Tips Of The Month Archives- 2009

Winter Eye Problems

Conjuctivitis or Pink Eye: Due to the weather becoming colder creates a lot more wind, which carries debris such as dust and dirt. Unfortunaelty this can cause redness, watery discharge or crusty eyes in our beloved cats and dogs. This can bring on a bacterial infection.

To help prevent this, have a groomer trim the fur around your dogs eyes (if you have a longer haired dog) don't let him hang his head out the car window. If you see some eye irritation, try this eye wash as it sooths irritation and helps to heal the eye.

• 1 cup (250ml) boiling filtered water
• 1 tsp dried calendula
• 1 tsp dried camomile
• After you have boiled the water, pour it over the herbs and cover and steep for approx. 15 minutes. Take a coffee filter and over a jar, strain the water/herb mixture. Take lukewarm solution and dip a cotton ball and soak it, and squeeze liquid into your pets affected eys several times a day until the eyes have healed. If you fail to see improvement within 24 hours, consult a vet.

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Flaxseed Oil For Dogs and Cats

Flaxseed oil to treat dry, flaky or itchy skin. This could be the result of essential Fatty Acids due to stress or growth, or bathing too often with harsh shampoos. Also dietary imbalances.

If you are seeing pet dandruff, be sure also to check for intestional worm infestations.

Supplement daily diet with cold pressed flaxseed oil, (see local grocery store)For dogs add to their food 1/2 tsp of flaxseed oil for every 10 lbs (4.5kgs) of body weight, twice a day.

Cats you would add a 1/4 tsp of flaxseed oil to their food twice a day.

Keep oil refrigerated so it doesn't go rancid.

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Baking Soda Smile!

Baking Soda toothpaste to whiten and clean your dogs teeth. How to use it.

Mix up a little bit of baking soda and water to make a paste (small amount). Get a doggie toothbrush or finger brush and if your dog will let you do his whole mouth or you can do what you can without stressing him.

As a reward, give him sliced apple. The apple will freshen his breath.

Baking soda polishes the teeth and helps to neutrilize bad breath.Do this Once a week!

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Dogs Suffer From SAD Too! Aka Seasonal Affective Disorder

Dogs Suffer From SAD Too! Aka Seasonal Affective Disorder. This occurs more during the winter months when the sun's rays are weakest. And when we/they are more likely to stay inside out of the cold.

Light MUST enter the dogs eyes in order to stimulate the hypothalamus pineal gland and the pituitary gland, which is the body's master hormone secreting factory. Light is necessary for the production of serotonin-the "feel good" substance that the bodies produce. Artificial light interferes with the production of melatonin. Interruption of natural light and needed dark cycles (like bedtime) causes stress and continued disruption causes disease.

So this winter make sure you and your dog have sufficient sun time for your health and mental well being.

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No More Tears!

To avoid those ugly dark stains on your coated dogs eyes, after grooming apply lip balm under the eyes to prevent tear staining.Apply daily

MMMMMMM, Fresh lips fresh eyes!

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Homemade Insect Repellent

Place the following ingredients into a large glass container.

Plastic can be used, but the odors of the lemon and Rosemary will be permanently infused into the plastic.

One fat juicy lemon with a heavy rind sliced paper thin.

One Tablespoon of crushed Rosemary sprinkled over the lemon slices.

Pour 32 ounces of near-boiling water over the lemon and Rosemary.

Cover with a clean cloth and let the liquid "steep" for at least 15 hours.

After the "steeping" time, pour the liquid through cheesecloth into a clean quart size canning jar, cover and store in the refrigerator.

Transfer 4 - 6 ounces at a time into a spray bottle with a fine mist applicator.

Spray liberally over skin and coats.

Avoid contact with the eyes.

Repeat the application as frequently as required.

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Nails, Nails, Nails, What To Do About Them!

If you are too worried about trimming your dog's nails, see your local groomer, they do just nails you know!

For those that want to tackle the job, here is a great primer for you. How to do your dogs nails.

Cat's Nails

For you cat people, here is a suggestion. Do one paw, then give kitty a break. You can even do one a day, but the key here people is to start young and do often, example every 2 weeks, then a little bit off will go a long way instead of trying to take a lot at once.

