Cooper and the garden plants. That’s a whole new story of a curious pup mouthing on pretty much everything that grows. He finds them exciting. I find it stressful. As a result he runs around the garden like an insane bunny on speed (something that happens daily at 7AM and 7PM) while trying to nip on the leaves here and there.

Every time it happens, I want to die yet have to get myself together and run along with him sticking my fingers in his tiny mouth and pulling out bits and pieces of greenery. To be fair, it’s not as bad as it sounds. We moved some of the plants away. Coop lost interest in the others. There are days when he completely ignores his favourites. Then there are days when the pup cannot wait to bury his little face in a lavender bush, pull out a few fragrant stems and chew, chew, chew! For him, it’s an adventure, a game, a normal daily activity of discovering the world.

I remind it to myself daily whilst doing my best to distract him from the garden flora with his favourite toys. Still, I am constantly checking every plant and every leaf to make sure my boy is safe and also be aware of the symptoms, so it was good to come across a list of dangerous plants in the Book of Clinical Nutrition for Dogs (yes, being a human nutritionist makes me somewhat of a nutrition geek).

Instead of listing specific names only, it grouped the plants by their families, which, I thought was brilliant because while the common names may differ, the Latin IDs are always the same. Besides, this list makes a lot of sense when it comes to the actual substances that are dangerous for our pooches. In a way, it also gave me a peace of mind by listing the symptoms – lets face it an online source that lists everything as “lethal” isn’t exactly helping whilst knowing that some plants are not immediately life-threatening and the dog can be saved puts you in control of the situation.

Calcium-oxalate-containing plants (Araceae family): Anthurium, Arum, Caladium, Dieffenbachia, Monstera, Philododendron, Schleffera, Begonia

Toxic effect: stinging and irritation of the lips, mouth, tongue and throat, oedema of the mouth and respiratory tract, produce salivation and difficulty swallowing. Occasionally vomiting and diarrhoea.

Soluble oxalate-containing plants: Rheum (rhubarb leaves), Amaranthus, Oxalis (wood sorrel), Calendrinia, Portulaca, Rumex (docks), Digitalis purpurea (foxglove)

Nerium oleander (contains digitalis-type glygosides) highly toxic, dogs (especially puppies) are likely to consume dry leaves

Ricius communis (castor oil plant, especially the seeds containing ricin)

Toxic effect: nausea, vomiting, rapid breathing, diarrhoea with blood, rapid weight loss, heart failure, changes in behaviour, death.

Solanine-containing plants: green (sprouted) potatoes, nightshades (Solanum dulcamara and Solanum nigrum), ornamental pepper, Japanese cherry (Solanum pseudocapsicum)

Toxic effect: depression, vomiting, diarrhoea, salivation.

Allium species: onion and garlic.

Toxic effect: haemolytic anaemia if eaten in sufficient quantities (15 to 30g per kg or more than 0.5 % of pets body weight – source + source +  source).

Laburnum (Cytisus laburnum or Laburbum anagyroides, all parts)

Toxic effect: vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle tremors

Cyanogenic plants: Nandina, Acacia, Aquilegia, Euphorbia, Hydrangea, Lotus, Nerium oleander, Passiflora, Prunus, Trifolium.

Toxic effect: excitement, salivation, convulsions, racing heart, pale gums, vomiting, death.

Brunfelsia species

Toxic effect: convulsion, neurological disturbances, constipation

Cycads, e.g. seeds of Zamia floridiana

Toxic effect: vomiting and jaundice (yellow eyes and skin is one of the first signs)

Rhododendron & Azalea (grayanotoxin found in Ericacecae family of plants)

Toxic effect: salivation, vomiting, weakness, seizures, slow heart beat

Delphinium (larkspur)

Toxic effect: digestive upset, heart problems, behavioural changes

Tobacco plant (nicotiana tabacum usually ingested in a form of cigarettes)

Toxic effect: depression, salivation, shortness of breath, diarrhoea

Cannabis sativa (marijuana)

Toxic effect: muscle tremors, weakness, “glassy eyes” – often spontaneous recovery within 24 hours

Microcystis aeruginosa & Anabaena flosaquae – blue-green algae and contaminated water, most likely to occur in dogs licking their coat after swimming or drinking contaminated water / plus Oscillatoria species

Toxic effect: vomiting, weakness, muscle tremors, liver failure, paralysis, death.

