The PAWLY journal
Life with a dog in Luxembourg, written down properly.
157 practical articles on the rules, the walks, behaviour, health and the seasons, written by the person who does the walks.
157 articles
Grooming and coat care through the Luxembourg year
Mats are not cosmetic. They pull on skin, trap damp and hide what is underneath.
Adding a second dog: the honest version
Two dogs alone for eleven hours is two problems, not half of one.
Reading your dog: the signals people miss
A wagging tail is arousal, not consent. Here is the sequence dogs actually use before they growl.
Fireworks and noise phobia: preparing before December
The work that makes New Year survivable happens in September. On the night itself you are only managing.
What a dog actually costs in Luxembourg
The households that find a dog affordable here are the ones that knew the recurring numbers in advance.
The dog that barks and lunges on the lead
Every full episode sets the training back, which is why management comes before anything else.
Barking in an apartment: six causes, six different answers
Shouting at a barking dog is, from the dog's point of view, joining in.
Autumn hazards: acorns, conkers, mushrooms and dark walks
The season that looks harmless. Most of the risk is lying on the ground.
Hybrid working and the dog that cannot cope with Wednesdays
Practise being alone on the days you are at home. It is counter-intuitive and it is the whole fix.
Cues in a multilingual household
Three words for one behaviour is three times the work, and the dog is not being difficult.
House training in an apartment, without a garden door
If the reward arrives as you reach the front door, you have rewarded coming back inside.
Where to get a dog in Luxembourg, and how to check
A ten-week-old puppy that has just arrived from abroad with a valid rabies entry did not have one.
Preparing your dog for a baby
The aim is not for your dog to love the baby. It is for your dog to find the baby unremarkable.
Worming: a schedule, not a reaction
Many flea products do not treat worms at all. Check what yours actually covers.
A dog-friendly break within an hour of Luxembourg
A dog icon on a booking site tells you very little. Ask whether the dog may be left alone.
The dog left behind when another pet dies
Often the real change is not sadness. It is eleven hours a day alone for the first time.
Jumping up: fixing the greeting
You are not teaching the dog to stop jumping. You are teaching it what to do instead.
Dog first aid: the six emergencies and what to do first
Nobody researches an out-of-hours vet while carrying a collapsed dog down three flights of stairs.
Puppy biting: the week everyone panics
The six o'clock biting hour is almost always exhaustion rather than energy.
Thunderstorms: the fear that arrives without a date
Dogs often react twenty minutes before you hear anything, which is why it feels unpredictable.
A twelve-week training plan for a new dog
If the dog fails twice in a row, the exercise was too hard. Go back a stage.
The dog that is afraid of people
Dogs love me, said while crouching with a hand out, is pressure rather than friendliness.
Resource guarding: trading instead of taking
The growl is the part you want to keep. A dog that stops warning is more dangerous, not less.
If your dog goes missing in Luxembourg
Search first, organise second, and never call a frightened dog the way you would call it home for dinner.
When a dog will not eat
The alarming version is the dog that refuses the thing it has never refused.
Day care, a walker, a sitter or a kennel
The wrong format costs the same as the right one and produces a worse dog.
How to read a dog food label
Feed for the weight your dog should be, not the weight it is.
Sharing paths, parks and terraces with everyone else
Access to shared space is granted by consensus, and withdrawn when enough people have a bad experience.
Dogs in apartment buildings: the rules, the neighbours and the noise
The lift, the corridor and the neighbour working from home. Where dog conflicts in a Luxembourg building actually start.
Living with a dog on daily medication
Never stop a dose because the dog seems better, and never give human painkillers.
Making a flat and a balcony safe for a dog
A small dog can put its head through a gap that looks impossible, and a determined one will try.
Choosing a dog trainer when the title means nothing
Ask what happens when the dog gets it wrong. The answer tells you the method.
The dog that eats everything off the pavement
Chasing your dog to retrieve something teaches it to swallow faster next time.
Adolescence: when your trained dog stops being one
The dog chewing your skirting board at eleven months is not the dog you will have at three.
Teaching a settle, the most useful thing a flat dog can learn
A stay is obedience. A settle is a state, and you pay the state rather than the position.
Neutering: a medical decision, not a default
Neutering does not treat fear, and in an anxious dog it can make things worse.
Feeding, portions and how to tell if your dog is the right weight
Most owners of overweight dogs describe them as a good weight. The scales are not the useful measure anyway.
When a dog loses its hearing or its sight
Teach hand signals while the dog can still hear, and a touch cue while it can still see.
