Wednesday, 29 February 2012
Tuesday, 31 January 2012
Monday, 23 January 2012
A Simple, Easy Dog Training Plan For 2012
A Simple, Easy Dog Training Plan For 2012
You dreamed of bringing home Lassie, but you may have a dog that acts more like Cujo! Fortunately, continuing your training sessions will pay off, with a dog that is well behaved and joy to be around.
Never give up on your dog, no matter how exhausted you are. Without reinforcement, your dog will revert to his old behaviors. The learning process for dogs is a constant one; with reminders and reinforcements needed along the way.
During inappropriate chewing training, set your dog up for success. Even more so, an inappropriately-chewing dog needs to be protected. Items like hairbrushes can cause a dog to choke or could block their airway.
If you have a puppy that likes to chew on everything when you are away from home, the easiest solution is to consider an indoor or outdoor kennel to use in your absence. If this is not an option for you, the simplest way keep him from chewing is to close the doors to rooms that have appealing items and put other tempting items out of his reach.
Interesting dog health tip: Read up on food intolerance in dogs your dog's behavior is directly influenced by their diet.
Accidents will happen sometimes when you house train your pet. Make sure to clean up accidents as soon as they happen. If the accident is left behind, the smell will make your pet think it's okay to eliminate in that spot. It will be difficult to discourage his eliminating in that spot once a habit is formed. Many cleaning products are made just to eliminate this order, you can find them at any pet store.
If you are looking to train your dog to not use the bathroom inside, housebreaking pads are counter productive. Wee-wee pads are prone to leaks, which make your dog think that it is okay to eliminate in that area due to the smell. Housebreaking pads encourage dogs that indoor bathroom use is okay; similar objects the shape and size of the pads may be used by a mistaken puppy. Always teach your pet that he must go outside to use the bathroom.
The most important part of dog training is to ensure that dog know its name. If you want to have control of your dog, you have to teach him to respond to you. Call them to you at least ten times a day. Never call your dog over to you in order to punish it, either.
Get your dog the proper nutrition required for canine health. An unhealthy diet can have several negative effects on your dog. If your dog isn't getting what it needs to stay healthy, it could really struggle to find the energy for training or may act out in other ways. By making small changes to your dog's diet, you can alter their receptiveness to the training.
If your dog has problems with destructive chewing, he may be suffering from anxiety or boredom. Enclosing him in a crate will prevent accidents from occurring and leaving him a chew toy will discourage destruction of your property.
People are often amazed about how easy it can be to train your dog and how quick they see changes. If you are having behavior problems with your dog, read on for some solutions.
Thursday, 29 December 2011
Dog Dictionary
The Dog Dictionary |
| Bath: This is a process by which the humans drench the floor, walls and themselves. You can help by shaking vigorously and frequently. Bicycles: Two-wheeled exercise machines, invented for dogs to control body fat. To get maximum aerobic benefit, you must hide behind a bush and dash out, bark loudly and run alongside for a few yards; the person then swerves, and falls into the bushes, and you prance away. Bump: The best way to get your human's attention when they are drinking a fresh cup of coffee or tea. Deafness: This is a malady which affects dogs when their person wants them in and they want to stay out. Symptoms include staring blankly at the person, then running in the opposite direction, or lying down. Dog Bed: Any soft, dean surface, such as the white bedspread in the guest room or the newly upholstered couch in the living room. Drool: Is what you do when your persons have food and you don't. To do this properly, you must sit as close as you can and look sad and let the drool fall to the floor, or better yet, on their laps. Garbage Can: A container which your neighbors put out once a week to test your ingenuity. You must stand on your hind legs and try to push the lid off with your nose. If you do it right, you are rewarded with margarine wrappers to shred, beef bones to consume and moldy crusts of bread. Goose Bump: A maneuver to use as a lest resort when the Regular Bump doesn't get the attention you require,....especially effective when combined with The Sniff. See below. Lean: Every good dog's response to the command "sit!", especially if your person is dressed for an evening out. Incredibly effective before black-tie events. Leash: A strap which attaches to your collar, enabling you to lead your person where you want him/her to go. Love: Is a feeling of intense affection, given freely and without restriction. The best way you can show your love is to wag your tail. If you're lucky, a human will love you in return. Sniff: A social custom to use when you greet other dogs. Place your nose as close as you can to the other dog's rear end and inhale deeply, repeat several times, or until your person makes you stop. Sofas: Are to dog like napkins are to people. After eating, it is polite to run up and down the front of the sofa and wipe your whiskers clean. Thunder: This is a signal that the world is coming to an end. Humans remain amazingly calm during thunderstorms, so it is necessary to warn them of the danger by trembling uncontrollably, panting, rolling your eyes wildly, and following at their heels. Let's not forget exiting via windows, chewing door frames and clawing every door in the house! Wastebasket: This is a dog toy filled with paper, envelopes, and old candy wrappers. When you get bored, turn over the basket and strew the papers all over the house until your person comes home. |
Thursday, 22 December 2011
Fun Facts About Pets
Fun Facts About Pets
Tidbits of Trivia You Might Not Have Known
Domesticated pets are complex creatures. Have you ever wondered why they do some of the things they do? Your cat seems smart, but how sharp is his memory? Why is it your dog can always outrun you? Is it your imagination, or does it seem like your bird is always eating? Here are some interesting facts bound to keep you guessing.
