News

Izzy made a visit to our vet this week - just a routine visit with a mat to keep her happy and comfortable. It's all about Fear Free care.

Molly and John Chester started on a journey to create and live on a sustainable farm because their dog, Todd, wasn't suited to city living. Here's my review of the documentary film The Biggest Little Farm, available in NZ on DocPlay. I hope it will inspire you to garden more sustainably this year and in the years to come.

Earlier this week, pet retailer Petco announced that it would stop selling shock collars which are a painful aversive used in dog training. In this blog post, I include the statement - in full - by the Pet Professional Guild which endorses and praises the decision. Please: if you are on a Facebook group or with a dog training club where a shock collar is recommended, speak up against their use. Studies show that positive reinforcement is the better option for dog training.

In the October edition of NZ Dog World, I speak with famous integrative veterinarian Dr Marty Goldstein who features in the documentary The Dog Doc. See page 2 of the column for a special offer to subscribe to Doc Play where you can watch the The Dog Doc and other interesting documentaries.

“All his life he tried to be a good person. Many times, however, he failed. For after all, he was only human. He wasn’t a dog.“

– Charles M. Schulz

In this blog post, I review the documentary film Dogs of Democracy. Released in 2016, this film tells the story of the many stray dogs in Athens, Greece and the people who care for them. There are some subtitles which will help if you don't speak Greek. Well worth watching.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have released a study into the health of the dogs that worked in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Expecting to see health impacts from breathing in hazardous dusts and other debris, the researchers found that there was no difference in longevity when compared to a control group of other search and rescue dogs.

In my latest blog post, I review the documentary film The Dog Doc. This film profiles the life's work of Dr Marty Goldstein, a proud proponent of integrative veterinary care and maverick for his time. Stay tuned for my October newsletter, which will enable my readers and clients to access the Doc Play platform for an extended free trial period.

Today was the 2nd annual 4 Paws Marathon - a scaled down event thanks to Covid-19. We're grateful we could have an event at all thanks to the chaos created by the virus. As a sponsor of this event, I work alongside my co-sponsor Bodyworks Massage Therapy to provide the massage services at the finish line. Enjoy this post showing our interpretation of couples massage.

An international research team has documented the molecular basis of the Australian labradoodle. Their main conclusion is that animals in the Australian labradoodle breed registry are mostly poodle, and not a 50-50 split as might have been expected.