Remember remember!

Remember remember the 5th of November — we no longer need a nursery rhyme to fix the date in our minds. Indeed, Halloween and Bonfire Night role into one, with 2 weeks of celebrations and parties taking place in many towns and villages. A single night of fireworks has become a fortnight, loved by many but dreaded by people like me with dogs that are terrified! And, since surveys suggest that as many as 73% of the pet population could be affected, I'm certainly not alone.

I expect many of you have already created your practice displays with advice for pet owners, but here is some information you may still find useful:

It's also a good time to remind clients to ensure that their microchip details are up to date in case a pet bolts — a microchip is only as good as the details held on the database. While microchipping is now compulsory for dogs in the UK, people do sometimes forget to change their details when they move house. It is not compulsory for cats to be microchipped, and a conversation about fireworks could provide a chance to discuss the microchipping of cats with clients and encourage them to microchip their pets. The International Cat Care/ISFM state that ‘the accurate and permanent identification of pet cats is both important and desirable, and has been regarded as an essential component of cats' welfare.’