Another breastfeeding debate.

Those of you who who have children and frequent certain parenting forums will probably be aware of a recurring debate that usually ends in someone's tears: The great Breastfeeding debate. ( It needs a capital letter, believe me!)

But a couple of examples of a different angle to this debate have come to my attention over the last month. Both feature a human breastfeeding a dog, so if you feel very strongly that this is completely abhorrent rather than just a little weird, don't bother clicking on the links. I'll blog about something less controversial next time, I promise!

The first is a charity calender that features a lingerie clad model appearing to breastfeed a rather sleepy looking puppy. You can't see any astonishing anatomical landmarks that don't feature commonly in the weekend papers, but I do admit to finding this image a little disturbing.

The second is an article from a publication that I wasn't aware existed until it the link started popping up all over my Facebook news feed. It is probably the kind of story that you shouldn't really be surprised to find in a this kind of magazine but there are been a collective intake of virtual breath among my friends. I do agree it seems 'wrong' but I wasn't sure why I was having the kind of reaction I did, so have spent some time trying to work it out.

I have decided that I don't think it's necessarily Wrong but it's really not right either.

My main objection is that is perpetuates the idea of treating dogs as babies. Any Dog Rescue or dog behaviorist will happily tell you what a bad idea this is. The message given out to people should be that dogs are dogs, and need to be treated as such. Not because you have to show them who is the 'Alpha dog' or any of rubbishy dominance theories that are floating around, but simply because they do best when they are treated like dogs. Dogs that are treated like babies; carried about, dressed up, fed inappropriate food and not socialised or trained properly often become aggressive and unpleasant to have around as they have none of the boundaries that help produce a secure and happy pet dog.

It is just not necessary for a woman to breastfeed her dog. Of course if the dog was starving, then there may be no option but it seems an odd sort of relationship to choose to have with your pet dog, especially once the child the milk was intended for has stopped nursing.

I'm also not sure about the hygiene issues of feeding a baby and a pet, let alone how the dog in the second story will react when she has to share her food source again...

Lastly there is the question of the damage a dog's teeth could do to a breast, if things went wrong. I suppose it would make for a good story for the staff at A & E!

Thoughts of summer ( holidays)?

It's grey and damp in London atm and everywhere I look there is mud. I find myself scanning the weather forecasts looking for the next cold spell ( middle of next week apparently, if anyone is interested) but I'm what I'm really thinking about is summer, and where we are going on holiday.

A lot of people take their pets, especially dogs, on holiday with them but not us. We have 4 children and don't feel able to cope with the added stress that a couple of canines would involve. Besides, there would be no room for luggage in the car!

But even if you are not taking your pets away with you, please don't forget them in your holiday preparations. As soon as you have your dates booked, ring the kennels, cattery, pet or home sitter or check with the neighbour/friend who usually feeds them. Check their vaccinations are up to date and start tweaking their flea/worming schedule so they won't be due for a treatment while you are away. If your pet is microchipped, make sure the address the company has is up to date and if your pet isn't chipped, consider having it done. If you have no idea who your pet's chip is registered with, talk to your vet, they will be able to scan your pet and tell you which company you should be registered with.

If your pet is travelling with you, you need to check their vaccinations and passport ( if required) are all up to date. And having the correct address recorded against their microchip is obviously vitally important when they are away from home. Also do some research and write down the details of the closest vet to where you will be staying, just in case.

Sorting these details out now, and making a record of what you've organised will save you from panicking about pet-care closer to holiday time. You'll be able to spend your time stressing about packing and your passports instead!

The Brisbane floods.

Like most people, I've been aware of the terrible flooding in Brisbane, Australia due to the constant media coverage, but it's only been the last couple of days I've bothered to watch some of the footage.

My SIL lives and works in Brisbane so when my MIL expressed her concern about her daughter's safety, I started to email a few friends in that part of the world. I wanted to check on my friends and see if we could find out just how bad the floods were in my SIL's neighbourhood.

It turns out my SIL lives in an apartment quite a distance from any rivers, so her home should be okay. She works in town though and her office is flooded and has been evacuated.

It seems the main problem is panic buying in the supermarkets and shops. Staples, such as bottled water and baked beans, are pretty much sold out and no one knows quite when or how more food will be delivered.

Anyhow, the videos show cars and boats being swept away in the strong, muddy currents but along with that there are videos of animals swimming aimlessly around. Horses and cows are shown but thousands of domestic pets, along with wildlife have been caught up in this disaster.

Many evacuees have had to leave their beloved pets behind to fend for themselves. Imagine how heartbreaking that must be?

It has reminded me that although it's unlikely to have a flooding -related disaster where we live, the unexpected does happen and it's wise to do what we can to plan for it. Even just making sure you have an extra few days of pet food available at all times and always knowing where your cat carriers and dog leads are, could make a real difference in an emergency, even if it's just on a small scale.

