Pets Magazine February 2020

February 2020, FREE

Brr, it’s cold!

How to Keep your Pet Safe

LOVE MATCH: Cupid has four legs!

We meet Stanley, the St Lucian rescue dog

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PLUS MUCH MORE INSIDE! Pets Magazine

WWW.ARTYLOBSTER.COM Vet

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Baby, it’s cold outside...

If it’s cold for you, it’s cold for your pet – that’s the key message from the British Veterinary Association (BVA) as it urges pet owners to take extra precautions to ensure dogs, cats and other small pets are kept safe from hidden and potentially fatal hazards as snow flurries and icy conditions are forecast in many parts of the country.

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If it’s cold for you, it’s cold for your pet – that’s the key message from the British Veterinary Association (BVA) as it urges pet owners to take extra precautions to ensure dogs, cats and other small pets are kept safe from hidden and potentially fatal hazards as snow flurries and icy conditions are forecast in many parts of the country.

As with humans, pets can fall ill upon exposure to extremely cold temperatures for extended periods. To avoid this, vets advise that dogs are walked for shorter periods of time than usual, but more frequently if required, and to consider putting a coat on old dogs or those with thin fur to keep them warm. Keep older cats inside during an extremely cold spell and ensure that even healthy young cats have easy access to shelter and warmth.

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When walking your dog in ice and snow, do not let it off the lead and avoid walking in areas where ponds or lakes may have frozen over – animals often don’t understand the difference between solid ground and ice and can fall through. In this situation, vets urge owners to call the emergency services for professional help rather than going in after their pet.

Although distressing, it is never worth risking your own life as well as your dog’s.

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It’s also important to wipe your dog’s paws and belly on returning home from a snowy walk to remove any ice or salt, and to regularly check for cracks in paw-pads or for redness between the toes.

Cats are especially at risk of poisoning from antifreeze, which can be fatal for them even in small amounts, especially if veterinary treatment is not sought immediately after ingestion.

Store and use antifreeze products carefully, clean any

spillages thoroughly, and contact your vet immediately if your cat develops symptoms of antifreeze poisoning, such as vomiting, depression, lack of coordination, seizures and difficulty breathing.

Small pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs that usually live outdoors are vulnerable to the cold and damp despite their furry coats.

Small animals such as rabbits are particularly at risk Owners with outdoor hutches and runs should make “Dogs and cats should have hypothermia despite their sure that their pets’ living space easy access to shelter and warm coats, which is why is well-protected from snow, warmth out of the cold, and owners need to be vigilant and frost and winter take steps to ensure rain and kept their hutches are dry. Give protected from the rabbits and snow, cold draughts and guinea pigs winter rain. extra bedding to keep warm “If owners have any and check their concerns about their pet water bottle or in this cold weather, bowl regularly, they should consult as these can their local vet for freeze when the advice.” temperature Here are some other top while dogs will still need drops. tips to keep pets safe this exercise, it’s advisable to walk winter: them for shorter periods than British Veterinary Association Provide a warm, draught-free usual. Antifreeze is a huge President Daniella Dos Santos hazard for cats, so contact your shelter: Make sure your pet’s said: vet immediately if you see signs bed is in a draught-free, warm of poisoning such as vomiting, spot off the floor in the house.

“Plummeting temperatures and depression, lack of snowy conditions call for extra coordination, seizures and For outdoor pets, the hutch or precautions to keep our pets run should be in a sheltered difficulty breathing. safe and warm. position, away from wind, rain and snow at least 10 cm off the “Domestic rabbits and guinea ground. pigs are also vulnerable to

Plummeting temperatures and snowy conditions call

for extra precautions to keep our pets safe & warm.

