Dog Care Archives - Edie MacKenzie

What All Dog Owners Must Know Regarding Dog Travel

January 8, 2012 by admin Leave a Comment

A holiday with your dog can be a really fun time for both of you. But it requires foresight and a bit of planning to make it so.

To begin with you’ll have to research the requirements for taking a pet to the destinations you’re interesting in visiting. With some countries, like the UK, these make traveling with your dog a virtual impossibility unless you’re on the PETS scheme.

But all countries, even pet-friendly ones, have importation laws you’ll have to comply with.

Then there’s the accommodation issue. If you are planning on staying at a hotel or resort, you’ll want to find a pet-friendly one at your destination and book early.

The good news is that more and more hotels are accepting pets these days.

And then there are the travel arrangements. Traveling with a pet by air or rail can be quite a challenge, so use a specialized pet travel company to make the arrangements for you. This will ensure that you avoid costly, and possibly even tragic mistakes.

If however, you are going to be traveling by car you can make the arrangements yourself, and there are quite a few things you’ll have to take care of.

For starters, you’ll need a way of restraining your dog in the car, either a dog carrier, or a specialized doggy seat belt. This not only makes sense, but is a legal requirement in some countries.

Also remember that dogs dehydrate very easily. Have plenty of fresh water, and his water bowl at hand. And never leave your dog locked in a car in warm weather.

Also, remember to pack leashes, harnesses, collars, toys, dog bed and anything else your dog will need.You will also have to plan where you will overnight on your trip, and check out local accommodation that allows dogs. And while we’re on the subject of breaks, remember to make regular bathroom and leg stretching stops.

And there’s even more to be taken care of. When you are at your holiday destination, ensure that your dog wears an id tag with your local contact details, at all times. For international travel you will have to have your dog micro-chipped, but extra precautions are never a bad thing.

It’s also a good idea to have a photograph of your dog with you, just in case your dog becomes lost.

Find out where the local vet and animal emergency center are. In case of emergency you’ll need this information close at hand.

Obey all local animal regulations and laws. This will normally mean that you have to pick up after your dog, as well as keeping on a leash in public places. It is just good manners to do this anyway, even if the law doesn’t require it.

By now you’re probably wondering if all of this is worth the trouble. Well, ask yourself how much a trouble free, unforgettable trip with your dog is worth. The likely answer is, priceless!

To learn more about dog travel, dog care, dog training tips and other interesting dog information go to dogsanddogtraining.com

Picking The Coolest Dog Toys For Your Dog

January 4, 2012 by admin Leave a Comment

Dogs just love to play and some high-energy dogs will keep you busy all day if you’ll let them. But there will be times when you’re not around, or you’re just too busy and you need something to keep your dog amused.

This is where dog toys come to the rescue, and these days we’re not talking about a stick or a piece of rope. These days their are some pretty cool toys that will satisfy even the most demanding pooch.

Pick a few from the list below and you’ll be able to keep your dog happy, and out of mischief, when you’re not around.

Kong Toys – Chewing is a favorite pastime of many dogs and if you want to keep your dog away from your new shoes or TV remote, you’d better give him something to chew on! Kong makes a virtually indestructible range of rubberized chew toys that will keep even the most avid chewer occupied for hours.

They also have a hollow center, so you can stuff it with treats and challenge the dog to get them out, which is great for brain training.

Tug-a-War Rope – Many dogs enjoy pulling games, but you need a pull toy that won’t fray or break after a couple of rounds.

Once again Kong comes to the rescue. Their pulling toy is basically a pair of rubber balls wrapped in canvas with a canvas cord at the end. Like all Kong toys they’re tough, and nigh on impossible to break. Plus, the balls also squeak, which most dogs love.

Frisbees – Many dogs love this game, but the plastic disc many people use can actually be dangerous, as they can shatter when bitten, and cause serious cuts.

Frost Bite Frisbees on the other hand are designed specifically for dogs. They are soft, pliable, and punture when bitten rather than shattering.

Puzzles – No, I don’t mean jigsaws, or crosswords. Puzzles for dogs come in all shapes and sizes and challenge your dog to work something out in order to get a treat.

One rather clever contraption is the Squirrel Plushy. This is a soft toy, with other toys hidden inside it. The dog has to figure out how to get the small toys out.

Nylabones – Another good toy for the dog that loves to chew. These rubber, bone-shaped chewing toys are incredible strong, so your dog can gnaw away to his hearts content.

Tuffies – These are stuffed toys made specifically with dogs in mind. They are strong and durable, and even come with “toughness” ratings. So you can get one to suit your Pomeranian or even one that your Bull Terrier will have a hard time breaking.

Squirrel Dude – A clever little rubber toy with a timer that dispenses treats at regular intervals – sort of like a vending machine for dogs!

Some thing for every dog on this list, I’m sure you’ll agree. And even if you can’t find something here that your dog fancies, shop around there are tons of choices these days.

