puppytales

Most pet owners will probably find the one pet food that works best for their pet, and pretty much stick to that food. But if you happen to be shopping around for a new pet food for your dog (or cat), there are a couple of things to keep in mind. Labels do not always say what is really in that can or bag. What I mean by that remark is that the ingredients may seem like they are listed in order of which is contained the most in the pet food, say tuna, for example. But that is not necessarily the case. The ingredients are actually listed in decreasing order according to their weight. There may actually be an ingredient that weighs more than the tuna, say wheat, but manufacturers of the pet food may not want to list wheat as the first ingredient. So they will separate that wheat into three categories of germ, middlings and bran, with each category now weighing less than the tuna. Thus you will see tuna listed first, then the three separate wheat ingredients. So someone may think that tuna is the main ingredient since it is listed first, but it is actually more wheat based than tuna based.

Also, you might want to check that the food you are thinking of buying for your pet has been tested according to feeding protocols approved by the Association of American Feed Control Officials. And it never hurts to ask your friendly veterinarian for advice either!

Freebies are always fun to get–so grab some of these freebies for your pet now!

 Free Milk Bone Dog Chews

Free Purina Beggin’ Strips (2-packs)

Free Sample of Life’s Abundance Pet Food

Free Tube of Advantage Multi For Dogs

I can only imagine the controversy an online auction giving highest bidders the opportunity to clone their dogs may bring.

BioArts International, a biotech start-up that focuses on animal and human genomics, will hold five separate online auctions starting July 5th, with each separate auction running for 12 hours.

The auctions will last through July 9 on live bidding Web site ProxiBid.com. The first auction has a starting bid of $100,000, and that bid will increase by $20,000 each day. Sounds incredibly expensive? Well, according to Lou Hawthorne, CEO of BioArts International, the company will not even break even at these prices. And aside from the auctions, the company is planning to offer one lucky dog owner a free dog cloning , according to Hawthorne.

The winners of the auctions will submit DNA samples, and the company says it can guarantee a healthy cloned puppy within 3 to 12 months.

What do you think of dog cloning…does it bother you, or would you love the chance to clone your beloved dog one day?

Read more about dog cloning and the auctions  here.

Here we are in June already–wow! So what doggie happenings are coming this month?

Take Your Dog to Work Day is June 2oth. How fun for doggie lovers everywhere! I work at home so my little guys, alas, get to go nowhere…aw.

A bit of background on Take Your Dog To Work Day :

Take Your Dog To Work Day was first celebrated in 1999, and was created to celebrate the great companions dogs make and to encourage their adoption from humane societies, animal shelters and breed rescue clubs. This annual event encourages employers to experience the value of pets in their workplace for this one special day to promote pet adoptions.

The Bark magazine has done some “digging” around for dogs and the people that love them, and has come up with the top four dog-friendly workplaces. Bravo to these companies and all companies that support bringing dogs to work for the day, and help support doggie adoptions!

Amazon : Anywhere from 24 to 36 dogs come to work daily at the Seattle, WA, headquarters. Owners must first register their pups and agree to rules like keeping vaccines up to date and staying on a leash — unless they’re in their office, of course. This has to be a great place to work!

Healthwise: This Boise, ID, company that employs around 200 people have welcomed pets in the office since day one in 1975. Doggies must adhere to a “three-strikes” rule, ensuring that problem pooches get adequate warning before being booted. But with the miles of hiking trails that surround the complex, the pups seem to be too content (or just too tired) to cause trouble. That sounds fair to me.

Replacements, LTD: Can you imagine a 12,000-square-foot warehouse containing tons of china, crystal, and collectibles a place for dogs? Replacements’ founder, Bob Page, can and does imagine just that. With people coming into the showroom just to visit the dogs, it must be good for business! Bob makes sure that his employees’ pets’ behavior remains their responsibility by recommending training for misbehaving doggies, before allowing them back to the office in three months. Second chances— very nice!

Ben & Jerry’s: The ice cream giant’s headquarters in South Burlington, VT knows their 15 office dogs by name, and often introduces them to touring guests right alongside the employees. The dog-friendly environment has worked so well, that one Ben & Jerry’s employee who was afraid of dogs before starting, has since become a dog lover and adopted two golden retrievers of her own!

Thanks to The Bark for gathering this great information, and once again kudos to these wonderful employers!

Will you be taking your dog to work on June 20th?