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cats even in small amounts, with almost one in six vets tips to keep pets safe this (17%) reporting treating cats winter: for antifreeze poisoning over the 2018 winter season. Apart from use in car radiators, some cases that vets saw were Provide a warm, thought to be from ingesting draught-free shelter: diluted antifreeze used in ornamental water features to Make sure your pet’s bed is in a protect the pumps. draught-free, warm spot off the floor in the house. For outdoor pets, the hutch or run should be Temperature control in a sheltered position, away for small pets: from wind, rain and snow at least 10 cm off the ground.

Keep the temperature of rabbit and guinea pig homes between 10⁰C and 20⁰C for rabbits (the Take precautions lower temperature assumes during and after rabbits are healthy and kept walks: with other rabbits, with lots of bedding for warmth) and 5⁰C Dogs need to be exercised; to 20⁰C for guinea pigs, however, during the colder avoiding too many fluctuations months, try to walk your dog in temperature. for shorter periods. Wipe your dog’s paws and belly on returning home from a snowy walk to remove any ice or salt, Provide extra bedding and to regularly check for for rabbits and guinea cracks in paw-pads or for pigs: redness between the toes.

Here are some other top

Avoid anti-freeze poisoning: Wiping your pets’ paws can prevent them from ingesting toxins that they may have stood in whilst outside. Antifreeze in particular is highly toxic for

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Make sure your rabbits and guinea pigs have extra bedding to keep warm during colder weather – line hutches with plenty of newspaper, provide lots of hay and cover with an old duvet/blanket/tarpaulin.

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If the weather becomes very severe, consider moving outdoor pets inside to a wellventilated space with light and room to exercise – but never place them inside a garage in use, as vehicle exhaust fumes are harmful to rabbits and guinea pigs.

Cupid has FOUR LEGS!

A dog really can be a man’s, or woman’s, best friend when it comes to finding love...

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Love match: your pets can help your love life!

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Research reveals that dogs increase your matches on Tinder by 177%.

Having a dog in a Tinder or Bumble profile photo leads to 69% more matches for women.

Men can see their inbound messages rise by 75% by having a dog in their photo.

A dog really is a man’s or woman’s best friend when it comes to finding love, according to a new study.

Created by Webbox, Pet Wingman reveals that singletons can increase their chances of finding their perfect match by 117% this Valentine’s Day by using their dog to help them do it.

On average, men receive 38% more swipes on Tinder and Bumble if their profile picture features a dog, whereas women can see a whopping 69% increase by adopting the same tactic.

The study followed a man and woman as they used the two

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dating apps for a period of two weeks. The first week, they used a single profile picture of themselves on both platforms and swiped right 100 times. For the second week, they included their four-legged friend in the photo and used the exact same tactic, then recorded the results.

Potential partners unanimously favoured the dogs being in their profile photo for both men and women.

Male candidate, Dan, 24, saw an increase on Tinder in the number of matches (30%) and Super Likes (200%), with a significant jump in messages (75%) and even some messages specifically about his dog Ted.

The female candidate Gemma, 35, saw an astounding jump in the number of matches (117%) and Super Likes (100%) on Tinder, with another major increase in messages (150%) and also messages directly about her dog, Ralph.

conversation about their canine Dan said one of the most companions. frequent comments he received was how a dog makes a man seem more approachable and easier to relate to.

Both singletons found

their pet dogs played a

On Bumble, Dan saw an increase in matches (42%) and messages (40%), and more than a third of his matches commented on Ted.

major role in helping

them to find potential

Gemma also received more matches (22%) and Super Swipes (100%) on Bumble when Ralph was in her profile photo. As girls have to message first on Bumble, that statistic wasn't counted for Gemma.

Both singletons found their pet dogs played a major role in helping them to find potential suitors, with Gemma even going on a date with another dog owner after striking up a

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The e-commerce manager from West Yorkshire said: “Ted has been the star of the show - I think some women actually swiped right more for him than me! It’s so much better to start a conversation with ‘your dog is so cute’ rather than a standard ‘hey’ or ‘hello’.

suitors...

