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    Tips for Puppy House Training

    Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

    It is going to be hard to refuse to accept the delightful face staring at you from the kennel at a breeders house ” not until that same pup decides to pee on your carpet. Puppy house training should be the first thing that you should do the moment he comes into your home in order for you to create a proper relationship with your new pup. Just remember that there may be times that doing so can also be a source of frustration to dog owners.

    On a lighter note, there are a lot of accurate and tried tips that will help you train your dog to do his business at the right place and spot swiftly and without any frustrations. Here you will be able to get some tips for puppy house training that will make the initial few weeks with your fresh pup easier to handle.

    Using Crates

    Using a crate in puppy house training is one of the popular tools for a lot of good reasons. A dog will find it hard and will normally refuse to use the area where they sleep as their bathroom and keeping your dog in a crate for a short amount of time will train him to hold his urges until he is taken out of his confinement. Take your dog outdoors to do his business the moment you remove him from his crate. As soon as your he potties outdoors, give him the positive reinforcement as this will help motivate him to use the yard the next time he wants to do number one or two.

    Using a crate for puppy house training will also provide a safe, comfortable place for your pet to sleep when you are not available to keep an eye on him. This is particularly useful for times when you will be asleep or away from home.

    When you leave your pups unattended to their own devices can often become destructive. Having a crate will offer an atmosphere where he is unlikely to become injured or get into trouble. When it is your pups first time to use the crate, ensure that he stays in the crate for a short time, and just gradually extend his time in the crate as it gets more relaxed with its environment. Remember not to leave your dog in a crate for longer than 6 hours or 8 hours the most.

    Cleaning the Messes

    Remember to ignore the mess that your dog makes in the house and just put your pups nose in it or reprimand him. Show him the proper place to potty outside and only clean the mess up when your dog is not around to watch.

    Most importantly, eliminate the smell completely while puppy house training. If you dont, tendency is the dog will go back to the scent and potty again at that same spot. You will be able to find good commercial cleaners in stores today which can efficiently clean up such messes.

    Puppy house training is a procedure that will require a lot of patience and time but will surely be possible. With the help of the crate and a lot of consistency, it is a sure win that your dog will be potty trained in no time. Puppy house training is your first step in making sure that your dog will be pleasurable to your family.

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    Are Your Kids Ready For That New Pet: Five Ways To Tell

    Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

    There will come a time in every parent’s life when their children will desire a pet. If you have a positive view of pets this might be a question that you don’t mind hearing. However, if you have a slightly less positive view of pets, then the idea of getting one and then taking care of one may seem a bit daunting. Therefore, the most appropriate question to reply with when your kids ask for a pet is, “Are you ready for a pet?” The following are some guidelines to help you determine if your kids are pet ready.

    They talk about Animals First of all, if your children are getting ready to have a pet, they should be talking about animals all of the time. If they talk about animals in their home, pretend that their stuffed animals are real, and talk about which animals and pets they’d like to own, they are starting to get ready to have a pet. However, pay attention to how they talk about them. If they only talk about the pet being fluffy and pretty, talk with them about what they think having a pet is like. See if they can understand the various things that go along with a pet. Also, talk about some things about owning a pet that might not be so fun, like cleaning up after them, and see what type of answers you get.

    They are interested in learning about Animals Taking care of an animal requires that you know something about them. If your kids are genuinely interested in learning more, are inquiring about them, or are doing their own research, then they are probably serious about getting an animal. However, if they are not interested in learning when you try to teach them about animals, and then wait until they do. Remember animals are living creatures.

    They have their own responsibilities In order to be ready for pets, your kids should already have their own responsibilities. These might be small things, but they are things that the kids are expected to do that they end up doing, even if you have to talk with them about it. Make sure that there are some responsibilities like this that your children have.

    Have a conversation with your children about their responsibilities. When you have this conversation with your child they will know why they have to do certain task and how important it is that they complete this task. Pets are a lot of fun and give love but they are also a lot of work and if your child is prepared then they can become good pet owners.

    Finally you have to be ready to help them. Again pets are a big responsibility and your children can learn to become the primary caretakers for them, but they will still need help from you from time to time.

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    The Optimum Training Diet

    Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

    Good health is vital for getting good results when training your dog. The basis for good health is good dog food.

