Keeping your dog active and healthy

Unlike us humans dogs are a pretty active lot. Their bodies can handle foods that are off limits to many of us. Their digestive systems are not only are able to raw meats, bones and are in fact little fat burners. It is now coming to light that a raw meat diet is preferred for dogs over the dry or canned diets that have been pushed down the consumers throats by the pet food industry.

About 18 years ago I use to breed and show Chow Chows and they are known for having skin problems. My vet had me put the dogs that were having skin problems on a raw meat diet and all their skin problems cleared almost overnight. My vet said it was because the dog food companies do not always put on the labels ALL the ingredients or lump them together under a "by products" labeling.

If your dog has been having problems with dog foods then you might want to add real meat to their diet everyday.

Camping with your dog

Just about the only way to take your dog with you when you go on vacation is when you camp. Staying in motels or hotels with a dog can be a little expensive because the hotels, even if they accept pets they do charge extra for them. Camping either in a tent and roughing it or in a rv can be fun if you take some simple precautions before you set out on your trip.

Make sure your dog is wearing a collar with ID and current rabies tags. Go the extra step and have your dog mirco chipped before the trip. Make sure your dog has all of it's vaccinations up to date just in case your dog encounters another pet dog that is sick.

Take with you a dog bed or a blanket that will just be for the dog. It will help the dog feel more at home rather than on the road. Plan what you will be doing with the dog while in camp and away from the camp. Keep in mind that a dog is an attractive nuisance for small children near your camp and take precautions.

Care of the older dog

If you are fortunate enough to have your pup grow to old age then you would know that as a dog ages their bone joints get stiffer. Small breeds that use to jump up on the couch or your bed now can't manage it at all. Larger dogs might have trouble going up or down stairs.

One of the best items I have found to help dogs with stiff joints is nutritional health supplements made with yucca. Yucca has anti-inflammatory properties and worked great for our dogs when they were 14 years old and older. You want yucca to be in the top 3 listed items of ingredients when you are looking on the supplement package. Anything less than that and you are not getting the full benefit of the yucca.

Teaching your dog to shake hands

Here is a video on how to teach your dog to shake hands. The large mop of a dog is entertaining to watch.