Dog Bathing Tips

It’s a myth that you should rarely bathe your dog. Show dogs are usually bathed weekly and are in fantastic condition. Bathe to your heart’s content. The key is to brush often (daily for some dogs) to keep the natural oils distributed in the coat. The other key is that when you shampoo, rinse thoroughly and dry thoroughly. In the case of a long or thick-coated dog this usually means using a dog blow dryer (which doesn’t deliver heat – very important, only powerful air) and drying right down to the skin (brush as you blow to “fluff” the dog). Nails are easier to trim after bathing as they’re softened up.

There are lots of “self-service” bathing stations in pet stores these days if you don’t want to make a mess of your own bathroom or don’t want to use the yard. You can use the following products to bath your dogs: Pet Aromatic Woodsy Woof Dog Bath, Booster Bath Plastic Dog Bath, Indoor – Outdoor Pet Shower

Clipping a Dog's Broken Toenail

Dogs’ toenails will often break on their own, learn what to do when your dog has a broken toenail, in this free pet health care video with tips from a veterinarian.

It’s not uncommon for a dog to break a toenail. It most often occurs when you trim his nails with clippers, but accidents can cause the toenail to break as well. Since the toenail is likely to bleed a lot, you need to take action right away.

• Stop the bleeding. A dog’s nail is going to bleed a lot when it’s broken. Simply holding a bandage over it usually won’t make it stop. Instead, use a coagulant to pack the wound. Substances that can be used include flour, powder, cornstarch or a styptic powder.
• Get an over the counter antibiotic cream to place over the broken nail. A generous amount should be applied in order to prevent infection and promote healing.
• Put a bandage over the area. You can secure the bandage using vet or surgical tape. The area should not be wrapped too tightly and cut off circulation.
• Cover the bandage with a sock. The sock is used to protect the area and keep the dog from trying to get at the wound. Since the sock is not likely to stay in place on its own, you may have to use more vet tape.
• Keep a close eye on the dog for the next few days. If the nail does not seem to heal or the dog starts limping, you should make an appointment with the vet.
• In order to prevent future broken nails, you should learn about how to properly cut a dog’s nails. A vet can let you know how to do it, or you can read a dog care handbook.
• If your dog is in pain from the broken toenail, you’ll need to have someone hold him or use a muzzle during treatment.

video by ExpertVillage . Tips by eHow.com

Dog Tips – Caring for puppies

In order to get healthy dog within maximum growth inside, willingness and seriousness required to attend some training and methods certain about how to conduct oneself. Here is the fundamental things that must be considered when you treat your puppies:

* Patience and love the graceful
* Understanding the behavior of Dogs in general
* Attend consistently
* Creating rules
* Taking the time to together

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Get Connected with Your Dogs

To be able to communicate dog we need to understand how the dog is communicating with us (Dog’s behavior). What they do with various ways such as bark, given tails or provide a sharp beam when danger threatens.

how could we know that our angry to dog cause fear, depression or anti-social?

Playing with your dog and start to understand itself every language that he tried to say to you, but this takes very long to recognize each character with your dog without proper estimate and through training your dog on the you will quickly know their condition.

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Clinical Signs of Parvo Virus Infection

Canine parvo virus causes lethargy; loss of appetite; fever; vomiting; and severe, often bloody, diarrhea. Vomiting and diarrhea can cause rapid dehydration, and most deaths from parvo virus occur within 48 to 72 hours following onset of clinical signs. If your puppy or dog shows any of these signs, you should contact your veterinarian promptly.

Vaccination is important. Young puppies are very susceptible to infection, particularly because the natural immunity provided in their mothers’ milk may wear off before the puppies’ own immune systems are mature enough to fight off infection. If a puppy is exposed to canine parvo virus during this gap in protection, it may become ill. An additional concern is that immunity provided by a mother’s milk may interfere with an effective response to vaccination. This means even vaccinated puppies may occasionally succumb to parvo virus. To narrow gaps in protection and provide optimal protection against parvo virus during the first few months of life, a series of puppy vaccinations are administered.

source: avma brochure, image: cvmbs.colostate.edu

Canine Distemper (Dog Distemper)

Canine distemper is a highly contagious and serious disease caused by a virus that attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and, often, the nervous systems of puppies and dogs. Puppies and dogs usually become infected through airborne exposure to the virus contained in respiratory secretions of an infected dog or wild animal.

All dogs are at risk but puppies younger than four months old and dogs that have not been vaccinated against canine distemper are at increased risk of acquiring the disease.

The first sign of distemper is eye discharge that may appear watery to pus-like. Subsequently, dogs develop fever, nasal discharge, coughing, lethargy, reduced appetite, vomiting, and diarrhea. In later stages, the virus may attack the nervous system, bringing about seizures, twitching, or partial or complete paralysis. Occasionally, the virus may cause footpads to harden.

How to prevent Canine Distemper?

Vaccination and avoiding contact with infected animals are key elements of canine distemper prevention.

Vaccination is important. Young puppies are very susceptible to infection, particularly because the natural immunity provided in their mothers’ milk may wear off before the puppies’ own immune systems are mature enough to fight off infection. To protect adult dogs, pet owners should be sure that their dog’s distemper vaccination is up-to-date. Ask your veterinarian about a recommended vaccination program for your canine companion.

