Health
Blue-green algae: a danger to dogs near water
A few gulps from the wrong water can be life-threatening for a dog. How to spot blue-green algae, how to protect your dog – and what to do if it has been in the water.
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Dog know-how that helps
Well-researched articles on health, training and everyday life with your dog.
Dog knowledge is DOGSY's collection of guides: articles from the DOGSY knowledge team about dogs and everyday life – free, in plain language, without jargon. They're for everyone who lives with a dog or is planning to, whether new to it or experienced.Topics range from Daily and Behaviour to Health and Training. New articles are added regularly; the categories below give an overview.
Dog rules in your cantonLeash rules, dog tax, mandatory courses & registration duty in all 26 cantons – with the official source.German onlyHealth
Suspected poison bait: spotting the symptoms and acting fast
If your dog may have eaten a poison bait, every minute counts. Here's how to recognise the signs of poisoning and give the right first aid.
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Health
How chronic stress makes dogs ill
Constant stress burdens not only the nerves but also the stomach, gut and immune system. Why ongoing stress can seriously harm your dog.
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Health
How much exercise does a puppy need?
May puppies let off steam or does that harm the joints? The old advice to keep young dogs still is now considered outdated. What really does good.
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Health
Neutering: a decision to be made with care
To neuter or not – and when? This question deserves more than a quick answer. Why age and breed play a role.
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Health
The cooperation signal: your dog says yes
What if your dog could have a say during grooming? A cooperation signal takes the stress out and makes treatments fairer.
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Health
Practising giving a paw and claw clipping
Many dogs don't like having their paws held. With this training your dog will soon place its paw in your hand voluntarily.
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Health
Giving tablets without stress
Tablet hidden in a piece of sausage and the dog eats around it? With this training your dog swallows medicines reliably and willingly.
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Health
Checking the ears and giving drops
A look in the ear or ear drops can be unpleasant. How to get your dog used to it gently, so ear care goes smoothly.
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Health
Letting your dog be touched all over
Whether a tick on the belly or a look in the ear: a dog that lets itself be touched calmly makes many things easier. How to build up touch training.
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Health
Checking the eyes and giving eye drops
The eye is especially sensitive. With plenty of patience, your dog learns to calmly allow being touched and even to accept eye drops.
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Health
Getting used to the smells of the vet's practice
The typical practice smell and whirring devices already trigger stress in many dogs. How to get your dog used to them in advance.
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Health
Making your home dog-safe
Before the dog moves in: how to defuse typical hazards in the house, garden and on the balcony so nothing happens to your dog.
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Health
Recognising pain: the quiet signs
Dogs by no means always limp when something hurts. These quiet signs tell you that your dog might be in pain.
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Health
Recognising and caring for overly long claws
Are the claws clicking on the floor? Overly long claws hurt and lead to protective postures. How to check them and keep them short.
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Health
Recognising dental problems early
In dogs, toothache rarely shows as eating poorly, but often only as irritability or withdrawal. What to look out for.
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Health
When the older dog feels the cold
Older dogs feel the cold sooner, and feeling cold means stress. When a coat makes sense and how to keep your senior warm.
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Health
When your dog hears less well
Failing hearing comes on gradually. How to recognise it and how to keep communicating well with your dog using visual and touch signals.
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Health
When your dog sees less well
Does your dog bump into edges or recognise you later? How to make its home safe and help it cope with fading sight.
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Health
Dementia in dogs: signs and support
Does your old dog wander at night or seem disoriented? Dementia occurs in dogs too. How to recognise it and how to make everyday life easier.
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Health
The ageing dog: into the senior years with composure
Grey around the muzzle, but far from over the hill: here's how to accompany your dog calmly through its senior years.
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Health
Relaxed at the vet: medical training
Giving a paw, holding still, showing teeth: how your dog learns to take part calmly in grooming and at the vet.
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Health
Foods that are poisonous to dogs
Chocolate, grapes, onions & co. – what's dangerous and what to do in an emergency.
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Health
Heat in summer: how to protect your dog
Dogs barely sweat – how to avoid overheating and recognise heatstroke in good time.
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Health
Tick season in Switzerland
Active from spring to autumn: how to remove ticks correctly and protect your dog.
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A look inside the Knowledge section
Two screenshots from the app: the article list with its search field and category filters – and an open article, from the title into the body text.
How it works – step by step
From a keyword to a finished article: how you get to the answer that matters right now.
Pick a topic – or look at everything
The topics sit above the list as pills: daily life, behaviour, health, training. One click shows that topic only; «All» takes you back to the whole collection.
Search as you type
The search field filters with every letter – no button, no waiting. Upper and lower case and accents make no difference; it searches title, lead-in and topic. If nothing matches, the page says so; an ✕ clears the field again.
Open an article
Every article starts with topic, title and a short lead-in. Then comes the text in plain language, without jargon. Some articles include pictures or a video.
Read on – free of charge
Without an account you read the beginning of every article; for the full text you create a free DOGSY account. Safety-related articles are exempt: «Blaualgen: Gefahr für Hunde am Wasser» (blue-green algae: a danger for dogs at the water), for instance, is there in full, with no sign-in.
Keep track of what you've read
Once you're signed in, DOGSY remembers which articles you have read to the end: the green tick «Gelesen» (read) appears in the list, and you can filter by read and unread.
What is it good for?
Three situations in which the articles help in everyday life:
The question that comes up in the evening
«How long may my dog actually be left alone?» Instead of clicking through forums, you type a keyword into the search field and have an article on it within seconds – in plain language, and with the clear note that it is no substitute for veterinary advice.
Just before a first meeting
You're about to meet a dog you don't know, and you're already on your way? Safety-related articles are there in full without an account – you can read them en route instead of creating an account first.
When German isn't your language
DOGSY comes in 44 languages. Articles appear in your language as soon as their translation is ready – otherwise you see the German original.
Reading costs nothing. All the full text needs is a free account.
There's even more in the DOGSY app
The «Explore» area brings together a guide to dog-friendly places, events and knowledge about dogs – free for all Dogsyaner.
Register for free →These articles are no substitute for veterinary advice. Source: DOGSY knowledge editorial team.