The Manchester-based actress and presenter said: “Ralph really is my pet wingman! Not only did he help me secure more matches, I couldn’t believe how many times he was mentioned in messages.

“Although I’m still single, it’s showed me that there are some lovely people out there. Who knows - the next time I go on a “I also found that it was a good first date we could swap a drink in a bar for a dog walk!” conversation starter, particularly for men who had dogs themselves, as it instantly To view the full results of Pet gives you some common Wingman, visit: https:// ground. I’ve already been on a www.webbox.co.uk/petdate with a fellow dog owner wingman/. so watch this space!”

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Rescuing Stanley in Paradise

Stanley was found as a puppy on waste ground near the East Winds resort in St Lucia. The hotel rescued him and adopted him as the resort dog. He now enjoys a wonderful life living with the resort’s managing director, Judith Milne...

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Happy endings: Stanley, the rescue dog

Stanley was found as a puppy

office. He has acquired a

on waste ground near the

legion of fans among the

East Winds resort in St Lucia.

hotel guests who bring him

The hotel rescued him and

presents and take him for

adopted him as the resort

walks. Now that Stanley is

dog. He now enjoys a

past the puppy stage he is

wonderful life living with the

getting involved in weddings

resort’s managing director,

at the resort, acting as ring

accompanies Judith to work,

tells Stanley’s heart-warming

As the rain lashed down during a tropical downpour, two pairs of terrified eyes peered out from under a fallen tree. The eyes belonged to two tiny shivering puppies crying with fright.

Luckily for them, despite the thundering rain, their plaintive Judith Milne. Judith had never bearer. He is also featured on cries were carried on the wind to Judith and Andy Milne as had a dog before but says a mural that has just been now she couldn’t imagine life added to the entrance of the they worked at the luxury East Winds resort in St Lucia. without Stanley. Stanley hotel. Here. Kish Wilkinson, spending time snoozing in her story...

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Disturbed by the sound, the couple ventured into the torrential rain and traced the

Stanley with his owner Judith

wails to a piece of wasteland next to the hotel where they found the bedraggled puppies in a ditch.

Judith and Andy immediately took pity on the two little scraps and carried them safely back to their office.

Stanley is even being

trained to become a ring

The puppies were in a poor state: starving with some nasty injuries. A visit to the vet confirmed that the four week old brothers were malnourished and unlikely to survive.

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For the next two weeks Judith And from this point their lives and Andy tenderly cared for the were transformed forever. puppies, now named Stanley A regular visitor to the hotel, took a particular shine to Rover and adopted him, giving him a new home nearby. Stanley was kept by the Milnes, becoming the resort pet and a vital member of the East Winds team. and Rover, tempting them with The brothers still see nourishing food and giving each regularly having fun playing together. them much needed love and affection. It was a further three Today, Stanley is 18 months old months before the brothers were fully recovered. and accompanies Judith to

bearer for couples

marrying at the resort

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work every morning. His ‘duties’ include meeting and greeting guests, playing and taking walks with them. Many guests have commented that having Stanley to play with has stopped them missing their own dogs.

Stanley’s loving nature has attracted a fan club of guests who bring him gifts of toys and treats. Doggy treats are not

And now Stanley is even being trained to become a ring bearer for couples marrying at the resort.

Bond: Stanley & Judith Several couples had easy to find in St Lucia so he already invited Stanley to really appreciates them. He attend their nuptials, so Judith even has his own Instagram decided to give him an official account chronicling his role. exploits.

he’s doing a training session.

Judith and Andy use game based training, rewarding him when he does something right.

As Stanley and Rover were abandoned, it’s hard to determine their breed.

Their mother was probably a stray, known as banana hounds in St Lucia and their father was probably a Labrador. But their breed is of no consequence to Judith who says, “When people ask what sort of dog Stanley is, we say he’s a Lucian!”

