Posts Tagged ‘guide’

If you can’t take the heat, think how your pet feels! As we all know, it can get rather hot here in Frisco, Texas. Summer is also when most of us take our family vacations. When enjoying the heat with your loved ones, you really need to plan ahead in regards to your pet care. In the summer, pet sitters, boarding facilities and kennels all become slammed with business. Keep these things in mind when preparing for that family trip:

Call your pet sitter well in advance. I know most good pet sitters are booked solid weeks in advance.
Make sure your pet sitter does a free consultation to lean about your pet’s needs and trip details.
Boarding facilities charge more for your dogs and cats during the summer and/or holidays.
Make sure you inform your pet sitter of any special needs your pet may have.
If you also include a daily walk with your dog sitting, make sure you discuss how your dog will react to the heat.
Leave out plenty of water for your dogs and cats if they have access to the outdoors.
Ensure your pet sitter has all of your pet’s emergency contact information like vet info and emergency contact phone number.
Have a plan in place for bad weather with your pet sitter. It is always best to be prepared.
Make sure there are options for your dogs if you get delayed while returning home. Most kennels and boarding facilities close when it is off hours.

There is nothing worse than planning a trip with your family then realizing you need to find a solution you are comfortable with in regards to your pet care. This is why using a professional pet sitter in Frisco, Plano and Allen, Texas offers dog and cat owners flexibility they need.

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Just like humans, dogs are also prone to allergies and complications caused by food intake. There are certain dog foods that are considered harmful and even fatal if eaten by your k9 fellow.

Take for instance, dog bones. We often associate dogs as animals who love eating bones, but did you know that such food, either cooked or raw, can be harmful? Bones are not an advisable diet for dogs because they can puncture their internal organs and result to obstruction, specifically in the digestive system, if not properly chewed and swallowed. It is more recommended that you let your canine friend eat soft and wet foods that are easy to digest. Bones are dry, harmful dog food that can cause an upset stomach and dyspepsia.

There are also some vegies and fruits that are detrimental to dog’s health. Root crops such as onions and garlic are some of them. These vegetables are very toxic and can damage the kidneys of your pet. Tomatoes are unsafe for dogs too. Experts say this citrus fruit can result to canine tremors and heart arrhythmias. Mushrooms are also toxic and harmful dog food, commonly instigating abdominal disorder, diarrhea, even coma as side effects.

Canines are also not allowed to eat chocolates and drink coffee. Why is that so? Medical findings reveal that chocolates and coffee can slow down the metabolism of your dog and can later cause serious illnesses such as heart diseases and kidney failures. Chocolates and coffee contain elements such as caffeine that are toxic and can affect the dog’s circulatory and nervous systems. Take note that the darker the chocolate, the more harmful it is.

Many commercial dog foods being sold in the market today also contain specific ingredients and chemicals that are harmful to dogs. Among these ingredients include corn, ethoxyquin, artificial color, dairy and beef fat. As much as possible, don’t feed your dog with foods containing these ingredients. They are not totally poisonous, but can pose health problems in the long run. Dogs can poorly digest dairy products and food with high fat content.

So if you are serious about the safety and health of your dog, be extra careful in feeding him and never ever throw harmful dog food on his feeding bowl!

The author is a dog owner connected to a company that provides a huge selection of elevated feeders, dog supply and pet supplies at reasonable prices.

What you don’t know could turn out to be bad for your dog!

While most of us don’t pay a lot of attention to what we’re feeding out pets, we really shouldn’t be trusting manufacturers to label things accurately and follow regulations. There aren’t many rules about what can be used in dog food, and what you don’t know could make your dog VERY sick.

Not Fit To Eat

Did you know that many different brands of dog food could contain unpleasant substances like hair, ligaments, organs, skin, nervous tissue, and meat from diseased animals? Or that spoiled meat and the bodies of euthanized zoo animals and pets could be used?

Even the good meat that ends up in cat and dog food has undergone heavy processing, losing most of the value it once had. Ingredients like “poultry broth” and “animal meal” are far removed from the meat we imagine.

