Here's how we worked with their elderly owner to get things back on track.
My name is Jo and I work in Woodgreen’s Community Outreach team. Over the last few weeks we’ve had more strays than ever arriving and more calls for help from struggling pet owners – although it’s been so busy, I really wanted to let you know about a call I had a few weeks ago from a contact at the RSPCA.
Pam lived alone and was coping with memory issues, she had very few visitors except for her carers, so she spent the majority of time with her dogs and you could tell that they gave her a real sense of purpose.
Although Italian Greyhound, Lacey, had a urinary tract infection and was extremely obese for her breed, her sister Bella was in good condition.
Because of the contrast, I didn’t want to jump straight in and put Lacey on a weight plan in case there was an underlying problem, so ruling out medical issues behind Lacey’s obesity was my first step in getting things back on track for Pam and her lovely pooches.
I arranged a veterinary appointment at Pam’s local vets and Woodgreen paid for and transported Lacey to have blood tests.
While we awaited the results, I spent some more time getting to know Pam and learn more about her lifestyle.
Understanding people’s habits, beliefs and routines often helps us support owners to make simple, yet effective, changes that aren’t too much of a change for the owner but can make a world of difference to a pet!
It was during this time that I discovered both dogs were fed from a very large bowl which the owner filled to the top with puppy food every morning so they could graze throughout the day.
Unknown to her, puppy food has a lot of extra calories to help with growth and I suspected this could have been a contributing factor to Lacey’s weight.
Alongside the food was a small dessert bowl which was filled up with water every morning. Once this bowl was empty, however, the dogs had nothing to drink until the next day and this had caused Lacey to have a urine infection.
It was clear that she wasn’t aware of the impact this was having, but rather a habit and routine that she’d always followed. She also knew they loved puppy food and, in her mind, she was just trying to give them their favourite food.
Luckily, we were able to provide some easy fixes straight away that didn’t affect Pam’s daily routine. I replaced the dessert dish with an extra-large water bowl, so the routine of filling it up stayed the same, but the dogs never ran out of water again.
Once we found out that Lacey had no underlying medical problem, I replaced her food bowl with a smaller one so she would only get the amount of food she needed for her age and breed. I also swapped the puppy food for an adult variety that Lacey’s owner could buy from the same shop she visited every week.
I visited them twice over a couple of months to make sure everything was going smoothly – and I’m pleased to say our support made a positive difference.
Pam stuck to the changes and as a result, Lacey lost an incredible four kilos in about six weeks!
Both dogs were happy and healthy and I was so glad we helped to keep them together by making some simple changes that worked alongside Pam’s normal routine and mild memory issues.
Sadly Pam recently passed away, but we hope she would have been so pleased that Bella and Lacey came to Woodgreen to be looked after together.
We always try our best to make sure pets who are very close to each other stay together, and I’m so pleased to let you know that we’ve found them a lovely new home together! They’re still inseparable and settled into their new life really well.
Thanks to supporters like you we were able to make such a big difference to the health and well-being of these two lovely sisters and their owner.
We couldn’t have done it without you, so a big thank you from me and the Woodgreen team!
Poor Grant was in a truly awful state when he arrived as a stray. But thanks to support like yours, our dedicated team were on hand to help him recover and start to regain his trust in humans again. Find out from our team how we helped him and whether he found his forever home.
At Woodgreen, our work goes far beyond the care we provide for homeless pets at our centre. Our dedicated Community Outreach team support pets and people in many ways; our partnership with The Trussell Trust is a shining example of how we're here for pets and their owners when they need us.