Blog post #4 – Fatal Foods – can food kill your dog?

Did you know that there are foods in your home that could potentially kill your dog?!

This is really scary, but as the saying goes forewarned is forearmed.

In this blog, we will cover the foods commonly found in your kitchen that can be toxic to your dog. By staying informed you can avoid these foods, keeping your dog safe.

There are 7 common foods that can be toxic to dogs that we will be covering.

You may already be aware of some of these foods and others may be new to you.

Using acronyms is a great way to help remember things, the acronym “TOX C MAG” will help with this list of 7 toxic foods.

“T” stands for Tea and Coffee.

Chances are you drink tea and coffee daily; these are the most popular beverages globally. But not for dogs. these beverages contain caffeine which is a methylxanthine compound. Excess amounts can have detrimental effects on your dog’s heart and nervous system.

How much coffee is toxic to your dog?

This is a not a straightforward answer. The caffeine content in a cup of coffee is affected by the type of coffee bean, how the coffee beans are roasted, how the coffee is prepared as well as how big the serving size is.

Generally speaking, brewed coffee contains more caffeine than does tea, but you should take this as just a general guide

If your dog did happen to consume used coffee grounds, they fortunately do contain less caffeine than unused coffee beans. Exactly how much less depends on how much caffeine leeched out during the brewing process.

Toxicity from tea or coffee, the beverage or the ingestion of coffee grounds, can lead to   vomiting and diarrhoea, restlessness, drinking a lot of water, trembles, and even seizures in severe cases.

These are much the same clinical signs we’d see if a human were to severely overdose on caffeine. However, dogs process caffeine more slowly than humans so they are more sensitive to its effects.

While some of you may know of people who share their tea or coffee with their dog; and they seem to be fine…. it may be that they don’t consume sufficient levels of caffeine to cause serious illness. Remember – it’s not easy to determine toxicity levels and exactly how much will cause ill effects in your dog- so its best to avoid it altogether. Why share something with your pet if you know it is bad for them?

In this case, sharing your morning tea or coffee, is not caring for your best friend

 “O” stands for Onions.

Do you know why onions make people cry? It’s because they release a chemical irritant when they are cut which causes the eye to react by producing tears. Onions can do more sinister things to our dogs than make them tear-up. They contain a toxic compound n-propyl disulphide which reacts with red blood cells which destroy them. Low red blood cells result in anaemia.

Signs to look out for in your dog include lack of appetite, weakness, lethargy, pale gums, possibly dark coloured urine.

It isn’t just onions that are toxic. Garlic appears to be twice as toxic than onions on a per weight basis.

Chives, leeks and shallots also contain the toxin.

It also doesn’t matter if these vegetables are raw onion or whether they are dried, cooked or pickled; they are just as toxic.

Other foods which can contain onions include onion powders, dips, sauces, soups or gravies.

Be particularly aware of onions and garlic if you feed you dog table scraps.

“X” is for Xylitol

Xylitol is a sweetener. It is found in foods like sugar free chewing gums and lollies. It is often used in baking as a replacement for sugar.

It is promoted as a sugar substitute ingredient for certain foods, and there are claims that it allows for better dental health by sparing human teeth from cavity formation.

In dogs however, xylitol can have a significant effect on blood sugar levels, causing their blood sugar levels to drop dangerously low.

If your dog consumes enough xylitol it can lead to rapid hypoglycaemia which is low blood glucose/sugar levels.  In more severe cases, it can even lead to liver damage. There is nothing sweet about sharing sweetened treats when it comes to dogs.

“C” is for Chocolate.

According to some sources, humans consume more than 7 million tons of chocolate globally every year……that is a staggering amount! The reason is of course its taste and its feel-good properties. It’s not a feel-good outcome for our furry friends. The fact that so much chocolate is consumed by humans regularly means that this may be one of the most common food toxin exposures by dogs, particularly during holiday seasons such as Easter and Christmas.

So what is it that makes chocolate toxic for our dogs? Chocolate contains theobromine and caffeine (these are known as methylxanthines…. you’ll remember this from the tea and coffee, mentioned earlier in this post). Caffeine and theobromine are toxic to dogs because unlike humans, dogs process these components more slowly and so they can accumulate them more readily.

These toxins stimulate the nervous system and the cardiovascular system, the heart and vessels. When this stimulation is excessive, it can lead to serious health issues.