    The best ingredient is fresh meat, but it depends on your income whether you can afford it or not. Whatever you do, please do invest in a good dry food product. A good brand is not necessarily an expensive brand. From the label you can learn quite a lot…

    On the label the ingredients are in a specific order: higher proportions come first. So, if the first ingredient mentioned on the label is rice, it means that this food contains more rice than anything else.

    What you should avoid for your dog are By-Products Meals. Manufacturers love them because they’re cheap proteins. Whenever you find By-products on the label look for another brand, especially when it is high on the list. If it is at the end of the list and you find real meat products on top your save to use that brand.

    By-Products Meals are animal parts like feathers, claws, blood that are not good for human consumption. You can find them in animal food, because it is legal to use them for animals, but they don’t provide high quality energy and they don’t attribute to a good health of your dog.

    Check your dogs coat. If you have a long haired dog, like a Labrador Retriever, with a shiny coat and normal shedding you are probably giving him a high quality food. Your dog will not get a shiny coat by food alone, you should also brush him regularly.

    Professionals usually recommend the following proportion between meat, vegetables and starch: about 40%, 30%, 30%.

    The bigger brands use chicken meat, beef or lamb as a source of protein. All three types of meat are exellent for a vital dog with a shiny coat and a good general health.

    Vegetables provide minerals and vitamins that help produce hormones and enzymes, as well as compounds for good bone health and other functions. Carrots and squash, for example are both excellent for almost any dog.

    The best starch comes from brown or integral rice. Rice is an terrific carbohydrate, unlike other cereals like corn. Starch is broken down by the dogs stomach and provides energy and aids in cell repair.

    Just like humans, some dogs have special diet needs. For example Golden Retrievers are sensitive to wheat products. And in general corn is the worst cereal you can find in a diet, because it is so hard to digest for dogs.

    Avoid bad ingredients and when in doubt talk to your vet about the best diet for your dog. Especially when your dog has diarrhea, scratches a lot, or has flatulancy.

    If your dog doesn’t like dry food try to make it moist with some water and then warm it up a little. You can add some left overs or moist dog food so he’ll like it better. Most dry food manufacturers claim that dry food cleans the dogs teeth, but that is not the case for low quality feed.

    Be carefull with treats. Even quality treats tend to have a high fat content. This is one of the reasons dogs enjoy them so much. One or two per day isn’t harmful, but go for the quality brands.

    The price difference between a supermarket food and a premium food can be high. But the investment in the higher quality brand probably compensates for lower veterinary bills and a much livelier dog.

    The shininess of his coat, the clear and moist eyes and other less clear indicators will show you have chosen the right food. And, to finish off with a final remark. Isn’t the health of your dog priceless?

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    Teaching a Puppy to Stop Biting

    Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

    Taking home a new puppy is going to be an exciting new quest that will also bring a lot of responsibility in rearing the puppy and providing it with proper training. The moment the dog comes home, training should start immediately although this is the time when the owner is still enjoying the cute little pup. The owner must just keep in mind that everything he does will create an impact on the behavior of the puppy and will carry this on even when he is already an adult.

    The puppy training should be consistent throughout its life so that the behaviors that are allowed with the owner are also allowed with people that enter the home. If the behavior would be an embarrassment or could cause harm or annoyance to the person entering the home the owner must not allow it with himself, otherwise the dog will be confused as to what behavior is appropriate to do with people.

    Biting

    A usual issue that has to be prevented through training is biting. Puppies like to bite because they are still trying to explore their world and sadly, people at times get the burden of this attention.

    Never ever hit or slap a puppy while training it to stop biting as they might take it as though you are playing with it. Leave the roughhousing to dogs.

    One way to train the puppy to stop biting is to refuse to play aggressive games with it such as tug of war, chase or wrestling. Although these activities are fun for dog and owner, they encourage aggressive behavior which is not acceptable for the dog to exhibit with all humans that come into the home.

    One of the best ways to train a puppy not to bite is to let out a sharp “Ouch!” whenever the puppy tries to bite and then removing eye contact and turning the back to the puppy. This is the same method that dogs use with each other, letting the other dog know that it hurt and they are not going to play that way.

    This will make the puppy understand that he will be given a negative reinforcement whenever it bites and will not be given attention like he thinks it would. On the other hand, if your puppy calms down and does not try to bite, give him a treat of reward him with attention and praise so that the right behavior is reinforced.

