A Story about Dog Day Care

As Sydney’s premier live-in pet minding service, the Perfect Pet Sitter ethos is to provide the highest level of expert and personalised pet care around the clock.

We believe the best possible choice is for pets to stay in their own homes when owners go away on holiday. So is there ever a situation when we would suggest a different option?

Let’s take one example - a lovely Rhodesian Ridgeback Ruby. Gail first looked after Ruby was she was just 3 months, then fast forward a year & Gail went back to live-in and pet sit Ruby during another of her owner's holidays.

Meeting up for Adventure Walks meant I saw Ruby again – Ruby loved playing with other dogs, was full of beans running around and having a whale of a time!

However, when it was time to go home and her lead went on, her behaviour took a drastic change. She began to slink low to the ground and seemed, well, depressed.

I thought about why this could be & remembered Ruby’s routine. Ruby’s owners work long hours & hate leaving her alone, so every day Ruby has a walker. 
This is wonderful but (there’s always a but!) for the rest of the day Ruby is still all alone.

Imagine if you were Ruby, spending perhaps 10 or 12 hours every day totally alone with the exception of just one brief hour to have a walk & have fun. For a social & energetic dog like Ruby, her days would be a truly lonely time.

Ruby is also known as ‘The Destroyer’ as she’s destructive when home alone, another sure sign she of boredom, loneliness & energy to burn. But with nothing to do, all that’s left is to get into mischief!

Pets cared for by Perfect Pet Sitter have our company almost continuously so luckily for Ruby during our stay she had a lot of company and we were able to assess Ruby’s end of walk ‘depressed’ behavior and advise her owners about it. 

Ruby is a confident, outgoing and extrovert dog. With that in mind we suggested to Ruby’s owners to try her at day care where she’d be with lots of other dogs. With her personality we didn’t think she would be overwhelmed – in fact we thought she was an ideal candidate who’d love the social whirl! So it has proved, with day care for Ruby a huge success.

Ruby is stimulated from the moment she arrives to the moment she goes home and just loves the interaction with all the other dogs. She returns from day care exhausted from the constant play, stimulation and fun!

A word of caution: whilst day care can be a great solution for some dogs whose owners have to work long hours, it’s not the answer for all dogs. It’s essential to take a dog’s personality into account – for example with timid, shy or older dogs it might cause distress & create more problems than it solves.

There’s no getting away from the fact that day care for a dog doesn’t come cheap, but by ‘mixing it up’ it needn’t break the bank. For example, Ruby now has a couple of intense, full-on & super stimulating days at day care then the other week days she walks with the walker.

If we have dogs then it’s our responsibility to find solutions that work & provide for their wellbeing and happiness. As for dear Ruby, she’s a very lucky girl whose owners are devoted to her and we’re pleased to say a very happy one once more.

Doggie advice from Michelle Bridges & Cesar Millan

People contacting Perfect Pet Sitter do so because they are looking for the best care available for their dogs. Based in Sydney and the Northern Beaches and as an expert in dog minding and pet sitting, the only type of pet owners I meet are devoted to their fur pals. My clients are united by being caring people who accept that with dog ownership comes responsibilities. The most basic of which are appropriate food and adequate exercise.

In a recent edition of The Sun-Herald Sunday magazine Michelle Bridges says gyms should have dog treadmills. Whilst she no doubt made this as a tongue in cheek suggestion – what  great idea!

Michelle went on to write about obesity in people and dogs. Did you know that 40% of dogs in this country are obese? Shocking.

She also highlighted the importance of food and exercise – two vital components in keeping to the right weight whether human or canine. The difference is, we humans can choose whether to be as one with our armchair  - or to go out and exercise. Sadly our dogs cannot make such choices. And the worst thing of all for dogs is lack of exercise. Not just for what it does to their bodies – but because dogs deprived of enough exercise (and the chance to sniff and read doggie headlines) can at minimum develop behavioural problems – at worst they can go insane.

Cesar Millan has his detractors, but he spoke wise words when he said that for a dog to be balanced it needs EXERCISE, DISCIPLINE, AFFECTION – I concur.

In the UK it has become worryingly common to read of attacks by dogs on children and adults – more than a few proving fatal. Investigations often go on to reveal powerful trophy dogs kept in unimaginable conditions, locked away with zero exercise. The longer they are imprisoned the more uncontrollable they become. No surprise then when they escape they go mad and can kill. Tragic on every level.

Sydney pets owners are some of the most devoted I have ever met. Their pets are their passion and they will do whatever it takes to keep them happy and protected. In turn those pets repay that love a hundred times over with their affection, constancy and devotion.

So keep in mind that exercising your dog is more than simply a walk. You are giving your dog a wonderful gift and your canine pal will thank you by being happy and well adjusted. And if you do an hour daily and step up the pace - neither of you will need a gym to lose those few Ks!!