Below are kinds of vaccines that often used to prevent canine distemper:

article source: AVMA brochure "What you should know about Canine Distemper"

Dog Cystitis, Urinary Bladder Inflammation

Dog is a pet that really close to humankind. However the nearness could be lost when our dog got illness. The dog, as in the case of humankind also could suffer the metabolic illness that involved the organ. One of the metabolic illnesses that could attack the dog was cystitis or urinary bladder inflammation. This infection cause several signs that could be acute or chronic. The suffered dog will show the sign like the existence of blood in the urine, increased urine frequency; appetite lost, stomach disorders, the tension at the time of urinate, in fact in the case that continued will be seen urine that was mixed with gore.

What should we do if we found our dogs got cystitis? First, fast the dog or should not give him eat until you carried him to your Veterinarian. If the bleeding happened more than 24 hours and was not treated yet by the Veterinarian, Give the glucose solution to your dog. The glucose solution could be made by means of: mixed 3 – 4 tablespoons of the glucose powder with 500 ml of water, afterwards gave this solution 1 – 2 tablespoons (25 – 50 ml) every time two hours.

Below are recommended dog food and vitamin to prevent dog cystitis: Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Canine Adult Preventative, Nutri-Vet Green Grass Liver Flavored Chewables.

Pet Costumes as Pet Gift

When shopping for the perfect birthday or holiday dog lover gift, the options are nearly endless. From sentimental items to novelty gags, gift ideas come in a wide variety of sizes, shapes, and colors – much like the dog breeds themselves. Trying to buy your friend or your family a gift on her birthday? If she has a pet, why don’t you try to give her pet costumes as Pet gifts…

It may become a very unique gift. Most people give birthday gifts by buying accessories, books, costumes, office equipment or something else. We’re sure that your friend will be proud to you when you buy her pet costumes. It shows her that you appreciate on its. It would be a nice gift.

There are so much alternative pet gifts that you can choose, such as pet costumes, pet accessories, pet books, pet apparel, etc. If you choose pet costumes as your pet gifts, try to get it on BuyCostumes.com. They have truly unique pet gifts stock and fun pet-related gifts, also items like animal clothing, animal-inspired art and jewelry. With over 17,000 items, they are your one-stop shop with the largest selection of unique adult gift, and kids Halloween costumes gift, accessories gift, and party supplies gift on the Internet.

Almost all of their gift costumes and gift party supplies are backed by their no-hassle return guarantee. They even offer the option for same-day shipping on costumes and party decorations. When you combine their superior online convenience and customer service with their unbeatable prices and product selection there’s no reason to buy costumes or supplies anywhere else!

Brushing, Combing, Trimming and Nails for your dogs

Brushing not only makes your pet’s coat look nice and shiny. It is vital for skin and overall health and provides you with the opportunity to spend some quality time with your dog. You will be able to check your dog closely for any problems during brushing. Move the hair aside and examine the skin closely for signs of flea, ticks or skin irritations. Check for mats, tangles, dandruff, etc.

When you brush, do a section at a time, brushing down to the skin on thick-coated dogs. To avoid coat breakage, only brush clean coats and mist with water or a mixture of water and coat conditioner. Mats and tangles can be carefully removed with de-matters and rakes or, if necessary, carefully cut out. If you are finding lots of mats, it’s a sure sign you are not grooming frequently enough. Don’t bathe until all mats and tangles are out. Combs are useful for the fine coat that grows around ears and for feathering.

Spend time with puppies and newly adopted dogs to get them gradually and gently used t  grooming procedures. Go slowly and patiently and dispense plenty of praise and high value treats. Learn where he likes to be combed and brushed and where he doesn’t. All dogs have sensitive areas that need to be groomed a little more gently and carefully than others. By paying special attention to these areas, you will help make your dog more comfortable while being groomed, and he will not resist future grooming sessions. You will also become familiar with areas that he enjoys having groomed. This is helpful if you need to calm him during stressful times such as veterinary visits.

Short and medium-coated dogs must be brushed once a week and have their nails trimmed. It’s also a good idea to scissor overgrown hair that grows between the foot pads and, if desired, around the food to give a nice, tidy appearance. Don’t worry if you botch it the first time. It’ll grow back and you’ll get better with practice. Even if you decide not to trim feet, check between foot pads during grooming for foxtails (common in California), ticks, bumps and debris.

Wipe tearstains with a cotton ball moistened with warm water. Check inside the ears for debris, ticks or signs of inflammation. Wipe with a ear cleaning solution for dogs, if desired, or a mixture of white vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. Dogs with skin folds, such as bulldogs, Pekes, Shih-Tzus and chows need these cleaned, preferably daily, with a moist cotton ball, and then dried with a dry cotton ball to avoid dermatitis and fungal infections.
Trim nails every week or two. Brush teeth weekly with products for dogs to avoid tartar build-up, which not only causes bad breath but can necessitate professional cleaning under general anesthetic if allowed to build up.

Longer coated dogs should be brushed more often, ideally every day. No dog should
have to endure mats or a dirty, itchy coat. If long-coated dogs dirty themselves during elimination, strategic trimming can prevent this in future.

Watch how you pet a dog

• Always let the dog see you first.
• Let the dog come to you on his own terms.
• Make a fist and hold your hand out towards the dog’s nose so he can sniff your hand.
• Talk to the dog in a normal voice. Do not yell or scream.
• If the dog seems comfortable with you, gently pet the dog in the back (not on the head – that’s too close to the mouth, which contains those sharp teeth!)