Paw Skills

25/11/2024

❄️ The sausages are ready for the cold weather thanks to their hand made, personalised and made to measure crocheted jumpers from pako_eo_crafts ❄️

24/11/2024

We officially can’t get to our yard 😞 we had to wade through the floods on foot to get our farm animals to safety.

Stay home and stay safe! ☔️

🌧 Many of Wiltshire's roads have flooded today - police are advising people not to travel unless it's absoutely necessary.

Pictured is the A429 near Malmesbury a short time ago.

24/11/2024

☔️ STORM BERT ☔️

As it stands there are many roads that we need to access client dogs tomorrow that are currently closed due to flooding…

PLEASE ensure you update us if you are stranded / impassable access wise so that we don’t put ourselves in danger trying to access you tomorrow.

The yard has taken a bit hit and has some damage and flooding which we having been trying to patch together this afternoon but the storm is still hitting us hard.

22/11/2024

🎅🏻🎄 Christmas shut down dates 🎄🎅🏻

21/11/2024

❄️ WINTER SAFETY TIPS ❄️

As we reach the colder weather there are many things that are harmful and toxic to our dogs that are present on our walks

These are things such as:

❄️ Antifreeze
❄️ Salt/grit on the roads
❄️ De-icer

Ingredients within these products can tempt dogs such as ethylene glycol (found in antifreeze) which is sweet to the taste for dogs

As part of our winter routine we follow these steps to keep our dogs safe. By cleaning their paws after a walk and not letting your dogs drink out of puddles you reduce the risk of poisoning.

💡Did you know that ethylene glycol can also be found in decorative snow globes ☃️

The animal poison control centre state there are 3 stages to antifreeze poisoning after ingestion:

Stage 1 - 30 mins to 12 hours
• Drooling
• Vomiting
• Walking ‘drunk’
• Excessive thirst and urination
• Seizures

Stage 2 - 12 to 24 hours
Stage 1 signs seem to resolve however internal injury is still progressing

Stage 3 - 36 to 72 hours
• Food refusal
• Bad breath (sign of kidney failure)
• Lethargy
• Drooling
• Vomiting

Due to its high fatality rate, it’s important to seek emergency veterinary attention for your pet should you suspect ingestion of winter toxins such as antifreeze.

Remember that not all dogs will show all symptoms.

Cats and other outdoor pets can also be affected.

Keep your pets safe this winter and share your winter safety tips below ⬇️

20/11/2024

🎄🎅🏻 Christmas Prep 🎅🏻🎄

Chip came to us in the summer and so it’s important to get him ready for his first Christmas with us. As a rescue I don’t know what he experienced last year.

Christmas can be quite unsettling and stressful for dogs; there are lights/sounds/people etc that weren’t there before and routines change.

Before I make changes in my home and put my tree, lights and decorations up I want to make sure Chip has had positive experiences of these things.

I took Chip to The Range (who are now dog friendly!) and let him lead the way; freely moving around the shop experiencing the Christmas changes at his own pace. He got lots of treats and praise and as you can see he was happy and confident throughout.

These experiences will help when the holiday season reaches our home and routine :)

19/11/2024

❄️🌨️ There was a smattering of snow today and it was super chilly! Some dogs loved it and some wanted to go back to their toasty warm beds 🤣🌨️❄️

18/11/2024

🤸🏻 Proprioception aka body awareness 🤸🏻

Did you know that dogs don’t have a natural sense of what their back end is doing in relation to the front?

By creating fun games around body awareness you can make sure your dog learns in a fun way and help them less likely to injure themselves 🐾

16/11/2024

🥳 WE HAVE OUR VAN BACK 🥳

6 weeks ago our van completely went kerput and we were messed around A LOT with it being repaired.

2 garages/mechanics and over 4 weeks later SA Automotive and Agricultural came to our rescue and picked up the van to be diagnosed. Scott managed to diagnose it quickly and organised repair.

The drama continued with ECU Testing messing us around multiple times but after chasing them we finally got it turned around on an urgent job and Scott kindly sacrificed his evening to get us back on the road.

We can’t thank Scott enough for his help and highly recommend him. He’s going to be looking after the van moving forward as he identified a few niggly bits that need sorting while he was fixing her that others hadn’t even picked up.

Hopefully we can stop getting to know the AA call out people by name now!

So normal services are resumed! Thank you all for your patience!

https://www.facebook.com/share/15FVYEn5CH/?mibextid=LQQJ4d

14/11/2024

🦌 Real life recall 🦌

I was on a walk with my 6 dogs and we were following a footpath along the countryside. Reef & Chip were right by me and the other 4 were a few meters ahead.

As we turned the corner into the next field a deer popped out the hedge, lept over Reef and took off. Reef and Chip went to chase the deer.

I cued my emergency stop cue to my other 4 dogs who all stopped and stayed where they were then I turned and whistle recalled Reef & Chip.

Reef & Chip spun on the spot and ran straight back to me, allowing the deer to get away safely.

Reliable recall and management of actions are super important, especially as I have so many dogs. For the entirety of their lives my dogs get rewarded with tasty treats and their fave toys for recalling back to me because it’s super important to keep that up. It’s very easy to fall into bad habits of expecting your dog to do this for free.

