Happy Dog Secrets Blog

RSS Feed Homepage

Articles: 1, 2

Why is a Dog’s Diet Important? (Part 3)
2008-02-08 15:59:00
Your dog’s coat will look and feel better with a healthy diet.  Good nutrition and adequate grooming will keep your dog’s coat looking shiny and magnificent. The type of dog food you select for your dog’s diet can even make a difference with your dog’s teeth.  Choosing a dry dog food can help to sharpen and polish your dog’s teeth.  Avoiding canned food when possible will help to reduce tartar and plaque. As you can see, a dog’s diet influences everything from outputs to teeth.  Even your dog’s energy level and attitude is affected by the dog’s diet.  Selecting your dog’s diet wisely and consulting your veterinarian is a fabulous way to improve the quality of your dog’s life
More About: Diet , Part , Part 3

Why is a Dog’s Diet Important? (Part 2)
2008-01-29 15:13:00
Your dog’s diet affects the amount and size of outputs.  When your pet eats a healthy diet with few fillers, the excrement is less.  This is important to lessen the cleanup of the kennel or yard.  Ask any handler who picks up after their dog and learn the importance of your dog’s diet. Obesity is not just a problem for people.  Weight is also a concern for your pet.  Your dog’s diet plays an important role in maintaining a healthy weight for your pet.  Extra treats can seem like a simple luxury, but they can create serious health problems when given to your pet too frequently. Finding the best diet for your dog can even help to reduce reactions to food allergies.  Decreasing allergy troubles will make your dog feel so much better.  Sometimes a simple change in the type of dog food can make such a difference to your pet.  Your dog’s diet affects every aspect of your dog’s health..
More About: Diet , Part

Why a Dog’s Diet is Important (Part 1)
2008-01-27 04:41:00
You truly love your dog.  He really is man’s best friend.  Is there any doubt you want to keep your pet as healthy as possible?  There are many ways to keep your dog happy and healthy.  A nutritious diet for your dog is one of the best ways to positively influence the health and longevity of your pet. If you consider how unpleasant a person can be when he or she is hungry or malnourished, you will undoubtedly se the importance of healthy choices when selecting your dog’s diet.  You and your pet will not enjoy life at its fullest if your dog’s diet is poor. Selecting a high-quality diet for your dog will increase the likelihood of a long and happy life for your pet.  A healthy choice for your dog’s diet will include the basic vitamins and minerals essential for your dog’s health.  Also, your dog’s diet should include some extra nutritional supplements.  Speak with your vet about your dog’s diet.  They will be willing to help you make...
More About: Diet , Part

Pamper your dog with doggie biscuits
2008-01-21 03:02:00
Here’s a simple recipe for apple cinnamon biscuits to pamper your dog: Ingredients: • 1 package apple, dried  • 1 teaspoon Cinnamon –(I usually just shake some in)  • 1 Tablespoon parsley, freeze-dried  • 1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder  • 1 cup ice water  • 1/2 cup Corn Oil  • 5 cups flour  • 1/2 cup powdered milk  • 2 large eggs  • 1 tablespoon corn oil  Instructions: Put the apples in a food processor so that pieces are small. Combine in a bowl all of the ingredients — can add oil or water if dough is too dry. Using a rolling pin roll out dough to about 3/16″ thick (can make thinner or thicker). Using a cookie cutter — cut into shapes — place on cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for approx 20 -25 minutes (until golden). NOTE: if you substitute corn meal just subtract about 3/4 cup from flour and add Corn meal
More About: Biscuits

What your dog’s New Year Wish List?
2008-01-17 04:12:00
It’s the beginning of a New Year and you may be wondering, what’s your dog’s wish list. Firstly, you’ve got to understand the difference between providing your dog with what he needs to survive and make an effort to ensure he has a happy life. To do this, you need to know what makes your dog happy and what doesn’t. Most dogs I should say, are people pleasers. They very much like to get involved in our lives. Therefore, I wouldn’t be surprise if your dog’s top New Year wish is to feel secured, loved and welcome in their ‘pack’, whereby hopefully, you’re the pack leader or ‘alpha dog’.
More About: List