Cuddling Stanley, Judith reflects: “I’ve never owned a dog before, but Stanley and Rover stole my heart. As soon as we found the puppies I know I would keep one of them.

“Stanley is a cheeky chappie, When not working, Stanley The resort staff love him too. very affectionate but with a relaxes in Judith’s office mind of his own. He’s bright He’s very sociable and greets chilling out on cool tiles, resting everyone, especially anyone and quick to learn new skills, his head on a pillow. He’s a big he’s known since he was a loyal and playful. And of cushion lover and always takes puppy. He has a particular soft course, we think he’s the best one to relax on. spot for executive chef, dog ever!”

Tomislav Cukman: the two play He loves the beach, swimming together whenever they see Follow Stanley’s adventures in the sea every day. And each other. All the chefs have on Instagram: recently was featured, paddling helped nurture Stanley to good stanleyofeastwinds or visit in the sea, in a new mural at the health. His diet features dried www.eastwinds.com/meetentrance of the property. food supplemented with mackerel at breakfast time and stanley homemade chicken treats when

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All things weird & wonderful

VETS often treat a diverse range of weird and wonderful cases in their practices – but what are some of the more unusual ones?

From dogs swallowing foreign objects and parrots with bad breath problems, to an owner who claims that her dog detected her

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breast cancer, we ďŹ nd out about the more unusual cases...

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and he escaped with no internal damage.

Black Labrador, Monty, also required emergency surgery after he ate a lump of jagged coal, that travelled through his system before it became stuck and perforated a hole in his intestines.

If vets hadn’t removed the coal in From dogs time it could have led to a fatal swallowing foreign infection.

Fishy business - Vets removing a lump from a objects and parrots

goldfish with bad breath While Finley the springer problems, to an spaniel had a 7cm stick owner who claims removed from his nose after that her dog being admitted with sneezing, detected her breast much to surprise of his vets. cancer, 2019 has

provided vets with a “Some pets, and dogs in wide range of particular, will eat almost challenging and anything they come across, as interesting clients. they don’t have the

understanding that we National veterinary humans do of what the group, Vets4Pets, consequences of such an has compiled a list action can be,” continued Dr of strange and Stacey. memorable cases

that its teams have “Pets can often consume items treated during the left lying around the house, last twelve months. garden or outdoors, so it’s

important that owners are Dr Huw Stacey, vet aware of what their pet is and director of doing in case of an emergency. clinical services at

Vets4Pets, said: “If a pet ingests a foreign “With hundreds of object, it can sometimes lead practices spread to serious issues if it isn’t across the UK, our removed quickly. But as long hardworking vets as owners act fast once they and nurses see realise what has happened, thousands of pets then their vet will be able to every year, so there remove the item and ensure were bound to be the pet is fit and well before some more unusual returning them to their cases amongst them, owner.” mischievous young beagle Benson, that really tested the skills and

who, unbeknownst to his owners, expertise of our veterinary However, Vets4Pets’ findings managed to ingest 14 drawing professionals. show that vets can also end up pins. Luckily, they were removed

As in human healthcare, vets often treat a diverse range of weird and wonderful cases in their practices – but what are some of the more unusual ones?

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“Although, we were definitely surprised by a few of the cases we heard about from our practices, one of the more common issues we found was vets having to remove foreign objects from inside pets, mainly after they had swallowed something they shouldn’t have.”

This was the case with

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Vets in South Wales were puzzled by an African grey parrot with garlic bad breath

performing operations a bit more ‘out of the norm’ from their usual surgeries, with one case involving putting a goldfish under general anaesthetic to remove a lump from its back.

Vets in Wrexham also had to remove the majority of a dog’s jaw recently due to cancer, whilst vets in Swindon are currently treating a Weimaraner with acupuncture to help with its muscle problems.

“Just like us humans, pets can suffer from a variety of illnesses throughout their life, from cancer

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to diabetes, or are born with, or develop, rarer conditions which then need more long-term ongoing treatment and care,’ explained Dr Stacey.

