Spray fever Pampered Pets

OUR VET DAVID GRANT WORKS HIS MAGIC

QOur six-year-old Dutch dwarf house rabbit has started spraying inside. Is he too old to be neutered, and would it change his personality? He’s quite timid. A

Dutch dwarf rabbits are normally timid. They are considered to be relatively easy to litter train, however. So my first thought is why is this behaviour happening now at six years of age?

It would be very useful to answer this question, and the first thing to do is to visit the vet. A general physical examination would check for any medical reasons for the sudden spraying.

Examples are bladder or kidney disease, or stones in the urinary tract. Another possibility is arthritis, making it more difficult to use litter trays.

During the veterinary consultation you can ask about neutering. In healthy rabbits it is usually the first option to stop spraying.

The behaviour is a means of marking territory, especially in intact males, but females do it as well and neutering is also a first option for them.

Neutering has many advantages, as diseases of the reproductive system will not occur, and it is generally agreed that neutered rabbits live longer.

If your rabbit is in good health I don’t think six years is too old for neutering and it should not alter his personality. It might even make him less timid.

Following neutering, litter retraining is usually easier.

But if the problem persists, a rabbit behaviourist (or your vet) could advise on training and the correct use and siting of litter trays.

Our two-year-old shih tzu is well behaved inside the house and outside. She insists, however, on barking at anything that passes the house – cars,

people and especially cats – and going berserk. How can we stop this?

A

This is a common problem and, as I often say with behavioural issues, advice from a professionally qualified canine behaviourist would be a very effective way of getting on top of it. Your vet will be able to recommend one.

I am assuming your dog is looking out of the window when she does the barking. So a simple first step would be to make it more difficult for her to see out of your windows.

If she lies on the back of a sofa you could move it.

Using blinds or drawing the curtains to block the view is a temporary measure while you get to grips with training, the basics of which is by reward for good behaviour.

Stay calm when she barks.

She will have started the barking to act as guardian of the house, and any shouting at her to stop the barking works as a reward and only increases the excitement.

She is otherwise well behaved so I expect she knows the command “sit”.

If so, she now needs to learn the command “quiet”.

This will need patience and consistency. Whenever you are with her by the window and a trigger appears – person, car or cat – say “quiet” immediately, before the barking starts, and then give her a treat.

This has to be immediate for every trigger otherwise there is a risk of rewarding the barking.

David Grant MBE was a vet at the RSPCA Harmsworth Hospital for Animals. Email questions to him at pamperedpets@express.co.uk