Caring For Your Older Dog Part 1
2008-01-13 13:44:00
Once your dog becomes older it is time to take some preventative steps in order for them remain healthy, happy and active. Have your vet examine your pet annually or more often, if necessary. As in humans, keep your dogs weight within the proper or optimum range. An overweight dog has far more health problems such as joint problems, arthritis, diabetes and liver or kidney malfunctions. Cut down on the amount of treats given to your pet. It is hard to resist their soulful eyes but always remember that it is for their own good. You do not want to kill your pet by thinking you are being kind to them. Feed your pet once a day or smaller amounts twice a day but remove the food if there is any left. If you have children, explain to them why they should not sneak food to the family pet.
More About: Part

What To Avoid Feeding Your Dog
2008-01-04 02:15:00
According to Sherry Woodard, who is a dog training and care consultant at Best Friends, these are the things that you should avoid feeding your dog: • Alcoholic beverages (they can cause coma and even death) • Cat food (it’s generally too high in protein and fats) • Caffeine (it can be toxic, and adversely affect the heart and nervous system) • Chocolate (in large amounts, chocolate can also be toxic) • Fat trimmings (they can cause pancreatitis) • Raisins and grapes (they can damage the kidneys) • Nicotine (it affects the digestive and nervous systems, and can result in rapid heartbeat, collapse, coma and death) • Table scraps (they are not nutritionally balanced) Excess salt, sugar and fats can cause obesity, dental problems and finicky eating in your dog. For a happy dog, feed him a healthy diet and get plenty of exercise together.
More About: Feeding , Avoid

Difference between expensive and cheap dog food
2007-12-27 09:21:00
The main differences between the more expensive brands and their cheaper counterparts are ingredients. The higher-priced brands have set formulas for their food, which means that the ingredients in one bag of food will be identical to the next. Lower-priced brands have set formulas for nutrition, not the ingredients themselves. This means that the ingredients used to satisfy those nutritional requirements can vary from batch to batch and can sometimes mean trouble for owners whose dogs have very set tastes or sensitive bellies.  If your vet gives your dog a clean bill of health and doesn’t have any pressing reasons why he needs the food, simply say so and feel confident in your choice of food.
More About: Food , Cheap , Difference , Dog Food , Diff

Veterinarian Recommended Dog Food
2007-12-19 02:02:00
Do you need to buy that food your veterinarian is trying to sell you? That depends. Does your veterinarian say you need it? Your veterinarian is just like our doctor – if you’re not honest and frank with him or her, he/she can’tadequately treat your dog. If you can’t leave he office without being given a sales pitch for he newest line of top-quality food, ask exactly hat it will do for your dog and why you need t. Older dogs with more brittle bones or a lack f energy may benefit from specialized food, any pups have food allergies that prevent hem from eating store brands, and some ore minor conditions can actually be alleviated through higher-quality food.
More About: Food , Erin , Dog Food , Veterinarian

Why ‘Bargain’ Dog Food Will Cost You More Part 3
2007-12-11 03:47:00
On top of everything else, you may have to spend more on veterinarian bills trying to save your dog from the wide variety of illness that may be caused by unhealthy dog foods. Your bills may skyrocket to over $500 if your dog need any medications. Suddenly, that 40 pound bag of $9.95 kibble is not such a great deal after all. While the cost of a natural dog food with quality ingredients is slightly higher upfront, it is worth it. Would you rather spend your money paying a little more for your dog’s nutrition or paying a veterinarian in an emergency situation to try and get your pet well again? The choice is yours.
More About: Food , Cost , Part , Part 3 , Dog Food

Why ‘Bargain’ Dog Food Will Cost You More Part 2
2007-12-06 02:07:00
Studies have shown that without exception, your dog will tend to eat more ‘bargain’ food than a nutritious, natural alternative. He has no choice. This is to make up for the missing nutrition. On the contrary, your dog will eat less quality nutritious food because it contains all the nutrients necessary for good health. In addition, as ‘bargain’ foods do not contain all the nourishing nutrition your pet needs on a daily basis, it passes quickly throught the body, which makes your dog to get hungry sooner.
More About: Food , Cost , Bargain , Part , Dog Food

Why ‘Bargain’ Dog Food Will Cost You More Part 1
2007-11-27 16:32:00
At first glance, $9.95 for a 40 pound bag of commercial dog food may seem to be quite a good bargain. However, you’ve got to bear in mind that the purchase price of such ‘bargain’ dog food does not automatically determine their quality – it is unrealistic to expect these ‘bargain’ kibbles to contain all the nourishing nutrition your dog will ever need. This is because to add quality ingredients such as whole chicken meat, choice cuts of beef and wholesome grains, the manufacturers will need to raise their prices and the dog food will no longer be a ‘bargain’. In the long run, these so called ‘bargain’ foods will actually cost you more.
More About: Food , Cost , Part , Dog Food

