


Designer Dog Collars for Christmas
Labels: Christmas designer dog collar, christmas designer dog collars, designer dog collar, designer dog collars, designer dog collars and leads, designer dog collars canada, designer leather dog collars
Designer Dog Collars for Christmas
By: Shelley Vassall
With Christmas right around the corner, it may be time to start thinking about that time honored tradition of giving and receiving gifts. For that all important 4-legged member of the family, why not look at purchasing a designer dog collar. A designer collar is not only a fun way to show off your ho-ho hound during the holidays, but it is also an investment that can be used every season (or all year 'round) if you so choose.
Designer dog collars are more unique at Christmas as they are designed with that specific holiday in mind. Like with all dog collars, the ones made for Christmas offer consumers a wide variety of colors, material, price, and design. You can select a collar made of nylon, fabric, or leather depending on what price point you are interested in. Nylon and fabric type collars are likely your best bet as the selection is vast and inexpensive. In addition, these collars generally offer a choice of buckle, whether it be metal or the quick, one-hand snap and release type.
For those with discerning tastes, there is a designer dog collar out there for everyone; from snowman dog collars to reindeer and Santa collars, to holiday stripes, to cartoon characters (like Snoopy and Scooby) and even peppermint stick designer dog collars, you will surely find one that is right for you and your pooch. You can even purchase a holiday wreath dog ID tag! If holiday themed collars are not your thing, you can still go with any number of other designer collars (Louis Vuitton or Gucci, to name a few) – the choices are endless.
Even though you are purchasing a designer dog collar for Christmas, fit and size must still be a consideration to ensure your dog is comfortable. Like with all collars, no matter what time of the year you buy them, make sure to measure your dog's neck prior to purchase and as a rule, ensure that at least one to three fingers can fit between your dog's neck and the collar (depending on the size of your dog). If buying a designer collar for a puppy, it should be one that will grow and expand as your puppy does. The collar you choose should also be easy to clean and stand up to the type of lifestyle your dog is accustomed to.
So what are you waiting for? Get out there and get shopping so your proud pup can look forward to showing off their new designer collar at Christmas time!

Homemade Dog Treats
Labels: healthy homemade dog treats, homemade dog treat, homemade dog treat recipe, homemade dog treat recipes, homemade dog treats, homemade organic dog treats, natural homemade dog treats
Do you love to treat your dog to treats but hate to pay the price for overpriced dog treats with questionable nutritional value? Luckily for you I have compiled a few homemade dog treat recipes for you
Dog lovers are growing more aware of the need to give their canine friends better and tastier treats. What better way to express your love for your canine friend than cooking them home-made dog treats? You are in control and can ensure that they are tasty, fresh and hygienic. Besides it works out cheaper than store bought treats.
Why make dog treats at home?
The dog treats you buy from supermarkets and pet shops are not very good. This is because so many of them use low quality ingredients, they do not have too much protein and are full of preservatives. It is quite unsurprising therefore that many pets develop allergies and suffer from stomach ailments. Making your own dog treats is a fun way to not only be assure that your dog is getting the best quality food, it is also an excellent way of saving money. You can experiment a lot, avoid food preservatives and also go organic if you want.What to know about making dog treats
However, you need to know a bit about the canine digestive system. Dogs are wonderful companions, loving and loyal,but they are not human. They cannot digest many things we consider tasty and nutritious. The prime example is chocolate. We adore it, but even a bit of chocolate can make your dog ill, and lots of chocolate can kill your dog. Another food that dogs cannot handle is onions. We love onions and find that adding onion to our food gives it flavor and zest. Onions cause respiratory ailments in dogs, and if you feed onions to them regularly they can also develop anemia. Do not feed your dog baby food either. Baby foods have sugars and salts that dogs cannot handle either. Many dogs are lactose intolerant, so unless your dog can handle milk and dairy, avoid it. For more information see my post - what food is bad for dogsDo not get intimidated by the list given above. Dogs are extremely non-demanding. They can be satisfied easily too. Consider this, your pet would be extremely happy to forage out of a dustbin or snack on an animal run over by a car on the street! So any culinary disaster you make will be easily forgiven. You get a lot of dog treat recipes on the internet. I am giving below two dog treat recipes that my pooches love.
