Bits for Pets Blog

A statue of a hero dog that became mascot to the Free Norwegian Forces during World War II is to be unveiled.

Bamse the St Bernard, who has already been honoured with the animal equivalent of the George Cross, is to be remembered in Montrose.

Montrose Heritage Trust is raising £50,000 to promote the story of Bamse, who came to Scotland in 1940 as a crew member of a Norwegian minesweeper.

The statue is to be unveiled in the Angus town by Prince Andrew.

Click Here! For the full story

Close monitoring and rapid, targeted vaccinations may be the best way to protect the Ethiopian wolf, the world’s rarest canine, against extinction.

Scientists suggest that immunizing just 30 percent of the wolf population at the first sign of an outbreak is sufficient to safeguard the endangered species from major outbreaks of rabies and other deadly diseases.

Only about 500 Ethiopian wolves remain in the wild, and the species has been ravaged by rabies epidemics at least twice in the recent past. But completely immunizing all of those animals is too time-consuming, given current technology.

The new study shows that even limited immunizations of wild canine species such as the Ethiopian wolf against rabies is “safe and effective,” said lead author Dan Haydon, an ecologist and epidemiologist at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. “[That is] something that’s not always been agreed upon in the conservation community,” Haydon added.

Click Here! for the full story

Chip the Labrador went for his fortnightly weigh-in at the PDSA PetAid hospital in Hurst Road last week, delighting staff with his progress.

Chip, who lives with his owner in West Croydon, is the heaviest of 10 pets all over the country taking part in the Pet Fit Club, organised by the veterinary charity PDSA.

At 10st 4lbs, Chip is more than double the weight he should be and is even heavier than Croydon supermodel Kate Moss.

His owner, 64-year-old John Turnball admitted he “eats anything” and says whenever he takes him out to exercise he gets distracted by bitches.

But Chip has lost 1.3 kilos - 2.8lbs - since starting his new diet and exercise programme, which has been designed by vets and nurses at the PDSA.

Ann Radford, the PDSA veterinary surgeon at the Hurst Road surgery who is looking after Chip, said: “His weight has stablised a little bit. We would have liked him to lose a bit more, but he has also lost a couple of inches from his waist so overall I’m pleased with him.

Click Here! for the full story

UK conservationists are celebrating a successful summer for a rare butterfly, which went locally extinct in 1979.

An estimated 10,000 large blue butterflies have been recorded at sites across southern England - the largest number for at least 60 years.

Efforts to rebuild the population have been underway since 1983, when Swedish caterpillars were introduced to the UK.

Experts hope the project will show that such programmes can help other species threatened with extinction.

More than 150 scientists, conservationists and volunteers have been involved in the Large Blue Project, a partnership of 11 organisations, co-ordinated by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

Dave Simcox, manager of the project, said there was still more work to be done.

“Whilst one landscape in Somerset is reasonable secure, the real challenge is to replicate this success throughout the Cotswolds, South Devon, and the Atlantic coasts of Devon and Cornwall,” he explained.

Dr Nigel Bourn, director of species conservation at Butterfly Conservation, said it offered hope for other threatened species.

“Given the proper resources, we can restore a countryside full of butterflies and other wildlife,” he said.

Click Here! for the full story

An online animal blood register has been set up by a driving instructor after her golden retriever fell seriously ill with a blood disorder.

Diana Cruttwell, 56, from Peterborough, joined forces with her vet Dr Clive Elwood to create the site when her dog had to have several blood transfusions.

The free database brings together potential donors with vets, who then match and check the blood.

The service is thought to be the first of its kind in the UK.

It is the canine equivalent to the human blood bank system, but stores information on potential donors, rather than actual blood.

Mrs Cruttwell’s own dog, Abi, had to have three transfusions, but her vet was able to use blood from three of her other dogs to treat Abi’s condition.

However, the experience highlighted how difficult it was for dog owners to find suitable donors in a medical crisis.

Mrs Cruttwell, a former police officer who now runs her own driving school, said she hoped the database would save lives.

She said: “I think it’s important that people know their animals can be donors.”

Click Here! For the full story

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) has today reported that birds of prey have been deliberately killed in County Down.
A male peregrine was shot and at least one buzzard has died from suspected poisoning.
The peregrine was found in a field near Sprucefield with four pellets lodged in its leg, wing and shoulder blade. It was taken to the vet, but died a few days later.
The bird was ringed as part of a scientific study and identified as having hatched this year in Co Antrim.
The buzzard was found alive but suffering from apparent poisoning in the Drumbanagher area near Newry.
Despite treatment by a vet, the bird died, haemorrhaging blood and water.
Full laboratory results are still awaited, but initial results indicate poisoning.
Claire Ferry, Conservation Officer at the RSPB, said: “We are horrified to learn of probable human persecution of birds of prey.
“Shooting or poisoning of all birds of prey is illegal and the PSNI has been made aware of both cases.”
She continued: “These incidents may well be the tip of the iceberg. There was a case of alleged persecution of peregrines in the Mourne Mountains earlier this year. We encourage anyone who knows of any bird or wildlife crime to report incidents to the PSNI and the Wildlife Officer at EHS to investigate.”

Click Here! for the full story