Have you heard about Doga yet?  Doga is basically yoga for you and your dog. With your dog as your partner, you both work through a series of yoga poses together; the session may also include things like meditation and eye-gazing to strengthen the bond between you and your and dog .

It may sound a little odd to you, but consider the fact that many fans of Doga claim that their dogs are calmer, more focused, and easier to get along with. And for older dogs, the gentle stretches of doga can help ease aching joints, say Doga practitioners.

Suzi Teitelman, an American yogini, started the concept of doga when she noticed that her dog was extremely interested in her home yoga sessions. She started working on yoga poses with her dog Coali, and found that the dog greatly enjoyed the experience. Teitelman assumed that other dogs and their guardians could benefit from doga, so she started leading doga classes, and the trend quickly spread, especially among pampered pets .

If you are already a lover of Yoga , and a dog lover too, you might want to consider Doga !

Preventing fleas and tick bites on your dog is a much healthier solution than trying to treat your dog or puppy after they have been infested. Prevention of fleas and ticks can help keep your puppy from getting tapeworms or having bites that can cause severe itching and flea allergy dermatitis. You can also help prevent diseases that fleas and ticks carry such as Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and Tick Paralysis. You can keep fleas from infesting not only your puppy, but your home by using a flea prevention medicine. If you live in an area with year-long flea issues, use flea preventative medication monthly. This can include homes in the South, homes in the North with barns or garages where fleas survive the cold, and homes with pets that have serious flea-allergy problems.

Controlling fleas and ticks is much more difficult once they are a problem. Talk to your vet today to prevent your puppy from scratching miserably during the upcoming sumer months!

Walking Can Help You Live Longer.

A study of over 8000 men found that walking just two miles a day cut the risk of death almost in half. The walkers’ risk of death was especially lower from cancer.   Over a 12-year period, the study found that walking just two miles a day cut the risk of death almost in half. The walkers’ risk of death was especially lower from cancer. Those who walked infrequently were about 2 1/2 times more likely to die of cancer than were the two-mile-a-day men. These were men age 60 and above who appeared in good enough health to be able to walk. Those who did walk were less likely to die in the 12 years that followed.

Lose Weight

Walking every day, along with eating healthy, will help the weight come off.  Walking helps you build healthy lean muscle, lose inches of fat, and pump up your metabolism.  Most successful weight losers, maintain a program of walking or other exercise.

Walking Can Reduce Risk of Cancer

Studies have shown that walking and exercising reduces your chances of getting breast and colon cancer.  And Women who walk 1 - 3 hours per week after breast cancer diagnosis improve their survival rate by 20-50%, according to researchers.  Walking a half hour per day will also reduce risks for Type II Diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.

Walking Boosts Your Brain Power

Exercise, such as walking, increases the blood flow to the brain. A 1999 study of people over 60 found that walking 45 minutes a day at 16-minute mile pace increased the thinking skills of those over 60. The participants started at 15 minutes of walking and built up their time and speed. The result was that the same people were mentally sharper after taking up this walking program.

Walking Is Good For Your Mood and Spirit

Walking and other exercise leads to the release of the body’s natural happy drugs - endorphins. Walkers who walk at a higher heart rate will notice this effect more than those who walk at a slower heart rate pace. But even at a slower pace, most people notice an improvement in mood.

So there you have it.  Get out the leash, get some water bottles for you and your pal,  and get walking!

Have you ever come home to find toilet paper all over your floors?  And a mischievous little face looking at you as if to say, “gosh, I don’t know what happened?”  If you do have a toilet paper fiend in your home, there is a new product, actually meat to stop little baby hands from destroying toilet paper, that also works well for puppy paws.

The product is called the  Toilet Paper Saver , and is simple to use and will hopefully deter anymore toilet paper fiascos in your home. To use, you just slide the tube into the roll and attach the plug end into it to hold down the top sheet and save your roll. You can even add it after the toilet paper is on the holder so it’s easy to detach and reattach when you need to use it.

The Tp Saver will cost you about $6.00.  Well worth the price to avoid toilet paper madness in your home!

At first thought, many pet owners might dismiss crate training for dogs as cruel and unecessary.  However, crate training, if done correctly, can not only be a positive way to help a pet learn house rules, it can also be a safety measure for pets left alone at home.

Crate training your dog or puppy takes some time and effort, but it is a proven way to help train dogs who act inappropriately without knowing any better. If you have a new dog or puppy, you can use the crate to limit his access to the house until he learns all the house rules—like what he can and can’t chew on and where he can and can’t eliminate.  If you properly train your dog to use the crate, he’ll think of it as his safe place and will be happy to spend time there when needed.

