Does Your Dog Need a Playmate?

No, we aren't planning on getting another dog and we definitely aren't getting rid of any of our babies, but I saw this very question posed by a Facebook friend and I thought I would share my opinion on the matter.

While it is true that dogs are pack animals and they love the company of other dogs, in my personal opinion, do not get another dog if the following statements are applicable to your first dog:

• You do not have time for your dog.
• You do not walk your dog.
• You do not play with your dog.
• You yell or hit your dog.
  
• You do not have money to pay for food.
  
• You can't afford to take your dog to the vet.
• You can't afford to pay for medical bills if something minor happens to your dog (This statement is not applicable to large medical bills, I understand that a $2,000 medical bill is a lot for many of us to handle).
  

It is a misnomer that getting a playmate for your dog if you don't have time to play or walk with them will suddenly curb their boredom. What will happen is that you will have two dogs that you don't play with and feel guilty about.

However, I would encourage you to get another dog if and only if you have time for your current dog and if you can say yes to each item on the above list.

Having a dog is not only a pleasure, but it is a responsibility, and an important one at that. Make sure you are spending time with your dog.

There are many things you can do to entertain your dog that really don't even take that much time, things that will also help your relationship.

• If you don't have time for a walk on a particular day, give them a special treat that will occupy their mind.
• Teach them a new trick, you will be surprised what they can learn in 10 minutes.
• Head out into your backyard and sit on the grass; see how much your dog loves you being down at their level.
• Take a nap with your dog.

So, what do you think? Have any of you ever gotten a playmate for your dog and regretted it?

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The Bird Killer

So the other evening I was sitting on my couch watching television, when suddenly my cat Aedan came running in the house with a live bird squawking and flapping its wings in his mouth. He quickly headed for the bedroom and so did I!

Running as fast as I could to save this bird, I made it up the stairs to find Aedan's tail sticking out from under the bed. I pulled on his tail, but he didn't budge. I then frantically tried to scare him away. SUCCESS!

Sadly, when I looked under the bed I saw the dead bird. I was furious! First of all that MY cat was a killer and secondly that he had brought it into the house, onto my carpet for me to clean up. Gross and sad.

This was the first time something like this had happened and it really startled me. I understand that he is a cat and that it is in their nature to perform acts like these, but still.

Has anything like this ever happened to you?

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Things that make you say awe!

I thought this would be a perfect Friday post.

I doubt any of you are strong enough to not say "awe." I dare you not to say it.

Dog Food...Oh the Endless Choices

About nine months ago, Adam and I went in search of a new dog food. We had been giving our dogs Nutro - Lamb and rice formula, but we hated the price we were paying and to be honest the food seem to "go right through" our dogs.

We researched and researched and eventually chose Blue Buffalo Dog Food. The funny thing is that it is actually a few dollars more expensive than our previous brand, but our dogs seem healthier than ever. What I mean by that it that their coats, teeth and overall weight has really improved.

If you are anything like us, when we started searching for a new food, we had no idea where to start and what ingredients were the most important. I mean grains, like corn are good for humans, aren't they good for dogs too?

Mostly we just wanted to make sure we were giving our dogs the best life possible. For example, eating McDonald's everyday might be cheap, but the likelihood of having a heart attack at the age of 30 drastically increases!

How to find a premium dog food:

What we learned is that a dogs diet should consist of 40% meat, 50% veggies, and only about 10% grain or other carbohydrate.

• Meat should one of the first, if not THE first listed ingredients.

A good thing to also know is that by law nutrient labels have to start with the ingredient that makes up the most of the product and end with the ingredient that makes up the least of the product. So when you read the ingredients label, the ingredients should start with a meat product (i.e. lamb, chicken, beef, etc.).

• Also make sure to choose a carbohydrate such as oatmeal, barley or brown rice and try to avoid anything that says "corn meal," because it is used as a filler and hard for a dog to digest. It is also important to choose the "whole" forms of the grains, just like it is healthier for us it is healthier for dogs too!

• GO Holistic! Holistic foods are 100% natural and 100% nutritious. They contain human-grade ingredients.
  

And finally, if you wouldn't eat it, your dog probably shouldn't either!

For example, Blue Buffalo is a premium dog food and even has blue berries in it. Below is the list of ingredients:

Deboned Lamb, Oatmeal, Whole Ground Barley, Menhaden Fish Meal (natural source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids), Whole Ground Brown Rice, Peas, Natural Lamb Flavor, Whole Potatoes, Canola Oil (Naturally preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Alfalfa Meal, Tomato Pomace (natural source of Lycopene), Flaxseed (natural source of Omega 3 and 6 Fatty Acids), Sunflower Oil (natural source of Omega 6 Fatty Acids), Whole Carrots, Whole Sweet Potatoes, Blueberries, Cranberries, Barley Grass, Dried Parsley, Garlic, Dried Kelp, Yucca Schidigera Extract, L-Carnitine, L-Lysine, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Turmeric, Oil of Rosemary, Dried Chicory Root, Beta Carotene, Calcium Carbonate, Dicalcium Phosphate, Vitamin A Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Niacin (Vitamin B3), d-Calcium Pantothenate (Vitamin B5), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Biotin (Vitamin B7), Folic Acid (Vitamin B9), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Calcium Ascorbate (source of Vitamin C), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Choline Chloride, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Iodate, Salt, Caramel, Potassium Chloride, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bacillus subtilis, Enterococcus faecium .