You’re probably thinking Kong toys? Old news. Every dog owner has one. They’ve been around since the 70’s. So why am I taking up space on this trendy dog site with yesterday’s news? Because the Kong toy has saved me from insanity on more than one occasion.
I have two high-energy dogs, one of which hasn’t yet reached her first birthday and whose puppy power oftentimes spins her way out of control. She can turn a quiet movie night into puppy-palooza, and if my boyfriend and I aren’t feeling her vibe she begins to bark and playfully-yet-painfully bite at any appendage she can get her little teeth on.
But these outbursts don’t always occur during leisure time. Sleep is a necessity, but my dog is up and ready to party at 5:00am, cutting at least 2 hours out of my beauty rest. Perhaps the biggest dilemma here is that, as a writer, I need a quiet workspace, but when my dog begins her rambunctious barking, jumping, nipping, biting etc., she scares my muse right back to her secret-muse hiding spot.
Then, one day, during a rare cleaning frenzy, I was sweeping under the couch and out rolled the little red Kong toy we used to coax our 1st dog into her crate. I filled it with peanut-butter and stuck it in the freezer in preparation for the next puppy explosion. When the opportunity presented itself, I surprised my dog with the stuffed, frozen Kong, which calmed her down and kept her occupied for at least an hour.
These toys are so versatile, and are practically indestructible (there’s always an exception, but mine have endured the jaws of Pit Bulls and are still intact). They can be used simply as chew-and-fetch toys, or work as a kind of dog treat dispenser. The Kong company makes many treats that fit snugly into the toy so that your dog has to really work to get them out, but there are also numerous ingredients and recipes you can make at home to keep your dog both occupied and interested (see end of blog for recipes).
Stuffed Kong toys, however, can be messy. Whatever ingredients you stuff them with can certainly get into carpets, furniture, etc. Here’s a tip: tie a piece of string through the Kong and loop it under the leg of a chair in an easy-clean-up location. This also keeps your dog within your sight and stabilizes the toy so that your dog doesn’t end up licking it around the house and into a hard-to-reach place (like under the couch).
Some of these recipes are runny, so tape up the top (small hole) of Kong to avoid leakage. Remove the tape before giving Kong to your dog.
RECIPES
Peanut Butter Crunch: Mix some peanut-butter with dry cereal and freeze.
Kong Mash: Mix instant mashed potatoes with your dog’s kibble and freeze
Banana Cream Kong: Mix mashed bananas with plain yogurt and freeze.
Tuna Delight: Mix canned tuna with yogurt and freeze.
Honey Nut: Mix honey and peanut butter and freeze. You can also add banana or cereal.
Cheese Pleaser:Melt some cheese and mix with your dog’s kibble. Pour mixture into Kong and freeze.
Cheesecake Kong:Mix together cream cheese and graham or animal crackers and freeze.
Meat & Potatoes:Take leftover meats and mix with mashed potatoes or rice. Add melted cheese and freeze.
Bagel with Lox:Mix cream cheese and salmon (or any other fish) and freeze.
Komelet:Mix scrambled eggs, bread, meat and cheese and freeze.
A Holistic, Natural Dog Supplement (and it's tasty too!)
An impressive intelligence, a striking physique, and an utter fondness and devotion toward his or her person make the Pit Bull Terrier a perfect companion. But there are also a few minor ailments characteristic to this breed: My dog Ruby, a Pit mix, has some dry skin issues and a very weak stomach.
Last winter I noticed that Ruby’s ID collar was rubbing against her skin and causing the hair around her neck to fall out. I went to my local pet store looking for a “skin and coat” formula of some sort and found exactly what I needed: Nupro All Natural Dog Supplement.
Nupro is a holistic powder that, when added to your dog’s food with a bit of water, creates a tasty gravy. One of the ingredients is desiccated (dried) liver, a flavor that is very palatable to dogs, so even the most picky eaters are sure to enjoy it. The liver also works to supply your dog with Iron and Vitamin B.
Other ingredients include Norwegian Kelp, which is a great natural source of minerals and vitamins that work to benefit your dog's overall health, specifically aiding in bone strength and growth, a strong heart rate, and a sound nervous system. Norwegian Kelp will also sustain muscular strength, and is great for your dog’s coat.
Micro-pulverized Bee Pollen, considered a natural “superfood,” supports a healthy immune system, and also helps to control any allergies your dog may have.