Playing with your dog, and the rules that make it useful
What tug really teaches is switching from high excitement to stillness on a cue.
The front door: barking, deliveries and escapes
The courier always leaves. From the dog's side, barking appears to work every single time.
Puppy or adult dog, for a working household
Who is with the puppy between nine and five for the first four months?
Getting the most out of a veterinary consultation
Thirty seconds of video beats any description of a limp the dog will not perform in the room.
Adopting a rescue dog: the first three days, three weeks and three months
The dog you meet in week one is not the dog you will have. That is normal, and usually good news.
When two dogs in the same house start fighting
Never punish the growl. A dog that learns not to warn goes straight to the bite.
Walking in the dark, from October to March
A driver sees the human shape long before a dark dog at the end of a lead.
What a new dog actually needs, and what to skip
Buy the bed and the food in advance. Buy the harness when you can measure the actual dog.
Choosing a groomer, and what to ask before you book
A groomer who says the coat must be clipped short is usually telling you the truth.
Travelling out of Luxembourg with your dog
Inside the EU it is straightforward. The complications are timing, a handful of destinations, and whether the trip is genuinely good for the dog.
Kennel cough and the other things dogs pass to each other
Vaccination reduces severity and likelihood. A vaccinated dog can still cough.
Managing seasons in an entire bitch
Recall is not a contraceptive. Lead throughout, however reliable she normally is.
Teaching a dog to accept handling before it needs it
Allowing the dog to end the session is what makes it tolerate more, not less.
Long walks and hikes: what a dog needs to do them safely
The weekend hike after five sedentary days is what produces the Monday limp.
Ears: the three signs that mean an appointment
Healthy ears do not need routine cleaning. Over-cleaning creates the problem it is meant to prevent.
Feeding through a dog's life stages
Every transition is a moment to recalculate the portion, not just to change the bag.
Being out with your dog in Luxembourg City
Luxembourg is fairly relaxed about dogs. That tolerance is maintained by owners, and it is easier to lose than to rebuild.
Getting weight off a dog, and keeping it off
Put the whole day's ration in one container. When it is empty, the day is finished.
A dog living between two homes
What the dog was missing was never the other house. It was knowing what happens next.
Leaving Luxembourg with your dog
A rabies booster given after the blood test can invalidate the test. Order matters.
When a fight happens: the first hour and the paperwork
Never put your hands between two fighting dogs. Most injuries to people happen exactly there.
Dogs in hot weather: the Luxembourg summer guide
Luxembourg summers are no longer mild enough to improvise. Heatstroke kills dogs here every year.
Arthritis: the pain owners file under old age
Limping is a late sign. Stiffness on rising and avoiding the stairs come first.
Working breeds in a city flat: the honest version
Almost none of these dogs needed a more active home. They needed a shorter absence.
What a proper meet and greet actually involves
Watch how the person behaves with your dog, not what they say to you.
Moving flat inside Luxembourg, with a dog
One month to declare the dog at the new commune, and update the microchip register the same week.
Crate training without the guilt
A crate is either the best thing in the house or a box the dog is locked in. The difference is entirely in how it is introduced.
The itchy dog: working through it in the right order
Food allergy is real, and far less common than it is blamed for.
Sleep: the thing nobody optimises and everybody notices
A puppy grabbing ankles at six in the evening is not under-exercised. It is overtired.
Quality of life, and the decision nobody prepares for
Write down the three things your dog loves most. When it can do none of them, that is the conversation.
Walking a senior dog: what changes, and what should not
Slowing down is not a reason to walk less. It is a reason to walk differently.
What actually tires a dog indoors
A dog that worked twenty minutes for its breakfast sleeps through your morning calls.
Water, rivers and the algae that kills dogs every summer
Plan the exit before the entry. Most incidents are dogs that cannot climb out, not dogs that cannot swim.
Bringing your dog to the office
A dog that cannot settle for an hour at home will not settle for eight in an office.
How much exercise does your dog actually need?
A dog who gets two hours of walking and still cannot settle does not need three hours.
Pet health insurance: what to compare before you sign
You are not buying savings. You are buying never having to decide on treatment with a calculator in your hand.
Enclosed dog areas: who they suit, and the etiquette nobody writes down
The dogs whose owners most want a fenced area are often the dogs least suited to one.
Harness, lead and collar: what to buy and what to avoid
A Y-harness, a two-metre double-ended lead, a tagged collar and a long line cover everything.
Car travel: restraint, sickness and the rule about parked cars
In a 50 km/h impact, an unrestrained 20 kg dog carries roughly the force of a small motorcycle.
