You Are What Your Pet Dog Eats!

Dogs as they say are a man’s best friend. They give companionship and can brighten up your day after a long day’s work. A bond like no other can be established between a pet and their owner. By giving great care and nurturing to your dog you two can have a prosperous life together. Proper pet care is very important to an owner and should be measured with great importance.

When dealing with a pet’s proper care, the first thing that should come to mind is their diet. A dog’s diet is very important to their health and well being. Choosing the correct type of dog food is vital in keeping your dog healthy. Whether buying the right type or making your own concoction, it is important to understand what types of nutrients and vitamins your dog needs.

This can be done, but you have to be careful here as well. It would actually be better to consult the local vet about the components of your concoction. This way, you can still be sure proper dog care is fostered with your own dog food mix.

When it comes to proper dog care, you would want to feed your pet the best dog food in the market. Now, there have been a lot of differences in opinions as to which is the best dog food to get, considering shelf life as well. Whichever brand you choose, you would actually have to consider the categories they come in as well.

These are dry food, wet food, mixer food, homemade food, and fresh food. Whats more, dog food is not necessarily categorized in terms of its contents. Dog food can also be categorized according to the purpose.

Some specific needs dog food include allergy reducing, weight management, and diabetic dog food.

Dogs are allergic to food just like humans are and it is important for you to know if and what food allergies your dog has. Since you are the one feeding your dog, it is up to you to make sure he doesn’t eat it mistakenly.

Springer Spaniels - Excellent Breed, Lifelong Buddies

Springer Spaniels are extremely smart and learn very quickly. Being highly enthusiastic, eager to please, loyal, affectionate, and people-oriented makes the Springer an ideal companion for both city and country life. Many owner find humor in their energetic and playful animals that bring a smile to their faces. With proper training the can excel in agility, tracking, retrieving, obedience, hunting, and field trials. They are the perfect choice for families because they are so wonderful with children. Of course as with any dog breed, children should always be supervised to make sure they are not antagonizing the dog.

Owners will be satisfied with a Springer because they are so friendly and eager to please. Their temperament has been compared to the popular Golden Retriever. They are happy to just be with their family even if that means just lying around the house. They are very flexible and acclimate easily to various activity levels, as long as they are allowed to be with people as much as possible. Springer Spaniels are incredibly affectionate! We know this from experience. As breeders, we have raised a lot of puppies and can absolutely testify to this fact.

Normally weighing between 35-55 pounds at adulthood this is the English Springer Spaniel breed which is medium in size. Springers can remain in good health most of their lives which can span 10 to 14 years. Field bred Springers have short hair and are generally more active than the show bred types. Field bred Springers have docked tails, but their tails are docked longer than the show Springers so their tails are still functional as an alert signal while hunting.

English Springer Spaniels generally have two different variations of colored fur which are either black and white or liver and white. A tri-color combination exists, characterized by a liver, white, and black coat, but this combination occurs infrequently and only results when the sire and dam are both tri-color as well. They are also known for having a white blaze on their faces usually down the middle.

English Springer Spaniels were bred to be natural hunters with a lot of energy, so you can expect your Springer to enjoy running around, sniffing out “game,”and retrieving things for you. Springers are happy to spend all day outside with their masters, they love water and are not particularly sensitive to weather in general. Being a very old breed they have been popular dogs for a long, long time. They are one of the oldest and best established hunting and gun dog breed.

So I hope you can see why we think Springers are a wonderful fit for many different situations, lifestyles, and families. These loving animals can find a place in anyone’s heart and home which is something we have experienced.

Guide to Housebreaking Your Puppy

Keeping your house spic and span with an untrained puppy is virtually impossible. If not properly trained both you and your puppy will not be happy. Housebreaking your puppy is the first training you should do. Start off with a schedule and be consistent. As creatures of habit, it is in their nature to keep schedules as pack animals.

Ideal Housebreaking Age

It is best to start housebreaking your puppy when he/she reaches 8 to 12 weeks of age.

Crate Training

Crate Training is used to help housebreak your puppy. Make your puppy’s crate as comfortable as possible. This will be his sanctuary, his own room, so to speak. It is of vital importance not to keep your puppy in the crate for more than two hours at a time. The crate is not to be used for punishment.

In order to housebreak your puppy, keep in mind that puppy’s 3 to 8 weeks have to relieve themselves every 3 hours so be sure to take them outside within that time period. If you leave your puppy in the crate for longer amounts of time he will not be able to hold it. Never, ever use the crate as punishment you do not want your puppy to associate the crate as a bad thing.

