Poodle History And Standards

January 20, 2009 by · Comments Off 

by Lisa A Collins

The Standard Poodle is one of the most popular dog breeds in the United States. For more than ten years, the Poodle has consistently ranked in the American Kennel Club’s top ten registered breeds. This confident, dignified breed makes an excellent pet for an owner who wants an active, intelligent dog.

To measure a Poodle’s height against the standard of the breed, measure the dog at the highest point of the shoulder. A Standard Poodle measures more than fifteen inches at the shoulder. A Miniature Poodle measures fifteen inches or less at the shoulder, and a Toy Poodle measures less than ten inches.

Standards for the Poodle coat are the same for all three sizes. The Poodle coat is dense, wiry and curly, and also rough to the touch. Standards of the breed allow a range of colors from black to white, with brown, apricot blue, gray and silver in between.

The Standard Poodle probably originated as a cross between a Hungarian Water Hound and a French water dog known as the Barbet. The breed’s dense, curly coat is somewhat water resistant, and hunters developed the typical Poodle cut, with puffs of hair at the front and rear leg joints, to protect the dogs’ joints from the cold during the hunting season.

The Standard Poodle is thought to have descended from a mix between the Barbet, a French water dog and a Hungarian Water Hound. The Miniature and Toy varieties were bred down from the Standard Poodle. Once used as a sporting dog, Poodles retrieved waterfowl during gun hunts. The traditional Poodle cut, with extra hair at the joints, was meant to insulate the dogs’ joints against the cold water. Poodles also worked as truffle hunters, and circus performers. In fact, they remain familiar icons in popular culture, and they continue to perform in the modern entertainment industry.

A Standard Poodle can become famous because their owners are famous or because they gain fame in their own right, or because their famous owners incorporate them into their public persona. Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas had three Poodles, named Basket, Basket II and Basket III. “Weird Al” Yankovic has a poodle named Bela, who posed on Yankovic’s head for the cover of his “Poodle Hat” album. WWE Superstar Rene Dupree has a poodle named Fifi.

Standard Poodle can become famous as a performer, while others derive their fame from their celebrity owners. Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas loved their first Poodle, Basket, so much that they got two more Poodles, named Basket II and Basket III. Performer “Weird Al” Yankovic has a Toy Poodle named Bela, whom he on top of his head for the cover of his album “Poodle Hat”. Wrestling star Rene Dupree, who know uses the professional name “Rene Bonaparte”, often refers to his Poodle Fifi.

And a fictional Poodle named Fifi is featured in the animated TV series Rugrats. Most Standard Poodles will never see their name in lights, but their owners nevertheless consider them stars.

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A Basic Guide To Teacup Chihuahua

January 20, 2009 by · Comments Off 

by Sandra Dean

Teacup Chihuahuas, despite of their tiny size, are a very robust type of dog. If you compare them to other tiny breeds, they are physically quite steady and very healthy compared to the others. If you are an owner of a Teacup Chihuahuas, it means you have a good companion in your life. Although Teacup Chihuahuas are good watchdogs and usually bark really loud when strangers come to your home. Once you let visitors in to your home Teacup Chihuahuas can be very friendly, with a sweet and loving personality.

Teacup Chihuahuas can be long coated or have a really short coat, either way the hair resembles the hair of a human. Typically people who are allergic to dog or cat hair do not face any sort of problem with the coat of Teacup Chihuahuas. Due to the exquisitely long hair, some Teacup Chihuahuas owners may need regular grooming of their dogs. In fact, Teacup Chihuahuas need frequent grooming sessions from an expert grooming professional.

A regular exercise, exposure to soft daylight and plenty of fresh air can help your Teacup Chihuahua to stay fit and healthy. While going for a walk with your Teacup Chihuahua, you must take care. It is mainly because of their friendly attitude that they sometimes welcome undesired danger to themselves. They tend to greet other Teacup Chihuahuas while walking, however, the greetings sometime may not be a pretty experience if the other dog does not have the same friendly temperament.

Due to their sweet and friendly nature Teacup Chihuahuas can make friends with other household animals such as other dogs or cats. Even in a strange environment, Teacup Chihuahuas show their friendliness to other bigger dogs without any apparent fear. However, you should be careful because not all dogs are as friendly as your Teacup Chihuahua. Teacup Chihuahuas become very friendly to pet cats, however you should take care in this case as well. The cats may use their claws while playing with your Teacup Chihuahuas, which may hurt the little dog, especially the eye areas.

While you consider buying a Teacup Chihuahua, you must be concerned about three essential needs. These are good nutrition, warmth and affection. Teacup Chihuahuas need to be fed three to four times a day until they become six months old. After that time twice daily will do.

However, later on twice daily servings are enough for their health. You must provide them a balanced diet in order to avoid obesity and other related complications, such as crippling bone diseases.