Signs of toxicity to look out for include vomiting and diarrhoea, restlessness, drinking a lot, trembles, and seizures in severe cases. You might notice that these are the signs similar to those with tea and coffee. Why? The commonality between chocolate, tea and coffee is that they all contain caffeine. Chocolate, in addition to caffeine, also contains theobromine which has the potential for this food to be even more toxic.

Remember chocolate is in many forms around the home. It’s not just chocolate bars or slabs, it’s also in food items such as cookies, cakes, beverage mixes, protein bars and shakes, lollies, coated nuts or coated raisins (which are a double ‘no no’… more on that later).

Not all chocolate is the same. This is true for dogs too. – the darker the chocolate, the more toxic ingredients it will contain, and the worse it will be for your dog.

Here is a list from the least toxic to the most toxic:

White chocolate<Milk Chocolate<Semi-sweet or Dark chocolate<Unsweetened or Bakers chocolate<Unsweetened cocoa powder

The level of toxicity is also dependant on the amount that is consumed. The greater the amount consumed; the more toxin is ingested and the greater the threat to your dog.

There are various chocolate toxicity calculators that will help you assess the likely toxicity level based on the total amount of toxin consumed.

Always contact your veterinarian for advice if you believe your dog has ingested toxic foods. The following is a link to a chocolate toxicity calculator. Note that you are leaving the Tail Ovation website when you click on this link. The chocolate toxicity calculator is intended as a guide only. Make sure you select the units of kgs and grams and 1) enter the accurate weight of your dog 2) select the type of chocolate consumed and 3) enter the weight of the chocolate consumed. If in doubt rather overestimate the amount of chocolate eaten and the toxicity level of the type of chocolate. Monitor closely for any adverse signs listed. If your pet is showing signs of diarrhoea or vomiting seek veterinary assistance immediately. If you believe your pet has consumed toxic levels do not wait for signs to develop, rather seek veterinary assistance straight away.

Blog post #3 – Part 2

“Tick Tock, Tick, Tick, Ticks” …are ticks a ticking time bomb for pets?

You will recall that in Part 1 of this blog post we started with a scenario of you talking you pooch for a walk and you ending up visiting him in the vet hospital a few days later on a ventilator!

We also discussed what ticks are, what their life cycle is and how they get onto a their host.

We also covered off the 3 most important ticks in Australia with respect to pets, that being the:

• Brown dog tick
• Bush tick
• Paralysis tick

If you have not read part 1, then click here and come back to part 2 once you have read that….don’t worry we’ll be here, we are not going anywhere.

If you have already read part 1, great job! Let’s get back to the tick discussion…

• The brown dog tick prefers dogs and cats as its host. The bush tick prefers cattle as its host but will still feed on dogs and cats. The paralysis tick feeds on many different hosts, including dogs and cats, and it does seem to have bandicoots as a preferred host.

What is a bandicoot? It is a little Australian marsupial with a pointed nose, prick ears and long back legs. It lives in the bush. Since bandicoots are nocturnal, they are not often seen. I have been fortunate enough to have seen a bandicoot in the wild!

• Female adult paralysis ticks have the potential to cause toxicosis and resultant paralysis in our pets. These adults are most abundant from October to December.
• Provided the microhabitat is suitable, the paralysis tick is primarily found across the eastern seaboard of Australia. It is not found in Western Australia, NT (Northern Territory) or SA (South Australia).
• Whilst the brown dog tick and the bush tick have the potential to transmit diseases to our pets, these vector borne diseases as mentioned, are fortunately not prevalent in Australia so we will focus our attention for the remainder of this discussion on the paralysis tick.
• Why is the paralysis tick of concern to us as pet parents?
  • As the name implies, these ticks can case the paralysis and even death of dogs and cats.
  • The paralysis tick is quite unique because while it is feeding it begins to secrete a neurotoxin after around 3-4 days of attachment and feeding. So in this instance they can be regarded as a ticking time bomb!
  • Although some of the immature stages of the tick may cause paralysis it is the adult female tick that is of greatest concern for causing paralysis in our pets.
  • What is a neurotoxin? Neuro refers to the nerves. Toxin refers to a poison. So a neurotoxin is a poison that has an impact on the nervous system
  • And if it is having a detrimental effect on the nerves….it can lead to paralysis…hence why this tick gets its common name as the paralysis tick
• What does a pet affected by paralysis tick look like?
  • Well initially the paralysis typically begins as a weakness in the back legs of our pets and progresses to a weakness and inability to use the front legs as well.
  • If the host is a dog, the owner may notice a change in the pets’ bark.
  • Sometimes the pet may lose its appetite, it may vomit and occasionally the pupils of the eyes may be different sizes.
  • Death results from a paralysis of the respiratory muscles which means that the host is not able to breath effectively.
  • Interestingly, Marsupials tend not to be as affected by paralysis ticks.
  • Young children have been known to be affected by the toxin of paralysis ticks.

