Archive for the ‘Dog Rescue’ Category

Pregnant Dog Symptoms: Is My Dog Pregnant?

Tuesday, July 13th, 2010

SmartbarBanner 120x240 1 Pregnant Dog Symptoms: Is My Dog Pregnant?

If you’re curious to know whether your dog is pregnant or not, you have to do certain steps to find out for sure. Pregnancy has its symptoms. and if you have noticed all of them on your pet, then high are the chances that they would deliver puppies real soon. have you noticed the dog heat symptoms in your pet? Does your pet recently have the need to mate with male dogs? Dogs aged 6 to 12 months would go through what is called the heat cycle. this is when they reach sexual maturity. When they mated during the heat season, which normally lasts for 21 days, the dogs are surely going to be pregnant. even so, vets and pet experts always say it is best for a dog to be pregnant when it is a year and a half to two years old to be safe.

The dog heat stage would have its own signs and symptoms. The most apparent would be blood discharges and redness of the dog’s vulva or rear. These symptoms indicate that your dog is in heat. Sooner or later, the female dog would want to mate. If you don’t want this to happen, you have to do the necessary precautions. The dog heat cycle normally comes twice every year. so if you see it on your pet today, it may take five to seven months before you see it again.

Generally, to know if your dog is pregnant for sure, it is best that you take it to the vet. You can also try to feel your dog’s abdomen. it should be firmer. Firm bellies indicate that there are puppies forming inside. The ultrasound is the best device to determine dog pregnancy. an x-ray, on the other hand, is powerful enough to determine how many puppies your dog is carrying in its abdomen. The dog’s pregnancy cycle lasts for an average of 63 days. Some dog breeds would deliver puppies in 54 days, though. others, however, may take as much as 74 days before giving birth.

Pregnant dogs tend to be more affectionate. A good number of them are very clingy too. there are dogs that act very possessively during their pregnancy stage. However, some dogs do the other extreme. If other dogs enjoy the company of their masters, other gets very irritated, aggressive, and anti-social. this is one of the reasons why dog owners should be very wary of the fact that their dog is pregnant so they can adapt measure to protect their pet, family, and strangers around the house.

Pregnant dogs tend to lose their appetite too. For a week or so, the dogs would refuse to touch its food, only to eat like a glutton after three weeks. The increase in its appetite would continue a month and a week into pregnancy. and when the female dog is ready to deliver the pups, it would consume twice as much food as it used to. You have to prepare for the puppies’ coming at this point. Prepare beddings to keep them warm and comfortable after delivery.

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Pregnant Dog Symptoms: Is My Dog Pregnant?

How to Teach a Dog to "Stay"

Tuesday, July 13th, 2010

1279054811 64 How to Teach a Dog to "Stay"

Perhaps the hardest of the basic commands to learn, when you teach a dog to stay, you must invest more time, love, and patience than any of the other commands. unlike the “sit” command, “stay” requires your dog to do something completely unnatural and against his basic instincts. For this reason, before you attempt to teach a dog to stay, be sure that you are willing to spend the necessary time. it can take from a few days to a few months, depending on the dog, and many people quit too soon out of frustration.

We’re going to assume that the dog already knows the “sit” command, as this is the starting position in “stay” training. While you can teach a dog to stay from a standing position, it makes the task much harder, as the dog will think he can move at will. some trainers will suggest that you teach the dog to “heel” first, and start your stay training from this position. you can actually do it either way, but teaching “heel” is tougher than teaching “sit”.

Okay, now we teach a dog to stay…

1. find a training area with few or no distractions. The “stay” command will require the dog’s complete attention, so find a nice quiet place to begin. we can introduce distractions once the dog has learned the basic command.

