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Beautiful tortie kitten under a red gingham cloth
Photo: photos2013 (Shutterstock)

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Three Important Ways to Give Your Pet Choices

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Do you do these three things for your pet?


I just went to brush my tabby cat, Harley, at the usual time of day. He was up in his cat tree and, unusually, did not come down. No matter; I can try again later as he loves to be brushed. Surprisingly, my tortoiseshell cat Melina came running to be brushed. She stood to be brushed, then laid down on her side, all the while purring away. Then when she'd had enough, she hopped up and walked off.

It made me think of my post about the importance of choices for pets, the right to walk away. That post has been enduringly popular and so I decided to revisit the topic of choices for dogs and cats. Choice, control, and routine, are important ways to look after our pet’s welfare and help them feel safe.

I'm not the only one who thinks choices are important. In 2017, when I asked experts how to make the world better for dogs, Mia Cobb picked up on the issue of choices. She said we should,
“ask ourselves at every step, "is this what my dog…
Read more

Eight Tips to Help Fearful Dogs Feel Safe

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The most important things to know if you have a fearful dog.



1. Recognize that the dog is fearful
The first step is, of course, to recognize the dog is fearful in the first place.

If you know that already, well done for recognizing the signs. Hopefully you will find the following tips helpful.

If you aren’t sure, you might like to read how can I tell if my dog is afraid? If the answer is yes, come back here for some tips.



2. Help the dog feel safe
Your first priority with a fearful dog is to help him or her feel safe.

That can look different depending on what the issue is. Maybe the dog needs a space of their own (like a crate or bed) where they can choose to go if they don’t want to be around any children or strangers in the house.

Maybe it means telling other people they can’t pet your dog, because your dog wouldn’t like it.

Maybe it means walking your dog at certain times of day when you’re not likely to come across whatever it is the dog is afraid of (other dogs, strangers, bicycl…
Read more

Does It Matter What Age You Neuter Your Kitten?

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New research investigates whether age of neutering affects feline behaviour – and looks at punishment and other variables too.


There are so many cats without homes that some shelters neuter kittens early, at 8 – 12 weeks old, so they are neutered prior to adoption. This is the only way they can guarantee that a kitten will be neutered.

Normally, cats are neutered at 6 – 8 months old. Kittens, like puppies, have a sensitive period that is an important socializationopportunity; if not properly socialized during this time, they will be more fearful as adults. Therefore some people worry that early neutering could cause behaviour problems because it happens during the socialization window.

To find out, Natalie Porters et al (2014) of Ghent University in Belgium studied a sample of 800 shelter kittens. Half of the kittens were assigned to an early neutering group, and half to be spayed/neutered at the traditional age. There were approximately equal numbers of male and female kittens in eac…
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