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Cats and dogs can be friends

January 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Cartoons always depict cats and dogs as mortal enemies, but many families have cats and dogs who not only get along, but seem to be best of friends.  So how does this happen?  The key is to gradually and safely introduce the two.  Start out by allowing the new pet to become familiar with its surroundings without the distraction of another animal.  Then, it is okay to put the two pets in the same room, but be sure to have a protective barrier between them.  Once both pets show calm interest without aggression, remove the barrier.  Closely supervise the introduction and correct your pet at the slightest sign of a potential confrontation.

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Social Pup

December 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment

It is never too early to start socializing your dog.  Experts say that socialization helps dogs in developing psychologically and teaches them how to interact with others in their immediate surroundings.  But before you visit the dog park, make sure your puppy is up to date on any necessary vaccinations and is cleared by your veterinarian.

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Kitten Care

July 12, 2008 By Leave a Comment
17004741402342916 Kitten Careplay Kitten Care

cutekittens Kitten CareCongratulations! Owning a new kitten can be a rewarding and enjoyable experience. However, as with any new addition to a family, there are often adjustments and changes that can be made to make the transition easier for everyone in the household. This handout will address some of the questions and challenges facing the owners of a new kitten.

Kittens are naturally inquisitive and your new addition will want to explore its new surroundings as soon as possible. However, in order to avoid overwhelming your kitten, it is best to allow this exploration in stages. For the first few days confine your kitten to one or two rooms and then gradually allow him to move to other portions of your home. This gradual expansion of boundaries will allow your kitten to always have a safe haven in a previously explored area of the home.

Your new kitten may initially receive a hostile reaction from your current pets, especially another cat. In order to minimize this reaction, make sure that that your established pets do not feel the need to compete with the kitten for attention or food. Shower all of your pets with attention during the homecoming, introduction period and until the household has settled into a normal routine. And do not let the new kitten eat or drink from an established cats bowls.

It is important to stimulate your new kitten with many types of play and socialization in order to foster proper muscle development and to teach proper social skills. Two types of essential play behaviors are stalking and pouncing. These behaviors can be encouraged by providing toys that are lightweight, easily movable and have unique sounds to attract your kittens attention during play. Some examples of these toys are small balls, crumpled paper and lengths of yarn, string or ribbon that may be drug across the floor. Remember, however, that your kitten should always be supervised when playing with small items that may present a swallowing or choking hazard.

Kittens learn a great deal about the world around them and acceptable social behavior between the ages of two and twelve weeks. During this time it is important for you to expose your new addition to as many positive experiences with men, women, children, dogs, cats and other pets as possible. Positive experiences in many different settings during this time will help prevent your kitten to becoming scared or skittish in new environments and around strangers.

Kittens are rambunctious and curious. Unfortunately, these normally cute characteristics can also lead to destructive behavior. If your kitten is caught in the act of destructive behavior, it may be necessary to discipline it. Physical and harsh punishment for kittens is never recommended. Instead it is best to use a punishment that will be associated with the undesired behavior and not the enforcer. Some examples of these types of punishment include using a squirt bottle, horn, or hand clap to startle the kitten.

As with any new pet, proper veterinary care is essential to maintaining a healthy happy kitten. Your new kitten will receive a series of vaccinations to help protect it against five preventable feline diseases. These diseases are rabies, feline distemper and three types of respiratory organisms. This series of injections is normally given between six to eight weeks of age, at 12 weeks and again at 16 weeks. Vaccinations are also available for feline leukemia and FIP (feline infectious peritonitis). However, consult your veterinarian about these vaccines as they may not be necessary for your kitten if it does not go outside or if it is not exposed to multiple cats.

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Destructive Behavior in Puppies

June 15, 2008 By Leave a Comment

Destructive%20Behavior%20In%20Puppies Destructive Behavior in Puppies

Congratulations on bringing home your new puppy! A new puppy can be an exciting and rewarding experience. However, along with the fun, often come some challenges for the new owners. One such challenge is managing and controlling your puppys destructive behaviors. This handout will provide some tips, if your puppy tends to exhibit this type of behavior.