Some suggestions for crate training your puppy or dog are included here for you, but always check with your veterinarian if you have any questions or concerns.

Place the dog crate in an area of your home that is used by the family a lot, such as a family room.  Place a soft towel or blanket inside the crate.  Next, drop some small food treats nearby, then just inside the door, and finally, all the way inside the crate. If he refuses to go all the way in at first, that’s okay; don’t force him to enter. Continue tossing treats into the crate until your dog will walk calmly all the way into the crate to get the food.

Start feeding your puppy his meals by the crate.  At each feeding, place the food dish a little farther inside the crate, until your dog is comfortable standing completely inside the crate as he eats.  Then close the door to the crate, but be sure to open the door as soon as he finishes eating.  At the next meal time, open the door a few minutes after your puppy finishes eating, and continue extending the amount of time between the food being finished and the door being opened.

If your dog whines before you open the door, it is important to wait until he stops whining before you open the door, or he’ll associate whining with getting you to open the door.

After your dog is eating his regular meals in the crate with no sign of fear or anxiety,  the next step in crate training is to  confine him there for short time periods while you’re home. Call him over to the crate and give him a treat. Give him a command to enter, such as “kennel.” Encourage him by pointing to the inside of the crate with a treat in your hand. After your dog enters the crate, praise him, give him the treat, and close the door.

Then sit near the crate for a few minutes, then leave the room for a few minutes.  Return and it by the crate again, and after about 5-10 minutes, let your puppy out of the crate.  Do this several times a day until the dog or puppy will stay calmly in the training crate about half an hour with you out of sight.  At this point, your puppy should be able to be left alone for short periods of time while you are out, and sleep overnight in the crate as well.

Continue to crate your dog for short periods from time to time when you’re home so he doesn’t associate crating with being left alone.

When crating your dog at night, you should put the crate in your bedroom or nearby in a hallway, especially if you have a puppy. Puppies often need to go outside to eliminate during the night, and you’ll want to be able to hear your puppy when he whines to be let outside.  Older dogs, too, should initially be kept nearby so that they don’t associate the crate with social isolation .

Puppies under six months of age shouldn’t stay in a crate for more than three or four hours at a time. They can’t control their bathroom needs longer than that, and will probably go to the bathroom in the crate.

It cannot be stressed enough that crate trianing must be done with patience, love and over time. If not used correctly, a dog can feel trapped and frustrated. For example, if your dog is crated all day while you’re at work and then crated again all night, he’s spending too much time in too small a space. Other arrangements should be made to meet his physical and emotional needs.

To learn more about the best way to crate train your puppy or dog, visit The Humane Society Website .

Many Scientists believe that dogs do dream.  In fact, they believe there is enough evidence to show that every mammal that has been studied dreams.

But when you see your dog twitching, tail wagging and yipping in his or her sleep, don’t you wonder what they could be dreaming about?

According to scientists,  there are two main types of sleep: rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and slow wave sleep (SWS). SWS and REM sleep in pets are very similar to that of humans. During this time, the brain processes information learned during the day.  It’s at some point during these two kinds of sleep, dreams take over — for us as well as in  our pets.

But what are their dreams about?  In humans, our dreams can be a combination of exeriences as well as imagination.   But what about dogs and cats?  Do they have imaginations in addition to memories?

If you have ever watched a playful cat pay attention to something that’s seemingly not there, and then react to it,you would probably say yes, cats and dogs have imagiations as well.  What about the cute puppy that wags it’s ail and squats as if he is about to pounce on a ferocious foe that is not really there?  Playful imagination at work?

Scientists have found that when awakened during REM sleep,  people in studies reported having a dream. During the REM sleep, the human brain has a lot of “gamma activity” going on, just like it does when the person is awake. This means that essentially, the brain is behaving just as it does when conscious. Since every mammal studied shows the same brain activity during REM sleep as us humans, it’s not such a leap to believe that our dog or puppy really is dreaming.

Adult dogs spend about 10 to 12 percent of their sleeping time in REM sleep, and  puppies and kittens spend quite a bit more of  their sleep time in REM sleep, which makes sense since they’ve been so busy all day exploring their new world. They have tons of new data to process, sort and store into their memories.

So if your puppy spends a busy morning playing at the dog park, or chasing butterflies in your backyard, pay special attention  when he naps later.  If you catch a tail wag or hear a happy yip or yap, chances are that your puppy is reliving his experiences from his earlier playtime!