Cattle

Archive for December, 2009

You have to know that even your pet needs dental care. Without it your pet can get ill. If you consider that brushing your cat teeth is too hard you could ask for a veterinary’s advice. Else, you can start doing it. After all it is not too hard and you can get used to it.

You have to take your cat to a yearly dental check and even a dental cleaning from time to time.

Until the dental cleaning you have to check your cat’s teeth periodically. If you do it every day your cat will get used to teeth brushing faster. In this way you will protect your cat from getting a dental infection.

Start cleaning your cat’s teeth and ums when it is at an early age. This way your cat will get use to is faster. You can also rub her teeth and gums with gauze wrapped around your finger. Later you can start to use special toothpaste and toothbrush. However, you should never use regular toothpaste because you will only damage her gums.

Massage your cat’s gums regularly. Cats don’t usually get cavities instead they get gum illness which leads to bad breath and in the end to the loss of teeth.

If your cat losses her appetite than you should know that gum illness could be the cause. Same like humans, cats lose their appetite if they have a dental infection.

Unexpectedly, cats that live indoors have a bigger chance to get a dental infection than those who mostly live outside.  This is because the cats that live outside can eat grass which is a natural dental floss. Another explanation is that indoor cats can’t eat small animals therefore they don’t eat bones that are a very powerful tooth cleaner.

Try to include some dry food in your cat’s diet. It will prove very helpful for her teeth and gums.

To conclude:

•    It is always better to prevent a disease than to cure it. Therefore massage your cat’s gums periodically.

•    Don’t brush your cat’s teeth with human toothpaste. You can get cat toothpaste from a pet shop.

•    Always ask advices from a vet concerning your cat’s dental health.

Have you considered using flea and tick spray on your dog or cat but hesitated because you didn’t want to pay for the medication, you weren’t sure it was safe for your pet or your family, or maybe you just didn’t know if you needed it in your area, for your pet.

Well, trust me… a good flea and tick spray (or flea drops, which are a little easier to use) can be a very good investment.

There’s nothing like sitting around on the couch with your dog, enjoying some snacks and a movie when you reach over to pet her and notice creepy-crawly fleas scurrying along her skin. If that doesn’t get you reaching for Advantage flea drops or Frontline Plus flea and tick spray, I don’t know what will!

In fact, this happened to me with my guide dog puppy, Kera. I asked our local Guide Dog Program coordinators what I should do, and they recommended Frontline Plus for dogs.

We used it and it worked right away.

You get a little vial of the medication and you just put a few drops along the dogs backbone and it spreads over the body, and is retained in the skin, where it is effective for a month.

This was super. After that I didn’t worry about taking Kera to the park, or on long walks through the woods.

We still checked her out to make sure there were no ticks hiding, but we didn’t see any. After a while, my husband and I were more worried about the ticks getting on us than on our dog.

So, we were using flea and tick spray, and it seemed easy. Kera was happy and felt good, and my husband and I didn’t have to get the itches (imaginary or otherwise) when we sat down to enjoy her company.

Emily J. Cressey enjoys tromping through the woods, jumping in the river, snuggling in a warm sleeping bag and sipping hot coffee at sunrise – preferably with a dog by her side.

Cats are unlike any other domesticated animal in that they have retained an independent streak despite centuries of living with humans. In fact, the history of feline domestication is thought to go back as far as the Ancient Egyptians in the third millennia B.C.

It is clear that the Egyptians had a fascination with cats that can be seen in pictures, art and artifacts. However, it is almost impossible to tell whether these were domesticated or wild animals. Nevertheless, by 1600 B.C. the volume of cats featured in Egyptian art has led historian to believe that cats were, at least to some extent, domesticated by this time.

Why Did Cats Begin to Live with Humans?

In most cases of domestication, humans instigated the relationship with the animal for their own gains. However, with cats, the story is slightly different. It is thought that cats were drawn to humans for warmth, security and food. You may have noticed in your own cat that felines tend to take the path of least resistance and the offer a free meal and a cozy fire seems to have been too much to resist.

It was then that humans realized that cats came with benefits – a reduction in mice and rats. So, understandably, people tried to encourage the cats to stay. As the relationship was just as beneficial for them, they did.

Why Did Cats Retain Their Independence?

Whether you are a cat lover or not, you will be aware of the huge difference between cats and other domesticated animals. Sometimes known as the most domesticated wild animal, the vast majority of cats look upon humans with disinterest and, at times, utter disdain. There can be no question, cats live with us, but, as has always been the case, very much on their own terms.

So, why are cats so different to other domestic animals? Well, there are two principal reasons. First, is the way that a cat would live in the wild. Cats are solitary creatures (with the exception of lions and cheetah), therefore they do not live in a pack or herd that has a defined leader. In other words, a wild cat is a law unto itself. Consequently, when it comes to training or domesticating these animals, it is almost impossible, because humans cannot assert themselves as surrogate leaders.