Puppies exhibit destructive behaviors for many different reasons. Most puppies are naturally curious about their surroundings and part of their exploration process is to touch, smell and, yes, taste their new environment. In fact, this exploration is normal and even necessary for proper puppy socialization and development. Problems occur, however, when your puppy takes these natural tendencies to the next level and becomes destructive in his behavior. These destructive behaviors may originate for many different reasons. Some small puppies may be trying to satisfy a natural urge to chew or teethe. Other puppies that tear up items, such as magazines, trash or carpets, may be simply playing. Puppies who become anxious when separated from their family members may also exhibit a wide variety of destructive behaviors.

The first step to eliminating destructive behaviors in your puppy is to determine the main cause of the behavior. If your pet destroys a wide variety of items throughout the house at different times of day, then the dog is probably exhibiting play behaviors. If the dog only destroys items when you are separated from him, then your pet is probably experiencing separation anxiety. If your puppy is between three to six months of age and is exhibiting new destructive chewing behaviors, then he is probably beginning to teethe and looking to soothe his sore teeth and gums. With each of these types of behaviors, it is important to analyze your behavior as well to determine if you are inadvertently rewarding the behavior in a way. For example, you catch your pet chewing on an inappropriate object and in order to distract him from the object you give him a treat. Repeating this action will solidify in your pets mind that chewing equals receiving a treat and, therefore, the pet will chew more frequently.[DFR::5032266-13565-ls|align_right_1]

After determining the cause of your pets destructive behavior, steps may then be taken to eliminate the behavior. The first steps should be ones that re-direct the pets attention to proper and appropriate chewing and play behaviors. For the pet exhibiting destructive play behaviors, this redirection may include more proper play times, exercise, training, and new appropriate toys. These new toys should have a variety of tastes, textures, sounds and odors in order to stimulate your pet and redirect their attention. One such example are the many good puzzle toys on the market today that allow you to stuff the toy with treats and allow your pet to work for its reward. If your pet is exhibiting teething behaviors, redirect its attention to appropriate outlets by providing toys with a variety of textures. It may also be good to offer toys that have been cooled in the freezer or toys that have frozen treats inside to ease the puppys gums. For the puppy that is experiencing separation anxiety it may be necessary to confine the animal in an area where it will not damage items while you are away. If the pup is confined, be sure to provide new and interesting toys and treats to distract the pup from your departure and separation.

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If directing your puppys attention away from destructive chewing and toward appropriate areas has not worked then it may be necessary to discipline your pet. Discipline should be swift, humane and should occur at the time of the offense. If possible, it is recommended to use a punishment that will not be associated with the punisher, for example, a spray bottle, noise gun, citronella spray collar or clap. If you cannot confine your pet away from the area while you are not present to supervise, then it may be necessary to deter your pet by placing a booby trap. One idea is to place items that will make a loud noise and movement on or near the area so that when your pet touches or chews he will be greeted with a loud crash and flourish of movement. This attack will frequently deter your pet from further chewing.

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Traveling with Your Cat

June 13, 2008 By Leave a Comment

Traveling%20with%20Your%20Cat Traveling with Your Cat

At some point in most pet owners lives, it becomes necessary to travel with your pet. Unfortunately for cat owners, most cats are not inclined to enjoy the travel experience. This handout will explain some tips for keeping your cat comfortable and helping them tolerate the travel experience.

Cats tend to naturally be highly territorial animals. Unfortunately, most travel destinations do not tend to lend themselves to be known and comfortable territory for your cat. On top of introducing them to new surroundings upon arrival, your pet has likely also been confined in a travel carrier for the trip. This confinement may also be stressful to your pet as many cats do not like to be confined to small and non-familiar spaces. This combination of lack of familiarity with their surroundings and control over their surroundings tends to make travel an overall stressful experience.

