Q&A with Kate Bendix about dog health and happiness - ANSWERS BACK

[RachelMumsnet]

We're running a Q&A this week with dog expert Kate Bendix on all aspects of canine health. Kate runs the webchat My itchy dog. She regularly features on The One Show discussing dog health with vet Joe Inglis. She also writes for canine magazines.

Kate's latest book Top Dog is a step by step guide on how to have a happy dog and happy owners! Expert Kate Bendix answers all your questions whether it's how to choose the right dog for your family, preparing your home for a new puppy, how to have a lovely smelling dog (!) or simply what special doggy treat to make for his Christmas lunch! Offering simple and affordable tips on health, diet and lifestyle, Top Dog shows how you can have a marvellous mutt.

Post your Q to Kate before Monday 8 December and we'll post up her answers the following week (12 December). Everyone who joins the Q&A will be entered into a draw to win one of five copies of Top Dog. Winners will be announced on 12th December.

@ffallada

Hi Kate, We have a problem with our two year old collie, he is very loud! When we are at home, by ourselves, he is a gem. We've taught him to replace random barking with a lovely howl (it's gentle and sweet). The problem is when people come over, or we go over to other people's houses, especially if they have dogs - he barks for attention. All the time. Loudly. It's our fault, we should have stamped on it when he was little, but he wasn't so loud then! We have tried saying no, distracting him with toys, spraying him with water, and muzzling him of (all on advice from trainers). None of which work. In fact he is getting worse. I am due on Wednesday and I'm afraid the health visitor won't think having a loud attention seeking collie in the same house as our baby is a good idea.

Dogs bark for thousands of reasons and I would strongly suggest you get a positive behaviourist in to help you - especially now you have a new little one. Do not continue to use any aversive action (such as spraying water which teaches your dog that bad things come from your hands and is likely to increase the likelihood of nipping hands that come toward him). Work out what function this behaviour serves and use that function as a reward for when he doesn't bark. Additionally it sounds like he might be under stimulated - mentally. It is easy to forget how important it is for your dog to use his brain! If in doubt, look up clicker training as you can do this from the comfort of an armchair.

@kayleigh39

I have two male dogs, one 19 months (Fergie) and the other 13 months (Bailey). The older dog was our pet from when he was born and we introduced the Bailey when Fergie was roughly 8 months old.

They're 2 different breads, Fergie is a Westie and Bailey is a Poodle x Westie.

Bailey can't help himself, but he chews the wallpaper and even when he knows he's done wrong - he will do it again. He tries to chew the covers on the sofa and he has chewed our cushions. We will not buy any more cushions now.

Because of the way he is, we cannot have a christmas tree up the year. Both have been neutered and chipped and get exercise daily.

Bailey also digs big holes in the garden. I've tried popping his faeces into the holes to stop him doing this, but he eats it sometimes (yuck).

How can I stop his behaviour?

He sounds very under stimulated mentally. Remember - if you don't give your dog a job, he will go self employed. Self employed dogs go out and find themselves a purpose and often the things that make them feel good and relieve boredom and frustration are not things we like! Find a good clicker training class and ensure you give him jobs to do. Also - don't waste his food portion. Use his food portion to give him an activity: stuff it in a Kong or else hide it round the garden for him to find. Takes minutes for us to do and give the dogs something to use their brain on!

@DorisIsALittleBitPartial

Hello Kate My dog is around 9 years old. He is a rescue and we have had him since April. When we got him he had very stiff back legs and we have been giving him Arithium (?) since for suspected arthritis. The person we adopted him from used to carry him up and down the stairs and said he was an old boy but with us he plays like a puppy. His vet has acknowledged that he has crunchy old joints but not suggested any review or treatment. What is the best thing we can do to manage his stiff legs? It doesn't seem to affect him - he charges around, running up and down the stairs and up on the bed and sofa, and doesn't appear to be in any pain. Thanks x

Hi there

Sounds like he’s doing fine to me and is lucky to have found you. I would recommend Yumove from Lintbells (I recommend a lot of their stuff because they make very good products) as a daily joint supplement if it’s something you’d like to ease and keep on top of for as long as possible. Remember too that animals don’t show pain until they’re pretty uncomfortable because to admit to pain is to show weakness, so his old joints could be grumbling quite a bit and you wouldn’t know it. Yumove has a good blend of green lipped mussel and glucosamine plus it’s the only supplement which contains hyaluronic acid, a major component of synovial fluid, the cushioning fluid between joints. I’m seriously not on commission. It’s the number one selling joint product now I think because it’s very good and not so expensive it’ll make your eyes water.

