This week: pets and clothes
The weather has turned rather cold and sour of late. In what is nature's way of preparing for the coming festival, the coldness will bring with it the blooming of cherry blossoms and Chinese daffodils to auspiciously greet the Lunar New Year.
During this festive season vets tend to see a rise in the number of animals being brought in for their annual vaccinations, because many dogs were obtained during Christmas in years past and so their annual vaccinations tend to fall around the Lunar New Year.
I rather like this time of year because there are proportionally fewer sick dogs being brought in to see me and more healthy dogs, and there tends to be more time for chatting with clients and playing with their animals. It's a nice respite from being so serious all the time.
I have noticed that during cold weather more and more owners are dressing up their beloved dogs, and sometimes their cats, in clothes. There is a booming market in dog garments despite the economic downturn, as more and more people are looking to brighten up their lives with a splash of colour on their pets.
Straight off the bat, I think the idea of putting clothes on cats is absolutely stupid, with the exception, perhaps, of the totally hairless Chinese crested variety. All cats have a bountiful coat that will keep it warm even in the snow, so a little Hong Kong cold weather is not going to perturb cats at all.
Many cat owners point out that their animal appears to be cold because it likes sleeping next to the heater, on top of a warm video player or, in the case of my cats in the clinic, behind the computer monitor where it is nice and warm. With this flimsy piece of logic these owners justify their notion that their cats need clothes.