Remember NOT to give these common foods to your dogs!

October 7, 2010

It's fun to feed your pet dog with lots of different foods, especially when they have the beggar look. Who can resist those big brown eyes and their cute grin?  I know ,  it will break your heart if you wont give him something but be careful on what to give them  Some foods that we think are safe  can cause damage to their health. Here are what foods you should avoid - and some of these common foods may surprise you. If you suspect your dog has eaten any of these foods in large quantities you should promptly seek the advice of a vet.

Chocolate

Your dog should never eat chocolate. Chocolate contains the substance Theobromine, which affects the central nervous system and cardio vascular of the dog . It  can cause vomiting, diarrhea, nervousness, tremors and in large doses can cause death.

Coffee and Tea

Coffee and tea contains caffeine and when a dog takes these , its central nervous system and the heart will be affected.  There will be vomiting, a racing heart and in severe cases, death.

Ham and other Meats

Fat trimmings from meat and especially from ham could lead to a bout of pancreatitis.Pancreatitis can range in severity from mild to life threatening and is an extremely painful condition. Never give these to your dogs.                                         Photo courtesy of: Shelby Punzalan

Avocado

All parts of the avocado --the leaves, seeds, fruit, and bark contain persin, which can cause vomiting and diarrhea.

Macadamia Nuts


Macadamia nuts contains an unknown toxin that can  cause tremors & muscle weakness in dogs


Bones from Fish, Chicken , or other Meat Sources


Though we often see in cartoons that dogs eat bones, refrain form giving these to dogs, specially the small bones of chicken , meat  as this can cause obstruction or laceration of the digestive system. Of course, never, never give bones of fish!

Grapes, raisins and currants
 
Giving grapes, raisins and currants  can damage  our dog’s kidneys as these contain an unknown toxin.

Paper Training: The best way to potty train your dog when you do not have the time.

October 6, 2010

Before I got Silver, I have already researched on how to potty train a dog. In the shelter, we do not potty train our dogs there  as they stay in a in a 20 x 20 square meter fence, freely moving around in the area. We have kennelmates who regularly makes sure that the area is clean and free from smell.  Going back to Silver,   I found out that there are many ways to potty train a house pet.  There is the crate training, the clicker training and the paper training.

I will be focusing on paper training as this is the best method that worked for me since I am very busy woman and I do not have the time to bring the dog out on scheduled intervals.

The best way for me and it worked!

Puppies will eliminate everywhere if not trained. And it will take roughly about 2 weeks for them to learn how to potty in a specific spot.

If you have enough space in your house or apartment, you can confine your puppy to a small, 'puppy-proofed' room or area and  fill the entire floor with paper.  Put everything there: his food bowls , his toys, his treats . While your puppy is confined in this area , he is developing a habit of eliminating on paper because no matter where he goes, it will be on paper. As time goes on, he will start to show a preferred place to do his business. When this place is well established and the rest of the papers remain clean all day, then gradually reduce the area that is papered.

Start removing the paper that is furthest away from his chosen location. Eventually you will only need to leave a few sheets down in that area only.

 

I live with my husband in an apartment condominium . Condominiums , unlike houses, have very limited areas, thus,  we  cannot afford to  allot  a  special space for a “puppy potty place”.

And , this  is what we did. Whenever our dog, Silver pees or poos, we cover it immediately with newspaper. We let it stay for three  minutes allowing the dog to smell the paper with his  pee or poo. After three minutes, we take out the soiled paper. We wipe the floor with detergent to eliminate odor. We do this regularly until he has gotten used to it. It only took us two  weeks to train him to do it on paper. Now, even when we are at work, he does his business on the paper.

The key to successful house training is consistency and patience. Never scold or punish your puppy for mistakes and accidents. In fact, praise him when he has done his job.   When Silver  was young and new to us , whenever he did his business, he felt so guilty that he runs under bed after doing his thing. We didn’t see this  as a healthy habit . In fact,  we always encourage him to poo and pee regularly . And when he does it, we always praise and say, “Good job Silver!!! 

Now, whenever he does it, he runs to us happily as if saying, “ I did it!!”.

To my dogs, this is my gift to you!

October  5, 2010

 

It’s been exactly one month now when my husband and I  got our  little Silver. Silver is a 9 month old Shih Tzu. He is such an adorable and huggable little puppy. I got him as a gift from  my dear friend Jass.

It is quite ironic that I headed one of the biggest animal shelters in Asia, Animal Kingdom Foundation for  nine long years, yet, I do not own a single dog. This is because initially, our condominium management  did not allow us to have one.  

I really love dogs ever since I was a kid. I used to have three: Ginger, a golden brown Cocker Spaniel, Jigger, her offspring and Batchuy, a mixed breed of mutt and a terrier. Oh, I love them so much as they were my companions when I was growing up. However, at that time, I didn’t take care of them very well, as we have house help to take care of the dogs. I just played with them.

Just early this year, the management of our condominium  permitted the units owners to own a dog provided that it is a small one. Thus, we got Silver.

Now that I am married and can have our  own dog in the house,   I realized that then, I was unfair to my childhood playmates.  Yes, I  played with them but  I did not care for their needs. They were just in the garage and outside the porch. Sometimes, when it rained they were just in the corner. Though I wanted to bring them in, I couldn’t  because my 2 older sisters where afraid of dogs. My doggies have been gone for almost 37 years now  and  it takes a Silver  to make me  realize that I did not give back the love that they gave to me. I still pray for them and I now asked for their forgiveness. I owe a big part of my childhood to them. They were my true friends and playmates.

Given this , I promise to take care of our precious little Silver , giving him all the love and care which I wasn’t able to do before with my  Ginger, Jigger and Batchuy.

To my dearest  sweethearts, this blog is for all of  you!