Sleep is also very crucial for the health of a Teacup Chihuahua. A warm and quiet place is needed for sleep. Usually the Teacup Chihuahua offers full energy at the time it is playing, but it may fall asleep out of the blue, due to energy loss. However, this sudden sleeping pattern changes with age.

Regular exercise can make a Teacup Chihuahuas healthy and bouncy. Lack of exercise may promote unusual behavior patterns in the dog. To make your dog a happy creature, you must offer it deep affection and treat it as a respectful family member. Remember, like you do, Teacup Chihuahuas also love to live their life with companions.

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Beagles Make Interesting Pets

January 16, 2009 by · Comments Off 

by Michelle Adams

A happy, healthy animal always makes the best pets, especially when there are young children in the house, and the happy, go-lucky nature of beagles make them ideal to have around the house. Although needing plenty of exercise to help them maintain a healthy weight to ward off the development of hypothyroidism, the overall health of beagles is one of their features that make them such lovable pets.

Their incessant barking and rowdy behavior when confronted by a stranger makes them appear more aggressive than their nature supports, but this action is what makes this otherwise friendly pet such a good watchdog, Usually, a word from its owner will settle the dog down while it becomes accustomed to this new person in its territory. In addition to them making excellent pets and serving as the occasional watchdog, beagles also can be trained as hunting dogs to track and capture game, due to its keen sense of smell.

Its diligence as a hunting dog can be traced back to the 18th century when hunters wanting to spend all day on the hunt used beagles to track and corner hares. Their later use as rabbit hunters allowed them to use their nose to follow the rabbits into high weeds and under brush to find the elusive quarry. Being in reasonably good health beagles also have the stamina needed to chase down as animal into its hiding place and then work on routing the rabbit into an opening.

Beagles trained for hunting and those that have adequate outdoor space in which to run seldom develop a weight problem, provided their diet is consistent with their needs. One of their physical traits, long eyelashes that contributes to their overall appearance can also cause problems, these long lashes may curl into the eyes and become embedded. But this easily fixed by minor surgery and by the owner being conscious of the possibility during grooming.

Their lack of aggression and small stature make them ideal playmates for other small animals and they seem to get along well with felines with similar personalities.

Their keen sense of smell as well as their stamina made them attractive as hunting dogs, especially during the days when people enjoyed the all-day hunts. They can fit into heavily wooded areas or in thick brush to bring out rabbits.

One of the smartest of the dog breeds, they not only remember and recognize previous friends of the family they have met, but can also quickly master some of the most complex commands.

As hunters began to shift their focus onto faster hunts, the beagles’ use waned in place of faster hunting dogs.

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Advice On Raising A Shar Pei Rescue Dog

January 16, 2009 by · Comments Off 

by Melissa Coleman

Giving a pet a second chance at a good life is always a wonderful thing to do and when you take in a Shar Pei rescue dog you are doing a wonderful and humane thing.

But in the meantime you will need patience and you will need to make sure that you keep an eye out for potentially bad traits and be ready to deal with some of the issues that come along with taking in an abused pet.

Let your new Shar Pei rescue dog check out its new home and just take in all of the new sights and scents. Very quickly the dog will begin to realize that it is in a new situation and that could be good or that could be bad but at least it will have some time to get a feel for where it is and know it is not in the abusive situation anymore.

A Shar Pei rescue dog is going to need time to adjust to the hustle and bustle of a new home and even though they are very intelligent they are still going to need time to adjust. A lot of commotion or quick sudden movements towards the dog are going to confuse it so make sure you reduce the amount of clatter that goes on in your home and make sure no one is constantly lunging at the dog or else it can get confused.

In the course of training your new Shar Pei rescue dog it will make mistakes even as intelligent as it is. When your dog makes mistakes do not punish it because that will only make things worse. Punishment will confuse the dog and could spark more aggressive behavior so use only positive reinforcement in your training and remember that the Shar Pei takes to training very well and can get bored quickly so keep it interesting.

There is an aggression with the Shar Pei that comes from its original breeding as an intelligent fighting dog. However they are also fiercely loyal to their family and once they develop that habit they become a wonderful family pet.

They are also very loyal dogs that become very attached to their family and if you show enough patience and love towards them then eventually they will drop the aggression and move to being the loyal family dog they really want to be.

Anything you try to teach a Shar Pei rescue dog will eventually sink in and the dog responds very well to training. But you need to exercise patience and have a little respect for what the dog has been through before you can really make your new dog the loyal family pet it wants to be.

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French Bulldog Puppies

January 5, 2009 by · Comments Off 

by Bobby Callahan

French Bulldog puppies are very friendly and eager to please as result of their nature. Although they are very aggressive with other dogs despite their gentle nature with humans. So you need to take the necessary time in order to properly socialize your French Bulldog puppies with other people and pets. If there is every any aggression towards humans then you need to take your puppy to a professional trainer right away.