In the meantime, I'll join in with the collective breath holding as everyone waits for the rain to stop and the water level to drop in a city 10,000 miles away.

What's in your pet's food?

We all know how important it is for people to eat healthily and a lot of pet owners take this into consideration when feeding their pets. Of course, there are many people who feed the cheapest food they can find but when it comes to cheap pet food, you get what you pay for. However, there are also some 'premium' brand pet foods which are not as healthy as you'd imagine for the price you pay!

It can be hard to know what is healthy with regards to a cat's or dog's diet though. TV adverts try to sell us one brand, family and colleagues 'in the know' often have strong opinions and your vet may recommend something completely different.

It's worth while spending a bit of time learning how to decode petfood labels and using your new-found knowledge to see what your precious dog or cat is being fed.

And if you generally feed dried food to your pet, then have a look and see if that food is listed here .

You may get a nasty surprise as to the contents- I know I did the first time I checked.

Mud!

Lately I've been trying to decide whether I hate mud or ice more. Ice is really hard to fall on and probably breaks more hips than mud, but jeez, mud is so .... muddy!

After a good dump of snow on the 18th of December, the resulting slush seemed to hang around for ages. We didn't have a white Christmas here but there was enough white stuff on the ground for the kids to go sledging on Boxing day. Shorty after that, the temp rose above freezing and it melted, leaving behind thick, sticky, brown mud.

The dogs love it but my car and carpet are suffering hugely.

I bought a paw plunger at the last conference I went to but tbh we haven't really got on with it. The dogs don't like the feeling of it and are reluctant to put their feet in it which leads to a struggle. So I tend to just keep a (filthy) towel in the car- when it starts making more of a mess than it removes, I replace it.

My other weapon against mud is a properly fitting dog coat. By properly fitting, I mean it needs to go down over the dogs bottom and fit over his sides. For the lurcher, the coat offers warmth as she's a naturally skinny dog, but our old boy loves to roll in anything muddy or smelly and it is 100x easier to wash the coat than the entire dog. Especially since he has trouble getting in the bath since his stroke last year, and he's really a bit heavy for me to lift- if he needs washing, then I have to take him into the garden and hose the poor old boy down. It's rather cold for both of us.

I have to say this is the time of the year that I least like having a dog, and tend to be rather unadventurous in my walking habits.

I stick to parks with proper paths and try to stay off the grass but of course, as far as the dogs are concerned, all the good smells are in the fields and hedges, so the car ride home is always a muddy one.

The Big Chill

It's important to keep your family warm while there is frost outside but please remember your pets as well.

Make sure they have fresh, not frozen, drinking water. For animals that live outside, you may need to replace the entire bottle every day while the other one defrosts. A bottle snug may also help. Move hutches to a sheltered position, or into a shed if possible. A lot of people bring their guinea pigs and rabbits inside for the winter; there are special indoor hutches available if you don't want a huge wooden hutch taking over your living room.

If they are going to stay outside, make sure they have plenty of warm bedding ( hay or straw is best) and think about investing in a hutch hugger to protect your pet from extreme weather.

Cats that live most of their lives outside in the summer usually develop an attraction for sofas and beds during winter, but if your cat can't or won't come in, then make sure they have access to some sort of shelter. You can get special 'Kat Kabins' to provide a warm, cozy, insulated den for cats that may be outside when it's cold.

And for our canine companions, consider a dog coat. Formerly the trademark of spoilt handbag dogs, these days many respectably sized hounds are showing off their fashion sense when they take their owners down the local park. Not only are they almost essential in winter for thin-haired slender breeds such as greyhounds and lurchers, but they eliminate the need to wash the entire dog when Rover finds something revolting to roll in. When it's muddy, rainy or cold, then a warm, water proof coat makes life easier for almost all dog owners.

Old dogs in the sun.

The sun might not be beating down here in Greater London but it's still really very muggy. The humans in the house are fighting over fans and the garden hammock while the dogs just look miserable. The puppy hasn't got much of a coat at all but our old man is half golden retriever, and last summer spent most of his life upstairs, under our bed. This year, I presented him to our groomer and told her to 'take it all off'. So she did. He's got what looks like a Westie Clip to me and he's so much happier. He's short on the top and sides with some feathers and the hair on his belly and tail is pretty much untouched. It doesn't look as silly as I feared either; no one has laughed at us yet- unlike the summer when I attempted to do the clipping myself. The poor dog looked like he was being treated for mange *blush*.

When I spoke to the groomer about summer clips for dogs, she confirmed they have become a very common request among owners of older hounds. One of Wilfie's doggie friends has her hair clipped short all over and acts and looks like a new dog.

So if you have an old dog ( or even a not-so-old dog) who is suffering in the heat, then consider a haircut- even if they are a breed that is not usually clipped short. You may be surprised at what a change there is in their general happiness and activity level.