Below are a few healthy homemade dog treats that you can make at home. Try out these healthy homemade dog treat recipes and let me know what you think in the comment section!
Homemade Sun Dried Liver Dog Treat
One easy doggie treat is sun-dried liver. Humans definitely will not relish it, but dogs do. Besides, liver is inexpensive and you can buy it in bulk. Just buy some liver and slice it into small pieces and put it into a solar oven and set it outside. Let it dry up. This is definitely better than the chews you get in the market which are made out of questionable jerky.Homemade Carrot crunch dog treat
Another crunchy dog treat recipe is the carrot crunch. This is healthy and has lot of vitamins and proteins.You need to take two cups of carrots. Peel, boil and puree them. Add two eggs and 2 tablespoons of minced garlic. Mix until you get a smooth batter. Add one cup of rolled oats and 2 cups of rice flour. Add 1/4th cup of wheat germ. Roll out and cut into bars. Bake at 300 degrees for 45 minutes. Allow it to cool. This is really crunchy. You could brush with egg before popping them into the oven for the glazed finish.
Remember that dog treats should be hard and chewy since they are supposed to help clean your dogs teeth. Homemade organic dog treats are the best way to ensure that your pet lives longer, is healthy and disease free. I hope you enjoyed this article about homemade dog treats and homemade dog treat recipes!

How to Stop Puppy Chewing and Biting
Labels: how to stop puppy biting, puppies biting, puppy and chewing, puppy bite, puppy biting legs, puppy biting play, puppy chewing biting, puppy training biting, stop puppy biting, stop puppy from biting
Keep Puppy from Chewing
One thing puppies love to do is Chew! Many people with puppies want to know how to stop a puppy from chewing. This article was written so you will know how to keep a puppy from chewing.
Puppies do not have hands and can not feel things to explore, they will use their mouths. They do not want to destroy your home and chew up your shoe. It is just their nature to be playful and your shoe is easy to get their teeth into, and they do not know how strong their bite can be. Training them a puppy to be gentle is actually quite easy.
Take a toy that your puppy loves to bite and start playing with them. If the puppy only bites the toy, keep playing. If it gets overly playful and bites something else like your shoe or your finger, stop playing and turn your back on the puppy. If you do this a few times, the puppy will get the idea and will stop biting anything it is not supposed to.
Another commong problem is a puppy biting legs and feet. If you want your puppy to stop biting legs then I have an easy solution. If you want to teach the puppy, sometimes you have to think like a puppy. When puppies play, they like to bit and fight, but when one puppy bites another puppy to hard the puppy that is getting bit will yelp. This lets the other puppy that he/she is biting to hard and the puppy will now know and begin to learn how hard is to hard. You can teach the puppy the same way. When the puppy get's to excited or is biting your leg then yelp and stop playing with the puppy. The puppy will soon learn.
Dogs are wonderful animals and they love to win your approval. This makes it amazingly easy to train them fast as it is in their nature to please their masters. All you need is a bit of time and commitment and you can train the puppy to learn what is acceptable and what is not.

Puppy Potty Training
Labels: how to potty train a puppy, potty puppy training, potty train puppy, potty training a puppy, potty training puppies, Puppy Potty Training, puppy potty training for dummies, puppy potty training tools
How to Potty Train a Puppy
Potty training a puppy can be dificult but it is much easier if you have the right information and tips. I hope you enjoy this article Puppy Potty TrainingThere is nothing as loving and wonderful as a cheerful, playful puppy, but sadly, there is nothing as painful and irritating as cleaning up puppy poop and pee. The truth is that it is easy to potty train some dog breeds faster than others, but all dogs can be potty trained and they must be so that you can enjoy your pet.