Animal meal, for instance, is what’s left after fat and meat have been processed out of a carcass. What’s left is dried and ground, resulting in a meal similar in texture to cornmeal. Broths are made up of processed carcasses from many different animal types, in just about any condition.

It’s Not Illegal!

You might think this sort of thing would be against the law. After all, there are strict rules about what can be used in human food and those laws are fairly well enforced. Unfortunately, pet food regulations are a lot looser and are rarely well enforced.

Just about anything could end up in your pet’s food, and the labels mean almost noting, even if they claim the food is balanced and healthy. Those words just indicate that the food has a particular percentage of protein, fat, and artificial minerals and vitamins.

Toxic Additives

All of us have probably heard of the recent pet food recalls created by contaminated wheat gluten from China. However, melamine isn’t the only dangerous additive that can be found in pet food. There are a lot of preservatives that aren’t allowed in human food, and which cause illnesses like cancer, kidney failure, liver failure and more.

Expensive Brands, Too

Unfortunately, it’s not just the cheap brands that are causing the problem. High end and organic foods are also poorly regulated. They might be higher quality, but there’s no good way to tell what ingredients they’re using. That can make it extremely hard to find foods that are appropriate for your dog, since even those recommended by the vet could be dangerous.

Solutions

There are a number of things you can do to protect your dog. First, learn to read the label – ingredients higher on the label are in larger percentages. That means you should look for named meats instead of generic terms, broths or meals.

You can also learn about the additives and preservatives that can hurt your pets, and look for the foods with the lowest percentage of grains. There are also a number of excellent recipes out there that can help dedicated pet owners make their own foods. Just be sure to do something, since most foods are actually dangerous.

When a dog has skin problems, we rarely suspect these as food allergies or sensitivities. As most dogs keep eating the same type of dog food for years, the food usually escapes our radar as the problem. But dogs, like humans, can develop sensitivity to any food or additive at any time. Recent estimates indicate that 10 to 15 percent of all allergic skin diseases in dogs are caused by food allergy. In such cases, they should be given allergy dog food, i.e., food that does not cause allergic reactions.

As dog food is made up of a combination of ingredients, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly which is causing the allergy. The most common ingredients that can cause problems in a dog include beef, chicken, corn, eggs, fish, lamb, milk, preservatives, pork, soy, wheat, and whey.

The primary symptom that appears in a dog having food allergy is itchy skin.

Other symptoms may include anal itching, ear inflammations, hair loss, licking front paws, loss of appetite, face rubbing, and head shaking. Sometimes asthma-like symptoms, behavioral changes, diarrhea, flatulence, seizures, sneezing, and vomiting can also be observed.

When you conclude after consultations with your veterinarian, that food may be the underlying cause of your dog’s allergy, then you can begin an elimination diet. Discard all the foods in the dog’s diet that are included in the list above, and give him/her allergy dog food, which may be a commercial or homemade diet comprising ingredients the dog has never eaten before.

The homemade allergy dog food should comprise two parts starch and one part protein. Duck, salmon, soy, venison, and rabbit may form the protein part, and rice and potatoes the starch, but soy and rice cannot be always called safe substitutes. Some animal medical centers recommend duck and potato based foods as allergy dog food.

You can also choose a special commercial food blends as allergy dog food. As the homemade food is not nutritionally complete, it should not be continued for more than 8 weeks.

Whatever allergy dog food you choose for your pet, it should be the only food the dog ingests during the elimination period. So, say adieu to table scraps, dog biscuits, dog bones, rawhide chews, vitamins, minerals or chewable heartworm pills.

If symptoms improve during the elimination period, you can reintroduce each of the eliminated food items one at a time. Each food should be tested for a week before another is introduced. This will help you to pinpoint which foods may be causing problems if symptoms resurface. And once you detect the offensive food, it will be easier for you to choose the right allergy dog food to keep your pet free from allergy.

If you have read some of my prior published articles on Pets and guidelines for Pet care, you will find the information not only from my very own real experiences, but valuable tips and guidelines as a Pet owner.

As I have mentioned in prior articles, Ive visited many countries, where ever my work would take me, primarily Asia. I have learned and experienced many cultures, and now live in Northern Thailand , surrounded by jungle. All the creatures you can possibly imagine, something like living on Discovery Channel, but with real life daily experiences, with cobras, eagles, exotic jungle birds, the works.

