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Pets definitely help us live longer and healthier lives. This is especially true of the elderly and those of us who live alone. Pets make wonderful and faithful companions. They are always there for us. However, this relationship can become strained, and sometimes even be broken when someone in the household develops an allergy to a beloved pet.

Studies show that approximately 15% of the population suffers from an allergy to a dog or cat, and about one third of those with an allergy to cats choose to live in a household with a cat despite the allergy. Some allergy suffers live happily with a pet for a year or two before an allergy starts.

There are sometimes long term health ramifications of repeated allergy flair up’s, especially for children. Repeated flair-up’s can cause permanent lung damage in children. This should be carefully and thoroughly discussed with your physician. One of the ways to live happily with an animal you are allergic to is to decrease your exposure to the animal. Keep the animal outside if possible.

If the allergy sufferer only has a mild reaction to the animal there are ways for the two of them to live together in harmony, but it takes work. The animal should not be allowed in the allergy sufferers bedroom or on the bed. Keep the animal off of any upholstered furniture in the house as dander can be transferred to upholstered furniture. Use a room purifier to remove airborne animal dander. Remove carpets from the home if possible and replace with wood floors. Wash area rugs on a regular basis with warm water. Use a vacuum with a HEPA filter in order to trap dander. The allergy sufferer should wash his or her face and hands after handling the animal. The animal can be bathed weekly in specially formulated shampoo that removes dander.

In some cases where the above methods and the use of over the counter antihistamines and decongestants do not help, the allergy sufferer may need to seek the help of an allergist. Immunotherapy can be thought of like a vaccination against your allergies. Given on a regular basis as shots, immunotherapy helps your body build up a natural tolerance to specific allergens.

With the use of the above methods you’ll be able to live a long and healthy life with your pet

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.

For many new dog owners, housetraining is one of the most challenging parts of introducing a new canine into the family. Until that puppy learns how to go outside, chances are that you’ll be spending quite a bit of time cleaning up messes and dreading the smell when you open your front door.

But many people struggle with understanding the best way to teach their puppy how to go not only where you want but also when you want. After all, having your puppy on a schedule for using the bathroom is almost as important.

The solution in most cases is crate training. This is a relatively easy approach to house training that also provides some other useful benefits puppy owners should appreciate.

Why Crate Train?

First, crate training is intended to take advantage of your dog’s natural impulses. Although dogs have been domesticated, they still have some of those old instincts that helped their ancestors survive and thrive for millions of years. Some of those instincts relate to the concept of having a den.

A den is a safe haven for the animal where he or she can retreat without fear of being harmed. The den was the preferred location for sleeping, rearing young, and other activities. But to keep the den protected, dogs also had to keep it from being too easy to find. Since most predators use their sense of smell pretty well to find prey, the den was not a place for dogs to go to the bathroom. Their urine and feces would attract other animals and would endanger the safety of the den.

Dogs simply don’t go to the bathroom in their den unless out of absolute necessity.

The purpose of the crate is to give your dog a den in the home. This crate becomes his or her sanctuary.

But it also provides you with peace of mind. As long as your puppy is confined to the crate, he or she can’t be out doing damage to the rest of your house or getting into trouble by chewing on electrical cords or eating things that could get lodged in the intestines, for example.

Basically, crate training provides your dog with a safe place to call his or her own. Plus, it keeps him or her safe during the day while also working as an invaluable tool for housebreaking. Now let’s see how you can get started.

Picking the Crate

The first step is to choose the crate you want to use for your pet. Two types are available: the hard plastic models used for airplane travel and the wire types. If you have a big dog, you’ll probably be stuck with the wire type. Otherwise, you can choose whichever you think will be the best choice for your dog.

Keep in mind that the crate should only be big enough for your dog to stand up comfortably, lie down, and turn around. If you give the dog too much room, he or she could use part of the crate for a den and part for a bathroom spot which would defeat the purpose.

To keep costs reasonable, purchase a crate that will be large enough for your full-size dog but use dividers which can also be purchased to restrict the space available to your puppy.

Getting the Puppy Comfortable with the Crate

Next, you have to help your puppy get comfortable inside the crate. Most dogs are not going to immediately love the crate. They won’t like being confined and away from you. But you can make the situation easier by going slowly, using treats and praise to reinforce the desired behavior, and letting the puppy explore the crate on his own.

When you bring home the crate, leave it open so the dog can go into it and sniff it at his leisure. Then you can begin luring your puppy into the crate with treats and praising him for going inside.