@PeppaPigStinks

We have a nippy lab - 14 weeks old. following for tips ;-)

We have an online puppy survival guide on our website at www.school4dogs.com which will tell you all about how to stop the nipping, as well as about settling, crate training, toilet training, and other puppy essentials :)

@needastrongone

Hi Kate.

We have two dogs, a springer and a working cocker. Both are young and fit as fiddles. Both are very lean. The cocker however borders on being thin, rather than lean. He's on Millies Wolfheart kibble for working dogs, and one specifically for dogs that struggle to maintain weight, so with a higher proportion of protein, and a very good quality food in itself, which I don't wish to change. Fed twice a day. More than the recommended quantity.

In addition he has one or two eggs per week, raw. Treats are liver, cheese etc. He gets a couple of kongs per week and a couple of raw meaty bones for his teeth.

Both dogs have 90 minutes to 2 hours off lead every day and run around like loons for pretty much the entire time The cocker is one year old and is still entire.

Other than this, they are both well behaved good boys and I love 'em to bits!!

TIA.

These two sound like they’re in the perfect spot for them. For the dog who’s on the lean side you could take a Pemmikan Energy Bar on your walks. They’re around £6 but each bar contains 2400 calories so one is going to last you a while! They’re sold by www.csjk9.com who do a huge amount with working dogs and this treat is sold specifically for them. The ingredients are all good stuff, quite high fat but that’s not going to be a problem with your two.

[quote tabulahrasa ]I've got a happy dog one...

I have a 2 yr old Rottweiler with some complicated health issues which have caused some behavioural problems (I have professional help for both, it is a more general question, honestly, lol). Because of his issues he's on lead and muzzled when out and often on restricted exercise...however, he's a young intelligent energetic dog.

I do all the obvious things with him, some scentwork at home, he has things like kongs and puzzle toys and I clicker train him to do tricks and he has a couple of short walks a day (he'd quite happily do longer ones, but it's a case of the spirit is willing and the body isn't able).

Is there anything else I could be doing with him to keep him entertained? He's fantastic at picking up commands, quite happy to do anything involving food and likes any toys (though he is a chewer)... But he can't do anything too frantic or that would put strain on his elbows or spine, so is there anything I haven't thought of that he could be doing?[/quote]

Dog yoga (which involves teaching your dog via the clicker to hold specific poses). It is physically and mentally stimulating, and reinforces calmness. Additionally there is a book by Sian Ryan called No walks, no worries. It has lots of games and stuff for people in your position.

@JoffreyBaratheon

Our old dogs were fed the BARF diet (or our version of!) and did really well on zero commercial food.

We now have a 13 week old pup, who is still on the same brand kibble she came to us from rescue, with. I have started mixing in some cooked meat as this is the only way she will eat it all. But I only have experience of BARF feeding older dogs - have never raised a puppy on it - and don't feel so confident about it as I know it is crucial to get it right with a growing dog.

So... what would you say is the optimum diet for a pup/young dog and how to transition our dog over to it as we don't want to keep her on kibble?

Our old dogs did very well on real meat, bones and leftover veg. But I have heard my (former) vet rant for ages about raw food diets (I was sceptical as I noticed he was selling a commercial food).

What - in your opinion - is best for growing, young dogs? And how would you transition them over to a better diet?

I’ve never fed a dog raw from a puppy either as our dog Nikita came as a rescue and Ronnie wouldn’t touch raw with a bargepole, though Nikita loves it. If I was starting from scratch I would read the book Raw Meaty Bones by Tom Lonsdale to kick off my research. I have had really good common sense help, and no judgement (which can often happen on diet specific sites) from a Facebook group call A Raw Start Explained (A.R.S.E.) Yes, you read that right. Lovely bunch of dog owners who really know their stuff and are happy to help. They have a website too www.rawstartexplained.webs.com.

@DartmoorDoughnut

My 9 year old collie cross has s ridiculous amount of fatty lumps he's always had a couple but I've found around 10 new ones recently, the new ones are dotted about but mainly on his legs - front and back - any ideas why? Also my border terrier is very itchy, has little spots on his chest, any tips?! Both fed Lily's Kitchen kibble and are walked for about an hour and a half every day, neither of them are over weight or have any other issues. Thanks!

Hello there

Well, I’d take the collie cross to the vet to get the lumps checked out. Some lumps just come and go but they should always be looked at. If your border is itchy with little spots on his chest, have you ruled out parasites? As long as that’s done I would recommend bathing him in Skinny Shampoo, leaving it on for up to ten mins. This will get rid of anything which may be lurking and will relieve much of the itch straight away. After that, Ekoneem oil, rubbed onto the spots a couple of times a day until they’re gone will get rid of them for good.