So from an early age your should take French Bulldog puppies around other people and pets. Take them to public area and let strangers pet and play with them, but be sure to establish your authority over the dog. This dominance needs to be established early on in order for you pet to be obedient later in life. French Bulldog puppies are extremely dominant and if you don’t establish authority early on it will be extremely difficult to get it later on. Also proper socialization early can help your puppy to develop an even temper.

It is also important when raising French Bulldog puppies that you get them their vaccinations and then maintain their yearly booster shots so that they remain immune to common diseases. You will also want to ask your veterinarian about flea control products and worming treatments.

For French Bulldog puppies you also want to make sure you feed them a high-grade dog food. Meat should be the first ingredient in any high quality dog food. Make sure it contains no less than thirty percent crude protein, twenty percent crude fat and four percent fiber.

Each day you want to make sure your puppy gets at least thirty to forty-five minutes of exercise. Due to their active nature, French Bulldog puppies will require a lot of activity. To avoid fights with other dogs, make sure your puppy is on a leash when outdoors. Even the calmest puppy at home will quickly turn into an entirely different dog once it is faced with another dog on a walk outside.

You also want to make sure you start obedience training early. You want to command your puppy through voice alone because of the dominance of the breed. You will likely get best results through positive reinforcement rather than physical since the breed is eager to please. When disciplining French Bulldog puppies the cold shoulder approach works best. Since the breed relies on attention, not giving it to them is worse than any other disciplinary methods you can come up with such as a newspaper.

Not giving attention to the puppy is worse than any other disciplinary methods such as a newspaper since the breed relies on this attention. It is also important when raising French Bulldog puppies that you remain calm. This is extremely important when it comes to French Bulldog puppies.

So calm is very important especially when around strangers, otherwise you need to keep tight control over your dog so it doesn’t end up needlessly injuring someone.

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Advice About Rescuing Rottweilers ? From A Rescuer

January 5, 2009 by · Comments Off 

by Sharon Davies

Rottweiler rescue organizations provide a valuable service by serving as an alternative to the dog pound for owners of purebred Rottweiler dogs that, for a variety of reasons, must give up their dog. The owner may have gotten the Rottweilers with good intentions, planning to keep the dog for its entire life. Then something happens. Many purebred Rottweiler dogs end up homeless because of death, marriage, eviction or new children. The Rottweiler is an excellent watchdog, and some owners get their Rottweilers for the purpose of guarding property. When the property changes hands, the watchdog may not be needed any longer needed. Instead of easing the Rottweiler into retirement as a house pet, some owners prefer to give their dogs away.

A Rottweiler dog owner who can no longer keep his or her Rottweiler can surrender the dog to a Rottweiler rescue organization. However, owners should be absolutely certain they are being forced to give up their dog before they turn the Rottweiler over to a Rottweiler rescue organization. Luckily for the dogs, Rottweiler rescue organizations are eventually able to find homes for most Rottweilers. Remember, no one should get any dog thinking that they can turn it over to a rescue group if things don’t work out.

The Rottweiler is a confident breed, and a strong-willed owner needs to show the dog who is in charge. An adult Rottweiler weighs eighty to one hundred thirty-five pounds, and an out-of-control Rottweiler can be harmful to itself and its human companions. Rottweiler puppy training should begin at eight to ten weeks of age. However, owners of rescue dogs often know little or nothing about the training their dogs have received, so they can’t assume their dogs were trained as puppies. Depending on the circumstances, the Rottweiler rescue group may not have information about what kind of training a dog has already completed.

Rottweiler rescue dog owners should take obedience training with their dogs. These classes are an enjoyable experience for both the owner and the dog, and they will either be a welcome review for a dog that may have received training earlier in life or provided much-needed structure for a Rottweiler who has never had formal training.

A Rottweiler will enjoy the structured activities involved with the obedience courses, and the owner will find the course a useful device for establishing leadership in the pet-owner relationship. Obedience training, combined with vigorous exercise, will resolve behavior issues in most Rottweiler dogs.

Rottweiler rescue groups will only accept Rottweiler dogs that are in good health, with current vaccinations. Each dog that is accepted as a rescue dog undergoes a health and temperament evaluation by a veterinarian, and the owner who turns the dog over is required to pay a nominal fee to cover intake expenses. The fee is also meant to discourage owners from dumping dogs on the rescue groups, and encourages owners to think long and hard before surrendering their dog.

Prospective Rottweiler rescue dog owners must apply to adopt a dog and must provide proof of home ownership or written permission from the homeowner where the dog will live. Applicants must also get the written permission of all other adults in the household. These restrictions are meant to ensure that the dog can stay in its new home. Rottweiler rescue dogs enjoy the companionship of other dogs, but any other dogs in the household must have current vaccinations and be temperamentally disposed to living with an additional dog.

