Thursday, May 29, 2008

Using Homemade Dog Food Recipes for a Healthier, Happier Pet


By : Jennifer McVey
There are many places to find dog food recipes if you are considering making your pet's food. There are also important points to think about when you make their food like sticking to the recipe, talking to a veterinarian, and paying attention to how your dog reacts to the food.

Two common places to find dog food recipes are on the Internet and through your local veterinarian. The Internet is not always trustworthy though. You cannot be sure that someone who posted their own idea for a dog food recipe is the right meal for your dog. Some of the factors might include the type of dog that they have and the types of foods in the recipe. If the dog food recipes are coming from a credible place on the internet like an animal shelter, a veterinarian, or some other place you can trust then you most likely are safe to use the recipe.

The best place to find dog food recipes is through your local veterinarian. Your vet already knows your dog best. He or she knows their digestive tract and what kinds of foods you can start your pet off with and how you can transition your animal from traditional dog food to homemade food. Many veterinarians already have recipes they can give to you so you can go home and make your pets food. Working with your vet ensures the health of your animal.

Switching your dog over to homemade dog food is a big transition. Your animal may not take the food change very well at first. For instance, your dog may not seem as if they like it or they might not be eating as much. You will notice a change in their stools. Your animal may vomit for a couple of days because their digestive tract is not used to healthy food. Be sure during the transition your dog is getting plenty of water. One thing that might be recommended is that you slowly break your dog into the new dog food rather than do a total change at once.

When you make homemade dog food, even the vet will tell you not to change the recipe. You might think you are being creative or making your pet happy by adding bacon grease to the mixture, don't. You also should not substitute foods within a dog food recipe. Stick to the recipe. If the recipes are too expensive for you then you might not be able to afford feeding your dog homemade foods. Many people have made their animals very sick by not properly cooking the foods to save time or substituting foods to save money. For your dog's health, stick to the recipes.

Dog food recipes are fantastic when you find them from the right sources. You should only trust your veterinarian or a reliable source for a recipe and you should follow it exactly. The purpose of making homemade dog food is for your dog's health. So you should follow the recipes and pay attention to how your pet responds.



Author's Resource:

Learn about making homemade dog food and more dog food secrets at www.saferpetfood.com

Visit Animal Pets & Friends for more pet and animal articles.

Dog Agility Training Issues


By : rayter
Teaching your dog basic execution and obedience requires simple training techniques, a little amount of time and patience. The course familiarization depends on the ability of a dog while the physical responses will depend on the dog’s age. There are several dogs that can be enthusiastically convinced to run through a short and straight tunnel to chase a toy or to go to the pet owner.

In training your dog, it is important that you know your goals. Set your objectives prior buying any obstacle training equipment. Basically, an agility course or training helps you as pet owner teach your dog basic obedience and follow your simple commands. It even allows you both, you and your pet to have to great, fun and quality time together.

There are actually several ways to train your dog. Setting up an agility course within your home is one of the natural and exciting ways to impose the obedience you want from your dear pooch friend. Make sure that you are physically and emotionally ready before taking the course with your dog.

Your role as his trainer or handler is very important. This is because as your dog moves, you are also required to make some movement to get along with his excitement and enthusiasm.

You also need to prepare a prize for a job well done by your dog. Make sure that you have something for him upon finishing any obstacle challenge to encourage him more in his training. This is also a one way of convincing him that something great is waiting for him.

Dogs are intelligent animals and they can absolutely finish their training in a small span of time. They can also practically do strategic plans just to know what’s in store for them in the other end of the obstacle. All you need to do is to encourage them more and build the most important element of teaching them, trust.

There are also some cases that dogs become traumatic instead of being enthusiastic in taking the course due to some unwanted problems or events. In case you can’t handle your dog’s fear or trauma, you must see your most trusted veterinarian and see what he has to give you as an advice.

Dog training using the dog agility and obstacle challenges is just like playing around with your pet. You as pet owner must give your instructions in an inviting yet firm voice so that he won’t be afraid to you while enjoying his training. Remember a careful and step by step training process will help you in achieving all your goals.



Author's Resource:

The author is a dog owner and writer connected to a company that provides modern and effective dog agility training equipment, patio dog doors and underground fences at affordable prices.

Visit Animal Pets & Friends for more pet and animal articles.

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