    If and when the puppy bites down on the hand, the owner should place a finger inside the mouth of the pup and let it stay under the tongue holding down the bottom jaw for about ten seconds. Make sure that the pressure is firm enough so that the pup cannot run away for the whole ten seconds. This will show the puppy that he will be given a negative reinforcement and that the behavior he did is unacceptable.

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    Get Pet Health Insurance for Their Eyes

    Tuesday, June 30th, 2009
    Owners who are considering purchasing pet health insurance for their dogs should make sure that the eye health of their dogs covered by the insurance policy. Because many insurance companies will not insure the eyes of a dog whose breed is habitually diagnosed with chronic eye problems may want to consider purchasing their puppy from a CERF (Canine Eye Registration Foundation). Breeders who are recognized by the CERF have been publicly acknowledged as breeding puppies without known health problems. In some cases insurance companies might also require that the owners have genetic screening done on the puppies before they can be insured.

    Glaucoma is a common eye condition that begins with very subtle symptoms such as dilated pupils that don’t respond well to light, and eye that appears to be red, poor vision, and corneas are often cloudy. One California-based veterinarian claims that because the initial symptoms of Glaucoma can be very subtle many California pet owners to not immediately bring their dogs and for an examination. If Glaucoma is not immediately seen by a veterinarian within 24 to 48 hours the increased pressure in the eyeball can lead to permit it cases of blindness. In severe cases of untreated Glaucoma veterinarians have been forced to remove the pet’s eye.      Any dog who has the developed an irritation in their eye that causes them to square to produce extra tears is called a “squinting dog”. Most cases of squinting is caused from a minor irritation such as an in turned eyelash or minor scratch to the cornea. However some cases of squinting dog has led to the early diagnosis of diseases such as cancer and Blastomyosis. The Dermoidis is a benign corneal neoplasam. It is sometimes referred to as the third eyelid. Hair growing from the Dermoidis can irritate the dog’s eye which can cause discharge and occasionally cause an ulcer to appear on the eye.      Once you have seen a person or animal with cataracts you will always be able to diagnose them. The official definition of a cataract is opacity of the lens. When you look into an eye that has a cataract it looks as if a darkly tinted contact lens has been placed over the lens. If the cataracts become too thick the pet will go blind. Shar Peis. Cocker Spaniels, Labradors, and Rottweilers are susceptible to eye condition called Entropion. Entropio, happens when an eyelid fold inward toward the eye and causes the eyelashes to brush against the cornea. The irritation of the eyelashes rubbing the cornea generally gives the eye a squinty drippy appearance. Bulldogs, Poodles, and Cocker Spaniels are often diagnosed with a condition called Cherry eye.

    Dry eyes is the term used to describe the eyes of a dog that isn’t producing enough tears. Lhasa Apso, Pugs, and Shih Tzus are breeds that are particularly susceptible to dry eyes. Dog owners should bring their dogs to the veterinarian as soon as they notice any of the following conditions; squinting, tearing, pawing at the eye, cloudiness, bloody eyes, a blind eye (this can happen very abruptly), constantly dilated pupils, and swollen eyelids. Dog owners need to understand that early diagnosis is often the key to preventing further eye issues.



    By: Jay Schindler

    About the Author:

    For tips on fish facts and shark facts, visit the Animals Facts website.



    The Battle With Dog Fleas Can Be Won

    Monday, June 29th, 2009

    A common pet owner annoyance that happens once the warm weather hits is the inevitable flea infestation. For many, it must seem that as soon as you get rid of the last batch, it just starts all over again. Regardless of how recently you were able to get rid of the fleas in your house, it is important not to waste even a single day if you discover fleas again. Once you see a single flea, the quicker you attack them, the easier your flea control will be.

    There are two significant areas that will require your attention. You must pay attention to both areas otherwise you will never win the battle against a flea infestation. The first and most obvious area of attention is your pet itself. The second area of importance is killing the fleas that have jumped off or have fallen off your pet and now live in your carpets or linens. The second category also includes flea larvae.

    There are a number of different ways to treat fleas on your dog. You can use commercially available flea products such as Frontline. This is often the most effective method of flea eradication. These products can easily be found in your local pet store. Some people don’t like to use these products and would prefer a natural way of getting rid of fleas. You can try to get rid of fleas naturally using such things as talcum powder, garlic, and olive oil. Each of these methods id effective in getting rid of fleas.

