"Fall Back" Fall Out

Tomorrow night the clocks go back and we get to enjoy an extra hour in bed. Bliss! But for our dogs it can be a bit confusing. Unlike us they don't live their life by the time shown on the clock; they have their own internal, biological clock that tells them when to eat, when to wake and when to pee. So while you're enjoying a long lie your dog may well be desperate to get out for his first toilet break of the day. If your dog is used to going out at 7am don't be surprised if he starts asking to go out at 6am instead.  Anyone who's had toddlers will remember the joy of being woken at an ungodly hour because they don't understand the concept of the clocks changing (although, come to that, does anyone?) and our dogs are no different. So cut them some slack (& avoid accidents) by getting up at their usual time & letting them out. You can always make a cup of tea while you're up and slope off back to bed for an hour. A long lie with the papers, a cuppa and the dog snuggled up beside you is a pretty good way to spend a Sunday morning, after all. And the same goes for food...your dog will probably start looking for his dinner an hour before the clock says it's time. You can set your watch by my dog's stomach and the time on the clock is irrelevant to him. He wants fed and he wants fed now! Feed your dog according to his internal clock and gradually push his dinner time back by 10 or 15 minutes until you're back in sync with the clock. If your dog is a stickler for routine don't underestimate the impact the clocks changing can have on him and plan accordingly. He'll thank you for it. Cheers, A x