Sep 10

Where’s Molly 110910

Thank you for visiting the Play Fetch website. The site highlights on the joy that dogs can bring to your life, but many dogs aren`t fortunate enough to have a loving family. We are working with rehoming centres across the country to help them home our furry friends, please bookmark this website and come back soon to view the dogs that need you to give them the great life they deserve.

Don’t you just love this time of year for dog walks? You dress according to the weather then at the furthest part of the walk from home the weather changes. The skies started off dark grey and full of rain so off we went with our coats then the clouds cleared and the sun came out. Can you find Molly in the picture? Bonus points if you know where we are. It is a little overgrown these days but not long ago it was a very popular tourist attraction.
Read more…

Aug 25

Dog insurance policies – what to look out for

Dog insurance works in the same way as most other forms of insurance. For a premium each month (or annually) you should be covered for veterinery bills up to a certain value to save you big bills. But not all dog insurance policies are the same, infact each are very different.

Dog insurance policies – what to look out for

Your dog insurance policy should provide peace of mind, should you dog fall ill or become injured your insurance policy should take away the worry of paying for treatment. Insurance companies have changed their policies so much in recent years adding on little extras such as third party claims, advertising help if your dog goes missing etc making dog insurance quite complicated to buy. Here is a handy little guide on how to decipher a dog insurance policy and what to look out for. More on dog insurance policies

Aug 18

Where’s Molly 110818

This is Molly's favourite wood and the leaves are already beginning to fall, which means she blends in well.

My ther dog Toby was in the bushes chasing who knows what but Molly is hiding. Can you find her in the picture?
Find my dog Molly in her favourite woods

Aug 10

Positive vs negative reinforcement

Most peoples experiences of dog training emanate from programmes on TV, but there are very conflicting methods of training your dog. Cesar Milan (the Dog Whisperer) punishes bad behaviour whereas Victoria Stilwell (It's Me or the Dog) rewards good behaviour.

Positive vs negative reinforcement

Pick up a book and the training methods inside will most likely use positive or negative reinforcement and many books won`t actually state that they use that particular technique. But which is best? Which dog training method is best for you?

Aug 03

Witness a day in the life of the RSPCA in the 24hr tweetathon

The RSPCA today (3rd August) are running a 24 hour tweetathon, highlighting the invaluable work they do every day of the year. Of course the RSPCA doesn`t just focus on dogs but on all variety of animals in need of help.

The RSPCA 24 hour tweetathon was inspired by a twitter stream run by RSPCA Inspector Tony Woodley, while he has been on call he has been tweeting about his job, for example “#RSPCA247 : E: HEDGEHOG. TRAPPED DOWN A HOLE WHERE A GOAL POST WOULD BE, 12CM ACROSS AND 40CMS DEEP, UNABLE TO GET FREE”. Read more about the RSPCA 24 hour tweetathon

Aug 01

Amazing dog shaking photography

I have tried to capture a photograph of my dog shaking many times but never really managed to get that perfect shot. Fortunately photographer Carli Davidson did a much better job. Here are some fabulous images of dogs shaking.

Amazing dog shaking photography

A few weeks ago on Twitter and Facebook I posted some pictures of Bassett Hounds running, their faces and bodies being contorted by the forces imposed on them, so was excited to find these images of dogs shaking. The images whilst not being especially pretty are pretty amazing. View photos of dogs shaking

Jul 28

Alexander McQueen leaves money to dogs

Fashion designer Alexander McQueen was a well known dog lover, but it has been revealed that he left £50,000 to his three dogs Minter, Juice and Callum.

Alexander McQueen leaves money to dogs

He didn`t stop there, in his will was also gave four charities £100,000 each. The lucky four include Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and Blue Cross animal welfare. Read more about Alexander McQueen and his dogs

Jul 22

Council to fine dog owners to reduce complaints

Bath and North East Somerset Council are planning on fining dog owners in an attempt to reduce the amount of dog related complaints.

Council to fine dog owners to reduce complaints

A fine of £75 can be issues for reasons such as walking too many dogs at a time, not having your dog on a lead or walking a dog in an inappropriate area. Read more about the dog fines

Jul 20

Don’t cook your dog campaign and other tips for hot summer months

It is a sad truth that each year thousands of dogs die from being left in hot cars. Within just a few minutes a car becomes hot enough to literally cook your dog, the RSPCA performed a demonstration a few years ago highlighting this, and to show the seriousness their test car (no actual dogs included inside) had all windows wound down.

Don’t cook your dog campaign and other tips for hot summer months

There was also big media coverage of two police dogs who had died as a result of being left in a police car, a tragic story but one which hopefully all dog owners remember before leaving their dogs. After this the #dontcookyourdog campaign was born.

Read more about dont't cook your dog and read dog heatstroke signs and cures

Jul 18

Electric shock dog collars, citronella bark collars etc. Cruel or useful?

Many dog trainers use training aids to control dogs, but is the training of dogs through pain a good method? There are lots of dog training aids out there, electric shock collars, prong dog collars but do they really train your dog?

Electric shock dog collars, citronella bark collars etc. Cruel or useful?

In August 2007 the English government looked at the sale and use of electric shock dog collars and found that there was a lack of evidence to ban the sale or use of them. Have things moved on since then? In 2010 the collars were banned in Wales and recently a man was fined £2000 plus £1000 costs for using one on his dog.

Electric shock dog collars, good or bad? Read more...