    After you have gotten rid of the fleas on your dog, you now have to turn your attention to the fleas and ’soon to be fleas’ flea eggs, larvae and pupae. Begin this process by washing all clothes, sheets, blankets, cushions, stuffed toys, that are in the areas that your dog has been in. All of these items have the potential to house fleas in different stages of their life cycle. Wash in hot water and if your items can’t be dried in the dryer then hang them to dry in the sun.

    You need to vacuum all areas of your house and furniture, especially carpets, corners, closets, cracks in floor boards, under beds etc. If possible, steam cleaning your furniture and carpets will be even more effective. Don’t forget to throw out your vacuum bag after vacuuming, and this means completely out of the house. Vacuuming should be repeated often (daily if possible) over the next while in order to catch any fleas or eggs etc that were missed the first time. This will be a huge help in avoiding a re-infestation.

    If your dog has fleas, getting rid of them is not a simple task, but it is possible. You have to remember to be consistent with keeping your dog away from new fleas, and cleaning and re-cleaning your house to get rid of any new fleas that were missed in the first round of cleaning. Eventually you will win the battle against fleas and you and your pet will have a much happier summer.

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    Using Pictures to Sell Puppies

    Monday, June 29th, 2009
    Are you trying to sell some puppies to a good home? Whether you breed dogs or your beloved pet managed to get free from her pen and find herself pregnant, selling puppies can sometimes be a difficult task. After all, there are many puppies available that are looking for a good home, so finding someone that is willing to purchase your puppies may be harder than you think. Of course, if your puppies are particularly adorable or are purebred, finding a buyer for your puppies may be much simpler. Nonetheless, if you hope to find a buyer quickly, it is best to use pictures to sell puppies with your ads.

    Using Pictures to Sell Puppies Quickly

    If you are ready to sell puppies, you likely don’t want to keep the little cuties any longer than necessary. After all, taking care of a whole litter of puppies is time consuming and can be quite difficult. In addition, when you sell puppies to a new owner, you want to let the new owner get the puppies as close to 8 weeks as possible. This way, the new owner can start to bond right away with his or her puppy and form a strong and healthy relationship.

    When you use pictures to sell puppies with your ads, you can expedite the selling process. This is because potential buyers will be able to see exactly what your puppy looks like, which will help the buyers determine if your puppy is what they are looking for. In reality, many buyers won’t even bother with calling about puppies from ads without pictures. After all, since there are so many ads to choose from, there really is no reason to inquire into those puppies without pictures unless they are of a particularly rare breed. So, if you wish to sell your puppies quickly, it is a good idea to include pictures in your ads.

    Choosing the Right Pictures

    When choosing the pictures you will use in your ads, it is important to be certain to use pictures of the puppies you have for sale rather than puppies from another litter. If your picture is of a different puppy or puppies, the potential buyer may be disappointed when he or she sees the actually puppies that are for sale. As a result, you will have wasted your time as well as the time of the potential buyer.

    It is also a good idea to make certain no people or other animals are in the photograph. The puppy or puppies for sale should take center stage in the photo, which means they should be all that potential buyers see in the ad. Having humans or other animals in the ad will only serve as a distraction.

    You should also choose pictures that are crisp and clear so the potential buyer can get a good idea of what the puppies look like. Blurry pictures are harsh on the eyes and may actually be worse than having no picture at all. So, choose the picture carefully in order to increase your chances of selling those cute little puppies to good homes as quickly as possible.



    By: anonymous

    About the Author:

    CS Swarens is the CEO of Find a Pet Online. 800 998-7065

    For additional information on dogs, cats, birds, horses, and exotic pets visit the internet’s resource for dogs for sale.

    Research dog information.



    Use sound to train your Labrador

    Monday, June 29th, 2009

    You can set things up in a controlled way so you can use sound for training purposes. This lets you get the exact result you want.

    The 4 steps we are going to describe should be carried out in different places. We are going to try to get inside our dog’s mind to understand him better in order to start our work.

    They think, have a sense of humor, communicate, tease, lie, steal, etc. just like any one else. But, they don’t think human. Dogs are limited to thinking like dogs. It’s your responsibility to think things out from their perspective and try to use good judgement.

    You have to be consistent so as not to confuse. Using conditioned reflex, you will be able to effectively change any behaviour you choose.

