Dog Health Blog

Author: Brent Goodman

While most of us don’t often think of our own personal bed as a
cherished possession, it is probably one of the last pieces of
furniture we would ever want to live without. A good bed
provides insulation, support for our backs and joints, warmth,
and a feeling of security. When a dog has a bed of his own, he
gets all of these benefits and more.

When pet owners ask what dog supplies they need to purchase for their pet, a good bed is
always at the top of the list - along with a collar, leash, and
food and water dishes. Beds are so important they aren’t even
considered optional; but are instead a necessary piece of
equipment for all dogs regardless of size, breed, or age.

Some of the benefits a bed offers for your dog include:

* Insulating your dog from the floor in both the winter
and summer. In the wintertime, many small dogs love to curl up
in a nesting-type bed which provides the warmth needed for both
comfort and good health.

* Providing your dog with his own private space and a
sense of security.

* Cushioning joints and bones - especially for older,
arthritic, or overweight dogs. Orthopedic beds are designed
specifically for dogs that need extra joint support and comfort.

* Controlling the spread of hair and dander by
concentrating it in one, easy-to-clean location. Many of our pet
owners choose a bed offering two covers so they always have a
fresh cover when the other cover is being cleaned.

* Helping to prevent injuries by keeping your dog from
jumping up and down from the furniture.

* Protecting your outside dog. Outside dogs need a bed
as much or more than inside dogs. A waterproof bed is tough and
water repellent and can be used inside or out.

If you spend the time to research and purchase a bed that best
suits your dog’s individual needs, you will soon find that it is
your dog’s very favorite place to spend time. Remember that low
quality beds quickly break down and don’t offer any long-term
benefit, so shop around and buy only the highest
quality bed for your dog so he can enjoy the lifetime
of benefits a bed will offer him.

About the author:
Brent Goodman holds degrees in English from Ripon College, a
Masters of Fine Arts from Purdue University, and has extensive
experience in research communications and educational publishing
across various fields of study. He is currently the Senior
Copywriter at Drs. Foster & Smith Pet Supplies, the nation’s leading online and catalog pet supplier.

Author: Michael Rupkalvis

In a recent survey of about 100,000 people, the majority of dog
and cat owners stated that they thought their pets were in very
good health. But when veterinarians are asked the same question,
most believe that pet disease is very widespread.

So who is right?

Well, the statistics speak for themselves. 25% to 40% of puppies
die before weaning. 60% of dogs who are older than six years of
age will get cancer. 70% of senior dogs suffer from joint
disease. And obesity is the number one health problem facing our
canine population.

The primary cause of these widespread health problems is the
food we feed our dogs. As with humans, processed foods can be
very detrimental to a dog’s physical well-being - and the vast
majority of our dogs receive a diet of highly processed foods
throughout their lives. So they become chronically
undernourished.

Dogs are carnivores. In fact, puppies do best with a diet
consisting of 42% protein. But the protein they receive in
today’s packaged foods is usually derived from cereal grains and
from poor quality meats. What they really need, being
carnivores, is a high level of meat proteins rich in essential
amino acids, the building blocks for all of the body’s cells.
Instead they survive on processed cereal grain proteins, are
undernourished and often overfed, leading to obesity.

So if dog owners can’t purchase the optimal dog foods in their
local supermarkets or pet stores, what are they to do?

Dr. Bill Barnet is a leading doctor of veterinary medicine who
has been studying for the past 25 years the problem of pet
nutrition and how to ensure our pets lead long and healthy
lives. As a result of his research, he became convinced that
dogs needed to have made available to them nutritional
supplements (even more so than we humans do). So he focused on
developing a dog nutritional supplement that owners could add to
their pet’s daily meals.

Dr. Barnet recently introduced to the pet food market the
results of his many years of research and product development.
He calls it Hope for Pets - a powder that one sprinkles over the
dog’s meals twice daily. Hope for Pets contains 16 separate
sources of the vital proteins dogs require (including five amino
acids which can have many benefits, including acting as
antioxidants to enhance the dog’s immune system). He
purposefully created it in a highly concentrated, low calorie
form. It also contains APG-36 (which helps fight viruses, molds
and harmful bacteria), glycomerine (to fight against joint
pain), essential fatty acids and many other powerful vitamins
and minerals. He has combined these various ingredients in a
concentrated, synergistic manner to achieve a well-balanced
highly beneficial nutritional supplement.

