Saturday, December 1, 2007

How To Treat Dog Vomiting

By: Dr. Andrew Jones
A very common problem that virtually all of us see as dog owners is dog vomiting. There are potentially many different causes of dog vomiting. The most common cause is garbage gut, where your dog consumes something he shouldn't have, resulting in vomiting. Other causes include food allergies, parasites, medications, infectious causes (i.e. parvovirus), cancer, liver or kidney disease, pancreatitis, metabolic disorders (thyroid disease or diabetes), physical obstructions such as a ball or a bone, and primary motility disorders (the stomach doesn't contract normally). Any vomiting dog must be evaluated for dehydration. If your dog is vomiting persistently and unable to retain even water, wait no longer than 24 hours before going to your veterinarian. This indicates a severe problem, such as an obstruction, that needs to be treated with IV fluids and possibly surgery. If your dog is still consuming water and occasionally vomiting, then you can try some of the home remedies. Fasting. A 24 hour fast is the most important thing you can do to allow your pet's inflamed stomach to heal. Allow access to controlled amounts of water, but no food. After 24 hours offer bland food such as plain cooked white rice; give equivalent amounts of rice as you do dog or cat food. After 48 hours mix their regular food with rice and don't fully go to regular food until after 72 hours. For Food Allergens. For dogs and cats with chronic vomiting, I strongly recommend a diet change. Preferably switch to a hypoallergenic food or homemade allergy diet. At the very least, change to a premium quality food - I find that some pets respond to a more natural diet. In light of the recent Pet Food Recall, paying close your dog’s diet is even more important than ever. For a list of recommended foods, join my membership site, Dr. Andrew Jones' Inner Circle (see links below). Homeopathic. Nux Vomica is an effective homeopathic remedy for dog vomiting. Give 1 tablet of the 30C strength per 40lbs once daily for 3-5 days. Herbal - Ginger. A tasty addition for a curry is also effective for vomiting. The dried herb dose is 25mg per lb or 1 drop per lb twice daily of the tincture. Acupressure Point. The ST36 point, located on the outside of the hind leg below the knee may be effective; press it for 1 minute twice daily for 3-5 days to see if it helps. Flowers to the Rescue: Bach Rescue Remedy can make your pet feel a little better about their illness. Give your pet 3-4 drops by mouth every 6 hours. Herbal - Chamomile. This is commonly used in people with mild stomach upset and it may help your pet. Give 30mg per lb of the dried herb, or 2 drops per lb of the tincture three times daily. The treatments I covered may be all that you need for now. But I guarantee that you will use many of the thousands of at home remedies in my book. I use them every day in practice. They work. No side effects. You should try it. To your pet's good health... Dr. Andrew Jones, a practicing Veterinarian, has a special interest in alternative, natural remedies for pets. His holistic pet health manual is at: http://www.veterinarysecretsrevealed.com and http://www.theonlinevet.com.

