Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
1:37 Heart and respiratory rate
4:15 Eating, drinking and eliminating - the 'ins and outs' of dog health
6:09 Weight
6:55 Teeth and gums
11:06 Ears, nose and eyes
12:46 Temperature (see full temperature video at https://youtu.be/DDswkSYkekc)

Sophie Flux is from Animal Aiders. They provide vet-led dog first aid courses for dog owners and anyone whose work or hobby involves dogs.

She tells us, in this video, how to carry out some basic health checks. There are a whole range of things we can do to monitor our dog's health. We can gain a lot of useful information by listening, feeling and observing. Observing is not just about looking at the physical appearance of a dog but includes looking at their behaviour too.

Sophie demonstrates what specific parts of the dog's body, such as ears or mouth, can give us useful clues about a dog's health. We can check for signs of problems and make assessments using our sense of touch. We can feel for lumps and bumps as well as using our hands to gauge things like heart rate. As with many kinds of health check, dogs will vary so much in what is normal for them that it is essential to monitor them so that the owner recognises when something should be a cause for concern.