Hope for Pets can be used by pets of all ages, even from birth.
It can aid our dogs in living longer, healthier lives. It also
helps to promote a healthy skin and coat and aids in the dog’s
ability to digest the nutrients in its regular food. Hope for
Pets is a nutritional supplement designed to provide our dogs
with the very best nutritional elements their bodies require. A
similar product for cats is expected to be released soon.

About the author:
Michael Rupkalvis runs the TakeCareofYourPet web site. The
website discusses a new product called Hope for Pets nutrition, an all-natural powder that is the very best nutritional supplement available today to help promote long, healthy lives for our dogs.

Author: Valentina Bellicova

With the advent of warmer weather and longer daylight come games
of Frisbee and catch ball with your doggie at the park or perhaps
a hike in the backwoods. It’s marvelous to go out and smell the
fresh air, watch the greening of the trees and hear the chirping
of busy birds as they fly to and fro, gathering material for their
nests. But the warmer weather has its nasty side as well - mosquitoes
and other bugs that delight in making a meal of you and your furry friend.
Never fear! Tea Tree oil is here!

Tea tree oil, often referred to as the “wonder from Down Under”
is a wonder indeed. This amazing essential oil from Australia
should be in every first aid kit. Indeed, when I was in
Australia last year, no decent Aussie household would be found
without a vial or two in their medicine cabinet. If there ever
was such a thing as a magic potion, then tea tree oil would have
to be it.

Identified as having no less than 48 properties, it has been
scientifically proven to be an antiseptic of extraordinary
strength, it is at the same time non-toxic and a non-irritant
and proven to be soothing and healing.

The use of tea tree oil by the Australian military in the second
world war is legendary. Australian Soldiers fighting in the
jungles of the Pacific were less susceptible to tropical
diseases and their infantry had the healthiest feet (very
important if you are in the infantry) of all the allied forces.
The reason being that mosquitoes and other bugs apparently are
not fond of tea tree oil so these disease bearing insects moved
on to other armies for their vittles.

Why so? Well, the Australian soldiers sprayed themselves with a
solution of water and tea tree oil thus ensuring that they would
be found to be unappetizing to those pesky bugs. They also
bathed their sore feet in water to which drops of tea tree oil
were added. This cleansed their feet, soothed them and promoted
a quick healing process for any cuts, sores or abrasions.

So before heading into the great outdoors, buy yourself some
good quality tea tree oil, add a few drops to a spray bottle of
water, and spray both yourself and your dog. Be sure to get your
dog’s underbelly done - this is where our pets are most
vulnerable. Now you can rest easy that you doggie won’t be
coming home with any bites!

Another good tea tree oil item to have on hand is an antibiotic
cream or gel. A scuffle for that ball or long hike up rough
mountain terrain can mean scrapes and cuts to your dog’s feet.
Bathe the feet and wounds with a solution of tee tree oil and
water, pat dry, and apply the cream to promote quick healing.

Fleas! To prevent them from making a home of your dog simply
spray just like you would against other bugs. If your doggie has
somehow inadvertently picked up a squadron or so, rub tea tree
oil all over his body - those fleas will literally flee. Using a
doggie shampoo with tea tree oil is good too, and the side
benefit is that your dog’s coat will take on a super healthy
shine and his skin will be silkier and softer too!

What I like about using tea tree oil, especially against bugs,
is that it has none of the harmful effects of other insect
deterrents. I know that when I buy a good quality tea tree oil
and put it to use on my dog that no harm will come to him.

About the author:
Valentina Bellicova is a world traveller, an author and a
speaker. An ardent student of life and a lover of animals, she
observes how every human is bettered for having had a dog in
their life. To subscribe to her newsletter BooBoo Speaks!
click on http://www.sitbooboosit.com/signup.php

Author: Lisa A.

Our lives are so faced-paced. We are constantly on the go. We
want to be healthy, but who has time to cook healthy foods? And
our pets’ lives mimic our own. They can’t cook their own healthy
treats and we certainly don’t have the time to do it for them!

We would love to be able to cook natural healthy treats for our
dogs. But who has time? Millions of us drive thru McDonald’s for
our own treats. If Carl’s Jr. made dog treats, their business
would go through the proverbial roof. All dogs seem to have the
right corporate mentality for Carl’s Jr., of “don’t bother me -
I’m eating!”

