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As part of your regular pet health exam, today we focus on the muscles and bones that help your dog move. Starting at the neck, run your hand along the spine to the base of the tail. Feel the muscles on both sides of the spine and notice if any feel unusually firm or knotted.

Dogs can get a variety of conditions that will lead to muscle spasms in their back muscles.

Massage any tight muscles and take note of the area. A common condition in active dogs is to develop fusing of the spine (spondylosis). This can lead to decreased mobility, pinched vertebrae and back pain. Your dog will benefit from regular massage of the lower lumbar spinal muscles. Place your hands on either side of the spine and use deep circular digital pressure with your thumbs. Work on the affected area once daily for 5 minutes.

Next, palpate the bones and muscles of the legs. Start on the legs at the toes. Apply moderate pressure to the joints and move each joint back and forth. On the front legs pay close attention to any discomfort in the elbow or shoulder; these are common areas of dog arthritis. In the rear limbs, pay close attention to the knee and the hips for these are commonly arthritic. Your dog will resist moving these joints and may even yelp if your dog has arthritis.

HERBAL. A variety of herbs are used at different times for dog arthritis. The ones I have seen to be most effective include: DEVIL’S CLAW, used in traditional African medicine and has scientific studies to back its effectiveness, give 100mg or 10 drops per 10 lbs of body weight.

ACUPRESSURE. GB 41, located on the bottom of the foot, in the depression of the two outside toes, and is especially good for arthritic pain in the hips.

METHYLSULFONYMETHANE. MSM is a supplement, found in some plants such as Horsetail. It works by reducing inflammation in the joints by acting as an antioxidant – this has been shown to work well in treating dog arthritis. The MSM dosage is 50mg per 10lbs of body weight daily.

IT’S IN THE CARTILAGE. GLUCOSAMINE HYDROCHLORIDE is the most important supplement to add to your dog’s diet. The dose is 1/4 of a 500mg tablet once daily per 10 lbs of body weight. It helps to rebuild the cartilage and delay further cartilage breakdown.

The treatments I’ve just covered may be all that you need for now, but if you would like additional dog arthritis remedies, get my book today – I offer 15 different alternatives to dog arthritis alone. And along with arthritis, I guarantee that you will use many of the (over) one thousand at-home remedies in my book.

I use them every day in practice. They work.

No side effects.

You should try it.

To your pet’s good health,

If your dog is about fifteen weeks old or more than that, then he should not be having this habit of biting or nipping. A lot of dog owners are still striving to curtail this issue of biting of their dogs which are more than fifteen weeks old, such that most of them have gone to the extent of putting a muzzle over their dogs mouth in order to deal with the biting. Before your dog reaches fifteen weeks, you should give appropriate training and basic common commands so that it stops this irritating habit of mouthing. However, if this habit persists or you have taken in a dog that is over 15 weeks old or the dog is new to its home, you can try out the following to make it stop biting the hand and fingers.

a) The very first thing to do to curb this habit is to stop immediately all the dog games involving rough play. Whenever a new puppy or dog is in the home, we generally play games like wrestling and tug-of-war which are sadly not good for the dogs. As, if the dog still bites, it is imperative to stop the above game activities. These games send a wrong signal to the dog that it is okay to indulge in rough play with anyone whenever it wishes. You need to be extremely cautious not to let your dog become hostile to young kids and strangers.

b) It may be okay to allow gentle and soft biting from the puppies which are still very young. But for dog over 15 weeks, biting of all forms should stop at all cost, even if it is a simple harmless nibble on your hand or finger tips. You need to stop the dog by commanding it to stop biting firmly and at once take away your arm.

c) You can try out a method that will shock your pet dog to refrain from biting. This method is quite harmless and involves a spray bottle by which you can spray water quickly on the head or body of the dog while it is biting or nibbling. This shall startle the dog to stop this habit. This ploy is very effective and is many times the only thing needed to stop this mouthing issue.

d) A method of putting across your message is through disciplinary and firm commands. It can be applied to puppies or dogs of all ages and for all purposes too. Hence, whenever you feel the dog is going to bite your hand, it is okay to quickly say firmly and loudly No Bite! command to your dog while staring at the dog. You need to remember two things while using this method. Firstly, you should not say the command loudly such that the dog gets scared and misses the point. Secondly, you should stare at the dog for sometime only as you are trying to make the dog focus on you. If you stare for long, the dog will think that you are confronting it.

To begin the house training process with your Pit Bull puppy, you need to first determine a suitable place outside your house where he can relieve himself. Once you have found that place, give your puppy a little tour around to let him get acquainted with the new area.

The next step is to restrict his/her freedom inside the house. Your Pit Bull puppy is less inclined to relieve himself near his sleeping quarters. By restricting him to certain areas in your house, he will be more likely to hold himself. However, do not make him wait too long. Even if your Pit Bull puppy is physically strong, he still has very weak control over his bladder and bowel movements. In fact, any dog is physically incapable of controlling their bladder until they are approximately 14 weeks of age.

If you do not find the time to take him outside often enough, and whenever he needs to go, then you leave him with no other choice but to relieve himself on your carpet. Once you notice that he needs to use the bathroom, then you need to take him outside immediately and stay with him until he has finished relieving himself. As soon as he is finished doing his deed, remember to reward him with praise and plenty of treats to let him know how pleased you are.