Fun Facts About Dogs
- Dogs only sweat from the bottoms of their feet, the only way they can discharge heat is by panting.
- Dogs have about 100 different facial expressions, most of them made with the ears.
- Dogs have about 10 vocal sounds.
- Dogs do not have an appendix.
- There are more than 350 different breeds of dogs worldwide.
- Dalmatians are born spotless: at first pure white, their spots develop as they age.
- Contrary to popular belief, dogs aren’t color blind; they can see shades of blue, yellow, green and gray. The color red registers on a grayscale in a dog’s vision.
- Most domestic dogs are capable of reaching speeds up to about nineteen miles per hour when running at full speed.
- Using their swiveling ears like radar dishes, experiments have shown that dogs can locate the source of a sound in 6/100ths of a second.
- Domesticated for more than 10,000 years, the dog was one of the first animals domesticated by humans.
Cats have five toes on each front paw, but only four toes on each back paw!
Fun Feline Facts
- Cats do not have sweat glands.
- A cat can jump as much as seven times its height.
- Cats have five toes on each front paw, but only four toes on each back paw.
- Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds, while dogs only have about ten.
- A pack of kittens is called a kindle, while a pack of adult cats is called a clowder.
- An adult cat can run about 12 miles per hour, and can sprint at nearly thirty miles per hour.
- A cat's tongue is scratchy because it's lined with papillae—tiny elevated backwards hooks that help to hold prey in place.
- The nose pad of each cat has ridges in a unique pattern not unlike a person's fingerprints.
- Cats' bodies are extremely flexible; the cat skeleton contains more than 230 bones (a human has about 206), and the pelvis and shoulders loosely attach to the spine. This adds to their flexibility and allows them to fit through very small spaces.
- Cats have better memories than dogs. Tests conducted by the University of Michigan concluded that while a dog's memory lasts no more than 5 minutes, a cat's can last as long as 16 hours—exceeding even that of monkeys and orangutans.
Monday, 19 December 2011
Buying a new pet
When buying your first pet be it a dog or cat, be sure to full understand how it will effect your life financually and also on a day to day bassis, the average cost for a dog a year is: £200 - £300 per year,
The First Year for a dog
The First Year for a dog
- 9 week puppy shots: £35 - £50 depending on vet
- 12 week puppy shots: £35 - £50 depending on vet
- 16 weeks rabies shot: £7 - £40 depending on where you go
- Heartworm preventative: £40 - £100 per year depending on size of dog & type of preventative
- Collar: £5 - £20
- Leash:£5 - £20
- Toys (puppies and dogs need a variety):£8 - £17
- Various chews: £2 - £10ea
- Crate: £25 - £150
- Food: £15 - £30 (per bag for good, premium food - cost per year will vary based on dog)
- Puppy Classes: £45 - £125 per session
- Basic Obedience Classes: £45 - £125 per session
- Spay/Neuter: £75 - £150 based on gender and size of dog
Cost break down from a cat owner:
Rach: We have 2 cats, older ladies at the age of 9. In total here is what we spend: £20 a month on cat litter (we have indoor cats, obviously outdoor cats use much less) £30 on cat food, we get Science Plan biscuits which are expensive and also buy pouches from Tesco (whatever is on special offer and use the discount codes from this board via tesco.com) Cat insurance is generally between £6 - £14pm depending on the age and breed of cat. Worming tablets/flea treatments are normally only £5-£10 every 3 months. So on average for our two cats, we spend £70pm. I reckon a budget of around £40 a month should be sufficient. |
So remember a pet is not just cute and cuddly it will cost you a small fortune that will be paid back to you in love and affection.
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