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[[http://www.metacafe.com/embed/11871608/|external page]]We have stumbled upon this great article pertaining to Dogs listed below on the web and felt it made good sense to write about it with you in this article.
Good Morning from the Golden Retriever Channel. This pupper is taking-in rain. Who turned on the sprinkler in the sky? Another good day in his life, so far.

(Lifeofsterlingnewton IG)[[https://twitter.com/hashtag/dogs?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw|#dogs]] [[https://twitter.com/hashtag/puppies?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw|#puppies]] [[https://twitter.com/hashtag/cute?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw|#cute]] [[https://t.co/ooQqHn9XIf|pic.twitter.com/ooQqHn9XIf]]
&mdash; Golden Retriever Channel (@GoldretrieverUS) [[https://twitter.com/GoldretrieverUS/status/1428740104953253898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw|August 20, 2021]]  
Care For Your Dog Properly With This Article


Your dog might scratch his bowl if it wants food. If a dog wants to be let outside, they often scratch at the door. If your dog wants attention, he's going to look at you in a longing way. Sadly, not everything he wants is to easily communicated, so read on to learn more about a dog's needs.

Look into subsidized health care for your dog if money is tight. Many local communities, in cooperation with groups like the SPCA offer discounted services that have proven invaluable to dog owners. Look into getting your dog spayed or neutered and vaccinated for a fraction of veterinary costs at a sponsored event probably close-by to you. Just contact the SPCA or an animal shelter in your town.

Take care to keep your dog cool while traveling during the summer by car. Even with your air-conditioning on, the dog may become over-heated in his pet carrier. A simple and low-cost countermeasure is freezing a few gallon jugs of water and placing them near him where he can curl up and cool off.

Get a dog house if you have a dog that you leave outside, in case the weather gets bad. Remember that dogs exposed to cold and damp or excessive heat are far more likely to become ill. Build a shelter yourself or purchase a kit from the nearest pet store.

Get your new pet a veterinary exam. In fact, do it the same day as you bring the pet home so you don't forget. Your vet will provide a full check up and establish vaccination dates. Talk with a vet about your dog being spayed or neutered. There are lots of homeless dogs and you don't want to make the problem worse.

Reward your dog for doing right things, such as sitting while you place it's food down, with lots of praise and attention. This is to let the dog know that you want more of that behavior. This will teach the dog that when they do what you wish, they'll get praised.

It is very important for you to keep your dog's ears clean. Keeping the inside of the ears clean will help prevent infections of the ear. This is also a good time for you to inspect the ear for fleas, ticks and any other pests that could have made your dog's ear home.

Keep your dog's teeth clean and healthy with regular brushing. Most canines don't mind you brushing their teeth, provided you introduce them to the process slowly and gently. Use a specially designed dog brush, along with other products made just for him. Remember to provide him with toys and biscuits that will also clean and protect his teeth.

Keep your dog in comfortable housing. They should be able to rest off the floor and away from drafts. A training crate is a good choice or any covered shelter outside. Try placing a dog bed inside that has a warm blanket or a pillow inside. Wash the dog's bedding frequently.

Keep your dog in comfortable housing. They should be able to rest off the floor and away from drafts. A training crate is a good choice or any covered shelter outside. Try placing a dog bed inside that has a warm blanket or a pillow inside. Wash the dog's bedding frequently.

The pads of your dog's feet can become dry and cracked, so make sure that you moisturize them regularly. Ask your veterinarian for advice on which product to use. Avoid using moisturizers that are intended for humans, because they can make the pads too soft and your dog may get hurt.

Be prepared to have a lot of patience with your dog during potty-training. Much like children, dogs learn at different speeds and ages and your canine may be slow or stubborn. Have good resources at your fingertips to assist your efforts and remember not to get angry when your dog has "accidents" as that will only impede his progress.

If your dog has been playing outside, take the time to inspect its ears and neck for ticks. These parasites are very common and could make your dog sick if you do not take action right away. Take your dog to the vet if you do not know how to remove the ticks yourself.

Be thoughtful about breeding your dog. Repeated breeding of a female can evetually lead to severe health problems for both the dog and the puppies that is born from her. If you plan to breed be sure to do your research first so that you can be sure that you are doing the right thing for your animals.

