Walks with Milo

01/06/2023

Pet sitting this week. My morning starts off with a dog walk, then moves onto putting a couple of beautiful and soft rabbits into their run for the day, cleaning and preparing the hutch for the evening when I pop them back into it. No pics as I didn't ask their owner for permission before they went away. From there I go and spend time with two British short-haired cats, whom I've looked after for a couple of years. Spend time feeding, brushing and playing with them, plus emptying litter trays! Then back home for lunch. Back out after tea to put the rabbits back into their hutch for the night.
Whats the phrase, eat, sleep, repeat?
If anyone is going away, even short notice, and needs a pet sitter locally to Yate, get in touch xx

29/05/2023

Its nearly a year since Milo had his accident which left him with a spinal stroke and very reduced use of his hind legs. It was such a scary, worrying time. But he's made a good recovery and is almost back to his former self. His stamina isn't as good and he still suffers back pain but all in all he's good 😊

17/08/2022

THE GIFT OF THE GROWL
Why growling should never be punished and also never be ignored
Not all growls are negative. Some growls are play growls, attention seeking growls, pleasure seeking growls or frustration growls. They may all sound a little different and may be unique to the particular dog. This post is not about different types of growls, but about warning or aggressive growls.
When a dog growls, maybe even at us, the natural human response is to feel offended and maybe even angry. Surely dogs need to learn not to growl, growling is bad, growling is unacceptable, growling is a problem and needs to be punished so a dog learns it’s wrong, disrespectful and not to do it again, right?
NO, this couldn’t be further from the truth! A dog that growls has just provided us with a very valuable communication signal. In their way, they have just communicated to us how they feel without resorting to a bite. Dogs use growling in an attempt to avoid having to resort to biting, not to initiate it. They could just as easily have not even bothered to growl and gone straight to a bite.
Growling is a dog's way of saying "please stop," "stay away from me," "go away," “I’m not comfortable with this and I’m feeling threatened”. A dog that growls is trying hard to communicate and punishment suppresses this ability to communicate. Punishment doesn’t change the level of the dog's discomfort; it creates more stress and the dog will feel more threatened.
Growling is not the problem. Growling is the result of and the symptom of a problem. A dog that bites without the warning of a growl is a far more serious problem than a dog that growls but doesn’t bite.
Look for any other early warning signals that may precede a growl. Recognize and take note of what makes your dog feel threatened and create distance between your dog and whatever is triggering them.
Be grateful for the gift of a growl - it provides us with an opportunity to address the cause & prevent the bite.

13/07/2022

How to recognise heatstroke in your dog and what to do in an emergency.

06/07/2022

Look out for grass seeds! During the summer months, grass seeds are everywhere and they can easily get stuck in your dog’s eyes, ears, nose or in between their toes.

It might surprise you, but these pesky little seeds can cause major infections or internal damage if they pe*****te the skin.
Don’t forget to do a quick check after each walk, especially between their pads and in their ears.

09/06/2022

BIT OF AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE !!


Hi! Here at Hotel Hattie, we love our life! We love helping you go off on holiday happily, knowing you leave your dog/s having their own holiday here, safe and loved.


One of the things about home boarding that attracts you is that it is SMALL, and self-limiting, so you know you your dog/s get our full attention all the time. 


The trouble is, that is exactly the problem now. We are restricted as to numbers, and there are not a lot of us offering home boarding.


At the moment, we are getting LOTS of enquiries - many are last minute, and many from people who have been let down. We would love to help, but we cannot - we have been booked up for some time now, with clients booking into 2023 and 2024 already.


We have had to decide to close our books to new clients, to give our loyal regulars access to the odd free days that might be available. We will open again as soon as possible, but will be taking bookings for next year onwards.


The South Glos council website has a downloadable list of all licensed home boarders in their "licensed animal premises " section (on this page - https://www.southglos.gov.uk/business/animal-health-welfare/animalwelfare/licensing-animal-activities-2018/ ). 

Do make sure that the person you leave your dog/s with is licensed and insured, they will be happy to show you evidence. Licensed home boarders are inspected to ensure health & safety standards are reached, and that knowledge of dog first aid, behaviour, body language, and animal welfare is evidenced.


Just by the by, some of us have been shouted and sworn at when explaining why we cannot be of help - that is really not on. We really do want to be of help whenever possible,
So, whilst we love our life, we are finding the present times frustrating and upsetting, and we really hope that we will see you some day here at Hotel Hattie.


All the very best, Lhina xx

30/04/2022

26/04/2022

SO JUST HOW LONG DO YOUR PET’S SHOTS LAST?

Definitely longer than a year!

According to the top pet immunologist (aka vaccine expert) in the world, Dr. Ronald Schultz, Ph.D. – “ Annual revaccination provides no benefit and may increase the risk for adverse reactions.”

What the heck are adverse reactions (or side effects)?

Well according to the other rock star pet immunologist Dr. Jean Dodds:

“Side effects from dog vaccinations can occur anywhere from instantly up to several weeks or months later. Vaccines can even cause susceptibility to chronic diseases that appear much later in a dog’s life (Dodd, 2001).