More on Dog Food
2007-11-21 15:41:00
Whether dry dog food or canned dog food, it’s actually up to you and your dog. If you prefer the convenience of dry food and have found a brand that meets the nutritional requirements and satisfies your dog, stick with it. Use the same criteria when selecting a canned food, and when checking the label for nutritional percentages be certain to adjust for the moisture. Ingredients are listed in descending order, according to weight. Because dogs need meat, it’s best to pick a food in which the first ingredient is an animal-based protein source, such as chicken, chicken meal, lamb, lamb meal, fish, fish meal or egg. These ingredients contain a full complement of essential amino acids unlike vegetable-based protein sources, such as soyabean meal or maize gluten meal.
More About: Food , Dog Food

Canned Dog Food
2007-11-16 15:00:00
Canned food, on the other hand, is vacuum sealed and therefore doesn’t contain any preservatives. Some dogs love the meatier taste and consistency, which is closer to what they would enjoy in the wild. Canned foods often contain the same amount of nutrition as dry food, but they don’t have the same dental benefits as dry food, they can be more expensive, and serving them requires more than just a scoop. It’s important to remember that while dry food can be left in a bowl all day, canned food should be thrown away after 30 minutes if not consumed.
More About: Food , Dog Food

Dry Dog Food
2007-11-13 15:00:00
Most dogs thrive eating only dry food. Dry foods is cost-effective, easy to measure, comes in a wide variety of flavors and types, and, as your dog would tell you if he could, feels nice on his teeth and gums and makes fun noises when he bites down. It works well for millions of dogs. Therefore, dry food can be the most convenient choice for busy people.
More About: Food , Dog Food

Types of Dog Food
2007-11-08 02:29:00
As with many things, there is no one-size-fits-all nswer to this question. Your pet is an individual, and when making a decision about what type of dietto feed, you need to consider, among other things, your pet’s age, size, breed, nd any existing medical problems. And of course, you also need to consider he nutrient content of the diet you feed. Once you’ve determined your dog’s life stage and lifestyle needs, you need to decide whether to feed dry or canned food. Most dogs thrive eating only dry food. Dry foods is cost-effective, easy to measure, comes in a wide variety of lavors and types, and, as your dog would tell you if he could, feels nice on his teeth and gums and makes fun noises when he bites down. It works well for millions of dogs. Therefore, dry food can be the most convenient choice for busy people.
More About: Food , Types , Dog Food

The right dog food first defenses your dog has against illness
2007-11-05 02:25:00
Just as in your own body, an overdose or deficiency of any given nutrient, vitamin, or mineral can cause reactions or illness in your dog. You should be generally aware of what amount of each nutrient is ideal for your dog and select his food accordingly. Decent guidelines for nutrition are: Protein: 20% Fat: 30% Carbohydrate: 50% Check the sides and back of your dry food bag and you should be able to find the nutritional content fairly easily. If not, give the manufacturer a call and ask them to provide you with the information .
More About: Food , Defenses , Illness , Dog Food

Dog Food and Dog Lifestyle
2007-11-02 06:03:00
Our dog’s nutritional needs also vary depending on lifestyle. A dog whose primary activity is lying on the couch doesn’t need as much energy as one who guards a herd of sheep. Another factor to consider is breed size: small, medium or large. It is important to take into account any special medical condition your dog may have, like food allergies, that requires a special diet recommended by your veterinarian.
More About: Lifestyle , Food , Dog Food

Dog Food and Dog’s Life Stages
2007-10-31 06:00:00
With thousands of different pet foods available, how do you pick the one that’s right for your dog? Start by identifying the dog’s life stage and lifestyle. Puppies, nursing mothers and senior pets are examples of life stages. And each life stage has different nutritional requirements. All dog foods must state which life stage they are recommended for.
More About: Life , Food , Dog Food , Ages

Proper Dog Nutrition for Healthy Dog
2007-10-27 06:59:00
Proper nutrition is as important to your dog’s health as it is to your own. But his nutritional needs are quite different from yours! While a human diet should behigh-in fibre and low in fat, a dog needs more fat—for energy and a healthy skin and coat—and less fibre—for good intestinal health. Dogs are best fed as carnivores because even after centuries of domestication, dogs still enjoy living out the illusion that they are the wolves from whom they were naturally selected. Dogs have simple stomachs and short intestines that are ideal for digesting animal protein and animal fat. Yet a diet of meat alone is not ideal for your dog. While meat provides most of the crucial nutritional elements to help provide energy and enhance bone growth like protein, fat, amino acids, vitamins, and minerals, your dog’s diet should also include some amount of fiber to help his body digest his food.
More About: Nutrition , Healthy , Prop , Heal , Rope

