Hi again,

Canine Cancer – a subject I would dread to have to come to terms with – but since we have five dogs, I guess we have five times more risk of facing?

I’m not going to waffle on at great length in this email, except to say that I was so suitably impressed with the look and feel of a product I came across that I bought it myself – take a look for yourself at the Dog Cancer Survival Guide & Video series.

I’m still impressed with what Dr Demian Dressler has to offer (even if his name does sound like one off an afternoon TV drama), it’s a 299 page Ebook and a 60 minute video of a cancer consult as well as some other offers. I was impressed enough by the book and video, to feel that the relatively modest fee was warranted, but I’ll let you decide. We’ve heard of a lady who’s dog was given 6 months to live and adopted this system and now he’s still going strong almost 6 years down the track.

It’s backed by Clickbank and has Paypal hook-up. Click Here

Till next time.

Cheers

Steve

So – you are about the groom your dog for the first time and not too sure what to do? There are a couple of traps for the unwary – and some of these can hurt the dog – permanently. But relax, we have done it all before – follow along and I will guide you in the easiest ways to a clean smelling, well groomed pooch!

OK – perhaps you just bought your dog and he or she is a bit on the nose – or else you are just unsure of where he or she has been; so you want to give him a clean start? There are a couple of things to watch out for:

1. Human shampoo can harm dog skin
2. Be careful with water near the ears
3. Pre-heat the drying area
4. Use lukewarm – warm water only for bathing
5. Towel dry as much as possible
6. Allow the dog to dry before contact with cold outdoors

Human Shampoo

The pH of our shampoo is unsuited to dog skin. I have seen graphic pictures of dog skin badly burnt by human shampoo and it is likely that human conditioner would be similar. Always use a proper DOG shampoo and conditioner for bathing.

No Water Down The Ears

A dogs ears are designed for hearing so they are much larger than ours and funnel sound downwards; this means that any water you squirt or pour; can end up at the bottom of the ear canal. We have all seen the classic head shake that dogs do to get water out – but its always best to minimise the amount, by not allowing too much to run in that direction. You can wash out the inside of the ear with dampened (slightly) paper towel more effectively anyway.

Preheat Drying Area

It goes without saying that the dog will dry off faster in an area that is preheated. It also makes it more comfortable for you too – because you will likely be damp by the time you have finished. In our case if its cold weather we usually block off the door to the outside temporarily and preheat the family room.

Use Lukewarm/Warm Water Only

Test it – you need to make sure its not too hot – apart from the fact you could hurt your pooch; a bad experience on the first or subsequent washes will make future bathing a nightmare!

Rinse – Shampoo – Rinse – Shampoo – Conditioner – Rinse

You may want to purchase a rubber fitting that goes over the bath or trough tap (faucet) that becomes your flexible wash head. Note that the conditioner step can be left off if you purchase a Leave-in Conditioner.

Towel Dry As Much As Possible

Dogs love a massage! The towel dry part starts of the final groom by loosening fur as it dries; do it well and your dog will begin to look forward to bathing. If you have a short haired dog – skip straight to the Leave-in Conditioner step (we do this) – if its a Long Haired dog; you will need a quality brush to remove the longer loose fur and distribute the conditioner. The right type of brush will assist this – check with your pet store for a brush to suit – buy the best you can afford.

Check The Dog Over

Now is the time to trim softened nails (see elsewhere on my site), look for damage in those, look for any wounds or tender spots while drying and brushing etc.

Enjoy your clean smelling pal!

Steve

We are proud owners of five – yes (5) English Staffordshire Bull Terriers. These dogs are notorious escapees – and there are cases of many of dogs dying because they have snagged their collars on a fence on their way over it!

And Staffordshires are not the only breed – only one of the breeds that will try to escape. When examined; many of the cases are the fault of the owner for a number of reasons, but here are the main ones:

a) Inadequate fencing

b) Lack of exercise

c) No companion contact with other dogs

c) Lack of contact with owners

Inadequate fencing

No matter how smart you may think your dog is – you cannot expect it to be tossed into any yard and to just stay put. I shudder to think how many dogs have been lost or lost their lives, because their owners just tossed them outside. Responsible dog owners should ensure that the dogs area is well fenced and gated. This is even more essential if you have a pedigreed dog – because these can become targets for theft. Many pedigreed dogs are stolen – only to be sold for cash.