How are paralysed pets treated?

• Treatment of a paralysed pet can involve a number of steps
  • One of the primary aims is to find the tick or ticks and remove them as quickly as possible.
  • This may involve shaving the entire animal to help find the tick/s.
  • In many cases it is just one single tick that can cause all the troubles, however it is important to make sure there are not more than one attached.
  • The level of treatment will vary depending on the degree of paralysis
  • Hospitalisation and close monitoring along with supportive care may be important.
  • The pet may require the administration of intravenous tick antiserum so as to help neutralise the tick toxin.
  • In severe and life-threatening cases, ventilation on a ventilator along with other intensive care support may be required
• What can I do to help prevent my dog from being infected?
  • Firstly, use some sort of tick preventative
    • There are many products available and it is not the purpose of this discussion to go into detail on these rights now.
    • However, I will say that in my opinion, for paralysis tick, products that get into your pet’s blood stream are best, as opposed to those that just remain on the surface of the skin. This is not always the case and you should speak to your vet for advise specific to your pet.
    • When the product gets into your pet’s blood stream it is far more effective against the tick because the tick ingests the product while it feeds and takes in its blood meal.
    • Products that remain on the surface of the skin may not be in high enough concentrations over the animal’s entire body. If for example the tick attaches between the toes or on the ear tip, or some other remote area on the body.
    • Bear in mind that there are some products that are applied topically but still get into the blood stream and carry out their effect via the blood i.e. they are applied topically but go systemically. These would be as effective as those products that are given orally.
    • The key point is …use some sort of tick preventative that is effective no matter where on the body a tick might attach.
    • Whichever product you decide to use,
      • make sure you are using it at the right dose given the weight of your pet,
      • make sure you are giving it on time at the frequency recommended and
      • make sure you are following all the user instruction on the product label to ensure you are using it correctly and safely
    • Even the best products on the market cannot protect your pet or be used safely if administered at the incorrect dose or incorrect frequency.
  • The other thing to do is to perform daily and thorough tick searches of your pets, particularly when you have been walking in vegetation
    • This daily routine is important even if your pet is on a tick treatment
    • Given the life-threatening nature of paralysis ticks it is best to rather err on the side of caution and check regularly

Bear in mind that cats can wander around on their own and we don’t always know what they get up to and where they go. This means tick searches on cats are also important.

• What do I look for when searching?

• The idea is to engage your senses, both sight and touch when searching for ticks. You are aiming to see and feel for the ticks.
• Remember that you are searching for all sorts of ticks, engorged, unfed, tiny ones or large ones.
• Run your hands through the coat of your pet paying particular attention to anything that may feel like a slight protuberance from the skin
• If you detect something, stop and investigate further
• Brush through the skin against the fall of the fur. The idea is to lift the fur by brushing your fingers across the coat. By doing this you will lift the fur and have a much better chance of seeing an attached tick
• Ticks can hide in obscure places such as in cracks and crevices in the body so besides searching over the entire body, also spend search time around the head, including inside the ears. Also search around the perineal/genital area and around the feet.
• Pay particular attention when your pet has a heavy coat of fur.
• Note that the tick can look and feel like a skin outgrowth so they can be easily missed

How do I remove an attached tick?

• Avoid techniques such as burning them with a match or dousing them with some sort of oil.
• One of the ways to safely remove a tick is to simply get a small pair of tweezers and grasp the tick on its mouthparts as close to its point of attachment on the skin as possible. Sometimes you may need to first push down on the skin with the tweezer tips to better expose the sunken head and mouth before grasping with the tweezers
• The key is to grasp the tick on its head and mouthparts as close to its point of attachment to the skin as possible.
  • Avoid grasping the body of the tick as this can mean that the head is more easily left behind and that the contents of the body can be somewhat squeezed back into the pet. Sort of like squeezing a toothpaste tube. You wouldn’t want any more toxin or bacteria etc injected back into your pet if you can avoid it.
• Then with the tweezers grasping the head and mouth, pull at 90 degrees away from the skin with gentle but firm and constant tension …. Remember the mouthparts are buried in the skin.
• Eventually, the mouthparts will give way and they will pull away at the point of attachment, sometimes bringing a tiny bit of skin tissue along with it.
• Destroy the tick and flush it down the toilet.

