From Great Danes with delusions to cats in catios – your pet problems solved
Sean, who is the head vet at tailored pet food firm tails.com, has helped with owners' queries for ten years.
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Q) MY Great Dane, Bruno, thinks he's a Chihuahua. How can I teach him he's not?
He believes he's a lapdog which is hilarious but he clearly has no concept of how big he is.
SARAH SMITH, Guildford, Surrey
Sean says: My best advice is to enlist the help of a qualified animal behaviourist to come and observe you and Bruno's interactions in the home.
I can give you all the hints and tricks I've accumulated but you will get much better results from an expert who can point out the subtle ways you and your Chihuahua- wannabe communicate.
It's often just as much the owner as it is the dog when it comes to unwanted behaviours.
There are three great organisations — APBC (Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors), ABTC (Animal Behaviour and Training Council) and CCAB (Certified Clinical Animal Behaviour) — who list accredited animal behaviourists in your area. Have a look at their sites.
Q) I AM thinking of stopping my cat Elsa from roaming free as she's a terrible mouser.
I'm considering a catio. How big do you recommend?
Or, as she has been used to going out for three years, would she be happier to still have her freedom?
SAM KNIGHT, Bradford, West Yorks
My 15-stone 6ft dog is so huge people think he's a COW when we go for walks - but he won't stop sitting on my lap
Sean says: Catios are a great way to provide the enrichment and outdoor access your cat loves, while protecting not only wildlife but also your cat's safety and health.
There is no maximum size for one (within planning regulations). Give her as much room as you can.
Lots of vertical space, platforms, and walkways are great. The other option is to cat-proof garden fences or walls with nets hanging inward that keep Elsa in the garden.
There are a few companies that fit these. It may not prevent the odd mouse or bird getting caught though.
Q) HOW easy will it be to house train my three-month-old rabbits Ariel and Aurora?
They have an outdoor run but I bring them in at night. How would I introduce a litter tray etc? Or have I left it too late?
Currently they pee outside, but in winter they will become full house rabbits so I want to crack this now.
SARAH CARTER, Leicester
Sean says: It's usually pretty easy. Place a tray in a quiet location with easy access for them, with some of their own soiled bedding inside on newspaper. Then, top tip, hang a hay rack with good quality feeding hay next to, or overhanging, the tray.
They should hop inside to feed, recognising their own scent, and do a few poos as they merrily eat. And that's it. Once they develop a favourite toileting spot it usually becomes second nature to them.
You need to clean up any other spots where accidents have happened to eliminate the scent asap.
Q) WHENEVER I come home from work, my daughter's dog Moose grabs one of my shoes and runs around with it.
How can I discourage this annoying shoe fetish?
ANDY WOOD, East Grinstead, West Sussex
Sean says: Moose is just happy to see you. By any chance, is he a retrieving breed? This is their love language, and what better toy to play with than a shoe that smells of you?
You can place your footwear higher up in a shoe rack or out of reach, and replace what's available to Moose using a selection of more suitable toys that he's allowed to chew and slobber all over.
Star of the week
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CARROT was once the 'saddest' cat in a rescue centre – now she's up for a national award.
Owners Charlotte, 32, and Rob Warren, 42, a car sales manager, rescued the 22-year-old, who has just three teeth, after asking for a puss no one else wanted.
She repaid them by keeping their spirits up when they had to live in a caravan for seven months while waiting to move home.
Charlotte, of Hereford, said: 'We thought we would only be in it for a couple of weeks.
'It was really tough because it was tiny, but Carrot stuck with us through the entire thing.
'We'd come home and find her happy little face greeting us.'
Carrot is now the oldest nominee for this year's Cats Protection National Cat Awards.
OK, WHO'S GOT AN EILISH WOLFHOUND?
PEOPLE love naming pets after their favourite stars, with the top choice now Billie, after Billie Eilish.
New data from Pets At Home has also revealed that Coldplay's Chris Martin and Oasis's Gallagher brothers are in the naming top ten.
The TikTok hashtag 'pet names dedicated to Billie Eilish' has a staggering 58.4MILLION posts.
Noel and Liam are at numbers nine and ten of dog names, with Chris pipping them to eighth. But only Noel makes it into the feline top ten, at number eight.
Ed Sheeran, US singing sensation Benson Boone and Lewis Capaldi are also popular, along with Sabrina Carpenter. A Pets At Home spokesman said: 'While cats are the most common recipients of the names, dogs aren't far behind.'
Pets At Home has even launched a £4 bucket hat, like those worn by Billie Eilish and Liam Gallagher, that your pet can wear in homage to their namesake.
