Petpourri: How to get your dog to love its leash

Q Whenever I let my collie run loose in a field near my home, he has fun and always comes back to me when I call him. But as soon as I bend down to fix the leash back on his collar, he bolts and I have to try again and again. What can I do to prevent him from avoiding the leash?

A The problem is that the dog has learned that as soon as he comes, he is grabbed and then put back on a leash. So it is not unreasonable that he has learned to avoid your grab.

Don't bend over and shoot your hand out to grab at him. Instead, just bend down or, better, sit down on the ground and call the dog and let him climb right into your lap as you are petting him and giving him treats.

As you are doing this, slide your hand under his collar and hold it -- do not put the leash on yet. Allow him to enjoy the experience of coming back to you and having a good time. Then, put the leash on him and continue to sit with him and pet him for a minute longer. Then you can get up and walk with him. He will not even know what happened.

As time goes on, he will have forgotten about the grab-and-dash game and will calmly accept his leash. Just remember, do not rush the situation.

Fix can prevent bloat Q My Great Dane puppy is 6 months old and due to be spayed. My vet suggested that I also have a procedure done to her stomach that will prevent her from getting bloat later in life. It will add to the cost of the surgery, and I am wondering if it is worth doing.

A Bloat is a condition that occurs in some large, deep-chested dogs where the stomach overextends with gas and food. The stomach rotates inside the dog's abdomen to the point where it twists back on itself, causing pressure and severe pain. Saving the dog's life requires emergency surgery.

The procedure your vet has prescribed is called a gastropexy. It is safe and drastically reduces the chance your dog will get bloat in the future. The vet just puts in a few sutures that secure the dog's stomach to the abdominal wall and thus prevents it from twisting.

Many of my clients whose puppies were of a breed at risk for bloat had the gastropexy done without any problems.

Food for finches Q My zebra finches have laid three eggs in their nest, and all three hatched into birdlings. I am worried because I never see the parents carrying food into the nest to feed the babies. They must be feeding them, but what and how?

A Zebra finches are among the types of bird that feed seeds to babies, but they can't carry one seed at a time back to the nest in their little bills. What these birds do is fill up their crops with seeds they eat out of the dish in the cage. They allow the seeds to stay inside them for a while so they become more digestible. Then they go back to the nest and regurgitate the seeds into the babies' mouths.