From a head-banging cat to a canary with cataracts — 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.”

Getty

This week Sean helps a reader with a head-banging cat[/caption]

Supplied

Q) EVERY time I’m home working, Freya, my six-year-old house cat, head butts my laptop.

Or if I’m engrossed in a meeting on Zoom, she tries to photobomb me or walk on my keyboard.

She’s a Norwegian Forest Cat so obviously she’s big and a law unto herself.

If I shut her out of the room she yowls loudly and she ignores bribery with treats. Any tips?

Jules Gray, Plymstock

A) Oh Jules, it’s very obvious you’re not paying Freya enough attention.

And if there’s one sure-fire way to change that, it’s for Freya to give an up-close-and-personal view of her bottom to all your colleagues through the laptop camera.

Which, I am sure, is quite a shock for your workmates on the video call on a Monday morning!

I guess she doesn’t get why you’re so engrossed in that weird shiny light box thing, and if you’re chatting away she may think you’re talking to her as there’s no one else in the room.

You and your colleagues need to just accept this is the Freya show and you’re all co-stars.

This is normal cat behaviour, so you’ll have to put up with yowling or allow her an occasional cameo on work calls.

Q) MY vet has told me that my canary Lola has cataracts.

Is there anything I can do to make Lola’s life as good as possible?

Em Brooks, Leicester

A) This is a new one even for me. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen canary cataracts.

And being such a tiny and probably old bird, Lola wouldn’t make for the best patient to attempt surgery on.

As long as she is eating, drinking and getting around OK I’m inclined to say just continue what you are doing.

If she’s ever out of sorts, get her checked over by your vet again.

It’s useful to note that cataracts are not painful at all, they just cause loss of vision.

Q) ALL of a sudden, my two-year-old Cockapoo Ernie has started scratching at the back door.

He licks excitedly at the floor and scratches it so aggressively that he has ripped the lino. He also gnaws at the floorboards underneath.

This is so out of character for him. Any suggestions?

Estelle Mulcahy, Bradford, West Yorks

A) I’d love to get to the bottom of why he is doing this, as working backwards from the motivation for a behavioural problem is often the only way to tackle it effectively.

Is he asking to go out? Is it at certain times of day? Or in response to sounds of people or other animals he can hear outside? Or does this fall firmly into the category of “my dog is just a weirdo”?

There are more questions here than answers, I’m sorry to say.

I’d like a behaviourist to visit and observe what’s happening and how you react to it, which may also play a role.

Without seeing for myself it’s hard to advise on the solution.

Q) OUR two rescue cats Amy and Polly are being terrorised by our neighbours’ Bengal, who has got into our house several times.

It’s caused Amy to start urinating on the floor in the house.

I’ve taken her for a vet check, bought new litter trays, tried Feliway, and clean and wipe up immediately.

Can we do anything to break the habit?

Christina Roper, Bridport, Dorset

A) You’re doing everything right to avoid the habit becoming ingrained indoors and to relieve stress, except the major underlying problem is that this cat is still able to intimidate them.

You need to exclude the Bengal bully from entering your home, and you can do that with a special catflap which reads Amy and Polly’s microchips or a magnetic attachment on their collars to let only them in.

Star of the week

LONELY Rocket the pup was rescued in Bosnia where he was tied up outside for three years – and he’s now looking for his furr-ever home.

The five-year-old suffered alone in snow and blazing sun, but he’s still a lovely boy, according to rehoming charity Fetcher Dog.

Supplied

Jordan Connor of the rescue organisation said: “Rocket is a very sweet and also very shy boy.

“He likes everyone he meets once he builds up his confidence and he is learning to love and enjoys affection.

“He really deserves a loving family of his own.”

For more about rescues like Rocket, see FetcherDog.com.

Give farm chickens a clucky break

PET lovers are being urged to consider adopting chickens as pets – as a UK charity is aiming to rescue ONE MILLION former farmed hens in a world first.

The British Hen Welfare Trust has reached a milestone of rehoming 900,000 hens from free range and caged farms, as by 18 months old they are no longer suitable for commercial farming – now they’re aiming for six figures.

Supplied

Spokeswoman Francesca Mapp said: “We’re asking the nation to consider adopting retired farmed chickens, as they make excellent family pets.

“They are like a cat or a dog in personality, but with feathers. They are sociable and they will come up to you and sit on your knee and they love cuddles.

“Even though they are supposed to be retired most of them keep laying amazing eggs! We are aiming to become the first charity to rehome one million ex- commercial hens in what will be a world first, and we need the nation to get behind us to achieve it.”

To rehome hens with the charity, you need to take a small flock, have a garden and a coop, a run if they are to be allowed to roam unsupervised, food and water and enrichment.

Details at bhwt.org.uk.