Celia Haddon's Pets' Problems Page

Hygiene pants, made by Interpet, can be ordered from pet shops. They are really for bitches in season but can be useful for incontinent dogs. Also from www.luxwaycanine.com
Car seat covers and incontinent pads - look for Quilties and inco pads - are available from http://www.overthetop.co.uk
Washable warm bedding -Vetbed (and ramps) (http://www.petlifeonline.co.uk )

Heated beds and pads http://www.catac.co.uk
Microwave heated pads can be used in hutchs or beds where there is no electrical supply. Great product for humans too! http://www.snugglesafe.co.uk
Memory foam pet bed for arthritic pets. http://www.purelypetbeds.com
Ramps for old pets are available from http://www.easyanimal.co.uk Be careful to choose one which is not wobbly and has no sharp edges. A solid Petstep Folding ramp is stocked by http://www.petplanet.co.uk Look under "Hard to find" Or make your own with a suitable plank with strips of wood fixed across like the sort hens use.
Stair gates for blind dogs Try http://www.stairgateuk.com Or just look for a baby gate. You will need to check measurements carefully if you have a small dog.
Boots for dogs. Paw Ideas boots are stocked by http://www.petplanet.co.uk Look under dog apparel.
Pad protectors, boots, towelling bags (for drying elderly dogs), all in one suits (for contact-allergic dogs) http://www.countrymun.com
Critical food for ill rabbits and guinea pigs - Probiotics and critical care formula from www.vetark.co.uk Oxbow foods sold in the UK from http://www.oxbowanimalhealth.com

Collars for recovery from surgery. Elizabethan or lampshade collars can be harsh for cats and dogs. There is now a foam filled one at www.pennineleisure.co.uk If your cat/parrot/dog is having to wear a collar for longer than a couple of weeks, you need further help from a vet or a behaviour expert. It's not right to keep an animal in this way for too long.

Lifting harnesses and carts, http://www.dogmobile-online.com Good range of helping harnesses for dogs unsteady on their feet and carts for those with paralysed back legs.
Mikki Helping Hand and Mikki boots (for putting over bandages) for helping arthritic dogs into cars etc. Order from a pet shop.
Bad backs. Animals have to be referred by a vet for back treatment. Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Animal Therapy http://www.acpat.org Socieety of Osteopaths in Animal Practice - www.uksoap.org.uk . http://www.mctimoney-chiropractic.org
Cat proof fencing for keeping disabled cat in the garden - details on http://www.fabcats.org You will find there -Secur-A-Cat fencing and Friendly Fence system and other ideas. Electric shock fencing is not appropriate for disabled animals: it affords them no protection.

Syringohydromyelia or Arnold Chiari type illness
Found in young Cavaliers, Blenheims, Maltese terriers, Yorkies and Chihuahuas. Symptoms appear at seven or eight months old - reflex scratching, uncoordinated movements, pain in the back as a slipped disc. This needs a specialist diagnosis with a milogram and a MRI scan.
There's an internet support group for owners at: http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/ArnoldChiari_dogs
A website for information about Syringomyelia is: http://sm.cavaliertalk.com
Disabled rescue dogs. Video on how to use nappies on dogs at http://www.disableddogrescue.com/page27.htm
Deaf Dogs. a website where you can find advice and help. A must for those with deaf dogs. http://www.deafdogs.com