Severe and fatal adverse reactions include:

•Susceptibility to infections.

•Neurological disorders and encephalitis.

•Aberrant behavior, including unprovoked aggression.

•Vaccines are linked to seizures. Distemper, parvovirus, rabies and, presumably, other vaccines have been linked with poly neuropathy, a nerve disease that involves inflammation of several nerves. (Dodds,2001)”

SO HOW LONG EXACTLY DOES YOUR PET’S VACCINE LAST?

According to the recommendations of the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA), (basically the dudes who set the standards for the vets): “Among healthy dogs, all commercially available [core] vaccines are expected to induce a sustained protective immune response lasting at least 5 yr. thereafter”

Here’s the breakdown of the core vaccines from Dr. Ronald Schultz:

Minimum Duration of Immunity for Canine Vaccines:

Distemper- 7 years by challenge
Parvovirus – 7 years by challenge
Adenovirus – 7 years by challenge
Canine rabies – 3 years by challenge

The moral of the story here, if you have no idea when your pet is due or has been vaccinated, then just run a titer test and this will confirm if you are due, rather than over-vaccinate your poor pet, setting the stage for future problems!

What’s a titer test?

A titer test (pronounced tight-errr) is a laboratory or in-house veterinary test measuring the existence and level of antibodies (necessary to fight off disease) in your pet’s blood. Basically, it’s a test that will tell you whether or not you actually need to vaccinate your pet.

It’s also super useful when making a decision about vaccinating a pet with an unknown vaccination history, or for determining if pets have received immunity from vaccination.

Vaccinating your pet is super important so don’t lose the overall message here: VACCINATE, JUST DON’T OVER-VACCINATE!

According to Dr. Dodds:

“Vaccines have achieved many important benefits for companion animals, and has saved more animals' lives than any other medical advance.”

Want more on titer testing? Check it out:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10153271303942028&set=pb.509362027.-2207520000.1461100680.&type=3&theater

Rodney Habib

"An educated, informed and well-researched community of pet owners can only put more pressure on the pet food industry to be better! When pet owners know better, they will only do better!"

08/04/2022

Found this amusing.

30/03/2022

22/03/2022

Best thing you can do is let your dog sniff

Shake it…shake it off…

A recent study by two researchers in France looked at sniffing, pulse rate, and leash length on walks. Sixty-one dogs were taken on three separate walks, five minutes each walk, once with a 1.5m leash, once with a 5m leash, and once without a leash at all (walk order was randomized for each dog). Off-leash dogs sniffed the most, more than 3x as long as the dogs on short leashes. Dogs on long leashes spent nearly as much time as unleashed dogs sniffing, almost 3x as long as dogs on short leashes.

This study also found that sniffing resulted in lowered pulse rates, and the more intensely they sniffed, the more their pulse rates lowered. Pulse rate was also lowered when dogs “shook off” during walks on all leash lengths. The “shake off” behavior was often seen when the dog’s pulse rate was particularly high.

Read more about it below!
http://www.dogfieldstudy.com/node/1

https://thebark.com/content/dog-walks-sniffing-shaking-and-pulse-rate

What else can we learn about dogs from their walking behavior? Take your best friend on a Sniffari and see what you observe!

07/03/2022

Daffodil poisoning in cats and dogs. The facts:

15/02/2022

Strangely, on days like this I don't miss being a dog walker 😉😂

15/02/2022

Beautiful story ❤

14/02/2022

Brilliant lol

All it took was a spoon.

05/02/2022

How cold is too cold?

11/01/2022

Funny

18/11/2021

And bark!

Sure, why not 😅

The Oatmeal 😍

06/11/2021

For anyone looking for dog boarding i highly recommend Lhina.

29/10/2021

In case you think I've disappeared completely, cat sitting these beauties again.

23/10/2021

23/10/2021

A dog is a man’s best friend and there is no lie in this. We see them act silly and we laugh. They feel appreciated and then they continue to act silly until we stop reacting or when it’s time for a little snack. Dogs have a history of sticking by our side through all …

19/10/2021

Well worth watching

27/09/2021

Milo and I are spending our days chilling and resting. I have suffered a massive ME and arthritis flare and its knocked me for six. Haven't felt like this for years, absolutely no energy and sleeping loads. Its scary tbh, but my hubby is looking after me and making sure I am as well as I can be.
On the up side, my achilles tendon inflammation has settled, and had I the energy, I can walk properly again. My physiotherapist, Maggie, from Physiohelp4you, is amazing. I would recommend her any day, so glad I found her 😊.
Please give your dogs a hug from me, I do miss them and am sad our journeys had to end ###

03/09/2021

I braved the common today for the first time in months. I am finished with my 5x10min walks on the flat, and can now start building up the length of walk and my stamina. Brilliant physiotherapist, so happy to have found her.
Anyway, Milo was so happy to be back and rolling in stinky stuff again!

30/08/2021

Few pics from the past couple of days xx

28/08/2021

Nom nom nom

27/08/2021

Yayy, bunnies and cats again. Only bunny pics though x
Ooh, made it 3d, go me lol

25/08/2021

Awww