Puppies are like babies, they love all the attention they can get, and need to be disciplined. They understand routine very well. So the best thing you can do is to establish a routine as soon as you can. Puppies have a very simple system, much like little children. The best thing to do is to check the time when you feed or give them water. They will need to go about twenty minutes after a meal or a drink. So all you need to do is get the puppy into the yard around the time it needs to poop. Just like when you have a baby and you have to arrange your schedule around the baby, you need to arrange your schedule around your pup. It will be easier to train the pup if you do this.
It may be difficult to follow your routine in the night, but many pet owners have found it easy to keep a pile of newspapers near the exit to the yard in the beginning. The puppy soon starts associating the newspapers with outdoors and messes over there at night. The puppy can easily use this until it develops a stronger bladder control.
Do not combine play and potty time. Puppies love to play all the time, and it is going to be frustrating for you if you take the puppy out at 4 am for a poop and it starts playing, and messes up as soon as you give up and bring it in. Be sure to praise the puppy when it does its business outside and scold it when it messes up inside so that it gets the message early.
Puppy Potty Training for Dummies
You may want the quick and easy way to potty train a puppy. Well here it is. You should start small, keep your puppy in a small area first. Puppies do not like to poop where they play if they are in your house they can play in the living room and poop in the kitchen.
Watch your puppy closely, Get your timing down right, Discipline and praise your puppy, be consistent, and use a leash. For more detail you can read my article, Training a puppy to pee outside
if you are looking for puppy potty training tools there are dog diapers out there!
I can guarantee that their will be accidents so you may also want to read How to clean dog pee from a carpet
Good Luck!

Dog Food Reviews
Labels: dog food review, dog food reviews, dog foods review, dry dog food review, innova dog food review, natural dog food review, premium dog food review, reviews of dog food, wellness dog food review
Dog Food Reviews
Merrick Dog Food Review
Lifes abundance dog food review
Flint river ranch dog food
Orijen six fresh fish dog food review
Top dog food picks
Top 5 dry dog food
Healthiest dry dog food
Top 10 dog treats
Benefits of prebiotic dog food
The best dry dog food
Information about dog food
What is Holistic dog food?
What food is bad for dogs?
I hope these articles give you a good bit of information about dry dog food and help you pick the best dry dog food for your dog. If you have a dog food that you like then please send me your dog food review and I will add it to this blog and give you credit!
I look forward to seeing your dog food review and I hope you enjoyed mine. Thanks :D

Hip Dysplasia in Dogs
Labels: canine hip dysplasia, developmental hip dysplasia, dysplasia hip, hip developmental dysplasia, hip dysplasia, hip dysplasia canine, hip dysplasia dog, hip dysplasia dogs, hip dysplasia symptoms
Hip Dysplasia in Dogs
I have just published an article about hip dysplasia. This is an excellent article written by S. Vassall who writes for my website. I have also included information that I have found which rounds the article out nicely. The article will answer all of the questions below.
How Hip Dysplasia is passe
What is Hip Dysplasia?
Can Hip Dysplasia be Prevented?
Can the effects of Hip Dysplasia be Reduced?
Is There a Hip Dysplasia Treatment?
Signs and Symptoms of Hip Dysplasia
How to Determine if a Dog has Hip Dysplasia
Hip Dysplasia Surgery
What can be done to stop Hip Dysplasia from getting worse?
All of these common questions about hip dysplasia are answered in this article about hip dysplasia in dogs check it out and let me know what you think.

Is Dog Insurance worth it?
Labels: canadian dog insurance, dog insurance, insurance for dogs, is dog insurance worth it, should i buy dog insurance
Many people are hesitant of getting insurance for their dog. You should consider the points outlined below before deciding to buy, or not buy dog insurance.
