World Cup Cheetahs

Laika, a cat who lives with Professor Gioia Capelli, stuck to my backpack like glue. The scent of Aussie cats is hard to resist.

Unless you’ve been under a rock somewhere you probably know that the World Cup final is approaching. International wildlife charity, the Born Free Foundation, has taken advantage of widespread interest by creating its own “world cup” action, and (at least to me) its even more exciting than the real thing. They gave nine rescued cheetahs a couple of Boomer Balls, stood back and filmed the results.

I wouldn’t have guessed it with those legs, but cheetahs aren’t bad on the ball-handling. And launching the clip on Youtube to coincide with the world cup is a cute way to attract the attention of those Googling world cup cheaters…

(If you can't view the video on your device click this link).

All the cheetahs cared for by the Born Free Foundation have been rescued from the illegal wildlife trade. Typically cubs are stolen from the wild, handled and sold by dealers – often to buyers in the Middle East where they are kept as exotic pets. According to the Born Free Foundation there are less than 10,000 left in the wild. 

We're probably preaching to the choir here but really, if you need to live with a cat, it is far better to live with a small one. They've been domesticated over thousands of years and really are much happier being kept in domestic settings.

Laika fits perfectly on the backpack. A cheetah...not so much.

Fight cruelty with cupcakes

Phil poses next to a rather large cupcake (no, he didn't eat it!).

Good news for the sweet-toothed and the big-hearted: the RSPCA is holding its annual national Cupcake Day on Monday August 18. It is set to be the biggest bake-off in the Southern Hemisphere. If, like me, your baking skills are somewhat wanting, you can contribute by purchasing a cupcake (or ten) and eating it in the name of a good cause.

This year Cupcake Day funds will be used to fight animal cruelty.

You can throw a morning tea at work or home, host a high tea, set up a cupcake stall, hold a bake-off or some other cupcake themed event. So go crazy with those piping bags.

How can your cupcakes change lives?

• $10 provides an enrichment toy for a cat to help their development
• $30 will shelter and care for a neglected dog
• $40 microchips a cat or dog to help them find their way home
• $50 helps with emergency boarding for the animals of domestic violence victims
• $60 provides bedding, heat pads and lamps to keep a puppy warm
• $100 subsidises medical treatment for an injured dog or cat
• $150 will desex a kitten waiting adoption
• $240 will provide vaccinations and microchipping for animals living in remote and regional areas
• $350 keeps an RSPCA Inspector on the road fighting cruelty

To sign up, or just make a donation, check out this link here.

Grants for pets in aged care through the Animal Welfare League Australia

Gysy the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel has a frolic on the grass.

Do you have a family member in an aged care facility who needs assistance in keeping their pet? Do you work in an aged care facility willing to help residents maintain the bond with their animals?

The Animal Welfare LeagueAustralia (AWLA) has just announced a new small grants program for projects supporting pets in aged care settings – this is a fantastic, much-needed initiative.

The Pets in Aged CareGrants program will allocate small grants of up to $1000 to assist aged care facilities and residents make suitable arrangements or modifications to enable residents and their pets to live together.

It is increasingly common for aged care facilities to have shared pets, but this grants program is specifically aimed at supporting existing bonds between aged care residents and their individual pets. According to the AWLA,

Separating elderly residents from their animal companions when their pets cannot be accommodated in aged care facilities can lead to significant grief at a time already marked by a profound sense of loss and sadness, and lead to a range of health problems, sleep and appetite disturbances and integration difficulties.

Some elderly people in the community who can no longer care for themselves are unwilling to leave their homes because they are not permitted to take their pets with them to supported accommodation. Outcomes for their animals vary, with some animals re-homed, others surrendered to shelters and some euthanased.

The idea is that the grants will provide practical assistance to help cover costs like vet bills, grooming, dog walking, feeding or making minor modifications to living quarters.

This program is part of AWLA’s Positive Ageing in the Company of Animals Project through which retirement villages and nursing homes across Australia are surveyed to find good models for keeping residents and pets together. If you know any retirement villages or nursing homes that fit the bill, please let them know about the project.

The findings are hopeful, according to AWLA Executive Director Anne Boxhall.

“A strong theme in survey responses from the aged care sector has been that although managing pets in aged care settings can be challenging at times, it is not impossible. Nothing is insurmountable, issues can be managed and it’s worth the effort because the lives and well-being of residents improve markedly.”

That means that making changes – installing a cat door or organising a dog walker or arranging vet visits – can make a HUGE amount of difference to someone.

The AWLA have provided additional information:

The powerful difference that the human-animal bond can make to the lives and well-being of aged care residents can be seen in action on the Far North Coast of NSW, where a team of volunteers from Friends of the Pound (Tweed Heads) visit the Blue Care Kingscliff aged care residences daily to feed, clean and walk resident’s pets.

“Pets help older people, especially those who are suffering from dementia, to adjust to their new surrounds,” Friends of the Pound President Sonia Trichter said.

“In the case of the first cat-owning resident supported by this program, the lady cried continually, would not sleep or eat but this all changed when we gave her the cat back as it had been surrendered to us by the family.  Her life in care took on another meaning, other residents would call on her to look at the cat and she even started taking bus trips.” 

Bernadette Lee, Integrated Service Manager at Blue Care Kingscliff Aged Care Facility, would like to see other providers offering similar programs to support residents with pets.

“It’s a really good model, it’s easy and it does work. We’ve had people from as far away as Cairns wanting to come here because we take pets,” said Ms Lee.

