Bedfordview vet shares essential winter care tips for pets

As winter sets in to stay, it’s not just community members who will feel the cold; their beloved pets will too.

From frosty paws to bitter nights, colder weather poses serious risks for residents’ furry companions, making warmth, shelter, and proper care essential for keeping them safe, healthy, and comfortable throughout the season.

Speaking to Doctor Justin Benney from The Avenues Veterinary Clinic, he said although basic it is vital that community members keep their pets warm throughout winter.

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“If they are outside, pet owners need to make sure that their animals have a proper, warm, insulated shelter.

“Special care should be taken with old and young pets as well as with your thin-coated and hairless animals,” said Dr Benney.

He said many pet owners may add an additional heat source to their animals’ shelter, which, in his opinion, can help keep them warm.

He reminded community members to ensure that there is enough ventilation in the shelter and to make sure the animals cannot be hurt by the heat source.

Discussing diet, Benney told pet owners to continue feeding their pets a reasonable diet.

“There is no need to feed more in winter unless you have a working dog working in the cold, but even then, you don’t want to overfeed them and fatten them up.

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Benney reminded pet owners to remain vigilant for ticks and fleas during winter.

“With all the rains and the heat which we’ve seen earlier this year, the veterinary practice has noticed a lot of ticks and fleas, and it’s important that the community understand that we need two or three nights of negative three or four degrees Celsius for the larvae and eggs to be killed, and it very seldom gets that cold inside the house.

Benney urged community members to continue tick and flea control measures throughout winter and to ensure they use species-specific treatments.

Another key point Dr Benney highlighted was for pet owners to look under their vehicle, around it, in its engine compartment and around the tyres.

He said that often, pets which sleep outside sleep under vehicles for warmth.

Appealing to the community, Benney encouraged residents to donate second hand jerseys, or those with holes in them, to rescues and rehabilitation centres so that they may be donated and used by pet owners in less fortunate areas to keep pets warm throughout the winter.