Photo by Chris Johnson

Dog daycares help to establish the dog’s needs in our busy lives. Here are some key questions to ask when seeking out a daycare.

Three required needs of your canine friend:

1. Exercise
2. Discipline
3. Affection

Dog Enrollment

• What kind of temperament testing is done prior to admittance?
• What waivers and vaccination records are required?
• Take a tour of the facility and check for cleanliness.
• Meet staff and management.

The Play Area

• What is the size of the play area for the dogs?
• How many dogs are allowed to play in the designated play areas?
• How many handlers per number of dogs?
• Are there obstacles for the dogs to play on?
• What is the length of play times? (Dogs should have a rest break to be on their own)
• Are dogs separated by size?
• If you have an older dog, is there an area for them?

Experienced Handlers

• Are the handlers trained to address behavior issues?
• How do the handlers break-up dominant behavior or potential fights?
• Distractions, Water Guns, Whistles, Shaker Cans, etc.
  Caution: Water guns can cause ear infections.
• Dominant dogs should be controlled and aggressive dogs removed from play.
• Are handlers trained to work obedience to ensure standards are kept per owner’s request?

Dog Emergency

All dog daycares should be prepared for an emergency. The first step should be to call the owner. There may be a release to use an on-call vet or you can request your own vet be used.

Toys and Treats

Daycares should not allow toys and treats in the play area. This can help eliminate possession based fights that might occur. If a dog is treat or toy possessive, it is important the staff is aware of this so treat or toy play with your dog is done in a designated area outside of the play area.

Open communication with the staff at your daycare is a must to ensure your dog he/she is in safe hands!

This training tip was prodived by Mae Charron or K9 Attitudes.

Mae is an IACP (International Association of Canine Professionals) certified trainer and CGC (Canine Good Citizen) Evaluator. K9 Attitudes is a wonderful positive reinforcement based dog training company which provides in home one-on-one training with pets and their families around Fairfield County.

Mae Charron
K9 Attitudes, LLC
203-283-4878
www.k9attitudes.com

Related posts:

1. The Importance of Exercise for your Dog
2. Train Your Dog to Come With a Whistle

The basic requirements to having a healthy, happy pet include feeding a healthy diet, making sure they get plenty of exercise and keeping up with their veterinary care.

But what about making sure they have a safe outdoor environment?

During this time of year, we all want to be outside enjoying our yards–especially our pets. As loving pet parents it’s important to know about the lurking dangers in our own back yards. Some of the products used commonly to enhance our lawns, like commercial fertilizers, contain chemicals and pesticides that can be harmful to our pets and children. It’s easy to assume that name brand fertilizers sold in national chain stores are safe, but in fact they can be harmful and in some cases even deadly to our beloved friends. Even the ones that claim to be “pet safe” can still contain toxins, which could lead to long term health problems. Some key products to be especially careful of are:

Fertilizers

They make your grass green, but certain types can be extremely dangerous, even deadly to your pets if accidentally ingested. Read the labels and follow the directions carefully. Keep your pets out of the area where you are applying these for at least the suggested amount of time on the package. The presence of heavy metals in these fertilizers like iron, can cause serious gastrointestinal problems if ingested. The best way to prevent an accidental exposure is to avoid using chemical fertilizers all together. If you have to, store them in a secure area your pet can’t get to. Consider using an organic alternative that’s safer and better for the environment.

Pesticides, Herbicides & Rodenticides

These poisons kill, bottom line. Many of the ingredients used in these baits to entice pests, smell appealing to your animals too. If you have to have these around, take every precaution to keep them in a place that is inaccessible to your pets. Depending on the type, ingestion can be potentially life-threatening.

“The most dangerous of these are: snail bait containing metaldehyde, fly bait containing methomyl, systemic insecticides containing disyston or disulfoton, zinc phosphide containing mole or gopher bait and most forms of rat poisons.”

ASPCA’s common questions to gardening and yard care

Do some research. The website pesticideinfo.org provides a searchable database of products and ingredients. You can see exactly what’s in these products and how harmful the chemicals are.

Common Plants

Many common house plants are actually poisonous to your pet. Some of our favorite outdoor flowers and shrubs like: azalea, rhododendron, lilies, kalanchoe and schefflera can be harmful if swallowed. Lilies are especially bad for cats. Small amounts can be life threatening.