You may think of how frightening living with cobras might be, but actually, most are very shy, and you really do not encounter them very often. Did you know, they sometimes make a bark like noise in the jungle, that is certainly a good indication to stay clear.

This was a very unique experience with a wild jungle bird, not found in any books, nor can any Vet. hospital help cure this experience, but sadly a true story.

My very kind Thai neighbors gave me two jungle birds in cages, as a polite welcome to the village gift. Those who might be sensitive to a wild jungle bird in a cage, rest assured, I asked, and yes they were left in the nest alone deep in the jungle, and would have died if not cared for.

Well, now I had to learn to speak some Thai, since both birds could. There are Mina birds as you know , all around, but these two are of a different type, and were taught to speak Thai phrases in some cases. My first thought, and tip, since a natural reaction caring for pets, was to let them go back to a natural jungle environment.

But I was told they could not survive the jungle, there are just so many creatures in the food chain, they just would not make it on their own. So, I decided to give them the best of care as possible.

My favorite was light two toned grey colored bird that spoke 23 words , and some phrases in Thai, and could bark like a German Shepard, since he grew up next to one.

What a character, I actually taught him English words, and how to laugh, since Thai people have the best sense of humor, in my experience, they really thought that was funny, a laughing bird, one common language between us , as I was still learning to speak Thai, and North Thai , a bit different.

I really enjoyed these two new friends, probably only ones who could understand this stranger from another country. I built two very large cages, seemed they might like that better, and placed one at a neighbors house right along the jungle, so he could talk to the wild birds. This was about 300 hundred feet away.

I would get up early and talk to him across the trees, or at least whistle bird songs. Thais were amazed, he would talk back to me every morning, what a great song he could sing, I think he was happy there.

If I missed a morning, he would call for me. The Thais couldnt believe it, and with Thai communication everyone knew this story, simply small village, a few hundred people, big news.

This great beautiful bird, lived on for many years. As a wild animal, I made sure they received their natural jungle foods, which is a tip to remember, very important for their health.

I continued to talk to him all the time, until one day, I went over to see him. I worked and traveled a lot, so not always home. My neighbors stopped me short from their house,something must have happened. They would not explain to me, possibly a cultural kindness where they did not want me to be upset. Thai culture and politeness is something we could all learn from.

Well, my bird companion had passed away while I was traveling on business a month before.
The neighbors explained he would call to me, and no answer, as if he needed to communicate something, hard to imagine a bird. But, for the few weeks I was home I had been talking across the jungle to him, actually how could this be if he had died a month ago?

Thai culture is sensitive to spirits, so with all do respect, I listened very carefully to this unique story when explained carefully over time. When I was traveling, he had met a wild bird, same type.

She would come and they would talk daily, so on my return, he had in fact passed away, but it was his new mate that continued on, from the same location every morning talking to me, and as the Thais may have believed, it was his spirit communicating to me through her .

Now, I dont know much about spirits, but its believed he lived a good life, but he passed away from a broken heart as the story was told. I do believe I took the best of care for him during his lifetime.

This story has been passed along between villages for years now, people ask me, does youre bird still sing to you with the morning sunrise. I believe they are referring to the spirit of the bird. On occasions the female returns every few months from the jungle, and calls for me.

Now some might think Ive lived near the jungle to long, but these are true Pet Lover adventures. I dont have a cure all magic pill for a birds broken heart, but might add, sometimes the extra care, kindness, and common sense will greatly help your pets longevity and health.

This is the best tip I can offer for all pets. For any wild pets, if at all possible, they really need their own natural environment . So if you ever have the opportunity to have a wild pet, please think twice , and make the right decision for the animals benefit. For a good pet, there are so many options with domesticated animals.

The kindness to this bird, has returned to me over the years through my neighbors. They know how much I liked this bird, and how well I took care of him, and now the kindness has returned. One might consider this a spiritual event, and thats not my expertise, but certainly made good neighbor friends as a result of a bit of kindness. Thats simply just my best advise to pet lovers. Pets can have a long happy life, with just that extra bit of kindness.

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