All the latest info on caring for your pet

A heart murmur is a noise related to abnormal blood flow in or out of the chambers of the heart. This is usually only audible with a stethoscope and can be heard in addition to, or instead of, the normal heart beat sounds. While murmurs in growing puppies are normal and often harmless (“innocent” or “puppy” murmurs), in adult dogs it usually indicates an underlying problem.

Epilepsy is a term used to describe repeated seizures or fits. Sometimes these fits can be one-off events, or several can occur in a short space of time. They may be quite infrequent or occur regularly.

Hypothyroidism occurs when there is impaired production and secretion of thyroid hormones from the thyroid glands. This results in a decreased metabolic rate, and symptoms that are associated with this. It’s most common in dogs, developing rarely in other species such as cats and horses, so here we will be focusing on dogs. 

Rabbits have impressive and fairly unique dentition within the animal kingdom. However, problems with their teeth can result in an array of health issues as well as cause your bunny significant discomfort. A lot of us know how painful toothache can be! Read on to find out how to identify and deal with dental problems in rabbits. 

Whether you find the sound of your dog’s snoring adorable or irritating, you may have wondered what is causing it. And whether you need to be concerned. Here we explain the many reasons for these musical efforts. Some are completely normal and some more worrying, with some simple tips for when you need to seek veterinary advice. 

We’re living in strange times. Never in living memory have so many people been asked to ‘stay home’ for so long. There’s a lot of focus on the bigger negative effects of being indoors for so long: mental; physical; social; and so on. A less obvious downside of lockdown that recent news reports have brought to our attention is vitamin D deficiency. Health experts are concerned many people are becoming deficient in this crucial vitamin because of a lack of going outdoors in the sun. As Britain doesn’t get great sun at the best of times, they are recommending certain groups of people should be taking vitamin D supplements to top up. Naturally, as a nation of animal lovers, questions have arisen as to whether our four-legged friends, who may also be indoors more than usual, should be given vitamin D supplements as well. So today we will be answering the question ‘do dogs need vitamin D supplements?’