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 Daisy and Buffy 
The Dog Whisperer Click for quick insight tips. 
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All puppies are cute and almost all children want a pet. Too many families have pets with many regrets, especially puppies because they all grow up.
A new baby and a new dog or puppy at the same time is often a recipe for disaster. We hope this article will help you better choose the right pet
for your family and at the right time.
Before considering a dog or cat, or any other larger or higher maintenance animal, perhaps a hamster, gerbil, fish, turtle, hermit crab or bird. These smaller animals are especially great first choices for younger children to learn and demonstrate the care and responsibility needed for pet ownership. The other most important thing you can do is your research. After taking "the right dog" test (link below), search the breeds you may be interested in. Our main focus is a dog or puppy and breed demands. It is scary how many people either have the wrong breed, especially with small children. Many of which think they know their dog enough to trust them. Because they can control the dog in several ways, they think they know what they are doing and are among the most dangerous dog owners. Dr. Spock was right about his "training ideas" when it comes to dogs instead of children. The mind of a dog is clearly different from a human in the area of reasoning. Therefore, violence does breed violence in dogs. It is wrong, cruel and not necessary to discipline dogs by hitting them. There are much easier ways. Take the free online test at www.dogbreedinfo.com which breed(s) best suit you! Cesar Millan, The Dog Whisperer, has exposed the alpha language of dogs to better train and communicate with them. With short, easy lessons too! Don’t miss his video clips and articles. Too many people, if for no other reason than by default, will teach their dog the opposite behavior they are wanting. You can also catch the Dog Whisperer on the National Geographics channel on Friday nights. Check the laws of your state regarding pet ownership. I think most all US states require a rabies vaccination. Heartworm medicine is a must and is required every month. At best those two medical steps are the minimum. 1-800-PetMeds offers heartworm medicine usually a lot cheaper than the Vet. It is important to have your animal tested for heartworms once a year, (at the time you do the rabies shot is best to save an office visit). This heartworm tests helps insure your dog is protected and the meds are working. Otherwise it could be fatal if the animal has heartworms and is taking the meds. Heartworms are more dangerous if you live in warm climates, but there are cases reported in the colder states as well. I wish we had available the choosing the right breed test when our children were young. We would have chosen a totally different breed and our lives would have been so much better. Large dogs require so much more work and attention. Not to mention the cleanup. There is at least one breed that doesn’t shed at all--the Shitshu. That would have been nice to have known when our children were younger. Who wants to clean up dog hair. I thought an outdoor dog would be less trouble, but for us it was quite the contrary. I have never been "a dog person". But, thank God before I left this world, I did become one. Choosing the right breed for your home can change even the most non-dog person. My family and friends were shocked that we not only got another dog, but that she is an inside dog. We have two female Boston Terriers that we could not be more happier with. Another lesson we learned from our experience is how to avoid the dog smell. If you want less dog poop, clean dog poop when you do have to deal with it and you want a clean smelling dog all the time, then be selective about what you feed it. Table scraps is the worst thing you can feed a dog. Not to mention it shortens their lifespan, which on an average is normally 15 years. Dog food brands including Alpo are among the worst for bad smells, especially their breath. When we changed their food from Pedigree to Iams, we also noticed a big difference. We are currently feeding them Iams. It does cost more, but they eat less and poop less too! If they eat the filler Alpo types and it runs straight through them and they eat twice as much, then what are we saving? Dry dog food is best for their digestive system and for healthy teeth and gums. Who wants to pay expensive Vet bills? What about our things like shoes and furniture during the teething stages? No problem. Buy a variety of toys for your dog. It takes very little training for them to learn what is theirs and what is yours… AND without hitting or beating the dog of course. They need their own bed. A crate is best, especially at the beginning and when they will be home alone. It is a place of comfort and security for them and if properly trained they will use it often on their own. May an addition to your family be one of great joy. I can now say I understand why people love their dogs so much. Before I got Buffy for my birthday, my thoughts were ... "those people are crazy". The right dog for "YOUR" family makes all the difference in the world! |