Teeth: the problem owners find least interesting and vets see most
Bad breath is not what dogs smell like. It is the smell of bacteria in an inflamed mouth.
Ticks and fleas in Luxembourg: season, prevention and removal
Woodland, long grass and mild winters. Luxembourg is good tick country, and the season is longer than it used to be.
Dogs and cats in the same flat
The failures almost always start the same way: both animals in one room on day one, to see how it goes.
Lead pulling: fixing it without gadgets
Your dog pulls because pulling works. Every single time, it has worked.
Dog vaccinations in Luxembourg: required, recommended and situational
One vaccine is written into the law. The rest is a conversation with your vet, shaped by where your dog walks and who they meet.
Building a recall you can actually rely on
Your dog comes back in the garden. That is not recall. That is a dog with nothing better to do.
Why group dog walks are not always a good idea
Six dogs, one handler, forty-five minutes. Work out how many minutes belong to your dog.
Forests, hunting season and wildlife
A recall that works in a park is not a recall that beats a deer breaking cover.
The neighbour's dog barks all day
A neighbour with your number sends a message. One without it writes to the syndic.
Trimming your dog's nails at home
One nail a day is a complete session. Most nail phobias were built in one bad afternoon.
A puppy's first six months: a routine that survives a working week
Everything you do in these months is either building a habit or building a problem. There is very little neutral ground.
Choosing a breed that fits your actual week
A young working breed, a flat and an eleven-hour absence is this city's most common mismatch.
Running with your dog, safely
Dogs do not pace themselves for you. That is the entire risk.
Growing a large-breed puppy without wrecking its joints
Do not add calcium to a complete growth diet. The instinct to build a strong dog does the opposite.
Night pacing and confusion in an old dog
Film the three o'clock behaviour. It is the part your vet never sees.
Kennel or in-home sitting: an honest comparison
One of these is better for most dogs. It is not better for all of them, and anyone telling you otherwise is selling something.
What to do during a seizure
Note the time. Duration is the single most important piece of information.
Vomiting and diarrhoea: home care or the vet
Unproductive retching with a swollen abdomen is not an upset stomach. It is an emergency.
Scooting: it is usually not worms
Routine emptying at every groom, for a dog with no symptoms, is not a service worth asking for.
How to choose a dog walker: fourteen questions worth asking
You are giving a stranger your keys and your dog. Ask more than whether they like animals.
What a good dog walker should tell you after every walk
Two photos and a thumbs up is marketing. A report is information you can act on.
The words we use about dogs
You cannot be angry at a sentence about distances.
The walk you do not feel like taking
The dog does not distinguish between the walks you enjoyed and the ones you endured.
Children, dogs and the supervision nobody does
The growl is not the beginning of the problem. It is the last polite stage of it.
What a walk actually costs
A price is meaningless without the group size and the travel time attached to it.
Small dogs, and the training they never get
Picking up a frightened dog removes the only strategy it had.
Separation anxiety: the signs owners miss and what actually helps
Destruction at the door is the obvious sign. The quiet ones are the dogs nobody notices until something breaks.
The dog in the photograph
Would you set this up if nobody could see the result?
How long can a dog really be left alone?
There is a number people quote. It is roughly right for a roughly average dog, and useless for yours.
When someone in the household is allergic to the dog
Making the bedroom dog-free helps more than any other single change.
Vaccination: core, non-core and titre testing
Ask your vet to write down the plan for the next three years. It makes the whole subject legible.
Dominance, alphas and other advice to ignore
A theory that explains every behaviour explains none of them.
Restricted activity after surgery, in a flat
The dog feels fine at ten days. The tissue is not healed until much later.
Holidays in the south: the diseases we rarely see here
Sandflies are active from dusk to dawn, which reverses the routine you would follow here.
Raw feeding: the honest version
Choose the diet you can do properly every week for years, including the busy ones.
Choosing a vet in Luxembourg, and preparing for the night you need one
The time to work out what you would do at eleven on a Sunday night is not eleven on a Sunday night.
On saying no
Ask under what circumstances they would say no to your dog. The answer tells you what the yes is worth.
The dog you did not choose
Less attention produces a less responsive dog, which then justifies less attention.
The animal we made
A nose with nothing to find and a brain with nothing to solve is not resting. It is idling.
August
Holiday cover is the one thing money cannot solve at short notice. In August there is nothing to buy.
What we mean by a good dog
A dog that has stopped objecting is not the same as a dog that is comfortable.
The best forty seconds of somebody else's afternoon
You are comparing somebody's best moment with your whole week.