• It is always best to seek advice from your veterinarian when dealing with ticks.

Let’s loop back to your earlier walk in part 1 of this post and how you ended up in the vet hospital with your dog on a ventilator?

While out walking, your dog picked up a paralysis tick from vegetation it brushed up against. Because your dog was not protected with a tick prevention product, and daily checking was not performed, the tick was able to attach and remain attached for days and inject the toxin which had a detrimental effect on its nervous system.  

Fortunately, all the great care that your dog received at the vet hospital; the fluids, antitoxin and the ventilator, helped pull your dog through this life-threatening ordeal. Sadly though, not all cases end up being fictional stories with happy endings.

• So let’s sum up:
  • Do get out and about and enjoy time outdoors with your pet
  • Do make sure your pet is protected with a good tick preventative
  • Do use the product as instructed on the package insert e.g. correct dose, correct frequency, correct route of administration
  • Do regular daily tick checks

• Please share this post with those pet parents you think need to see this… If we can prevent just one pet from the potential perils of ticks, we would all have done a great deed.
• Tails up to that!

Author: Brett the vet

Reading list:

• Barker, S.C.; Walker, A.R. 2014. Ticks of Australia. The species that infest domestic animals and humans. Zootaxa. Magnolia Press. Auckland

Ettinger, S.J; Feldman, E.C. 2005. Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 6^th Ed. Elsevier Saunders.

Blog post #3 – Part 1

“Tick Tock, Tick, Tick, Ticks” …are ticks a ticking time bomb for pets?

It’s that time of the year again, at least in the southern hemisphere, when adult ticks tend to become more active. So, what types of ticks are of concern for dogs and cats, and what simple steps can you consider for protection.

Just imagine – It’s a beautiful warm spring day, you are dressed ready for a walk and you grab the dog leash. Your dog barks and jumps around the living room with great excitement. “Let’s go, let’s go!”, the anticipation wiggles his whole body. You securely clip the lead onto his harness, open the front door and away you go! Charging down the street, tracking along the pavement for a few blocks as your dog busily sniffs all the posts and street poles along the way with a leg lift after each sniff. He proudly trots along to the next odorous tree stump. You pass a few other people walking who are out and about in the bright morning sunlight, some are walking alone, but most also have their dogs with them. Your pooch exchanges a happy pant and a sniff with the 4-legged friends before heading along further with you. You soon make your way along the nature strip and head along a narrow foot path lined by grass on either side and eucalyptus trees towering above. You leap over a stream and continue your walk through the bush. Half and hour later you are back home felling energized and refreshed from the mornings walk in the fresh air; ready to continue with the day’s activities.

Fast forward 6 days and you are in tears visiting your beloved pet in the vet hospital. He is hooked up to intravenous fluids and is on a ventilator, which is doing the breathing for him…

What happened? How could your dog have ended up in this way? Could you have done anything to avoid this nightmare?

While this is a totally fictitious story, it is a good way to set that scene for discussing ticks and the risks they pose for your pets. So, let’s delve into this topic a little further and we will loop back to this story a little bit later….

What exactly is a tick?

• A blood sucking parasite
• Ticks attach themselves to a host using unique mouthparts and they feed on the host by taking a blood meal

Are they a type of insect?

• No ticks are not insects. Insects have 6 legs and often times have wings. Ticks are part of the arachnid class of arthropods which means that they are more like spiders. Adult ticks have 8 legs. Unlike spiders though, they do not spin a web.
• The life cycle of ticks includes eggs which hatch to form tiny little 6-legged larvae, which moult and develop into 8 legged nymphs, which eventually moult and develop into 8 legged adult ticks.
• All stages of the lifecycle feed on blood from their hosts.

• Now although there are many different species of ticks, there are 3 ticks in particular that are of greatest interest when it comes to domestic dogs and cats. These are the:
  • Brown Dog Tick
  • Bush Tick
  • Paralysis Tick

Why should we be concerned about ticks?

• Because ticks feed on the blood of our pets they have the potential to transmit diseases.

The way they do this is by transferring microorganisms such as bacteria or other nasties (pathogens), which can result in disease in your pet.

