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Fun Games to Play With Your Dog

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Image: Pixabay

 Use a Flirt Pole

A flirt pole (also called a flirt stick) is a long pole with a rope attached to the end. On the end of that rope is a lure that’s used to entice your dog to chase. Flirt poles provide great exercise, and they’re mentally stimulating. They’re a way to let let your dog use their natural prey drive in a non-destructive way. And they’re a great for practicing some basic impulse control such as letting go on command.

When playing remember to let your dog ‘win’ or catch the lure on occasion as a reward. By letting them win you’re making the game more engaging and fun, and that will encourage them to keep playing. If they don’t get that chance to win they can become discouraged and uninterested in the game. You can make your own flirt pole with some pvc pipe, some bungee cord and a dog toy.

Health Concerns: This is a very high impact exercise that can be rough on your dog’s joints. If your dog isn’t very active to begin with start with short sessions and work your way up. If your dog has any joint or mobility issues don’t use a flirt pole. They can can cause further joint damage, so opt to some of these lower impact exercises instead.

Play Tug of War With Your Dog

Tug is by far my dog’s favorite game. It’s fun, it’s engaging, it’s great physical exercise and it’s a good way for dogs to practice good manners. And if you spent a lot of time training with your dog I’ve found it to be one of most motivating rewards around.

When playing tug just remember to follow this basic rule – the game stops if your dog’s teeth touch your skin. Some dogs may struggle with this more than others since tug gets some dogs (puppies) pretty riled up. If you stop when their mouth touches your hand they’ll catch on that ‘the fun game stops when I mouth my person.’

And contrary to popular belief playing tug with your dog will not make him aggressive, nor will letting him win make him dominant. Letting your dog win makes the game more engaging, and it shows your dog that you’re a lot of fun to be around.

Play Frisbee With Your Dog

 A game of frisbee is great exercise, and it’s a lot of fun for dogs that have a natural drive to chase.

If your dog doesn’t know how to catch a frisbee I’d start out by using a soft disc. Traditional plastic frisbees are pretty hard, so if they hit your dog in the face they can discourage them from trying to catch it. Practice by getting your dog excited about the frisbee by tossing it short distances or rolling it on the ground. Encourage them when they start to follow it around and chase. Once your dog is excited to chase it you can increase the distance and start tossing it.

Create Your Own Agility Course

Another fun game for dogs is creating your own agility course. It’s a fun way to teach your dog some new tricks, and it’s a great source of mental stimulation for dogs.

Using an agility course for your dog is a fun way to give them some mental & physical exercise. It’s that added focus of having to perform one thing after the other that’s really exhausting.

And while you can go out and buy plenty of obstacle course items at pet supply stores I prefer making my own. You can use a hula hoop to jump through, some blankets to jump over and some little mini cones to weave through. If you want to step it up a notch you can can make some agility equipment of your own.

Use Kong Stuffing & Food Dispensing Toys

Using a stuffed Kong or some food dispensing toys is one of the easiest games to play with your dog. It’s fun, it encourages them to use some of their natural scavenging ability, and it’s mentally stimulating.

Food dispensing toys are great for giving your dog some more mental stimulation at meal time. You fill it up and they have to knock it around to get the food out. If your dog has never used a food dispensing toy you may have to practice a bit before they get the hang of it. After filling it up encourage them to play with it so they can see that ‘oh look food comes out when I move it around.

Teach Your Dog to Chase Bubbles

One of the easiest games to play with your dog is to teach them to chase bubbles.

If your dog doesn’t know how to chase bubbles start by blowing a couple at a time. Point them out to them and encourage them to chase. Catch some yourself to show you dog that there’s nothing to worry about, and that the whole point of the game is to get them before they touch the ground.

We use bubbles made for kids (they also make flavored bubbles specifically for dogs). They’re non toxic, but can upset their stomach if they ingest too much. And be sure to wipe off your dog’s face afterwards because they can irritate your dog’s eyes.

Play Some Water Games With Your Dog

Going to the local beach can be a lot of fun for dogs, especially those that already love swimming. (don’t forget a doggie life jacket for safety) You can bring along some dog toys and play a game of fetch in the water.

If your dog isn’t a great swimmer, or if you don’t have any beaches nearby you can play some water games in your own backyard. Get a plastic kiddie pool and fill it with water. Many dogs love splashing around and having a nice little pool of their own to keep cool in. Toss in some toys and turn it into a ‘bobbing for apples‘ game.