Imported Yeast Culture is another awesome ingredient included in a dose of Nupro. Not only does it support a healthy coat, but also may control excessive shedding, hot spots, and dry skin. This ingredient makes Nupro especially superior to other brands, as most use cheaper yeasts made from grains in which many animals are highly allergic. Yeast Culture is grown on sugar beets, without the use of grains, eliminating the possibility of an allergic reaction.
Nupro also provides your pet with essential Omega 3 fatty acids, a healthy does of fiber, and works to ward off possible types of infection. Lactobacillus Acidophilus aides in digestion and produces healthy intestinal bacteria.
All of the all natural ingredients in Nupro are raw and human grade, and Nupro contains no Sugar, Filler, Preservatives, or By-Products. By adding this supplement to Ruby’s food every morning and evening, I not only made her meals more enjoyable, but I also helped control her dry skin and made her a more overall healthy canine in the process. For more information or a sample of the product call 1-800-360-3300.
Pearl, my entirely white ten-month-old Pit Bull Terrier mix, is so adorable that I can hardly contain myself. I say her name in silly voices, scratch her back and rub her belly, and I can’t kiss her enough. To me, she is altogether perfect. Well almost. She has one behavioral issue that doesn’t seem to mesh with her character: my little Pearly girl eats her own poop!
There are a few reasons why a dog may feel inclined to do this. For one, it’s a survival tool. Dogs instinctually know not to leave evidence of their presence for other potential predators to pick up on. So, if your dog senses danger, he or she may want to “eliminate the elimination.” Poop eating could also be a behavior your pup picked up from his or her mother. After all, don’t all children imitate their elders? And although it’s a strange way to blow off steam, dogs actually use this terrible indulgence as a way to relieve stress. Talk about comfort food!
Enter Nasty Habit, a chewable tablet by Nutri-Vet that works to prevent dogs from consuming their own feces. Each pill contains a healthy dose of Cayenne Pepper, a spice that is disagreeable to dogs and so defers them from “re-consuming” their food. Nasty Habit also contains Chamomile, an herb that works to calm canine nerves and lower stress levels so that your dog won’t feel the need to do this awful deed.
Nasty Habit is an effective and inexpensive product that can be found at your local pet store or ordered directly from the Nutri-Vet website. Since I started adding these caplets to Pearl’s morning and evening meals, she has stopped her unnecessary snacking, and she is oh-so-perfect again!
My dog is a HUGE pig. I know that most dogs love food, but my puggle takes it to a new level. First of all, she starts begging for food hours before she is supposed to eat. Her once 5pm dinner time has moved to 4pm, then 3pm, and now she gets fed around 2pm. In addition to that, she scarfs down her food in a matter of seconds. Nothing can stand in her way once that food is put down in her bowl.
So I was pretty curious about the DogPause bowl when I first learned about it. In clinical tests run by professional vets, DogPause slowed down dogs by an average of 50% vs. standard dog bowls. And vets have found that when dogs eat slower, they are happier, healthier and have less risk of experiencing (or doing) things like vomiting, gas, belching, gagging, experiencing life-threatening bloat, etc.
Check out this video clip of Hank with both his regular dog bowl and his DogPause bowl. Like Hank, Maggie ate her food much more slowly than her traditional bowl. Though I didn't time it, the time she had to take when moving from quadrant to quadrant made her stop and breathe and move more slowly. I also noticed less of her "burp cough" after using the DogPause bowl, which I think I can attribute to the bowl.
The FAQ page is very helpful in learning more about the product and how it can help your dog. At an affordable $17.95, this dog bowl is well worth the money to help your dog slow down and enjoy his or her meal.
Since the massive pet food recall nightmare I have been paying more and more attention to what is in my puppy's food. I switched to an all-natural food right after the recall and was very conscious of what went into his food bowl, but I had forgotten all about the junk in his treat jar! Many of the treats I was feeding him were practically the equivalent to junk food for dogs, full of fillers and unhealthy, fattening ingredients. Now, I feed him all-natural and healthy treats from Dogswell and I am so glad I switched.
Baxter loves the Dogswell Veggie Life Vitality Sweet Potato Fries and wags his tail like a maniac when he sees the bag. They may be a tasty snack for him but with the only ingredients being pure sweet potato, flaxseed, Vitamin E supplement and Vitamin A acetate, I know they are good for him too!
These digestible and long lasting treats make a great alternative to rawhide and they are low in fat, calories and sodium but high in beta-carotene, fiber and minerals. This great mixture of vitamins and minerals provide much more than a tasty snack, they also help promote healthy eyes, skin and coats. What more could you ask for in a treat?!
