Scratch Scratch. Bite Bite. Gnaw Gnaw. Lick Lick.

How many of you watch your beloved dog chronically scratch, bite, gnaw and lick all day? It’s heart breaking. How many take our beloved to the vet for cortisone shots, tablet, antibiotics or all of the above, only to find it is a temporary fix and the problem is getting worse?

Deep down we know the use of cortisone and antibiotics is not a great idea for our pets, but most feel there isn’t any other option. Luckily there are many other options and they don’t require expensive allergy tests or allergies shots.

Firstly we need to understand the allergy. Allergies can be air borne or food related. What many don’t realize is it can also be what your pets sleep, play or walk on. I have seen every type of allergy come through my clinic. Finding out which is the problem is the trick. What happens when you do find the offending allergen and your dog keeps itching? Is there another allergy? Have we discovered the correct allergen? Was an allergen the problem in the first place? Is stress involved?

Exercise is a very important thing for dogs and should be incorporated as much as possible in a family's life. With many of us leading such busy lives these days it is getting harder and harder to find the time.  Our family has adopted a routine which has been working well for us for the past few months. What we do is aim to go for a 30 minute walk before we cook dinner together. We try to aim to be home and out the doorfor a walk at 5.30pm so that we are back home by 6pm. Obviously this means that we do not regularly eat a roast for dinner but it is a small sacrifice to make in order to have some family bonding time with our child and two staffies as well as getting our daily exercise. We all love the lesiurely time together and it makes the dogs very happy.