How To Give a Stubborn Dog or Cat a Pill

We dog and cat lovers know the frustration and difficulty associated with giving our pets medicine. If we're fortunate enough to have a medicine in liquid form, such as an herbal extract, administering it is relatively easy. Unfortunately, if the medicine is in pill form, we may have to overcome some resistance.

Before attempting to aggressively force our dog or cat to swallow a pill - or sneakily hiding the medicine inside food - let's look at how veterinarians give pills to their patients. Employing a few simple tactics used by the professionals will make the process much easier for us and less stressful for the animal.

Cat Dog Pet

• Step 1. Relax the dog or cat by playing with it in your usual fashion. Use a toy if the pet is accustomed to this. Don't exhaust the dog or cat; simply play with the pet until his or her mood improves.
• Step 2. Position yourself so you are at the same physical level as the pet. If the animal is relatively large, kneel beside the pet while he is sitting. If small, lift the pet and place him or her on a countertop or grooming table.
• Step 3. Place a single hand over the dog or cat's muzzle (the area directly between the pet's nose and eyes) while holding the pill in the other hand. Don't let the pet see the pill or it may demonstrate anxiety that could prevent successful administration.
• Step 4. Gently open the dog or cat's mouth with the hand holding the pill. Place the pill on the rear of the tongue and close the pet's mouth.
• Step 5. Hold the dog or cat's mouth shut while gently blowing on the tip of its nose. This action will lead the pet to swallow on reflex before he or she has an opportunity to spit the medicine out.
• Step 6. Give the dog or cat a treat immediately after the pet swallows the pill to ensure that it is not lodged in his or her throat or stowed in the side of his or her mouth.
• Step 7. End the procedure with play and praise to encourage better cooperation in future attempts. Wait at least ten minutes before attempting to give additional medication.

How To Give a Stubborn Dog or Cat a Pill

Tip:

Praise your dog or cat as you perform each step. This will help the pet relax and establish trust throughout the process. Remember, though, that liquid medication is always more bio-available because it's up to 5 times more absorbable than pills or granules. In fact, today's cutting edge in herbal remedies for dogs and cats comes in 4 ounce amber tinctures of Primalix Herbal Extract, also known as Functional Food Drops. Now you can turn ordinary food into functional food that not only nourishes... but also heals.

How To Give a Stubborn Dog or Cat a Pill

Gary Le Mon is a Board Certified Master Herbalist specializing in natural home remedies for dogs and cats. Please visit http://www.NaturalWonderPets.com for BOGO Specials and useful information on 100% natural, herbal, veterinary remedies you can use at home to heal your best friends. See also http://www.NaturalWonderRemedies.com

What's Really In Dog Food (Are You Slowly, Unknowingly Poisoning Your Dog Or Cat?)

You need to know what's really in the food you are feeding your dog. As your dog, cat or pet's guardian, the greatest gift you can give is every chance at good health! The gift of good health starts with the quality of nutrition that affects every aspect of your dog's well-being.

The diets of our pets are a far cry from the primarily raw protein diets with a lot of variety of their ancestors. Canines and felines cannot live healthy lives without eating meat. Your pet's teeth are designed for tearing meat and their stomachs are built to break down meat into important nutrients. One increasingly good popular choice is a holistic raw diet -- a diet that has been popular for European pets for decades that supplies higher quality protein sources coming from high quality meat, with only natural preservatives, no by-products and no food coloring.

Cat Dog Pet

Do you know what's really in dog food? Many dog foods are manufactured so poorly that vitamins are supplemented. Heat processing, standard in the pet food industry, destroys important nutrients with up to 100% loss of certain vitamins, up to 60% loss of amino acids, and up to 10% loss of fatty acids. Probiotics and enzymes are destroyed, and fats used in processing can be toxic or rancid. But that is not the worst of the story, and why you should know what is really in the dog food you are feeding, and why a holistic diet should be chosen.

What's Really In Dog Food (Are You Slowly, Unknowingly Poisoning Your Dog Or Cat?)