2. While standing, have the dog sit in front of you so that you are facing each other. Reach out with your hand, palm out, and place it directly in front of the pooch’s nose. In your command voice, say “Stay!”. Remember to get his attention first by saying his name before giving the command. Hold this position for about 20 to 30 seconds, then drop your hand and praise the dog’s good behavior with a “Good Stay!” and a pat on the head. Chances are that, at first, your dog will try to stand or move while you are in the stay position. When this happens, do not scold the dog. Simply return him to the sit position and try again. Eventually, your pooch will begin to understand what you want, and that giving it to you will result in praise, which he desperately desires.

3. Once the dog is consistently staying with your hand in his face, gradually start to put some distance between you after giving the stay command. Start by slowly taking one step back and waiting about 15 seconds before dropping your hand and giving praise. at the beginning, the pooch will try to follow. When he does, just return him to the sit position and start again.

4. Once he has mastered this, begin using just the verbal command, without putting your hand in his face. This may seem like your starting all over, but, actually, doing this too soon will only serve to confuse the dog and make the training much harder.

5. Now you can gradually begin to increase both the distance that you move away and the time you require him to stay. Remember here that each change you make in distance is a new experience for the pooch, and you will have to treat each extension as a new task.

6. you will eventually get to a point where you can put the dog in “stay” and be able to move around normally without him breaking the position. at this point, it is necessary to teach the release command (“OK!” is a good one!). This will tell the pooch that it’s OK to break the position and move around. Remember, too, that once you release him, it is always good to give him the praise he desires. This will continually reinforce the training.

Remember, to teach a dog to stay requires time, patience, and, above all, consistency. but, having this command at your disposal will make your life together much better.

How to Teach a Dog to "Stay"

Twinkie Tiny Dog

Monday, July 12th, 2010

1278979223 99 Twinkie Tiny DogIt’s time to share with you one of my long time personal favorite dog training tips. It’s a well kept secret, so you don’t want to miss out. It is a known fact that children, a.k.a. human peanuts, are the easiest to train. Whenever you find yourselves in an environment with children present, ignore the parents. The parents are most logical and they are feeling social pressure to do the “right thing.” Human peanuts aren’t like that. They are still innocent and giving. if you have dog food on your mind, trust this technique.

Children are angels that have our best interest in mind.
Never underestimate neither our pleading powers, nor the children’s innate need to defy adult rules.
Children are bearers of dog food and dog treats.
Children do not think in terms of calories or the proper diet and nutrition. They are more like us, because . . .. . . healthy dog treats are okay, but . . .

. . . this is better, and this is the kind of food you can expect from children!

Remember, children are our friends. Go hug a human peanut!
Twinkie

Twinkie Tiny Dog

5 Easy Steps on How to Train Your Dog

Monday, July 12th, 2010

1278975608 44 5 Easy Steps on How to Train Your Dog

Dogs are domesticated animals and highly social; however if you do not take the time to learn how to train your dog they will take control of your house and end up causing all kinds of problems by barking, scratching, tearing up things in your home. Anyone who has a canine friend understands the importance of learning how to train your dog; however everywhere you look it seems as if everyone has some kind of advice and opinions on the best way to train your canine friend. We all have to learn how to discipline our dogs if you want your house to stay quiet. The best part is that you and your pets can live in harmony and you can learn how to train your dog without taking them to some dog obedience school. I have listed below 5 easy steps on how to train your dog so you both can have a great happy life.

1. Consistency: If you notice your dog doing something wrong take the time to discipline them every time you notice them doing it. Dogs are no different than children; they learn from repetition, the more often you tell them not to do something they will learn not to that thing.

2. Come Command: only use this for positive reasons. Never tell your dog to come to you and then discipline them for something they did wrong. If you do this they will be scared to come to you when you tell them to. You must learn how to discipline them the moment they do something wrong.

3. Positive Rewards: Anytime your dog does something good let him/her know that you agree with what they have done. Many people give their dogs treats when they do something correct. This will work just as well on your dog just like the corrective behavior; they will understand that doing this is good and they will be more likely to do it because they know that if they do it they will be rewarded with a treat.

