From a bad-tempered cat to a dog with skin problems – your pet queries answered
HE is on a mission to help our pets . . . and is here to answer YOUR questions.
Sean, who is the head vet at tailored pet food firm tails.com, has helped with owners’ queries for ten years. He says: “If your pet is acting funny or is under the weather, or you want to know about nutrition or exercise, just ask. I can help keep pets happy and healthy.”
Q) MY eight-year-old cat Mo is really bad-tempered.
He hates the postman, being woken up and sometimes even me.
He pretty much hates everything except being fed.
Any ideas to cheer him up?
Sam Davies, Brighton
Sean says: This could just be his reason for being, and who are we to question it?
Or maybe there’s something else going on.
You don’t provide much detail which makes my guessing game harder. Is he old?
Could he be in pain, with arthritis and stiff joints, perhaps?
That would make me pretty grumpy, if I’m honest.
And we often find it difficult to recognise pain in our pets, firstly, because they don’t speak our language.
Secondly, they tend to hide it and just get along with life as best they can.
I’d highly recommend a vet visit so he can have a full physical exam
Got a question for Sean?
SEND your queries to vet@the-sun.co.uk
Q) MY 16-month-old neutered Chihuahua Daisy has issues with food, treats and toy-guarding, growling and attacking.
We’ve had her from eight weeks old and we have taken her out every day, everywhere, socialising her.
Her barking at anything that moves started at six months.
One minute she looks like butter wouldn’t melt then the next second she will launch herself at you, snarling with teeth showing and hackles raised.
She is a bold, confident dog but quite frankly I’m getting stressed out with her and I am a little frightened of her.
Please can you let us know where we went wrong and is there any hope for this situation
Lynne Owen, Wolverhampton
Sean says: There’s a reason why some folk call Chihuahuas land-sharks.
But I’m not a fan of just painting an entire breed with such broad brushstrokes.
Especially when we can easily understand why these dogs are prone to developing such behavioural issues.
First of all, they are absolutely tiny so the world is an intimidating place for them.
They also often get treated almost as accessories (I’m not saying you do) but their ability to control their environment and place in it often suffers when they are picked up all the time or just not allowed to be little dogs.
One way of telling people, other dogs or anything that feels threatening to back off is for them to show aggression by growling, barking etc.
Chihuahuas have that drive and a reason to perform it.
If it serves them a purpose it can become ingrained.
A good behaviourist can come and help Daisy to be less angsty.
A) IS there anything I can try to help my rescued Akita, Coco, as she keeps scratching and licking her paws?
We have tried different dog foods for skin.
We are not sure of her age but we think she is about five.
She has no sore patches but her paws are quite pink.
I took her in because the man who had her couldn’t look after her.
We are up to date with regular flea treatment.
Toni Phillips, Loughton, Essex
Sean says: Poor Coco. It’s very frustrating to be so itchy all the time.
And frustrating also that there is a long list of potential causes.
Unfortunately, getting to a firm diagnosis of the exact cause can be a difficult, time-consuming and sometimes expensive process.
Coco could have food allergies, so a hypoallergenic diet rather than one just formulated for healthy skin is an idea.
Far more common would be environmental allergies to pollens, fungal spores, house dust mites and the like.
Your best bet is to go to your vet, talk about a realistic budget and come up with a plan together.
Star of the week
BEAGLE Lola is top of the pups when it comes to classical music.
Owners Amy, 38, and Scott McKenzie, 44, from Ellon, Aberdeenshire, say the 12-year-old pooch not only has an amazing sense of smell – typical of Beagles – but she has got an amazing ear for the greats too.
Amy said: “Lola enjoys chilling out to classical music and her favourite tune to doze off to is Sleeping Beauty Waltz by Tchaikovsky.”
Lola, who has battled serious health issues including epilepsy, also lives with rescue dog sisters Ayda and April.
Amy added: “She’s a very brave girl.”
WIN: Xiaomi feeder and fountain
WE’VE joined forces with Xiaomi to offer two readers the chance to win both its £99.99 smart pet food feeder and £54.99 smart pet fountain, designed for cats and small to medium-sized pets.
You can schedule mealtimes or feed them remotely through the Xiaomi app.
To enter, send an email headed XIAOMI to sundaypets@the-sun. co.uk by February 12.
See mi.com/uk. T&Cs apply.
Two in ten have tried tiddles’ nibbles
TWO out of ten cat-lovers have secretly nibbled pet food, a new poll has found.
Owners revealed they tend to indulge because they either like the taste or to encourage their cat to eat its dinner.
The biggest culprits come from Birmingham, with 25 per cent owning up to trying their moggy’s grub.
London is second at 23 per cent, Sheffield and Norwich came joint third (22 per cent) and Manchester fourth with 21 per cent.
Glasgow and Bristol came joint fifth on 16 per cent ahead of Brighton in sixth place on 14 per cent and Nottingham seventh on 12 per cent.
Cat owners in eighth-place Cardiff are the least likely to tuck into pet food with just nine per cent.
A spokesman for pet treat brand Acana, who did the survey, said: “It could be the texture, the smell or the packaging that awakens Brits’ curiosity to try their cat’s food.”
Tails.com head vet Sean McCormack said: “There’s this idea that pet food is somehow gross or unpalatable, but in reality it uses the parts of farm animals we tend not to eat.
“Delicious and nutritious, it’s also planet-friendly to use these ingredients after humans take the ‘best cuts’.”