Not all of the pet food manufacturing companies use poor quality and potentially dangerous ingredients, but the vast majority do. Commercially rendered meat meals are often highly contaminated with bacteria such as Salmonella, sourced from animals that died from disease, injury, or natural causes, that may not be rendered or cooked until days after death. While the cooking process may kill bacteria, it does not eliminate the endotoxins resulting from the bacteria. These toxins can cause disease.

Multinational pet food producers through advertising have a tremendously loyal market in which to capitalize on their and others' waste products, and have a reliable source for such bulk materials.

In 1990, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that euthanized animals were being used in pet food. Pet food manufacturers have vehemently denied the report; however, the American Veterinary Medical Association has confirmed the Chronicle's story as to what is really in the dog and cat food.

Companion pets and zoo animals are euthanized with sodium pentobarbital and then processed and rendered. The sodium pentobarbital poison does not break down in the processing and goes into many commercial pet foods and feed for cows, pigs and horses.

The FDA's Center For Veterinary Medicine concluded that it is highly unlikely a dog will experience any adverse effects from exposures to low levels of pentobarbital found in popular commercial pet foods, but such foods would not be allowed for human consumption. Furthermore, informed consumers who love and want the best for their dog companions would not choose to feed such ingredients if they knew what was really in their dogs' food.

Part of the "witches brew" processed into dog food is slaughterhouse waste including possibly diseased and cancerous meat, grains considered unfit for human consumption, rancid grease and different fats, stabilized with powerful antioxidants to retard further spoilage. These fats are sprayed directly onto dried kibble to make an otherwise bland or distasteful product palatable.

The most commonly used antioxidant preservative is ethoxyquin(EQ) that has been found in dogs' livers and tissues months after it had been removed from their diet. EQ has been proven to have a synergistic effect that may lead to the development of certain types of cancer and may promote liver disease and other medical problems.

Governmental rules require ingredients to be listed from the largest amount to smallest. Protein is crucial to your dog's health, yet sources such as soybean meal, corn glutens, corn meal, whole corn, and ground or crushed corn is what is really in many dog foods as protein ingredients. While dogs do need some grains, too many commercial dog foods use grains as a substitute for meat. As a result, most dog foods list grains long before meat in their ingredients, but proponents of holistic dog food know meat should be the number one ingredient in any decent dog food. Ideally, the meat should be high quality human grade, making your dog's chances for developing a protein deficiency very low. A good holistic feeding plan provides the proper level of vitamins and minerals -- greater than many commercial dog foods --so you don't need to give your pet supplements.

Sadly, protein deficiencies are common among dogs and result in health issues such as excessive shedding, damaged whiskers, poor appetite, compromised immune systems, gas, burping, smelly stools, diarrhea, vomiting, chronic skin and/or ear infections, smelly breath, brown teeth, dull and/or smelly coat, and personality issues associated with aggression or timidity.

Up until now you my not have realized what is really in dog food. Now that you have been exposed to some facts, become informed about what's really in your dog's food to give your pet companion the best chance at good health.

Informative Video

What's Really In Dog Food (Are You Slowly, Unknowingly Poisoning Your Dog Or Cat?)

We have existed as a company since 1985, but it was a love of dogs, the dogs that have been a part of our life, and the passing of one dog in particular, Rusty, that inspired the creation of http://www.CalloftheDog.com and http://www.CalloftheDogShop.com -- created to provide the things your dogs and pets need. Visit us for great information and quality dog supplies! Be sure to see our About Us page as well.

The two sites are dedicated to the dogs we have loved so deeply, and who have given us so much love in return. Purebreds and mixed breeds, but mostly rescues in need of a home. We educated them, but each one has had something to teach us in exchange.

3 Ways to Avoid Noisy Cat Behavior Problems

Many cat owners interpret excessive meowing to be a behavior problem. While it may indicate an issue, there are 3 factors to consider when evaluating noisy cat behavior problems.

