Dog Names (2013)

nats-dogHere’s what our clients have been naming their dogs in the last three years.

Male Dogs

  1. Max
  2. Charlie
  3. Jack
  4. Oscar
  5. Billy, Buddy
  6. Barney, Sam, Teddy, Toby

Female Dogs

  1. Bella
  2. Ruby
  3. Molly
  4. Coco
  5. Pepper
  6. Daisy
  7. Rosie
  8. Nala, Zoe

Notable names include, for the lads; explosives Dynamite and Nitro; many Greek gods inc Ajax, Apollo, Zeus; Rock gods Jagger and Hendrix; some Roman heavyweights inc Jupiter, Brutus, Caesar, Maximus; and several Star Wars characters, Chewie, Chewy, Skywalker, and the eternal Yoda. For the ladies we’ve seen Anubyss, Ariel, Bellatrix Lestrange, Breadcrumb, Butter, Cadbury, Chilli, Cocoa, Butmeg, Peach, Peaches, Peanut, Schnitzel, Shiraz and Merlot.

You can compare them with a similar list from 2011.

Cat Names (2013)

Jasmine1Here’s what our clients have been naming their cats for the last three years.

Male Cats:

  1. Max
  2. Leo
  3. Charlie, Felix, & Zac
  4. Benji, Darcy, Harry, Jasper, Memphis, Oscar, Pepper, Puss, Sheldon, Simba, Thomas & Wally

Female Cats:

  1. Coco
  2. Molly
  3. Milly, Pepper, Ruby, Zoe
  4. Lilly, Lucy, Luna

Some admirable names for the more unique cats:

For the boys, Ambassador Spock, Apollo, Banjo, Donald Duck, LIttle Al, Noddy, Stinky (!?) and Toulouse, and amongst the girls, Atilla, Bb, Clawdia, Dog (?!), Laxmi, Shredder and Xena.

You can compare this with a similar list from 2012.

Heat stroke

(We published this back in 2011, but with the coming very hot days at the end of the week, we thought it best to mention again…)

Death from heat stroke is common in dogs in hot weather, especially if it is humid as well. Every summer we see dogs that overdo it in the heat.  When heat generation exceeds heat dissipation, body temperature goes up to dangerous levels.

Some animals are more likely to develop heatstroke than others. Working dogs who don’t know when to stop or who are not allowed to cool off in a trough or under a tree overheat rapidly on a hot day.

Flat-faced dogs with breathing difficulties, like pugs, boxers and Staffordshire bull terriers, cannot lose heat as quickly as they generate it in hot weather. No matter how much they pant, their temperature continues to go up.

Sometimes obese or overweight dogs over-reach their fitness levels and collapse in hot and humid weather.

Dogs or cats confined in poorly ventilated areas without water and shade on a hot day risk developing heatstroke, also.

Early signs of heat stroke are high body temperatures, often over 40 degrees centigrade, excessive panting and rapid heart rate. Many dogs vomit and develop diarrhoea, often with blood in it. They soon collapse, bleed and fit. The gums are dark and red but towards the end become pale and ashen.

Heat stroke is an emergency. Wet your dog to the skin to start getting the temperature down and phone your vet. Most dogs require treatment with a drip and drugs to prevent shock.

Prevent heat stroke by making sure your dog has plenty of water and shade at all times.

Avoid mustering or running on hot days. Early morning or late evening is safer for stock and dogs.

Flat-face and overweight dogs should never exercise in the heat of the day. Know your pets’ limits of fitness and retreat into the cool before they reach them and overheat.

 

 

Parvo epidemic

Little sad dog. Used under license from iStockphoto.comCanberra is in the middle of a nasty parvovirus epidemic. If your dog is less than 1 year old please check that he or she has had 3 puppy vaccinations, with the final one at 14 weeks of age or older.

Older dogs should have had a distemper, hepatitis and parvovirus booster at 15 months of age and then one every 3 years.
Please call us if you have any doubts about your dog’s vaccination status.

Parvovirus causes vomiting and diarrhoea. Often the diarrhoea is bloody. Infected dogs feel really sick and usually need a drip to keep them hydrated and antibiotics to prevent infections from escaping the bowel and entering the body.

AMRRIC visits Yuendumu (September 2012)

This should have been posted many months back, but we were celebrating our Open Day, so here now is a link to a short article that Helen wrote after her stint helping with an AMRRIC (Animal Management in Remote and Rural Indigenous Communities) visit to Yuendumu.

Helen-does-surgery-in-the-kitchen_0We’ll try and get some other photos from that trip up too. And then there’s Canberra Mob’s most recent trip to Utopia (April 2013)… more from that soon, too.