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It’s so easy to yell at a dog to “Put that down!” or “Wait!” Much of the time the yelling is out of fear that the pet will harm himself or cause some kind of trouble. So when the dog complies, there’s relief.

Dogs, like people, can become uncomfortably cold in winter weather, even if they don’t show it. Thus, if you leave your dog home alone for several hours but turn down the thermostat to save on energy bills, make sure your pet has a fuzzy dog bed with a blanket. If she gets cold enough, she can even pull the blanket over herself with her teeth.

Have you ever invited your dog to walk on a low wall while the two of you were on one of your daily outings together or perhaps make her way along a ramp? If so, then you were having her practice dog parkour. It’s derived from a training program used by military personnel to navigate obstacle courses.

“Make a fist.” How often do we hear people tell their preschooler to close their hand into a fist when the youngster wants to pet a dog they don’t know? The belief is that making a fist is less aggressive than going straight to petting and less threatening than an open hand. Also, the thinking goes, making a fist gives the dog an opportunity to get to know the person by sniffing them before there’s any actual body contact.

It seems like common sense. A disaster occurs—a hurricane or fire or perhaps a chemical spill—and you put your dog in the car and get as far away as you can. But what if you become separated from your pet? What if you’re going to be removed from your home for days or weeks? How much food and water should you have on hand for the dog?

Q: Our sweet 13- to 14-year-old mixed breed rescue has some hearing loss, osteoarthritis, and early kidney disease. She is, however, active and happy, and her kidney disease is so far managed with a special kidney diet. But formerly a dog who rarely barked, she has begun to bark at me impatiently when I am preparing her special treats (kidney kibble in a dog toy) and in general has begun to vocalize more often. We are amused by this change rather than annoyed, but wonder about the cause. Is she barking because of hearing loss, needing to be sure she’s heard? Is she less patient because of her age? Or could this be an early sign of dementia?

Q: As someone who has had dogs for many years, I know the list of foods that are bad for them: chocolate, onions, garlic, grapes, and raisins. But just how bad are they? Can a dog really get sick eating even just a small amount of these items?

The Food and Drug Administration says that because tuna is relatively high in the toxic metal mercury, people should limit their consumption to three servings a week—8 to 12 ounces altogether. But what about dogs? Should their tuna intake have a limit, too? Yes.

What dog lover doesn’t enjoy the sight of an exuberant pet’s vigorously wagging tail? The thing is, if the tail keeps smacking against walls, furniture, or other hard surfaces, the skin can break open at the tip. It bleeds, often with blood spraying all over. It’s also painful—and difficult to heal. Worse, it’s apt to keep recurring. Every time the wound scabs over, it easily opens up the next time the tail goes thumping against a firm surface. “We see cases like this a couple of times a month,” says Tufts emergency and critical care veterinarian Elizabeth Rozanski, DVM, who tends to cases at our Foster Hospital for Small Animals.

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Thanksgiving week is one of the top three holiday weeks (along with Christmas and Easter) that dogs are taken to the emergency room. It’s because they develop a life-threatening disease called pancreatitis as a result of being fed too much in the way of fatty foods. In a misfiring, pancreatic enzymes start eating away at the pancreas itself, and potentially deadly inflammation of that organ ensues. Signs include a loss of appetite, nausea, sometimes unremitting periods of vomiting, a distended abdomen, and perhaps a fever.

The label on a package of dog food will give a range of how much to feed depending on your pet’s weight. Many people should be feeding their dogs on the lower end of the range since a lot of today’s family pets are not getting much exercise to burn off the calories they eat. But if you find you need to feed your dog even less than the lower end of the recommended range for him to remain at a healthy weight, speak to your veterinarian about changing foods.