* Vacuum frequently- all floors and carpets, stairs and under beds too.

* Wash pet bedding frequently.

* Use a safe topical treatment, flea powder, spray or other product. Follow the product instructions provided carefully.

* Ask your vet about topical treatments like Frontline – this product kills adult fleas, and makes them unable to reproduce, cutting your combat time in half.

* Brush and comb your dog frequently.

* Bathe him/her if heavily infested.

* Spray the house with a flea product at least once a week, under beds, couches, etc.

It might be tough to see fleas, but they certainly make their existence known – especially to your pet.

WARNING SIGNS
The first step to stopping a flea-for-all is to be aware of their presence. Keep an eye out for the warning signs that fleas have set up shop on your pet!

BLACK SPECKS — black specks on your pet or in your pet’s bed could be flea dirt, which is feces from the adult fleas. There are two easy ways to check for black specks:

Flea Comb — available from your veterinarian (the metal ones are the best). Run the comb over your pet, making sure the comb reaches the skin through the coat. If black specks are on the comb when you pull it off, they may be flea dirt. If fleas are on the comb, drown them in a bowl of soapy water before they can get away or jump back on your pet.

White paper towel — place a white paper towel beneath your pet and rub your hands across its fur. If black specks appear on the towel, they may be flea dirt.

The following steps can also be taken to prevent ticks from harming your pet:

YARDWORK — you can remove tick habitats from your yard by keeping tall grass clipped, removing any mulch or leaf litter and trimming bushes.

AVOID TALL GRASS OR BRUSH — keep your pet far away from these tick breeding grounds.

EXAMINE YOUR PET — examine your pet thoroughly every day for ticks. Although ticks prefer attaching to your pet’s head, neck and paws, you should still try to cover as much of your pet’s body as he/she will allow.

Don’t despair: if you follow through with the steps above, you’ll end up ahead of the battle. As always the best combat is prevention-good luck!

Most of us acknowledge when a dog does a play bow (front end down, rear end up) it is a friendly gesture that invites another dog to play. But did you realize when two dogs approach each other from a distance and begin sniffing the ground they are actually communicating friendliness ?

Turid Rugaas, a dog trainer from Norway has spent years observing dogs and the ways they tell each other through their body language that they want to get along. She believes that dogs, like their wolf cousins, are dependent upon their communication skills to cooperate with other members of their pack. Cooperation, not aggression or conflict, is the key to survival for any canine species.

Dogs have inherited this way of communicating through body language from their wild ancestors. This language is further developed within their litter and later with dogs they meet and play with. Eventually, they become fluent in being able to communicate their intentions with any other dog.

If dogs are not socialized with other dogs or are taken away from their litter too young, they never become fluent in their own language, becoming social outcasts. These are dogs that “go nuts” when they see another dog, either in exuberance or aggression or fear. They behave inappropriately and are not able to read any of the calming signals exhibited by normal dogs.

If you don’t socialize your dog with other dogs of all breeds and ages he will never be a normal dog. These are the dogs that attack other dogs without warning and seem uncontrollable even when the other dog is displaying very obvious calming, friendly signals. Dogs as a group are supposed to get along with members of their own kind. If we would only socialize them more (with lots of different ages and sizes of dogs) their quality of life would be that much better. Some examples of calming signals dogs use to communicate peaceful intentions:

Yawning- how many times has your dog yawned at the vet or when you’ve yelled at him ? Dogs yawn to calm themselves or you or another dog and to communicate no harm.

Sniffing the ground- how many times has your dog started busily sniffing the ground when you’ve called him in a harsh or worried voice? It may have made you more angry but it was meant to calm you down.

Sneezing – have you ever watched two dogs playing somewhat roughly and then one dog starts to sneeze as he plays? That sneeze is not the same as an itchy nose, it’s a signal that tells the other dog that this is play and helps keep it from escalating into something more serious.

