Herald - Issue 424

2nd June 2022 • The HERALD • Page 53 v THE HERALD - Your Community Magazine v ANIMAL MAGIC Mobile Microchipping Service Friendly and professional service, in the comfort of your own home. Cheaper than your local vet. Call 07727 155219 HOW CAN I STOP MY DOG FROM..? by Rachel Clark IMDT, ADT-DTC, Pear Tree Pets Start typing the question “how can I stop my dog from…” into Google and it will o er to complete the sentence with an array of common dog problems. Dog problems which, when you think about it, are in fact normal behaviour for the species and are usually communicating a need. Dogs have similar needs to us; the need to feel safe, to be free from pain and discomfort, for a nutritious diet, for exercise, for sensory stimulation and for social bonding. If they need something, they have only body language, vocalisation and behaviour to communicate with us. To a dog, either it works or it doesn’t, or it’s safe or it isn’t safe. Your dog isn’t secretly plotting your demise! Tempting as it might be to bellow “No!” when Fido does something unsavoury, “No” doesn’t give your dog much information. Imagine this; you start a new job, thinking you know what you’re doing when your boss leans over you and shouts “No”! ere’s no further explanation, he/she just keeps interrupting you. How do you feel? Anxious? Frustrated? Annoyed? Depending on your personality, you might decide to the whole picture; your dog’s history, health, routines, previous training, individual needs and so on, to put together a plan that addresses the root cause, not just the symptoms. If you’d like to ask me a question, you can email me at rachel@peartreepets.com , send me a message via my website: peartreepets.com or call on 07903 859960 and leave a voicemail. wait until he/she isn’t looking and carry on doing it your way. You might lose your temper and snap at him/her. Or you might just give up trying. ese are also the options our dogs face, when we attempt to correct without teaching or without addressing the underlying need that’s driving the behaviour. So what can you do? Start by turning the question around. Instead of “how can I stop my dog from…”, ask yourself “what would I like my dog to do instead?” and then create opportunities for them to practice it. When considering replacement behaviours it will help if you replace the unwanted behaviour with something that scratches the same itch- digging up your plants? Get a child’s sandpit for them to dig in instead. Preventing rehearsal of unwanted behaviours is also important because practice makes permanent. Baby gates and long lines are examples of ways to prevent rehearsal of the things you don’t want. Of course it’s not always this simple. Behaviour and training problems are like a jigsaw puzzle with lots of pieces that in uence the bigger picture. is is where the help of a quali ed trainer comes in. We look at Rachel Clark, Pear Tree Pets and her dog Good Home Needed by Dogs2Foster 023 8178 1707 or email: dogs2fosteruk@gmai l . com. is lovely boy is Teddy. He is a super boy, loves his family time, playing with toys and going for his walks. He knows his basic commands and has a good recall. Teddy is in great health and has been very well looked a er by his present owners who have had him since he was a puppy, Teddy is now six years old. Due to a change of circumstances, sadly his owners cannot keep him, and they have asked us to help them nd Teddy a wonderful, loving home. Teddy has done nothing wrong at all, he is very well mannered and good in his home, great around other dogs, and animals as well as children. He is a gentle, loving dog that likes to be with his special humans so an active semi-retired/ retired family who are around most of the time who have a nice garden for him to play in and who enjoy walking in the forest would be ideal for Teddy. If you think you could o er Teddy a loving home, please get in touch by calling us on Can you give Teddy a home? Barry’s Farm Needs You! Animals at Barry’s Farm in Frost Lane, Hythe have been entertaining local children and adults alike for over 50 years. The donkeys, alpacas, goats, chickens, ducks, geese are adored by many. Of course, we can’t forget dear old Maggie the Pig who loves nothing more than a good roll in the mud! But of course, animals take A LOT of looking after. This care and commitment also comes at a huge nancial cost, with constant food and vet bills to pay it can all add up to a tidy sum. To raise funds for this amazing cause, local animal artist and volunteer C h r i s t i n e Jones has put her creativity and talent to good use, p r o d u c i n g a beautiful greetings card suitable for all occasions. On sale at the Herald Office, Hythe for just £2 each (cash please!) the card features all the animals on the farm and ALL proceeds from the sale of the cards will be going directly to the care of the animals. As a community we can all play a part in helping Barry’s Farm continue and thrive for future generations to enjoy. At this time of year we get hundreds of calls from well- meaning members of the public about the seemingly helpless baby birds they’ve discovered on the ground. And with the past two years of lockdown spurring us to pay closer attention to our gardens and greenspaces, our now expert nature eyes may spot even more chicks than usual. But most of the time it’s important that we resist the urge to ‘rescue’ the baby bird – this is a natural part of the bird’s development, so keep calm and step away. Just before baby birds are ready to tentatively extend a wing, wiggle a tail feather and take ight for the rst time, they leave their nest – “ edge” as it’s called. Fledglings then spend a couple of days on the ground and around the nest developing their nal ight feathers. e edglings will appear fully feathered and hop around your garden in broad daylight – hence why members of the public are convinced they need rescuing. Another common fear is that the edgling has been deserted by its parents. But fledglings are extremely unlikely to be abandoned. Mum and Dad are probably o gathering food or hiding nearby with a beady eye on their young, waiting for you to leave. Parents know best and are the experts in rearing their young. Removing a edgling from the wild significantly reduces its Keep calm and step away from that baby bird by Morwenna Alldis spokesperson for the RSPB everyone when out exploring nature, to please follow the Countryside Code by keeping to footpaths, adhering to any signs agging ground nesting birds, and please keep dogs on leads. By watching your step this breeding season you can help save the lives of some very vulnerable feathered friends. For more information visit: rspb.org.uk Fledgling bird by Gerard Harris nest if they sense it has an underlying health problem or is dying. It’s a harsh truth to stomach, as humans we want to x things, but sometimes we need to allow the law of nature to run its course. It’s also really important to remember at this time of year that over half of England’s most threatened breeding birds nest on or near the ground. So we’re asking chances of long-term survival – so please don’t accidentally kidnap the baby bird, even in a well- meaning way. Occasionally, a parent bird will intentionally eject a chick from the