What would you do if the family dog [also a member of the family], got sick? Not just sick with a simple ear infection (easily treated with fairly inexpensive antibiotics), but frighteningly ill where their life hung in the balance? What if it was a dog you rescued a month ago, one that despite just being in your home for 30 days, you have completely bonded with, only to discover its past veterinary care and surgery had been completely mishandled, leaving the dog with a septic, deadly infection? The prognosis: without immediate surgery, the dog would die. For surgery of this nature, you are likely looking at a price tag of close to $4000. Would you pay that to save your dog? Or, more importantly, you desperately want to keep your beloved pet alive, but where are you going to get $4000?
If you have ever found yourself in this type of dilemma, you are not alone amongst the vast majority of dog owners. With rising costs in pet care, most pet owners, cannot afford the astronomical costs of medically treating their pets; something one should seriously consider before ever investing in the purchase or rescue of an animal. Like us, your dog needs medical treatment at various stages throughout its life; whether it be a quick trip to the vet for a check-up, vaccinations, or something more serious like a broken limb, or cancer; either way, at some point, large sums of money will have to be dispensed out of pocket for the care and well-being of your dog.
Instead of worrying over where the money will come from to treat your dog to the medical care it needs, insurance is something dog owners should consider, particularly when their dog is young and likely more prone to accidents. While many critics believe your money is better off sitting in a savings account versus paying the somewhat high cost of insurance premiums over your dogs lifetime (that you may never end up using), a reasonable monthly payment is a small price to pay for peace of mind.
In addition, like most insurance premiums, not every medical procedure/problem is covered. In taking into consideration what is best for you and your dog, you must mull over all the options and ask yourself the following: if you are willing to do anything to save your dog, are you then willing to go into debt to do so? If you answered a resounding “yes” to this question, and realistically going into debt is not an option, insurance for your dog is the right way to go. One can never predict an unexpected, undesirable event in the life of a pet, however, one can prepare financially to hebeing financially prepared over the lifetime of your dog will lift the burden of agonizing over where the money will come from to save your precious member of the family. “A dog is for life, not just for Christmas,” and as that is the case, can one really put a price on them?

Healthiest Dry Dog Food
Labels: healthiest dog food, healthiest dry dog food, healthy dry dog food, holistic dry dog food, natural dry dog food, what is the healthiest dry dog food
I have looked over many types of dog food and tried to find the Healthiest dry dog food. These picks are based on ingredients and dog food analysis. Below is the healthiest dry dog food in 2009
Dry dog food is better for your pet for several reasons. Experts say that chewing on dry dog food keeps the teeth of your pet healthy since it does not allow plaque to accumulate. Pet owners will agree to this fact, the stools are firmer making it easy to clean up after your pet. Moreover, if you have to leave food for your pet and go to work, leaving dry dog food is safer since it will not deteriorate and it is far healthier. Some people are of the opinion that if you feed your dog only dry food, it will strain the dog’s kidney. It would be better to mix the meals, alternate dry dog food with other foods. This way the pet will get a better balanced diet too.
There are so many dry dog foods available in the market that it becomes really difficult to decide which dry dog food to purchase for your pet. If you go to a pet shop, there are so many brands vying for your attention it becomes difficult to choose.
The best way to select the best food for your pet is to study the label and check the first five ingredients listed in the content. They comprise of 80% of the food. Use the following parameters:
How to tell is dog food is healthy
- Ensure that meat is the main ingredient. The best dry dog foods have meat listed as the first four ingredients. Dogs are naturally carnivorous and need the high protein.
- Avoid meat by product as ingredients.
- Good dry dog foods are grain free. While dogs can digest small amounts of grain, they can not digest too much of grain. Too much grain will end up in messy stools that are a pain to clean.
- Fruits and vegetables should be included. Again steer clear of labels that state fruit and vegetable by products.
- Healthy dry dog food will contain fresh whole ingredients. If it is not human grade avoid it, because it may not be healthy.
