From rats grinding teeth to dogs eating poop — your pet questions answered

HE is on a mission to help our pets  . . . and is here to answer YOUR questions.

Sean, who is the head vet at tailored pet food firm tails.com, has helped with owners’ queries for ten years. He says: “If your pet is acting funny or is under the weather, or you want to know about nutrition or exercise, just ask. I can help keep pets happy and healthy.”

Q) MY rat, Professor Ratigan, grinds his teeth together noisily.

It’s a bit like he’s chewing something really quickly but his mouth is empty. Is this normal? 

MARK MOUNTAIN, Carlisle

Sean says: This can be normal in rats, yes, but it usually indicates certain emotional states — often at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Rats will grind their teeth in excitement when greeting a rat or human friend. But similarly, they may grind their teeth when stressed or frightened — such as interacting with a dog or cat they are nervous of.

Another reason might be dental problems or mouth pain, in which case a physical exam from your vet is a good idea.

Q) MY five-year-old Jack Russell Hugo doesn’t like strangers. 

I can’t stop him barking when people come round to the house. I end up putting him in the bedroom.

When we go for a walk, he runs up to people and barks at them. I try to ignore it but it’s got so bad I don’t like letting off the lead.

GERALDINE WARNE, Worthing, West Sussex

 Sean says: This is not a quick fix and really needs the help of a qualified behaviourist to figure out why he is barking. Then they can come up with a solution to tackle it. 

Understanding the motivation is the first step to helping him be less reactive to strangers. In the home environment it may be territorial, while out and about it could be excitement or fear-related.

Each comes with a different approach but all are easy to tackle with the correct understanding and some homework for you to start, with the help of a behaviourist.

Q) WHAT kind of enrichment do you recommend for rabbits?

We are looking into getting two rabbits for our five-year-old son but should we think about toys for them, like we do with cats and dogs?

As well as a hutch we are going to get an enclosed run.

TINA MURPHY, Manchester

Sean says: You’re starting on the right foot because by far the best enrichment for a rabbit is another rabbit. They are social creatures so it is not really fair to have just one on their own.

The bigger the run, the better. If you can enclose your entire garden and make it predator and escape-proof, all the better.

But a hutch is not really enough. They need a run, with plenty of opportunities to dig and lots of hiding spaces, so you can use tubes and tunnels, cardboard boxes and hay racks plus feeding puzzle toys to make them work for their food and forage. Use your imagination and introduce toys and objects on a rotation for novelty value.

Q) COOPER, my six-month-old working Cocker spaniel, has been eating his own poop – and other dogs’ too. 

He’s been doing this for a few weeks now. We try to stop him but he is too fast for us to catch him sometimes. He is still on puppy food.

Should I change him to adult food or is he still too young? 

JULIA ROWLEY, Leeds

Sean says: It’s about time now to start transitioning him on to an adult food but that step change is quite an unnatural one, going from puppy food to adult overnight.

That’s why at tails.com we gradually change your dog’s recipe according to their optimal nutritional needs over time as they grow and develop. As regards to poop eating — or coprophagia, to use the technical term — this is a natural behaviour for dogs, disgusting as it is to us.

You want to redirect Cooper to come to you for a really tasty treat instead of tucking into poo. Some say feeding a dog pineapple chunks can change the taste and discourage them from eating it. If he sees it as a competition to get to the poo quickest, that can ingrain the behaviour even more — as he might think you want it too!

Star of the week

GUIDE dog Mabel helps owner Fraser Fleming support people with sight loss, despite Fraser losing his own vision.

Fraser, 38, from Motherwell, was left blind in his left eye and with limited vision in his right after he was diagnosed with diabetic retinopathy.

For two years, he rarely left the house.

But with Labrador Mabel by his side – helped by funding from the People’s Postcode Lottery – Fraser is able to help others who are blind navigate the digital world through his charity Triple Tap Tech. 

Fraser says: “I’m so grateful to the players of the People’s Postcode Lottery for funding Mabel. The difference a guide dog makes is so important.”

Don’t be shell shocked by escapees

PAWS And Claws readers are being urged to keep their eyes peeled for runaway tortoises to mark World Tortoise Day tomorrow – it could save their life.

Experts say that now the sun is out, many become escape artists – digging under garden fences and even scaling fences.

Ann Ovenstone, founder of the Tortoise Sanctuary in Sully, Vale of Glamorgan, which currently has 401 rescued tortoises, said: “This World Tortoise Day we are reminding owners to be vigilant as they are such wanderers and urging people, if they spot one, to hand it to a vet as they can die of cold. Once they have basked in the sun it’s like filling up a car engine with petrol – off they go. They are like little Houdinis.”

Tortoise Rocky was rescued by the RSPCA after being found in a street in Hendon, North London in May 2019 – and he was subsequently given to the charity before being adopted by RSPCA press officer Amy Ockelford.

Amy, 33, from Suffolk, said: “He’s a constant source of entertainment, he has such a big personality.” 

The charity’s most recent lost tortoise was found in a field in Church Eaton, Stafford, this month and they saved 285 last year.

To help, donate at: tortoisesanctuary.co.uk.