Pleasing 4 Pets

A caring dog owner has handed back her much loved pet of four years after it was discovered that was originally stolen.

Dog lover Isabella McGraw purchased pet Gango, a rare breed of Norwegian Buhund worth around £2,000 from local kennels in 2004. But unbeknown to her, former Crufts champion Gango had been stolen from the garden of his original owner, Jessie Ramshall only days before.

The truth was unearthed by chance outside a Cash and Carry in Nottinghamshire when Isabella found Jessie looking into her car where Gango was, and crying.

She said: -

”

There were lots of people around making a fuss and the lady was hysterical saying it’s her dog. She got documents out of her car and pedigree certificates that she had on her, and then she produced a photograph which had the distinctive marking on his ear.

I could see straight away it was her dog. I was very upset and distressed but I handed him over.”

Isabella and Jessie travelled to Jessie’s home in Sherwood where Gango happily jumped out of the car and ran straight inside his former home.

Isabella explained:-

“While I had him all he did was lie on the front garden and the vet has since said he was probably pining for his owner. I used to have to literally drag him in the house. All he wanted to do was lie in the garden.

When we went in her house she said to me, ‘I bet he goes in the lounge and goes straight over to that corner’, and he did.

I had to give him back. It had also really got to me when she said her husband had recently died and he’d said to her, ‘when I’m in heaven I’ll pray that the dog is returned to you’.”

A shelter which homes abandoned cats has been flooded with new additions as the declining economic climate in the UK drives pet owners to discard their pets.

The Cats Protection unit in the village of Nuthall in Nottinghamshire has the facility to shelter 30 cats but currently has 44 in house with a waiting list of at least 200 more.

The Deputy Manager at the unit, Debbie Heathcote commented:-

“There has been an increase in the number of people needing us – the phone calls have gone up dramatically.

We are starting to hear more that people cannot afford them.

This year will probably see more cats coming in.

This means the numbers on the waiting list will go up.

The quicker we can home the cats, the quicker we can get them off the waiting list.”

Over the course of 2008 the centre was home to around 84 stray cats, 33 abandoned moggies and 173 other cats whose owners decided that they were no longer able to keep them, mostly because they couldn’t afford to look after them.

The Cats Protection unit at Nutall covers the entire Nottingham area in addition to Long Eaton. Its doors are open from the hours of 11.00am until 3.00pm daily, including weekends.

For further information on Cats Protection in the Nottingham area call 01159
386 557.

If your cat is otherwise fit and healthy, she probably won’t require a higher level of care than usual when she is carrying kittens. A pregnant cat will happily engage in conventional activities and will remain reasonably self sufficient throughout the course of her pregnancy.

Feline pregnancies typically last between 60 and 70 days, and an average litter of kitten’s totals around 4. During the earliest weeks of the pregnancy it is unlikely that she will show any symptoms.

The first signs of pregnancy are usually noticeable after around 4 weeks, and early indicators are swollen nipples that are pinker that they would ordinarily be and increased appetite followed obviously by weight gain.

As soon as you suspect that your cat is expecting it would be wise to take to her your local veterinary clinic for a check up.

Your vet will advise you on dietary requirements during pregnancy, as the expectant Mother - or Queen will require a higher intake of both calories and protein from her second month of pregnancy, both of which are found in abundance in good quality kitten foods.

Your vet may advise you to add kitten food to your cat’s diet during the pregnancy, continuing until after her litter have been weaned.

Throughout the last two weeks of her pregnancy your cat may appear to lose her appetite, but it may be that she requires to eat more frequently in smaller quantities due to the decreased space in her abdominal area.

That said, if a pregnant cat refuses food or water for more than a couple of days, consult a veterinary surgeon for advice.

UK Veterinary Charity, The Peoples Dispensary for Sick Animals more commonly known as the PDSA, has released a list of the top ten most bizarre items removed by their registered veterinary surgeons from the stomachs of poorly pets.

Items on the list included a kitchen knife and a rubber duck.

One senior veterinary surgeon for the trust, Sean Wensley commented:-

“There is a medical term for pets eating strange objects - pica.

Dogs, especially puppies and younger dogs use their mouth to investigate objects as well as to eat. Sometimes a dog will swallow an object by mistake, even though it had only meant to investigate it.

PDSA is urging pet owners to do a ‘pet safety audit’ of their homes to identify and remove any dangers.

Owners should give their pets the chance to investigate new objects by providing them with plenty of pet-safe toys to play with.”

The complete list was published as follows:-:

1. Ten-inch tent peg
2. Christmas decoration (star shaped)
3. Kitchen knife
4. Alphabet fridge magnets
5. Man’s wig
6. Ann Summers underwear
7. Bell
8. Fishing hook
9. Socks
10. Rubber duck

Pet owners who would like further information regarding pet safety in the home can visit www.pdsa.org.uk/petcareleaflets for a free copy of the PDSA Pet Safety Indoors leaflet.

One of the UK’s most reputed veterinary surgeons has cautioned that the nation’s beloved pooches can experience almost as many injuries as a result of chasing sticks as they can on the nations roads.

The Professor of Small Animal Surgery at the Royal Veterinary College, Dan Brockman has recorded high numbers of severe infections and injuries in canines which were mostly the result of them suffering from puncture wounds after running after sharp or jagged sticks.

The professor has since launched a campaign to advise dog owners that in order to safeguard their pet pooches from such injuries they should throw rubber toys or appropriate sized balls rather than sticks.

His research has revealed dogs that have been paralysed after sticks had stabbed them in the throat and damaged their spinal cords, as well as dogs suffering from severe internal injuries after sticks had become wedged and stuck between the animal’s front legs and chest as they attempted to catch the moving stock.

But perhaps the most shocking were a number of dogs who encountered a slow and painful death as the result of infection from the minute remains of stick debris left in a cut or abrasion.

Professor Brockman also reminds dog owners of the need to ensure that dog toys including balls are appropriate to the size of their dog.

He said:-

“You must make sure the size of ball is right for the dog. I have had to operate on dogs that have swallowed tennis balls too.”

In a bid to safeguard its countries domestic pets from neglect and ill-treatment, the Japanese authorities are considering imposing a ‘Pet Tax’ on its rapidly expanding pet industry.

At a time when the Japanese Government seems unable to improve its nation’s declining birth rate, the pet industry is growing at an astonishing rate.

The numbers of pet dogs kept in Japan has risen to around 13million over the past ten years - far surpassing the numbers of children aged 12 and under.

It is hoped that imposing a tax on the price of purchasing a domestic pet will allow the authorities to enhance the safety of it nation’s animals and reduce the numbers of abandoned or neglected pets.

Unfortunately the increase in the numbers of domestic pets has coincided with dramatic increases in the numbers of ill-treated and abandoned animals. In 2008 more than 374,000 discarded animals were taken of the streets by local authorities, and a massive 90% on them were put to sleep.

Cash raised by the Pet Tax will be utilised to support pet ID schemes across Japan, as well as helping to fund the growing numbers of animal shelters.