Give Your Pets Pure Water

I wrote a blog on giving your pets pure water months ago. I think it is important to cover this subject again. Tap water is contaminated with chlorine, fluoride, heavy metals, pesticides, etc.
Plastic water bowls also leach chemicals.

To read a great article on the importance of giving your pets and yourself pure water, read an article written by Dr. Michael W. Fox, Ph.D, B.Vet. Med. Go to http://tedeboy.tripod.com/drmichaelwfox/id36.html.

Protect Your Pet From The Cold Weather

Despite their fur coats, pets can get cold in the winter months especially short haired breeds. Try and keep outdoor cats in on cold winter nights.

If your dog is an outside dog, and you don't want to bring him indoors, make sure he has insulated shelter from wind and rain, and warm, dry bedding in his kennel.

Make sure that the water in his bowl is not frozen.

If you take your dog for walks in the snow, be sure to get some booties to protect his paws. Be sure and dry your pet after walks in the rain or snow.

Foods To Avoid Giving Your Pet At the Holidays

Foods to avoid giving your pet at Christmas, New Years or anytime for that matter.

* Alcoholic beverages

* Chocolate (highly toxic to pets)

* Coffee

* Moldy or spoiled foods

* Foods high in salt or fat

* Chicken or turkey bones (they can splinter or get lodged in your pet's throat)

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Festive Foliage to Keep Away From Pets

Poinsettias, mistletoe and holly are all popular Christmas decorations. Eating any of these can make your pet quite ill. The plants can irritate the mouth and gastrointestinal tract. This can lead to drooling, vomiting and diarrhea.

Mistletoe can be more serious depending on what species is eaten. Some mistletoe can cause upset stomach, with vomiting; however others may lead to liver failure and seizures.

Festive plants really do add to your home's Christmas decor, but its best to keep them well out of reach of your pets.

Christmas Tree Dangers to Pets

Christmas decorations and celebrations can pose a threat to all pets. These tips will help you to keep your pets safe around the home this festive season.

The Christmas tree is one of the highlights for adults and children alike. It also poses a few hazards to your pets.

The tree can be pulled over by tugging on branches or cords. Make sure your tree is well anchored so your pet can't pull it over.

Electrical light cords can be chewed and cause severe electrical shock. Put cords in a PVC pipe or cover them well.

Broken ornaments can cause cuts to the feet and other parts of the body and even more dangerous if they are chewed on. Use unbreakable ornaments.

Many people add chemicals to the tree water to extend the life of the tree, which can be toxic to pets if they drink it. Its a good idea not to add anything to the water if your pet can get to it.

Fallen tree needles are very sharp and can easily get stuck in your pet's paws or throat. Sweep or vacuum often.

Avoid tinsel or ribbons which are dangerous to the gastrointestinal tract if your pet swallows them. This could mean that surgery is necessary to remove it from the intestines.

Do not hang chocolates from your Christmas tree. They are highly toxic and your pet will be tempted if he can see or smell them.

More Dangers of Choke Chains

Choke chains always choke and they are responsible for a number of medical conditions including: Injured ocular blood vessels; Tracheal and oesophageal damage; Severely sprained necks; Cases of fainting; Transient foreleg paralysis; Laryngeal nerve paralysis; and Hind leg ataxia.

Choke and shock collars are designed to stop dogs from pulling on a leash, for barking, through the application of pain. Their use is unnecessary and often ineffective and in many ways are cruel.

Halters and reward-based training can achieve more effective results without hurting dogs.

Dangers of Choke Chains

Some people keep their pet in a choke chain instead of a collar. Choke chains and other training aids are only to be used when you are actively training your pet.

A pet that is left alone wearing a choke chain is in real danger of choking to death. If a dog becomes entangled or catches the collar on something, its instinct is to pull away. This will tighten a choke chain and can make the dog choke itself. Dogs have died when they catch the choke chain or pinch collar and they struggle until they suffocate and die.

More on choke chains tomorrow.

Papaya for Tape Worms Worked!

In Dr. Pitcairn's Book, Natural Health for Dogs and Cats, he recommended alternative treatments for tapeworms. One was giving papain, which is a powder made from Papaya. I used Royal Tropics, The Original Green Papaya, Digestive Aid. Their website is http://www.gincointernational.com/ . Their supplement just contained Papaya. Most other brands contained other ingredients. I gave Buddy 1 capsule in his food each night for 2 weeks. I haven't seen any signs of tapeworms.

Why Do Dogs Get Gas?

Fortunately, Buddy doesn't have a problem with gas. Jake did have a lot of gas because he wasn't on a great diet, I didn't know about pet nutrition then.