 

Ticks are my enemies No. 1. In fact, any bugs that can harm my dogs are my enemies, but ticks always come first. The very idea of them gives me shivers because while it is relatively easy to deal with bees, wasps and mosquito bites, ticks are known for carrying viruses and disease that can lead to a tragedy.

We lost Oscar to haemolytic anaemia.In his case it was due to the immune system “miscommunication”, but it can also be caused by ticks carrying Babesia parasites. For a long time we were lucky not to have them in the UK, but sadly, they are definitely appearing in the country here and there according to the reports and I want to do anything in my power to share the information that may possibly save  your dog’s life and protect you from a heartbreak and loss we’ve experienced.

What can be done to prevent tick bites?

Learn about tick season in your area and try to avoid places known for “tick colonies”. Normally it starts in spring and ends in early summer, then re-starts in autumn around October time. Also remember that ticks love long grass, damp areas and shady woods.

Check your dog every day and definitely – after each walk. Unless your pup has dark hair, the ticks are pretty easy to spot as they craws through the coat. Ticks never attach themselves straight away because they needs to find a suitable spot and prefer eye lids, nose, ears and genitals – wherever the skin is the thinnest. While they are busy locating the spot you can go through your dogs fur in a manner of an ape checking her babies for bugs, and then use a comb to brush the hair and increase your chances of finding a few offenders that will look like millet-size black insects.

Hoover your home daily to remove any ticks that went off searching for their new victims.

You may wish to use an anti-tick collar, but I am not a huge fan of those because the chemicals can cause skin irritations.

Have a tick removal device called O’Tom Tick Twister at home. It makes tick-removal more effective. Admittedly, it’s best to ask your vet to show you how it’s done or watch this video, but easy enough to master.

Rose geranium oil makes a natural tick repellent and the beauty of it is that the oil doesn’t need to be diluted prior to application. Having said that I personally still mix a few drops in some almond oil (approximately 10 drops per 1tbsp of oil) before using it and, because the scent is rather strong, prefer adding the drops to a DIY’ed bow that I tie around the collar at the top of my dogs neck (so he doesn’t get all the smell hitting his sensitive nostrils).

A chemical-free and rather interesting solution is TickLess Pet – an ultrasonic device that repels ticks through the power of sound undetectable to human ears. I came across it a couple of months ago and haven’t had a chance to use yet, but I definitely will.

Oh, those sharp puppy teeth! Right now I look like a victim of self-harming because Cooper is teething big time and it means he is biting into everything and anything including our hands.

Of course, we try to discourage the biting by constantly sticking one of his favourite toys between his mouth and our fingers – and often it helps – but once in a while the toy isn’t there or we aren’t quick enough.

The good news is that the furniture is still in one piece and even the garden plants are surviving nicely and I think the toys and regular play times help a lot here.

When it came to the choice of toys I refused to rely on plastic Nylabones and Kongs because I was never quite convinced by the chews and never liked the idea of stuffing the Kong with food and treats because in 99% chanced it would turn into a habit of eating extra food and snacks (and high possibility of weight gain and, with cockers love of food, a bit of an addiction).

Instead we got him several toys made of cotton ropes and linen, a hemp donkey, a Beco ring and bone, Kong’s knot bear and a tweed mutant rabbit. Ironically, Cooper never quite warmed up to any of these for more than a day, but instead showed a lot of interest in anything with tassels or made of suede. As a result, I ended up buying him suede ball and bone and carrying his Petstages Puppy pal everywhere. The ironic thing is that after all the shopping efforts Cooper chose a cardboard kitchen towel rolls, an old linen box and a tassel with knots I made for him out of my cotton belt, which somehow made me realise that I am definitely done with buying toys and instead should simply make a few myself.

Fingers crossed there will be time for me to do it. Really fancy making a cashmere teddy bear for my boy.