Tips on Moving Overseas with your Pooch

If you are moving abroad and you own a dog, one of the major dilemmas you might face is what to do with it. You may have no choice but to leave it behind or you may decide to take it with you. If you have the opportunity and the means to move overseas with your dog, you still have to know the answers to countless questions such as the pet laws of the country you are going to, how pet friendly is the place you will be living, will there be enough space for your dog in your new home, will the destination country have available dog food that your pet is accustomed to, and so on and so forth.

Here are more common factors to consider in your plans of moving overseas with your dog:

Weather conditions– find out if your dog will be comfortable with the climate conditions of your destination country. Many dogs quickly adapt to change of weather but if they have weight problems, coat issues, or sensitive skin, they might be likely to find it a challenge to transition well. For example, dogs with long and thick coats might find it difficult to live in a tropical country. You can research and ask your vet for advice on how your pet can cope with being in another country with a climate it is not accustomed to.

The country’s culture and society – many countries around the world have the similar views about their pets in terms of maintenance and bonding. For instance, in France, most dogs are loved a lot like children and are almost always allowed in public places. But in some other countries, dogs are considered a nuisance.

The vicinity of where you plan to live – the U.S. has rural and urban areas, which vary greatly in manner of lifestyle. If your country dog suddenly moves to a busy city in another country, your dog can become quickly stressed out. Extreme environmental changes can lead to anxiety for your dog, a creature of habit. Try to stick to your usual routine as much as possible; feed and exercise it regularly and provide it with toys and bedding it is familiar with.

Moving overseas will be a huge change in your dog’s life, as much as your own. Weeks before your departure, make sure your dog’s papers are all ready, that it is fit for traveling, and it has proper identification in the form of a dog tag or microchip.

Dogs, Their Owners, and the Risk of Catching Germs

The bond between most humans and their pet dogs is so strong that they consider them as their children, or as part of their family. Dogs show signs of affection by licking the faces of owners and cuddling with them. Many owners carry their dogs around, kiss them, and let them sleep in their beds.

Some people worry that it is not hygienic to allow their dogs to sleep in the same bed with them, or to let them lick their faces because of their saliva. They believe that germs can be easily transferred this way. To get to the bottom of this theory, a research was conducted Dr. Kate Stenske, a clinical assistant professor at Kentucky State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Stenske said, “I became interested in the topic because there is such a strong bond between dogs and their owners. If you look at one study, 84 percent of people say their dog is like a child to them.”

She further added, “We also know diseases can be shared between dogs and people. About 75 percent of emerging diseases are zoonotic, meaning they are transferrable between humans and other animals. With these two pieces of knowledge, I wanted to examine the public health aspects of such activities.”

As the focus of her study, Stenske used the E. coli bacteria which can be commonly found in both people’s and dogs’ intestinal tracts. Stenske analyzed the E. coli’s DNA tracks gotten from fecal samples of both dogs and their owners. The study showed that 10% of owner-dog pairs had the same strains of E. coli. It also showed that expressions of affection, such as dogs sharing the owner’s bed or licking their face, did not have a connection to any increased risks of shared E. coli.

What is also insightful is that there was, however, a distinct association between antibiotic-resistant E. coli and dog owners who did not wash their hands before cooking meals or after stroking their dogs. It goes to show that common hygiene practices, such as washing hands often, can make a big difference in protecting oneself from germs.

Stenske’s findings have shown that the likelihood of owners getting germs from dogs who licked their faces and slept in their beds were no more than any other dog owner. To many dog owners, this piece of information is a huge relief.

Training Your Dog Using Food Rewards

Food is always tempting to animals as it is a source for survival. The desire for food is part of the animals’ psyche, which is why food rewards during training is very effective in terms of motivation.

Bribery vs. Reward
Many people confuse bribery with the act of rewarding a dog. The intent and process are not the same. Simply put, bribery is when you show the food to the dog so that it will do what you want, while rewarding is giving the food to the dog after it has done what you wanted it to do. For example, offering a dog some food so it will want to come to you is considered bribery. On the other hand, rewarding is when you offer the food only after it has come to you when you perform the command.

Getting Respect from your Dog
An ideal response to aim for when training a dog is making your dog want to obey you because it respects you, rather than because it fears you. If you gain the respect of your dog, it will be eager to please you and willingly follow commands. Bribery is also not needed to gain this respect as a dog who considers you its pack leader will want to follow your commands, with or without treats.

Weight Gain Because of Treats
More often than not, weight gain in your pet is caused by the lack of regulating their food intake. As an owner, you are responsible for the wellbeing and training of your pet. Learn to balance their food intake as well as their need to exercise. If you offer your dog food rewards during training, remember to give it adequate exercise to burn off any excess calories. Also, there is no rule that says that whenever your dog does something that pleases you, it should be rewarded a treat. Its meal can be a reward in itself. The attention and praise you give your dog can also be counted as a reward. A reward need not be food all the time.

Other Forms of Motivation
Some dogs are not motivated to follow commands even with food rewards. This is because dogs are natural scavengers and the food they find themselves gives them double the pleasure. There may be underlying reasons why a dog is not motivated by food rewards. This disinterest can be caused by many factors including stress, anxiety, or sickness. It can also be that the dog finds the food reward unappealing or because it feels full.

Addressing Dogs’ Fear of Thunderstorms

Many dogs have this intense fear of sudden and loud noises, especially thunder. The moment they hear a thunderclap, their tail is tucked between their legs, they hunch, their ears droop, and they are scurrying looking for a safe place to hide from these strange and scary noises. Their hiding spot may not be enough to completely muffle out the loud sounds and the poor dogs end up spending the entire thunderstorm cowering in fear. As a response, owners try to make them feel safe by cuddling them and whispering words of comfort in the effort to take away their fears. However, studies have proven that whether or not you hold your terrified pooch, they will most likely remain upset during thunderstorms.

Study on Dogs’ Storm PhobiaThis fear of thunderstorms, also called “thunderstorm anxiety” or “storm phobia” is common among dogs. This is very stressful for the dog and also the owner who may feel helpless when faced with their dog’s panic. A study by Penn State University researchers was conducted to find out more about how thunder can affect dogs and what can be done to relieve them of their stress. Through dog saliva samples after a group of dogs were made to listen to a recording of a thunderstorm, veterinarians found out that the dogs’ cortisol level (a stress hormone) increased by 200% due to the thunder noises.

How to Lower Dogs’ Anxiety LevelsResearch has shown that although the act of comforting dogs during thunderstorms do not have a big effect on their stress levels, what does help is having other dogs in the household. In the study, dogs that had other doggy companions did not reach such a high level of stress and were quicker to calm down after a thunderstorm. Their cortisol levels were much steadier compared to dogs that lived alone with their owners.

But before you run out and buy another dog, seek advice first from your vet. After all, having many dogs in a household won’t entirely cure a dog of storm phobia. Your vet may be able to prescribe medications to help treat severe storm anxiety.

Remember that although holding a dog to try to comfort it may not be entirely effective, you can still help your dog out by creating a hiding place where they can feel safer during all the thunder. You can also play some music or turn the TV to loud to drown out the thunder.