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How To Treat Dog Diarrhea

By: Dr. Andrew Jones
Dog diarrhea... this is something that all of us as dog owners have to deal with at some point in the life of our dogs. It is a very common health issue for dogs. In some cases of diarrhea there may be only small amounts of mucous, but frequent straining. Diarrhea can also be an ongoing problem. Fortunately, most cases of dog diarrhea respond to symptomatic treatment at home. Before I get into the home treatments, pay very close attention to the severity of the diarrhea that your dog has. This is extremely important – if your dog’s diarrhea is so severe that it results in dehydration, this is a medical emergency and must be dealt with by your Veterinarian. If your pet is still very alert, active and drinking, then try some of the following home remedies. Dog diarrhea can be caused by a number of different things, including garbage (‘Garbage Gut’), parasites, infectious agents (such as parvovirus), food allergy, inflammatory changes and pancreatic abnormalities. There are several home solutions you can try. The most effective one is a 24 Hour Fast. Stop putting food into your pet for 24 hours (Day 1). This allows the intestines to rest and regenerate. Always have access to plenty of fresh water. After the first 24 hours, introduce a bland food for the following 24 hours (Day 2), such as plain white cooked rice, feeding equivalent cups of rice as their normal diet. Another possible solution includes using Fiber. Dietary fiber absorbs water in the intestine, which helps to decrease diarrhea. Ground flax is a great source for dogs – add 1 teaspoon per cup of dog food. It’s always better to buy your flax as whole seed and then grind it as you need it. A third suggestion is to try Probiotics. Probiotics are basically dietary supplements that contain potentially beneficial bacteria or yeast. Probiotics restore the natural bacteria in the intestine, to help the intestinal immune system. The most effective supplement is Lactobacillus acidophilus – give 1/4 capsule per 10 lbs of body weight twice daily. Another suggestion includes using common human remedies. One remedy I suggest is to use Pepto-Bismol - this is an old standby that can be effective for dogs. The dog dose is 1ml per 10lbs of body weight, given three times daily. Do not use this method for more than 7 days. Other remedies include Immodium (Loperamide). For dogs, give .5mg per 10lbs three times daily – i.e. give your 40 lb dog one 2mg tablet three times daily. Dog diarrhea is one of the most common reasons pets are taken to a veterinarian. People spend millions of dollars having these problems taken care of this way. The treatments you have just learned can save you money. If you find these remedies useful, I guarantee that you will find the other remedies in my book, Veterinary Secrets Revealed, just as practical. And, they can save you thousands of dollars over seeing your Vet for every little issue your pet has. These remedies work - I use them every day in practice. Best wishes... Dr. Andrew Jones, a practicing Veterinarian, has a special interest in alternative, natural remedies for pets. His holistic pet health manual is at: http://www.veterinarysecretsrevealed.com and http://www.theonlinevet.com.

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How To Treat Cushings Disease in Dogs

By: Dr. Andrew Jones
Cushings Disease, also called hyperadrenocorticism, is relatively common in older dogs. Dogs with Cushings Disease produce too much of a natural hormone called cortisol, producing symptoms such as excessive drinking and urinating, a distended, swaying belly, hair loss and a sparse hair coat, possibly an increased appetite, and frequent panting. Dogs with Cushings Disease may have been tested for other causes of increased drinking, including diabetes, kidney and liver disease, where all tests have come back negative. This is another sign of Cushings Disease. The disease is an overproduction of a hormone (cortisol) which produces the signs of excessive drinking and urinating. The most common cause is due to a tumor on the pituitary gland (a gland at the base of the brain). A small percentage of cases are caused by a tumor on the adrenal gland (a gland in the kidneys). In some cases, dogs can show all these signs by being on steroids, such as prednisone. In this case, the treatment is to wean your dog off the drug. To begin with, as always, have your dog correctly diagnosed – take him to your Vet. If he has some of the signs of Cushings (excessive drinking and urination) then it is first important to rule out other diseases. Your Vet will check for diabetes, kidney disease, and liver disease. A general blood screen will be suggestive of Cushings Disease. At this time they may recommend further screening tests and discuss treatment. Treatments that your Vet may suggest might include drug therapy with trilostane or mitotane. Other conventional treatment might include radiation therapy or in some cases, adrenalectomy. There are natural alternatives that can be used in conjunction with the conventional options. In this article, I offer several that you can try that may help. A possibly effective natural solution is to try antioxidants. In Cushings Disease, the cells are more prone to injury from the high cortisol levels. The three most effective antioxidants are Vitamin E, Vitamin C and Selenium. These are best given in combination: give 100IU of Vitamin E, 100mg of Vitamin C and 20 ug if Selenium per 10 lbs of body weight daily. Another natural solution is to try the herb Ginkgo Biloba. It has been shown to reduce cortisol production, similar to anipryl (see below). High cortisol levels will make your pet feel anxious. A herbal solution to reduce anxiety is to try Valerian. The dog dose is 1 drop per lb of body weight twice daily. When it comes to conventional solutions, try Anipryl. This is a newer, safe medication to treat the disease, available from your Veterinarian. It must be given daily, and can be quite costly to treat a large dog. It works directly on the pituitary gland helping to decrease cortisol production. If you find these remedies useful, I guarantee that you will find the other remedies in my book and home study course, Veterinary Secrets Revealed, just as practical. If you use only a few of the remedies I offer, you will see how easy it is to save money at your Vet. These remedies work - I use them every day in practice. Best wishes... Dr. Andrew Jones, a practicing Veterinarian, has a special interest in alternative, natural remedies for pets. His holistic pet health manual is at: http://www.veterinarysecretsrevealed.com and http://www.theonlinevet.com.

