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Behavior & Training

  • Dogs: Punishment

    Punishment is defined as the application of a stimulus that decreases the chances that a behaviour will be repeated. In practical terms when dealing with dogs, we aim to associate an unpleasant consequence with an undesirable behaviour to reduce the occurrence of the behaviour.

  • Excess Thirst and Urination

    These are non-specific clinical signs and can be caused by many different conditions and diseases.

  • Feeding Your Rabbit

    In the wild rabbits spend many hours chewing grass. This is a tough fibrous material that also contains abrasive silicates.

  • Feeding Your Snake

    Unlike most pets, snakes eat whole prey items including mice, rats and hamsters. Larger snakes will also eat whole rabbits.

  • Getting Your Dog Used to Ear Cleaning

    Most dogs' ears are a lot larger than ours and certainly a lot more sensitive. We usually only clean them when there is a problem and they are already sore, so the dog learns that handling around the ears is painful and tries to avoid it.

  • Guidelines for Taking Your Cat to the Vet

    Cats are very strongly bonded to their environment and any change is likely to result in significant stress. If we consider the changes that we are enforcing on a cat when we take it to the vet, it is hardly surprising that many cats are very stressed by the time they arrive at the veterinary practice.

  • House-Safety: Confinement and Crate Training

    Dogs are highly social animals that make wonderful pets. However, with the lifestyle and schedule of the majority of families, dogs must learn to spend a portion of the day at home alone, while their human family is away at school, work, shopping or recreational activities.

  • Housing Your Pet Chinchilla

    Being normal inhabitants of the Andes, chinchillas can cope very well with New Zealand outdoor temperatures and can be kept in an outdoor aviary with plenty of branches for climbing and chewing.

  • Housing Your Pet Small Rodent

    It is most convenient to house pet rodents in wire type 'bird-cages', although cages are available specifically for these pets. Wooden cages are not suitable as rodents love to chew and can really destroy their homes.

  • Housing Your Snake

    Smaller juvenile pets often do well in a 10 or 20-gallon aquarium, or even large plastic "lunch" boxes (cut small air holes!). As your snake grows, he must be moved to a more comfortable enclosure.