Pittwater LIfe December 2019 Issue

Visitors welcome; more info
Geoff Sheppard 0437 274 074.
Loosely Woven
concert
Tireless Amnesty
International advocate
group Loosely Woven will
present their Christmas
musical production ‘Evening
Primrose’ at the Avalon
Baptist Peace Memorial
Church, George Street,
Avalon on Sunday December
1 commencing 4pm. It
will comprise a selection
of mainly acoustic songs,
folksy, gentle , stirring,
moving or whimsical. The
music is performed by
experienced and engaging
singers and musicians with
a range of usual and unusual
instruments including harp,
melodicas, glockenspiel,
harmonium, accordion,
concertina and ukuleles.
Free supper; all donations
go to a great cause, working
for human rights around the
globe. Info 0417 069 472.
Georgie
breaks
record
Congratulations
to Northern
Beaches local and
Rowing Australia
Women’s 8
squad member
Georgie Rowe,
who unofficially
broke the World
Record in the
5km ergometer
time trial last
month with a
time of 16:54.2!
Georgie, a
previous surf
boat rower,
only moved to
still water rowing three years ago and is on her way to
trialling for the Olympic Team in March. Georgie is a
Minerva Star under the Minerva Network initiative, with
women supporting Australian women in the business of
sport. She is being mentored by Bilgola local and CEO of
Infrastructure Australia, Romilly Madew.
More info minervanetwork.com.au.
Vet
on
call
with
Dr Ben Brown
I
’m often asked by pet
owners what they should
feed their pets. With so many
pet foods available and so
much conflicting information
around, decisions about
nutrition can be difficult and
confusing.
Dogs and cats must be feed
an appropriate, balanced diet
specific to their needs and
stage of life. This is critical to
avoid health problems such as
obesity and certain nutritional
deficiencies that can cause
musculoskeletal, neurological
and gastrointestinal diseases.
Some pets will also need
specific diets to help them
cope with existing disease.
For example, many older cats
suffer from kidney disease
and specific prescription diets
can help reduce the workload
on the kidneys and have been
shown to help kidney function
in these pets.
Certain life stages
have specific nutritional
requirements. Puppies and
kittens must have the right
balance of energy and calcium
(among other requirements) to
ensure correct development of
bones and muscles.
Unfortunately, it is very
difficult to ensure pets
receive adequate nutrition
with home-prepared diets.
A large independent study
recently found that most
home-prepared diets for
pets are unbalanced and,
without specific advice
from a veterinary nutritional
specialist, may be putting
these pets at risk. Similarly,
raw foods (particularly
meats) can be dangerous
for pets and owners due to
contamination with bacteria
such as Salmonella, E. coli and
Campylobacter and, as such,
are not recommended.
Drop into one of our
hospitals at either Newport
or Avalon for a free veterinary
nutritional consultation from
one of our vets or vet nurses
to ensure your pet is getting
exactly what it needs.
News
The Local Voice Since 1991
DECEMBER 2019 27