How To Change Your Dog's Diet

As more and more new findings about diets for dogs come to light, many dog owners will begin to consider changing their dog’s diet to the best one available so that their dog will have good health and live to a ripe old age. However, it‘s very important for any dog owner to take precautions when trying to change their dog’s diet. The following steps are suggested as a way that it can be done without throwing the dog’s digestive system out of balance.

Step 1: When changing your dog’s diet, it should be done in stages by replacing 25% of the old food with the new. Most dogs will not notice any difference if the old and the new are mixed well enough. They should eat the new mixture the same way that they did the old diet. Although a small percentage may notice the difference and not be as enthusiastic about eating it, patience should be exercised to allow the break-in period to be completed. Once the dog has accepted the new mixture, for about a week and has shown no sign of an upset stomach, or any other adverse reaction to the new diet, then you can proceed to the next step.

Step 2: Mix and replace 50% of the old diet with the new diet and don’t be as careful to ensure that the mixture is completely blended. In this way the dog will get the odd bite of the new food without any of the old food mixed in. Do this for about a week, keeping an eye on the dog for adverse reactions to the new food. If the dog shows no sign of stomach upset or adverse reactions you can then proceed to the next step.

Step 3: This time mix 75% of the new food with 25% of the old one. Again, make an even lesser effort to hide the new food from the dog. Watch for upset stomach or adverse reaction. Also make sure that the dog likes the new mixture. Feed your dog this new mixture for a week and if everything is OK then you can switch completely to the new food. Keep an eye on your dog for a few days to ensure that there are no adverse reactions.

At this stage, your dog should accept this new diet without any fuss. If, however, the dog shows some reluctance to eating the new diet you can continue to mix a little of the old food in the diet and slowly decrease it or you can just use patience and see if the dog will take to the new diet in a week or so. The new diet should contain more nutrition than the old diet, so your dog may not need as much food to fill him up. A change of diet is a stressful thing for some dogs to go through and a lot of patience will be needed. In other cases you will find dogs that have no problems changing diets regularly. However, mom and dad have found that sudden changes in diet usually result in upset stomachs, diarrhoea and loss of appetite if the switch from one type of diet to another is done too quickly. Just like humans, dogs are uniquely different and some are bound to require more patience and attention than others. Therefore, don't become discouraged too easily when the dog is not fitting into the new diet in the beginning. After all, changing a dog's diet is often a time consuming process that should be done with care and understanding.

If the dog is changing from one owner to another such as when you purchase a dog from someone else or you buy a new dog from a pet store or the local SPCA, make sure that you do not change the dog’s diet for at least a month. The change of ownership is stressful enough, without messing with the poor animal’s diet too. Let the dog settle comfortably into its new environment and then after he or she is fully settled and happily enjoying the new family, you can start at step one and change to a more healthy diet to ensure that your new family member remains a healthy and happy member of your household.

Until next time,

Teia

Suggestions to Help Prevent Your Cat from Getting Hairballs

Cats are fastidious animals. They prefer clean things and apparently the one thing they like really clean is themselves. Because of this, they spend an excessive amount of time grooming themselves. The act of licking themselves helps to untangle and remove loose hair. Their tongue is specifically made for the task. It is covered with little bumps and toward the center of the tongue are tiny barb-like bumps that act to snag the hair. Unfortunately, this habit of grooming can lead to the formation of hairballs in your cat’s stomach.

Cats cannot digest the hair they swallow. However, they are able to pass the hair through their digestive system in small amounts. A problem occurs when the cat does not get enough fiber in its diet to push the hair through its system and out with its stool. When this occurs, the hair builds up and forms a hairball.

The distressed cat begins to cough and attempts to vomit the hairball up. For the loving cat owner, the gagging and retching is worrisome not to mention the annoying cleanup afterward. While the occasional hairball is probably nothing to be too alarmed about, frequent hairballs could be a cause for concern because they can result in digestive track troubles such as loss of appetite, constipation and in rare instances complete blockage of the intestinal tract.

You cannot prevent your cat from swallowing its loose hair. However, there are things that you can do to lessen the likelihood of hairballs forming. There are also natural remedies and commercial products that you can use to help the cat pass the hair through its digestive tract before hairballs form or break them up before they become too tightly packed. The best way to prevent your cat from swallowing large amounts of hair is to comb or brush your cat regularly. If the cat is well groomed, there won’t be very much loose hair for the cat to swallow. Long-haired cats should be combed or brushed daily and shorthaired cats once or twice a week.

If your cat needs assistance with its hairballs, there are commercial products that can be applied to the top of its front paws. These products are available from your veterinarian or better quality pet stores. The cat will lick these products off their feet and when swallowed these products will assist the hair to pass through the digestive system. Some people have reported that they have used lubricants such as Crisco All Vegetable Shortening, mayonnaise or butter as substitutes for these commercial products. Before you consider using these home made remedies, check with your veterinarian because the use of these products could cause other digestive problems. A few people have even used Vaseline, but it is not something that I would recommend. As previously stated, if you feel that your cat needs assistance eliminating hairballs from his system, check with your veterinarian as he or she is in a better position to determine the severity of the problem and what product would work best for your particular cat.

