Dog Care

From LoveToKnow Dogs

Dog care becomes your primary responsibility when you own a dog. Owning a dog is a wonderful joy, providing love and companionship for you, but it also means taking care of the dog's health and every day needs. Your dog is 100% dependent on you. You need to provide love, food, shelter, veterinary care and exercise.

[edit]

Shelter and Proper ID

All dogs should have fenced yards and dog houses if kept outside. Keep your dog in a fenced-in area or on a leash. No exceptions. If your dog is not in a fence, he should be on a leash. Even the best trained dog disobeys and gets distracted. It takes just seconds for a dog to get lost or worse. Remember though, dogs are pack animals and crave human attention and interaction. This means if you plan on keeping your dog outside, you should plan on spending a good amount of time outside with him; otherwise, dogs do best as inside companions.

Make sure your dog has a properly fitting collar with an up-to-date ID tag. The ID tag should include your name, telephone number and address.

[edit]

Diet and Exercise

Exercise your dog. Playing with your dog strengthens the dog-human bond and gives your dog a good workout, giving him a chance to release his natural energy. Be sure to provide the right amount of exercise for your dog's age and energy level.

Provide a balanced diet with a nutritionally-balanced dog food. A basic rule of thumb: paying a dollar a pound usually yields a good solid food. Your veterinarian can also be able to give you good advice about what is the Best Dog Food for your dog.

Have fresh water available at all times. Whether your dog lives inside or outside, good dog care includes ensuring fresh water is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If your dog drinks from a regular dog bowl, refresh his water at least once a day. In the winter, make sure the water has not frozen over. Dehydration can cause serious illness and death.

[edit]

Veterinarian Dog Care

Take your dog to the veterinarian. Adult dogs should have an annual check-up at the veterinarian. Puppies need to be seen more frequently. Vaccines, heartworm and flea and tick preventatives go a long way toward keeping your dog healthy and happy.

Have your dog spayed and neutered. Spayed and neutered pets live longer lives, are less aggressive and roam less. Also, spaying/neutering your pet helps to control the pet overpopulation problem.

[edit]

Dog Care Includes Training

Treat yourself and your dog to a training class. Training classes teach humans how to communicate with their dogs, so they can understand each other. A trained human-dog team strengthens the human bond and creates harmony in the household.

[edit]

All Dogs Need Love

Be patient, compassionate and kind. Like all relationships, human-dog relationships take work. If you give your dog the time, training, attention and love he needs, he will pay you back a thousand fold. If you are having problems with your dog, seek advice from a veterinarian or trainer.

[edit]

Comments

Hi Julie,

Although boiled chicken is a good addition to your dog's diet, I wouldn't replace her balanced kibble with it. I would just add it to the mix. Hopefully the vomiting was just a one time thing. I wouldn't be too worried about it unless she begins vomiting frequently. If this happens, call your vet right away.

Your dog is at that stage that most ...es reach where the puppies' nutritional demands are becoming too great for her to meet. It's a very good thing that you have begun the weaning process by introducing the pups to other foods. Carry on with that, and it will eliminate some of the stress on mom. Allow her to eat as much as she wants of her regular diet. As the puppies nurse less, she will naturally begin to regain the weight she's lost, but it will take some time for this to happen.

All things considered, it does sound as though things are going normally, so try not to be too worried. These next few weeks are going to fly by quickly, and the situation will get back to normal soon. Thanks for your question. :)

-- Contributed by: Kelly

Hi there My husky had her first litter of 6 puppies, they are now just over a month old. We've noticed that she is losing weight and have been advised to feed her on cooked chicken. Today, however, we noticed she had been sick or regurgitated her food in the pen, is this normal? We have started feeding the puppies on puppy milk and started introducing them to solid food which they eat well.

Do you have any information on how to help regain her weight, as the puppies seem to be taking a lot of nutrience out of her.

Thanks :)

-- Contributed by: Julie

My dog just had her puppies yesteday, she would have had 6 but she ate the last one. I was helping her deliver the first 5, the last one looked small and before I knew it, she was trying to tear the placenta and swallowed it. I felt terrible, however I had read about it, I just dont know what to do or if I should do anything about it, please advise. Will she get sick? Must I take her to the Vet?

Hi Angie,

I'm so sorry to hear about that last pup, but these things happen sometimes. Your bitch will probably be fine. The puppy's bones will still be quite soft and easy to digest.

My real concern is for the remaining pups. Please keep a very close eye on how your bitch interacts with them. I've found that once a bitch eats a puppy, she's likely to do it again.

I truly hope things don't turn out this way for you. If you feel she begins acting less than trustworthy, you may need to take over caring for the puppies yourself. Don't be in a rush to do this, but do come back for instructions if you need them.

Thanks for your question, and I hope things go better from here.

-- Contributed by: Angie
> See All Comments on this article

Advertise with us | Type of Dogs and Dog Training

This page has been accessed 2,352 times. This page was last modified 17:57, 1 April 2006.
© 2006-2008 LoveToKnow Corp.