Just like children who can’t keep things out of their mouth. Our pet dogs are susceptible to ingesting different kinds of stuff. Sometimes your pet dog may lick toxic substances that have spilt on their coat. These poisonous substances can range from salmonella laden food, lethal chemicals, and a noxious kind of frog or foodstuff you think is harmless to pets since people eat it. Dog owners have likened their pooch to be too human that we forget that our dogs will at times eat things that may not even taste good.

It is best to keep an emergency kit for your beloved pet. The medications and preparations differ from that of your first aid kit… don’t even think of sharing!

Include in the kit a list of information that can help you out in case your dog is poisoned. Knowing the symptoms of poisoning will help you not have fits of paranoia of false alarms…

Symptoms:

Severe vomiting- it is when your dog retches in spite of emptying his stomach

Diarrhea- it is watery and bubbly, not just soft in consistency. Most times the smell or color will provide a clue on what is wrong.

Delirium- you may not know when this happens, but it is when your dog acts inappropriately

Convulsions- involuntary shaking of the dog as if chilling

Coughing- the dog knows he needs to expel something, it is persistent

Abdominal pain- some pet dogs let you know their hurting or if they are sulking, your can try rubbing his stomach. The dogs’ stomach may be hot to the touch or your pet may whine. Take necessary precautions, remember when in pain your dog may snap at you. Be gentle and have someone calm and hold him down.

There are several procedures that must be followed according to the poison your dog may have induced. Having a list of the different steps ensure that you’ll be giving your dog the proper care.

In case you are unsure of your pet’s state, it is best to bring your pet to the veterinarian. Professional and able hands make a difference.

Paying attention to certain details reduce harmful incidents that can equal pain for your pet dog. A rise in symptoms may be due to a sign of having ingested food that is deadly to him.

Studies have connected Renal Failure to consumption of grapes and raisins. As far as research goes, susceptibility varies. Dogs that have eaten more than a piece of raisin may not show ill effects, aside from vomiting. Though Renal Failure would start 3-5 days from ingestion.

Reasons to stick to manufactured dog food: onion & garlic. Both spices contain Thiosulfate, cooking or processing does not affect levels of this chemical. Frequent eating of this will cause Hemolytic Anemia. Small amounts such as baby food flavored with onion have caused deaths in puppies. Garlic itself is known to cause additional discomforts such as diarrhea and vomiting which can lead to dehydration. A home cooked meal may sound good to us humans, but dog food manufacturers have the research and resources to supply food with ample nutrients for our furry friends.

Macadamia Nuts, though rarely a favorite of dogs, are also food we should not give our dogs. Pain related to consumption is: stiffness, tremors, hyperthermia and abdominal pain. Though most dogs recover with supportive care, sparing your dog the pain is far better.

I don’t know why, but warnings about getting pet dogs intoxicated fall on deaf ears. The effect of Alcohol beverages in dogs is just the same in humans. A drunken dog may get a few laughs but bottom line is it is hazardous. Some components of Beer, like Hops also pose a threat to dogs. Hops, a plant used in brewing beer, causes Malignant Hyperthermia, which is fatal. This reaction makes your muscles contract wildly, causing friction of muscles. This produces great heat and high temperature, which can be deadly. Can you imagine the discomfort? Don’t cause your pet dog to go through this?

There is never enough information with regards to keeping out pets healthy. Sometimes there are some no-no’s we insist on doing just because there are no discernible effects. Humans and dogs share a bond strong like friendship. Since it is common for pet owners to treat their dogs literally like a person, it follows that our errors are because of our disregard.

Sadly some of the foods we enjoy eating cannot be given to our beloved pets. Sure, little Spot seems to like it…and he sure does look cute eating sticky chocolate…Dogs do love the flavor of chocolate, but in ample doses this is poison. Dogs, Cats and Horses have the same reaction to the chemicals found in this tasty treat. Three components in chocolate that are lethal are theobromine, caffeine and theophylline. Your pet does not digest theobromine, a chemical stimulant; it can stay in the bloodstream for 20 hours. Caffeine, increases blood pressure, disturbs the normal function of the central nervous system, and speeds up heart and lung action. Theophylline, also used as a drug for asthmatics, lowers blood pressure. Side effects of this drug range from diarrhea, frequent urination, and headaches. Together, these three components of chocolate cause damage and side effects contradictory to each other. Just imagine the effect on a dog’s body; its body does not breakdown this lethal “cocktail”.

Unfortunately, discomfort is the least of the pet owners problem. While writing this, I recall our family friend’s dog, ” Taffeta”. She loved chocolates too much, that she had learned to sniff out some in your pocket and bully you with cute-ness to give her some. Six years ago she showed symptoms of palpitation, shortness of breath. This was said to be signs of old age and thyroid sickness. Two years after that, she suddenly dies. I wonder if she’d be alive today if we’d not make her addicted to chocolates.

Planning to get a dog of your own? Or are you planning to give a puppy as a birthday present?

Choosing a dog isn’t as easy as “eeny minee miney moe”. Before you do choose a dog, it would be better to get some specifics straight to help you narrow the choices.

First to take into consideration is “who is the pet for?” How important is this information? Picture this: Old Aunt Wanda, age 96 and her 4 year-old Pit bull. It just doesn’t match huh? It would also be ridiculous to gift a toddler with a Doberman or Mastiff. The dog of choice just has to match the would be owners’ growth, since a dog is a good choice for a lasting bequest. The dog’s character should fit the owners’ personality.

Secondly, thought should be put in the future dog owners’ environment and lifestyle, too. A retired spinster can easily take care of a dog whose breed needs care and attention to detail . While a single bar hopping person might not have the consistency and the ample lucid time to juggle a career, active party life and a dog that needs a lot of upkeep.

