Dogs - Fleas can be deterred by putting a garlic capsule in your dogs food, using tea tree oil in it's bath or a dash of cider vinegar in the final rinse.
Put dog shampoo (you can use baby shampoo if you need to) into a squeezy bottle and add 50% water, the solution is easier to use and won't clump up the hair and it will last twice as long. If the dog has rolled in something nasty then try some tomato ketchup to help remove the smell.If your dog chews the furniture try rubbing it with vapour rub or oil of cloves as a deterrent.
Dog barking at people walking by? Don't yell at it as it will think you are joining in. Talk to it firmly and quietly and move it from the window saying "SHHHHH" in a low tone.
Make your own chew toy with a hollow bone and some cream cheese spread thinly inside or use a rubber bone and make a small hole in the material then push dog treats inside, the dog will be amused for hours.
To clean a dogs teeth wrap a fabric plaster around your finger and put a drop of bicarbonate of soda on it then rub over the teeth.
A chamois leather will make a short haired dogs coat gleam.
Cats - Use an old baking tray as a litter tray and fill it with soil if you don't want to pay out for cat litter. Stop them using your lawn as a toilet by putting down pepper.
Give a cat a glossy coat by rubbing its coat with a cotton ball dipped in diluted vinegar.
Make your own catnip toy with some tights and catnip rolled up into a ball and tied off or make a cat maze with cardboard boxes (cut a few holes in the boxes to make them even more fun).
Stop cats scratching the furniture by using a citrus based oil or lemon furniture spray to make them steer clear. Make a cat it's own scratching post with an old table or chair and some carpet tiles stuck to the legs and top.
Too much milk can cause diarrhoea so feed cats water.
Yawn at your cat to show it you are enjoying it's company.
Birds - Rub new wire cages with vinegar to get rid of excess zinc. Use branches in the cage for variety, willow or bamboo is good but not cherry tree as it is toxic. Use paper in the bottom it is cheap and also great for stopping bacteria spreading. Never use sandpaper as the particles can get stuck in a birds feet and cause infection.
A cheap play stand can be made with a bucket of sand and bits of old tree pushed into it also a free toy can be found in a fir cone.
If a birds egg gets a small crack you can fix it with clear nail varnish and this will usually hold it.
Collect berries in the autumn and freeze them for use as treats the rest of the year. Finches also like dandelions and some birds like to eat crickets or meal worms if you can catch them.
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