First, if you are not one to want a cat that's noisy, be sure to do your research as to the particular breed before adopting a new cat. Different breeds have naturally different vocalization tendencies. (Siamese cats for example, tend to vocalize more.)

Cat Dog Pet

If you do not have a noisy cat, and the excessive noise is something new that your cat has never done before, he/she is trying to tell you something, and it's best to first rule out a medical issue by taking him or her to the vet to get checked.

3 Ways to Avoid Noisy Cat Behavior Problems

Second, assuming it is not something medical, some cats vocalize in reaction to some kind of change or transition in its environment. Consider things from your cat's point of view. If you've moved, changed your normal routine, changed their food, have different people living with you or visiting, or have recently lost someone (including another pet), the cat maybe experiencing this "noisy cat behavior" because it is simply expressing his or her grief. Normally changing things back (as feasible) will help to end the noisy cat behavior problem, but in the absence of being able to revert back to the prior situation, extra love, playtime and attention will also help to ease the transition.

Lastly, as with any pet training, it is especially important when addressing noisy cat behavior problems, that you reward the good behavior to promote it, and avoid punishing bad behavior (or excessive noise) at all costs. That being said, if you don't want a cat that's noisy, ignore him/her as possible when he or she is vocalizing, and reward him or her with love, treats and playtime when they are not vocalizing. Cats, like dogs, do learn from positive reinforcement, whereas punishment often creates additional problems.

Remember your cat is using its voice for a reason, and it may not always indicate a problem. In fact, from my experience from working in a veterinarian's office, many noisy cat behavior problems resolve quickly with the right attention from their owners.

3 Ways to Avoid Noisy Cat Behavior Problems

If your cat's behavior doesn't seem positive and isn't caused by a medical issue, another option is to understand the way your cat thinks. By getting inside the mind of your cat, you're more likely to get to the root of the behavior problem and be better able to resolve it quickly so that you no longer have to worry about noisy cat behavior problems.

Hang in there and always approach the cat with the love, respect and patience it deserves. http://www.EndCatBehaviorIssues.com

The Solution - Home Remedy To Remove Dog and Cat Urine and Feces Odor For Just Pennies!

Accidents will happen! We all know that feeling, so do our pets!

Even the most well-trained dog or cat may have a bladder infection or serious case of diarrhea, and can't make it to the litter box or door on time.

Cat Dog Pet

Puppy owners can appreciate that even the most well-intentioned puppy, sometimes gets so excited or busy, they forget to take care of business.

The Solution - Home Remedy To Remove Dog and Cat Urine and Feces Odor For Just Pennies!

Sometimes it's intentional! We have those special pampered poochies that truly believe relieving themselves outside, is for animals; which of course, exclude them. They tend to have favorite spots, literally and figuratively, which they've deemed as their private in-door privy.

Why Does It Happen?

There are several reasons why pets urinate or defecate in the house; even though they know they shouldn't.

Pets that are stressed out, possibly because they are new to the home, there may be a new family member or pet, sometimes regress.

Medical problems, such as urinary tract infection (UTI) and bladder infection can trigger uncontrollable urinating. Some cats are known to urinate in inappropriate places, as a way of letting their person know they are having a problem!

If you just moved, they could be getting bombarded by the odors left behind by a previous four-legged resident, and may lapse back to "marking" their new territory.

New furniture, bedding and carpeting is often a huge bulls-eye for staking their claim!

The piddling problem happens most often with excited puppies and submissive and/or overly excited dogs.

Diarrhea! Occasionally caused by something as innocent as a change in diet.

Negative reactions and side effects to certain medications, for example: diuretics and steroids.

Senior pets may lose control over their sphincter muscles.

Lack of routine! All dogs need routines. They thrive on them. Lack of scheduled feeding and relieving times can make it hard for a dog, especially a young one, to get house trained. That's your fault, not theirs!

Adhere to schedules as much as possible. If you can't get home on time, make arrangements for someone to feed and walk your puppy or dog at their scheduled time!

Other than for overnight sleeping, do not confine your puppy or dog to a crate for more than an hour or two.

