Dogs love, love, love to play fetch

Eight month old Ryder is our poster boy this week. He openly admits it - he's addicted to fetch!

Fetch is a great game for both dogs and humans - except for a possible sore “fetch arm” and slobbery fingers. The absolute best product to turbo-charge your fetch game, while keeping your arm intact and fingers dry is the Chuckit! Ultra Grip. Not just the basic Chuckit! – the Ultra Grip handle is rubberized making it easier to grab and use and the stick helps you throw balls much farther, giving your dog a great workout.

Available at most pet stores, check out Chuckit! sticks online at http://www.chuckit.com/products/chuckitultra/chuckitultra.html#

Dogs just want to have fun

Experience the pleasure of healthy, happy dogs enjoying life.

Ember & Akeela
Otis
Ozzy
OdieChandlerCobalt
BaileyTiller
Sibley
Cobalt
Sonny
Roody
Loki
Henry
Finnigan
Doober

Spayday! Spayday! Spayday!

Spayday! Spayday! Spayday!

It’s Ruger’s big day today. She’s getting spayed! Yay! She’ll be healthier, happier and cleaner, and she won’t have puppies, which creates more unwanted animals that society needs to deal with.

Healthier. Sterilized female animals have fewer mammary tumours and uterine infections and males have less testicular cancer and prostate enlargement.

Happier. Sterilized animals are less likely to bite and fight people and animals, hump your leg and little kids, or bark persistently.

Cleaner. Sterilized animals won’t leave menstrual blood or urine in your home.

There are many myths around sterilization. Pets get fat and lazy because their people feed them too much. You will have a healthier pet if it’s spayed early rather than after her first heat. Children who want to watch the miracle of birth can do that on youtube. For men - your pet is the one being sterilized, not you and your still a man after it’s done. Your pet’s offspring won’t be any more special than those available through rescue organizations and humane societies.

Please do the right thing - spay or neuter your dog - cats too!

Trembles for thunder

When prairie storms start to brew, happy-go-lucky little Jessie starts to tremble.

Unfortunately being scared of thunder is quite common. This fear ranges from trembling slightly to hiding behind furniture to needing to chew their way out and run away – anywhere! It can start small then worsen over time – and it can also ease off with age often with the onset of deafness.

Different levels of fear need different responses. For some, it may be as simple as confining your dog in a safe place like their kennel with a favourite toy. For more serious cases, some use alternative remedies available at health-food stores, and yet others use Gravol or prescription medications (puppy prozac like substances).

If your dog is terrified of thunder, resist the urge to pacify by giving affection – you’ll only reinforce the timid behaviour. (If you watch Dog Whisperer, Cesar consistently talks about reinforcing a calm state of mind.)

If your dog’s fear is extreme – medical attention may be in order. Talk with your veterinarian about an appropriate solution. Because doggie dosages are way different than human dosages, please don’t self-medicate without talking with your vet.

A tired dog is a good dog - and a happy dog

Meet Faust and Meena - two gorgeous shepherds. Wow, do they ever love playing ball!

If you want a better dog, especially if you have a young, high-energy dog, help them burn off some extra energy by taking them for long walks or runs, or by playing vigorous games of fetch. They'll love it and you'll end up with calmer version of your high-energy friend.

Dog days of summer

Check out Buddy`s awesome full-body stretch and facial expression as he basks in his cool-down pool time. On the hottest, most sultry summer days, Buddy and Daisy lllloooooovvvveee their little pool.

A kiddie pool is a fun and easy way to give your dogs a break from summer`s heat. Fill it up with clean water, then watch your dogs enjoy life.



Stay healthy, stay safe

Dogs can drown too, so make sure you always supervise pool time - especially for really small dogs. Then when play time is over, either empty it or put a cover over it to prevent birds from accidentally falling in. Change the water regularly to keep your pool clean and disease free.

Enjoy the heat!

Ew. It's tick season!

When you live in Saskatchewan, you long for summer. Ah, hot days, comfortable clothes, BBQs, Rider pride, and bugs!


Prevent ticks by keeping your dog healthy with proper nutrition and grooming, and by talking with your vet about suitable chemical or alternative tick treatments and collars. And, after your dog romps and plays in tall grass, make your pup happy by doing a full body tick check. You'll discover ticks before they do too much damage, and your dog will love the extra attention.

If you find one of those nasty little buggers, spray it with a small amount of human insecticide, then wait 10 minutes - or cover it with Vaseline. (Do not spray insecticide near your dog's face!) Use tweezers to grasp the tick close to the skin, then pull it out using steady even pressure being sure that the tick's head comes out. (To avoid infecting yourself with disease, don't use your fingers to pull it out.) Monitor the bite spot - if you notice signs of infection, take your dog to the vet for additional care.