Bath A Dog (cont’d)
2007-10-26 14:54:00
Take more care in avoiding some irritant soaps or human soaps. The soap materials used for human beings are not suitable for dogs. Similarly, many human shampoo products are having some ingredients that are not suitable in the proportions that are to be used in case of dogs. Hence, always try to use the shampoo products that are mentioned mainly for use in dogs. Take more care in using any new product. Always have good time and patience for products required for bathing in one place with availability of water source. Dogs love the sprinkling of water, river, and oceans. Even when you are using bathtub, have everything in one place and then start bathing of the dog. Try to have a leash, conditioner, towel, and shampoo in the bath place. Conditioner is of helpful to make the combing activity easier later. Bath ing should be a convenient activity to both the dog and the owner. This should not be a burden.

Bathing A Dog
2007-10-25 14:54:00
Bathing a dog needs to be given more emphasis. This is because of the fact that if you are careless in bathing, the animal may end up having some infections.  For example, if you don’t close the ears with large cotton ball, the water may enter into ear canals and may cause some ear infections with signs like constant discharge from the ears and shaking of head. Frequency of bathing actually depends on the breed of the dog. If the dog is of a hairy type like the cocker spaniel, then the bathing is to be carried out once in six to eight weeks. If these breeds are bathed too frequently, then the skin and coat loose the protective characters.  However, when the dog has defecated on the skin due to the frequent digestive upsets leading to diarrhea, to avoid the bad smell, the dog may be subjected to frequent bathing some times by the owners.
More About: Bathi

Home made dog diets
2007-10-22 17:55:00
Home made diets are important in the dog feeding. Many a times, the commercial diets consist of food items that have artificial coloring agents and flavoring agents that are harmful to the dog’s body. Home made food items have the guarantee of freshness in the preparation unlike the ready-made commercial items. The preservatives added in the commercial food items may not be the suitable ones to the dogs from the health point of view. Even in case of renal diseases in dogs, the home made diets may be made with ground beef, slices of bread, calcium carbonate, boiled eggs etc. The purpose is to have the restricted protein supply in the feed items prepared. This should be carried out with home made diets prepared exclusively for the dogs suffering from renal diseases. Water is added in sufficient quantities to help the proper metabolism in the digestion-impaired renal cases. The dog may have allergic symptoms like severe itching, which may not get corrected by different kind...
More About: Diets , Home , Made

How much should I feed my dog? (Part 2)
2007-10-21 18:01:00
  This may cause many inconveniences to the owner as well as the puppy. Unlike adult dogs, the puppies need to be fed with restricted amounts of food but in more frequencies. However, once the age advances, the amount may be increased to some extent but the frequency of feeding is often decreased in many occasions. A dog on a raw diet may consume only two to four percent of their body weight. Just observe closely the feeding pattern of the dog and the body condition of the animal. If the dog becomes obese, just reduce the quantity of food and if the dog becomes thin, then have an increase in the feeding items. As mentioned earlier, puppies and adolescent dogs eat more than the adult dogs. Likewise the geriatric dog eats less than the adult dog due to the reduced movements of the dog. However, remember to restrict the amounts of protein during the feeding of diet to the aged dogs. Copyright Happy Dog Secrets
More About: Feed , Part

How much should I feed my dog? (Part 1)
2007-10-19 17:59:00
Many people will give different types of answers based on their experience with their dogs. However, the scientific facts related to the feeding aspects in case of dogs need to be given emphasis during the feeding activities maintained in case of dogs. Usually the puppies should not be separated before they are eight weeks old. However, some times the orphaned puppies may exist. Usually about five percent of the body weight may be taken as criteria for the quantity of food to be given to the puppies. However, the amount that is consumed by the dog varies with size of the dogs also. However, one can have a thumb rule of feeding the puppy goes until you see visible fullness of the abdomen to a moderate degree. If you are going on feeding the animal without giving emphasis to the animal’s stomach appearance, then the puppy may experience some kinds of digestive upsets and the diarrhea may occur in them. Copyright Happy Dog Secrets
More About: Feed , Part

