Category: Animal Welfare

Why 8 Out Of 10 Dogs Love Lockdown

8 out of 10 dogs suffer separation anxiety when left alone. With many owners unable to go about their normal away from home activities, many more dogs have their owners undivided attention. And they’re loving it!

RSPCA researchers found that 8 out of 10 dogs don’t cope well with being left alone. A dog’s obvious delight at the return of their owner may be a sign of a deeper, more serious separation anxiety. But with pandemic-enforced working at home, all that changed.

Working At Home = Running With The Pack

Dog owners, weary of endless Zoom calls and screen-working, have been only too ready for that pleading look that says ‘take me for a walk and take me now’. Being more in control of their own time, owners have been more than happy to take longer walks, find different routes and socialise – at a Covid-safe distance – with other walkers and their dogs.

Essentially pack animals, dogs are never happier than when they’re surrounded by their home pack. With their human pack-partners spending more time at home, dogs feel an increased sense of belonging with all the security and stability that togetherness brings.

Mental Physical and Emotional Health Gains

Dogs thrive on company and attention. This is not only good for their mental and emotional health, but for their medical well-being too. Increased attention from their owners means an increase in opportunities to spot tell-tale signs and symptoms that something is not right with their pet.

Early diagnosis and testing is key to getting the most appropriate veterinary treatment especially in difficult times. This is true both for common canine ailments and for the more unusual or serious illnesses that can have a severe impact if not recognised and treated quickly.

Bad Behaviours Exposed In Lockdown

Of course, for every silver lining there has to be an overlying cloud. For dogs this the fact that, with their owners around more often and for longer, what they get up to in the absence of their human companions is no longer their guilty secret alone.

Bad-dog behaviours, such as sleeping on their owners beds, destroying items of furniture and clothing, forcing access to food cupboards and drinking from the toilet bowl, previously unseen by absent owners, have been openly and shamefully exposed.

More Dog Time Is Good For Owners Too

Not only has lockdown been good for dogs, dogs in lockdown have been good for owners. More time out exercising the dog means more physical activity for owners with all the health benefits that brings.

Keeping company with their dogs has long been known to reduce anxiety and stress levels in owners. During the upheaval and disruption of lockdown, the consistent company and attention of their dogs has provided a much needed sense of stability and contentment in life’s ‘new normals’.

Love For Dogs In And Out Of Lockdown

Dog charities have reason to be both thankful and fearful so many homes sought to adopt or acquire a new canine companion. Battersea Dogs and Cats Home reported a surge in applications to foster animals, while Dogs Trust revealed a spike in puppy prices to an all time high.

Animal charities remain concerned that the current boom in dog ownership may result in a wave of abandonments once owners return to their busy, time starved lives. But, for the moment, there is no doubt that well loved dogs are loving lockdown, and loving owners are loving more time with their well loved dogs.

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Could 8 Out of 10 Cats Loathe Lockdown?

While dogs seemed to have thoroughly loved locking down with their human companions, research indicates that cats haven’t enjoyed this constant attention quite so much. Responses to a survey of cat owners suggests many cats seem to have become depressed, stressed-out and even aggressive to their owners during the government imposed Covid lockdowns.

Some Cats Don’t React Well To Change

Findings by professor of veterinary behavioural medicine M. Leanne Lilly, of Ohio State University explained that pets – like people – show a variety of responses to change. Some animals love the fact their human companions are marooned at home, some don’t notice that their owners’ routines have changed at all, but still others are finding the sudden disruption of their routine a stressful experience.

Cats Become Resigned Rather Than Depressed

Graduate of the European College of Animal Welfare and Behavioural Medicine, Dr Emmanuelle Titeux, argues that a diagnosis of ‘depression’ isn’t appropriate for animals.

Dr Titeux says that, in animals, what we call depression is actually a sort of ‘resignation’. The animal finds itself in new a situation but has no way of adapting to it. Instead, it enters a state of apathy. Such a situation might well be the sudden and constant intrusion of human attention. And just when they’ve got used to it all, everything changes yet again.

Preparing Cats For Life After Lockdown

While cats are very independent animals, they become deeply attached to human company during lockdown. Researchers for Petplan found that 49% of cat owners were concerned about their pet suffering separation anxiety when normal working life returns.

Suddenly being left alone may be confusing and stressful for cats who’ve grown used to the lockdown-love of constant company. This is especially true for cat breeds such as Burmese or Siamese, specifically bred for their suitability as house cats.

Patience Is Key To The Return To Normal

Cats and kittens, potentially stressed by the absence of human presence, need preparing for something more like normal feline behaviour. Petplan offers online advice on preparing potentially anxious cats for a stress-free home-alone life stress-free life after lockdown ends. The key to helping cats readjust to their owners’ absence is patience in resisting the urge to punish stress-related bad-behaviour.

