These Are a Few of My Dog's Favorite Foods

You know the routine; you are all alone in your kitchen. You walk on over to the refrigerator or open a container of food.  And - suddenly your dog is there! And he's bearing down on your heals, with his tail wagging. "Where did he come from?" you say to yourself. Or better yet, "Where did you come from?" you ask the dog directly.

I'd read in novels that horses could smell water that was hundreds of miles away. Sure, I thought to myself. Smell water?  But here in my own home is the canine equivalent. Take out a simple baked potato from the oven while the dog is in his bed on the living room - and hello Joey.

Over the years, we've come to pride ourselves on a pretty varied list of foods from which our chocolate Labrador Retriever derives gustatory delight.  These are a few of Joey's favorite foods:

• oranges

• grapefruit sections and

• cherries (not sure if they agree with him and besides they're kind of expensive)

• blueberries  (really good if you want to be the pitcher and doggie plays the catcher)

• beets  (Do you hear me? Beets!)

• potatoes, baked and grilled

• potato chips

• can't forget popcorn

• challah - yes challah. It's in his DNA.

• grilled salmon

• nuts - cashews in particular but any will do

• chicken of course (cooked any way)
  
  
• treats!

How exactly did the Labrador Retriever, out of his Canadian and English ancestry and breeding, develop a taste for corn?  Or citrus?  

Now there are legal limits to how much of these foods we will allow him to eat.  We don't want him to be a beggar, and we want to maintain his slim weight.

And there are also foods that are illegal for him. Prohibido under any circumstances. And these foods are:

• Anything that contains chocolate is in this category. (This is harmful to dogs).
  
  
• Or onions.
  
  
• Or garlic. (No thanks, onions and garlic dog farts!)
  
  
• Or salsa. (goes right through him)
  
  
• Or carrots.  (dog diarrhea, no thanks)
  
  
• bones and ribs - the kind that are nicely packaged just for dogs, or the kind that your nice neighbors and friends save for your dog from their rib steak dinner. Joey loves 'em! When you are handing him that bone, you feel you are handing him happiness on a stick.  He covets it and protects it, like a child. But two days  later - we have a problem!!  And who's the one walking him tonight???

What are YOUR dog's favorite foods?

Our Dog's Harness

It took a while before we even considered the idea.

There was something harsh about that word. Harness.

Like we were turning our dog into our beast of burden.

But the case was clearly in favor of the harness: Because Joey was so excited when we took him outside, and in particular to a wooded area, he would pull so hard he would choke himself. AHHHH. CHoKKKKe. AHHAHHH. CHuPPPPa. Along with a few "Joey, take it easy. Easy. Slow down." Choking and coughing wouldn't deter this dog. He would just pull and pull. Smart dog!

The harness changed all that.

Around the same time, I started to take Joey to the lake for hydrotherapy. The harness would definitely help there. Also, I saw some photos of a Retriever in the field, with his harness on and his owner at the other end of the lead, and the balance of power between dog and human seemed to be working well.

Truth be told, the harness gave Joey even greater freedom when he walked. When we were out walking on a trail, it reduced the tug on his neck. Less tugging - less choking! Less choking: a happier puppy. As Joey meandered from one side of the trail to the other and back to the first, the harness allowed him to move, in his meandering path, like the Charles River!

Friends of ours use a harness on their new puppy that makes him walk more slowly. The harness we have for our chocolate Lab is perfect for hunting dogs, dogs who love to roam and explore.

So now of course you've been convinced that you need a harness for your dog. There are two parts of getting your dog a harness that you have to master:

1) Getting one the right size, and

2) Figuring out how to - correctly - get the darned thing on your dog.

So you have to ask two questions:

How much patience does your dog have?
And how much patience do you have?

Face it. The dog knows that the harness means, "Yes, I am going to take you outside." So that means keeping him still, while he's as excited as a boy who is seeing snow for the first time.

In our next post, we'll discuss getting the right harness, and how to correctly get the harness on your dog.

Obtain Your Dog's Genealogical Chart

Where's Bolo?

Some people can trace their dog's ancestry further back than they can trace their own!

Oh, My Dog's Arthritis Is Killing Him!

Maybe you're young too young to understand when your mom or grandmom, or dad or granddad, starts complaining, "Oh, my arthritis is killing me!"

If you can't understand your aging parents or grandparents reeling from the aches and pains of arthritis, you certainly aren't going to understand that your dog may be suffering from the same thing - and silently. And if you can, or if you yourself are an arthritis suffering, maybe you will be able to empathize with your dog.

Arthritis can be painful.  And it doesn't just establish itself in humans; it also establishes itself in dogs. And dogs have four legs, and need to take walks every day just to go to the bathroom, so arthritis is a real detriment to a dog, his health, and his happiness.

When Joey started getting up there in (dog) years, we started him on the glucosamine/chondroiten treats.

As always, be an educated consumer when shopping for your dog.