4. Dominant Behavior: If you have more than one dog do not let one of them show dominant behavior towards the other one. If this happens let them know that it will not be tolerated. You can help them live together as a healthy pack without any trouble.

5. Patience: Training anyone whether it is a dog, person or anyone else we all know that you have to learn how to develop patience. However through consistently following these steps you can and will achieve a quiet household and everyone will be happy.

You can train your dog by yourself you do not have to pay for any high paying dog obedience classes. If you are new to training your dog and want to get more information on learning how to tackle any of your dog’s behavioral problems then feel free to visit our website below to get more professional advice.

5 Easy Steps on How to Train Your Dog

Teach a Dog to Heel

Monday, July 12th, 2010

1278950410 80 Teach a Dog to Heel

Teaching your dog to heel, now that is easier said than done. there are some of you out there who may think that the ‘heel’ position basically means that your dog is supposed to curl up at your feet. That is not the case; the ‘heel’ command means that you want your dog to stay right by your side and follow you step for step, as though there is an invisible leash attaching your dog to your leg (right or left, your preference). so if you are looking for an easy (and quick) guide on how to teach your dog to heel, here’s an article that you’ve been looking for. I have listed the steps that are used by professional dog trainers to help you along. Review them and you should be set to ‘go’.  

  1. Walk the talk – Teaching a pup or, for that matter, a full grown dog the ‘heel’ command is not going to be easy. You will need to be patient and remember that using brute force to drag your dog with the leash is not what the ‘heel’ command is all about. You will need to train your dog to literally ‘dog’ you step for step, be it a walk or a gentle run. Remember those dog shows, with each dog galloping beside its master? That is what this command is all about. so start the lesson by standing close to your dog, with a few doggy treats in your hand.
  2. Make eye contact – call out your dog’s name and get his attention. Once you have done that, move a few steps ahead. if your dog stays close to you and does not get distracted, reward him with a treat.
  3. Practice the short walks – repeat step 2 again and again. make sure that you reward your dog only if he continues to stay by your side all the time. In time, your dog will understand what you want him to do and will ‘heel’ all the way by your side.
  4. Verbalize the command – Once you have got your pup to ‘dog’ your steps, you will need to verbalize the command. just say out his name along with the command ‘heel’. if he continues to listen to you, well, then you are almost done.
  5. Do the rumba: Extend the steps, take your dog for extended walks inside your home in the ‘heel’ position. Once you are sure that your dog is able to follow the command perfectly, take him for ‘heel’ walks and runs outside in the garden. just remember, that a garden will contain more distractions than your drawing room, so chances are that he will get distracted the first few times. but once he realizes that you are withholding the doggy treats when he does not perform correctly, he will ‘heel’ perfectly. so do the rumba with your dog, take him for runs and in time, you should even be able to run out full blast with your dog by your side, all the way to ‘heel’ and back!

The ‘heel’ command will bring you and your dog a lot closer and in time, you will be able to develop a very healthy relationship with your dog. the neat thing is that this particular command will allow you both to get a healthy dose of ‘physical’ exercise. so, just follow these simple steps, same as the professional dog trainers do, and you will teach your dog to heel in no-time.

Teach a Dog to Heel

Sun 11th July: An amazing coincidence « Hong Kong Dog Rescue

Monday, July 12th, 2010

1278943222 34 Sun 11th July: An amazing coincidence « Hong Kong Dog Rescue

It seemed like a lost weekend as far as adoptions were concerned, but it wasn’t bad at all taking into account dogs going to new homes from their temporary fosters, or fosters deciding to adopt permanently.  All in all, there was pug Buckle, his schnauzer friend Dexter and dachshund (almost) Sausage going from Tai Po, as well as pug Queenie from foster and foster-now-adopted Dandy, another almost-dachshund.  a boxer came and went within a few hours, and it’s easy to miss those in-and-out dogs in the adoption tally.

Still, the summer is always a hard time and it’s when we start eating into the financial stockpile that’s built up over the winter months.  I know it’s not just HKDR, and it’s not just this year or the fact that we’ve moved to Tai Po, as it’s the same every year when holidays interfere with adoption plans and boarding kennels are full of dogs left behind when their families disappear.

