This title gets everyone picturing that dog at the park doing it’s best to impregnate everyone. It does get you talking with the other dog owner so that’s a good thing. The bad thing is that it can lead to trouble if the “mountee” does not like the advances of the “mounter”. One thing to keep an eye on is if the mounting is from the side and nearer the shoulder area, it could actually be an act of dominance rather than trying to get a phone number! Read on, enjoy and don’t be that embarrassed the next time your dog gets frisky.
November 23rd, 2009
Veterinarians
We have been to a few vets and recommend Eagleview Veterinary Hospital in Squamish. The staff are friendly, professional and the rates are very reasonable.
http://www.canpages.ca/page/BC/squamish/eagleview-veterinary-hospital/5028782.html
November 16th, 2009
Dog Beds
Here is a link to the company where we got our raised dog beds from. They are in the USA but can ship to anywhere through their Ebay store.
They are not cheaply made and are easy to clean.
November 9th, 2009
Second Hand Smoke
If you are a smoker and a dog owner, consider smoking away from them as the health risks are similar to humans. The canine nose is far more sensitive to smell as well as the toxic concentration of smoke.
November 9th, 2009
Dog First Aid
These articles are great for any dog owner. They have a lot of useful tips. I have another great tip that is not mentioned, and is helpful if your vet advises you to induce vomiting. If you don’t have any hydrogen peroxide handy, salt can also be used. Simply dissolve a decent quantity (a few tsps) of salt in a glass of water, then fill a syringe. Squirt this down your dogs throat and stand back. The resulting projectile vomiting will often remove whatever they have ingested. Try and do this outside as it can make quite a mess!
http://www.dogsincanada.com/outfitting-a-first-aid-kit
October 30th, 2009
Dog Food
If you have ever wondered what the difference is between cheap dog food and a more expensive brand, you will like this website.
It’s important for dogs to get a balanced diet. Too many supermarket brands just don’t meet the nutritional requirements.
Better quality food is more expensive, but so is human food. If we ate fast food every day, we would not only be less healthy, but would not live as long. The same applies to dogs.
Have a read of this article and see how the food you are using rates. We use a Eukanuba Naturally Wild food as well as Orijen for our dogs as well as boarding dogs. They are not only getting a great balanced diet, but they also love it!
October 30th, 2009
Canine sense of smell
The Amazing Canine Nose
Dogs are famous for their incredible sense of smell. Scent is how dogs learn and experience the world. While they can see well, better than us in low light, and they have superior hearing to humans, it is their sense of smell that really sets them apart. It has been estimated that a canine’s sense of smell is anywhere from 50 to 100 times better than ours. Some say its even 1,000 times better.
Scientists describe the difference by explaining that the scent cell in a human nose can cover approximately one square inch, and a dog’s scent cells can cover 60 square inches. Scientists say a dog uses 40 times more of his brain analyzing smell than we do. The number of scent cells in a dog’s nose depends of the size of the dog and the length of the nose. A human has approximately 5 million scent receptors. A Dachshund has 125 million, a Fox Terrier, 147 million and a Bloodhound has 300 million scent receptors.
The canine sense of smell has been extremely helpful to humans in many ways. They have been trained to sniff out drugs, guns, explosives, and people, both dead and alive. More recently, it has been determined that some dogs can be trained to detect a change in people about to experience seizures, high blood pressure, low blood sugar, migraines and even heart attacks. No one know for sure how a canine can do this but it is thought to be due to a change in body chemistry or metabolism that produces a different smell which a dog can detect.
This ability to detect changes in a person’s scent prior to a seizure has allowed many people to lead a much more normal life. One owner described how her trained dog has allowed her to live independently and care for her children. Her dog can warn her approximately 30 minutes before a seizure, so she has time to take care of her kids and put herself in a safe place. The dog gets nervous and paws at his owner and leans on her. He stays with her until the seizure is over. Dogs have different ways of indicating an oncoming health problem, which the owner must learn to recognize.
Most recently, small studies have been started to test a dog’s ability to detect cancer cells. At this time, testing is only being done with melanoma cancer cells, although studies are beginning on prostate cancer. One reason a dog’s sense of smell is so helpful is the fact that they can smell several layers of scent chemicals.
The hope for scientists is that , one day our canine best friends will be well trained and reliable enough to provide screening for common health problems among large populations, especially in third world countries where medical resources are very limited.
It is no wonder dogs continue to prove themselves as man’s best friend.
Article Source:
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/the-amazing-canine-nose-1369268.html
October 30th, 2009
Removing the Skunk Smell
This is a great recipe for removing those nasty skunk smells.
Mix the following:
- 4 cups hydrogen peroxide
- 4 tablespoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon dishwashing soap
- Put cotton balls in your dog’s ear canals so the mixture doesn’t get in the ears
- Wear rubber gloves
- Apply the solution, starting on your dog’s head and work backward. Do not let the solution get in your dog’s eyes
- Rub the solution into the coat
- Rinse it off well
- Repeat if necessary
October 29th, 2009
Revolution
An interesting article on hip dysplasia. Sadly a lot of the larger breeds are particularly prone to this.