Edie MacKenzie On Dogs

Archive for March, 2009

While most of us don’t think about what goes into pet food, we should. That’s because the ingredients in your dog’s food could cause illness and even death. We can’t trust manufacturers to take care of our pets, because there aren’t a lot of well enforced rules about the ingredients and processing for pet food.

Too Bad To Eat

Dog food can contain a lot of things we wouldn’t be happy about eating, including bones, nervous tissue, organs, skin, ligaments, hair and meat from animals with diseases. The bodies of euthanized pets and zoo animals have been used, too.

Most of even the good meat that ends up in dog and cat food is heavily processed, removing any nutritive value it once had. Ingredients like poultry broth, animal meal, and other nonspecific foods are unappealing and bad for our pets.

Animal meal is what’s left after a carcass has been processed to remove all the fat and meat. What remains is ground up and dried, resulting in a meal that has a similar texture to corn meal and included in pet food. Broths and similar substances in pet food are made of processed carcasses that come from many different kinds of animals, cooked until a liquid is produced.

It’s Legal!

Unfortunately, none of the disgusting or unhealthy ingredients in dog food are illegal. While we have reasonably strict rules about what can be part of human food and those laws are well enforced, pets don’t have that protection. Rules about pet food ingredients are much looser and more poorly enforced.

This means that just about anything might turn up in your dog’s food, with labeling meaning little. Even the words "healthy and balanced" mean only that there’s a particular ratio of protein and fat, as well as some added vitamins and minerals.

Preservatives and Additives

All of us have probably heard about the recent recalls due to melamine contamination. What you might not know is that this isn’t the only additive in pet food that might cause illness or death. There are a number of preservatives used in pet food that cause real problems in humans who work with them, and could cause liver and kidney failure or cancer in your dog over time.

Not Only Cheap Brands

This is happening in cheap dog foods, but there’s no way to tell if the expensive ones are affected, too. these pet foods are often higher in quality, but sometimes they’re not. That means that even if your vet recommends it, you have to do your research.

Your Options

You have a number of choices when it comes to improving your pet’s food. First is to learn how to read the labels. Ingredients that come first are there in bigger percentages, so look for named meats far up on the list instead of generic terms.

You should also learn which additives and preservatives are safe and which ones are dangerous. Avoid foods with too many grains, since they tend to be bad for your pet in the long run. You can also find a number of quality recipes out there to help you create nutritious diets for your dog. Just make sure you do something!

Make sure you know the best dog foods you can feed your dog and make sure your pooch is in safe hands. Click Here for a special report that outlines exactly which dog foods could be killing your dog.

Article Source: What's the Best Dog Food to Feed Your Pup? A Must Read For Any Dog Owner – ArticleSpan.com

Prostatic Hypertrophy or, in simple terms, enlarged prostate glands is a condition caused by the male or female hormones in the dog’s body and even though it is not as painful for the dog as prostatitis it is still something which should be looked into with care as it may be a cause for concern. Read on through this article to find out more about this condition.

The symptoms for dog Prostatic Hypertrophy include the following:

1. The dog may walk differently. Look out for an arched back and stiff legs and the dog taking shorter strides.

2. The dog may have difficulty urinating

3. The dog may not have any fever and unlike prostatitis it will have normal temperature.

A dog’s prostate glands swelling up without a reason is what causes Prostatitis hypertrophy. The swelling is due to sex hormones which affect the prostate glands.

Two different types of sex hormones are responsible for the swelling and disturbance. The first is testosterone. Testosterone is a male sex hormone which is produced within the testicles. When this hormone over stimulates the prostate gland and causes it to swell it can cause a lot of pain and discomfort.

The second is oestrogen, a female hormone which is also found in male dogs but in very small amounts. Too much of this will cause the prostate to swell and the structure of the prostate gland cells will possibly change as well through a process called squamous metaplasia.

If the cause of this condition is traced back to a female hormone then this may be as a result of a sertoli cell tumour and thus should be checked appropriately.

Initally, the vet may look for possible symptoms such as arched back and stuff back legs in order to make sure that the dog has this condition. This will be followed by the vet taking the temperature of the dog in order to make sure that it has no fever. A normal temperature will rule out prostatitis and thus leave us with Prostatic Hypertrophy.

The vet may want to feel for the swollen prostate gland through the anus using his fingers in order to make sure that the dog feels no pain in the area and rule out prostatitis even further.

If your dog is showing signs of too much male testosterone the vet may suggest using injections to lower this and to bring it down to the appropriate level. If this fails then the only option left is to get the dog castrated which will remove the area where the hormone is produced.