Get Your Puppy Used To Routines

When it is time to take your dog out doors to eliminate be sure to use one door only. This way he will use that door to let you know he needs to go outside.

Be sure to keep the same schedule every day. This will make him learn to hold it in until you can take him outside.

Look For Clues

If your un-housebroken dog is accustomed to roaming freely around the house, search for signs that show you he needs to do it. Be really observant enough of his behavior, i.e., heavy sniffing, circling an area, staring at the door with an intense look on his face, etc. If you catch him WHILE doing it, stop him with a quick grab of his collar and pull it up while saying “No” using your deep, stern tone (don’t forget to use a deep, gruff voice when stating commands). Then, take him outside and let him finish what he is doing. Lastly, pat him on his head while saying “Good (his name)!” It is a must to make your dog get used to being praised whenever he does anything that makes you proud. Giving him food as a reward when he does his business in the appropriate spot can help, too.

Patience is a Big Virtue

Like any training endeavor, housebreaking requires a lot of patience. If you definitely despise cleaning your dog’s waste off your Persian carpets on an hourly basis and having your whole house smell like a public bathroom, you want the housebreaking to be successful in a wink of an eye, if not sooner.

Common Sense Makes a Lot of Sense

Common Sense will help you and your dog while housebreaking. Stick to a routine, do not give him water before bed, to not ignore the clues.

Housebreaking your puppy requires patience, consistency and a big commitment. Stick to it and you will succeed.

Best of luck!

Training Your Dog to Sit Up, Heel & Lie Down

Assuming that your little guy is familiar with the Sit command, he is now ready to move forward to the Lie Down command. This Intermediate Training behavior is simple to implement for most dogs and should be easily integrated into his routine.

First, command your little pal to Sit. Take his favorite treat and move it a bit closer to the ground prior to allowing him to take it. Don’t allow movement from the Sit position. After he has this process learned, move the treat a bit farther away but still keeping it on the ground. Uh Oh! Now, he must lie down in order to reach this little goody. When he does this, simply say, “Lie Down.” Be consistent and eventually you will be able to fade out the treat completely. Patience is a must — he may try to get up but simply keep him in the Sit position until he has mastered the entire technique.

Leash pulling, lunging at other pets or people are examples of ugly behavior. You don’t want this for your little guy. Teach him to stay next to you by walking him in a small area in one direction, keeping the leash slack. Change directions occasionally and eventually he will understand where you are going and that being by your side is a good thing. But, you know by now, that dogs love to sniff and explore. So, give him a little grace from time to time to enjoy his world.

After your little friend is consistent with the Sit behavior, training him to Sit Up is a snap. Choose a bit of food or his favorite treat, hold it over his head while he is in a Sitting position but low enough so that he can reach it. Continue this maneuver but raise the treat a bit higher each time so that he must stretch for it but still remain seated.

Once consistency is in place, hold the treat even higher. He will be unable to take it unless he raises his front paws from the ground. When he does this, use the verbal cue, “Sit Up” and reward him in this position. Eventually, he will become conditioned to this cue and you can start to fade out the treat and use your hand only, still saying, “Sit Up”.

The Intermediate Behaviors Training will be a fun challenge for both you and your dog. Be consistent, patient and gentle with your little guy. He only wants your approval and acceptance.

How To Stop Your Dog’s Aggression Towards Strangers

Aggression in dogs is scary. Having a dog that acts aggressively towards strangers is a big problem. There are some things you can do to help correct the problem, but first you should understand why your dog is acting this way.

Dogs are instinctively aggressive by nature. Aggression came in handy when they lived in the wild - dogs needed aggression to hunt, to defend themselves from other animals, and to defend resources like their food, their den, and their mate.

While selective breeding over the last few centuries has definitely minimized this natural trait, all dogs are still capable of causing serious injury.

The good thing is, there is a lot we can do as dog owners to prevent this aggression from surfacing. And if it does surface - for whatever reason - there are things you can do to deal with it.

Although aggression in dogs comes in different forms, aggression towards strangers is one that is quite common. This type of aggression is stems from nervousness. If he becomes nervous around strangers, his instinct is to protect himself (and you) from the percieved threat.

Its pretty easy to tell when a dogs nervous around strange people. He’ll be jumpy and on the alert. You’ll see this in one of two ways… either he can’t sit still (constantly fidgeting, jumping at the smallest sound, and pacing around barking and whining) or he’s completely still, sitting in one place, staring hard at the person he’s suspicious of. This could be anyone - a visitor, the mailman, or someone approaching him on the street.