Why do dogs get gas? The dog's diet has a lot to do with flatulence. Most supermarket brands of dog food are made up mostly of corn products for fillers. Soy products in your dog's diet are loaded with proteins that can be hard to digest. This can contribute to a smelly gas problem. Feeding a high quality food, with the top ingredients listed as chicken or lamb, can not only mean a more comfortable pet, but a less gassy one, too. High quality kibble will also reduce the amount of waste product, meaning less poop. A good diet results in less end product, because more of the meal is actually digested.

Flatulence is caused when bacteria in the digestive tract break down food items producing gas. Some breeds are more prone to flatulence, but all dogs can suffer from it and owners can suffer from smelling their dogs.

Be careful with table scraps. Vegetables and lean meats are good for your dog, but fries, bacon, bologna or ice cream, etc. can cause problems.

Don't feed you dog rawhide. Dogs love them, but they are very high in protein and dogs swallow a lot of air while eating them. They also can cause blockages, which can be a serious problem.

Feed your dog more often. Divide the food and feed him 2 times a day and see if that make a difference.

Try a digestive enzyme. These are safe products that will help their digestive track to digest the food, eliminating the gas build up in their intestines.

Give a probiotic. This will increase the friendly bacteria in your dog's intestines.

I give Buddy, Plant Enzymes & Probiotics from Animal Essentials. You can order this on http://www.animalessentials.com/ or call 888-551-0416.

If none of these helps the gas problem, it may be time for a check up.

How to Treat Hotspots

Hot spots are usually caused by food or flea allergies. The foods that cause the most problems are corn, wheat, beef, pork, soy. Some dogs can have allergies to other foods as well. Don't give your pet tap water if your water is fluoridated. Switch your pets food to a high grade natural food.

First you need to treat the sore and then remove the underlying cause to prevent recurrence. Trim the hair around the sore to prevent further spread of in the infection. Gently wash the area with a natural organic soap and rinse well.

Home Remedy: Boil water and put in a tea bag (black or green tea). The tannic acid helps dry up the moist places. Let it steep for 10 minutes or so. Remove the tea bag and let it cool to room temperature. Once it's cool, press the tea bag onto the hot spot. Wrap in place for a half and hour. Do this 2-3 times a day.

You can also smear on some Vitamin E oil or fresh aloe vera gel (from the living plant or in a liquid from a health food store).

Pet Silk is available at pet stores. It is organic with 100% natural oils, it protects and soothes the wound.

If these natural solutions don't work, take him to a holistic veterinarian.

The Importance of Trimming Your Dog's Nails

Today, I took Buddy to get his nails trimmed. He doesn't like to ride in the car, so he gets very anxious in the car. He also doesn't like to get his nails trimmed, but he knows the routine and lets the groomer trim them. They always make him bleed which I don't like. I don't like to cut his nails because I am afraid of making him bleed.

Why should you trim your dog's nails? Untrimmed nails can cause a variety of problems including broken nails, which are painful and bleed profusely. A dog walks on his toes not the soles of his feet. Long nails can cause the dog to rock back on his paws, causing strain on his leg assemblies and interfering with his gait. Some dogs, particularly overweight ones, may find it uncomfortable to put their body weight on their feet with overgrown nails, causing sore feet, legs and hips. Over the long term, this can also contribute to the development of arthritis.

Many people have their dog's nails trimmed by a groomer or at the vet's office, which is usually affordable and quick. However, it can also be a very stressful experience for the dog. They usually have to muzzle or restrain the dog. It would be far better, and nicer, for you to handle this frequent task with care and compassion, which is way you should do it yourself.

There are two popular methods of trimming dogs nails: using a clipper tool and using a Dremel-style rotary grinding tool. Clipping the dog's nails involves squeezing the nail and putting pressure on the sensitive quick, potentially causing discomfort and pain. There is also the risk, especially with dark nails, that you will cut through the quick and cause considerable pain and bleeding--and perhaps make your dog afraid of nail cutting forever. A properly used Dremel or similar rotary tool involves no squeezing or pressure on the quick. With the Dremel, you can also grind off all around the quick so that it recedes faster and you can get even shorter nails. You can grind off all the corners and rough edges leaving nice smooth nails.

I'm not going to have Buddy go through the trauma of getting his nails trimmed by a groomer that makes him bleed. I am going to invest in a rotary tool to trim his nails.

Avoid Using Artificial Snow and Flocking Around Pets

Artificial snow and flocking on trees and decorations can cause health problems for pet. The snow is poisonous and can cause digestive distress when eaten. The snow is also a respiratory irritant if inhaled.