Head turning- when your dog greets a strange dog or person have you ever seen him turn his head or eyes to the side or even turn completely sideways. This head turning isn’t snobbish behavior it says “I mean you no harm”.

Pawing – have you ever met a young puppy that was insistent on greeting you by raising it’s paw? All this while you thought you were teaching it to shake, when in reality the pup was teaching you how to be friendly and inviting you to play.

This is just a handful of all the neat ways that dogs communicate with us and with each other. Once you start observing dogs interacting with each other you will never look at dogs the same way again. It is an exciting peak into the world of canine language and is a joy to watch in an experienced dog.

Like sands of an hour glass, these are the cupcakes of our lives. 

Even dogs are becoming drama queens.

Snacks for both pets and people are included in the admission price.  Sorry, but cocktails aren’t free.  Beverages will be served from a cash bar, no outside alcohol is allowed.

• Event Date:  Thursday, November 13, 2008
• Event Hours:  6:00pm – 9:00pm
• Location:  2519 Hermitage Road Richmond, VA 23220
• Fees:  Advance Tickets are $8 per person and $12 at the door – pets get in free.

Unfortunately the test results are often not specific enough to answer heritage questions or provide health guidance.

The science behind the tests needs more work.

How it Works
Mars Veterinary has started marketing Wisdom Panel, a test to determine breed mix through local vets.  It involves having the vet taking a blood sample and sending it to the testing lab, which then compared the DNA in your dog against a database of the DNA of 130 “purebred” breeds.  Costs can vary from vet to vet but run in the $150-$175 range.

Metamorphix is another company that has been offering DNA based testing for some time.  They have 38 breeds in their canine heritage database and offer a cheaper and less invasive mouth swab sampling technique that you can do at home.  Sampling kits are ordered from their website and you return mail them to the lab in envelopes they provide.  The cost is about $80.

Although the size of the database varies, the process at both companies are similar.  Their software compares your dog against 100-300 genetic markers and reports it’s findings in three categories.

1. Traces – which may be great grandparent and beyond, and are very small amounts with little influence on behavior and appearance.
2. Secondary – this breed has a strong showing in the DNA mix and is more influential but still makes up less than the majority of the dog’s DNA.
3. Primary – this is the breed that represents the majority of the dog’s DNA makeup.  Having a “primary breed” is rare in a mixed breed dog unless they have at least one purebred parent.  In ten reports we examined covering eight dogs, non had a primary listing.

The point here is that you probably aren’t going to get something as definitive as you would like.  You may well get a listing of traces of 8 different dogs that look and act very little like the one at your feet.  And while not satisfying from a curiosity standpoint it is not helpful creating a breed specific health care plan for your dog – a benefit that both companies tout.

And worse yet…

Test results for the same dog can be markedly different between the two companies!

We were surprised and confused by the very different answers by the two companies for the SAME dogs.

Company Response
Key executives and scientists from both companies reviewed the tests, concluded that the samples were good, that their testing process was good, and both stood by their results.  They have seen these differences before and discussed how it isnot as cut and dry as we might imagine for a couple of reasons:

• First, there is no such thing as a “pure” dog. The AKC recognized purebreds are actually man made mixes created by controlled crossbreeding to enhance certain characteristics.  So even the DNA of an American Kennel Club purebred is a mix that may vary within limits.
• Secondly the database samples are not perfect.  They are based on good sampling techniques that will improve over time with more samples.
• The software for both companies reports the breeds that have the highest statistical probability of matching the DNA from your dog, not definitive matches.

Both believe that their answers are as good as the science can offer right now.  Wisdom Panel believes their larger database yields better probabilities.  Heritage is expanding their database this spring to include approximately that same number of breeds.  But the truth remains; the tests are someone’s estimation of the probabilities – not the definitive facts that guarantee an understanding of your dog’s behavior or health profile.  The results can be answers that are as different as Daschund and Dane.

