Gone to the Dogs April 2008 Carnival
04/18/2008
Welcome to the April 16, 2008 edition of gone to the dogs.
Matt M presents Matted Fur Problems posted at The Pet Haven.
Eric Frey presents How To Know If Your Dog is Overweight. posted at Eric Frey Dot Com.
Madeleine Begun Kane presents A Doggone Limerick posted at Mad Kane’s Humor Blog.
Mogley G. Retriever presents A Dog’s life, the real story!: Better Homes and Dogs posted at A Dog’s life, the real story!, saying, “My name is Mogley G. Retriever. I write a real “dog blog” from a dogs eye view. Love a dog and read his blog.”
Tip Diva presents Tip Diva | Top Ten Tips - Getting A New Pet posted at Tip Diva, saying, “Tip Diva has had many animals over her lifetime, including fish, cats, dogs, gerbils and prairie dogs. Having a pet brings a lot of love and fun into your life, but also brings a lot of responsibility. Before buying or adopting a pet, there are many factors you should consider and steps you should take.”
Dog Breed Info
Greg Laden presents Great Pyrenees and the Norwegian Brown Bear posted at Greg Laden’s Blog.
Dog Care
Sandra Furstal presents How to Make Homemade Dog Food - Associated Content posted at Associated Content.
Mitch McDonald presents Litter Box Training Through Experience And Patience. posted at FYI About.com.
Cindy S presents How To Prevent Tear Stains posted at Notes from a Country Groomer, saying, “How to prevent and cure eye stains.”
FitBuff presents Walking a Dog - Losing a Gut posted at FitBuff.com’s Total Mind and Body Fitness Blog, saying, “Walking is just good for your dog, it’s good for YOU too, especially your guy. Check out this study to find out how your dog can help you lose those extra pounds!”
Matt M presents TIPS ON LOCATING LOST PETS posted at The Pet Haven, saying, “What to do if your dog is ever lost.”
David presents Kindness Is For The Dogs posted at Toxic Kindness, saying, “A heartfelt plea and advice to help prevent the needless deaths of millions of dogs every year.”
Woman Tribune presents Giving Your Pet Medication Just Got Easier posted at Woman Tribune.
Dog News
Matt M presents Reading Dogs posted at The Pet Haven, saying, “How dogs are teaching children how to read.”
Johann presents My letter to Santa! posted at The Days of Johann - an agility dog!.
Marilyn Terrell presents Doggie Bags posted at Intelligent Travel, saying, “Beau and Pearl love to travel in their Sherpa bags.”
Dog Obedience
Xyba presents I Am Owned by a Pyrenees posted at Once More Into the Breach, saying, “First of the Big White Dog saga”
Puppy Care
Karen C presents Strategies for Housebreaking Your Puppy posted at The Pet Parade, saying, “Tips on how to housebreak your puppy.”
Colby presents Questions About Crate Training posted at Puppy In Training, saying, “A friend of mine had some questions about crate training. I gave her a few hints and talked about my puppy crate training experiences.”
Silly Dogs
Deb Hinton presents Dog Funnys with Daisy and Scrappy, Cooking with Rachael posted at Dog Funnys with Daisy and Scrappy.
Cindy S presents LETTER FROM WALDO TO MISS CINDY posted at Waldo’s World, saying, “Letter from Waldo, English Bulldog, talking about his blog and his view of the world.”
Smart Puppies
Riayn presents Proud Puppy Parent posted at Dancing About Architecture.
Kelly Marzka presents Marley: Discerning, Prudent, Shrewd. posted at View Along the Way, saying, “Hi again! This is two of two I’m sending. You said you wanted smart puppies - this is about the single most intelligent animal. Ever. And she lives in my house!”
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of gone to the dogs using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: gone to the dogs, blog carnival.
Silly Dog Sunday - Our Crazy Bruce
04/14/2008
This guy doesn’t sit still for a minute and always looks a bit crazed. He’s so cute, though.
Caring For An Older Dog
03/02/2008
Anyone who has a cherished older dog knows that as they age, their desire to please and play doesn’t necessarily diminish. Their ability to do so, however, might change. Fortunately, there are things pet owners can do to make sure their aging dogs have as much energy as possible while enjoying good health for as long as they can.