“During consultations vets can also hear stories of how pets have helped owners with their own medical conditions, with one of our clients claiming that her dog smelt her breast cancer before it was diagnosed. The owner then underwent successful treatment and is now recovering.

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“This was definitely one of the more unusual cases we heard about from one of our practices, and shows the remarkable abilities our pets have, particularly dogs, whose senses are hundreds of times better than our own.”

As a pet-loving nation, there are millions of dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea pigs across the UK. But it’s not just the everyday pets that vets treat.

This was the case with vets in South Wales, who were puzzled by an African grey parrot with garlic bad breath. Only after a long process of diet changes was it found that sesame sticks were the culprit of causing the issue!

“Every animal has its own unique personality and quirks, which can lead to them being weird and wonderful cases for the UK’s vets and nurses to treat, and they all certainly make the job very interesting indeed,” concluded Dr Stacey.

PET CUSTODY: Who gets the dog?

Retaining pet custody is high on newly-single Brits’ priority list, new research has revealed.

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Happier times: Dogs tend to bond with one ‘pet parent’

Most pet owners said getting on newly-single Brits’ priority custody of their fur baby was “very important” after a breaklist, new research has up, and companionship (49%), revealed. The time between improving happiness (18%), Christmas and Valentine’s Day and exercise (12%) were found to be the top three reasons for is a break-up hotspot, with getting (and wanting to keep) a people twice as likely to break pet. The most common method up in this time compared to to decide included a frank the rest of the year. The discussion around each person’s financial situation and research, conducted by living arrangements, followed British equestrian and pet by negotiating and specialist Harry Hall, found compromising around other that in the event of a shared assets. relationship break-up, 81% of One respondent shared her pet owners would make own story about the custody keeping their pet a main decision of the dog that she owned with an ex-boyfriend: priority.

Retaining pet custody is high

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“To be fair there wasn’t much of a discussion… he kept the dog and I was really sad!

“Rather than a conversation to decide, it was more of a given that she would stay there (he was staying in the house which had land and he could afford at least £200 per month on doggy day care, and I had to move into a flat with no garden and no pets allowed). Also, we had such a horrible breakup that I never wanted to see him again”.

Some stated that they would even consider shared custody, as a last resort. The research also found that seeing and spending time with animals makes people feel happier,

Conflict: Many couples forget the impact on their pets...

particularly for women. As sadness and loneliness are some of the most common negative feelings during a break-up, having a pet around can provide a level of comfort, and be somewhat of a coping mechanism.

When asked how animals make us feel, 91% of respondents used words that were overwhelmingly positive, including “affection”, “content”, “loved” and “comforted”, showing that animals can make a real difference to how we feel.

Other findings suggested that, aside from difficult life events, our pets make us happier people in general - over half (51%) of pet owners would rank

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their happiness levels at 8 or above, compared with just 39% of non-pet owners.

Dipti Tait, a hypnotherapist and behaviour expert, commented on the effect of relationship break-ups on pets themselves: “The primitive brain that animals have like routine, familiarity and consistency...

This part of the brain is also very associative and responds to triggers easily (like tapping on the food bowl). When there is a disruption to this (such as during a relationship breakdown, where an owner’s familiar face becomes an absent one) it can cause anxiety and stress for our pets.”

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Liz Hopper, managing director at Harry Hall, commented on the findings: “Our research showed that pets have a special place in our lives, providing love, loyalty, and companionship, especially during tough times such as a relationship breakdown.

“Therefore, it’s no surprise that many pet owners see keeping custody of their fluffy friends as a main priority when faced in that situation.”

LARS B. ANDERSEN, CEO of Arty Lobster On 3D Pet Sculptures Click this link to watch the video.

And here’s two examples of Arty Lobster’s fantastic 3D sculptures. Visit their website at www.artylobster.com to order a 3D sculpture of YOUR pet!

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