Do not just think your dog is ok because he has a cold nose. Sick dogs often have cold, wet noses. Using your dog's appetite, attitude, and amount of energy, you can determine its health. These can be great ways to know how your dog's health is. To check a dog's temperature, you need to do it rectally.

When training your dog, always make sure that you enter a room before allowing the dog to. This is important because it is an obvious form of dominance that your dog will understand. Establishing dominance will help with your ability to train your dog and with its overall behavior patterns.

If you have a new dog in the house, be careful with how much freedom you give him or her initially. The freedom to have access to all areas of your home needs to be earned. If you allow your pet to roam too soon, you may have to deal with [[http://search.about.com/?q=damaged%20furniture|damaged furniture]] and other issues. Use baby gates to help restrict your dog's movements, and house him in an appropriately sized crate when you cannot watch him.

It is natural to want to get your dog trained as quickly as possible. However, remember that there is a limit as to how fast this process is going to go. If you are not realistic, you are much more likely to get frustrated with your pet, which could damage your relationship. Your pet will learn over time, but it may not happen as fast as you would like.

You should now have a better understanding of what is necessary for the proper care of your furry friend. Keep these tips in mind as you live your day to day life. Soon, you will not have problems of any kind and will have a healthy companion to enjoy and love.
(Image: [[https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1e7s1Kac1yTpzrUKiS_Nuo1n90pC7g9nc|https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1e7s1Kac1yTpzrUKiS_Nuo1n90pC7g9nc]])
Best Advice for Dogs with Skin Issues

I still need to publish a real post about Mr. Stix's full backstory, but this feels more pressing. For nearly 18 months, Mr. Stix's permanent nakey spot (from unknown injuries before he was rescued, including 15 fractures and this big patch of coat missing) has featured several inflamed, peeling areas. Initially I tried to fix it myself at home with things like aloe vera, vaseline, a veterinary ointment called animax that the shelter had give us while we fostered him most of 2019, etc. It's sort of a combination of steroids, antibacterial, and antifungal stuff. I took him to see our main veterinarian in spring 2020, when there was a 2-month wait to get into see a board-certified veterinary dermatologist. It has been quite a journey since then, and it's nowhere near over. Here's my best advice for dogs with skin issues. 

Before I tell the ongoing saga with Mr. Stix's skin. Here is my best advice for dogs with skin problems.

    See a board-certified veterinary dermatologist as soon as you can. Yes, your main veterinarian can probably help, but it's honestly best to go right to the top experts. 



    Agree to whatever skin scrapings / cytology the veterinary dermatologist recommends. This provides information about what types of secondary infections currently grow on your dog's damaged skin. 



    Do NOT assume every skin issue is allergies. It often is some sort of allergic process, but NOT always and assuming so (and acting accordingly may only delay real solutions and subject your dog to all kinds of quack advice and home remedies).



    Buy the best quality fish oil and Vitamin E supplements you can afford, if it's recommended for your particular case of a dog with skin issues. 



    When necessary, agree to the skin biopsies (yes, like minor surgery) and have them reviewed by a veterinary pathologist that specializes in dogs with skin issues. The one we used is at Texas A&M.



    Follow your veterinary dermatologist's advice and plans, and keep the faith. These dogs with skin problems often don't improve quickly. (I need to take my own advise. See below.)

Mr. Stix's Story as a Dog with Skin Problems

This is what Mr. Stix's nakey spot looks like when it's normal. Photo from May 2019 soon after his hip surgery. The bald patch is permanent. That's not the issue. 


This is how bad the red / peeling areas got in mid-2020 when we saw our main veterinarian, who added a low-dose of oral Vitamin E and some topical too and told me to keep using the animax. 


This is how it looked when Mr. Stix first saw the board-certified veterinary dermatologist in early August 2020, but the specialist had me STOP the animax and instead use a prescription anti-bacterial ointment (mupirocin) ... as well as add a better quality oral fish oil and continue both topical and oral Vitamin E (but at a higher dose twice a day). We knew from the skin scrapings / cytology they did onsite that Mr. Stix had a bacterial infection. 


But, without the daily topical steroids (which long term are a bad idea), Mr. Stix's skin got much, much worse -- even breaking open and scabbing over.


Our veterinary dermatologist had recommended doing the skin biopsies right away in August 2020, and I *almost agreed to it then, but I was VERY worried about the cuts resulting in skin that would NOT heal. And, I figured it was at least worth a try to use the prescription antibiotic ointment and other supplements and stuff. 