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Teaching Basic Obedience Skills To Your Dog

By: peter john
It is really challenging as well as exciting to teach the basic obedience skills to your dog when teaching is avoid of any type of punishment or humiliation. Your endurance will surely make you a good teacher and your dog a good learner. Dogs generally get distracted pretty easily because of their short attention spans. Therefore select of a place that is free of other distractions such as other pets, children or loud noises for training is important. Remember not to exceed your training period more than 30 minutes because the dog gets restless and easily distracted. Paying attention to your commands will be the beginning of your first lesson in obedience. Start calling your dog by his name and then follow using a keyword like "watch" or "look" after your dog gets acquainted with his name. Once you find your dog going well with your commands you get the signal to step forward for the next step of your teaching. Doing some attention exercises for a short length of time will help your dog to be able to pay attention to your commands. For this you need to hold a toy or dog treat in near your mouth and then give him the keyword command. Praise him, for each time he takes the time to watch because this will encourage him to increase the time of paying attention to you. Try getting him to watch for at least a minute. Let him know that he is doing a good job by rewarding him. Dogs learn best this way. To make your dog pleasant to be around you need to teach him the basic obedience commands that begins with the word "sit". Help him to understand your command by gently pushing his backside down. Next basic obedience command will be "down." this command will stop them from pouncing or jumping which they usually do to express their excitement which may be not liked by some people around. Help him to understand your command by placing their legs down if required. Next is the command of "stay" which is especially over-ruly dog. Putting something desirable on the ground and commanding to "Stay' when you see your dog approaching toward it. Once he begins to become obedient in this area, do the same exercise by moving farther away from him and if he tries to breach the rules then tell him "stay" which will convey that even though you are moving away you expect him to continue to obey. Frustration can lead you to cause pain to your dog if you find your dog not learning properly but remember animals are like children. They also need time, love and care to learn. http://www.dogs-palace.com train dog http://www.dogs-palace.com/order.html dog training http://www.dogs-palace.com dogs training

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Why we don't train our dogs: 5 of the best excuses.