Some dogs go crazy for the hose. The hose may be intimidating for some dogs. If your dog isn’t into the hose they might prefer playing in a sprinkler that doesn’t let off such a strong stream of water.

Play Find the Treats With Your Dog

Find the treats, like all nose work games, are mentally stimulating and a fun way to let our dogs hone in on their natural sniffing abilities.

To play find the treats you’ll want to start by putting some treats on the ground while your dog is in the stay position. Give your dog their release command and encourage them to ‘find the treats.’ Point to them and help them along if they’re struggling. Encourage them along the way by praising them each time they find one.

Once your dog understands what ‘find the treats’ means you can slowly start to increase the difficulty of where you’re hiding them. And once you’ve practiced enough in one room you can move onto hiding treats throughout the house.

Use a Digging Box

Some dogs love digging, and having a dedicated digging box for them is a way to encourage them to dig in one approved area – one that doesn’t include your landscaped garden. You can make your own digging box with some wood and sand from your local hardware store. If you have a lot of cats in the neighborhood you might want to build a top to keep it from becoming a litter box.

Some dogs will be thrilled to have a place to dig to their heart’s content. If your dog doesn’t dig right away you can make it game by burying some of your dogs favorite toys in the box to encouraging your dog to dig them out.

Play a Game of Hide & Seek

Hide and seek lets your dog use some of their natural scent tracking abilities in a fun and stimulating way.

To play hide and seek have you dog stay while you go find a hiding spot. Once situated call your dog and praise them when they find you. If your dog doesn’t have a good ‘stay’ you can enlist the help of someone else to distract your dog as you hide.


Source: puppyleaks.com

Only the Best Treats for Man’s Best Friend

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Best Treats

Dogs are the most loyal, loving and caring companions a human can have. They always do everything they can to make sure we know that they love us. Now, you can let them know just how much you love them with the new range of Pedigree treats. Alongside their Dentastix & Rodeo treat range, Pedigree is excited to introduce their new range of treats: Tasty Bites Chewy Cubes – Puppy and Chewy Cubes which are nutritious, packed with your dog’s favourite flavours.

Pedigree celebrates the launch of their newest treat range by providing you with 5 perfect occasions to reward or treat your special furry friend.

Always by your side

Your dogs can’t tell you how much they care or love you, but they will never fail when finding a way to show you. When you have great news and you want to celebrate, your canine companions are the first ones to let you know they’re happy for you. That kind of loyalty should be rewarded.

Good behaviour

You get back home after a long day of work and not only is your furry friend beyond ecstatic to see you but you find that they haven’t completely destroyed the house. Positive reinforcement is the perfect time to give your pup a treat.

They know exactly what you need

Ever been sulking on the couch after a really bad day and your dog just hops up next to you and puts their head on your lap? Yep, dogs are intuitive, thoughtful and the very least you can do to say thank you is to give them a delicious treat.

Tricks deserve treats

Sit. Stay. Roll over. Handshake. There are so many tricks we can teach our dog, but if there are getting it right or at least trying you should have some treats on hand for them to let them know they’re doing a good job.

Pick up some Pedigree Treats, which are available at all major retailers nationwide, and show your precious pups just how much you love them.

Only the Best Treats Only the Best Treats

 

 

Only The Best Treats

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: Pedigree

Treat your dog for life – not just for Christmas

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treat

Pixabay

Treat your dog for life – not just for Christmas

Everyone likes a little treat every now and then – and especially now that Christmas is coming. But although it’s tempting to give your dog scraps from the table, many popular yuletide treats can actually be dangerous for his health. Whilst just one leftover slice of turkey may not seem excessive, for a dog this could actually be equivalent to a human eating seven slices!

Treat or not to treat?

Some dogs are very good at begging for food and acting like they’ve not been fed for days! But all they often want is just your attention, not a portion of your festive dish. So try to play or go for a walk with your dog rather than sharing your meal. Feeding your dog table scraps not only encourages bad habits – and having your dog at the table, especially when you’ve got visitors can be very off-putting, but feeding human foods in general can have an adverse effect on your dog’s health. So don’t be afraid to ask well-meaning guests not to feed from the table or to give your dog the wrong kind of treats.