But, by around Thanksgiving, it was clear we had to do the biopsy. That photo is kind of gruesome, so you can see it here, if you want. I wish I had done the biopsy sooner. I feel like I wasted time from August through November. 

Post-Biopsy Diagnosis

As I expected, despite all the know-it-alls trying to tell me it was an allergic issue, it turns out that Mr. Stix instead has an autoimmune condition called erythema multiforme. They believe it was triggered by the trauma of his earlier injuries. They don't think it is life-threatening. They don't think it will spread to other areas of his skin. Just the already damaged, permanent nakey spot. 



With that information in hand, we updated the treatment plan to include a topical, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory ointment (tacrolimus -- often pricey, but we used a Good RX coupon at Costco to get the cost down). They use a version of this medication orally for people who have had various kinds of transplants. It's the smallest / safest option for treatment, and that's where we started. 



I was so hopeful it would work at the once-daily application, but the skin still didn't heal completely. 



So, in early 2021, we started applying it twice daily on the advice of our veterinary dermatologist.



But, it still hasn't healed completely. It often improves a lot and then comes roaring back, so we had another appointment to see the specialist last week. We had to try something new. 

Enter the Big Immune-Suppressing Drug

Despite my concerns and form of veterinary PTSD about major immune suppression drugs (after our experiences with Lilly), I agreed last week to add oral cyclosporine, which is also a drug that people get after various transplants. Mr. Stix would need to take it daily for life. 



It smells like it's made from skunk butts, so each gel-cap pill is individually packaged, and you keep them in the freezer because that can help with nausea it can cause (since it's recommended you give on an empty stomach). 



I found some good info on this med, and our veterinary dermatologist assured me that it has been safely used in veterinary medicine for like 20+ years, etc.



The med only comes in doses of 25 mg, 50 mg, and 100 mg, and at his size Mr. Stix's ideal dose is around 88 mg once a day. So we went with 75 mg (25+50) to err on the lower side. 



It takes like 3-7 days for the med to build up in the blood to therapeutic levels, but it takes more like 4-6 weeks to know if it's going to help the skin (or not). 



We made it to day 4, then the barfing started. 

Anxiety

I wish I could say that this is all going to be fine, but I just don't know. I feel like I just have to accept that the skin will never fully heal, even though seeing his raw spots up close while applying the topical med twice a day and topical Vitamin E once a day causes me so much angst and anxiety. 



I supposed to check in with our veterinary dermatology team next week to confirm that Mr. Stix's weirdness and apparent suffering has improved. 



It took a lot of convincing to get Mr. Champion of My Heart to agree to try the cyclosporine, so even if the specialist comes back and recommends maybe a lower dose, I doubt we'll want to risk it ... because Mr. Stix sure seemed to be having some neurologist issues to me, and after the Lilly situation, I just cannot do that again. 



He is only 3 years old. I don't want to make anything worse. It honestly felt like I'd poisoned him.



The good news is that most of the time his skin doesn't seem to hurt or itch or anything -- though I do have pain meds, if he needs them. It mostly just looks bad, and he has to wear a no-lick collar for about 20 minutes after I apply his meds so that he doesn't lick it off. 



His nakey spot is prone to sunburn anyway, and the topical tacrolimus increases the risk of burning, so I used his earlier sun-reflecting coat (which started to look ragged) as a pattern and sewed him a new / light sun protection coat. He looks very cute in it. 

 [[https://championofmyheart.com/2021/08/05/dogs-with-skin-issues/|https://championofmyheart.com/2021/08/05/dogs-with-skin-issues/]]

Nurturing And Loving Your Dog: Care Tips


There is no such thing as a perfect dog owner. You may look back regretfully on mistakes you've made, but the truth is that you're not alone. Learning from your mistakes is key, and this article should show you the right way to care for your dog as it is chock full of advice from other owners like you.

Consider teaching your dog hand signals along with verbal commands. Consistency and practice are key to teaching a dog these non-verbal commands. Many owners get frustrated and resort back to verbal commands, but a well-trained dog should understand both. Try using only verbal commands when the dog is out of sight range, but when close up, only use the hand signals.

Always give your dog plenty of attention and affection. When your dog behaves properly, make sure you let the dog know you are happy and give them some affection. This will help reinforce the good behavior and the dog will try to behave in this manner for the positive attention..

