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It is not only our responsibility as bird owners to provide food, water and spacious cage for our pet birds. It is insufficient to spend more time with our birds and bond with them.  The first thing that we should do make sure our pet birds would live a long and healthy life is choose a good avian veterinarian.

If you have a dog or a cat and already have a veterinarian for them, that may not be necessarily be the vet that you need for your bird.  Birds have different anatomy and different needs compared to your feline and canine companions. 

Where can you find an avian vet?

There is the Association of Avian Veterinarians (AAV) which maintains a directory of  qualified veterinarians.  You can even get assistance from the Veterinary Medical Association located in your state. Yellow Pages are also a great source of information.   If unable to get hold of anybody from these groups, you can check out their websites in the internet or even ask the local Bird Club if they could recommend anybody.  Pet bird owners like you are can give you the best advice based on their experiences. Also check with local pet breeders.  Most of the times, the most sensible advice comes from them.

Once you have identified the vet that you would go to, the next step is set an appointment to further know the practice and background of the vet.  When talking with the avian get, get to know how long has she or he been ion practice and their professional background.  Make sure that the vet that you have chosen is familiar with the pet that you have. 

Get to know the vet’s schedule and if the vet can do house calls.  Birds can easily get stressed in the slightest change in their surroundings, which is why birds find it difficult to move or to travel.  If the vet is unavailable, it is also important to know if the vet who would be filling-in is also capable to treating avian sicknesses and concerns. 

If you have an exotic pet bird, then it would be helpful to ask the vet if they are constantly updated with new methods in the avian medicine.  Also, get to know the financial costs of getting veterinary services from that vet.  You want to have a qualified and good vet within your financial reach.

Once you have settled that you will be getting services from him, ask the frequency of the check-ups your bird needs to have.  To avoid any emergencies or any sickness, it is best to have your bird regularly checked.  Most of the times, you have to bring your pet bird to the vet annually.

Aside from this, it is always a great point that whenever you visit the vet the doctor and the staff receive you and your pet warmly.  It will be great to walk into a pet clinic that provides you an air of assurance and importance. 

Keeping tabs on the health of your beloved bird does not only fall in the hands of the avian vet.  How would they know that your bird is suffering sickness if you are not paying attention?  It is also important to maintain a healthy working relationship with your vet since you would not know when emergencies can happen.

The vet can even help you draw up a diet plan for your bird which would surely improve the disposition and health of your pet. Also ask your veterinarians about any emergency first aid methods that you can do when something bad happens to your pet bird.  An avian vet is your ally in making sure that your bird would live a long and joyful life.

Solve the Bark Problem!

Don’t let excessive or chronic barking disturb the peace in your home. There are many ways to help control undesirable or excessive barking.

Dogs bark for many reasons. It is a natural behavior and primary method of communication. They bark to warn others or defend a territory, to seek attention or play, to identify themselves to another dog, or as a response to boredom, excitement, being startled, loneliness, anxiety, or teasing. Four proven methods to help you stop unwanted barking behaviors include:

1.     First, avoid the temptation to reinforce your dog’s bark. Do not give verbal reassurance, a treat, or physical attention to a barking dog.

2.     Minimize your dog’s barking with proper and consistent training. In addition, try using a calming pheromone spray in your pet’s environment.

3.     Train your pet to respond to a one-word command, such as “Enough.” During training, divert his attention from the barking and sternly say “Enough.” If he stops barking, reward him with a great treat. Only give the treat if your dog stops barking.

4.     Along with these other behavior modification techniques, you may try a bark collar, a training tool designed specifically to address habitual chronic barking. It gives your pet a warning tingle or mild static correction when he barks, which quickly trains your pet to avoid the behavior that initiates the correction.

Bark control is important in developing a dog that is obedient and able to relax. Your success in this area will create a more harmonious home. Solve your bark problem!

When we think of a guinea pig, we usually picture the American Guinea Pig – the “classic” or “standard” guinea pig – and also the most common. But there are also several other breeds in addition to the common American Guinea Pig. This article will introduce you to a few of the breeds commonly found in homes today.

Abyssinian

The Abyssinian is a long-haired breed. The coat on this animal is quite distinctive because it tends to curl itself into whirls and swirls. These whirls and swirls are called rosettes. The Abyssinian is one of the oldest breeds that can be found today. If you are looking for a low-maintenance guinea pig, keep looking. This particular breed requires daily attention to the coat to avoid tangles and keep the pig looking well-groomed.

American Guinea Pig

This is the variety that first comes to mind when we think of the words “guinea pig”. It is also sometime called an English guinea pig. This is a short hair breed which makes it suitable for a pet. It does not require grooming and can be handled and petted without messing up its coat.

Peruvian

The Peruvian breed is an extreme long-haired breed. Its hair can grow to an amazingly long length of a foot or more. The hair is smooth and straight and tends to part in the middle and hang naturally to either side of the pig. The long hair requires a lot of care; so many owners prefer to keep the coat trimmed to make this task easier.