Top celeb dog names: 1. Benson (Boone); 2. Billie; 3. Robbie (Williams); 4. Lewis (Capaldi); 5. Ed (Sheeran); 6. Drake; 7. Olivia (Rodrigo); 8. Chris (Martin); 9. Noel (Gallagher), 10. Liam (Gallagher).
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The Independent
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I'm Britain's oldest quads mum at 50 & also a gran-of-12 – haters tell me I'm selfish manufacturing so many children
BROWSING the school uniform aisle Tracey Britten piles 40 pairs of socks and underwear into her trolley, as well as 20 vests. At home Tracey, 57, already has eight new lunch boxes, matching bottles, four school bags, PE kits, and logoed cardigans and jumpers ready for September. 10 10 10 But Tracey isn't shopping for her 12 grandchildren but rather for her six-year-old quadruplets. In October 2018 T racey became the oldest mum in Britain to give birth to quads at the age of 50. She was also the oldest verified mum in the world to give birth via IVF to quadruplets using her own eggs. A team of 35 medics including specialist doctors and nurses delivered the IVF tots - three girls and a boy - defying eight million-to-one odds. For Tracey it was nothing short of a miracle, but the gran-of-12 admits that not everyone sees it that way. 'When people realise I have quads and they're nearly seven, you can see them doing the maths,' Tracey says. "I'm proud of what I have achieved. 'Some people are horrified and I've been accused of manufacturing children but I don't care what the haters think.' Tracey, an aesthetic practitioner and author, lives in a three-bedroom council house in Enfield with roofer husband Stephen, 46, and their six-year-old quads: George, Francesca, Fredrica and Grace. She's also mum to a daughter aged 39 and sons aged 38 and 28 from a previous marriage and nan to 12 grandchildren ages 18 to four months old. Britain's oldest mum of quadruplet's Tracey says she is the 'happiest woman alive' now all four of her babies are home for Christmas Tracey, who first became a mum at 18, divorced her older children's dad in 2003 and admits she wasn't interested in finding love again let alone extending her family. But in 2005, Tracey met roofer Stephen, ten years her junior, through locals in her area. She says: 'Despite the age gap, I was smitten, I knew he was my soulmate.' The couple married in April 2012, on Tracey's mum and dad's wedding anniversary, and while Stephen didn't have any children Tracey says she 'sensed' he wanted a family. 'I couldn't ignore my maternal urge even though I was 48,' Tracey says. 'When my mum had died of heart disease in 2007 she had left me some money which I'd put aside and Stephen and I decided to use it to make our dreams come true.' At 48 Tracey was too old to qualify for NHS funded fertility treatment and so sought out a specialist clinic in North Cyprus, where IVF is available up to age 55 or even 58 if the woman is healthy. Tracey explains as part of her IVF regime she had to use hormone patches and injections to thicken her womb lining. 10 10 10 This also encouraged her ovaries to produce more eggs on her first cycle with the clinic for harvesting. "We had a donor on standby but I didn't need her,' Tracey explains. Of the eggs Tracey produced on her IVF stimulation cycle consultants selected four of her best quality eggs. They were used to create four embryos with Stephen's sperm. 'On implantation day, I was shaking with excitement and nerves, holding Stephen's hand,' Tracey recalls. In March 2018, four embryos were transferred and three weeks later the couple got their wish - a positive pregnancy test. It was during their nine week scan that the parents discovered that they were expecting not one, not two but four babies. 'I sat there, stunned,' Tracey says. 'I felt a mix of joy, fear, relief, and disbelief - it all hit us at once.' The chances of naturally conceiving quads at 50 are almost zero via IVF and carrying them to term and using her own eggs is one in eight million according to CDC and Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology research. "One did not take, of the remaining three - one of the embryos had split resulting in identical twins alongside the two other babies," explains Tracey. While Tracey and Stephen were over the moon, the pregnancy wasn't without controversy. Back in the UK, doctors warned that carrying four babies at 50 was high risk and urged Tracey to consider selective reduction. 'They wanted to terminate Francesca and Fredrica,' Tracey explains. 'I was devastated, I cried to my daughter, who told me to trust my gut. I couldn't give them up.' While the majority of doctors in Britain warned Tracey against carrying all four babies to term she did additional research into multiple births. After speaking to specialist multiple birth consultants one here and one in the USA, Tracey and Stephen felt reassured it could be done. 