Dogs - Pet Advice

Pet Advice

E-mail Subscription

Receive an e-mail notification of new posts on this site:

Vimu Subscription

Pets

Cats

Chinchillas

[ Not ] Dogs

[ And ] Dog General Care

[ And ] Dog Health

[ And ] Dog Training

Ferrets

Fish

Guinea Pigs

Hamsters and Gerbils

Other Pet Info

Pet Pictures

Rabbits

Rats

Reptiles

[ more ]

Visually Appealing Pets

Pictures

[ And ] Videos

[ more ]

Wildlife

In Captivity

[ more ]

If you want to try training your dog how to run an agility course, I think you've made a great decision. By training your dog how to run an agility course, you will not only relieve some of the pent up energy in your dog, but you will create a closer bond with your dog because of the further training. Plus, you may even get to shed a few pounds while you are out there running with the dog.

There are several things that you want to consider when training your dog agility obstacles.

First, you want to understand the different types of dog agility obstacles.
Dog Agility Equipment and Obstacles

Second, you want to understand how to actually traing your dog agility.
Training Dog Agility

Third, you want to understnad how to run the agility course and how the faults are set.
Dog Agility Course

If your really are interested in dog agility competitions, I would check out USDAA (United States Dog Agility Association). You can also check out other agility clubs, and if you have a mixbreed dog that you want to train for competition, you can check out the International Mixbreed Championships of Agility.

If you just want to train your dog agility for fun, you can check out local dog training groups and associations, so that you can run the course on the weekends to help better your dogs understanding of basic obedience commands and to let him just let loose and have fun.

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dog Training

Email this Post to a Friend

Videos of Cute Puppies

July 26th 2008 14:20

We all know that the cutest stage that you will see in your dog is the puppy stage. Dogs are generally the softest when they are puppies, and they just have the cutest face and dispositions as puppies.

Admit it... Puppies are just hard to resist..

So check out these cute puppies.

Vote

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dogs, Videos

Email this Post to a Friend

Plastic Surgery for Dogs

July 19th 2008 18:01

Generally, if people don't like something about themselves, they spend the extra money and hire a plastic surgeon to get the breast augmentation, the butt lift, or the tummy tuck. Well, believe it or not people do the same thing with their dogs... Well, kind of...

Dogs can get plastic surgery, but it's not to the extent that people get done. People commonly put their young puppies in surgery to cut off their ears or tail, which is known as hear cropping and tail docking.

My Personal Opinion:

Although you can read my full opinion and the facts that back up my opinion, when you read "Plastic Surgery for Dogs: Dog Ear Crop and Tail Dock," here is the brief break down...

By removing the tail and the majority of your dog's ears, you are removing vital and essential communication skills that you dog needs in order to better communicate with other animals and even you. By removing the tail, leaving a small nub, it can be very hard to distinguish how your dog is feeling. 90% of your dog's communication is through his body, and if you remove the tail and ears you remove at least 75% of the means of communication for your dog.

Also, the surgeries are completely unnecessary for the amount of pain that your dog must deal with, and yes the dog does feel the pain, they just have a higher pain tolerance than a person. Think about it, in the wild sick pack members were often left behind and left out because they had the potential to hold the pack behind. Although, there is no need for this in captivity, dogs still sense some of this, which is why they seldom act sick until they are truly, severly ill.

If you disagree with me and feel that you dog does not feel the pain when he bumps into the wall, hits his head, and yelps, then by all means that's your opinion.

But, anyway... There ARE reasons that tail docking can be beneficial, but that doesn't mean that you should run out and ask your vet to dock your dog's tail. The main reason that is medically a benefit to dock the tail is that some breeds have a taught tail skin, which when the tail hits something hard, it can cause an abrasion. The abrasions can be painful to deal with, and prevented with a tail dock, but this is the only medical reason to get your dog's tail docked.

As for ear cropping, some people claim that by cropping the ear, there is less potential for ear infections. Well, yes this is true, but if you regularly clean your dog's ears and take care of yoru dog, you can preven ear infections a lot easier and cheaper than surgery.

There is no reason, even if you show your dogs in competition to crop or dock the dog, as even the AKC accepts natural dogs in their dog shows. It is no longer mandatory to have your dog 100% to the basic standards.

Plus, in many countries, these surgeries are illegal. I want to say the U.S. is one of the few countries that still allow the surgeries.

Anyway... The link that I posted above will give you tons more information about the basics and procedures and how they are done. Plus you will see pictures of all natural Rottweilers, Boxers, American Staffordshires, and a few others.

My goofy APBT with her stupid ear standing for all to see...

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dog General Care, Dog Health

Email this Post to a Friend

Flea Control and Heartworm Prevention

July 6th 2008 20:46

Whether you have a pet dog or cat, it's very important that you consider a good flea and tick control method, as well as a heartworm prevention. Yes, even cats can get heartworms.

There are currently several good flea and tick control options that you can purchase from your veterinarian, select feed stores, and even a few pet stores. But, before you purchase one to use on your pet, you need to make sure that you understand the ingredients and side effects. Even though the products are meant to help your dog, some of the ingredients can be harmful.

Some of the flea controls that you want to choose from will include, Frontline Plus, Advantix, and Advantage. Now, each of these have their pros and cons, it's just up to you to find the best one that will work with your pet. Once you have found the product that won't irritate your dog's skin and coat, you'll want to stick with it and not switch back and forth.