Caring for an older dog isn’t really a whole lot different from taking care of a puppy. It’s just how things are done that might change. From feeding and exercising to giving them space to relax, slight alterations in daily plans generally are required.
The areas where daily routine might need to change to ensure an older dog is well cared for include:
Weight control
It can be very tempting to give a loved pet an extra doggie treat or even scraps from the table – especially when they’re batting big, brown eyes at their owner. When it comes to older dogs, however, this is generally not a good idea. Keeping a dog’s weight in check as they age can help ward off such conditions as diabetes, heart problems and even joint issues. The more on track with target weight an older dog is, the more likely he or she will be to maintain health and energy levels.
Nutrition
Feeding an older dog is a little different than nourishing a puppy. Just like people, as dogs age, they don’t necessarily require as many calories as they once did. Most pet food companies provide senior lines that can help keep dogs fit and trim well into their teens. These foods should have the proper nutritional balance for an older dog. Checking with a veterinarian for recommendations is not a bad idea.
Exercise
This can be key to ensuring that an older dog stays healthy. Not only can daily exercise assist an older dog in maintaining the proper weight, it can also help make sure their legs stay limber and their hearts stay healthy. Exercising an older dog might be a little different than trying to run the energy out of a puppy, however. Remember, older dogs, just like older people, might get tired a little faster. Whether it’s a fast run around the block or a walk down the street, pay attention to cues from the dog on when it’s time to stop. If he or she is breathing too hard or seems to winded, consider slowing the pace and perhaps doing something a little less strenuous the next time around. Also, remember to keep water on hand to help ensure your older dog stays hydrated during exercise. If an older dog has never been exercised before, it’s a good idea to check with a vet before starting a program.
Dogs have an incredible way of becoming full-fledged family members. As they age, their health concerns can change. Keeping an older dog as healthy as possible often requires a bit of preventative medicine, such as the right diet and exercise, and a whole lot of tender, loving care.
Article by Allison Duarte of Oh My Dog Supplies - the best shopping for dog beds online
How Intelligent Is Your Dog?
02/28/2008
Different people have different ideas of whether a dog is smart or not. The intelligence level of your dog depends on a number of different things. Intelligence of a dog is a very subjective idea, although many pet owners report that they can clearly understand their own dogs’ level of intelligence. Before labeling your dog as smart or dumb you may want to take some of these factors into consideration.
The Breed Makes a Difference
One thing that will help you determine the intelligence of your dog is their breed. Certain breeds are known for particular intellectual abilities and skills. Labs are commonly known for being good hunters, German Sheppard’s for being very protective, and collies are known for being good at herding sheep.
Each breed of dog has its own task at which they excel. If your dog is not excelling at a certain activity maybe it is not natural for the dog to excel in this area. If you try a different activity or task your dog may pick it up right away, but some skills will come easier to your dog than to other breeds of dogs.
Personality
In addition to breed, each dog will have his or her own personality. Just like humans, dogs are individual beings and their personalities will develop in conjunction with their upbringing and genetics. Some dogs may learn better by imitation while others dogs may need simple repetition to learn a task. Try several different teaching methods when you are trying to teach your dog a command, a variety in teaching methods is the only way to figure out which learning personality type your dog has.
Dogs can be very intelligent, there are dogs who can sniff out drugs, or lead people and help people like the seeing eye dogs do. There are endless possibilities to what dogs can do for humans, but as humans we need to pay attention to each individual dog and train them according to their learning ability and style.
If your friends dog seems to be doing way more advanced things than your dog, like opening doors, or picking up their own toys, don’t be so quick to label your dog as dumb. Maybe your dog is not doing these things because it does not want to, or maybe your dog is smart enough to know that if he doesn’t pick up the toys he will not get in trouble or wont get punished, and you will do it for him. There are many things to consider before you label your dog as dumb.
Gender of the dog is another thing people seem to think has an affect on a dogs intelligence, as of yet there are no studies that prove this to be true. Gender does not seem to affect the intelligence of a dog. If your male dog is not excelling as much as your female dog you need to look at the other factors, such as breed and personality. Just remember that some dogs need to have a different kind of training than other dogs so your training needs to be specialized for each individual dog.
