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Now that you have your ferret, you will want him stay fit and healthy.  One of the many ways of achieving this is with the correct diet.

When it comes to feeding your pet ferret, you will need to make sure that you are giving him the best ferret diet possible.

After all, you will want to make sure that he stays fit and healthy, and not suffer through a poor diet.  And to achieve this, you will need to make sure that his food is rich in fat, meat-based protein, and vitamins and minerals.

Below are some tips on what, and what not to feed your pet ferret.

1.  Do not feed your ferret on fruits or vegetables, or anything that contains starch or sugar.      Feeding your ferret with the wrong foods can lead to a number of health difficulties, including obesity. The wrong types of food can also shorten a ferrets life span.

2.  Ferrets are classed as “obligate carnivores” which means that they must eat meat.  Most of their nutritional needs are supplied through a meat-based diet.  From a scientific standpoint, they must eat meat because they are “hyper carnivores”.  Ferrets over many centuries have become adapted to a very strict meat-eating diet.

3.  If you intend to feed your ferret on kibble, be sure to moisten it with water first.  Not only is kibble very abrasive, but your ferret will find it difficult to digest if it is not moistened.  This could bring on some very uncomfortable, intestinal related problems.

4.  Some people believe that dry kibble will help to wear down tartar build up on a ferrets teeth.  The truth is though that dry kibble will only wear down your ferrets teeth, it can be that abrasive.

5.  Always avoid feeding your ferret with products that contain corn, or that are made up of frozen fish.

These are just some of things that you should be aware of if you are new to ferret keeping.  To ensure that your ferret lives a long and happy life, just follow the basic guidelines for your ferrets continued good health.

For much more information on a ferrets diet.

Saltwater aquariums are a source of pleasure in many homes, and young and old people alike love to watch them. These tanks show us a wonderful glimpse of what life is like under the surface of the ocean. There is quite a variety of life that can survive in an aquarium. Plants and fishes are not the only life forms that live in the sea, so why restrict your aquarium by using these two categories alone, to beautify it?

Artificial oysters are common as a release for air bubbles in many aquariums – the oyster opens to let the bubbles out. But with more and more people trying to recreate the ocean floor with their saltwater aquariums, Pearl producing oysters are a special treat for those with home saltwater aquariums. However it is their lesser cousins you will normally find in home aquariums, and understandably so. Did you know that if you place an oyster or a scallop in your tank, they will require more care than any other life form in the aquarium? It is vital that you realize that before you get one for the tank. It is such a let down to see people spend good money on oysters, and later realizing they have bit off more than they can chew on.

Oysters demand a very special water condition. They are not for those of us who are a bit lazy when it comes to maintaining a clean aquarium. Keep in mind, they will not live very long if your tank gets dirt in it often – oysters need cleanliness and care. Nature has a nice way of dealing with this issue – oysters do clean out the water so they can balance the effect, but they can do it only up to a point and no more before it takes its toll on them. Did you know you will have to take special care of their diet as well? Don’t say we didn’t warn you! You need to feed every oyster separately through their pipette upstream. Here it is vital to note – keep the number of oysters in your aquarium minimum, unless you want to spend your entire day feeding them! You will need to give them nutrition supplements as well as a microscopic amount of plankton to keep them healthy.

Some varieties of oyster can survive more often in artificial environments than others. So if you are new at this, go for one of these. You could go for the more delicate ones once you are sure of your self. You will often see varieties like the spiny and the thorny in aquariums. These are such accurate names for these beautiful creations of nature. I bet this article has got you interested in getting an oyster into your saltwater aquarium. Why not visit your local store to see what they have available?

Homemade dog food is definitely an important part of the dog diet. This is because many of the commercial branded dog food products actually contains food ingredients that are harmful to the pet health such as artificial food colors and even synthetic flavoring. Such ingredients can be a cause of sickness or even death to our beloved pets.

Unlike the preservatives found in the commercial pet food products and usually unsuitable to dog health, homemade dog food is healthier and even tastier if done properly by the pet owner. Likewise, if we know that our dogs are sick, we can control the type of food that they receive by giving them the nutritious stuff that need to eat such as limited protein consumption for those dogs with renal condition.

Especially if our pets suffer from certain types of diseases, homemade dog food are a great way of help the health condition of the animals improve by giving them only the food diet that is best for them. To go with this food is lots of water in order to ensure correct and normal metabolism.

There are instances when homemade dog are prepared with freezing or cold methods in use in order to protect the food from germs and other harmful elements. Natural vinegar can be added to meat items in order to maintain freshness.  Likewise, you can also add vitamin and mineral supplements that can be obtained from fish oils and fruits.

Remember, when it comes to the overall health and welfare of our pet dogs, we must try to provide with the best, pet vitamins, regular grooming and nutritious homemade good food. Our love, care and pampering will certainly make our dogs lively, happy and amiable pet companions that we want them to be.

