At the end of March 2024 a dog in Christchurch was found to be infected with Babesia gibsonii, a parasite which mainly affects dogs and has not previously been detected in New Zealand. This dog was extremely sick and was euthanased. A second infected dog has subsequently been found, through testing of close contacts of the first dog by MPI. This dog had been ‘in a tussle’ with the first dog and is currently asymptomatic. This dog was imported into New Zealand 2 years ago, but was negative on testing for Babesia gibsonii prior to entry. Should you be worried about your dog being ..read more

Food allergies in dogs, also known as adverse food reactions, can cause skin problems, gastrointestinal problems and sometimes both of these together. Unfortunately, they can be very tricky and time consuming to diagnose. This is because the symptoms seen with food allergies can look very similar to the symptoms seen in many other diseases and they can be complicated by other factors such as concurrent environmental allergies, parasites and skin or gut infections. Unfortunately, there is no quick and easy blood test available for diagnosis. Currently the best way to diagnose a food allergy in ..read more

Picky eating is a common and stressful challenge for dog owners. In part one of our series on fussy eaters we looked at common health issues and feeding mistakes that can lead to fussy eating. If your dog is in good health and you've tried the strategies in part one to no avail, then here are some further tips and techniques to encourage your picky eater to gobble up their food. 1. Strategically Timed Exercise Before we move on to more complex strategies this little routine change up can be surprisingly successful for some dogs! Exercise is great for building up an appetite and may h ..read more

Fussy eating in dogs is really common. There are many things you can do to improve your dog's eating, but first it is really important to rule out a variety of common health issues and feeding mistakes that could be contributing to the problem. 1. Could your dog have an underlying health problem? If your dog has always been a good eater, then a change in their eating habits can be a sign of a health issue. If this is the case, and especially if there are other symptoms such as weight loss, poor skin and coat, vomiting, diarrhoea, constipation, lethargy, reluctance to move, smelly bre ..read more

As colder winter temperatures commonly exacerbate the symptoms of osteoarthritis in our pets, many dog owners go in search of a natural remedy to help ease their dog’s joint pain at this time of year.  Despite their marketing claims, the efficacy of these nutraceutical products can vary greatly and it can be pretty confusing trying to figure out which one is the best for your dog. Fortunately, a new systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2022 can help. The authors assessed the efficacy of 38 compounds by analysing a total of 57 articles, comprising 72 trials (many of these quite ..read more

Wow, who would have thought that only a mere few weeks after Auckland floods another storm would be bearing down on the North Island, with Cyclone Gabrielle promising to be even more disruptive due to high velocity winds as well as heavy rainfall.  Here are some tips for those of you who are stuck at home with anxious and/or bored dogs, as well as some information on evacuating with animals, and where to go if you're in Auckland and need somewhere for your pets to be safely cared for temporarily. Anxious Dogs Some dogs get highly anxious during stormy weather. For them the same sorts of s ..read more

You You’ve probably heard all about how obesity rates in dogs are rising worldwide, just as they are in humans. Recent studies have shown just how hard it is to get those extra kilos off our older dogs once they are overweight, with only half of dogs on a weight loss programme reaching their target weight and 25% of those dogs regaining weight after their programme finished. Prevention is better than cure Prevention is better than cure and the most important period for preventing obesity is during puppyhood. So how can we best set up our puppies to stay at a healthy weight for life? Beyond the ..read more

This past winter some extreme weather events have caused havoc with courier deliveries and so a question we were frequently asked by our customers has been - what should I feed my dog if I run out of Genius Pet Food before my courier can deliver? The answer to this really depends on the specific reason that you are feeding Genius. We have many customers who are just looking for a premium quality, well formulated, New Zealand made dog food that is high in real meat protein but their dog does not have any specific health issues. For these customers their dog will be fine eating any foo ..read more

Scratching, licking, chewing, rubbing, and biting are all tell-tale signs you have an itchy dog and one of the most frequent and often most frustrating reasons for a trip to the vet While there is a long list of reasons that a dog may develop itchy skin, this blog is going to give you a broad overview of the most common causes of an itchy dog and how your vet might go about diagnosing and treating these. The most common causes of itching in dogs are parasites, infections and allergies and your vet is going to ask you a range of questions to try to narrow down the likelihood of each of the pote ..read more

As Omicron spreads through the country pet owners need to be prepared for a variety of possible scenarios ranging from a period of self isolation at home and no infection through to a stay in hospital. How much you need to do in advance to get organised will depend somewhat on your own personal situation, but here are a few things to think through: 1. Have you got enough food? We’re recommending our customers have at least 2-3 weeks supply of pet food at all times, especially as courier delivery times are now being impacted by covid. Supermarkets and pet stores are also becoming more affected ..read more