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How to Safely Introduce Your Dog to Your New Baby

First comes love, then comes marriage … And a dog! For many couples, starting a family means sharing their lives with a dog before the decision to have kids. Later, with a positive pregnancy test in hand, many dog owners worry about how their first baby" will accept the "new baby." From a trainer's perspective

Pain Relieving Massage Therapy for Dogs

Massage, for dogs? Yes! Dogs, just like humans, usually love a good therapeutic massage. Just like us, they enjoy the relaxation that massage provides and the relief from muscle aches and pains that can come from a day of hard playing, a long hike, or even from just lying around. They don't know about the benefits they're receiving, or that they will soon experience a feeling of well-being and rejuvenation. They just know that someone is touching them in a way that takes away pain and feels really good.

10 Common Mistakes You Make When Your Dog Doesn’t Want To Play

Here are some mistakes commonly made by people trying to convince a reluctant dog to play:

8 Easy Ways To Teach Your Dog How To Play

Tug. Fetch. Chase. Search. Most of us love to play with our dogs. Whether we're tugging, tossing a ball or a stick, or playing some other game, one of the great joys of sharing our lives with canine companions is the opportunity to engage in mutually enjoyable activities, i.e., play. However, for dogs, playing with humans is a learned behavior. Dogs who don't have the opportunity to play with humans early in life may grow up with a play behavior deficit – one that can interfere with their ability to connect with the two-legged members of their family in a way that's important and meaningful.

Letters From Readers: October 2015

I just finished reading your pet insurance article in the September 2015 issue and have to agree how important pet insurance is to have. We just lost our precious little Beagle, Rascal, to meningeal encephalitis at 101/2 years old – a horrible thing to see your pet go through. We were willing to do everything we could to save him. Rascal started circling" and we went to our vet

Filing an Appeal

Insurance companies are in the business to make money, and anything they can legally deny, they will. However, that doesn't mean they're always right. You can file a letter of appeal with your insurer, but you need more than a stern letter. You need proof that you're right. The evidence you need depends upon the disagreement and your contract.

Why is Blue-Green Algae Dangerous to Dogs?

Water is wonderful, but not if it's toxic. When conditions promote the growth or bloom" of toxic blue-green algae in lakes and ponds

Symptoms of Heat Stress

A dog exhibiting any of these symptoms needs immediate veterinary care as brain damage, kidney failure, seizures, and death can occur:

Short-Nosed Dogs

The brachycephalic breeds – such as Pugs, Boston Terriers, Boxers, Bulldogs – are particularly at risk of heat stress, says Eileen Fatcheric, DVM, of Syracuse, New York. The only way dogs have to thermoregulate their bodies is panting

How to Keep Your Dog Cool in Hot Weather

Dogs find summer's high temperatures challenging. That's largely because they don't sweat. Sure, you've read that dogs have sweat glands in their paws, but veterinarians agree that's not much help. A dog's primary means of cooling himself is through panting – and our goal is to make this process more efficient.
dog being held upside down

What To Do If Your Dog Gets Motion Sickness

meant to help the vestibular apparatus develop properly. This is thought to help prevent vestibular disease and motion sickness later in the puppy's life."

Success Story

While the concept of energy-based healing might be tough for some people to accept, professional animal trainer and flower essence practitioner Jennifer White of Woodinville, Washington, has a large database of client success stories to draw upon. It includes a 3-year-old service dog who was on the verge of being retired due to extreme car sickness. The dog had exhibited symptoms of nausea – drooling and panting – since early puppyhood, and he never outgrew the problem.

Latest Blog

What If You Get the Wrong Dog?

It’s a sad fact (but a fact nevertheless) that sometimes people adopt a dog or buy a puppy that turns out to quite unsuited for life with those people.