17 Common Poisonous Plants
Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants

No cocoa mulch!

This product is made using cocoa, a toxic ingredient for dogs. It smells great to them, but can cause vomiting, diarrhea and elevated heart rates if eaten.

If you suspect your pet has been exposed to any poison, bring him to your veterinarian immediately. Contact the animal poison control center. If your vet is not open, bring them to the emergency veterinary clinic. If you suspect you pet ate a plant you can’t identify, bring a sample to a local nursery for identification.

Below is a list of numbers for local resources:
24hr Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435

Veterinary Referral and Emergency Center, Norwalk, CT: 203-854-9960

Try a Natural Alternative

Organic lawn care can produce a beautiful natural yard that’s truly safe for your dogs, cats and the environment. Your, pets, family and even your neighbors will thank you for reducing toxic runoff that can contaminate our local eco-system and eventually our own water supply.

Resources:

• The Truth About Cats, Dogs & Lawn Chemicals: A great documentary video about the dangers of lawn chemicals to your pets. A little long but worth the watch.
• Tips for Pet Friendly Landscaping: A short video with great tips.
• Raise a Green Dog: Natural pet safe lawn care tips with reviews of organic fertilizers.
• Easy organic lawn care from National Geographic.

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Exercise is the most important activity between you and your dog. The exercise fulfills your dog’s happiness and stability within the home. Walking will help your dog become familiar with territory and the environment surrounding you. The walk also helps your dog become socialized in public as well as in your own neighborhood. They will look to you as the leader when their behavior, such as heel and sit is controlled in new environments.

In a wild pack, dogs hunt many hours a day, play many hours and show affection to each other. These activities stimulate mentally as well as physically. Some breeds require different activity levels than others.

There are many ways to exercise your dog such as playing fetch with a favorite toy, walking, running, or hiking for 30-60 minutes twice a day. Your discipline would follow your exercise by teaching obedience commands. If you have difficulty in teaching your dog you should contact a professional for help to teach you and your dog the dynamics of basic obedience.

We get so wrapped up in our daily activities that we forget what pack animals crave and require instinctively. The most powerful bond you will build with your dog is through simple exercise.

This tip was prodived by Mae Charron or K9 Attitudes.

Mae is an IACP (International Association of Canine Professionals) certified trainer and CGC (Canine Good Citizen) Evaluator. K9 Attitudes is a wonderful positive reinforcement based dog training company which provides in home one-on-one training with pets and their families around Fairfield County.

Mae Charron
K9 Attitudes, LLC
203-283-4878
www.k9attitudes.com

How do you Exercise your Pup?

We’d love to hear some of your thoughts or tips on exercise. Please leave a comment if you like this post and share some of the ways you exercise with your dog.

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Related posts:

1. Train Your Dog to Come With a Whistle
2. Picking a Dog Daycare
3. Adopting a New Dog or Cat

It’s that time of year again. The sun is shining, flowers are blooming, birds are chirping… and fleas and ticks are biting!! Every pet enjoys the outdoors. With the weather warming up, it’s now flea and tick season and it’s time to take precautions to keep your friend healthy.

What are the risks?

As you may already know, ticks can carry harmful bacteria. The most common tick-borne disease that your furry friend may encounter is Lyme disease. This disease is transmitted from a bacteria harbored by the tick. Early symptoms consist of rash and joint pain, yet further complications include kidney and heart failure. Other illnesses include Ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Babesiosis, all of which may lead to neurological problems and organ failure.

Fleas are an even more annoying pest. These bugs cause discomfort to both your pet and the entire household. Fleas jump from host to host, so it is imminent that infestation will occur within an entire family of pets. Itching provoked by the fleas may lead to inflammation and infection of the skin. Pets may also be exposed to tapeworms transmitted by the flea. If left untreated, severe cases, or even mild cases in young pets, can cause anemia.

What can I do?

Naturally, a pet lover is going to want to keep his or her pet protected, yet chemical or drug prevention can be harmful to your pet, your family and the environment. Flea and tick “spot-on” treatments, dips, sprays, and collars contain chemicals and pesticides that can make pets and children sick. Some chemicals used in flea and tick products are believed to be carcinogenic if incidentally ingested. A “spot-on” treatment should only be considered as a last resort.