Article by Allison Duarte of Oh My Dog Supplies - more elevated dog feeders added monthly
Treating Dog Fleas
02/26/2008
I’d like to introduce a new feature: Guest articles by Allison Duarte. This first article is about treating dog fleas.
If you have ever had fleas you know what a pain they are to get rid off. They are very hard to get rid of, and most people would prefer it if their dog never got fleas again. If you have done the preventative treatment and still got fleas you may want to seek professional help. A professional may be able to give you the insider secrets you need to finally rid your home and pet of fleas.
Before you treat your dog for fleas, you will need to get rid of them in your house, this is not an easy task to do. Start by thoroughly cleaning the places where your dog spends most of his time. Remember to get where he sleeps, eats, and relaxes.
After thoroughly cleaning these areas you will need to wash everything you possibly can. After washing put all the cloth items into a hot dryer, this will kill all the fleas. Next make sure you get the floors, vacuum every surface that can be vacuumed. After vacuuming you will want to immediately empty the bag or canister, if you have a canister flush it down the toilet so that the fleas drown. If you use a bag vacuum make sure you get the bag out of your house.
If you have a floor that can be waxed it is advised that you do so, the wax will aid in killing the fleas. You can also buy special powder to sprinkle on your floor before you vacuum that will help kill the fleas.
Bug bombs can be purchased at most grocery stores and are great for getting rid of these unwanted visitors. Read the directions to make sure you get ones that will kill fleas. Also make sure you have enough to cover all the square footage of your house. If you prefer not to use a bug bomb you can call a professional to come in, professional bug bombs work the best and are less stressful on the owner.
When you call a professional they will usually need to come in and do more than one treatment to get rid of all the fleas. This is to insure that they get the eggs as well as the fleas that laid the eggs.
Once you have treated your house you will want to treat your dog. There are many types of treatment available, talk to your vet to get the best treatment for you and your dog. More than one treatment is usually required for your dog as well. After you get rid of the fleas on your dog you will want to make sure you use a preventative to stop the fleas from coming back.
Fleas are a nasty insect that can infest your dog and your house in a matter of days. The easiest and best way to prevent fleas is to continue prevention treatment for your dog throughout the winter season.
Article by Allison Duarte of Oh My Dog Supplies - the place to go for dog steps that stand the test of time.
Sophie Gets a Friend
02/08/2008
Meet Bruce. He is an 8 week old Cairn Terrier puppy and has come to live with us to keep Sophie company, since her best buddy is moving out with her family in a few days. The kitty is horrified, but Sophie seems pretty pleased with her new playmate, as does Mr. Rocky, the usually dignified Standard Poodle. (I think the kitty thinks we brought home an extra large mouse, because she’s never acted like this with dogs before.)
Ask Free Dog Tips - Introducing New Dogs to Each Other
01/29/2008
Marian asks:
Cn u help? My son needs to re-home his 7year old neutered cross breed medium sized dog, another family member has offered to take him however she has a golden Labrador, 2 yrs old, not neutered. neither dog is aggressive but they have not met yet. any ideas as to how they may get along and how we facilitate this in the best way possible?
Marian,
I’d take both of them to a neutral area for a first meeting and have them leashed. When I helped someone re-home a Golden Retriever in a home that already had two older Goldens, we had all three dogs come out leashed to meet in her driveway a few times. Then, she went to the new home and settled right in.
Help Bernie Get A Grant for A Place to Bark
It isn’t Wednesday yet, but I am sharing this today because it is over by January 31st. If you’ve never heard about A Place to Bark, it is a wonderful nonprofit dog rescue and Bernie is very devoted to saving these animals. She lives near a high kill shelter and tries to save as many of the dogs as possible, but she is at capacity and needs a new building for them. This grant will help her do that. To support the cause, you only need to donate $10. The way the contest for the grant is set up, it is the number of donors, not the amount of money raised, that is important. If you can spare $10, please help Bernie win the grant.
Silly Dog Sunday - Mom Said to Cross My Ankles…
01/27/2008
This little guy is more adorable than silly. Look at the way he has crossed him ankles. So precious.
