

Thank you so so so much for all your support throughout 2024. It’s been a hectic year - mainly due to the studio move 🙈. But I can’t wait to share more art with you in 2025. Thank you for being here. ###❤️

01/01/2025

Kliban cats in hats wishing you a Happy New Year!🖤🤍🐈‍⬛🐾

01/01/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/1RY2K5vdMP/

Morning all!

Was just typing up a forecast and noticed this on the radar! we have a very large squall line approaching us! This should arrive within the next 30-40mins…

Heavy rain and STRONG winds will be mixed within this squall line so please watch out! ⚠️ 💨

Forecast will be posted in 30 mins! Thanks

Harry 💨💨💨☔️☔️☔️

31/12/2024

Original Youtube channel 10HoursOfEverythingSound and music videos for personal growth: https://soundsforhealing.wordpress.com/

31/12/2024

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DM7rbdETQ/

31/12/2024

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/19p4AD2Kmz/

30/12/2024

https://www.facebook.com/SamCannonArt/posts/pfbid0BPnBSb7LMrNVLDXyDV3ZZKnqN7uNe4PKQU61mxEjamqkyJrwez6pYA2JX7MSrsz2l

My house is looking dangerously close to what could be described as a stable with more straw in than out. So a very quick hello as I'm about to tackle the problem with my judgemental hoover.

It will wince and complain, clearly not believing that a house could contain so much of this detritous from outdoors.

I'm also complaining at the mess and really need a clear space and clear head for work at the moment!
I know it'll be quiet here again soon enough but I'm definitely all anxious right now.

So I hope you like these snuggling and sleepy cats from earlier this year. And I really hope that the new cat painting proves popular too.

And wish me luck with the hoover 😊 (and work).

30/12/2024

Well I suppose we're scheduled for rain not snow, but that's a pretty big blanket

NEW YEARS DAY 2025⚠️🌧💨❄️👀

There we have it... The Met Office has just released a sheet of warnings for all over the uk for midweek next week.⚠️⚠️⚠️

A significant weather system will track eastwards on new year's day bringing stormy winds, rain, sleet and snow. The track of this still has plenty of time to change, so expect warnings to update in the coming days.

Behind this weather front will be much colder air. We will all be plunged into a deep freeze by the end of the week❄️

Definitely a week to keep an eye on the weather👀

L

29/12/2024

Weather models still not entirely clear but what is fairly certain is a blowy New Year's Day
So my washing may get dry but I may have to fetch it back from Essex

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1UVCArzYaj/