Winter 2020

lifestyle

Out&About

PET TALK

Hedgehog-friendly bonfires

Microchip your pets

n Don’t build it until the day that you will light it – so the hedgehog doesn’t settle in. n If you are building your bonfire in advance, place chicken wire 1m high all around the bottom at an outward angle so the hedgehogs can’t climb it. n If you have piled materials for your bonfire outdoors before building it, move them to a different area before you start. n Always place the bonfire on open ground – never on a pile of leaves as a hedgehog may be hiding underneath. n Always check the entire bonfire before lighting it – they tend to hide in the centre and bottom two feet in particular. n When checking, lift parts of the bonfire section by section using a pole or broom. Do not use a fork, spade or rake as this may injure a hedgehog. n Use a torch to look inside the bonfire and listen for hissing – the noise hedgehogs make when they are disturbed or distressed.

What if your pet went missing? Are you sure their microchip details are up to date? Now is a good time to check. As a veterinary

n Always light your bonfire from one corner, rather than in the centre, to give hedgehogs a chance to escape if they need to. If you do find a hedgehog, it’s important to move slowly in order not to alarm it. If the bonfire is lit, if you have followed the steps above you should still be able to rescue the hedgehog. With a pair of gardening gloves, pick it up – with any nest material it may have been sitting in – and place it in a high-sided cardboard box with plenty of newspaper. Place the box in a safe location that is far from any fires. Wait until the bonfire is over and dampen down the fire site with water before releasing the hedgehog under a bush or a log pile to ensure its safety. www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk

practice, we have lots of animals brought to us every year that have been found wandering. It’s heartbreaking when they don’t have a microchip or the details are not correct. It makes it almost impossible for us to trace their worried owners. It is a legal requirement that all dogs are microchipped by the time they are eight weeks old. This means that if you bought/buy a puppy after April 2016, then they should have a microchip already and your puppy’s breeder should have given you the details of how to change it in to your name. If you’re not sure if your dog has a microchip, pop in to your local vets to be scanned. It is also a legal requirement that dogs are wearing a collar with an identification tag. This can be attached to the collar or printed on the collar. This is a requirement even if your dog is microchipped. The law states that the owner’s name and address (usually postcode) needs to be on there, but the phone number is optional. However, we would recommend putting a mobile number on there so that any finder can contact you quickly. It’s equally as important that cats are microchipped. Although there are no laws surrounding this, we feel it’s imperative that your cat is microchipped. Cats roam around and sometimes inadvertently get labelled as stray and then a well-meaning member of the public will bring them to us to check for a chip. When no microchip is found, it becomes extremely difficult to trace owners Microchipping of cats is simple and easy, many people choose for us to do it while they are anaesthetised during their neutering operation.

Pet gifts

Dog birthday kit Items in the tin include a Dog Treat recipe book, bone-shaped cookie cutter, birthday hat, Happy Birthday banner and confetti. £9.99 from Firebox

Welcome to the family dog care kit Includes identification charm, dog whistle/clicker, collar light and a care guide. £11.30 from Fred Adlous

The kitty phone clip Attach this cat toy to your phone and get your cat to look up for the purrfect photo! Fits all phones. £10 from Trouva

Lucy Mapplebeck, Donnington Grove Vets

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O&A WINTER 2020