Castration is also the solution if the problem results from the female hormone. This will help remove the tumor in the affected testicle. There are cases here the hormone causing the problem may be hard to find and thus further tests such as blood tests, ultrasound and even biopsy may be needed to confirm.

For more information on dog enlarged prostate glands or Dog Health take a look at this Dog Training website.

Article Source: Dog Enlarged Prostate Glands – Dog Health Best Tips – ArticleSpan.com

dog training helps dogs to fit into their family home in a much better way. Dogs feel much more comfortable with a stable structure to their family life. Because they are descended from wolves, dogs have the same pack mentality as their ancient wolf cousins. They look up to a leader to guide them. Believe it or not, most people also live their family lives under such conditions. This is why dogs and humans are so well suited to live and get on together.

All types of dogs are suitable for dog training. Different breeds are more suited to different types of training. And different breeds fit in well in different types of households. Most people would not like to have a fierce Rottweiler around, but some people do. Some prefer poodles or Pomeranians. Different breeds of dogs are better able to become guide dogs and hearing dogs. While other dogs make good guard dogs. But almost any type of dog can be trained to fit into a loving family home.

Dogs can be amazingly helpful in our working lives as well as our family homes. Already mentioned are the wonderful guide dogs for the blind, but now we even help dogs who help hearing-impaired people. They can hear a door bell, or a telephone ring, or more importantly, a smoke alarm and they can alert their owners to the sounds. Dogs have been known to be able to reach people after an avalanche and bring much needed supplies.

It is usually more useful to choose younger puppies if they are to do one of the more specialized jobs. Usually, younger dogs are more eager to learn because they see it as more fun. They can get used to a new owner better and pick up their training more quickly. With an older dog who is much more set in its ways, you could probably train it new tricks, but it would take much longer with many more repetitions.

It sounds easy doesn’t it? Training a dog takes a lot of hard work. A firm voice should always be used so that the dog knows exactly what you want it to do. When it does something right you can reward it A reward can be a doggy biscuit, or a play with his favorite toy. Another good way to reward a dog is to pat him on his head and say ‘Good Dog’ in a really happy voice. They are surprisingly receptive to your tone!

When your dog does not do the right thing, however, you must not punish him. Your dog will not understand why he is being punished and will only become confused. The best method of training is to use positive reinforcement – that is to reward the good behavior and ignore the bad.

Who knows what a dog could be trained to do. Some dogs can fetch sticks, sit up and beg, roll over. I knew a dog who’s owner would put a coin in its mouth and send it to get the evening paper. Now that’s what I call useful!

Visit http://www.greatdogsforpets.com for more on dog training, dog grooming and basic dog care.

Article Source: Why dog training is So Important – ArticleSpan.com

When you first get a new dog it may seem a little overwhelming the amount of things you have to buy. You will have to buy food, a bed, bowls and toys to mention just a few and it is also a very sensible idea to get some dog training equipment.

While it is possible to use ordinary items this may not be the case in some circumstances.

For instance, it will certainly be necessary to get a case if you intend to crate train your dog and you may want to purchase a clicker or a noisy chain. If you are training a hunting dog then you will want more specific dog training equipment to help with the process of training.

A clicker is used to help with positive reinforcement. Every time you praise your dog you click the clicker and give him a treat and so he recognizes the noise to mean he has done well and is being rewarded.

On the other hand a noisy chain is used to throw at the feet of your dog as negative reinforcement when he has done something wrong. The noise of the chain hitting the floor is irritating to the dog and will certainly get his attention. You should never use the chain to reprimand the dog directly and it should only be used to make the loud noise.

There are other more unusual training aids. You can get remote spray collars that work like ordinary collars but have a small water spray attached. When your dog misbehaves you can click the button and the water will spray into his face.

This will invariably stop him in his tracks and after using this a couple of times it is very unlikely he will do the same thing again for fear of getting water sprayed in his face.

Walking big dogs can be a real challenge. Specialist collars can help. Harnesses give you much more control over a boisterous dog that usually has the run of you when out on walks and the choker chain works by tightening around the dog’s neck but quickly loosening again when the tension on the lead loosens.

Electric collars give out a small electrical shock to your dog although this form of punishment is best for hunting dogs and teaching them not to approach certain harmful animals like snakes. This dog training equipment is all fairly inexpensive and will make your life a lot easier when first training your dog.

Dog Obedience Training and Puppy Training product reviews so you know you are only teaching your dog the very best techniques

Article Source: Making dog training More Effective With Training Equipment – ArticleSpan.com