I did LOTS of play, praise and treats for this. I’ve muted the audio as it’s me screeching YES BOYS GOOD BOYS THATS IT and I am LOUD 🤣🫣

Did I expect a deer to leap out and over one of my dogs? No
But boy am I glad that I never stop reinforcing check ins and recall as that saved the day today 🐾

08/11/2024

🍂🍁 Autumn leaves make great natural snuffle mats 🍁🍂

06/11/2024

🎆 Dogs & Fireworks 🎆

Devastatingly I’ve seen a huge amount of posts over the last 24hrs of pets spooked by fireworks and are now lost 😭

Bonfire night may be behind us but we will likely have much more coming up to and over the new year.

In addition to the advice given on this poster by the APBC I’d recommend putting your dog on a lead to toilet them before bed etc just in case and ensure your dog is wearing updated ID info.

A top tip is to keep a blanket etc that smells of your dog (that they have slept in etc) in a sealed bag in case your dog needs to be tracked if lost.

Behaviours are likely to change during this season and it’s important to allow our dogs to decompress. We feel exhausted after being on edge and so do they.

Here is some info on how our dogs can be affected and how we can help:

https://dogtrainingessex-suffolk.co.uk/fireworks-and-dogs-decompression-time/

There is a highly recommended YouTube playlist of Taiko drums you can play to help mask the sounds of the bangs:

https://youtu.be/1czjURFkHh0?si=OUeIgfsqz19oqFTD

You can also seek veterinary support in the form of medication if your dog is really struggling. There are fast acting options such as selio gel (or selfish tablets) that you can get on prescription.

Here is some more info on the natural and medicinal options available:

https://www.forestlodgevets.co.uk/pet-advice/general-health/fireworks-advice

https://www.preventivevet.com/dogs/medications-for-dogs-afraid-of-fireworks-thunderstorms

If your dog has gone missing it’s important to:

• Inform your local vets
• Inform your dog warden
• Inform your dogs chip company
• If there is a nearby rail track contact the Network Rail 24/7 emergency line: 03457114141
• Add your dog to doglost (https://www.doglost.co.uk/)
• Contact local dog rescue centres to inform them of your dogs description

Here is a link to every microchip company’s contact number:

https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/dog-advice/life-with-your-dog/outdoors/lost-your-dog

There is a company who have specially trained dogs that can track and search for your dog:

https://www.pettrailer.co.uk/lost-dog-search-advice/

There is a collection of volunteers than can help with ground searches and drone searches and they organise this in your area.

This is called Drone SAR for lost dogs and the link to the group for help is:

https://www.facebook.com/share/g/18JXvr2btX/?mibextid=K35XfP

Advice given if your dog is lost by the team at Drone SAR

********** FIREWORK ADVICE **********

For anybody that has a missing dog due to the fireworks please follow as below. There is every chance the dog will return when he/she has calmed down. Also do not shout their names or whistle for them this will only heighten their anxiety levels.

If the dog has gone missing from home please do the following ASAP. Please leave some items of family unwashed clothing and a little bit of food outside in your front garden and if its safe to do also leave a door slightly open so should he/she make it back to the home he/she will have easy access back into the home. Please follow as below.

Can you leave some items of family unwashed clothing or anything with the body scent on of the person the dog, has most bonded with and leave with a little bit of smelly food ie tinned sardines, smoked cheese, chicken, or anything smelly etc, near to where he/she went missing from AS ABOVE. This does work we have had a large number of dogs return by doing this but it needs doing ASAP. Polo/tee shirt, PJ’s, old well worn coat, walking boots with smelly socks inside, even the bottom sheet from the bed works. As much unwashed clothing as possible we need to get your scent airborne ASAP.

9 out of 10 dogs will go back to where they went missing from so please do the above ASAP.

02/11/2024

🎃 LEFTOVER PUMPKINS 🎃

If you’re local to Paw Skills HQ and have a left over pumpkin from Halloween feel free to leave them by the gate as our chickens would love to eat them and dispose of them naturally for you!

Here are other ways you can dispose of your pumpkins:

https://blog.countrylife.ie/pets-wildlife/5-ways-to-recycle-your-pumpkin-after-halloween/

29/10/2024

Hands up if your dogs do this ✋🏻🤢

28/10/2024

🐾🐕 November is Puppy/Young Dog Month at Paw Skills HQ 🐕🐾

We have a jam packed month of puppy/young dog parties, puppy/young dog agility workshops and puppy classes!

🥳 Puppy/young dog party social - suitable for dogs up to 6 months old we have groups for small dogs and med/large dogs. With the free run of our large exercise field that’s fenced, with fun equipment to play with!

🐕 Puppy/young dog agility workshop - learn with your dog and keep those fizzy brains busy! Suitable for dogs up to a year old we will be looking at proprioception, teaching directions and learning through play!

🎓 Puppy Class - suitable for dogs up to a year old we learn lots of different life skills to prep your puppy for taking on the world. With a graduation rosette, free treats, members group, discounts and more your pup will be well equipped after this 4 week course!

For more info and booking for any of our November sessions and also booking for our other services please see:

https://app.acuityscheduling.com/schedule.php?owner=33794608

27/10/2024

🎓 Puppy Class Graduates 🎓

A huge congratulations to this fab bunch who all graduated from Puppy Class yesterday 🥳

Our next 4 week puppy class starts on 2nd November at 9am at our private venue (fenced paddocks) and will run on the following dates:

2nd Nov
9th Nov
16th Nov
30th Nov

Puppy class will be taught by Rosie; our award winning, ethical based, qualified and accredited dog trainer and behaviourist.

For more info and to book please see:

https://app.acuityscheduling.com/schedule.php?owner=33794608

Keep your eyes peeled tomorrow for an exciting announcement as we have a fun filled November for you! 🤩🐾🐕