With these two specifics, you can decide if you’ll get a purebred or mongrel; short- or long-haired; large or tiny. The characteristics that can be negligible are the dog’s coloring and age of the dog.

We all know that our pet dogs’ ancestors are coyotes, foxes, jackals and wolves. I always assumed that the earliest form of canidae/ canis family would be the wolf.

By chance, I came across an entry in an old world book, which traces the dogs’ bloodline to a wolf-like animal, the Tomarctus. This creature looked like a wolf and had many social instincts and skills of a dog. This grand daddy of dogs came to be 15 million years ago. Question is: where did this creature come from???

Extra sleuthing brought me 40 millions years ago, and it just got complicated. The Tomarctus is a descendant of an animal called Eocene Miacid. This creature is where the bear and cat evolved from…There’s more, the Miacas is described as a weasel-like animal.

The family of Miacids evolved into the cat-like family, the Feloidea. The family where the big cats and small cats sprung from. While another evolution produced the dog-like family,Carnivora (Canoidea). From this family came the order of Ursidae (bears). It’s amazing that from a weasel-like ancestor, descendants of all sizes came about.

But going back to the dog, from direct fierce bloodline how did dogs evolve into our beloved pet dog???

The relationship between man and its “best friend” began when early human started hunting and planting. This would be the time when man discovered fire and started discarding bones and leftovers (maybe). The scent of food traveled by air and brought the early dog to stay by camps. Experts have this idea that the early dog found it easier to eat from waste than tire itself out stalking and hunting. That seems to makes sense to me. Man and dog share the same sense of practicality. I guess this is where man and dog hit it off, starting the longest record of co-existence and friendship.

A well-maintained dog is one that does not look scraggly despite bathing twice a month. Proper environment, exercise, nutrition and hygiene are components of a good-looking dog. Often times what can make the difference is a luxurious gleam of a well-groomed coat.

What is it about a dog’s coat that can reflect your dogs’ disposition and health? Dogs’ fur is not like human hair. Most dogs have two coats of hair. The outer coat are guard hairs & an under coat of shorter fluffier hair. The guard hair protects the dogs from rain and snow while the shorter under coat hair keep the dog warm. When a dog sheds its coat, it is the under coat that falls off. This happens in late spring and grows back in autumn. Turn your dog into Pooch Charming by grooming him as often as possible and according to hair length. Shorthaired dogs need to be brushed several times a week. While longhaired dogs have to be groomed daily. There are times the dog may need clipping in hot weather to make it more comfortable and to prevent skin problems.

Your dogs may be bathed as often as it is necessary. Make sure to use warm water and special dog shampoo. Using detergent or shampoo for humans strip the dogs coat of essential oils. Be sure to rinse the shampoo off thoroughly.

With lots of love, patience and attention to grooming will turn your dog, purebred or mongrel into a  Pooch Charming canine.

Barking is natural to dogs; it is their way of communicating. But if you are already disturbed and irritated by your dog’s barking, then you may consider purchasing a shock collar. Before you do that, you have to consider the effects a shock collar has on your dog.  Here is some information to reflect on before purchasing a dog shock collar.

First and foremost, the purpose of a shock collar is to train dogs to follow a set of rules. Although a lot of people consider it cruel, the amount of shock the dog receives from shock collar is minimal and will not leave a lasting mark or pain. Shock collars are used to correct unwanted behaviors of dogs without physical involvement on the dog owner’s part.

However, if shock collar can have a positive effect, it can also have a negative effect. Shock collars have high risk for unintentional mishandling that can cause unnecessary pain to dogs leading to aggressiveness towards humans and other dogs. There is also a possibility that the device will malfunction and will deliver repeated shocks to the dog that will cause behavioral problems in the future. Additionally, dogs may suffer burns if the collar is set too high. Using shock collars in fixing dog’s unwanted behavior may cause serious problem since there is a high probability that the dog will misunderstood what the owner is trying to teach.
 
It is up to the dog owner whether to purchase or not a dog shock collar. But then again there are positive and negative factors to consider.  Only the pet owner knows what is good and what is not for his dog. The bottom line is dogs are man’s bestfriend and their loyalty earned them his love and friendship.
Dog Training Collars

I totally support the call of The Humane Society of the United States to avoid all circuses that use wild animals in their performances. Please, people, I urge you NOT to go to the FirsTier Event Center this coming Aprill 11 to watch the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. A lawsuit has been filed against them by four major anti-animal cruelty organizations along with a former circus employee for violating the Endagered Species Act for their maltreatment of Asian elephants.

That old scene from Dumbo where he gets forcedly separated from his mother always made me cry, and apparently that cartoon isn’t very far from reality! The separation of baby elephants from their mothers, abusive training methods, and prolonged confinement of the animals are all part of the mistreatment lawsuit against the Ringling Bros. Circus. The statements they released claiming that the elephants were trained exclusively through positive reinforcement are bullshit! Undercover video footage shows trainers beating and tormenting the elephants with a hooked metal stick. I mean, how cruel can you be? These elephants are wild animals, they should be out roaming in the wild and not caged like some prisoner for our own enjoyment! So, please, don’t go to the Ringling Bros. Circus on April 11! Let’s show them that there are alternative ways to have some fun with our family other than patronizing circuses that make money by forcing these helpless animals to perform acts and tricks which go against their natural wild way of life.

I am appalled by the latest recall on poisoned pet food. Not necessarily at the pet food makers, who accidentally put rat poison in the “cuts and gravy” type dog food, but more so at the FDA for their blatant denial of the facts. They are still insisting that there are only 14 cases of pet death, while all over the Internet; people are reporting hundreds and hundreds of deaths to their beloved pets. It is bad enough when big business makes a mistake and hurts hundreds of family’s and children, but inaccurate reports of the facts compound the issue for millions of people.