Your+Dog++May+2019

Quick-fire

quest ions

KATE ELLAM

is professional

development

canine

behaviour

oi cer at

Dogs Trust.

TONY CRUSE

is a member

of the

Association of

Pet Dog Trainers

and the Institute

of Modern

Dog Trainers.

VICKY PAYNE

BVetMed

MRCVS is

a holistic vet

based in East

Sussex.

HOLLY MASH

BVSc, MRCVS,

specialises in

herbal medicine,

acupuncture,

and nutrition.

JOANNE

ANGUS

LCGI is

a founder

member of the

Guild of Master

Groomers.

JOHN BURNS

BVMS, Lic Ac,

MRCVS, is

a vet and

founder of feed

company Burns

Pet Nutrition.

STEPHEN

JENKINSON

is access adviser

to Your Dog, the

Kennel Club,

and local

councils.

A NEW EXPERT

JOINS THE YOUR

DOG PANEL

Access adviser Stephen Jenkinson is no

stranger to Your Dog Magazine, having

written our ‘Out and About’ page and his

column ‘Diary of a countryman’ for many

years, i rst contributing to the magazine

in 2005. Stephen travels across the globe

helping people to support the benei ts

of dog walking, while minimising any

adverse impacts on livestock, wildlife, or

other people. He has been the Kennel

Club’s access and countryside adviser

for 16 years, and wrote the UK’s i rst

guide to planning for dog ownership in

new housing.

Now, he’s joining our experts’ panel,

so he can use his knowledge and

expertise to answer readers’ queries

on the great outdoors. Contact Stephen

with your questions about rights of way,

access issues, and walking your dog in

the countryside.

http://www.yourdog.co.uk 65

Dogs have up to 300 million

olfactory receptors in their

noses, compared to our

measly six million. Moreover,

the part of the brain

dedicated to smell is 40

times greater in dogs than it

is in humans.

HOW MUCH BETTER

IS A DOG’S SENSE

OF SMELL THAN

OUR OWN?

HEALTH

THE EXPERT PANEL

Reasons for a dog digging

could include: relief from

boredom, playing, instinct,

trying to escape, seeking

protection,release of

pent-up energy/anxiety.

DID YOU KNOW?

Tears are not enough!

Kate says: Digging

is a very normal

behaviour for dogs,

but you can teach

your terriers to dig where you

want them to.

First, try to identify if there’s

something specifi c that the dogs

are trying to get to in that area,

or whether it’s just the most fun

place to dig!

Some dogs also learn that

these behaviours get the most

attention from their owners.

So, make sure the dogs are not

getting any feedback from you

for digging there; instead, give

them praise and treats when

they show behaviours you want

them to exhibit more often.

You can try blocking their

access to the fl ower beds, at the

same time setting up suitable

areas where you can allow them

to dig. Paddling pools, fi lled

with sand or shredded paper

(if safe and your dogs will not

eat it!), can be just as much

fun as soil. Make sure anything

new you introduce is safe and

appropriate. You can bury their

Q

My dog is not

producing enough

tears; one eye is less

than i ve per cent and the

other is 15 per cent. She is on

eye drops at the moment, but

I am struggling to get them in

properly, and not seeing

a signii cant change.

Karen Varney, on Facebook.

Vicky says: Tear

production is

normally measured

by a Schirmer Tear

Test, which calculates the

amount of tears produced in

mm/minute (which I suspect

is what your vet has told you,

not a percentage). Normal tear

production for a dog is 15 – 20

mm/minute.

An immune-mediated

condition, dry eye is where

the body attacks the tear

gland and stops it producing

enough tears.

This results in a sore eye,

which is prone to infection and

damage. The most eff ective

toys and treats (or some of their

dinner to avoid too many treats)

but only if they are both relaxed

about sharing these things.

Alternatively, you can organise

separate activities, which they

can enjoy without having to

share. By digging for fun items, in

areas that are acceptable to you,

you should fi nd their need for

digging in other areas is reduced,

and eventually stops.

You can also keep them

mentally stimulated with

enrichment items, such as food

puzzles, and by training new

skills and tricks. You may fi nd

that some good dog training

classes help to keep their brains

busy, while encouraging us

humans to reward the good

choices our dogs make.

treatment is cyclosporin eye

drops, which suppress the

immune system and allow

the gland to make tears again.

They should be given twice

a day to start with, but are

expensive. Where owners can’t

aff ord these drops, lubricating

‘artifi cial tears’ might be used

instead. These may need to be

applied as often as four times

a day, and will not improve

natural tear production.

Surgery can be performed

to divert a salivary duct to

the eye so the dog dribbles

into the eye, where other

treatments fail.