There are those canines and felines that find it irresistible not to mark dirty laundry left on the floor, or even worse, on the bed as theirs. The laundry problem usually happens when you come home with the scent of another animal on your clothes.

Do you have a new dog or cat sleeping on your bed? Your old sleeping companion may resent the intrusion.

Some actually believe it's an imaginative way of getting your attention when they feel neglected. To their curious way of thinking, negative attention is better than no attention.

The best way to avoid the soiling in the house problem is to know your pet. Watch for signs of stress, inappropriate behavioral changes and medical issues. Manage them accordingly. Put your puppy and dog on a regular schedule of feeding and relieving times.

If your pet is having a soiling problem, restrict their access to only a location that is easy to clean. Do not give them the run-of-the-house, until they earn that privilege.

The Recipe For The Solution!

There are countless commercial products on shelves and online for the removal of pet odors. Some are great, some not so great. Most are expensive.

Here is a home remedy many have found to work effectively and it costs only pennies per use. You may find keeping a spray container on-hand for emergencies or just to freshen up an area isn't such a bad idea.

The Solution

1 cup of hydrogen peroxide (3%)
1/3 c rubbing alcohol
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp of liquid dish soap

Combine the four ingredients in a spray or empty liquid detergent bottle.

How To Apply The Solution

With paper towel, absorb as much of the urine as possible. A twisting motion helps to wick up more!

Shake the bottle and spray The Solution onto the spot. Don't freak; it will fizz and foam! That means you got the right place! For carpets and furniture, test a less obvious area first,.

If it's laundry, spray or squirt the entire soiled area. Allow 10-15 minutes, launder as usual.

If it's wood floors or tiles, give it enough time to stop fizzing, and then wipe it up. Spray and wipe again.

If it's carpeting, bedding or furniture, allow 24 hours to dry, then vacuum.

Bottom line: Keep a bottle of The Solution ready to use and you'll save yourself time and stress when you need it. If you want to make sure you are getting all the soiled areas in your home, or how good a job you've done, invest in a small, black light. You may have one squirreled away from your hippie days or your teenage kid may even have one! If not, you can pick one up at most novelty stores, paraphernalia shops and pet stores. They are also available on-line. Places you missed or don't know about, will glow!

The Solution - Home Remedy To Remove Dog and Cat Urine and Feces Odor For Just Pennies!

Karen A. Soukiasian, GOOD DOG! - DOG TRAINING and BED-n-BISCUITS dog boarding and training - Owner/Trainer, St. Augustine, Florida - AKC CANINE GOOD CITIZEN and S.T.A.R. PUPPY Evaluator http://www.freewebs.com/gooddogsite
http://www.facebook.com/pages/GOOD-DOG-DOG-TRAINING/95917282486

Which is Better, a Dog Or Cat?

Sometimes I wonder what is the better had to have, a dog or cat? Reason I ask this is a this seems to be advantages and disadvantages to either animal. For example you wouldn't ever want to try take a cat for a walk but you never have to worry about picking up poop.

Let's take a quick look at these two potential pets and see which is the better for you. Starting with a dog, they seem to be much more interactive pet than a cat. Training a dog is much easier, but a dog does require more attention from you as well. If you consider going away for vacation you either have to have your dog kenneled or you have to take him with you.

Cat Dog Pet

Whereas you can leave a cat for up to two weeks with minimal supervision with very little issues. I would recommend that you have somebody come in once per day to ensure that the has food, water and hasn't gotten into any serious troubles..

Which is Better, a Dog Or Cat?

And although is a much more interactive animal. Even as the dog ages, you can still play with them quite a bit. So maybe a dog is great for the person who has the time and the ability to care for the dog.

A cat on the other hand, being a much more independent animal requires less of your time and as they age they become more and more independent. They will at times still play and frolic like a kitten but not too often. The real bonus of having a cat is that stronger independence that you get with a cat.

