Episode 16: Preparing for your new arrival

What are the options if you want to work with animals but not within the vet industry? Maggie and Vanessa discuss a myriad of different careers including animal physiotherapists, zoo-keeping, sheep shearing and even AI – artificial insemination! What does an equine dental technician do? What the difference between an animal behaviourist and an animal trainer? How do you get into conservation work? All these questions are answered including information on what qualifications and work experience are needed. A love of animals is not enough so the importance of resilience, pragmatism and sheer hard work is added to the mix to help you decide what role might be right for you. And here's the links we refer to for animal trainers and behaviourists: The Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors - APBC The Animal Behaviour and Training Council - ABTC Certificated Clinical Animal Behaviourists - CCAB (Apologies we may have got this acronym slightly wrong in the podcast!)

It’s many people’s dream to work with animals but it’s a very competitive sector, not often well paid and certainly isn’t all playing with fluffy kittens! Vanessa and Maggie discuss the trials and tribulations of working with animals and getting into vet school. Do you really have to be a straight A student or are there other routes to fulfil your ambition? Is it true that the most difficult thing about working with animals is the people? Would our hosts go for the same career if they had their time over again? They also discuss other roles in vet practice such as the vital part vet nurses play along with animal care assistants, receptionists and practice managers. If you want to find out more about becoming a vet or vet nurse, please visit one of the following links for more information: RCVS, BVA, BVNA and the Veterinary Schools Council.    

It’s great to have varying perspectives so we’re pleased to have our first podcast guest, Nicky Trevorrow. Nicky is a qualified animal behaviourist at Cats Protection and a registered veterinary nurse. In this episode we chat about how she became a behaviourist and what her role involves. She tells us why cats are her passion and what are the main challenges of working with this intriguing species. She shares lots of tips to set your cat up to be the purrrfect companion.

After all the planning and research, finally collecting your new pet is a very exciting time! Understandably your new housemate may be a little nervous or missing their mother, so you want to make this transition period as stress-free as possible.  Vanessa and Maggie give you tips on what you need to do to make things go smoothly including what information you need from the breeder or adoption centre, how to set up the house to give the new arrival a space of their own and how to gradually introduce them to the rest of the family including other pets. We want to set you up for many happy years together.

For many years most cats were non-pedigree moggies, but things are changing and more people are acquiring purebred cats. Maggie and Vanessa discuss how some conformational problems in dogs are now being seen in cats due to the human desire to have a cute or unusual pet. They explain why flat faces, short legs, folded ears, being bald, wrinkled or tailless causes welfare issues in a species that has evolved to be perfect for its ecological niche. They discuss the dangers breeding wildcat hybrids and why these do not make good pets.

Cats were once worshipped as gods and they’ve never forgotten it! But why did the Egyptians love cats so much and what part did they play in their domestication? Vanessa and Maggie delve into the history of how cats came to be such a widespread form of rodent control and then much-loved pets. They were already excellent hunters and clean, affectionate pets that didn’t need to be modified for human use so why did the Victorians want to develop different cat breeds? We chat about these moggie mysteries and discuss the growing number of cat breeds.

As animal lovers, there is nothing better than seeing animals in their natural habitats. Sadly, we don’t always get the opportunities to do this but there are other ways of interacting with wild animals including visiting zoos, aquaria, conservation projects or even getting a mobile animal exhibitor to visit your school or party. But what is the animal’s experience? Maggie and Vanessa discuss their views on which types of activities should be avoided, how to choose more animal-friendly ones and share some of their own experiences, both good and bad.

With summer holidays on the horizon, many people will be looking for activities to engage in. Animal lovers may be tempted by the array of animal-related activities available but how can we be sure that the animals’ welfare is put first? In this episode Vanessa and Maggie discuss activities involving domestic species such as bulls, horses, donkeys and camels. Is it OK to ride an elephant or trek with llamas? What about cat cafes and goat yoga? We will give you our views and some tips to check if your chosen activity is OK from the animal’s perspective.

Most of us love the warm weather and so do many of our pets but there are dangers regarding heat and other seasonal issues that it’s important to be aware of. Did you know that your pets can get sunburnt or suffer from heatstroke? What about the risk of those pesky fleas, ticks, maggots and even snakebites? How can an innocent grass seed become a major problem? Maggie and Vanessa give you their top tips for dealing with summer emergencies and how to prevent them for a sunny but safe summer. Sorry about the background noise in this recording, we were trying to keep ourselves cool by sitting in the shade outside!

Maggie and Vanessa explain what extreme conformation is and why some dogs are bred with very flat faces, short legs or tails, no hair, or lots of wrinkles. They may look cute but often there are unintended consequences that affect the health and welfare of the dogs. These problems lead not only to more vet bills and heartache for you but lifelong issues for your pet.  We discuss what’s being done to help reduce these problems and how a new tool, the Innate Health Assessment could improve the lives of future generations of puppies.