• Diseases that are transmitted by parasites are sometimes referred to as vector borne diseases; the vector being the tick in this instance.
• A good example of a serious vector borne disease in humans is Malaria where the mosquito is the vector.
• In certain parts of the world there are some tick transmitted diseases such as Lyme disease in the USA and Babesiosis in Africa, which can make pets sick and, in the case of Babesia even die if they are not treated appropriately.
• In Australia, we are quite fortunate in that there are not many tick borne diseases in dogs and cats. A blood borne disease transmitted by ticks (Ehrlichiosis or tropical canine pancytopenia) has been identified in dogs in the NT (Northern Territory) in Australia. Fortunately, it is not currently widespread.
• While the name Tropical canine pancytopenia, sounds fancy, it simply means that it causes a drop in all types of blood cells in the body. This includes red blood cells, white blood cells and even the little platelets which are important, especially when it comes to blood clotting.
• Besides vector borne blood diseases certain types of tick have the potential to inject toxins into their host. These toxins have the potential to cause ill effects in their host.
• At times tick bites can become infected and develop into a wound in the skin

How do ticks get onto our pets to take a blood meal? ….Do they jump?

• Ticks fortunately are not able to jump. I say fortunately because they would probably get around a lot more easily if they were able to jump. In actual fact ticks are generally fairly slow, certainly compared to other parasites like fleas (these pests we will cover another time).
• To explain how ticks, get onto our pets, lets briefly go back to the lifecycle of the tick and then also make mention of the anatomy of ticks.

• Firstly, the lifecycle: you’ll remember there is an immature larva which develops into a nymph which in turn develops into an adult. Each of these three stages of the lifecycle feeds on the blood of a host.
  • All 3 of the tick species listed above are 3-host ticks. That means that instead of the larvae getting on one host and remaining on that same individual until they develop into an adult; the larvae instead gets on a host and drops off before becoming a nymph which then gets onto another host and then drops off again before becoming an adult which gets onto yet another different individual host. All the while, each stage is feeding off a different individual host.
  • Each time a tick drops off its host to moult into the next stage of development, it lives in the surrounding environment. For brown dog ticks, this environment is typically in and around where the dog frequents which could be in cracks and crevices indoors, it could be in certain areas of the garden, or could be around a kennel or bedding.
  • For the bush tick and the paralysis tick the surrounding environment is most often grass, leaf litter, forest scrub and shrubs.

• Now for the anatomy: In order to get onto a host, the tick positions itself on some vegetation with outstretched legs waiting for a potential host to walk past and brush up against the vegetation. In so doing, the host picks up the tick in its coat of hair (in the case of a dog or cat) or on the clothing (if it’s a tasty human walking by). The tick clings on using the tiny paired claws that is has on the ends of its legs. It them makes its way onto a suitable place on the host, sinks its mouthparts in and begins feeding.
• The activity where ticks position themselves on vegetation with outstretched legs waiting for a host to walk by is known as “questing”
  • Ticks have a sharp mouthparts that can cut into the skin and find little capillaries to take their blood meal.
  • Ticks are able to remain attached quite firmly to their host due to a combination of barbs on their mouth parts and or cement which they secrete which helps to anchor them to the skin. The paralysis tick does not produce cement to help it attach to its host.
  • When ticks are fully engorged with blood, they can look quite different to when they are unengorged. Engorged they look quite plump and roundish, whereas unfed they are much smaller and flat.
• Look out for part 2 of this blog post where we discuss paralysis tick in more detail, how to protect your pet from ticks, doing tick searches and more.
• We’ll also loop back on the story we began with, where you and your dog went for a walk with your dog ending up in the vet hospital on a ventilator a few days later
• If you would like to read part 2 of the blog post then click here

• So let’s sum up:
  • Ticks are parasites with special mouthparts that allow them to feed on the blood of their host
  • The life cycle of tick involves eggs hatching into larvae, which develop into nymphs and then adults
  • The three ticks of greatest interest to pet parents in Australia are
    • Brown dog tick
    • Bush tick
    • Paralysis tick
  • Ticks get onto their host by questing as they wait for a host to pass by
  • Ticks have the potential to cause health concerns in our pets

• Please share this post with those pet parents you think need to see this… If we can prevent just one pet from the potential perils of ticks, we would all have done a great deed.
• Tails up to that!

Author: Brett the vet

Reading list:

• Barker, S.C.; Walker, A.R. 2014. Ticks of Australia. The species that infest domestic animals and humans. Zootaxa. Magnolia Press. Auckland
• Ettinger, S.J; Feldman, E.C. 2005. Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 6^th Elsevier Saunders.