Your cat may come to tolerate the travel experience with time. However, unless a cat was introduced to travel as a kitten, it may never come to enjoy excursions away from its familiar territory. In order to lessen the stress during a big trip and prepare your cat for the travel experience it may be helpful to practice some of the following tips:

  • Introduce your pet to their carrier in familiar and comfortable territory. This will help combat the negative association that your cat may have developed by linking the carrier to undesirable outcomes, such as the vet or kennel.
  • Make the carrier as familiar and friendly as possible. Line the carrier with a favorite blanket and include a special treat or toy to entice your cat to spend time inside.
  • Introduce your pet to short, frequent car trips with pleasurable destinations.
  • Include treats, toys or other special items to ensure that your cat associates positive experiences with the travel excursions.
travelwithcat Traveling with Your Catplay Traveling with Your Cat

Choosing an appropriate travel carrier will play a large role in how comfortable both you and your cat are with traveling. Aspects of the carrier should be chosen with the animals comfort, your ease of transport and any outside regulations, such as the airlines, in mind. Some things to consider for your comfort are the way the cat is put into the carrier, such as top, side or front entry and whether the carrier has soft or hard sides. The ease of cleaning should also be considered. Most plastic shell and wire mesh carriers are easy to wipe clean, whereas, some cloth luggage-type carriers require machine washing. It is also ideal for the carrier to have a separate bottom tray to hold an absorbent pad to keep fecal matter away from your pet. If your cat prefers to be hidden from view, then a covered, enclosed carrier would be ideal. Whereas if your cat prefers to view what is happening around them, then perhaps a wire mesh carrier would suit.

girlwithsiam Traveling with Your Cat

However, before purchasing any carrier, check with your preferred mode of travel and accommodations to make sure that your ideal carrier also fits their guidelines and regulations. Some general guidelines to follow for purchasing a carrier to be used on an aircraft are that the walls of the carrier should have adequate ventilation (preferably three sides); the walls of the carrier should be strong enough to prevent it from being crushed; the carrier must have sturdy handles; an attached water bowl must be present and the cage should allow the animal to stand up and turn around easily.

Basic Tips for Airline Travel with Your Cat:

  • Determine all airline regulations for acclimation, carrier specifications, baggage liability, and vaccination records several weeks prior to flying. Bring all pertinent veterinary records and other documentation to the airport with you to avoid delays.
  • Schedule a direct flight if possible. This will minimize the chances of a delay and of your pet having to wait in inclimate weather to be loaded into cargo.
  • Have your cat examined by its veterinarian before the trip to determine its suitability to fly. Your veterinarian may recommend a mild sedative for cats that may be overly stressed during their travel.
  • Some airlines will allow passengers to travel with small pets in coach and first class. Inquire as to this possibility and the regulations well before arriving at the airport.
  • Make sure that your pets carrier is well marked with permanent identification, including your contact information, flight number, destination and destination contact information.
  • Consider in advance all food, water and medication that you may need for your cat and be sure to pack it in an easily accessible location.

Traveling with Your Cat

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Top Tips For Training Your Golden Retriever

June 13, 2008 By Leave a Comment

golden retriever Top Tips For Training Your Golden Retriever

Once you have brought home your golden retriever, and have made him comfortable to the new surroundings, you have to begin training your golden retriever. In fact the sooner you start the training, the easier will it be for both you and your pet to lead a comfortable and happy life.

Training is very important for your golden retriever. With training they will understand what is an acceptable action and what is an undesirable action. Dogs usually judge their actions on the response that they get for their actions. Good responses encourage them, and bad ones don’t, so you have to be forthright in expressing yourself to your dog.

Handy Tips On Training Your Golden Retriever

- Different people would have different needs for a dog. If you are training your dog, decide on a desirable behavior code for your dog from the first day itself. Judge for yourself what you would prefer your dog to do and then zero in on training your golden retriever accordingly.

- From the very first phase, praise your dog for desirable behavior, or discourage him for an undesirable one. For example, if your golden retriever puppy is playing with your kid and fetches a ball, praise him. You may like him to perform such tasks and therefore he has to understand that. On the other hand, if he is littering around, discourage him and teach him the right way to release himself. In this way you can begin training your golden retriever puppy.

- Many a times, you may need to be very stern with your golden retriever puppy as well, especially if your puppy is being particularly naughty

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