Watch out for chocolate!

Allowing your dog eat some human treats can upset his digestive system. The best example is chocolate which is by far the most common foodstuff to cause toxic effects in dogs. The Veterinary Poisons Information Service receives hundreds of calls about chocolate poisoning every year. It is very difficult to determine exactly how much chocolate needs to be eaten by a dog before problems develop, as it depends on the type of chocolate. Good quality chocolate that is high in cocoa solids tends to be the most dangerous to dogs and unsweetened baking chocolate and indeed cocoa powder is also more toxic to dogs than normal milk chocolate. The toxic component in chocolate is theobromine. As theobromine is metabolised slowly, it may be that giving small doses over several days could be as harmful as giving a lot of chocolate all at once.

However, there are other treats that are highly dangerous for dogs’ digestion, for example, onions, garlic and certain root vegetables contain substances that can be toxic for dogs and may cause a form of anaemia. And remember, it’s not just the raw form of these vegetables you should avoid feeding your dog, because the gravy or sauces that cover a meal may also contain these ingredients. Plus you should watch out for some other treats harmful to dogs’ digestion, like grapes and raisins.

The right nutrition in the right amount

Although we are often guilty of over-indulging on rich foods throughout the festive period, our pets should not follow. Overfeeding your dog or treating him with unhealthy snacks over Christmas will make him pile on extra pounds which can result in developing an increased risk of a serious health condition like diabetes, arthritis or heart problems.

Plus, with so many people around the house, Christmas can actually be quite stressful for dogs. To minimize disruption, stick to his routines as well his precisely balanced nutrition like  Hill’s™ Science Plan™. A Hill’s Science Plan kibble is just as much of a treat, and much better for him. You can also reward your dog by varying the food you feed, combining wet and dry food and changing the flavour from time to time. However, do keep to the recommended daily amounts.

So think before you treat. You might allow yourself a mince pie, but don’t pass one down to your dog – this will use up over a quarter of his recommended daily calorie intake!

Source: Hill’s Pet Nutrition

Winter Blues? Add enrichment to your dog’s daily life

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Enrichment

Winter Blues? Add enrichment to your dog’s daily life

Enrichment – What is it?

Enrichment is a critical part of an animal’s daily life.  It shouldn’t be thought of only as a “treat” or only to provide when you’re leaving them on their own. Their everyday should be filled with enriching activities so they can live physically and emotionally healthy lives. Enrichment can help reduce undesirable behaviours that may develop as a result of boredom because the dog starts to entertain himself. Excessive barking, chewing or digging up the garden can be a result of boredom. By introducing enrichment into your dog’s life, you can prevent these unwanted behaviours from developing in excess and strengthen that wonderful bond between you and your pet dog.

Scenting & Scatter Feeding:
A dog navigates the world through his nose, so you can imagine how important scenting is for him. Scatter some of your dog’s daily portion of pellets into the garden, so he needs to use his nose to find them.  This scenting activity helps stimulate a part of your dog’s brain that helps promote calm.  Ditch the food bowl and get your dog using his wonderful brain and nose for his mealtimes. When dogs have to forage (sniff, search) for their food rather than eat out of a bowl, we are stimulating and seeing to their natural instincts.

Play “hide-the-treats”:
Hide treats or your dog’s favourite toys in the garden, encourage them to use their nose to find them.  Take a towel and roll up the treats inside. Your dog needs to use his brain to figure how to get the treats out.

Enrichment

A puzzle feeder:
These can slow fast eaters down and stimulate the mind. These days there are so many options and difficulty levels available in stores.

Egg box ball feeder:
Put treats in an egg box and place tennis balls on top of the hidden treats. He’ll have to scent, push and paw to get them out.

Kongs:
A durable rubber feeding toy that can be filled with the dog’s daily food allowance.  They are incredibly useful at relieving boredom, providing good mental stimulation and relieving stress or inappropriate chewing of other household items.  Soak some of your dog’s pellets in warm water, fill the KONG, “plug” the top with something like plain yoghurt or liver paste and there you have it – a fun, challenging work-to-eat toy.

On a Budget?
Everyday objects like egg boxes, paper rolls (the cardboard tube from the kitchen paper towels or toilet paper cardboard) come in handy.  Fill them up with dog pellets or treats and it will keep them stimulated for ages.  Dogs enjoying chewing, shredding or tossing them about to get the pellets out.