'I knew I'd need a C-section and that my babies would be premature but I refused to let anyone take them away,' Tracey says. At the 30 week scan, doctors discovered one of the baby's blood flows was slowing and they made the decision to deliver them early. On October 26, 2018, at 31 weeks pregnant, Tracey delivered her quads via C-section at London's University College Hospital with 35 medical staff in the room including a specialist team of doctors and nurses for each baby. Francesca arrived first at 10.01am, weighing 2lb 12oz. 10 10 Her identical twin Fredrica followed one minute later, at 1lb 12oz. Grace came next at 10.03am, 2lb 7oz. Last was George, born at 10.05am, a healthy 3lb 10oz. 'It was a true miracle,' says Tracey. After seven weeks in ICU, the family finally brought their fab four back home. What followed was a 24-hour whirlwind of feeds, nappy changes and broken sleep. 'Having one baby is exhausting bringing home four was a military operation,' Tracey recalls. 'I was lucky to get two hours of sleep a night. It was like running a baby bootcamp.' Stephen left for work at 6.30am and Tracey was up at 6am to start her strict routine. 'Each baby was fed every two to three hours,' she recalls. 'I did two at a time - feed, change, burp, start again. We went through 24 bottles a day, 25 nappies, and about eight outfit changes.' Tracey kept the washing machine going five times a day and was in bed by 7pm while Stephen took over. 'People thought I was mad but the quads loved the routine,' she recalls. Despite suffering from sciatica, she never missed a park trip or supermarket run. "In my 50's I had more patience than I did as a teen mum,' she admits. "I had more knowledge and experience than I did as a younger mother. "Sometimes I wished I had the energy I did when I was a young mum but at 57 I know I achieved a near impossible feat.' While Tracey delighted in being a mum again she admits that she did struggle with her emotions at times. 'Sometimes I just sat and cried,' she says. 'Stephen and I would look at each other like, 'What have we done?' But we never regretted it. 'When I looked at them my heart would burst.' In September 2022, just as the quads were preparing to start reception, the family faced a massive blow. The rental house that the family had called home for two years was sold and they faced homelessness and the family left 12 months later in February 2023. 'The council put us in a Travelodge in Finchley,' Tracey says. 'We were there for nearly five months, all six of us in one room. It was horrible but we made it work.' In July 2023, the family were finally offered a three-bed council house in Enfield. 'It became our sanctuary,' Tracey says. 'We could finally breathe and get the kids into a proper routine ahead of starting school that September. 'At the school gates I still get the odd look, but the other mums and dads are great. 'I wouldn't swap the school run for a retirement cruise.' The quads settled into school life well but in December 2022, George was diagnosed with autism. 'I could see he wasn't developing the same way as his sisters,' Tracey admits. 'Getting a diagnosis was a relief. We knew he needed extra support to shine differently' As they have grown Tracey has seen her four children develop their own separate personalities. 'George prefers Lego and rough-and-tumble to his sisters' games,' Tracey says. 'Francesca is quick-witted and loves jokes, Grace is bossy and sociable while Fredrica is shy and loves cuddles. 'The four have separate friends at school but are still thick as thieves. 'They'll gang up on each other one minute, then be best friends the next like totally normal six-year-olds.' When the quads aren't in school they are likely enjoying a family holiday with the well-travelled kids visiting Greece in 2021 and then Benidorm in 2022. 'Last year, they went to Egypt and it cost us £6,000 for two weeks, including flights,' Tracey says. 'I find the best deals I can.' It's not just holidays where Tracey has learned to budget. The mum and dad spend around £700 a month on groceries. 'For a family of six that's around £150 a week," she says. "Like everyone, gas and electric is a worry so I shopped around and have a great flat rate deal. "To economise I am a keen bargain hunter and use loyalty cards and vouchers because over the years the points add up,' she says. 'We batch cook and we have lots of days out by finding amazing spots to go for free.' Despite their hectic schedule, Tracey says that she and Stephen, 46 still have plenty of time for each other. 'We're still madly in love and only have eyes for each other,' Tracey says. Her extraordinary story has seen Tracey build a loyal following online, with more than 25,000 followers and some of her videos hitting a million views on her @againstallquads TikTok account. 'There's so much curiosity and love,' she says. 'Older mums message me every day asking about IVF and having kids at 50. "I do get plenty of trolls too. 'They tell me I won't be alive to see them grow up and I shouldn't have had kids at 50 but my response is to ignore them.' Despite the hate, Tracey says that becoming a mum again at 50 is still her greatest achievement. 'It was the best, bravest decision I ever made,' Tracey says. 'I look at my four now—super smart, full of beans—and I'm so glad I didn't give up when doctors told me to.' 10