Places to Rest, Play and Hide Away

Think how you might encourage your over-socialised cat back into its natural role of solitary independent hunter. Engaging them in short bursts of activity; such as by dangling toys or rolling balls of screwed up paper for them to hunt and chase. Hiding dried food for them to search out or to extract from an activity feeder will rekindle their curiosity and problem-solving ingenuity as well their natural dexterity, drive and determination.

A Feline Fortress Of Solitude

Cats need consistency and value cleanliness. So when you return to your daily out-of-the-house routine, make sure their indoor litter trays are accessible with plenty of room in and around, and topped up with clean dry litter. And even though you’re not at home, give your cat a place of safety to which he or she can retreat whenever the need is felt to hide away in their very own feline fortress of solitude.

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Post-Covid Cats And Kittens Look To Life After Lockdown

Housebound cat lovers have sought out feline companionship to get them through the government enforced lockdown. In October 2020, the RSPCA posted a more than 188% rise in internet searches for ‘Kittens near me’ in just a few months.

Now, with lockdown easing, pet charities are concerned for the health and well-being of cats and kittens homed or re-homed during the Covid pandemic.

Pet owners are being urged to consider the long term physical and mental health of their companion animals as life returns to normal. But normal for owners is a disruption to their new pets’ settled routines of feeding, exercise and near constant human company.

When Lockdown Life Is Normal Life

Pets most likely to experience tough times post-lockdown are cats and kittens adopted into homes during the pandemic. Adult cats are creatures of habit. Kittens too become settled into everyday routines and take time to adjust to changing circumstances.

Felines joining a household under lockdown will not have experienced ‘normal life’ in terms of where and when their food is served, or when and how they can get outdoors and back in again.

Home-Alone Kittens In The Post Covid World

Kittens are adept at finding mischief when bored or unattended. Starved of the stimulation provided by human company, they’ll soon find ways to entertain themselves by scratching furniture, chewing cables, eating cat-poisonous house plants, getting trapped in small spaces and even falling into sinks and toilets.

Keeping Kittens Healthy and Happy Alone Indoors

Given even the most basic items and materials, home-alone kittens have the imagination to make their own entertainment. Scrunched up paper bags, empty cardboard boxes, table-tennis balls and something to scratch – other than your furniture – can turn any space into a cheap and safe feline adventure park.

Every play-park needs some where to rest, somewhere to find refreshments and adequate hygienic toilet facilities. Equip your post-lockdown feline fun-room with easy access to clean water, sufficient dry food for the day, a soft warm bed to crash out on and at least one clean litter tray.

Preparing Cats and Kittens For The Great Outdoors

Looking to the future, as your new kitten approaches the end of its four-month stay-at-home, you’ll want to make sure your pet is fully protected for entry into the big exciting and potentially dangerous world outside your door.

The RSPCA’s guide to Looking After a New Kitten offers plenty of good advice to new cat owners both in and out of lockdown. Most important is checking with your vet that your new kitten is fit, healthy and fully vaccinated against those highly infectious feline viruses that cause cat flu, feline infectious enteritis and feline leukaemia even before it goes outdoors.

Until that day dawns, and as you re-enter your own world of pre-pandemic normality, a word of warning. Setting your home-bound kitten to play as you attempt to embark on your old post-lockdown daily routine, could be so distracting that you completely forget to leave for work at all!

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For Better Or Worse?

The Brexit Transition ends on 31 December 2020 with the UK will no longer subject to the EU legislation that sets 80% of British animal welfare standards. Will this be good or bad for Britain’s commercial, domestic and wild animals, and for the vets that maintain their health and well-being?

EU Regulation Of Animal Care And Welfare

Around 44 pieces of EU legislation regulate the trade, transport and testing of animals within and between European Union member states.  All are based on the recognition and acceptance that animals are ‘sentient beings’. 17 pieces of EU legislation govern farm animal welfare, with a further 11 laws relating to wild animals, 8 concerning laboratory animals and 4 protecting companion and pet animals.

UK As World Leader In Farm Animal Standards

At the start of Brexit, The House of Lords Farm Animal Welfare Enquiry noted that, “UK farmers and producers are rightly proud of their high animal welfare standards. “Our evidence suggests the industry is united in seeking to maintain these standards and the UK’s status as a world leader on farm animal welfare”.

UK Live Animal Welfare Outside The EU Single Market

Setting its own animal welfare measures, independently of the EU, could give the UK an opportunity to further raise its own farm, domestic and wild animal standards. This could include ending the export of live animals for slaughter as permitted under EU ‘single market’ rules. Currently, a unilateral ban could illegally breach the rules of free trade in the EU.