Moreover, the domestication of cats did not involve any kind of selective breeding until the late part of the 1800s. Subsequently, unlike dogs, horses, goats, sheep and other domestic animals, the feline breeding program is centuries behind. Obviously, the aim of selective breeding is to select the character traits that are most suited to a life lived with humans. Due to religious and superstitious reasons, cats were seen as handy assets, but not pets. Therefore, human intervention over breeding was not considered necessary.

Recent Changes in Domesticated Cats

Now, of course, there are many pedigree breeds of cat and it is thought that this can make all the difference in terms of personality and willingness to be around humans. The longest standing pedigrees, in other words, those that have been selectively bred for the longest period of time, are thought to behave very differently to non-pedigree felines. It should be said that there has been no official research to ascertain this, but cat breeders and fanciers have noted behavioral inconsistencies, which indicate that cats will become more domesticated as time goes on.

Of course, so little is known about early humans and their relationship with animals. It certainly seems as though cats and humans have had a mysterious relationship for millennia. Quite why they continue to live with us is also a bit of a mystery, but maybe that is the attraction.

Yorkshire Terriers are cute as can be, especially as puppies, but they also require some effort to keep them safe and to prevent their creating havoc with your property. If you puppy-proof your house before you bring your new best friend home you can save yourself some grief.

Puppies have the same curiosity as toddlers. They want to explore everywhere without any knowledge of where the hazards are. They also have neither received puppy training nor learned the rules of good behavior yet.

Baby gates are a good way to safety-proof your home from the pup. Use them in front of stairs to keep your pup from having falls. A baby fence can also serve to keep the pup in a room without carpeting so that you will have an easy time cleaning up messes before your Yorkie is house trained.

Like a human baby, a Yorkie puppy will feel free to explore the insides of cupboards, so keep the ones at floor level closed at all times. If you have the kind that opens easily in response to pawing, then invest in some locks. This will not only keep your cupboards clean, but also prevent your pup’s getting into garbage and cleaning supplies, both of which are potential hazards.

If you have a cat, you will need to keep cat food away from your puppy. Dogs often prefer cat food to dog food, but it is harmful to them, being higher in protein than dogs can tolerate. It is a good idea to feed the cat on a surface that the dog cannot reach, such as the top of a dresser or washing machine. Dogs also like to eat cat feces, since it still has cat food in it, so keep the litter box away from the pup. A cat litter box cabinet with an entrance too high for a Yorkie to climb into is one solution, or place the litter box atop a large cat scratching post. Cat litter can contain parasites that can hurt the pup.

Puppies have a way of putting everything into their mouths, so keep socks, other clothes, and small household objects off the floor. Garbage should be kept inside cans until it is taken outside, never left in a plastic bag that a puppy can chew through.

Part of puppy-proofing your home is changing your state of mind. Now that you are responsible for a puppy, you must remember always to close doors behind you so that the pup can’t wander out into the street or fall into a pool. Never open a door with much force or move furniture against the wall without checking first to see if the Yorkie is there.

Keep both your new Yorkie and everything in your house safe, and enjoy your new best friend.

You should be thinking about your dogs health with summer approaching. As the summer begins to heat up you probably enjoy playing with them in the sun and taking them for more walks.

By not keeping a dog cool in the summer you are opening the door for heat-related illnesses and injuries to plague him/her.

You may be surprised but dogs are actually able to get a sun burn. If you have a white or lightly colored dog, they are just as likely to suffer from a sunburn as we do when exposed to the sun. If a dog undergoes long-term sun exposure they can suffer from skin damage and possibly skin cancer.

To prevent this from happening you are going to need to limit the amount of time your dog spends in direct sunlight. you need to consult your veterinarian immediately If you notice any type of discoloration or sore. Common areas that are effected are the nose, ears, and eyelids.

If they are exposed to the sun for to long your dog can also suffer from heat injury. Heat injury is when your dog’s body temperature exceeds it’s ability to cool itself. Your dog’s normal body temperature is between 100 and 102.5 degrees Fahrenheit. If your dogs temperature rises above 106 F, it’s normal cooling mechanisms get overwhelmed which causes a heat stroke which will require medical treatment.

Large double-coated breeds are more susceptible to a heat stroke. Huskies and other dog breeds suited for cold climates also have a low tolerance for heat and humidity.

The best way to prevent a heat stroke is to give dogs a summer hair cut. If you go to a good groomer they will be able to cut your dog’s coat down a few inches which will allow them to dissipate the heat better. It is important that you do not get the dogs hair cut all the way down to the skin because this eliminates their protection from sunburn and other injuries.

During the midday heat you should keep your dog indoors in either a well-ventilated area or an air conditioned area. If you are going to take your dog on a walk or play with them you should do it later in the night or earlier in the day when it is less hot outside.

Because it protects them from a heat stroke and from getting sunburned keeing a dog cool is very important. This article should have enlightened you on the two conditions and ways to help keep your dog cool during the summer.