New book looks at the funnier side of vet experiences

Pete Wedderburn has seen it all as a vet — from the majestic to the sublime. He draws from a wealth of experience to answer questions in his new book, Pet Subjects. Here he takes on the fascinating issues around pet vocalisations

Pets are experts in non-verbal communication, but there are times when they resort to the use of their voice boxes in their efforts to impart messages to the humans around them. Here’s a selection of queries about vocalising pets that I’ve dealt with over the years.

We have adopted a rescue petit basset griffon Vendéen who came to us in very poor condition. He is now a handsome specimen, with most of his problems sorted except for his howling. This generally starts at around 4am when he will howl for one to two minutes. He then howls intermittently till 8am, and he’s quiet for the rest of the day. We are increasingly desperate for a full night’s sleep. Can you please advise us?