Future Animal Welfare Versus International Competitiveness

As Britain seeks new trade agreements with its former European partners, and with the rest of the world, the UK may find itself forced to balance higher welfare standards against its international competitiveness. In their Farm Animal Welfare Enquiry, The House of Lords expressed its concern that ‘…It may be hard to reconcile the Government’s wish for the UK to become a global leader in free trade with its desire to maintain high quality standards for agri-food products within the UK.”

Co-ordination And Cooperation After Brexit

Outside the EU, the UK will lose its influence on European food safety and animal welfare organisations such as the European Food and Safety Authority (EFSA) and the Panel on Animal Health and Welfare (AHAW).

The RSPCA is pressing for “dynamic alignment” of animal welfare legislation as part of any free trade agreement so that if one country raises their standards, the others must do the same. It is hoped that this will provide the UK an opportunity for continued influence even after the Brexit deadline.

And What About The Vets?

The British Veterinary Association (BVA) fears that the UK would lose access to EU information and resources such as TRACES (Trade Control and Export System) and the EU disease surveillance system ADNS (Animal Disease Notification System).

The BVA also reported that figures from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) suggested that “…32 per cent of non-UK EU veterinary surgeons are considering a move back home and 18 per cent are actively looking for work outside the UK, indicating Brexit will exacerbate these shortages”.

So What Might Get Better And What Might Get Worse?

After Brexit, there is little doubt that the UK will be signing trade deals with countries holding a lower regard for animal welfare standards than Britain. As the House of Lords observed: “There is some doubt over whether animal welfare can be used as a rationale to restrict imports from other countries under WTO (World Trade Organisation) rules”. However, statistics provided by the RSPCA indicate that “55% of UK consumers surveyed looked for more information about animal welfare when shopping”.

Consumer demand, public expectations and the influence of UK veterinary professionals may well prove the best guarantee of farm animal welfare in the UK’s future outside of the EU.

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Officially Registered

Registered with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) and now an officially listed Registered Charity, StreetVet provides a comprehensive ‘out on the streets’ veterinary diagnostics, treatment, welfare and owner education service for the pets of Britain’s homeless.

StreetVet: How It All Began

StreetVet began with just two vets out on the streets of London back in 2016. Armed with only what veterinary supplies and equipment could be fitted into a backpack, ‎Jade Statt and Sam Joseph set out to honour the bond of loyalty they had witnessed between one homeless man and his dog.

Back then, Gary Spall, with his staffie-cross Lola, was among the homeless still to be found on the streets around Covent Garden, London. Lola, a rescue dog from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home shared every moment of Gary’s street life, building a mutual bond of loyalty and dependence. Gary attributed his survival through the worst of times to Lola, telling news reporters: “I don’t know what I’d do without her… It’d break me if I ever lost her.”

Homeless Pets: A Reason to Keep On Keeping On

As with Gary, a pet on the streets provides more than simply companionship for many homeless. A dog or, less usually, a cat or other animal provides a focus for living and a reason just to keep on going. Unfortunately, loved as they are, street pets can find themselves excluded from the professional veterinary healthcare, diagnosis and treatment expected for homed pets. A particular worry for the homeless is who will look after their pet if and when a stay in hospital becomes unavoidable.

StreetVet, now with 300 volunteers on its books, and supported by animal charity Blue Cross, also links homeless pet owners into the charity StreetKitchen with support for their owners too. Owner education is one of the key service points that StreetVet offers, giving owners the vital information they need to understand the particular health risks to pets of a life on the streets.

Continuing Care: Vaccinations and Follow-ups

Emergency care, veterinary diagnosis and treatment is only part of the animal charity’s work with Britain’s homeless pets. Just as with any pet and owner fortunate enough to a have a roof over their heads, regular health checks, vaccinations and follow-up appointments are all part of assuring a pet’s continuing well being even after the crisis has passed.

Now an officially registered charity, StreetVet operates in Brighton, Bristol, Cambridge, Plymouth, Birmingham, Cheltenham, Southampton as well as in London and Cornwall. In their first year and a half, over 200 street dogs were vaccinated, microchipped (now a legal requirement), treated for fleas and medicated against parasites such as lungworm. Other pets were prescribed pain relief and some even received surgery.

Veterinary and Public Support: Vital for Pet Charities

As with all charities helping people or pets, StreetVet and Blue Cross are dependent on the generosity of the public, veterinary professionals and specialists in veterinary supplies and equipment. Vetlab supplies helps support animal charities through preferential relationships in the supply of veterinary laboratory equipment, laboratory consumables and diagnostic test kits.

Contact us about our Charity Discounts! Telephone: 01798 874567 and we will be delighted to help you.