Dry Vs. Canned food
2007-10-17 17:42:00
These types of food materials are different with different grades of liking by the dogs. Dogs like dry foods only if they are tasty only and however, on comparison, the dogs prefer only the canned food items. Reason for such preference by the dogs is that in case of canned food items, the moisture is about seventy to eighty per cent but in case of dry food, it is only about ten per cent. However, if you view it in terms of nutrients, often the dry food contains nearly ninety per cent nutrients whereas the canned food items contain only less per cent of nutrients and most of the times. It is only soy products that are structured so well to look like meat pieces. Hence, to make up the nutritional balance in the body systems, the dog has to eat more amounts of canned food materials than the dry food materials. Hence, just compare the cost factor related to this feature by you. Many dry food items are soybean and rice based. Now some dry food items are based on corn. Sometimes, beef...
More About: Food

4 Ways You Can Show Your Dog How Much You Love Him (Part 4)
2007-10-16 17:20:00
4. Speak his language. Unless you believe in pet psychics, there’s really no way for you to read your pooch’s mind and figure out exactly what she’s thinking. The good news is that, like many dog owners, the problems you’re having can probably be traced to one simple thing: you’re trying to communicate with your dog from a human standpoint, and your dog isn’t a human. Rather than saying “no,” a word that doesn’t really mean anything to a dog, try growling in a deep, throaty voice the next time you’re unhappy with something he’s done. He’ll get the message immediately and you won’t have to go through a big, drawn-out battle of wills. He’ll appreciate you meeting him halfway! These are just a few of the ways in which you can show your dog how much he means to you, and I’d love to share hundreds more with you. That’s why I’ve assembled the dognatural.com Mega pack, a collection of my hottest dog care titles. From 101 Ways to Spoil Your Dog for Unde...
More About: Love , Show , Part

4 Ways You Can Show Your Dog How Much You Love Him (Part 3)
2007-10-15 17:19:00
3. Prepare for the worst. If you know exactly what to do in a tough situation or an emergency, you infinitely increase the chances that your dog will be around for a long time to come. Do you know what to do when he’s choking? You should lay your dog on his side and place one hand on his back and the other on his stomach just behind his rib cage. Using the stomach hand, push in and toward the throat twice, but without too much force. If you can see a foreign object, sweep your fingers through his mouth to remove it. If he’s still choking, place your mouth over his nose and exhale until his chest rises. Repeat once, and then thrust two more times. Continue until he coughs out the obstruction. Now consider what would happen if he started to choke and you had no clue what to do, then ended up spending 10 minutes calling vets and driving him there. Making sure you’re prepared to care for his health and wellbeing is a great way to show him how much you love him. Copyright Chris Tay...
More About: Love , Show , Part , Part 3

4 Ways You Can Show Your Dog How Much You Love Him (Part 2)
2007-10-14 17:16:00
1. Make him a special treat.   Making him a special treat from your our kitchen! Often you can find recipes that can be a great treat for him and you! That is a double plus. You know that food needs to be both delicious and nutritious to make sure he has as long and happy a life as possible. Why not try making some homemade treats and dog food that are absolutely packed with all of the vitamins and nutrients he needs? Bake him a delicious, healthy doggie cake for his next birthday, or share a few cookies with him, but remember your dog cannot have human food; chocolate from your chocolate chip cookie could make him sick. Copyright Chris Taylor, http://www.happydogsecrets.com
More About: Love , Show , Part

4 Ways You Can Show Your Dog How Much You Love Him (Part 1)
2007-10-13 17:15:00
Do you have at least one framed photo of your dog somewhere in your house… or maybe in your wallet? Is your dog pretty darn close to being the very center of your universe? Do you love spoiling him, responds to his every whimper and cry, and spend hundreds of dollars on gourmet treats? To say that dogs are man’s best friend is anything but a cliché. You might be the most miserable person in the world without a friend to your name… but your dog will treat you like royalty every time you walk through the door. So how do you repay that unconditional love and devotion? There are hundreds of different ways! 1. Spoil him rotten. A lot of people spend a lot of money at chic pet boutiques, dressing their dogs in hundred-dollar sweaters and paying for meticulous pedicures. They buy diamond-studded collars and give their dogs rooms all to themselves. You probably don’t have the budget for things like that, right? You can still spoil your dog with simple, everyday things...
More About: Love , Show , Part