Our Recommendation
Don’t test.  Save your money.  Wait until next year and give the industry time to debug itself.  We will try again and report the results.  In the meantime, enjoy your mutts for what you know them to be – good friends and good dogs!

You can save money by reading a good dog book and making your own guesses about your pooch’s heritage, and you may be just as accurate!

For some reason they just don’t sell one of the breed German Shepherd/Husky/Springer Spaniel mix.    Don’t worry though, I put a link at the bottom of the post for the Mommy’s who are lucky enough to snag this purse.

The purse is a bit pricey at $79.98, but I can’t imagine a doggy Mom alive that wouldn’t absolutely love it.  The purse is full of detail, even the zipper has a breed specific charm on it.

The purse is available for dog Moms of the following breeds: Bassett Hound, Beagle, Bichon Frise, Boston Terrier, Boxer, Bulldog, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Chihuahua, Cocker Spaniel, Corgi, Dachshund, German Shepherd, Golden Retriever, Jack Russell Terrier, Black Lab, Yellow Lab, Maltese, Miniature Pinscher, Papillon, Pomeranian, Poodle, Pug, Rottweiler, Schnauzer, Scottish Terrier, Sheltie, Shih-tzu, Springer Spaniel, Westie, Yorkshire Terrier.

FREE Standard Shipping! Expires 5/7

Now at age 13, Lucas moves a bit slower from arthritis (after having a TPLO done on both knees), but you can still see the excitement in each of his steps and with every Easter egg he finds.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

A basic agility course is run on an area of apporoximately 100 by 100 feet and has numbered obstacles (tire, jumps, weave poles, a-frame, tunnels), laid out by an agility judge in a design of their own choosing.  The numbers represent the order in which the obstacles are to be completed.

Agility courses are made difficult enough that a dog could not complete them correctly without human direction.

Think about getting booties for you dog.  These can protect your dog’s feet not only from harsh chemicals, but also from broken glass that might be hidden by snow and ice. 

Here’s a link to a website that sells them: Dog Boots
Chemicals used to melt ice and snow are harmful to your pet.  Don’t let your dog eat the ice and snow in a neighbor’s yard.  You never know what chemicals they could have used to speed up melting.  And, many neighborhood streets are sprayed with chemicals by the highway department.   

If your dog is like mine, he LOVES to catch snowballs.  Roll balls of snow from your own yard or any other source you know doesn’t use chemicals.  Don’t dig down to get a handful, skim off the top.  This will minimize the chance of picking up rocks and sticks that could hurt your dog.  Push the snow together only enough to keep its shape for you to toss.  Packing it down tight might hurt your dog when he catches it.Always check your dog’s paws after playing in snow or ice.   It’s a good idea to wipe your dog’s paws with clean warm water after a walk in the neighborhood.  After your dog has had a good day’s play in the cold, wash and dry them off thoroughly.  Then check the pads of each paw.  Look for swelling.  Nicks and cuts as well as abrasions could cause infections.   If you don’t find anything, watch your pet to see if he licks his paws.  This may be a sign of an injury and the main reason you rinse your dog’s paws off after a walk.  Check him again.  If you find something, clean the wound gently.  For a serious cut, contact your vet or local animal emergency hospital.  Don’t let it fester before seeking help.Once you’ve checked your dog and everything is okay, treat him or her to a nice gentle leg massage.  This will stimulate circulation and keep his paws nice and toasty. Sit beside your dog and take one leg in both hands.  Make slow circular movements with your thumbs as you work down from the top of the leg to the paw.  Use a steady, light pressure.  When you reach the paw, take one finger and slide it between the toes.  If your dog doesn’t like this, then stop.  Otherwise, continue between the toes using only one finger.  Don’t push the toe outward, keep it in its natural line.  Only apply enough pressure for your finger to glide through.As always, offer your pet fresh clean water after any massage.  This helps flush out toxins from the muscles that can be released during massage.

Have a fun, safe, and healthy winter!