Do not expect more from your Pit Bull puppy than he is physically able to do. A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is that a puppy can hold his bowels for as many hours as his age in months. For example, a three-month old puppy can hold it in for about three hours.

There is however, a limit to this rule. It is sensible not to expect your twelve-month old puppy to hold his bladder or bowel movements for twelve hours. If he is forced to stay inside the house for longer than you can reasonably expect him to hold it in, you are causing an accident to happen. At the same time, you are teaching your puppy to go in the wrong place. Installing a doggy door is a very effective way to house train your Pit Bull puppy. Once he gets the idea and becomes familiar with where he needs to go, he will usually let himself out to do his deed while you are gone.

When he relieves himself inside the house, he labels that area as his bathroom and will likely to go there again. If your Pit Bull puppy does have an accident in your house, clean and deodorize the area thoroughly and then block his access to that area. If you catch him in the act, say “no” in a firm voice and rush him outside. Punishing him for relieving inside your house will not help him learn any faster and in fact can hinder progress.

Dogs called German Shepherds were first exhibited at shows in Germany towards the end of the nineteenth century but they were hardly Shepherds as we know them today being rough coated, short tailed and rather resembling mongrels. The German Shepherd Dog as we now know it didn’t really appear until after the Second World War.

The breed has grown enormously in popularity and is now one of the most popular pedigree breeds in the UK as a pet, it is still the favourite working breed for many forces especially the police and they are widely used for security purposes.

It is a fine sight to see a well-trained GSD with his handler, working well to serve and protect. Unfortunately one of the saddest sites is the poor GSD used to guard premises often chained up alone in some dismal filthy yard with a lifetime of incarceration and little stimulation to look forward to.

The German Shepherd is a highly intelligent beast who will show undying devotion to his master but he is a dog that needs company and stimulation to be at his best.

If you are thinking of buying a German Shepherd as a pet and you have not previously owned one, it is important to research the breed and talk to experienced owners so that you fully understand what you are taking on.
GSD’s do indeed make wonderful family pets but it is important to remember that this is a working breed and that they do have certain characteristics that can make them more difficult than your average Retriever, Labrador or Collie.

The characteristics of a good working GSD should be firmness of nerve, attentiveness, unshockability, tractability, watchfulness, reliability, and incorruptibility together with courage tenacity and hardness.
A German Shepherd is naturally protective and territorial which is something to bear in mind if you have lots of visitors to your house when careful introduction may be required to assure your pet that the visitor is not a threat to his family.

This is also a breed that requires a lot of time, stimulation, training and exercise – you will never wear them out, they will always be ready for more. A bored, lonely GSD can be very destructive and can cause an awful lot of damage to property in a short space of time.

Perhaps some of the less endearing traits of this breed are the tendency to be very vocal which can be a big nuisance and may be a problem with neighbours. They also shed hair in copious amounts all year round so your vacuum cleaner will work overtime and it’s unlikely that your clothes and furnishings will ever be free of dogs hairs again as well as what you are eating invariably being contaminated with that stray hairs.

The biggest problem with the German Shepherd Dog is the fact that to a large extent the breed is being spoilt by irresponsible breeding by inexperienced back street breeders who care nothing about preserving the breed but only about making money from the selling of puppies, Health and temperament problems are all too common, so it is important to take expert advice and try and find a reputable source if you are contemplating buying a puppy.

Consider first taking on a rescue German Shepherd Dog from a reputable rescue that should be able to give you a good assessment of a particular dog. Remember too that an older GSD will be a very rewarding addition to the family and will be housetrained, won’t chew, well behaved, probably require less exercise than a young dog and will be very loyal and grateful.

A dog whisperer is basically a dog trainer, who has sympathetic point of view on the needs and desires of a dog. For becoming a dog whisperer, you need to have time, a crystal clear mind and patience.

The following are the things you need to do if you wish to become a dog whisperer:

• You need to have a sympathetic point of view on your canine’s intention. Understand the fact that your dog’s thoughts, intentions, desires are uncomplicated. You need to understand that each dog has his/her personal and social needs such as playing, interacting and roaming. In addition, you need to provide the dog with proper food, water and sleeping area.

• By understanding your dog’s requirements, you can communicate with your dog effectively and thus, eradicate behavioral problems, if any. Dogs are social animals and thus, they need frequent interactions. This also helps the owners to know their pet’s behavior more deeply.

• Dogs are fond of playing and when they play, they like to play the game with their own sense. You need to make sure that you are the commander and not the dog. You may find numerous dogs, who hide or tear the clothes left open in the laundry. Dog’s like to hide under the table or sofa very often. If your dog indulges in an erratic behavior such as tearing clothes and other household objects, then instead of getting infuriated, you need think as per dog’s perspective. This will help you to rectify the erratic behavior of your dog effectively.

• You need to fix the meal times for your dog. Make him wait sometime for the meal, you can use command like `sit` to calm him down. In this way, you can make the dog realize that, you are the master. The firmer you are the more are the chances that the dog may obey you. However, firm behavior does not mean that you need to behave ruthlessly with your dog. Instead, you need to remain polite and lovable with your dog.

You need to understand that a Dog Whisperer requires proper understanding of a dog’s likes and dislikes along with proper communication.