Pet Insurance – Pet tip 135

Every pet owner knows that keeping an animal can be expensive. Between their food, their toys, and their annual check ups, pets can rack up some major bills. The fact is that these costs come part and parcel with having …

Whiskers

Dog and Cat Whiskers

Sure, we all know what whiskers are. Whiskers are the long hairs on our pet’s face. Dogs have whiskers and cats have whiskers. In fact, almost all mammals have whiskers! Whiskers are actually more than just …

Intervertebral Disc Disease – IVDD in Dogs

Do you have a Dachshund, Beagle, Shi Tzu, Lhasa Apso, or Pekingese? These, and other breeds of dogs are at a higher risk of developing a back problem called “intervertebral disc disease” (IVDD). Animals with IVDD show back or neck pain and tend to have trouble walking and doing normal daily activities. The signs of IVDD can be gradual or can be so sudden that your dog may go from being normal to being unable to walk within one day.

When you run your hand over your dog’s back, you should be able to feel the spine which is a long bony structure running from the back of the head all the way to the tip of the tail.

Dog Dewclaws

Many dog owners often ask their veterinarian whether their dog’s dewclaws should be removed. There are several situations in which removal is advantageous, and owners should consider their dog’s lifestyle when making such a decision.

Dogs are a digitigrade species, …

Tip 70 – Dog nips or bites owner – dog nips or bites kids, family members or guests

Although most domesticated adult dogs don’t bite family members, all dogs have the potential to bite. A dog’s teeth are one of its tools and it uses them to accomplish its goals. Whether it is trying to get something it …

March 2008

Hi there it’s Marko, one of the owners/administrators on Pets.ca and this is our second newsletter this year. We intend to put out only 1 newsletter a month so rest assured you will not get bombarded with mailings. Many thanks …

Dog is a Crotch Sniffer – Pet tip 245

Most dog owners are aware that dog noses are extremely sensitive. This is due to the quantity of olfactory or ‘smell’ receptors in a dog’s nose. Whereas humans have around five million olfactory receptors, dogs have two hundred and twenty million. This makes their noses exponentially more sensitive than a human’s. Most times a dog’s sensitive nose works to our benefit. All kinds of dogs are used as service dogs to help humans find missing people, sniff out explosives, drugs etc. They can smell people coming from quite a distance and alert us to their presence. There are some embarrassing occasions however, when a dog’s nose is just too sensitive from our human perspective. Most notably this occurs when dogs try to sniff humans in their private areas.

This behaviour is a common one in dogs and equally common is the fact that it upsets most dog owners. The reason some dogs sniff at a human’s private parts is the same reason they sniff the private parts of other dogs. We know that when they smell other dogs in this way they can tell the sex, rank (is the dog more dominant or submissive) age and other information about the dog.

Chinchilla Behavior Problems

The chinchilla, if handled from a young age can be a friendly, curious pet. However, if they were not treated well as a young chinchilla, had a bad experience, or just grew up bitter and resentful, you will notice your …

Hamsters Mice Rabbits

You might find yourself in the following scenario: The kids are constantly begging for a pet. Dogs are too large, birds are too noisy, you are allergic to cats, and reptiles scare your significant other. You suggest fish, but the …

Tip 1 – Cat Litter Box – Trouble

If you have a cat litter box that has a top part with an opening that sits on top of the regular litter box , you may be experiencing occasional problems with the cat not defecating in the litter box. …