Source: Cape of Good Hope SPCA

Dogs love liver – but how much liver is too much – can too much do harm?

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Dog

Dogs love liver – but how much liver is too much – can too much do harm?

Everyone who loves dogs knows that dogs love liver! Treats containing liver abound, recipes for liver “brownies” are perennial favourites (you can find one here on this blog, but there are countless versions) and simple baked treats are a mainstay as “bait” for show dogs and rewards for hard working canines in all kinds of sport and performance work. In home made recipes, some organ meat is always included, to boost nutrient levels, especially Vitamin A, and copper. But how much liver is enough, and is it possible to overdo it? Are all kinds – beef, lamb, chicken, pork – created equal? In this entry we’ll take a little closer look at liver; what it offers your dog, how to prepare it – and why you really can get too much of a good thing.

Let’s start with what’s good about liver, why it should be included in a canine diet, if it’s tolerated.

  1. Liver is nature’s most abundant source of Vitamin A, in the  most bioavailable form for carnivores. (This is why cod liver oil is so different from fish body oil, the vitamin content).
  2. Liver is an excellent source of protein, all the B vitamins, and iron.
  3. Liver is very high in copper, an important nutrient that can be low in home made diets.
  4. Liver contains Vitamin D which supports the immune system, muscles & bone growth
  5. Oh yes, and dogs love the stuff…can’t forget that one.

Look for a supplier that uses rural raised, clean air living, grass fed, hormone free Beef – always buy the best you can afford.

Now, what might some of the issues be?

  1. ​Liver is very high in copper (yes, this can be a problem if fed too much. We want to hit in around the  Recommended Allowance, not go, you know, 20 times above it. That carries its own problems)
  2. Liver is very high in phosphorus, which we like to watch especially with growth diets, seniors and very carefully with kidney disease.
  3. Liver is high in purines, a big no-no for dogs with uric acid stones(especially common in the Dalmatian, and serious stuff)
  4. Although we mention above that what is good is that liver contains Vit. A, we need to be aware that too much Vit. A can poison dogs, creating symptoms that in include tremors, convulsions and peeling skin. 
  5. There is always the risk of salmonella and campylobacter in raw organs which can be particularly harmful to young, old or unwell dogs. 
  6. When a dog has an allergic reaction, it is very often the protein that is the culprit. A good idea is to do an allergy test
  7. Always check with your vet before giving liver to your dog if your dog suffers from any disease. With some diseases, liver can do harm. 

This part can get technical, so bear with me.  I don’t, for the record, believe that every meal has to be “perfectly balanced” but I can easily demonstrate how not paying attention and relying on guesswork will create imbalances- which in turn, can have serious backlash over time. It’s good to know what is in our food – not just the toxins, which many are concerned about, but the nutrients! So to figure out how much liver to add, it’s smart to start off calculating your dog’s phosphorus and copper requirements. Then, calculate how much is in the diet. Often, there will be plenty of phosphorus but low copper.  Add just enough liver to bring the copper into the recommended range or a little higher. The exceptions to this of course, would be a cancer or renal diet where we need to restrict copper, or of course, any dog with urate stones. Just take a pass in those cases.

In a cooked diet, I generally need to add anywhere from 1 – 5 ounces per week, depending on the size of the dog. I did a St. Bernard diet yesterday and we’re using six ounces of liver; the dog’s recommended allowance is 35 mgs, and the recipe has 36. The dog’s allowance for phosphorus is 14,000 mgs; with the liver, we have 14,079.(this is beef liver I’m referring to here).

To calculate your dogs RA for phosphorus, follow the same basic procedure I’ve referred to in past entries; take the bodyweight in kilograms to the power of 0.75, then multiply by 100. That’s the DAILY recommended allowance. To find the copper recommendation, take the metabolic number as above, and multiply by 0.2, for the daily ideal level. Of course, you just X these levels by 7 to get the weekly amounts.

That’s the easy part. Figuring out what’s in the diet is harder. You can use a tool like nutrition data, or you can slog it out using the USDA database. In general, my feeling is one ounce a week for a small dog, 2 – 3 for a medium, 4-6 for large and giant breeds. This is not precision nutrition, but it gives an idea of how much we might use in a recipe. I often suggest to clients they reserve the liver I include in their dog’s recipe, and feed as treats. It doesn’t have to go into the batch, just into the dog. 