“We see the benefits in the quality of life for the pet owner as they settle easily into the new environment and quickly become engaged with other residents and staff as they introduce their pet.

“We also see the benefits spread beyond the pet’s owner to other residents and also staff. It’s a relaxing and happy moment in time when you stop to pat or cuddle a pet.”

Applications for the Pets in Aged Care Grants are now open and can be made by aged care facilities, residents, and family and friends on behalf of residents. Application packages are available online at www.awla.com.au  Closing date for applications is 5 September 2014. 

PS. There are other excellent initiatives around helping older people keep pets, including this very important lecture on supporting older owners through bereavement following pet loss.

How to modify your house to please your cats

They may look like empty shelves, but they are actually stairs for cats.

Last night SAT had the pleasure of dining with Gabriele and Alda, lovely veterinarians living in Bologna. It was a great opportunity to tour an incredible city and talk vetty talk – but mostly it was a chance to check out the modifications they’ve done to their apartment for the benefit of their feline companions.

From this height Pippa can dine in comfort while watching the humans below.

Gabriele, a surgical specialist who is handy with a drill, put his orthopaedic skills to good use building a fantastic cat track through four rooms. This allows the two cats in the household – Pippa and Gina – to observe proceedings from almost ceiling height. 

I’ve seen variations of this theme before but I like the width of this one – most cat tracks are pretty narrow, running the risk that frisky felines will fall from above. This one provides space for cats to walk, run, sleep in almost any position, eat and do whatever they want up high with minimal risk of falling onto unsuspecting people below. I know that Bologna is famous for its historic constructions but this was my favourite.

The bookshelf also becomes part of the track. Functional and stylish.

You know it is a brilliant idea when the cats actually use it!

In other news, on July 14 the University of Edinburgh’s FREE online course on Animal Behaviour and Welfare commences. You can sign up here (they have other courses too).

This is a MOOC aka Massive Open Online Course and the tutors have a huge amount of expertise. I appreciated the fact that when they introduced themselves they also introduced their dogs. There’s still time to sign up and nope, you don’t have to be a vet. (If the video below isn't displaying on your device click here).

This next link isn’t strictly vet related but I can see potential applications. It concerns a sensor made by Consumer Physics, which allows you to assess the ripeness and quality of fruit and veg and sends useful info like nutritional value (calories, fats, sugars) and water content to a smartphone or similar device. Saves all that awkward fruit palpation one does in the supermarket.

You could imagine a similar sensor to assess hydration of patients in a veterinary setting. It’s just a concept right now, but it’s worth pondering what we lose (palpation skills?) when we rely on these devices.

Pippa has a rest after her work out on the track.

P.S. If you liked this post check out our previous post on environmental enrichment for the apartment-dwelling cat here.

Supporting older owners through bereavement following pet loss

Pets with older people need support, and may need even more support when it comes to pet loss.

Older people with pets need support.

One of the most common and tragic reasons that older people decide not to get a pet is that the grief of losing a pet can be overwhelming. Sometimes when people lose a pet they say to me “I will never get another animal, it’s too heartbreaking”. That breaks my heart because usually these people are the most caring, wonderful owners – but I do understand that losing an animal can be extremely painful.

Earlier this year I was fortunate enough to meet Adele Mapperson, the chaplain at the Lort Smith Animal Hospital (you can read about her services here). Adele is an incredible person, her role is a very important acknowledgement by the Lort Smith of how important support is around animal loss. The support is offered to everyone and is not denominational.

I met Adele briefly and interviewed her for The Veterinarian Magazine, after which I started researching the topic in more depth. Veterinarians witness a lot of grief, but it may only be the tip of the iceberg.

A US study involving 177 clients across 14 practices found that 30 per cent of pet owners experienced severe grief around the loss of their pet, with reactions characterised by insomnia, loss of appetite and “feeling like something died within them” (Adams et al 2000). That grief remained fairly consistent for around 6 weeks after the death of a pet.

Another study of 106 owners from a single veterinary clinic found that subclinical levels of grief and sadness lasted for six months or more in 30 per cent of people following the loss of a pet (Adrian et al 2009).

For older people the feelings may hit harder for a number of reasons, including loss of companionship and a percieved loss of social support around pet care (for example, the people you meet when you walk your dog, the groomers and vets you may chat to).

Veterinarian, lecturer, intern mentor-scheme director and pet bereavement counsellor David Foote will be giving a lecture on “Supporting older pet owners through pet bereavement” on 5 November 2014 at the ACT Legislative Assembly. The session will be hosted by the Patron of Pets and Positive Aging Inc, Mary Porter AM MLA.

The session will run from 10am to 1pm at the Reception Room of the Legislative Assembly Building in the Civic Square in Canberra. Please RSVP by 30 October 2014 to dijohnstone@bigpond.com

There will be plenty of opportunity for questions and answers as well as an introduction and closing session by the wonderful Jan Phillips, President of Pets and Positive Aging Inc. In the meantime, its a good reminder to offer support to anyone you know who has lost a pet. A thoughtful card, a cup of tea, a call to check in - something to acknowledge their loss and let them know you are there can make a lot of difference.

PS you can read about the great work done by Di Johnstone here and Jan Phillips here.

References

Adams CL, Bonnett BN & Meek AH (2000) Predictors of owner response to companion animal death in 177 clients from 14 practices in Ontario. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 217(9):1303-1309.

Adrian JAL, Deliramich AN & Fruch BC (2009) Complicated grief and posttraumatic stress disorder in humans’ response to the death of pets/animals. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic 73(3):176-187).