- Your best dry dog food will comprise of mainly protein, good carbohydrates, fruits, vegetables, fiber, fats and oils.
List of Healthiest Dry dog foods
Below is a list of the healthiest dry dog food
Life’s Abundance Dog Food
It has chicken meal, ground brown rice, oat groats, chicken fat and dried beet pulp. It also has vegetables, fruits, omega 3 etc. It makes the food well balanced and will keep your pet healthy.
Flint River Dog Food
This has chicken meal, whole wheat flour, ground rice, lamb meal and poultry fat. The label does not talk about vegetables and fruits. If you are feeding your pet Flint River, add servings of vegetables and fruits to make it well balanced. Wheat is okay in small quantities and not a very good source of protein.
Pet Promise Dog Food
The first five ingredients are Chicken, brewers rice, corn gluten meal, oat groats, pearled barley. Again corn gluten is a filler. If your pet thrives on this and loves it, consider adding more protein to his diet. Unfortunately pet promise is shutting down. A great new brand is Halo dog food which I will add a review to soon.
Solid Gold Dog Food
Solid Gold is fish based and fish is an excellent protein source. Ocean Fish, Beef, Potatoes, Potato Protein, Canola Oil, Tomato Pomace are the first five listed contents. As a pet owner, you should consider supplementing more protein in the diet. Other than that, this is a wonderful recipe.
Timberwolf Dog Food
Timberwolf Dog Food has Venison, Whole Ground Brown Rice, Lamb, Whole Ground Millet, Lamb Meal, Venison Meal etc. listed as the first five ingredients. It contains a lot of fruit and vegetables too. This is again a well balanced meal.
I also recommend Orijen 6 Fresh Fish Dog Food

Dog Insurance Canada
Labels: canadian dog insurance, canadian pet insurance, dog insurance, dog insurance canada, dog insurance in canada, insurance for dogs for canadians
You may be looking to get insurance for your dog. As a Canadian you are probably looking for a pet insurance company in Canada. I have found a few Canadian dog insurance companies mentioned in the article below.
Medical treatment has shown huge advances not only in humans but also in pets. Pet owners have become less pragmatic and more emotional as far as their pets are concerned, and end up paying humongous bills for veterinary treatments which have become frightfully expensive. This has brought with it the need for dog insurance. Companies that provide dog insurance plans are cropping up not only in the US but also in Canada and Europe. Some of these companies provide coverage in certain states, some all over the country and some USA insurances also provide coverage in Canada.
Consider this, now if your pet has an accident, you can even get an MRI done, transplants and radiation treatments are also carried out on dogs that have had accidents. The vet bill can go well over thousands of dollars easily. There are only two solutions to such an eventuality, either pay the bill, or get your dog put down. No longer is pet insurance something that was done for racehorses or show dogs. Dog Insurance is done for pets belonging to normal people like us.
Dog insurance not only saves a dog from being euthanized just because proper medical treatment is unaffordable. It can, if you choose your plan wisely, take care of your annual vet bills, cover the dog against accidents and save your monthly vet expense. You can get the vaccination and other treatment reimbursed, in addition to taking care of the pet’s safety. Dog insurance is very useful if you have a dog that is susceptible to illness, is accident prone or has a hereditary disease.
There are many Canadian dog insurance companies some of which are mentioned below
Pethealth
This company gives cover only for accidents. The plan costs just $9.95 per month and you can claim upto $2000. However, it does not offer any kind of coverage for illnesses.Petsecure
This offers a far more comprehensive coverage. Its “Secure” plan is priced at a monthly cost of $21.41. It gives accident and illness coverage, dental coverage, and also has provision for alternative treatments, medical devices and behavior therapy. Members get benefits like kennel fee, lost pet advertising and burial too. This is very popular and has great reviews.Pethealth dog insurance review
is offers a “Gold” plan at $22.95 a month. Provides double illness coverage, boarding fee etc. Pethealth has a “Preferred” plan that covers accidents, illness, death, euthanasia, kennel fee, advertising etc at a monthly cost of $34.95.Petsecure dog insurance review
Pet Secure dog insurance has two plans, one at $40.68 providing accident coverage, illness coverage to $5,000 per condition. dental, alternative treatments etc. Another plan is for $65.30 which also covers cremation, burial and vet fee etc.