Personally I've had both animals and enjoyed them for their unique qualities. I do wish I had a dog to take with me on walks. But I don't relish cleaning up after the dog after it does its business. Whereas the cat has his litter box.

Our cat whose name is Max, is pretty independent but is also approaching about nine years old. He still young enough to enjoy life but old enough to not act foolish anymore. I do truly miss his kitten days. For example, a laser pointer just does nothing for him anymore.

I know when we had our dog, she would chase after a laser pointer to her dying day. So probably in the end to come up to you which animal is the right one for you in your situation. So what would you choose, a dog or cat?

Which is Better, a Dog Or Cat?

Because I love my cat and want to give him the most freedom, I've created a site about using a cat door. Also, I've taken a look at the PetSafe Cat Flap. Come check it out.

Andy Warhol's Cats & Dogs

In 1954, Andy Warhol, a renowned cat lover, published a series of 25 cat portraits in book form. Printed on limited edition, hand-colored Arches watermarked paper, the prints were privately printed and made as a Christmas keepsake. He named his book 25 Cats Name Sam and One Blue Pussy. He had originally meant it to read "... Named Sam" but his mother, who did the lettering, left off the "d" and Warhol thought that the final version was fine.

In the 1950s, Warhol bought a brownstone where he and his mother resided. And, although they had owned cats for twenty years, his series of cat portraits were not based on the cats he lived with and knew. Instead, they were based on the photographs of New York Cat Photographer Walter Chandoha.

Cat Dog Pet

In the 1970s, Warhol 's interest with cats faded and his interest in dogs rose. His boyfriend decided they should get a short-haired Dachshund puppy. They named the dog "Archie". Warhol became so enthralled with Archie that he became his alter ego. As he held Archie during interviews, when Warhol did not want to answer a particular question, he would simply deflect the questions to Archie. Warhol took the dog everywhere - to his studio, to art openings, to dinner, to photo shoots, and to London when his work took him there.

Andy Warhol's Cats & Dogs

When Archie was almost three, another Dachshund came into the picture. This dog, they called "Amos". The three of them got along famously. Amos and Archie would run around the townhouse barking, chasing and playing with one another while providing constant entertainment for Warhol. All was well, except now Archie would stay at home with his newfound friend Amos instead of gallivanting the city with Warhol.

In 1976, the art collector Peter Brant commissioned Andy Warhol to paint his Cocker Spaniel named Ginger. Andy made two paintings of Ginger, as well as drawings. Peter Brant liked these so much that he thought Warhol should do a whole series of cat and dog drawings. Andy liked the idea too. It would open up a new area of commission portraits and would give him a chance to use Archie and Amos in his work. All he lacked was a cat that would fit the modeling mold.

Warhol liked to work from photographs. He had a difficult time staging his pets and having them remain still. He decided to use stuffed animals for his first cat and dog photos. Vincent Fremont at Artnet called the finished paintings of these stuffed creatures "spooky and macabre". The paintings; however, that Warhol completed from photographs of cats and dogs are said to be vibrant and infused with personality.

After some time he began dabbling in other arts, including underground films that explored the shock value of nudity, greed, and sexuality. In 1976, after his hiatus from regular, mainstream art pursuits, Peter Brant arranged for Warhol's dog and cat series to be shown in New York and in London.

After Warhol's period of drawing and painting cats and dogs, he started on artistic renditions for Campbell soup cans and his focus on pop-culture as seen in his works centered around Marilyn Monroe. After his mother's death, Warhol became more distant from the public's eye. Warhol left his diaries behind that were later published into a book. While many say his entries are "mundane", those who study his art find that they leave a history - a post-modern history much reflective of his beliefs, ties to, and a life dedicated to explorative arts.

Copyright © 2008 Melanie Light

Andy Warhol's Cats & Dogs

Melanie Light is an artist, art historian and educator. She is site owner of Vintage Pets [http://www.zazzle.com/vintagepets], an online gift shop which features dog art, cat art, and horse art. She also runs ArtZpet, an online store featuring exceptional pet lover gifts by hand selected artists.

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