By: Justin Davies
There are almost as many dog-training excuses as there are dog owners. Here are five of my particular favourites - not because they justify not training a dog, but because they show how poorly people understand dog training, and dog training methods. 1) I don't want to break my dog's spirit. Many people cite examples of listless dogs or dogs that won't do anything unless told. In 20 years of handling dogs, I don't think I've ever met any of these mythical dogs – except where the dog has no stimulation at all, he will always be excited and pleased to be rewarded for doing what he's told. This does not make a dog listless or unhappy – it gives him purpose and rewards thinking! Beating a dog will break his spirit and make him afraid of doing wrong, but this is not training. Beating does not teach him obedience, it just teaches him fear. Don't make the mistake of thinking that the dog cowering at the end of his lead as his owner shouts at him has been 'trained'. Far from it. He has possibly been abused. 2) She's such lovely dog: I wouldn't change her for the world! Lovely dogs are lovely despite not being trained, rather than because they're not trained. Exceptionally lucky owners may have a lovely dog who doesn't bark much, who avoid people who are afraid of them, who never chew things, and may not even pull at the lead. But dogs are pack animals, and need rules to live by, and a leader to look up to. Training will not change your lovely dog's personality, but will help her to understand life, make her more content and an even better companion. Actually, most people who wouldn't change anything put up with a lot of inconvenience to 'keep their dog's personality'. 3) I don't have time to train him. Why do we have dogs? A dog is a living, breathing, thinking being that needs stimulation, play, exercise and companionship. All of these needs can be answered through training, which strengthens the bond between us and our animals, giving us both what we need. Better still, the very activities that make our dogs the perfect pets are the best activities to use to train him. If you spend time with your dog, you have time to train him. If you don't spend time with your dog, maybe it's time to consider whether a dog is the best pet for you. 4) He's only a puppy – I'll train him when he's older. No, no, no, no! Would you wait for a child to go to school before teaching them to speak, or before potty training them? Dog training isn't a chore for the puppy! Dog training is fun and fulfilling, and the training gives your puppy something to occupy their mind. Pet your puppy when she comes to you; make a fuss of her and give her titbits when she brings you a slipper, or a piece of paper off the floor! The more enthusiastic you are when she sits, the more she'll love to sit for you. The more she loves coming to you for praise, the more likely she is to leave Mrs Smith's cat alone when you call her. Train her now, or you may be paying for it for the rest of her life. 5) He's well behaved anyway The dog is a pack animal. A pack has a leader and followers of various importance. If you don't take the responsibility of leadership, your dog may may feel he has to. This will be stressful for him and for you. If you don't set the rules, your dog will, and you may not like them! Your dog should be a relaxing companion, not an adversary, a boss or a burden. Justin Davies has been involved with dogs and their training for over 20 years and writes dog training articles for http://www.best4dogtraining.com. For more information on training your dog, go to http://www.newdogtrainingmethods.info

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Exploit Your Dog's Personality Wisely

By: peter john
Exploiting your dog's personality wisely and positively will bring effective results. Harnessing dog's natural tendencies and reinforcing them into proper channels will helpful to modify your training and achieve a happier, healthier bond between you and your pet. As personality varies from dog to dog so is their training. It is easy to train a Curious dog than an Aggressive dog because curious dogs by nature are inquisitive and love to learn and perform. They are most easily trained by giving them a challenge to work out and once they are trained to focus their attentions then these dogs prove themselves excellent in tracking whereas unlike curious dogs, the Aggressive dog are difficult to tame and are very defensive of its master's belongings. This personality trait of this type of dogs should be reinforced in a positive way that is by teaching the proper outlet for its aggression otherwise there is the risk of finding this dog attacking a neighbor's child for getting too close to the fence. The Friendly dog are wonderful companions and are amazing when trained for specialized purpose for example visiting hospitals in a pet therapy usage. These doges are easy to handle because they are very obedient and will do anything to please you and to gain your attention and approval. These friendly attitudes need a little bit of modification which involves how to control their over friendly advances as their warm personalities can be a bit overwhelming for some peoples liking. Patience and Understanding are the key factors to train a Shy or Reclusive dog as well as The Nervous or Easily Frightened dog. Shy dog by nature will always try to stay out of your reach and sight and can be stubborn during the training process but the trainer needs to be patience and understanding. Even the Nervous dog must also be treated carefully with patience because they have worst, abusive and neglecting past records. Therefore it is strictly recommended to avoid using negative reinforcements unless a particular behavior could prove harmful to you, the pet or another individual. Learning the past of the animal and finding what behaviors activate the fear reactions of the animal will help you to work accordingly. Leash training with a lot of rewards for appropriate behavior will help you to establish a healthy relationship with your dog. Trust between you and your dog must be established before you start any training. http://www.dogs-palace.com train dog http://www.dogs-palace.com/order.html dog training http://www.dogs-palace.com dogs training

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