Whiskers’n’Paws was very quiet again, but there was one very happy and unexpected reunion.  Two cute-as-can-be puppies went to a foster home a month or so ago and they came to us in a roundabout way, but I was told they started life in the new Territories somewhere and their parents were a mongrel, medium sized, and a Westie (I don’t know which was father or mother).  Today I took my newly

acquired puppy (from AFCD in Sheung Shui) for the first time, and when the foster arrived with one of her puppies we both remarked on how similar they looked.  In fact the more we compared them in age, colouring and type of coat, we both agreed that there was absolutely no doubt that they were siblings.  They aren’t the usual run-of-the-mill mongrel puppies who often look alike, and the chances of two litters like this being born at the same time is so remote that I would say it’s just about impossible.   We were impressed, but the two pups, now having been apart for so long, had no inkling that they were brother and sister and completely ignored each other.

I took Lamma-based French bulldog, Frisbee, over to Whiskers’n’Paws to meet a potential adopter and her Yorkie, but Frisbee’s method of greeting new friends really needs refining.  It’s a sort of pounce, which can be very intimidating when you’re a tiny dog, and although Frisbee lives quite happily with many other small dogs and doesn’t bother them at all, it’s hard to get past that first impression which seems to be aggressive.  In fact Frisbee is a very affectionate boy, but he is just a typical clumsy Frenchie.

Just to update on some of the dogs that I’ve mentioned previously: Gypsy continues to do well and isn’t wearing her wrist splints any more.  We’ll have to decide about the next lot of surgery when metal plates will permanently fuse the wrist joints.  a fund to help cover Gypsy’s costs is up and running (on our HKDR Facebook page).

Pug Reno, who had the slipped disc and paralysed back legs, should be out of hospital tomorrow.  the surgery went very well and now it’s just a matter of time before we see how successful it was in restoring her mobility.

German shepherd, Hercules, is being treated for his skin problem but is still undergoing further tests to try and find out what is causing it.  He’s generally a much happier dog than when he first arrived.

Sun 11th July: An amazing coincidence « Hong Kong Dog Rescue

Searching For The Cats

Monday, July 12th, 2010

1278939612 64 Searching For The Cats

Every year in the united states a significant number of undesired kittens and moggies are tend to be eliminated it is because there are not enough houses for every one of them. This can be extremely depressing yet true reality. if you’re planning about bringing a new pet for your folks, well try to think about adopting. if you need a thoroughbred kitty, like a Maine coon or a Siamese then you don’t need to fret for there are several cat rescues in US that specialize in the adoption of a specific breeds.

One example is the Siamese Rescue Organization, they saved about 15, 000 pussies all over the world and they’re sincerely devoted to locate a new houses for their misplaced, abused and deserted Siamese pussies. This organization has rescue centers that may be found at California and Texas also in the Pacific and in the Rocky Mountain regions of the country.

If you’re one of those people that have an interest in embracing a kitten to be a part of your folks, then spring time is the ideal time to acquire. However some shelters accept kittens each day of the year and typically there are loaded with kittens during spring. once you are truly certain in adopting one, you need to create a list of questions prepared ahead before you head into the relief center. the more you have a power of knowing the explicit cat or kitten much better.

So here’s a list of Cats questions that you might need before homing a new pet. What’s the possession charge? just how much human contact does the kitten obtain since it’s been it the possession of the center? if the actual kitten or its litter box trained? if their health background present? if they’re been allocated by their owner, what should be the probable reason?

If they obtain anyCats medical issues what are the causes if you made contact with them? and how much will it cost you to treat their illness? How can they behave when there are other animals on site? Have they contact with other animals while they’re at the rescue center? When on the shelter, where do they sleep? In the cage, foster home or open room? any background of the organization you are rescuing your moggy from? Are you able to spend a little time with the cat or kitten in a room and examine how will it interacts with you?