You may also feed your cat specially made cat food diets and treats that are intended to prevent the development of hairballs. Another interesting solution that I have heard about, but cannot vouch for its effectiveness, is to mix in about a teaspoon of canned pumpkin to your cat's normal food. Another suggested preventive method is to feed your cat grass a couple of times a week. I have no idea if this works or not, but I do know that dogs frequently eat grass when they have digestive problems. Again, check with your veterinarian. If he says it is acceptable, then you can consider growing the grass indoors. Rye, wheat or oat grasses are the best types to use and can be purchased at pet stores or on the Internet. Do not feed your cat grass from a chemically treated lawn it could be fatal to your cat.

It must be noted that cats will vomit for various reasons other than hairballs. Some of these may be from serious underlying conditions. Therefore, before attempting any of these remedies, it is advised that you consult with your veterinarian to rule out any other illness and to see which, if any, of these solutions should be tried. Along with your vet's help and one or more of these suggestions, it is possible that your cat will be able to live virtually hairball free. And remember, regular grooming of your cat will do much more than cut down the chances of him getting a hairball. It will allow you to remove dead hair, keep him clean, check for fleas or hidden injuries and allow you to bond more closely with your beloved pet.

Until next time,

Teia

Attracting Birds to Your Garden

The type of birds that will be attracted to your garden will be determined by the geographic location of your garden. For example, if you live in northern Canada, you are unlikely to attract Hummingbirds to your garden. Similarly if you live in the southern United States, you are unlikely to attract Ptarmigan to your garden.

To find out which birds are in your geographic area, you should consult bird books written by specialists from your area. You can also talk to avid bird watchers who live in your area. They should be able to tell you what you can expect to see in the way of birds coming to your garden, Libraries and book stores should have books that will identify which migrating birds may pass through your area.

Once you know what type of birds you can expect to find in your geographic area you can then get books to see what type of food and habitat that these birds require. You have to create an environment in your garden that will attract the type of birds you wish to have there.

Birds need water. If you supply this vital necessity in the form of a bird bath or a pond, you will have many types of birds come to your garden. Installation of bird feeders will provide food for visiting birds. It is also advisable to plant flowers, shrubs or trees that attract birds or provide berries or fruit that birds eat. Bird houses of the size and construction specific to certain birds resident in your area during breeding season will also attract birds to your yard. For example if purple martins reside in your area during the breeding season, installation of purple martin apartment style bird houses will probably result in these birds nesting in your bird houses. Not only will you get a chance to see these birds on a daily basis, but they will greatly reduce the number of mosquitoes in your area.

My mom and dad provide bird feeders on a year around basis in our yard and as a result we have many birds coming to visit. I often sit or lay on the arm of the love seat near the front windows and watch all these birds flying into and out of the yard. In winter we have Redpolls, Evening Grosbeaks, Pine Grosbeaks, Gray Jays, Ravens, Magpies, Sparrows, Pigeons, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Bohemian Waxwings and Chickadees in our yard. In the summer, we have Crows, Gray Jays, Magpies, Sparrows, Pigeons, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Evening Grosbeaks, Bohemian Waxwings, Cedar Waxwings, American Goldfinches, Pine Siskins, Purple Finches, Red-wing Blackbirds, Yellow-headed Blackbirds, Cowbirds, Brewers Blackbirds, Common Grackles, Downy Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, Dark-eyed Junks, Robins, Tree Swallows and Barn Swallows in the yard or flying above it. We occasionally have Merlins and American Kestrels swooping through the yard in the warmer weather looking for an unwary song bird to catch for a fresh meal. Other occasional visitors are Blue Jays, Kinglets, Nuthatches, Ptarmigan, Mourning Doves, Wrens, Swainson's Thrush, Warblers, Lark Bunting, Lapland Longspurs, and Snow Buntings.

We have a number of Manitoba Maple trees separating the front of our yard from the street and this encourages birds to come into our yard as does the Mountain Ash tree which produces juicy berries in the fall.

By providing food, water and quiet hiding places for birds, you will have these winged visitors in your yard in no time.

Until next time,

Teia

WELCOME

Welcome to Birdhouse Publishing. As a pet, I can tell you all about pets and what they need and want.

Make sure that you become well acquainted with the vet that you have chosen for your pet. A short time after you bring your new pet home, make an appointment with a veterinarian and introduce your pet to him or her. Have your pet checked and make sure that any vaccinations that are needed are attended to. Your new companion's life could very well depend on having adequate protection from diseases present in your part of the world.

Your new pet will give you many years of companionship and love if you ensure that he/she has plenty of nutritious food, clean water, a safe place to stay and vaccinations to ward off potential diseases.

I hope that you will visit me often and that you will enjoy the postings that my dad enters for me.