We recently went on holiday for a long weekend to a group meet of sighthound adopters. One of the greyhounds was very reactive to most of the other dogs. He was only friendly with a couple of the greyhounds he has met quite often. It’s the first time in over 70 years I have come across a reactive dog and it was very sad.

Here’s an article about socialising a reactive dog.

HEATSTROKE is a MEDICAL EMERGENCY! Fortunately, now more and more professionals are communicating the same message!

Whilst the need for rapid cooling with COLD water (1-15°C) has been recognised for decades in equestrian and human medicine, the dog world has lagged behind, and very poor information still circulates. e.g. “cool the paws”, “cover with wet towels”, “avoid cold water as it will cause shock”

THE KEY MESSAGES ARE…………

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Of all the dogs I have had in over 7 decades of my life, I have only had one with dementia. One was sadly stolen and never found; one young one was run over and killed; 3 were lost to cancer; one had dementia. The rest lived long and happy lives.

It was my borderline collie (99% border collie/1%spaniel) who developed dementia and it was upsetting to see. I’d find him standing still with no idea where he was, what direction to go in, straddling a low brick wall, snapping when caressed. He was in his teens by then, so it was part of the natural ageing process for him. In the end he became so confused it was kinder to comfort him as he was pts.

This is a weblink about recognising and caring for a dog with dementia.

A weblink to a book by someone living with a dog with dementia.

I certainly believe they do. 4 years ago I lost my much loved galgo Polar to lymphoma. Galgo Bracken became very clingy, as did little Podenca Bebe. 3 months after losing Polar we lost Bracken to a tumour in his lungs. Bebe couldn’t cope with the loss of yet another housemate and just gave up on life. She would not eat, drink, get off her bed – she was just wasting away, no matter how much we cuddled her, so we had to make the kindest decision to send her over the bridge to join the others.

Do dogs grieve?

It’s a sad fact of life that a lot of senior dogs are dumped in shelters and perreras when their owners either can’t afford the vet fees for medical care, or in the case of hunters because the dogs have served their purpose and they no longer want them!

This article explains how to care for an older dog, although I’m sure my readers are already well experienced in caring for their senior dog.