As it pertains for you to add a new kitten or pussy-cat to your folks, adopting is the ideal alternative. it must be the greatest thing to do. When you select adoption, not only you give a unhomed pet a new chance in life but you’ll also save them from hunger and death. if you’re not prepared to take on a pet to be with you and your folks you because of some medically based reasons you might want to donate something to the rescue centers and become a foster parent for they are going to use your donations I order for them to operate.

Searching For The Cats

Friend will be friend: bernese mountain dog

Sunday, July 11th, 2010

1278889210 40 Friend will be friend: bernese mountain dogBernese Mountain Dog: a new Breedbernese mountain dog
For pet owners, the competition in various contests are furious. For dog owners, the professional dog shows around the nation are hot topics. Imagine the surprise of all the dog owners and lovers out there when they learned that a new breed was being added to the shows. the Bernese Mountain Dog is not the kind of dog you are going to find in your average family home. The problem that most people have with this new breed being added simply lies in the fact that no one wants to teach an old dog new tricks. Pet owners who have been doing shows for years don’t want to accept the addition of yet another breed. These dogs have such special needs that the average families just don’t try to raise them. But, if you have a Bernese Mountain Dog, you know the process of managing and maintaining them out of their natural environment. The owners of these beautiful dogs are among some of the proudest entering dog shows. Moreover, for this dog to be added to the list of show dogs has been a big hit with dog lovers everywhere. Many dog lovers say the dog is very much like the Irish Terrier but one look shows the dog to be quite a bit larger. several people that own a Bernese Mountain Dog have commented in various places online and seem extremely pleased with this new breed.

Friend will be friend: bernese mountain dog

Dog Health Insurance

Sunday, July 11th, 2010

1278885610 57 Dog Health Insurance

Dog health insurance is a way of spreading the cost of veterinary care for your pet. Almost any dog can be covered from a 6 week old puppy upward.

If you are wondering about the benefits of dog health insurance, keep in mind that one in three dogs will need unexpected medical care within the next 12 months, and two in three dogs suffer from a serious (i.e. expensive) medical problem at some time in their lives.

Veterinarians are now able to treat many diseases that in the past would have been fatal for a dog. however, the cost of these new life saving treatments can be prohibitive. It would be terrible to be in a situation where complicated surgery could save your dog’s life, but you could not afford to pay for it. This is happening to more and more people as the boundaries of veterinary medicine are extended.

Having insurance makes it easier for you to deal with situations where the cost of your pet’s care would be very high. if your pet develops a serious illness or has a medical emergency, it can save you a lot of money to be able to claim the costs on insurance.

Another benefit of dog health insurance is that if your pet is insured, you are more likely to take him to the vet whenever he has a health problem. although we all like to think that our pet’s health would come first in most situations, there might be times when a trip to the vet was put off because of financial concerns. if you have insurance you do not have to be so worried about the cost when your pet is sick.

As with health insurance for your family, you will find that the different plans offer different coverage. Before you decide on any dog health insurance, take some time to consider various plans from several different companies. some companies will not cover certain breeds, or they may exclude certain conditions that are common in certain breeds, like hip dysplasia.

If your dog has suffered any health problems in the past, you may want a plan that covers pre-existing conditions. This can mean higher monthly payments but could save you money if the condition recurs. for a puppy, you will want to know if the plan covers vaccinations.

You may also want to discuss dog health insurance with your veterinarian. some vets are linked up with particular pet insurance companies. This makes it easier to make a claim, but you may not necessarily get the best value for your circumstances.

You can often save on the monthly cost of a pet health care plan by accepting to pay a certain amount of the cost each time that your dog needs treatment. for example if you pay the first $50 or even $25 of any claim, you will pay less per month than if you want the insurance to cover everything.

More and more responsible dog owners are taking out insurance these days. take a look at a plan for yourself. Dog health insurance can protect your pet as well as your finances.

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Dog Health Insurance