Lack of exercise

Dogs need exercise to prevent boredom. Imagine being held captive in any area and never getting any stimulus from your environment. What would you do – I’m sure escape would become an option? Dogs show signs of boredom by destructive behaviours or by attempted frequent escapes. Try walking the dog daily – or playing fetch on a sports ground or in the backyard; this deepens the bond between the dog and yourself and also relieves the boredom that can result in escape.

No contact with other dogs

It should be remembered that dogs in many cases live in packs in the wild; so they are mostly social animals. Without human contact, they should be left with a mate or companion dog. However there ARE guidelines that need to be followed with certain breeds; for example with the breeds that have any fighting background (like Staffordshires) you should not have 2 x males together, while 2 x females or one of each is acceptable for company. Consider buying a 2nd dog for companionship.

Lack of contact with owners

Why would anyone buy a dog – only to toss it into the yard without human contact? Unfortunately for many dogs – this is their lot in life! As just mentioned they are social animals – and the only substitute for another dog, is a human owner. Dogs that escape are often doing so because they are trying to find their owners.

If possible take the dog with you or if not perhaps invest in a good sized dog crate for (short term) storage for your dog (inside) while you are out.

Try the measures above and I believe that you will resolve most; if not all of your fence jumping issues.

Steve

21st Century humans are advised to spend around 30 minutes daily in some type of mild to moderate exercise, like walking or even running to assist in cardiac and joint health and vitality. It can be shown that people who do so stay healthy longer than those with a more sedentary (read that as couch potato) lifestyle. Trouble is – most of us humans prefer our comfort over activity we want to take the easy way out all of the time.

But Dogs LOVE exercise! Just watch a dog run after a ball and notice that they do not hold back, they run at 100% pace – (unless they are older or unwell).

And Dogs actually NEED exercise for their health and vitality. And getting enough daily exercise will go a long way towards the prevention of many of the bad behaviours that people find most annoying about dog ownership, like constant barking, digging or escape or the destruction of your favourite items!

Just try spending about 20 – 30 minutes per day (great for you too) walking – or vigorously playing with a fetch toy with your dog or dogs you WILL notice a difference. If possible combine that with something that you do daily like a trip to the Post Office so that you establish a routine for yourself and the dog. Once established you will find that the dog begins to expect the trip and the walk and starts to ask you for it – a great motivator for the days when you may not quite feel like going.

On that subject though – remember that you are the boss and if not practical or you have other plans – don’t make it that there’s no flexibility for yourself; sometimes a simple game inside or else even a total day off will just have to do.

Here in Australia we are fortunate enough to have a climate that allows pretty much year round access to the outdoors; however I appreciate that not all readers will have that capability – through snow and blizzards etc. In such cases you may have to make a special effort to do whatever you can – even if that means just throwing a ball down a corridor, shed or hallway.

Your friend really does need daily exercise – see if you can spare 20 – 30 mins and you’ll notice the benefits, short and long term.

Steve

This is a problem that we hear a lot about on dog forums – and there’s a fair bit of mis-information on the subject.

First off – let me say this does not always mean your dog has worms! While I have seen a newly purchased puppy doing this literally with Tapeworms hanging from its anus, if your dog is regularly wormed it’s most likely to be blocked anal glands and the dog is experiencing discomfort from the swollen glands.

You can assist your dog (if you’re brave enough) by taking him/her to wherever you wash and then first up locating the glands (I’d suggest latex gloved hands) – they are on either side of the anus. Using your thumb and forefinger at the ten o clock and two o clock position, push up gently but firmly.

Now I must warn you – you can get a small spurt of a strong smelling glandular discharge – watch out for it, it may get you! This discharge is the reason dogs do that thing we humans hate so much – and smell each others bottoms. Some sort of advertising campaign I think??

Now – I must confess I refuse to do this myself!

My wife dutifully does this on our 5 dogs each and every time she washes them, which is probably about once per month. If you’re like me and don’t want to do the deed – see if your local dog groomer will do it for you – assuming they do know about it of course!

Cheers

Steve