If you want to discover more about dog toys, dog care, facts about dogs and other interesting dog information visit www.dogsanddogtraining.com

Caring For Aged Canines

August 13, 2011 by admin Leave a Comment

Anybody owning an older dog knows just how special they are and how much we feel the need to care for them to make sure that we still enjoy one another’s company for a longer time.

There are various things that people can do to help a dog reach the full potential of a happy life.

1. Exercise. The basic one is getting your dog to take a walk each day. This is necessary for all canines since they enjoy it. Watching Scenes, smells other canines and new folks to pat them. Take them through new routes, they as well enjoy variety in their lives. If you have entry to the seashore or a lake is ideal, even aged canines feel like puppies once again when they scent the fresh air flow. Swimmind is one recommended exercise that dogs should take.

2. Diet plan. Just like you a dog needs a good diet to be healthy. Take your vets advice. Do not give dogs junk human food. It’s not really a treat for them it merely can make us feel great in some strange type of way to observe a dog consume human food. If you don’t desire your dog to have human complications such as diabetes and obesity do not feed it as if it were human. Unfortunately dogs commonly do not get to live as long as humans usually do and a dog in his 8th or 9th year may be called s senior even if he looks young. When your dog gets a little older, his nutritional requirements alter so you want to be certain to feed him a superior quality senior dog food. The older dog needs a well balanced diet plan that is lower in calories, fat, protein with high fiber content, it might be possible to continue on feeding your dog the food they are used to but scaled-down portions are advisable. In some instances a specially formulated senior diet plan might be necessary. The older dog has a higher danger of developing constipation, so a diet plan increased in fiber is far superior for the senior dog. Having him eat dry dog feeds helps to control tartar build up on his teeth and avoid diseases of the gums.

3. Maintenance and medicines. Older dogs can be arthritic. Consult the vet for proper maintenance or for confirmation of your dog’s condition. Examples of arthritis meds are aspirin for dogs and etodolac 400 mg.

4. Dogs get fat because we make them do so. This extra is a huge strain on their heart and their joints.

5. If you have a pickup, take care about your dog jumping out. The landing locations massive tension on their leg, hip and spinal joints. Look back on your teenage years. Running and jumping was easy, but in your late thirties and certainly for forties you became alot more cautious and wouldn’t jump down any longer to protect your knees.

There are various ways to take care of a pet dog from youth to older age. Study secrets to dog training review to know how to care for young dogs. For older dogs, what needs concentration are their health and basic needs.

Dog Care Tips With How to Start Dog Potty Training

April 26, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Successful dog training is not just teaching your dog a couple of tricks because how good it will be if your dog knew how to sit and jump but does not have the proper potty training?

Dog potty training is not really hard, as it seems, you just need to create communication between your dog and you. The best dog potty training should include safe confinement, proper training, good timing and encouragement.

Safe confinement:

New dogs that are just starting to learn the basic of potty training should be put in a safe confinement. Safe confinement like crates or cages is recommended for this dog training. Crates or cages can give the dogs the right idea about potty discipline. The size of the crate or cages should not be large, because large sizes will encourage the dog to eliminate on any part of the crates or cage. To be more effective, don’t put any newspaper, box or blankets inside the crates or cage to avoid your dog from chewing it

Proper Training:

One effective way to train them is by using a leash. Since they are coming from crates or cage, they will be playful and distracted when you let them out so it is recommended that you use a leash.

Leash is an effective tool to get back their attention to their potty training. You can use the leash to also make directions where your dogs will eliminate. But remember that you should always supervise your dog when on a leash. Using a leash will be more effective with proper use of words in dog potty training. Words like “outside” or “let’s go pee” will show your dogs that the right place to eliminate is outside the house and not inside the cage or the house. Aside from the word outside or let’s go pee, you can create your own “command name” that will signal to your dog that it is time for eliminating or urinating outside.Whatever the “command name” that you will use, you have to be consistent in using it in training your dog to let your dog get used to it.

Good Timing:

Good timing is also important in dog potty training.

You can reward your dogs to stay outside the crates after they had properly eliminated outside. This practice will let them know that the good behavior of eliminating outside is rewarded properly.

But letting them out of crates should be supervised for you to see if the dogs will still do unnecessary elimination. The right amount of time inside crates or cage depends on month’s age of puppy.

For two months old = two hours of stay in crates without potty break

For three months old = three hours of stay in crates without potty break

For four months old = four hours of stay in crates without potty break

After teaching them the potty break, let them out immediately. Don’t extend the hours of stay in crates or cage.

Praise:

Like in any good behavior, you have to give praises to your dogs when the dog had successfully followed your commands. Praise is very important in dog training, as this will encourage them to be disciplined in their potty training.

Increase the happy years of your dog by checking out my free dog training cd. In it, I reveal all the secrets I’ve used to develop a happy, well behaved dog. Visit Dr. Alfonso’s dog training blog right now!

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