Silkie

The Silkie is a less common breed and is also referred to as a Sheltie. It has a very long (and, of course silky) coat – similar to the Peruvian. In contrast to the Peruvian, the hair does not tend to part naturally down the center of the back. The hair of the Silkie sweeps backward from the head. The coat of the Silkie is also softer than that of the Peruvian.
Guinea pigs are also categorized according to varieties. Varieties are coat colors or patterns and are also subdivided into three categories.

1. Self colored guinea pigs are a single solid color.

2. Agouti cavies have a coat made up of two colors. Each individual hair of the undercoat has a light-colored tip and a darker-colored base near the skin. The longer hairs which make up the outer protective layer are the same darker color as the base of the undercoat hairs.

3. Marked guinea pigs have markings, patches or islands of color (often white) in their otherwise solid or agouti coats.

This article has presented a short survey of some of the more common guinea pig breeds. No matter what the breed, variety or color; guinea pigs make great loving pets and can help to brighten a household. Although long haired breeds tend to look more exotic and sometimes make good show animals, the common short-haired American breed is a very popular household pet because its coat requires very little care.

It only makes sense that with all the information and other stuff available on the internet that you can now try dog training online. While it may not be for everyone there is nothing wrong with checking out the hundreds of sites that offer different kinds of dog training advice. The nice thing about these sites is they cover a broad spectrum of training ideas for all different type of dog breeds. Instead of being locked into one type of training regimen you can choose something that fits you and the type of dog you have. Do take some of the sites with a grain of salt though. Some of them are more tongue in cheek, but that’s part of the fun. Training your dog should be an enjoyable experience. The point is to look through these sites and see what might work best for you. There is a good deal of free advice out there, but remember that free advice is not always the best advice. On the other side of the fence are web sites that offer paid services or training manuals. For the most part all of these are legitimate training methods and do what they say they do. But before you put down your hard earned money do some research into whatever program or downloadable e-book you are thinking of purchasing. There are people out there who are just trying to make a quick buck and offer very little to the online dog training world. Of course there are these types of people in all walks of life, not just the internet. Many online dog training sites offer videos and pictures which walk you through the steps needed to train your dog. This makes applying what you have read much easier to apply when you can actually see what the trainer is talking about. You can also find forums and interactive chat rooms on many of the same sites which allow you to talk to others who are using the program and ask and answer questions. One of the best features of an online dog training course is that you can go back over the material anytime you want because it is always instantly available on your computer. Many of these dog training websites also offer various dog training products that are used in some of their training techniques. If you desire to use them all you have to do is order whatever you need directly from them. Many people use the internet for all forms of things these days. If you own a dog and haven’t been able to get him to obedience training then online dog training may be the perfect way to spend some quality time with you dog and have some fun at the same time.

What is the single most significant ancillary item in household aquariums? You guessed it right – it is a water chiller! The natural environment for fish is water and just like any living being, fish is susceptible to changes in this environment. A constant temperature bath where the temperature depends on the variety of the fish is a must in any aquarium, lest the fish may not survive too long. A water chiller is therefore imperative for “climatic control” most suitable to the species of fish. This may vary for different kinds of marine life but we shall only discuss the most common techniques of temperature control.

Type of water chiller available in the market

There are three prime kinds of water chiller available for fish aquariums. They are based on the thermoelectric, or inline chillers, or drop-in chiller systems. When finalizing on this system one must take into account the space available and the plumbing requirements, without which the temperature control will not be effective. The aquarium parts like stirrer, lighting, pumps give out a lot of heat that can easily raise the temperature of the water to unbearable levels for the delicate fish. An aquarium owner is always aware of the drastic effect of changing temperatures on the health of his pets and therefore great care must be taken to choose the best system available at the pet stores. Do not ever compromise on water chiller quality and wide duty rating since extreme climates such as in the US can cause a lot of distress to the pet owners.

Let us now see what the salient features of the water chiller and where a specific type should be used.

– Thermoelectric Chillers – If you have a small freshwater or salt water fish tank then thermoelectric type of water chiller is best and a fine example is the IceProbe chiller. These types of chillers are only suitable for tanks with a capacity lower than 55 gallons. For larger aquariums one needs to use the in-line type of chillers.
– Drop-in water chiller – This type of chiller is most suitable for fast water flow requirements and large tanks. Reef aquariums are particularly using drop-in chillers. Constrained space warrants a compact system and this type of chillers perfectly fit into the requirements of the aquarium and its inmates.
– In-line water chiller – This water chiller may not be totally suitable for home aquariums unless it is for a mansion or a large villa or a ranch in Texas! It requires in-line filtered water and intensive plumbing etc. Therefore it may be more suitable for larger commercial spaces.

How should one choose a water chiller?

As mentioned earlier, a water chiller is very important for the health of your fish and it should be chosen with care and by considering the size of the aquarium, what kind of fish is being kept inside the tank, temperature generation level tolerated by the fish, and overall setup of the aquarium assembly. The main purpose of cooling and maintaining the temperature of the water must always be kept in mind and the setup so chosen that the circulating water, aeration to provide oxygen to the fish and other relevant factors are satisfied. A water chiller is an integral part of the aquarium assembly that must be planned earlier to the purchase or breeding of your fish.