Edie MacKenzie

Edie MacKenzie is a published author, traveler, dog lover, and tortoise enthusiast. Passionate about what she does, her books provide peopel a firm grounding in the dog breed and their unique characteristics with a nice touch of humor.

Dog Health – Good Food & Bad Food

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How do you know whether or not the food you are feeding your dog contains all of the necessary nutrients he needs for optimal dog health and energy?

For Optimal Dog Health, Learn What The Labels Mean

Foods labeled “completely balanced” or “nutritionally complete” meet the nutritional requirements for either maintenance (adult dogs) or growth and reproduction (puppies and pregnant or lactating mothers), set aside by the Association of American Feed Control Officials.

The label must indicate the group for which it is intended.

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Dog Food Secrets You Need To Know!

“In This Shocking FREE Video Report You Discover Why 87% of Dogs Die Too Early & 3 Easy Things You Can Do Today To Stop It Happening to Your Dog”

Dog Food Secrets

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Dry food is the cheapest commercially available dog food. It’s bulky and takes longer to eat than other foods, so it’s more filling when eaten. And the crunchiness of non-moistened dry food helps keep a dog’s teeth healthy by reducing the accumulation of plaque. It also massages the gums.

You will find that canned foods cost more than dry foods, but if you own a small dog then this price difference should not be a major concern. However, when you are feeding a Rottweiler or Great Dane, then the difference could be phenomenal. Canned foods are a great choice for any canines that are underweight or those recovering from surgery or illness.

Then you have frozen pet food. Frozen foods have the same advantages of canned food products, however, frozen typically costs a bit more than the canned variety. What I like is that you can find both cooked and raw forms of frozen dog food.

Watch Out For Human Foods When Considering Dog Health

There are common foods that are in just about every household that can make your dog or puppy very sick, or worse, cause death. For your dog health, make sure they are stored where your pal can’t get to them.

1) Chocolate: Chocolate contains theobromine (a substance related to caffeine), which can cause vomiting, diarrhea, muscle tremors, seizures and abnormal heartbeat in dogs.

Different types of chocolate contain different amounts of theobromine.

2) Macadamia Nuts: While delicious to eat, these nuts can cause weakness in dogs, vomiting, depression, and other signs. The agent that causes it is unknown. Amounts as small as 2 teaspoons per pound of bodyweight have caused toxic signs.

3) Onions: Both raw or cooked onions contain a substance that causes rupture of the red blood cells, which can lead to severe anemia. Garlic can also produce similar signs, though not as severe.

A toxic dose is about 1 to 5 ounces of raw onions.

4) Raisins and Grapes: These foods can cause kidney failure in some dogs. The toxic agent has not been identified. According to the ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control Center, toxicity has occurred following ingestion of amounts ranging from a single serving of raisins to more than a pound of grapes.

Dog health is very important and by taking a few precautions, you prevent veterinary bills, and even more important, the death of your dog.

The Dangers Of “Protection-Training” The Family Pet

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Dogs can be trained to be a dangerous threat and they can be trained to bark bite and attack. Some breeds adapt more readily to such dog protection training than others, but all dogs with vocal chords and teeth have the potential for threatening behavior.

First of all, it is not advocated to administer protection dog training a family pet. There have been too many unfortunate incidents involving people who have been talked into this type of training by the local guard dog trainer. Veterinarians have encountered an endless number of dogs who had to be euthanized because they had become vicious. Not all of these dogs had protection training, but a great many had. Some guard dog trainers will argue that if the right dog is properly protection trained, he will never become vicious and randomly bite.

While this may be true, the bottom line is that the average family cannot handle an attack trained dog. Most people find it difficult enough to get their dog to come when called and not drag them down the street at the end of the leash. Attack-trained dogs are very useful; to the police and military, and in most cases that’s where they belong. The average family certainly does not need a dog who has been conditioned to attack and bite on command.

Most dogs are instinctively protective. Rarely does a dog need protection training to be wary of intruders. This is particularly true of dogs who have been selectively bred to guard, herd, or protect.

Examples of such breeds are the German shepherd, border collie, and Rottweiler. In the wild, canines naturally protect territory and fellow pack members. The protective instinct is further strengthened when the individual feels that he is an integral part of the pack.

Keep in mind that your domestic dog views your family as his pack. If he lives in your home and is part of your family, chances are good that his protective instincts will emerge.

The instinct to protect territory and fellow pack members develops with age. Many people are dismayed that their five-month-old dog is not the least bit protective.

It is not a puppy’s job to be protective! A well-adjusted puppy of any breed should be friendly and love everybody. It is the role of adult pack members to be protective. The puppy instinctively expects you to protect him.

With most dogs, the sense of responsibility for being protective of the pack begins at around one year old, give or take a couple of months depending on the breed and the individual dog. At maturity – eighteen months to two years old – the dog should show even stronger signs of the protective instinct and not need any protection training.

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