The serving size is based upon your dog's weight.

So let's talk brands.   We choose one popular brand of chewables whose product contains 80 chewables.  Let's do the math to get the correct dosage.  According to their directions, an 80 lb. dog, such as Joey, would need to take 4 tablets daily. That package of Product A would last, thus, about three weeks.

Glucosamine/chondroiten Product B provides 120 chewable wafers.  Sounds better.  Read the label:  The packaging tells you a serving size is "2 wafers" and then below the label it tells the consumer that the serving size is based on weight. Sorry, but couldn't it have said "see below" above, under "serving size"?  At any rate, they're recommending 2 wafers per 20 lbs. of the dog's weight. For Joey, that would mean 8 wafers per day. So our bag of 120 wafers is going to last us slightly more than two weeks.

And so it goes. And so it went, each bag emptying out before we could say "Rover".  So we gave Joey the treats, from time to time, but never with any serious regularity.

Until Joey was hit by the car and got the broken ankle and toes.

After Joey got hit by the car, after the questions "Will he ever run again?" and "Has he learned his lesson?" we heard "Arthritis may set in." 

Signs of aging. The white hairs around our dog's mouth are a sign of aging, but maybe he gets some respect out of those white hairs! But arthritis?

So here's what we did right away, as soon as Joey came home from the hospital- and we have continued this religiously:

We add liquid glucosamine and chondroiten EVERY MORNING to his food.

Let's talk about the liquid form. (These were created for horses, so I understand, with their larger body weight.)

First, you can get one with a pump or one without.  (In this latter case, you will fill up the lid and pour the lid over your dog's food).

Either liquid application, with the pump or without, costs a fraction of what chewables with glucosamine/chondroiten would cost.

So what would be the dosage?  Actually, it's pretty easy to figure out.  Here's the dosage of our current brand: A dog Joey's size should have two-thirds of an ounce) 2/3 oz. per day.  This is (two-thirds) 2/3 of a capful.  Easy.  There are 32 ounces to one quart, which means that our liquid is going to provide our Joey with the building blocks for his healthy bones, joints and connective tissues for more than one month.

Now that's my kind of supplement!

And with the dog running every morning, something has to be right!

Your Dog Is Also An Escape Artist? Rules of Thumb

TEST: What is Joey thinking right now?

So your dog is another "Mr. Escape Artist".  And you want to know "How do I keep my dog in?" or "How do I keep my dog from getting out?"

The rules of thumb are:

1. Never assume that your dog will stay within the boundaries of your yard.
   
   
2. Never say "It's just for a moment."
   
   
3. Never assume that you are only opening the front door "just a little bit".
   
   
4. Never think that your dog loves you so much that he will not stray in order to follow the scent of that other love of his life, the dog that just so happens to be walking on the other side of the block right then.
   
   

5. Never assume that just because your dog is tightly tucked right at that moment inside your garage, whose door is wide open, he is going to remain there.
   
   
6. Never assume that just because YOU cannot see another dog nearby, that your dog cannot SMELL another dog nearby.
   
   
7. Even though your dog weights 80 lbs., never assume that he can't get through a rabbit hole.
   

Do you notice the number of times that the word "never" appears?

Which brings us to our next comment:

Make sure that your dog's name and your address and telephone number are clearly etched onto the dog tag

... and check the tag from time to time to make sure that the phone number and names are clearly legible to somebody who does not know your dog.

So while we have all these rules of thumb squared away (right?), at our next in this 2-part series let's look at a few other things we can do to keep your dog IN the yard and OUT of the street:

Hydrotherapy for Your Dog

Water therapy for dogs? For dogs?

You've probably even seen a treadmill submerged in the water, in the swimming pool at your local health club.

They are used for seniors, for people with arthritis, and for people recuperating from injuries and surgery. But for DOGS?

Yes! For dogs!  And water therapy was one major way by which we brought Joey back to health, stemmed off the threat of arthritis, and returned him to his life of running, safely.

What are the advantages of water therapy? 

In water, there is no gravity, so your dog is not fighting against the pull of gravity from the earth. He is floating in water and all his energy is devoted to moving against the water (and not the pull of the earth).  Pressure is equalized on all sides.

If your dog has an injury, there is no stress directly on the injured area, i.e. no pounding of the pavement or the pads of your dog's feet.(This was important in our case, since Joey had a broken ankle and broken toes.)

Veterinarians recommend it. So what do you need to - or prefer to - do your own hydrotherapy with your own dog?  You need:

1. 
   
   

   a dog harness

2. 
   
   

   a body of water

Obtaining the dog harness is easy.

Any pet store will carry them. Just measure your dog's breadth and length before you pick out the harness to get a good fit.

Obtaining the body of water may be more of a challenge! 

It may be winter and water may be cold, and besides there may not be a body of water near you!  Remember, dogs can, because of their double layer of hair, tolerate colder temperatures that you (we) humans can. But at the first states of hydrotherapy, you need to accompany your dog into the water.