Blog post #2 Friends with benefits: the real benefits of pet ownership 

In the last blog post we discussed the pet landscape. We covered off some interesting facts such as how many pets there are, what are the different types of pets people have and some other interesting pet ownership statistics. If you haven’t read that post, then jump in and take a look here (link).

The fact that pet ownership is relatively high, certainly in many developed countries around the world, must mean that pets fill a need and serve a purpose in our lives. Pets provide certain benefits that we as humans need. Thats what we will be discussing in this post.

Pet origins

Just how long have pets been around? Well, pets have been around for thousands of years. Depending on which resources you look at, it is evident that dogs and cats have been domesticated as companions for a very long time. Some records even state that dogs began to be domesticated (albeit as wolves back then) as many as 10,000 years ago.

Companion animals are very popular.

Those of you that own pets will agree that the benefits of pet ownership far outweigh the cons and the experience is both incredible and priceless.

So, what are the vital contributions that pets make to our lives daily? There are well documented physical, psychological, and social benefits that arise from owning a pet. All of these areas are interrelated and are obviously not mutually exclusive.

1. Physical Health Benefits

Getting out and about walking your dog is a great incentive to go outside and explore your neighbourhood. This is much easier when the sun is shining however pets can even get us moving when the weather is not that good.

While you don’t find many people taking their feline friends for a walk, chasing the cat around the house or even needing to clean up the litter box, requires us to move our bodies.

Playing with your pets inside your home or outside can be a great source of fun and activity; and can have a positive effect in getting us moving rather than being sedentary. This applies to all family members of all ages, from children to seniors.

Other health benefits include better cardiovascular health, decreased blood pressure, decreased cholesterol levels; and there is some evidence that pets help reduce allergies in children.

All these can be chronic conditions that put strain on the healthcare system.

In the US, chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease, cost billions of dollars every year in both in direct costs to the health care system as well as the economic cost of lost productivity.

In Australia, there are similar economic challenges.

Pets help to reduce stress and in doing so help reduce the number of visits to the doctor.

By having a positive impact on a pet owners physical health, it’s quite plausible that pets may help reduce these health system costs and economic burdens.

2. Psychological benefits / Mental and well-being

Pets provide companionship. Having a friend around can reduce feelings of stress, loneliness and depression.

There is nothing quite like coming home from a big day at work, or even being out and about for a few hours, and be greeted by your dog who is ecstatic to see you. Equally, talking to and confiding in your cat who sits there purring as you share about the day you’ve had. Even having a chat with a goldfish can take the edge off and make you feel better.

Solid as a rock

Animals don’t pass criticism, they don’t ask questions, and they don’t judge – that is probably why they make us feel so safe, secure and at peace.

The majority of pet owners regard their pet as being part of the family. Some pet owners regard their companion as being a faithful friend, a rock-solid counterpart that they can always count on. Sometimes these are qualities we can’t always expect of humankind

There is a level of consistency that we get with pet companions that is free from the emotional ups and downs that we find with human interactions. People often crave consistency in their lives, and this may be yet another of the many reasons why there is such a strong bond between us and our pets.

Watching pets can have a significant calming effect, think of the tranquillity you feel just by watching fish in a pond.

Pets can also help fill a void or a vacuum when experiencing loss or disruption. This might be in broken families, single parent families or following the loss of a lifelong partner.

Pets provide a sense of purpose for the day and purpose in life. They help develop a positive outlook. No matter your age, pets provide comfort and companionship. This has especially been true during COVID-19 isolation and lockdowns.

Pets simply bring such joy and inject fun into our lives….and we all need a bit of fun.

Pets help us get through trying times whether those are a personal or individual challenges or challenges facing a whole nation, just as we have had recently.

By alleviating stress and providing companionship, pets have the potential to help children study better and they can benefit education outcomes as well.

3. Social benefits

Having a pet can help you engage with other people; whether it’s in the dog park, at the groomer, or even taking your cat or reptile to the vet. These are all interactions that help get you connecting with other people.

And of course, just look how much traffic and attention there is on the social platforms when it comes to dogs, cats and all things pets.

Pet Proud – this is that sense of pride and satisfaction you get by sharing and watching how your pet blends, moulds and is a part of your life.  A pet parent can have just as much pride about their pet as does a parent have about their child….after all they are also our children!

Pets are not socially demanding, or threatening, again providing a comfortable place to just be who you are – no pressure.