For more articles and discussions about homemade dog food and everything else about our beloved pets, do visit our Pinoy Pet Blog.

Many times it is hard to decide whether to get freshwater aquarium plants or to go with fake plants. It is the same sort of decision you also have to make for your home. Do you want real, live houseplants or artificial plants? Certainly live plants create a more natural environment, and for fish this translates into being more comfortable in their surroundings. Both live and fake plants provide places for fish to hide, which keeps aggressive fish from bullying smaller fish.

Fake or live plants?

The big advantage of fake plants is that they require absolutely no care whatsoever, but in an aquarium they do get covered with algae and need to be consistently cleaned. Even those big algae-eating bottom dwellers don’t like to clean off fake plants. Live freshwater aquarium plants not only look more natural, they help you to keep your fish healthier. They deliver oxygen to the water and take in nitrates, which fish expel. There are also many fish who like to eat plants and unless you have some aggressive plant-eaters, you will only notice some nibbled edges now and then. Stay away from Silver Dollars, as they can destroy an entire underwater garden in a day.

Live plant selection

While live plants require more care and may need some specific lighting changes to grow well, if you get just the right plants they will provide a completely natural habitat for your fish. There are many different types of freshwater aquarium plants and all have different characteristics. For instance, floating plants, as you probably guessed, float on the top of the tank. Rhizomes are horizontal plants and they have roots which act like a runner across the bottom of your tank’s substrate. They have leaves on top but grow horizontally. If you have a small tank they can fill it up pretty fast.

A good example of a floating plant is the floating fern. These plants will thrive with hardly any effort at all on your part. You will need to trim them just like you would prune outside plants. If you don’t they will cover the entire top of the tank and leave you no open water at all. If you are conscientious about trimming, however, they make a nice looking plant for fish to hide underneath. Plants with rhizomes can include anubias, which are good for beginners because they are pretty much indestructible. They don’t need a lot of carbon dioxide like some other plants and a plectostomus can keep them clean of algae.

Java Moss is a very popular aquarium plant. It can grow on the bottom of the tank, or it can attach itself to rocks, driftwood, or other structures. The great thing about java moss is that it doesn’t require special lighting like many other freshwater aquarium plants. And, some fish will lay their eggs in the moss, and this is an especially good characteristic if you want to have more fish.

A few other hardy plants you will want to check out are Cryptocoryne or crypts. They grow slowly and further down in the tank where the lighting is not good for many other kinds of plants. One of the most colorful is the cryptocoryne beckettii, which has the unusual ability to grow underwater and on land. The Amazon sword is one of the most popular freshwater aquarium plants, and it really depends on what you have for fish whether this plant is a success or a failure. It needs lots of light, fertilizer and carbon dioxide to do well.

No matter what you end up choosing for freshwater aquarium plants, the chances are you will be happy with the looks of the habitat they create. The amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen in your water will determine which ones do well and which ones do not. Just make any necessary adjustments and remember to trim the plants so that you don’t end up with an underwater jungle.

There are various diseases that can affect your betta.  Most betta fish diseases are caused by poor water quality, so you can prevent many by keeping the water clean.  Some of the most common illnesses include fin rot, velvet, and popeye.  This article will discuss some of these illnesses.

Fin Rot

Fin rot is one of the most common diseases.  If you keep a betta long enough, you will probably have to deal with it at least once.  This condition is characterized by the tail or fins rotting away.  It can quickly become a problem if you allow the water to stay unclean too long.  Although the tail or fins will grow back once treatment begins, it will take some time. 

Popeye

Popeye is also one of the most common betta fish diseases.  Like fin rot, it’s caused by unclean water which leads to a bacterial infection.  This condition is quite easy to spot as your fish’s eyes will literally bulge out of his head.  It can be disgusting the first time you see it.  Popeye needs to be treated with antibiotics and frequent water changes.

Velvet

Unlike the two aforementioned diseases, velvet is caused by a parasite.  It is highly contagious and can quickly spread to other fish in the tank.  Affected fish will attempt to get rid of the parasite by rubbing themselves against hard objects.  Other signs of velvet include rapid gill movement, weight loss, loss of appetite, and lethargy.

This illness presents a problem because it’s usually diagnosed in an advanced stage.  Therefore, you would need to start treatment as quickly as possible.  TO treat this condition, you will need to dim the lights, add copper sulphate to the water, and raise the temperature to 80 degrees Fahrenheit.  Your fish may also have a hard time breathing.  Aquarium salt will help remedy this.

Dropsy

Dropsy is one of the most serious betta fish diseases.  It is usually fatal.  This illness results from kidney failure which causes fluid to build-up inside your fish.  You can easily spot his swollen belly.  If he also has raised scales, it’s a pretty safe bet that he has dropsy.  Unfortunately, there is no cure and most bettas die within a couple of weeks.