But let's say there is a body of water, and it's warm enough for you to tolerate; what do you do next?  

1. 
   
   

   In the beginning, just walk your dog along the edge of the water.

   Get him used to walking in the water. That will be considerable exercise for a dog who has not been walking regularly due to injury, or for a dog who may be experiencing pain that he cannot communicate to you.
   
   
2. 
   
   

   In subsequent days and weeks, get him a little deeper into the water. Continue to walk him.

   Just the water itself will provide resistance and that will be considerable physical therapy for him (or her).
   
   
   
   
   
3. 
   
   

   Gradually, you can get your dog fully into the water.  Next, hold him up by the harness, so that he is just floating in the water. Allow him to become comfortable being held by you.
   

4. 
   
   

   He may kick his legs underneath him to simulate swimming. Good. This is what you want.
   

5. 
   
   

   Time him.

   Start with 30 seconds. In subsequent days or weeks, increase that to one minute.  Let him rest or swim toward shore. Wait. Then try it again, for 30 seconds to one minute at a time.

Swimming in general is a great activity for your dog and, as mentioned above, he can tolerate much colder water temperatures than we humans can. So as he gets stronger, he can go in the water and swim on his own and it will be a great therapy for arthritis and other conditions.

Finally, don't get arrested!

 Seriously!  I was standing in a body of water about 20 feet from the shoreline, holding Joey up by his harness as he doggie-paddled beneath the water without moving forward, and a policeman came along and told me that it was legal for the dog to be in the water, but not for me to be in the water!

Please share your comments or experiences with doggie hydrotherapy (and/or getting kicked out of a body of water!)

Pet Insurance: Accidents and Catastrophic Expenses

You love your dog and you want to know if you should shell out the dollars for your doggie's pet insurance.

This is Part 5 of our series, intended to help you think through this decision.

Let's talk dollars and sense, again.  Joey's first trip to the emergency animal medical center, after he was hit by the car (if you're following our story), cost us almost $4,000. 

Let's emphasize that this covered the first five days of emergency trauma care and hospitalization.

Then due to the nature of the ankle fracture, our dog required surgery one month later. That cost just under another $3,000.

Then we add in the additional visits for bandages changes, which were supposed to be weekly for umpteen weeks but our darling chocolate Lab insisted on chewing his bandages and so sometimes we ended up bringing him to the vet twice weekly and if it was an emergency visit, the price tag was even higher.  (I emphasize that in no way are we complaining about our vet or the quality of service. It was the best. I'm just laying out the dollars and cents facts.) So our total spent was somewhat above $7000 to heal Joey (not including our time!).

But I'm not complaining so let's move on:

So notice the figure from our first post about pet health insurance: 

With a premium of $62 per month, we would have paid $7400 in health insurance in those ten years.

Notice the similarity of the amounts? That means that as of the time Joey was hit by the car, the amount we would have paid into a health insurance policy for him and the amount that we actually paid for his injury would have been equal!

So we ask you the question again: Would you not be better off - in the long run - not purchasing a health insurance policy for your dog, and spending the money as needed?


Let's review: 

What happened to Joey, i.e. his getting hit by a car, was not a pre-existing condition.  It was not a result of a congenital defect (unless you want to consider his enthusiasm for life and for digging his way out as one!).  So we are clear there.

Had Joey had some condition such as hip dysplasia, we would have been paying premiums all along and then the insurance company may have told us that they wouldn't cover him due to its being a congenital defect.

We did have to have a lot of money available, at the drop of a hat, though the hospitals will accept credit cards . But remember, even with pet health insurance, you have to have money up front, as you pay first (and wait until you find out whether they will reimburse you) and they (may or may not) reimburse you.

For us, at eleven years old next month, Joey is now doing great.

He's back to minimal annual examinations and pet care: Heartworm pills, tick and flea Heartguard, food, the cost of kennels etc. when we go out of town, Omega 3 fish oils, Glucosamine/Chondroiten, etc. Routine stuff that your pet insurance isn't going to cover anyway.

But we are going to bet on Joey's continuing to be healthy, and that for a long while at least he's going to continue running.  To us, we're going to say it would be "a wash", economically, that is.  So we feel we're better off in having not purchased Joey a policy, and having done everything we could to maintain his good health!

Oh, and we're keeping a much more careful watch on our dog than we did in the past, to make sure he doesn't get out of the yard again unattended!

But if you're that college student with a new puppy and very few financial resources, and your puppy gets sick, maybe you need to consider a different path. But, like beginners luck with gambling, will you know when to walk away from the slot machine after your big win so that the house won't always win?  Or will you understand the expression, "Bad money follows good?"  Unless you're a senior with a young dog to keep you company, in most cases, I think "the house will win".

By the way, please add your comments and share your experience with pet illness and insurance.