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Your Dog And Door Etiquette

Personally, I don't think your dog should ever answer a door, but if it must, your dog should have door etiquette. So get some chicken and cut into very small pieces for reward treat.

Start by having your over zealous dog do a sit, personally I like him in a lying position but this could be too much for you in the beginning. Allow the person to enter, if the dog moves put him back into a sit and reward with a treat. Then have the person coming through the door ignore the dog, if it starts to jump hand them a treat and as soon as the dog goes back to a sit, have them reward him. Practice this until you can get him to lie down at the door.

In order to enforce this in your dogs mind, ALWAYS ensure he sits or lies down before petting him, then give him his treat. Calm, submissive behaviour before reward.

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Sitting & Begging on Command for Cats & Kittens

Some of my favorite treats for cats or kittens are pieces of cooked chicken or fish. Sardines are a good source, but make sure there are no bones.

If you find the one they absolutely love, you can use it as a motivator to get them to sit and beg. When you are trying to do a sit on the kitten, just show the kitten the food treat and hold it upwards so he has to look up, and this p;uts the litten or cat into an automatic sit as you are giving the command. Give them their treat.

Your next trick. Try to get the cat to stand up in a bear position by moving the food towards him and slowly take it away from his nose, putting him into a stand, and giving the "Up or Stand" command. Reward kitty with treat.

Be patient as cats take a lot longer to train then a dog.

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Eggs- Your dogs breakfast shake

Goats milk, 1 egg yolk, and unpaturesized honey. (See amount from June 08 tip of month) Why ? Because eggs are a source of high quality protein including 20 amino acids.

If the nutrients and vitamins do THIS for you, think of the benefits for your pets!

It will do more for your dogs coat shine then you can guess, and reduce shedding.

Pups - 1 shake a week
Adults- up to 3 times a week depending on weight, less if overweight.

Proteins are essential for dogs and cats growth and body repair. eggs. And goats milk.have high biological value .

*Absolutely no egg whites! Affects the dogs biotin levels (contains avidin) and some dogs are allergic to the whites. *

Please note if you do not want to give your cat/dog a protein shake, please feed egg yolks, cooked or uncooked depending source of eggs. Cook eggs if worred about salmonella. .

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Beware of the Eyes of March

The eyes of a cat will reveal a lot about how they are feeling. A cat can narrow their eyes into very thin slits or open them into a wide stare. What does this mean?

A cat , when relaxed and content, half-closes their eyes. He or she will blink very slowly, and turn their face away from whoever is watching them. Cats that are scared will have wide eyes and dilated pupils and you will notice the black center part of the eyse becomes wide and round.

Angry cats may also have their eyse wide open but beware their pupils when peeved narrow to thin slits. SO hence beware the Eyes of March.

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Happy Valentines Day

Thank you Dogs In Canada for your Beef Heart Cookies Recipe

• 1/2 lb (225g) beef heart or lean ground beef
• 1 clove of garlic crushed
• 2 c. (500 mls) of whole wheat flour
• 1 c (250ml) of corn meal
• 3/4 c (175 mls) of beef stock, tomato juice or water
• 1/4 c (60 mls) canola or olive oil, plus extra for cooking
• 1 large egg

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Cut beef into chunks and put in food processor with garlic
3. Pulse until finely chopped
4. Heat a drizzle of oil in a skillet set over med. Heat; cook beef heart (or ground beef w/garlic) until no traces of pink remain
5. set aside to cool
6. In large bowl, stir flour and corn meal.
7. stir in beef mixture
8. in small bowl, whisk the beef stock, oil and egg.
9. Add to the dry ingredients and mix until well blended
10. on a lightly floured surfacew,roll dough about 1/2 in thick and cut into heart shapes with cookie cutter or 1 x 2 in strips with a knife.

Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes until springy to touch.
Makes about 24 cookies. Depending on their size. Store leftovers in a sealed container in fridge or freezer.

From the book by Julie Van Rosendaal "In the Dog Kitchen".

With more than 80 nutritious recipes, including drop cookies, rolled cookies and even doggi biscotti, In the Dog Kitchen will have any pooch shaking a paw. Multi-talented and best-selling author Julie Van Rosendaal adds photos, tips and even a special section on ingredients and shouldn't migrate from our cupboards to our dogs--A perfect give for dog lovers and Fido alike.

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