Because pets give us a sense of companionship, they also lift our courage and help us interact when perhaps we normally wouldn’t engage with others.

Our pets are facilitators of social interactions and encourage people to engage with one another. It’s not just the pet owners that benefit from this interaction, pets can also help bridge a gap for non-pet owners too.

In many respects, our pets help us break down invisible barriers…think of how many conversations have been struck up in the park as a result of people commenting about their, or another persons’ pet. Pets are the catalyst for many of these social interactions. Everyone tends to feel more at ease when a pet is in the mix, because the ice is broken, and the attention is on the pet not on the people involved.

It’s also likely that the pets we have growing up as children form deep rooted meanings for us. Just think of the pets you had growing up. You probably can recall countless positive emotions and look back with fond memories.

Having kids grow up with pets helps them develop a sense of responsibility and compassion and empathy for others. All of these life lessons can be transferred to other areas of our lives.

How pets meet our needs

Maslow was a famous psychologist from around the mid 1900’s who developed the theory of human motivation. There are needs that we as humans need to satisfy. Starting with the most basic to the more advanced they are as follows:

• Physiological needs (air water food warmth, sleep, shelter),
• Safety needs (personal emotional and financial security),
• Social belonging needs (love, friendship, intimacy, family),
• then there are the Esteem needs (the need for respect, recognition, attention),
• Self-actualisation needs (parenting, pursuing goals)

In his later work he defined a more pinnacle level which he termed transcendence, an altruistic behaviour where one gives oneself to something beyond oneself.

These needs are often represented as a pyramid with the most basic needs at the base. If you consider this hierarchy of needs, it becomes clear that pets actually satisfy many of our human needs. For example, they may provide warmth, physical and emotional safety, love and belonging, respect, recognition and attention. They fulfil the need for parenting and even at the pinnacle level, altruism. Since they address so many of our needs there is no wonder that they hold a special place in our lives.

Those of you that own a pet will know just how much value they add to your life. You don’t need any data or evidence, you just know. There is such a strong bond that you have with your pet, and I get that, I feel the same way about mine.

Aside from the benefits already stated, there are many other human-animal interactions which create positive impacts like animal assisted therapy, assistance dogs and guide dogs. There are also working dogs such as detector dogs, police dogs and farm dogs.

Benefits far outweigh the costs

In summary, whilst pet ownership involves a great deal of responsibility, there are a multitude of benefits which include physical, mental, and social advantages.

Our pets do so much for us both physically, mentally and socially, let’s make sure we’re returning the favour and caring for them as best we can.

#return the pet favour

Visit TailOvation on FB or IG and share your comments on the benefits you get from pet ownership

Reading  List

• https://www.cdc.gov/healthypets/health-benefits/index.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow%27s_hierarchy_of_needs
• https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/about/costs/index.htm
• https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/8f7bd3d6-9e69-40c1-b7a8-40dca09a13bf/4_2-chronic-disease.pdf.aspx
• https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31390112/ – The economic cost of preventable disease in Australia: A systematic review of estimates and methods. Aust N Z J Public Health. 2019 Oct;43(5):484-495. doi: 10.1111/1753-6405.12925. Epub 2019 Aug 7
• Pet ownership in Australia. 2013. Animal Health Alliance, https://animalmedicinesaustralia.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/AMA-Pet-Ownership-in-Australia-5-AUGUST-2013.pdf
• Assessing the benefits and risks of owning a pet. E. Paul Cherniack MD, Ariella R. Cherniack. CMAJ, July 14, 2015, 187(10)
• Stressful life events and use of physician services among the elderly: The moderating role of pet ownership.By Siegel, Judith M. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol 58(6), Jun 1990, 1081-1086
• https://media.petsathome.com/content/images/Seasonal/Pet%20Report/2015PetReport.pdf?_ga=2.174653408.373721444.1590715814-1505797299.1590715814
• Koukourikos, Konstantinos, MSc,PhD.(c), Georgopoulou, A., R.N., Kourkouta, L., PhD., & Tsaloglidou, Areti,M.Sc, PhD. (2019). Benefits of animal assisted therapy in mental health.International Journal of Caring Sciences, 12(3), 1898-1905. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.sl.nsw.gov.au/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.sl.nsw.gov.au/docview/2363845168?accountid=13902

Blog Post #1 PET DOMINATION! “THE PET LANDSCAPE”

What does the Australian pet landscape look like?

OUR PET POPULATION

Did you know that there are more pets in Australia than people!