    Using a set of cans, or any other source of sound, so long as it is brief, and so long as it can be presented from different directions on each consecutive instance, are all that you need to do to break any behavior. Simply create the sound, and follow through with praise! It’s that simple. Any behavior can be stopped or broken, simply by creating a sound, and praising immediately. The secret is, to allow the undesired behavior to begin again, and simply present the sound from another direction, and follow through with praise. Of course you have to understand how your dog thinks and learns in order to successfully achieve this.

    What you do is create the sound every time bad behavior starts and follow that with praise. You will have to so this several times in order to change his conditioning. It takes persistence.

    Of course, you may continue correcting your dog forever, as most trainers do. We do not understand why a trained dog needs correction. Seems that if he were trained, that would be the end of it. That would imply that if a trained dog makes a mistake, that this mistake is probably not an accident, but rather, a challenge to your authority.

    You will soon come to enjoy this process because it really works well and you can take satisfaction from knowing how to change behavior. Do bear in mind that this is changing existing behavior, not teaching new behavior.

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    Elemental Training Tips For Dogs

    Monday, June 29th, 2009

    Dogs make wonderful pets and outstanding companions. They have always been recognized as “man’s best friend”. But in order to be a respectable household pet and a decent doggy resident they need to be trained. They also need to be trained to be protected and contented members of your family.

    You will need to start training your puppy for obedience as soon as he arrives home. After about a year you can anticipate that your puppy will be effectively “fully trained” but you will still need to work with him throughout his life in order to keep his skills sharp. Well-trained dogs are a pleasure to own and most people get pleasure from being around a polite dog.

    The absolute most significant law of dog training is that you must be the “alpha dog”. The term “alpha dog” may not appeal to you but the truth is that dogs are pack animals and they follow a leader. You must be the “top dog” or the leader. Every human being member of your family must outrank your dog in the pack order. Dogs will do anything for adoration and acknowledgment from the pack leader and in order to have a happy dog and a contented family the leader must be you.

    Never let your dog to demonstrate domination. He must wait for his food until you are done eating. This is a subtle but necessary thing. You must also never let him jump on you or other people either.

    Do not ever permit your puppy to do stuff that you will not allow him to do as an adult dog. This includes jumping and nipping at you. One of the most crucial things in training a dog is consistency. A dog cannot infer like a human and he will not appreciate that it is okay to jump on you in your play clothes but not in your business suit. He also won’t appreciate why he could do something as a puppy but he can’t carry on to do it as an adult dog. Be consistent.

    Using a crate will make all of your teaching easier. Dogs feel protected and secure in a cozy and comfy place that they regard as their own. In the beginning your puppy may complain in the crate but if you just leave him in there he will grow to like it. Using a crate will make housetraining and obedience training easier.

    It is critical for your dog’s own security to sit and stay. You must be able to get your dog to stop and stay if necessary. It is significant to be able to control your dog at times and you will need to make sure that he is compliant with your instructions in order to avoid troubles like running off or jumping all over the guests to your house.

    You will most likely also want to train your dog to walk on a leash and to heal and after the basics you can move on to the amusing things like fetching. Well-trained dogs make the best pets so be a responsible pet owner and teach your dog well.

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    3 Secrets to Dog Training

    Monday, June 29th, 2009

    It seems that every week there’s a new and amazing dog training method being taught. It’s sometimes mind boggling to know where to begin. Over the years I have discovered what I believe are the Secrets to Dog Training, find out more about these in this brief article.

    Despite all the different methods offered by the hundreds of self proclaimed “gurus”, the underlying feature in almost every successful method is positive reinforcement. Almost every successful dog training method has this in common.

    Secret number 1:

    Start training your dog when it’s young! Puppies learn much faster than older dogs so make the most of this if you can. This is not to say that older dogs won’t learn new tricks, simply that they may need more time a perseverance to learn something new than a puppy. So, where possible – start the training while your puppy is young.

    Secret Number 2:

    When training your dog, be firm but fair. Try to get to a level where you can understand your dog. To do this you will need to be compassionate and loving towards your dog. Treat your dog with respect, have fun with it, and it will reward you 1000 times over.

    Secret Number 3:

    Prevent problems before they arise. Don’t wait for a problem to occur, teach your dog good behaviour before you find a problem! Prevention is so much more effective than correction.

    The secrets to dog training are almost always the same. Every dog training guide I’ve ever read has held the same common core values. Give your dog a chance to learn, don’t expect immediate results, be persistent, and be consistent. That’s the best way to train a dog.

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