We know that we should eat right. And we know that we should
treat our dogs with something that is healthy. But it is easier
not to. Isn’t it?

Not anymore!

Now there are products that make it EASY to treat our dogs to natural healthy treats.
It’s as quick as opening a Ziplock bag! Some natural healthy dog
treats are 100% natural, low in fat, high in protein, and low in
cholesterol. They are various kinds of treats - all in playful
shapes and sizes.

All the dogs we tested loved the taste of these treats. All of
their owners were so happy with the fact the treats are natural,
healthy, quick, and easy.

We are still on the lookout for human food that is as quick and
easy while being 100% natural and healthy like the dog treats we
have found. For now, we can definitely alter our pets’ snacking
habits. No more junk food for man’s best friend!

So many of us are rescuing doggies from the pound. We want to
treat them to the best.

Quick and Easy, Natural and Healthy

Now if they would only start selling natural and healthy fast
food for humans, then the proverbial roof would explode with
excitement.

But wait, all of these dog treats are human grade, so . . .
perhaps?

About the author:
Lisa M Andrews is a dog treats expert. She loves spending time with her 3 dogs and assisting dog lovers with finding the right treats for their pets’ needs.

Author: Patrick & Katie Moran

Okay, great. But which brand of high quality pet food do I buy?
There are quite a few out there.

I feed my fifty-five pound female lab mix Wellness (Senior Dry
Formula). Just look at the ingredient list. It looks like a
grocery list: human grade whole chicken, apples, blueberries,
tomatoes, spinach, etc. There is nothing you cannot recognize;
nothing chemical, all natural and healthy, and everything is
geared to be ultra highly digestible so your pet gets every bit
of nutrient assimilated into his body.

The list includes a veritable rainbow of powerful antioxidants.
They add chelated vitamins and minerals. Wellness takes the
extra step to chelate them because that process makes them
highly absorbable. They’ve got a beneficial ratio omega 3 and 6
fatty acids (flaxseed).

Wellness is also one of the only dog foods to include probiotic
bacteria (healthy gut bacteria), which aids in digestion and
helps to inhibit the growth and activity of disease-producing
organisms.

Oh, here is a nice thing for us humans - they add yucca
schidigera. A plant extract that while providing a healthy
environment for good gut bacteria in your pet, it binds to
ammonia thus reducing fecal odor and gas, which makes it a lot
more pleasant cleaning the yard. My husband loves that!

The senior formula I feed my girl is a thoughtful blend of
ingredients that support the special needs of older dogs. They
reduce the fat and phosphorus so aging hearts and kidneys don’t
have to work as hard. They also put in natural glucosamine HCL
and chondroitin sulfate from New Zealand Green Mussel and Sea
Cucumber which helps maintain cartilage in aging joints.

They also have quite an array of other formulas including a
Whitefish and Sweet Potato for very allergic dogs.

Wellness is oven-baked and human grade, and it never contains
corn, wheat, wheat gluten, dairy, egg, ethoxyquin, BHA, BHT,
by-products or anything artificial. I wish I ate this healthy!
My girl is eleven, and everyone thinks she is two or three!
Where can I buy the stuff?

You can run around checking the local pet stores to see if they
sell it or… You can click on the link below and you will
discover as we did an amazing company that not only sells
Wellness pet food but can customize and pack pre-measured single
serving dog or cat meals with your pets name on it AND pack the
exact single dose of whatever medications or supplements your
pet needs! This simplifies feeding time for your kids, the
sitter, and you! And it makes traveling with your companion a
breeze! Check them out! And get this¦ they only charge a flat
rate $6.95 for shipping no matter what you buy (yes, even dog
food!) and no matter how much you buy, whether it’s one bag of
dog food or twenty bags of dog food. Unbelievable. My girl and I
swear by them!

May all your four-legged children be healthy. And remember, no
chocolate, no onions, no raisins, no grapes, and one I just
learned about is no avocados.

End of Article.

About the author:
Patrick & Katie Moran
Pet Food & Supplements
www.monstergiftstore.com

Patrick and Katie have been around dogs
all their lives. Patrick is an ex-musher from Canada who has had
to turn dogs into four-legged athletes. Katie has always lived
surrounded by 4 or more