Early training and the impact of fear

The peak socialisation period for puppies is between 6 and 12 weeks of age. This is the key period where new sounds, smells, sights and experiences all combine to inform the young dog what is to be...

Socialisation: is it the ‘be all and end all’ of creating resilience in companion animals?

McMillan (2016) suggested that social animals that form strong relationships and are integrated most strongly into group living are most likely to survive, reproduce, and raise offspring to...

Helping kittens to become confident cats—why they and their owners need the support of the veterinary team. Part 2: environmental effects and support

There are a number of pre- and post-natal environmental effects that can affect the kitten's capacity to develop emotional resilience to both the social and physical aspects of a domestic environment.

Helping kittens to become confident cats – why they and their owners need the support of the veterinary team. Part 1: genetic barriers

The earliest evidence of our domestic cat's original ancestor comes from 11 million years ago (Bradshaw et al, 2012) and from this evolved a range of species including the ‘wild cat’. Of these it is...

The importance of good nutrition in growing puppies and kittens

Both puppies and kittens are born with a low percentage of body fat, and so require a high-fat diet to increase body fat to around 22% by adulthood (Case et al, 2011). The polyunsaturated omega 3...