Learn more about parasite prevention and treatment by taking a Walks 'N' Wags Pet First Aid class near you.
- http://www.walksnwags.com/firstaid.htm
- http://www.happypetboarding.ca/petfirstaid.html

Cute canine cousins

This little guy lives with his family on a rock pile at our acreage. How cute! Our local conservation officer says they'll hunt rodents, then once they grow big enough, they’ll move on. In the meantime, we love watching them play and hunt.

Wouldn't it be incredible if everyone was responsible?

My friend is a responsible breeder. She is fully aware about her dogs’ genetic histories, works closely with her veterinarians, and selects compatible males with good temperaments who are genetically healthy. This winter her beautiful Hope delivered seven healthy, strong and adorable puppies. Later that week due to complications, Hope died on the operating table. Hope’s seven puppies were left behind needing tube-feeding every three hours for three weeks. The veterinarian bill was huge, the cost of the powdered puppy milk replacer was over $800 and one of the puppies needed extensive medical care costing over $1,000. It was heartbreaking to lose a three year old dog who was very much a family member, especially under these circumstances. My friend did everything right to create healthy, genetically sound puppies with strong pedigrees.

All puppies are cute. But many grow up with temperament issues and painful and expensive health problems caused by poor breeding practices. Back Yard Breeders create animals without consideration of genetic disease and temperament. Basically, they do nothing to ensure that your puppy is healthy. Puppy Mills are high-volume back-yard breeders operating with unsanitary, crowded and unhealthy environments. Their puppies are often sold through pet stores. Responsible breeders care about the betterment of the breed. They test for genetic disorders and disease and through selective breeding practices produce healthy puppies. They screen and educate future families and take lifetime responsibility for the pets they breed by taking them back at any time.

If you want to become a responsible breeder:

• Ensure that your dog is a very sound example of its breed according to the standard set for it by the breed parent club in Canada so you create quality puppies that improve the future of the breed. (The only exception is where dogs are bred for a specific purpose - for example, a lineage of service dogs.)
• Talk with your vet and talk with experienced responsible breeders - not backyard breeders!
• Understand your dog’s lineage or the health of its parents and grandparents.
• Spend money to get genetic testing done to make sure that your dog isn’t carrying hip dysplasia, congenital heart disease, congenital deafness, autoimmune thyroiditis or other inherited diseases. Good breeders do not breed dogs with genetic diseases. Your diligence will ensure that your pups won’t go through the pain of a debilitating disease and future pet owners won’t experience heart ache and expense to treat diseases that you could and should have avoided.
• Save a couple thousand dollars to cover the cost of an emergency caesarean, euthanization or other emergency medical costs for the mom or her puppies.
• Figure out your work schedule so you can take time off to tube-feed puppies if something happens to the mom.
• Socialize the puppies so they are well-adjusted and able to deal with the world once they leave your home.

If you’re not ready to do what it takes to be a responsible breeder, don’t breed. Anything less is irresponsible! There are many wonderful shelter dogs already looking for homes. Look into the eyes of the lonely and scared animals in need of homes. Talk with shelter employees who love animals only to have to euthanize them. 171,191 animals entered Canadian shelters in 2007 and half were euthanized!

If only responsible breeders bred their dogs, fewer animals would end up in shelters and rescue organizations.

Please choose to be a responsible breeder or spay and neuter your pet.

Read more at:

http://www.offa.org/dbaserole.html

http://www.ckc.ca/en/portals/0/pdf/other/CKC.Rules.find.breeder.pdf
http://www.ckc.ca/en/Default.aspx?tabid=81
http://cfhs.ca/athome/where_should_we_get_a_new_pet/
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Farm/5324/Responsible.html

http://www.maritimeanimalrescue.com/spayneuter.shtml

http://cfhs.ca/info/2007_animal_shelter_statistics

http://www.mywindow.ca/portal/community/petsanimals?paf_gear_id=2000237&itemId=1800109&returnUrl=%2Fportal%2Fcommunity%2Fpetsanimals%3Bjsessionid%3DZMZAG1FZQ23BXTRPH3XG13WOF25W21Q4

Speaking without saying a word

Meet little Buddy. Right now, he’s releasing stress and telling you to chill out.

Dogs use calming signals all the time. Some people are more natural around dogs than others – these people are unconsciously doing the right things to talk dog. They look or turn away, blink, lick lips and yawn. They also avoid specific things like straight-on frontal contact and direct staring.

Next time you meet a dog, try out some nifty dog body language and notice their positive reaction.

Learn more about calming signals at:

http://www.calgaryhumane.ca/calming_signals.pdf

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lj7BWxC6iVs