In my house we have switched over to everything organic and green that we possibly can. With Earth Day coming up, now is a great time for you to take a look at all of the great earth-friendly dog products out there, like these Blue Dog Bakery Premium All Natural Low Fat Dog Biscuits (currently on sale!).
Some Green Pet tips, courtesy of Petco:
1. Buy a natural pet food made from pure protein sources raised without growth hormones or antibiotics, and that doesn’t contain any animal byproducts, rendered meat or chicken meals.
2. Use all natural cleaning products free of toxic chemicals.
3. Choose eco-friendly pet grooming products made without phosphates, sulfates and other chemicals.
4. Pick eco-friendly pet toys made from organic or recycled materials.
5. Purchase alternative forms of kitty litter made from recycled material such as newsprint and use biodegradeable poopbags for your daily walks.
Petco has a great section of their website devoted to Earth Day, earth-friendly products, a quiz to see how green your pet is, and a "Pet for the Planet" sweepstakes.
Tell Petco how you and your pet work together to take care of the environment. Enter your green pet tip for a chance to win the Grand Prize of a year’s supply of Pet Promise dog or cat food and $250 worth of pet products! (9 runner up prizes also available.)
We all want our dogs to be happy and most importantly, healthy. My dog has a food allergy to chicken, so I am very careful about what I give to him. As a result, my eyes are always open for vegetarian treats for my dog.
I found a website called Bluedogbakery.com, that makes not only vegetarian treats, but they are low fat too. All the treats made by the bakers at Bluedogbakery.com are all natural and contain no animal by-products, artificial flavorings or colorings and no artificial preservatives. This stuff is about as healthy as you can get.
Bluedogbakery.com makes treats for all size dogs. I especially like the small treats. They are easy to take on the run and they are great to stuff into my dog's favorite toy. If you are a new puppy parent, theses treats are just what you need to help in training.
You can purchase these terrific treats at various stores. Check out the Bluedogbakery.com website for a complete listing.
A little over a year ago, I found out that my dog has a food allergy. Every time he ate chicken, he would get sick. It wasn't fun! I changed his food to an all vegetarian diet. But, I was still having trouble finding treats that were easy on his stomach. I found a website called Henryandsons.com and they specialize in making all natural, vegetarian and vegan treats for dogs. Henryandsons.com dog treats do not contain any meat, chicken, pork or fish products. In addition, they also do not contain any lard, animal by-products, anything artificial GMO ingredients, added salt, wheat, corn, soy or chemical preservatives. In other words, this stuff is GREAT for your dog. Their treats come in a variety of flavors... each one delicious. My dog especially likes the sweet potato flavor. Easily digestible and allergy sensitive formulas are also available. If your dog has a sensitive stomach, or you just want to give your dog the very best, try the treats and biscuits from Henryandsons.com. Your dog will keep coming back for more.
My dog Maggie got some awesome gifts for the holidays... but her favorite by far were the Chix and Pork Riblets by Pet 'n Shape. These all natural, healthy treats are perfect for her as she loves to chew.
I love Pet 'n Shape because their treats are all natural and healthy, with 100% natural chicken and duck breast. They have:
NO additives or coloring NO preservatives Not affected by Recalls LOW in calories LOW in fat LOW in cholesterol HIGH in protein
There are a number of awesome products that they offer so take a look to see what is right for your pet.
Buy from Amazonand take advantage of sale prices (over 25% off!) and free shipping when you spend $25.
Stone-Healing.com offers a wide variety of holistic solutions for pets and their people. The possibilities for stone-healing are endless. The theory behind stone-healing is that all things vibrate at a different frequency. The goal is to choose a stone that's vibrations help heal your pets ailments. Harold tried the yellow jadeite.
Yellow jadeite represents aspects of protection and favorable fortune and harmony for your pet. One of the benefits of yellow jadeite is its ability to treat disorders of the reproductive organs. Harold has no more reproductive organs so it can't help him there. Other benefits include assistance in the reduction of pain in the sides, hip and legs as well as providing stabilization. I don't speak dog so Harold can't tell me if the stone is helping but it is an attractive accessory.
Beyond the medicinal possibilities the stones are cute accessories for any dog. They come in three sizes: teacup, small and large/medium. Remember that each stone is one of a kind, and no two stones are alike. Each unique healing stone charm is accompanied with its own silver clasp and "love my dog charm" that attaches to your pets collar ring. Although it is tempting to get the color that you like the most, pay attention to the healing properties each stone provides. This product is available for your cat or horse companions too!
and take advantage of sale prices (over 25% off!) and free shipping when you spend $25.