A dog who acts this way around strangers hasn’t been exposed to new people very often. The only way he’ll learn that strangers aren’t a bad thing is through experience. He relies completely on you to broaden his horizons - to take him to different places where he can meet new people. Until that happens, he’ll be unsure of new people… which is what leads to stranger aggression.

This is what we call “socialization” - and it’s an important part of raising a healthy, stable dog. The best time to start is when he’s a puppy, but it should continue throughout your dog’s life. Giving him a lot of new experiences helps him become comfortable in new situations. It gives him confidence. The only way this happens is by taking him out in the world and exposing him to new people, places and things.

It’s not enough to expose an adult dog to a crowd of new, unfamiliar people and just say, “Settle down, Roxy, it’s OK”… your dog has to learn that it’s okay on his own. That’s what socializing does… it lets your dog learn this by exposing him to all types of people and animals: from babies and toddlers to teens and elderly, from people in uniform to people carrying umbrellas or riding bikes.

By starting as a puppy, these new experiences become “common place” to your dog. He learns that new people are friendly and fun which makes him more relaxed and at ease when he encounters strangers in the future.

A fun way to start socializing your new puppy is to sign him up for puppy preschool. These puppy classes are usually held at vet centers or some other indoor, controlled environment. It’s a series of classes created specifically for puppies and their owners.

The typical puppy class has about a dozen puppies and owners. They are run by a qualified dog trainer who is usually joined by one or two assistants. By having more than one instructor, you and your puppy will have more one-on-one time with one of the trainers. During class, you will learn about your puppy’s developmental stages and even some basic obedience commands.

It’s fun to learn how to teach your puppy to “come” but the biggest benefit of joining a puppy class is the socialization. Until you’ve finished your puppy shots, many vets will discourage you from taking your puppy out in public. The main concern is parvo, which is highly contagous and very dangerous to puppies. Puppy classes provide a safe environment to start socializing your puppy at an earlier age. There are usually several “play sessions” per class to let the puppies run around and play together off-leash. This group play helps them learn how to interact with other dogs. It also gives them a chance to meet new people and start learning that they don’t have to be afraid of strangers.

Just remember… socializing at puppy school is just the start. To raise a friendly, confident dog you need to continue exposing him to new experiences. You’ll want to take him to as many new places as possible - just don’t overwhelm him. Start off slow, and you’ll see his confidence grow. By consistently socializing your dog, he’ll grow up knowing that new people and new places are good things. He’ll have nothing to fear, especially strangers!

Training Your Dog to Sit Up, Heel & Lie Down

Assuming that your little guy is familiar with the Sit command, he is now ready to move forward to the Lie Down command. This Intermediate Training behavior is simple to implement for most dogs and should be easily integrated into his routine.

First, command your little pal to Sit. Take his favorite treat and move it a bit closer to the ground prior to allowing him to take it. Don’t allow movement from the Sit position. After he has this process learned, move the treat a bit farther away but still keeping it on the ground. Uh Oh! Now, he must lie down in order to reach this little goody. When he does this, simply say, “Lie Down.” Be consistent and eventually you will be able to fade out the treat completely. Patience is a must — he may try to get up but simply keep him in the Sit position until he has mastered the entire technique.

You must communicate to your dog that pulling on his leash is unacceptable. Good manners are a must and lunging and jumping at other people or pets is simply bad behavior. Begin teaching him to walk next to you by making small circles, walking very slowly. Change from walking to the left to walking to the right. Eventually, there will be total slack in the leash. But hey! Once in a while, allow him to smell the roses. Every dog loves to explore and your baby deserves this treat occasionally.

Training your dog to Sit Up can be utilized only after he has learned the Sit command. Simply hold his favorite treat or food over his head, just so he can reach it from a Sitting position. Condition him to take the treat higher and higher so he must reach for it but still remain in the Sitting position.

Once consistency is in place, hold the treat even higher. He will be unable to take it unless he raises his front paws from the ground. When he does this, use the verbal cue, “Sit Up” and reward him in this position. Eventually, he will become conditioned to this cue and you can start to fade out the treat and use your hand only, still saying, “Sit Up”.

Teaching you little pal Intermediate Behaviors is going to be a very rewarding experience, both for you and your dog. Remember, patience is the key and loving and accepting your pet will cause him to want to please you. Enjoy the time you have together.