After he is doing that well, you can lure him into the crate and close the door. This might cause some crying and whining from your puppy. Let him stay inside the crate for a minute or two then let him out. Do not let him out while he is still crying, however. Otherwise, he will cry every time you try to put him in the crate because he’ll know this behavior will get him released.

Keep expanding the time the puppy is in the crate with the door closed until he begins to feel comfortable. Then you can practice leaving the room, leaving the house, and staying away for longer periods of time. Each time remember to praise your puppy when you release him from the crate but never release him until he has calmed down.

House Breaking & the Crate

To use the crate for house breaking, be sure to give your dog food and water at least an hour before putting her in the crate. Take the puppy to the bathroom, preferably for a walk with a potty break, before she is placed in the crate.

Do not give your puppy food or water in the crate. These things will only make a mess and will cause the puppy to need to urinate or defecate badly.

Keep in mind that young puppies may not be able to “hold it” as long as you would like. For this reason, it’s a good idea to come home at least once during the day to take your puppy to the bathroom. If you can’t, you may want to hire someone to do this for you. Even adult dogs should not be left in crates for longer than 6 to 8 hours a day.

As soon as you let your puppy out of the crate, take him or her to the bathroom immediately. Praise him or her when they do what you want and quickly they will learn the routine.

If an accident does occur in the crate, clean it thoroughly with an enzyme-destroying cleaner so the dog won’t be able to smell the accident and assume that is an appropriate place to use the bathroom. Otherwise you’ll just keep repeating the problem.

Finally, don’t punish your dog for having an accident. You could end up causing them to fear the crate, as well as you.

Having a cat in the household is a very rewarding experience for cat owners, however sometimes behavioral problems such as biting can leave owners frustrated. If you have a cat that is more aggressive than you would like him to be, and you need to find out how to stop cat biting, then the following methods can help you to break kitty from this terrible habit.

Try these techniques to break kitty from her bad habit and learn how to stop cat biting:

1.) – If your cat is biting your hand do not pull away from her, instead push your hand towards her.
2.) – When your cat bites you, make a loud noise by pounding your hand on a hard surface while firmly saying “No”.
3.) – Blow air into your cat’s face.
4.) – After your cat has bitten you, put him in “time out” by placing him in a room by himself for about 5 minutes. The bathroom works good for this.

The above methods work very well for many cat owners that want to know how to stop cat biting. If you have already tried these methods and similar ones like it and you haven’t had the results you are looking for, then your cat may need behavior training. There are cats that are more aggressive by nature and they will need more advanced training to learn that this is not acceptable.

The concept behind behavioral training is understanding how cats think and what drives their actions. By learning this you can control your cats aggression and find out how to stop cat biting and other bad behaviors.

Your cat will learn how to associate certain behaviors with certain outcomes and you will be able to teach them this once you understand how they think. It is not difficult to learn how to stop cat biting for good and you and your cat will be happier once this unacceptable behavior is taken care of.

It’s great to hear the birds chirping in the morning making it sweeter and brighter but how can you get them near you? Yes, create your own bird house and lure them in there so that every morning will be sweetened with your birds singing.

You need to create a comfortable place for birds not only to attract them in there but also to keep them coming inside.

Like building any type of house try to make a plan of what you are going to do. Take a piece of paper and draw the bird house, then calculate how much wood and nails you will need and what shapes are you going to use.

After you’re done that is time to buy the materials; choose some hard wood if you want the house to resist weather for many years, also buy some paint, nails and glue. Make sure you paint the wood well. Rain might damage the birdie’s place.

Make sure, when you build the house, to leave a lot of free space inside so that you can place branches for the birds, water and food dishes and different toys; also space is very important if you don’t want your birdies to fight over it.

Don’t use improvised dishes from metal because they can harm the birds and they can also poison them; try to buy some special feeders or dishes where you can place the food and water with no problems.

To prevent water from staying in the bird house make some little holes at the base to get rid of any rainwater that might get inside; this also keeps fresh air inside. Make sure that you place the bird house a little higher because you might have a surprise and see your cat very happy one morning hiccupping because of the feathers; this also prevents any other animals, like mice or dogs, to mess with the birds and scare them away.

Place only bird food inside the house and only if this is a must, otherwise my advice is to place the bird food in another part of your yard because it can attract a lot of insects inside the house. A good option is to make a place near the house where you put the bird food.

When you paint the house make sure you don’t even touch the inside of it because paint may be dangerous for the birds; they tend to chew a lot of things and painted wood might not be a good option. Limit yourself and only paint the outside of the house; also try to avoid any chemically treated wood.

After you build the house you will feel excellent, not only because you manufactured something but also because you helped some poor creatures by giving them shelter and food.