House-training your dog will be much easier if you adopt a routine. You should go for walks regularly throughout the day and come home during your lunch break if necessary. If your dog has to be home alone for long hours, do not leave a bowl full of water unless it is very hot.

Positive reinforcement is the best way to train your dog. You should congratulate your dog when it displays a good behavior, for instance by giving it a treat or petting it. Talk to your dog in a soft voice and make sure you praise it every time the good behavior is displayed.

Demonstrate plenty of affection to your dog. As with most things, owners tend to focus more on the bad behavior instead of the good. Your dog will develop more behavioral problems if you adopt this attitude. Instead make it a habit to praise your dog much more often than any scolding. Make it five times to any one.  If you loved this post and you want to receive more information concerning [[https://www.Diigo.com/item/note/8ncwk/soh9?k=5d5e59fdb11f7587e8cb20f99460b624|dog breeds that start with H]] generously visit the page. Your dog is going to behave much more if you do that.

Determine your dog's specific exercise regimen. Dogs have different fitness needs based their sex, overall health, age, breed mix, or breed. Every dog should have a couple 10-minute walks a day around the block. Dogs between 6 and 18 months, active breed or mixed breeds, terriers, hounds, and herding dogs will most likely require more fitness than others types of dogs.

If your vet prescribes medication, always carefully follow the provided instructions. The dog may hate that cone on its head, but it's there for a very good reason! Your vet makes recommendations that will help your dog be happy and healthy, so you should follow your vet's advice.

To protect your dog in the event he is lost or stolen, have a microchip surgically implanted by your vet. These handy chips store data that can be retrieved by a shelter or animal officer and used to contact you. They are painless to put in and offer peace of mind for the pet lover!

Do not make training your dog seem like a chore. Dogs pick up on this negative energy and will have a difficult time learning if you are not in the right mind frame. Make it fun and try to look at it as a bonding experience with your pet. When your dog is having fun, they will learn their training quicker.

Make sure your let your dog know you love him. As is often the case, dog owners frequently focus on bad behavior instead of good. Your dog will develop more behavioral problems if you adopt this attitude. You should mostly focus on praising and petting your dog when you notice a good behavior. This increases the chance that your dog will repeat the good behavior rather than the bad.

Always be sure that your dog understands that you are the master if you want to have a well behaved pet. This is important because if your dog believes that he is dominant over you, then you have a much smaller chance of getting it to obey your commands and behave according to your wishes.

When it comes to training your dog, you should never have several people in charge. Not everyone will do things the same way, which can cause confusion. Be sure that one individual is in control of the training and keeps others working with the dog on the same page.

If you've got the most well-behaved and lovable dog around, share his good nature with those less fortunate. You could bring him to visit the elderly in nursing homes or sick children in hospitals. Not only will you be improving the quality of life for those people, but your dog will love being a super-star wherever he goes!

Never allow a puppy to climb up or down steps in order to prevent joint problems in the future. This is extremely important, especially with breeds that are at high risk for hip dysplasia. Any sort of high impact shock such as jumping or stair climbing should be avoided due to the fact that their growth plates are still developing.

Make sure that you carry small bags and gloves with you while you are out walking your dog. If he uses the bathroom outside, it is your responsibility to clean up the mess. It is unsanitary for you to leave it there, and it some places you may receive heavy fines for that.

Be careful when choosing what kind of food to feed your dog. Some dog foods contain dyes and fillers that are simply not healthy for them. When choosing a food, look on the label for words like "AAFCO feeding studies" and "feeding tests". These foods have gone through feeding trials and have been proven to be healthy.

Your puppy looks cute nibbling your slippers, but when he's full grown, it will not be cute to have him shred them into millions of pieces. The sooner you stop bad habits, the better. If your puppy engages in a behavior that you don't like, make sure it ceases right away. Doing this can prevent you from having big troubles down the line.

Caring for your dog starts with a good education, and this article is a stepping stone to true understanding of the species. Thankfully, you have read it in full, so keep these tips in mind as you continue loving your dog. Read as much as you can to learn more about your pet.
(Image: [[https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1ZXSkB2kTt0BHrhu_3ItpBxx_GZLNrrNa|https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1ZXSkB2kTt0BHrhu_3ItpBxx_GZLNrrNa]])
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