Resources:

• The Whole Dog Journal has an in-depth article on the harmful effects of “spot-on” flea & tick treatments that is a must read.
• A fantastic article detailing the facts you should know about Flea & Tick products can be found on the Humane Society’s website.

5 Steps to Flea and Tick Prevention:

1. Healthy Diet: Most of you have this step covered. A nutritious diet boosts immunity and resistance to parasites such as fleas.
2. Supplements: Garlic and B-vitamins make an animal less tasty. You may have heard garlic isn’t good for dogs but this is only the case if they eat massive quantities. Earth Animal makes a perfectly balanced supplement which we keep in stock.
3. Outdoors: Keep yard raked and grass cut short. Avoid moist, shady, and leaf-covered ground and tall grassy areas when walking your dog.
4. Indoor: Spring cleaning! Vacuum and wash floors regularly during flea season. Flea larve don’t like light so don’t forget under the furniture! It wouldn’t be a bad idea to steam clean the carpet once in a while too.
5. Grooming: After a walk, check the body for ticks. Pay close attention to the armpits, ears, eye area, between the pads of the feet, and the neck area. Comb your pet after being exposed to tick or flea harvesting areas. This can prevent attachment of the tick to the skin. A shampoo with Neem Oil is good for repelling fleas.

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1. Natural Flea & Tick Prevention

Pet dental disease or periodontal disease is a big risk for all pets. However, it can be prevented through regular home care (brushing your pets teeth) and oral exams at your routine vet visits. Here are some tips on how to protect your pet.

How do I brush my pets teeth?

If you have a puppy or kitten the best thing to do is get them used to teeth brushing at a young age.


If you have an older dog, it’s never too late… it may just take a little extra effort. Here are some tips for brushing your pet’s teeth.

• Start slowly – As with any training exercise it’s best to introduce this gradually working your way up to actually brushing the teeth.




• Use positive reinforcement – Encourage your pet to enjoy the experience with lots of treats and praise. Playing ball after the exercise is a good reward.




• Control their head – Gently grasp your animal’s muzzle from the top with your non-dominant hand, never applying too much pressure.




• Gently Rub – the sides of their face with your finger, lifting the lips and touching their gums and teeth. Repeat this using a gauze pad after they’ve adjusted to your finger, eventually working up to a soft tooth brush. Short repeated intervals of this followed by praise and treats will help them adjust pretty quickly.




• Use a pet specific toothbrush and toothpaste – Human tooth brushes are not soft enough for pets. Human toothpaste is not good for pets. It contains high levels of fluoride which can upset their stomach. We sell a dental kit which includes a pet toothbrush and toothpaste specifically made for your pets.




• Dental chews are no substitute for brushing – While there are some very beneficial “dental” products on the market like dental chews, treats, etc… These are no complete substitute for actual brushing.

Click here to watch a video on brushing your dog’s teeth.

How often should I brush?

Decorative dog imageJust like humans, many veterinarians recommended daily brushing. Realistically we know this is very hard, so 2-3 times a week is a good goal to shoot for.


Ultimately any home brushing is better than none, but it is important to remember that our animals teeth are a lot like ours. Just imagine if you went 4 years without brushing. It would be pretty safe to say you’d have some dental issues.

What about veterinary oral exams?

Ask your vet to do an oral exam at every routine visit to make sure you catch any potential problems before they get bad.

If your vet recommends professional cleaning it’s a good idea to follow their advice and have the procedure done. Professional cleaning is an important part of the preventative process. It will save your pet from future discomfort and health issues if left untreated.

How do I know if my pet has dental disease?

You can check your pet’s mouth for any signs of dental disease.


Symptoms include:
Brownish colored teeth; swollen, red, or bleeding gums; persistent bad breath; loose teeth or loss of teeth; pus between the gums and teeth; broken teeth and any unusual growth in the mouth. Reluctance to eat, play with chew toys, or drink cold water are warning signs of periodontal or gum disease.


If you suspect your pet has dental disease consult your veterinarian for an exam.

What about cats? How do I brush my cats teeth?

Feline pets are also susceptible to periodontal disease. It’s often harder to detect in cats because most cats don’t like us sticking our fingers in their mouths. They frequently don’t show any outward signs of dental discomfort.


Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine has several extremely informative videos on the subject. Particularly helpful is the Brushing Your Cats Teeth video.

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