If your application for adoption is approved, congratulations! Soon you will be matched with a rescue dog for a temporary trial period, called a foster period. If this foster period is successful, you and your adopted dog will be permanently matched.

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Find Your Perfect Pet: Check Out The Bichon Frise Rescue Dog

December 23, 2008 by · Comments Off 

by Mary Stevenson

When you get a Bichon rescue dog expect nothing but love from it. These dogs, well known for their cuddly beauty, make exceptional pets for those who love animals and love to be constantly around them. The Bichon Frise dog is an exceptionally loving dog as it is beautiful and when you get one from a rescue center you should be completely assured that you are making the best choice ever.

What you will get is an excellently trained animal completely matched to your requirements. Let us say that you have two young children and you need an animal that is comfortable around children, you will be able to find just the right Bichon Frise rescue dog for you. Similarly, if you have a small flat or a large one, if you live alone or with a menagerie of other animals, trust the rescue workers to find you a perfect choice.

It is unlikely that their previous owners will have beaten or tortured these dogs, which will indeed leave deep emotional scars. The fact will be that the owner will have found some problem in their home and cannot accommodate the dog any longer.

A Bichon Frise rescue dog will pine for love, affection and an owner. In the shelter it will feel isolated and lonely which is pretty traumatic for these dogs because they particularly love human companionship and close interaction.

You will find when you get the dog home that it is either very happy and bounces all over the place or that it is very circumspect and suspicious of everything that comes in the front of it. You need to treat it with patience and a lot of love. Allow it to move freely even if there are a few accidents in the meantime.

There are many things that you need to do when you bring home a Bichon Frise rescue dog. Among the first things will be to show it its haven or safe place. Have it in a place which is a little secluded, yet not away from your company. It can be at the foot of the bed in a wide and comfortable dog basket, near your favorite armchair or the like. The dog should feel safe and secure there, as well as comfortable.

Give the dog time sufficient time to understand the rules of your home, while at the same time interact with it constantly. Always have some tidbits with you and reward the dog amply whenever it does anything praiseworthy. Ignore things it does wrong initially and continue to reward the good behavior.

There is a total bonding that forms between any pet and yourself once you have it for some time with you. There is however a very special bond when it comes to a Bichon Frise rescue dog. There is the fun time of discovering each other and there is the time when both feel grateful about each other’s presence. Adopting a dog is a wonderful thing.

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Where You Can See Shar Pei Pictures

December 23, 2008 by · Comments Off 

by Melissa Coleman

Some people just love to look at Shar Pei pictures and luckily there are a lot of places all around that you can get Shar Pei pictures from and enjoy them. Some are sources that may take a little looking and others are right in front of you but there are enough folks out there snapping pictures of these wrinkly little dogs that there is a very good chance that if you really want to see a seemingly endless supply of Shar Pei pictures then you can have that.

Professional photographers love to take pictures of all breeds of dogs and one of their favorite subjects is the Shar Pei. There are a lot of over sized professional picture books at your local book store dedicated to the Shar Pei and these beautiful larger than life prints will certainly bring you all of the detail you could ever need in your Shar Pei pictures.

You are going to find that most of the really easy and accessible Shar Pei pictures are found on the Internet. The only trick is knowing which sites to look for to find the best pictures. One of the first sites you can try are the many message boards dedicated to discussions about the Shar Pei.

More than likely you will not find a better source for free Shar Pei pictures than the different sites on the Internet. The only trick is figuring out which sites will carry the best pictures and the best variety of pictures. One of the first websites you can try are message boards dedicated to the discussion of Shar Pei owning. There are owners all over the world updating these sites every day so not only is there a huge variety of Shar Pei pictures already on the site but it gets added to all the time which means regular updates and new pictures to look at.

You can also check out the websites of individual Shar Pei owners as well. In many cases the owners will have a daily diary they keep along with regularly updating the pictures so you can not only see the Shar Pei in its daily life, but also get a very good idea of its regular behavior. These types of sites cannot only be entertaining but they can be very educational as well.

Shar Pei breeders can be an excellent source of great Shar Pei pictures and if they host a website then that is even better. The Shar Pei breeder wants their business to be shown in the best light possible so they are going to have a great collection of quality Shar Pei pictures for you to check out.

They will also have the different types of Shar Pei on their site as well so you can use it as another way to learn more about the Shar Pei.

Never rule out your local library as a place for finding some nice Shar Pei pictures as well. You could spend hours going through all the picture books they have and it costs you nothing. Finding great Shar Pei pictures is not that difficult you just need to know where to get started. Once you get started you can use your imagination and take it from there.

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