photo credit: TrishHamme-Trying to Catch buy online Up !

A Japanese company has developed a patch that, when applied to a cat or dog’s paw, will reveal whether or not they are stressed. It may sound too good to be true, but the folks at Life Care Giken contend that the degree of detectable perspiration is a clear indicator of the level of stress a companion animal feels.

In a matter of mere minutes after applying the patch, pet parents will find one of three results: lightly stressed, heavily stressed or relaxed. The company also markets skin tests for humans too, including one that checks stress levels, and even one that claims to check your alcohol tolerance!

Life’s Abundance Weight-Loss Formula is veterinarian-formulated to help your dog lose weight and maintain optimum health. Life’s Abundance Weight-Loss Formula

Technorati Tags: Lifestyle Pets

photo credit: Phil Romans

Since my own black lab, who never leaves my side, he is like glued to me, took off swimming without even a backwards glance, I did some research! See my wayward black lab post here

As in all aspects of dog training and safety.  The Recall Must Be Rock Solid!!!!  Just because your dog has a perfect recall on land, not necessarely so in water…always test your dogs recall on a leash in the water to make sure he responds with the same quickness as he does on land.

So what are the general rules when having your dog swim?  Should you keep your dog on a leash?

It depends on many things:

Is it your dog’s first time to swim?
How old is your dog?
How good is your dog’s recall? **** This is a must
What about boats, people, other dogs, kids?  Are there a lot of distractions?

I read of one person who gets in the water with each of his new dogs the first time.

Some say: If it’s not the first time, and if they don’t have good recall, then do keep a check cord on them just like you would on land until their recall is rock solid.

It is easy for a dog to get tangled in a cord/cotton leash, so make sure that if there is trouble you are always within reach to help out.  I think the cord should be used to teach and train recall in the water.  Be 100% sure!!!  Your dog will listen and obey you even when swimming.

Here are some tips I picked up from my research:

- If your dog is swimming in warm water, HE CAN OVERHEAT, so please be careful and don’t let him work too hard at having fun swimming.

- Many dogs will swim till totally exhausted, and then, if they have too far to swim back, they will drown

- Don’t let your dog ever jump into water unless you KNOW that he knows where he can safely get out!

- If you take your dog swimming in a natural environment, be aware of the surrounding area if you take your dog to the beach, lake or pond. Watch for trouble and make sure your dog will come to you as soon as you call. Recall is one of the most important lessons you can teach your dog. It can literally save his life.

- Also, take care that you are familiar with currents, under currents, and what the bottom of the lake floor is…can it hurt your dogs paws?

There are life jackets for dogs.  Be safe, Always!!!

Technorati Tags: Dog Safety, Lifestyle Pets, Pet Safety

photo credit: conskeptical

I usually walk around my backyard every morning and destroy these little horrors.

This fungus is extremely likely to pop-up in your garden, there are many varieties and some can be fatal in Dog Food SECRETS we have a list of about 20 foods we love that are harmful to your dog, a list we should all know I’m talking about mushrooms and toadstools.

These side effect can appear in the middle of an otherwise green lawn and present themselves as a very interesting snack

Symptoms of mushroom poisoning can be:
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Lethargy
Slow heart rate
Jaundice
Seizures
Coma

Dog Food Secrets

Technorati Tags: Lifestyle Pets, pet health, Pet Safety

Canine training isn’t really all that difficult. An important thing to remember is that most dogs just want to please their masters. The problem can be communication. Of course there is a language barrier, and you need to get your pet to understand what you want.

Dog training can be summed up with just a few tips. Lets take a look at some of the things that I have used in order to train my dog, making both he and I happier.

Try to avoid the negatives that often come with training. Hitting or striking your dog, either by hand or with an object will only teach the dog to fear you. A stern verbal NO, is OK, but do not go any further physically, or you risk alienating your dog. Focusing on praise and rewards when your dog behaves as it should is the better way to go.

Praising your dog reinforces correct behaviors. Loving or petting your dog for acting positive behaviors is of course nice, but experience has shown better results happen when food treats are distributed at the time the behaviors observed. When you really think about it, food motivates humans, so to it works with our four legged companions.

Body language can also influence your pet’s reactions. Many canines can actually can actually sense and read your body language before any verbal communication is given. A technique that works well in doing this is to match a verbal command with a particular movement of either the hand, arm, or even leg.

Refusing to give up is the final key to successful dog training. Sure at times it is frustrating. It would certainly be easier to give up, go sit on the couch and watch your satellite television, but you need to be consistent in your training. Nobodys dog is going to train himself, and training always takes longer than you would like. It is so important to keep this in mind when things are tough with your dog. Things will not always fall into place, so do not give up at the first sign of trouble.

Training your dog can be both a challenging and rewarding experience. Keeping these brief tips in mind will help you keep on track in your dog training efforts.

Technorati Tags: animal training, canine, canine training, Dog Training, dogs, Lifestyle Pets, natural dog training, visual signals

It’s a good idea to shop around for the best deals before you make your purchases. Some sites will almost always have the best prices for some type of products, but pills for sale surfing through the net can sometimes get you a very good deal. Some of the stores are known in the business for selling exotic animals and supplies while some online pet stores for selling pet toys or furniture.

Online Pet Stores Cheaper

The larger online pet stores will typically have better prices than the retail stores in your area but sometimes when you add the cost of shipping and handling the local pet store might actually be less expensive. Choose an online pet store that offers free shipping for large orders and then buy in bulk so you meet their spending requirements. Online pet stores are wonderful if you can’t get out or time doesn’t allow you to get to a conventional pet store.

A reputed online pet store usually lets you return the products which you do not want to keep but its very important that you read the return policy of that store at their website before any expensive item. You can check the security and privacy statements available at the online store to confirm that your transaction data will be safe.

Choose an online pet store that you can get around in easily and look for any customer satisfaction guarantees they have to offer. You will be asked by some of the online pet stores if they can put you on their mailing list in order to inform you of sales and promotions by email. Not all the emails you receive will be useless, once in a while you might get a special offer that will leave you with some nice bargain.

Take a look at the dates on the food items to confirm yourself that they aren’t selling expired food items which can’t be sold at retail stores and only then purchase the pet food. Make sure they won’t sell or distribute your email address to other websites since you probably don’t want emails coming to your email box suggesting you purchase a chinchilla or buy pet food specially designed for a hedgehog.

Shopping convenience and low prices are offered on an online pet store.

Technorati Tags: Lifestyle Pets, online pet shops, online pet stores, online pet supplies