Dog

What about different types of liver?

I am often asked if they can be interchanged –  and I think, as treats they can ( given I am recommending not using liver in general all the time) but when we’re looking to meet a dietary requirement, different types of liver have different profiles.  Here’s a peek at four popular varieties:

Beef Liver
​82 grams, cooked weight (this will apply to all varieties)
Calories – 156
Phosphorus- 407 grams (this is substantial, when you consider an equivalent amount of lean muscle meat has about 168 mgs).
Copper– 11.7 mgs  (this too is a lot, consider my 72 kg St. Bernard needed only 5 mgs daily.)
Iron – 5.3 mgs
Zinc – 4.3 mgs

​Calf’s  Liver
​Calories – 155
Phosphorus – 377 mgs
Copper – 12.3 mgs
Iron – 4.19 mgs
Zinc – 9.2 mgs
Not much difference other than more zinc. These two are more or less interchangeable. But then there is…

Chicken Liver
Calories-136
Phosphorus – 332 mgs
Copper – 0.4 mgs
Iron – 9.5 mgs
Zinc – 3.26mgs
This is significant particularly if one is adding liver to amp up the copper. Note the higher iron, too; seems like a small difference, but small dogs can really be affected. Not interchangeable with calf’s of beef liver. And then we have…

Lamb Liver​
Calories– 180
Phosphorus– 344 mgs
Copper -5.8
Iron– 6.79 mgs
Zinc – 6.47 mgs

Other differences include Vitamin A, B12 and selenium. In dietary formulation we learn to pay attention to all of these levels, and aim for an optimal range. Very nutrient -dense foods like liver offer great benefits, but we need to use them properly. Liver is not to be fed as a main protein source, but a garnish, an addition, a booster of the nutrients we’ve highlighted here. Now, as TREATS, I feel you’re ok with a healthy dog, to mix liver types up and use judicious amounts. I like to emphasize heart, muscle meat and eggs, so as to minimize  the chance of driving some nutrient levels out of balance. But in a  recipe, where we are trying to reach specific levels, yes indeed, all liver is not created equal.

Source: Friends of the Dog

Housetraining your puppy!

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puppy

Housetraining your puppy!

Housetraining a puppy can be challenging, however with consistency, proper management, and positive reinforcement, you can housetrain your puppy effectively.

Here are some guidelines for more successful housetraining:

  1. Ensure a designated toileting area ( for example, outside in the yard on the grass )
  2. Use positive reinforcement. When you reward your dog (praise, play, food, toys, etc.) when they respond to you or offer an action or a behaviour that you like, then that behaviour is likely to be repeated. Your dog learns that good things happen to them when they do the thing you like.
  3. Applying positive reinforcement methods to housetraining means rewarding our puppy every single time they toilet in the designated area.
  4. Take your puppy on leash to the designated area and wait it out ( be patient, they’re still learning). Once puppy has eliminated, reward them!  Remember not to take pup off the lead until they’ve finished, as puppies can become so easily distracted or run off to play and may not have been done relieving themselves.
  5. Set a timer for every 1-2 hours, so that you can take puppy out to their designated area regularly.
  6. Did you know that pups cannot hold their bladder for long like adult dogs? A general rule of thumb is to take puppy outside to their designated toilet area every hour, as well as after eating, before bedtime and after a nap are good times for a toilet break.
  7. Observe your puppy’s body language for signals they may need to toilet. Pawing at the ground, circling, sniffing or standing at an exit may be signs they need a toilet break.
  8. If your pup has an accident inside the home and you observe them doing it, quickly and gently interrupt them and take them to their designated area.
  9. Do not hit, smack or push the puppy’s face in it this will ONLY MAKE THINGS WORSE and cause FEAR.
  10. Punishment will only prolong the learning process and increase fear and stress. Punishment does not teach the pup where to eliminate and the use of punishment will only make them fear you and break their trust in you.

TOP TRAINING TIP: don’t be stingy with reinforcement. Puppy treats must be tasty and motivating! We recommend tiny bite sized liver biltong ( available at SPCA Vetshop ) as it is a high value food reward and your pup will learn effectively, safely and have fun!

Source: Cape of Good Hope SPCA