As for a good heartworm prevention, it's necessary. Unlike fleas which you can probably get away with not treatin heartworms can be deadly. The typical female heartworm can be about 14 inches, give or take, and your dog can have hundreds of these throughout his heart and lungs.

Heartworm disease is very deadly, so if you're not already giving your dog a preventative, and you think your dog may have heartworms, you need to have him tested by your vet, and while you're there, purchase a box of heartworm prevention.

There are three different heartworm preventatives that you can currently choose from, which include Heartgard, Valuheart, and Sentinel.

When your dog's health is in your hands, you want to make sure that you do your best to keep him up to par.

I do my best to protect my pooches, it's up to you to do the same for yours.

Vote

Shared on

Pet Advice

Whitney Friends

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dog Health

Email this Post to a Friend

Simple Basic Obedience and Dog Tricks

June 27th 2008 15:04

Whether you're getting a new puppy or dog, or you already have one and you need a little training advice, you definitely want to consider some of these tips.

Basic obedience training is one of the most critical training that your dog needs and deserves. As a pet, and family member in some cases, you want to protect your dog at all costs. Not only protect your dog, but you want to make sure that your dog is well-behaved so that you don't have to yell at him all the time.

A well-trained and socialized dog will make for a happy home. You will be willing to give your dog more privileges, which will make you feel better and it will make your dog happier.

Basic obedience commands that you should really train your dog include:
His name (Obviously)
Walking on a leash
Settle
Leave it
Give
Sit
Down
Stay
Wait
Come

With basic obedience training, you want to make sure that the training sessions are short. You don't want to overwhelm your dog and have long-drawn out sessions, as this will bore him and make him unresponsive to the commands. You want to have short, 10-15 minute sessions a few times a day. And, you always want to quit before you dog gets tired, so if this means to cut your 10 minute session to 7 minutes, then that's what you have to do.

When training your dog, you don't want to sound like this, "Sit, sit, sit, Sit, SIt, SIT!, good boy." 1) Your dog will learn to sit whenever he pleases versus on the first "sit; if you're reinforcing an old command during your session and your dog doesn't sit, then you want to break the, "sit, sit, sit" with a break word, such as wrong ("sit, wrong, sit"). 2) You never want to sound irritated or frustrated with your dog, as this will only impede sucessful training.

You want to do want to repeat commands in terms of "sit. good boy," "sit, good rocky," "sit, good." This will ensure that your dog understands the command fully. You also want to reinforce older commands in all of your sessions just to keep them fresh in your dog's mind.

When you think you've got basic obedience training down, you always want to reinforce the training with more training sessions, but you can always break up new training sessions by training fun tricks.

Simple dog tricks include:
Wave
Spin
Get Your Leash
Put Away Your Toys
Sit Pretty
Say You're Sorry

Vote

Shared on

Pet Advice

Whitney Friends

Comments (6)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dog Training

Email this Post to a Friend

Dog Grooming Tips

June 11th 2008 14:23

Gromming your dog is very important for the health and well-being of the dog. A well groomed dog not only looks healthier but is healthier. By regularly grooming your dog, you can easily prevent dental disease, fleas and ticks, and so much more.

The first step to grooming your dog is bathing him. You want to choose an all-natural dog shampoo that is free of chemicals that can potentially irritate your dog's skin. By bathing your dog you can remove the unnecessary oils that can cause oily skin; you can also help alleviate dry skin, which can cause dandruff and itching

[ Click here to read more ]

Vote

Shared on

Pet Advice

Whitney Friends

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dog General Care

Email this Post to a Friend

Homemade Dog Treats

June 2nd 2008 15:51

We all want the best for our pets, and if you look at the shelf at the pet store or grocery store, there are so many unhealthy dog treats. The best way around that is making your own homemade dog biscuit. This ensures that you know every ingredient that goes into the dog cookie, and it ensures that the dog treat is healthy.

Before you try to make your own dog treats, make sure that you find recipes that are vet approved. Because dog's can't eat all the things that people can, you want to make sure that you're not baking regular ole peanut butter cookies, packed with sugar and butter

[ Click here to read more ]

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dog Health

Email this Post to a Friend

Exercise Your Dog

May 31st 2008 16:10

Exercising your dog is very important to keep him well behaved and fit. Dogs that do not get enough exercise can have behavioral concerns such as destructive chewing, as well as a number of other problems. You may see an onset of separation anxiety and hyperactivity. Remember that a tired dog is a well behaved dog. If your dog is busy resting after a long, hard walk, he will be less likely to destroy your home when you're at work, or school.

Also, proper exercise will keep your dog fit, reducing the risk of obesity, which will raise a number of other health concerns. And, a simple way to minimize those extra vet bills is to exercise your dog regularly

[ Click here to read more ]

Vote

Comments (1)

Add Comments

[ Link ]

Posted By: Whitney - Category: Dog General Care

Email this Post to a Friend

Caring for Puppies

May 23rd 2008 15:10

Puppies are cute and cuddley, but they're a huge responsibility to any person or family. When you decide to bring home a new puppy, you are bringing home years of training, socializing, and care, so make sure that you're ready to raise a puppy to the best of your ability.