The park at six
You learn the dogs' names months before the people's, and sometimes never learn those at all.
The year that asks the most
Slowing down is not a diagnosis. It is usually arthritis, and it is usually treatable.
Where to walk a dog in and around Luxembourg City
A capital city with a forest on one side and a river gorge through the middle. Very few dogs in Europe have it this good.
Moving to Luxembourg with a dog: the first ninety days
The paperwork is manageable and has deadlines. The part most people underestimate is what the move does to the dog, and that has no deadline at all.
A dog, a city and no car
A dog that travels calmly on a tram has a bigger world than one that walks the same three streets.
Keeping your dog safe: theft, escapes and identification
Never tie a dog outside a shop, even for two minutes.
Christmas markets and winter events with a dog
Offer your dog a treat in the middle of the square. A dog that will not eat has had enough.
Fostering a rescue dog: what it involves
Your job is decompression and honest observation, not producing a finished dog.
Finding a flat in Luxembourg when you have a dog
The line that changes minds is the one about midday cover, because the fear is a dog alone and vocal.
Taking your dog on public transport in Luxembourg
Free transport across an entire country, a dog asleep at your feet, and one legal obligation people routinely get wrong.
Long-backed breeds, stairs and the spine
Sudden yelping, wobbliness or a dragged hind leg is an emergency measured in hours.
The dog that eats faeces
Punishment produces a dog that swallows faster, or waits until you are not looking.
Kidney disease in an older dog
Do not restrict water to reduce the puddles. That dog needs the water.
Diabetes: the routine that makes it manageable
Never give insulin to a dog that has not eaten without speaking to your vet first.
Lumps and bumps: what to check and when
Map them: position, size in millimetres, date. Measuring beats memory every time.
Dog insurance in Luxembourg: the one you must have and the one you might want
Your commune will ask for proof before it registers your dog. In many households the cover already exists and only the certificate is missing.
Two minutes on the pavement
Change one thing: twenty unhurried minutes before you leave.
Letting a dog say no
A dog that cannot say no in small ways will eventually say it in a way that is harder to ignore.
Who is the walk for?
The question is not how far you went. It is how much the dog was allowed to find out.
The myth of the tired dog
You cannot exercise a dog into calmness. Only into fitness, and fitness asks for more.
What your dog reads in you
The lead is a one-metre channel for information about your internal state.
The expatriate dog
The dog that anchors you in a new country is the household member least able to be moved.
The stranger with your keys
Trust here is not a feeling. It is a set of small checkable arrangements made before anything goes wrong.
Luxembourg's dangerous dog list: the breeds, the obligations, and the debate
A short list, a mandatory course, a ministerial authorisation, and a rule that catches out anyone in the household who takes the lead.
What we owe an animal that cannot leave
An animal that cannot leave is owed reliability more than it is owed enthusiasm.
Write down the boring days
You compare your dog against yesterday. A record gives you a fixed point instead.
The trouble with breeds
Breed is a weather forecast, not a timetable.
Winter paw care: road salt, grit and frozen ground
The damage is cumulative and almost invisible until the dog starts licking.
Time, not love
Dogs do not experience affection as a credit that can be paid later.
Winter through a dog's nose
The walk you find least enjoyable is frequently the one the dog finds most interesting.
Silence in a building of neighbours
The dog is not the problem in the way a leaking pipe is. It is the part that makes a noise.
Rescue or breeder: the argument that never ends
The dividing line is not rescue against breeder. It is careful against careless.
Registering your dog in Luxembourg: the complete guide
Four obligations, one deadline, and a tax that changes depending on which side of a commune boundary you live on. Here is the whole process, in the order you will actually meet it.
The lead as a social contract
Your dog's temperament is not the variable the rule manages. The stranger's uncertainty is.
A city measured in walks
A dog does not improve your city. It obliges you to use it on foot, slowly, in all weather.
The kindest mistake
Attribute states, not motives. That it is frightened, yes. That it is trying to punish you, no.
Against convenience: the industrialisation of pet care
The convenience model serves best the animals that need it least.
The eleven-hour dog
Boredom is a weak word for it. The accurate description is a working brain with no material.
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Luxembourg25 articles
Health34 articles
Behaviour23 articles
Training16 articles
Seasons10 articles
Puppies4 articles
Choosing care12 articles
Essays33 articlesBetween the articles
Dogs being dogs, in every season.
The practical reading is above. This part is just for the pleasure of it.
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Reading about it is not the same as covering the day
If your dog is alone longer than you would like, a free meet & greet costs you thirty minutes and commits you to nothing.