Hard to believe I know…Here is the breakdown based on estimates from a survey conducted by Animal Medicines Australia in October 2019¹.

• There are approximately 5.1 million dogs, more than 3.7 million cats, 11.3 million fish, and more than 5.5 million birds.
• There are also many other kinds of Aussie pets like 600 thousand small mammals such as guinea pigs, hamsters, mice; more than 350 thousand reptiles like snakes and lizards and nearly 1.8 million other interesting kinds of pets; like horses and llamas.

That means that there are an estimated 29 million pets in Australia. And with a human population of around 25 million, that means that there are more pets in Australia than there are humans!

PET PREFERENCES

Not everyone has a pet, so who does own all of these pets? Well, if we take a look at the numbers of households that own pets the breakdown is interesting:

• There are more households in Australia with pets than there are households without pets
• 61% of Australian households own a pet compared to 39% of households that do not have pets

So, when you are driving down the street, for every 5 houses that you pass, on average 3 of them will have some sort of pet as part of their family!

It goes to show, here in Australia, we do love our pets because that is a pretty high degree of pet ownership. Whilst there are greater total numbers of fish and birds than dogs, the people who do keep birds and fish tend to keep larger numbers of these pets. For example someone who keeps fish is likely to have a tank or a bowl with a number of fish, and for those that keep birds, perhaps a whole aviary or a cage with more than one bird.

So what is the most popular pet in terms of the number of homes that have that particular pet?

Well its dogs as I’m sure many of you will have guessed. Dogs are the most popular pet (40%) followed by cats (27%), then fish (11%) and birds (9%).

THE GLOBAL PET LANDSCAPE

Let’s have a look at how the numbers play out in some other countries across the globe.  Recent surveys from the USA conducted by the American Pet Products Association suggest that 67% of US households own a pet². The data suggests that 50% of households own a dog, about 34% own a cat, just over 10% own fish, 4.5% own birds, 4% own small mammals and about 3.5% own reptiles. Just over 1% have a horse. So similar to Australia, dogs are the most popular pet followed by cats.

In the UK, the Pet Food Manufacturers’ Association found that approximately 41% of UK households have pets³. Although this seems a lot lower than the pet ownership in Australia and the U.S.A., the UK survey didn’t appear to have included fish ownership which may have increased the overall figure somewhat. The UK breakdown shows that 23% of households have a dog, 16% have a cat, approximately 1.5% own birds, just over 1% of households own reptiles and about 3% own small mammals. Once again dogs are the most popular pet, followed by cats.

Remember, if you’re trying to do the maths, some households may own more than one type of pet, so there will be some overlap between the percentage of households owning a certain pet type. For example, one household might own a dog as well as have fish and a bird.

PET POPULARITY

We’ve seen that dogs and cats are the most popular pets, yet there are many different breeds. So which breeds tend to be the most popular?

Popular Dog Breeds

In Australia some of the most popular dog pure breeds are¹:

• Labrador retrievers

• Border Collies
• German Shepard’s
• Staffordshire Bull Terriers
• Chihuahuas
• Golden retrievers

Mixed breeds are also common, and include mixes of¹:

• Kelpie
• Maltese
• Jack Russell
• Staffordshire Bull Terrier
• Cattle Dog
• Shih Tzu
• Labrador Retriever

Then we have the “designer” breeds which have become more popular of late and include mixes of¹:

• Poodle
• Maltese
• Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

• Shih Tzu
• Labrador Retriever

Popular Cat Breeds

As far as cats go, the vast majority of cats owned in Australia are a mix of breeds These cats are commonly referred to as domestic short haired cats.

Those owners that do have pure breeds commonly own¹:

• Ragdoll
• Burmese
• Siamese
• British Shorthair
• Persian
• Bengal
• Russian Blue
• Maine Coon

WHATS YOUR PET PREFERENCE

In a population passionate about pets, how are you contributing to these statistics? And Which pets do you own?

If you were considering getting another pet, would it be the same as what you have now….or would you get something different?

And if you don’t yet own a pet, what kind of pet would you consider getting?

Share your comments and thoughts below or on social; And for more information on the surveys mentioned, check out my blog post which has links to all the statistics.

References:

1. https://animalmedicinesaustralia.org.au/report/pets-in-australia-a-national-survey-of-pets-and-people/, accessed 22 October 2020
2. https://www.americanpetproducts.org/press_industrytrends.asp, accessed 22 October 2020
3. https://www.pfma.org.uk/pet-population-2020, accessed 22 October 2020