Ball Throwers & dogs with no ‘off switch'

As the Northern Beaches standout choice for dog minding and pet sitting – and of course being the Perfect Pet Sitter:-) I meet many, many different dogs -  all breeds, shapes and sizes. Yet as every dog owner knows, each has their own unique personality.

At one end of the spectrum there are those that love everyone they meet - to others that bond with just one person.

In the same way as personalities vary – so do energy levels. From calm and almost stately, to highly outgoing and very excitable.

It is within the latter you find dogs with no ‘Off Switch’. Puppies often fall into this type at first and can grow out of it, but some never do, even when fully mature.

Injuries and cuts are far more common with high energy dogs. Whilst rushing around they don’t see obstacles or sharp shells. They leap and twist in the air and often they are so engrossed in what they are doing that cuts or strains are not seen until you get home.

But more serious still are the types that get very obsessive about certain behaviours, for example running after balls launched by ball throwers. 

SAFE TO THROW  Amber (far right) Izzy (far left, was with her owner) Jack (front) & Maggie. Their owner throws ball 

Lots of dogs love chasing balls. Example, Jack, a cattle dog I’ve cared for many times. Jack is 8 years old  and he loves running after a ball and brings it back every time and drops it so you will throw it again. However, Jack is smart, and as he gets tired he takes longer and longer before he drops the ball. In effect he has learned how to self regulate to stop him overheating.

Left - Right Jack, Maggie, Izzy & Amber

Dogs love Curl Curl Lagoon (NSW)

More mature dogs like Jack have learned to control their behaviour, but some never develop an ‘Off Switch’ – effectively they become ‘Conditioned’.  They can go on to OCD around balls (Google: ‘operant conditioning’).

In hot weather in particular, I really worry when I see a dog constantly running after a ball being launched again and again. Any dog ( but especially those with thick coats and/or where there is no water to swim and cool off) are in serious danger of exhaustion or heat stroke because they literally will keep chasing that ball until they drop.

When I take the dogs in my care on our Adventure Walks I prefer they interact with other canines rather than simply run after a ball. So I take them to venues with smells, variations of landscape and other dogs to play with. 

Occasionally I will take the thrower with us, but rather in the way you wouldn’t give children chocolate all the time, I keep these times limited. And, I always keep in mind that I am the one who has to control the ‘Off Switch’ and limit the where, when and how often I throw that ball.

A TIP

Which dogs should be insured? Ideally insure your dog – full stop. However, in the words of my vet in the UK when I didn’t have insurance cover for my big German Shorthaired Pointer:  “Always insure large, active and energetic breeds with short coats. Their energy means they plough into all sorts of places and their thin coats mean they get cuts far more easily than dogs with more dense coats”

(The only problem with that advice – I wish he’d told me earlier!!!)

Puppy takes on Boxer - AND WINS!

Q: What do you get when you mix a Wheaten Terrier puppy with a stately Lady Boxer?

A:  A very interesting Pet Sit!

Dog sitting on the Northern Beaches and Sydney area brings many surprises. One is how you forget when you haven’t looked after a puppy for a long time just how much energy they have. In theory you exercise, feed and play with them – and then they sleep.  Hmmm, only problem is, someone forgot to tell the puppies that!

I recently had a fun two weeks looking after Audrey a cuteness itself six month old Spaniel – but boy did she keep me on my toes – no sleeping for Audrey and certainly not much for me! Then Claire and Elly (her own 8 year old Boxer) together spent three weeks looking after another energetic puppy -  Chico a 7 month old Wheaten Terrier.

Chico is typical of pups of his age – masses of energy and a lot to learn! So it was going to be interesting to see how stately lady Elly and the teenage Chico got on.

Elly in her younger years was very ill. Having recovered from a death’s door condition, these days she looks robust - but looks can be deceiving. She has a severely fused spine and arthritis and ideally should keep to easy walks. But as soon as she met Chicho he wanted to play – and Elly couldn’t resist his cheeky charms!

Chico & Elly - Chico uncharacteristically quiet!

The pair developed quite a bond and became real fur pals. In the house Chico jump would on Elly or lick her face, and she being very good natured didn't mind. But now and then if she was tired she would make it clear play time was over – and Chico knew to give her a rest!

On walks Chico loved being chased and his favourite game was finding a stick and teasing Elly to try and take it. Not something she managed very often as he literally did run rings around her.

But Elly taught Chico a few things, like drinking from a running tap. He used to watch her and then one day did it himself. She also taught him limitations and few manners! In turn being around a high energy bundle helped Elly re connect with her ‘inner puppy’. She became very playful and seemed to get younger.

So although it seems the Pup wins when it takes on the Boxer - in fact when young meets old, the energy of the one and the wisdom of the other means pups or dogs - they all win:-)