If you research the plans carefully, you may find one that is suitable to your budget and gives your pet the best coverage.

Microchip for dogs - benefits of Microchipping a dog
Labels: lost dog, microchip dog, microchip dogs, microchip for dogs, microchipping dog, microchipping dogs, microchipping for dogs, microchips in dogs, tracking dog, tracking dogs
Many people are curious about microchipping a dog. Is microchipping a dog safe? How much does microchipping a dog cost? and what are the benefits to microchipping a dog? All of these questions will be answered in this article.
Why a dog should be microchipped
Microchips are used in dogs for the permanent identification of your dog should they become lost. They can also be quite useful in disputes over ownership of ones dog if they are lost, found, and claimed by someone other than the legitimate owner. For example my mother breeds Bernese Mountain dogs. She shipped two puppies to the same airport to be picked up by two different people. The people had picked their puppies according to pictures on my mothers website. My mother put the puppies in their kennel according to the read from their microchip and brought them to the airport. The problem is when the people picked the dogs up one lady recognized that the puppy did not look like the one in the picture, however the other lady insisted on keeping the one she got. What happened was the people at the air port must have let the puppies out and put them back in the wrong carriers! We simply had the people check the microchip reading and they ended up switching dogs.Benefits of microchipping a dog
Another benefit of having your dog microchipped is if you are unlucky enough to have purchased a dog that has been stolen, they can also be identified through this procedure.The chip itself is no bigger than a grain of rice and is implanted between the shoulder blades under the skin. Before implantation, your vet will select a chip that has its own unique 10-digit ID number. A needle and special syringe are used to insert the chip and it is essentially an easy and painless process for your dog, quite like them receiving a shot. Once the chip is in place, a small device (used to read it with the use of radio waves) similar to a scanner, will display the chip number on a screen. Generally, your vet will (and should) test out the chip to ensure it is picking up the information, in particular the ID number attached to it. Following the procedure, an enrolment form needs to be filled out with all pertinent information regarding your dog: number on the chip, all owner contact information, name and description of your dog, the vet's contact information, and an alternate emergency contact. The form is kept in database by a registry keeper which can include either the manufacturer (or distributor) of the chip, or an independent microchip provider. A registration fee to the designated provider is required and then you will have access to their 24-hour, toll free service for recovery of your dog. Your dog will also receive a metal tag with the chip ID number on it, which can be fastened to their collar.
Cost of microchipping a dog
Typically the cost for microchipping runs between $50-$75; keep in mind, this is for the lifetime of your dog. While it has been reported that chips have sometimes moved from between the dog's shoulder blades, the chip remains in the dog regardless – when the vet scans a dog for identification, the manufacturers instructions recommend that the dogs entire body be scanned for detection of the chip and not just the original place of insertion. In addition, it is probably a good idea to have your dog scanned every time you bring them in for a check-up/procedure just to ensure the chip is still functioning as it should.Is microchipping a dog safe?
If you are worried about the safety of having a microchip under your dogs skin, don't be: the chip itself is completely passive and contains no internal power source. Their design is specific to remaining inactive until acted upon.
Microchipping a dog has become more and more common and is used quite frequently by animal rescue groups, breeders, animal shelters, kennel's, trainers and humane societies. Responsible dog ownership is the best way to protect (and not lose) your pet, but if you feel there is any chance your dog has a means of 'escape' from your capable grasp, then microchipping is a safe and easy way to ensure additional reinforcement should you ever find yourself having to look for your lost dog.







