R. Barker's Pet Services Cumbria

22/10/2024

Ah there's nothing quite like a patterdale terrier minute-mile walk in the woods, in the dark at 7 o'clock in the morning to blow off the cobwebs. Good morning all! I am AWAKE! 🏃‍♀️🤯🥳😆

18/10/2024

So I was having a bit of a rough day emotionally today. In rolls the big guy here. Big guy here has a tendency to be very shouty, in a "hey, I'm gonna shout really loudly cos I'm very excited to see you and I literally don't know what to do other than shout even though that puts you off and then you don't want to come over to me but it's my cool thing that I do AND I'm a collie so I'm gonna do all of this in a really starey way that you won't be keen on either " kind of way 😆. Anyway today he was the epitome of canine etiquette. I asked him to move with me away from a very persistent off-lead dog who came over to us (with no humans in sight) and he said yes, of course, I would love to join you Rachel. AND THEN, THEN!!!! He casually, and quietly, moved to the side with me while a couple of barky dogs walked by. Not a word from him. Proud is an understatement 💖 This is what happens when the humans put the work in to teach their dogs new habits that will help them to better navigate the world in which we live. So well done big guy's humans 👏 and well done big guy himself 😊. Happy Friday everyone!

15/10/2024

This must be one EPIC dream 😆😍

06/10/2024

30/09/2024

That tail draped over the little pawsies like a little snood 😍😭

26/09/2024

If she had a page, this would be her profile picture and it would have an accompanying inspirational quote to go with it. Fact.

04/09/2024

Everyone, meet the new guy 😊. And check out that bloody adorable big, round nose 😍

21/08/2024

Hi 👋 Just a heads up that a few of my marbles may be lost during the coming months 🤪.The last week or so has been pretty crazy with a serious medical family emergency so please bear with me whilst we get used to our new 'normal' - I know that you will do though because you are all just the best clients and friends ever 😊.

10/08/2024

Time spent with animals is never wasted even when that time is spent doing nothing at all ☺ I love nothing more than watching them just be dogs. Where they choose to lie. How they interact with each other. How they communicate with each other. How they interact with the environment. What sort of things catch their eye/nose. How they ask us to do stuff with them or how they ask us to help them with something. It is all just fascinating.
We've taken a cheeky couple of nights away with the dogs so what better thing could there possibly be to do other than watch my own dogs just do***ng about 😁🥰.

06/08/2024

🤣 I forgot to take the tiny cage out from the side of the van yesterday but Gwynn didn't care and just trotted her big ginger body over to it and got her long legs tucked in all neat and tidy 🤣 If it fits she sits 😆

05/08/2024

Good morning Monday 👋🏻 How do you keep coming around so fast?! We had a visitor over the weekend (my best friend from uni) who loves a selfie so here we are 😁 BIG SMILES ALL ROUND 😁

31/07/2024

Pairing up dogs is not an easy thing.
I always want my dogs to feel safe when they come out with me - on the basis that if you feel safe you can truly enjoy yourself.
Miss D, the wire-haired, fawn coloured dog here, is a full on, smack you in the face with personality and in-your-face zest for life. Bull in a china shop springs to mind. Miss N with the red harness is the total opposite - a very gentle soul, very mindful of every move she makes, a very reserved personality. I have only been walking her for a few weeks yet it became very clear that she would benefit massively from gaining a canine friend or two.
So yeah, I'm ecstatic to say that this pairing went extremely well 😍 A few bounces around and bows to get to know eachother, some shared grass eating and some observing eachother do stuff - all carefully managed by yours truly of course. My heart is full right now 💓

24/07/2024

If you've ever wondered what it would look like to take a spaniel for an on-lead walk/swim in a ditch which runs alongside a country lane then these photos are for you!
NB This post is very similar to my last post but they are, in fact, very different. The last post was a black and white terrier doing very important terrier business. This post is a black and white spaniel doing very important spaniel business. There's a big difference. 😆

20/07/2024

Let's play Spot The Dog! Can you see him? 🤔

13/07/2024

Reasons a dog might refuse to walk (and it's never to do with them being 'stubborn.')
1. First and foremost, pain is going to be a huge factor in whether a dog will be keen to go for a walk. Even then, it's never that simple. For some dogs, pain could be shown in the way that they enjoy walks on soft ground but slow down on a road walk. Or they don't like walking on a stony track. Who does though - it's really uncomfortable underfoot ☹
Some dogs will pull on lead because of pain in an attempt to pull away from the thing that is aggravating the pain - the lead.
With one of my own dogs she used to run up hills because it was less painful than to walk slowly uphill. Once on pain meds she slowed down.
Some dogs with chronic pain run around like lunatics because once they stop running around they recognise their pain. It might look like they are having a great time on a walk and that they love long hikes but how are they when they get home? Are they struggling to settle? Are they stiff? Do they struggle the next day? Pain could be an issue.
2. They are overwhelmed by the world. This can be the case particularly with younger dogs, recently rehomed dogs, dogs entering a novel environment... Give them space and give them time.
3. They don't like their gear. As much as I prefer a harness on a dog, some dogs just don't appreciate having things on their bodies and will refuse to move.
4. They want to go and smell a smell and they have learnt that if they stop you will allow them to move towards the smell.
5. For whatever reason, they don't want to go on that particular route that you have chosen for them today.
6. If they are anxious around other dogs or another particular dog that they have history with, the scent of others could put them off going a particular route.
7. This guy here in the photo stops whenever we pass a gate into a field because for whatever reason he wants to go through all the gates into all the fields and struggles if I say that that can't happen.
8. Sh*tty weather. Nobody likes that. Apart from maybe some labradors.
9. Maybe something happened on a particular route that worried them. It might have seemed like nothing to us but to them it was a big deal.

I could go on and on with reasons but the point is, it is never just because the dog is stubborn. And anyway, the dog is perfectly entitled to an opinion on the choice of walk. Who wants a dog that just does as it's told all the time?! Not me! I want one who is not afraid to tell me their opinions and show me their emotions 😊

13/07/2024

🤣

Oh yeah, baby 😍

10/07/2024

Then we had the guests that just came to partaaaayyy 🥳🥂🍾🎂 Here's hoping for Morgan's 17th birthday bash next year! Love you lots little lass 😊