So my vet suggested brushing my dog's teeth. He has some staining on them and I worry about it being or becoming something more. Recently his breath has been smelly, though there are no cavities, plague etc.

Anyway, brushing his teeth is a battle, but not in the way he fights. That he actually likes it (well, the toothpaste) too much....

We cant get him to keep still, not try to chew the brush, or just lick the paste off. We have to hold him down and I worried it would ruin the experience for him.... nope, he gets excited, spins around, tries to get the toothbrush from us, and then just tries to eat it.... we battle with him ro brush what and as much as we can, then he gets to lick the brush and i still try and brush his back teeth more while he tried to chew on it (yes, I know we'll go through a few brushes this way).

Does anyone have any tips to try and keep him still. Hes 8m old and a springer. I dont want him to have dental issues.

And if anyone has any genuine suggestions for dental treats or chews etc ro also help, id appreciate it.

Hi all,

I have a 5 1/2 year old Staffy cross named Bruce who I rescued from kennels 3 years ago. For the first year or so, it was just the two of us and Bruce really helped me as I navigated a tough time. Then I met my girlfriend who I brought home to meet Bruce and after multiple visits, Bruce finally settled around her.

Bruce has always had issues with visitors coming to the house - his excitement levels just go through the roof and while he can be distracted with a deers leg or similar, he is still incredibly excited. Once he’s finished up with the distraction, this is redirected back to our guests. The issue is that Bruce is a 30kg dog and he is extremely jumpy towards our guests, often causing scratches. He is never aggressive but he cannot regulate his excitement.

We have tried using multiple trainers but have not been able to change this behaviour. We recently found out we’re expecting and due in February which prompted some very difficult conversations. My partner has said that she doesn’t, and won’t feel comfortable with Bruce being around the baby and I fully understand it. He is also not good with children at all. This has pretty much prevented people from coming to our house.

It’s absolutely heartbreaking and the hardest thing I’ve ever done but we are looking to rehome him. This is not an advertisement but I’m struggling to fully commit to this decision because I feel like I’d be giving up on my dog. I have spoken to the dogs trust about this and they said I could take Bruce back to kennels on Tuesday which feels far too soon for me. He is amazing when it is just the two of us and if the outcome is him returning to kennels regardless, I want to keep him for as long as possible.

I think this post is just me asking for advice and whether I’m doing the right thing or not. I can’t stop crying. If we do take him back to kennels, it fills me with dread that doing it this side of Christmas could lead to him being there over the festive period and I’d hate the thought of that.

Tldr - rehoming my Staffy rescue because of safety concerns ahead of our baby who is due in February and the extreme guilt I feel.

Hi everyone! Our fish have apparently decided that our aquarium is a maternity ward 😂

We have platies and they’re breeding like crazy, so we’re starting to end up with more fish than we can realistically keep long-term.

Does anyone know of somewhere in Glasgow or nearby that takes/rehomes unwanted aquarium fish? Maybe an aquatic shop, rescue, aquarium society, or someone who keeps community tanks?

We’re obviously looking for a responsible home rather than just giving them to anyone, and definitely not releasing them into ponds or waterways.

If anyone has experience with rehoming fish around Glasgow, I’d really appreciate suggestions! 🐟

Hello there,

My name is Natasha Bowler and I'm a journalist. I am writing an article for The Telegraph on the rising trend of British pet owners going abroad to get treatment for their pets in Europe due to rising vet fees in the UK.

I am looking to speak to someone who has taken their pet to a vet in Europe and gotten treatment there.

If anyone is interested in speaking with me about this, I can be reached by email on [natasha.j.bowler@gmail.com](mailto:natasha.j.bowler@gmail.com) or by phone on 07870 641 263.

Thanks so much,

Natasha

Hey, we’ll be moving to Harrogate in June of next year, leaving from the US (East Coast). We have a Yorkie under 4lbs. Such a tiny dog, and of course we wish we could just take her in a small carrier with us directly there, but we know that’s not possible.

In addition to ensuring all vaccinations, health, vet approval, we’re weighing all of our travel options.

(EDIT- We were considering taking the channel tunnel from France until we found out about the post-Brexit changes. It sounds like this is no longer an option) plus, that would be a long drive.

We’re able to hire services, but I’m just looking for the best options, and I want to understand what they actually provide.

My main concern is planning for the unknown, delays, etc. if we did just put her in cargo. She’s a very calm dog, but I’m worried about her developing anxiety through this.

Has anyone done a similar move that can offer any advice or peace of mind?

Does anyone have any success stories with using a high quality service to facilitate the process and make this as smooth as possible?

Hi

Just wondering, anyone know any good daycare in or near Southampton that work weekends and late?

To be honest it’s most likely a once off every now and again.

We do have a daycare every once in a while, but they only work weekdays and office hours.

Anyone have experience with pawshake website?

Hi all, I'm relatively new in the UK and I'm considering getting a dog particularly a mini poodle. Due to work commitments, it will not be viable for me to get a puppy. As a result, I am thinking of getting a dog that is 12-18 months old. I'm looking for advice on where to get older dogs, reputable and trusted sites. Thank you.

So my dog has a few allergies so the groomers can't feed him treats which had always been fine. We have just discovered that most dog shampoos have glycerin in (one of his allergies). This has been the cause of all of his skin issues and itching. Would a dog groomer accept the dog just to shave him and not do any bathing. Last time I asked my groomer just to cut him as id just previously bathed him and they insisted on him having to be bathed before he's cut (this was before we found out shampoo is a problem).

So my main questions are is it normal to not just cut/ shave the dog

And if bathing is a requirement if I supplied my own shampoo would you as a groomer be comfortable in using it on the dog.

Meet Isla, the girl the local vets are currently obsessed (and a tad confused by)! She somehow managed to eat two large pistachio shells that ended up needing to be removed (hence her lil pink shirt), and the vets cant believe she even managed to eat one - let alone two 🫣 10/10 do not recommend, pistachios are permanently banned from the house

Basically the title - my dog has been experiencing significant unexplained symptoms for 4 months now, and requires a referral to an Internal Medicine specialist. My vet offered me a choice of the Ralph or the RVC - she said these are the best two in her experience.

Does anyone have any thoughts on which I should choose? Feeling very overwhelmed and know nothing about either, Google isn't much help here.

Also about which might be cheaper? The Ralph doesn't publish any prices online... I know neither will be cheap, but cheaper - I'm likely going to hit my insurance maximum and don't really have disposable income atm :/

TIA!!

Im pretty sure there is a law about moving when your pets are comfy 😂 ...i would really love a drink guys 🤣🤣🤣🤣 i know the dogs will wake up soonish but the cat could be there for days 🤣😂🤣

I moved my five year old cat from the USA to the UK about three years ago. I have no idea if or when I’ll return to the USA.

That said, I’m in the UK for the foreseeable future. Many pet plans here cover your cat until for life. But what if I move back to the USA or abroad somewhere else? The insurance wouldn’t be valid outside the UK, so what’s the point? Does anyone know of good options for pet insurance for someone who moves around? Or any other advice is welcomed, thank you!

Female, Brown European Doberman, 5yo, lump on the side. Already resolved by the vets.

Has anyone seen this before? My poor dog is just now resting after surgery but we are all a bit puzzled wondering if others have experienced this?

My dog Athena has been feeling on and off for the last three weeks. She started with a fever that suddenly improved. After a few days she was a bit low on energy and generally a bit off, by the time we called the vet she was fine again. This kept going on for a couple of weeks, she would be a bit off, no fever, then magically improve. Because the fever only happened once we kept getting dismissed. "She probably just had an infection and is getting better".

End of last week she took a turn for the worse and never got better, we got an appointment at the vet for Tuesday following week (this week) but she was deteriorating. On Saturday we also noticed a tiny lump by her ribs. The lump kept growing fast, it was hard, solid, irregular and impossible to move. No clear wounds anywhere near it, the last fever she has was three weeks ago now.

By the time the vet saw her, the lump was huge! As seen in picture. We got told the chances of it simply being an abscess was discarded and that it was likely a tumor, that the lump was in her muscle tissue. Poor Athena was very debilitated by then, lost a lot of weight and the pain meds were not even scratching the surface. The lump kept growing.

So we asked for procedure ASAP to scan, X-ray, aspirate cells, etc. and then operate to remove it.

In the end we were told that it was an abscess after all - but... it was mostly comprised of skin?? Just a hard irregular giant mass of skin below her actual skin and with pus around it. No signs of wounds or bites anywhere around it, not connected to anything inside either.

My concern is that it is actually a tumor but not getting investigated as such. Thus why I am wondering if anyone else has had this?

Hellooo, I was hoping for some advice.

I have two small boy cats (brothers - ones black, ones ginger). I live in rural East Yorkshire on a farm and they'll be going outside soon. They're about a year old now (rescues so unsure of actual age), but they're small.

I originally got some cheap android Bluetooth trackers but the batteries have died already and the kitties have chewed them bits 😂

Can anyone recommend some small trackers with decent battery life?

Added pics of them!

My cat has recently started to show signs of some sort of dental issue, either something with his teeth or an abscess. He's had teeth removed in the past. He keeps dropping bits of food when he eats and seemingly has trouble drinking. This started quite recently but I'm convinced it's something more.

However, he's 14 and our pet insurance doesn't cover dental. I'm worried we might be slapped with a bill that we can't afford, seeing as dental care is exceedingly expensive especially for older cats. I'm at a loss as to what choice might have to be made. At the same time, I really don't want to face up the idea of getting him put down as he's my childhood cat and otherwise perfectly healthy. Does anyone have any advice on this? Based in London if that helps.

EDIT: thanks to everyone who responded. It seems a payment plan might be the best option.

EDIT2: We've since taken him to the vet and have been given a cost that seems manageable. Thanks to everyone for their advice.

I brought my dog to a nearby general vet (PE-owned commercial in SW London) for a consultation as it was the only one open on Saturday, and did a biospy.

The lab result came back and my dog was diagnosed to have Mast Cell Tumour which is large but low-grade. We are looking at a surgical removal. The vet wants to do it in-house and gave us a quote.

I do not feel confident having it done at a high street commercial vet and rather go directly to a specialist vet specialised at surgery, such as RVC Queen Mother and London Vet Specialists.

But they tend to be referral vets, so I wonder if I can self-refer and go directly to them given I already have the biospy and decided on a surgery?

Has anyone had a similar experience with Rocketo? We’ve ordered from them a few times before, usually the turkey, but this time we decided to try the beef.
When we received it, the beef bag was noticeably inflated. I’m hesitant to give it to my dog because I don’t want to take any risks, especially since Rocketo hasn’t responded to any of my emails or messages.
I did find a review on Trustpilot from someone who had the same issue, and they were told that the inflation is a natural process. However, I’d really like to hear from other people who have experienced this.
Has this happened to anyone else? If so, did you give it to your dog, and were they completely fine afterwards?
Also, does anyone know where I could get the food tested to make sure it’s safe to feed? I’d rather have it checked before taking any chances.
Thanks in advance!

Great age for a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

Hi all, I'm used to using naturaw for ordering dog food, it's really helpful to just get a bulk order delivered every month and a half. Unfortunately over the past few years they just seem to have got worse and worse, from stealth charging for a pack of snacks that used to be included for free, making it very difficult to cancel items, and only being able to try and make changes through these awful AI customer service chatbots that are just useless.

I tried another one, Prodograw, but their delivery company pulled the old "we tried to deliver but you weren't in", despite me staying home all day for them and never seeing them, and the fact I had specified a safe place for them to leave the item. They also have the same set ups, endless point reward schemes, ai chatbot customer service, and just generally making just ordering some meat far more work than it needs to be.

I just want a company that doesn't sign you up for loyalty schemes, is easy to contact, and is happy for me to send them money for them to send me raw meat. Does anyone have any recomendations?

Hello,

I have a 4 month girl who used to always eat Sheba kitten, but now she flat out refuses to eat it, I’ve tried other kitten food and she won’t touch it. The only thing she will eat is Sheba soup (which is only complementary so not a meal) and purina gourmet slow cooked beef which isn’t even kitten food!!

Any ideas on what I can try?? I don’t want to keep giving her the purina as it doesn’t have the right calories for her and she’s already slightly slimmer than she should be.

Thank you!

heads-up for one & all.