Pet Care - All About Training Your Dog!

Article Title: Pet Care - All About Training Your Dog!
Author: Linda E. Joy

Attention: The following spouting is directed at the selfless
human, you who have a pet you leave alone for nine hours a day,
not to romp happily on acres of woodlands but to stay
practically still, tethered as it is to a limiting post or
trapped as he or she is within the confines of a cage no
bigger, proportionately, than a bathroom is for a human. Have
you considered training your dog.instead of punishing it for
your restricted capabilities to "own" a dog?

You should consider training your dog, instead of caging him
up. Train him not to flee. Train her not to bark. Lastly train
her as you would be trained. The main thing is this: she is
really unhappy when you lock the poor mutt in a cage. Just
think of your dog (ala George Orwell's animals in Animal Farm)
being the owner of your home and you are the pet. Next knock
the ceiling off the bathroom and put a chicken wire fencing
across the top in its place. After that take away your ability
to speak words and take away your hands. So, Mr. Pooch, who is
getting ready to set off to the mill for a nine hour shift
grabs you by the nape of your neck, your scruff, and leads you
into the bathroom, then leaves. There is no music neither are
any toys. The floor is hard. (Are you thinking about training
your dog, yet?)

The temperature drops. It starts to rain at the same time the
wind blows more of itself cold into your nook. It turns dark.
Strange sounds, traffic, and smells taunt you. There are some
smells that remind you of food. Others make you nervous. Little
kids pass by and poke at your little walls. And don't forget
that lawnmower which cranks up right by your head. All you can
do is walk back and forth in your own poop and howl and yip.
(Are you thinking about training your dog, yet?)

Mr. Pooch brought you home because you were a cute pet, but
when he left you inside the confines of the main house on the
first day, you chewed the hell out of his favorite material
belongings. For many unusual innate reasons you have the
tendency to gnaw but some how he doesn't get that and didn't
think about it (or anything else) when he added you to his
possessions of belongings. So you must be beaten. Nonetheless
you must be remaindered to a pet prison. Your cuteness has worn
off

Wake UP, humans. Training your dog is SIMPLE (as dogs are
trainable). Training your dog is not expensive. Training your
dog, as well, can be done by someone else, who will coach you
the few commands you need as well as the logic of the rewards
process you could use so that an animal with natural instincts
or needs to chew or bark will be re-trained to chew only select
items or to bark only when there is danger.

You really can't take it out on the dog that you do not
understand dogs. You definitely need to work out a way of
training your dog, understanding that it is a gift to the
animal to train it and a punishment to neglect to do so. If yet
training your dog is not clearly the message here, then maybe
YOU need a few lessons; or just maybe a bit of training! Your
sleepless, angry next-door-neighbor will gladly oblige, I'm
sure.

About The Author: Linda E. Joy provides readers with up-to-date
commentaries, articles, and reviews for
http://www.pets-directory-guide.com,
http://www.pets-and-all.com as well as other related
information.

An Overview Of Some Of The Health Problems Common To The Little Havanese Dog From Cuba

Article Title: An Overview Of Some Of The Health Problems
Common To The Little Havanese Dog From Cuba
Author: Connie Limon

The Havanese is the National dog of Cuba. He was once called
the Havana Silk Dog or the Spanish Silk Poodle mainly because
of the coat being like raw silk floss, profuse but extremely
light and soft. In its native country of Cuba the coat was
never clipped and the hair never tied into a topknot. The
Cubans believed the hair falling over the eyes of the Havanese
protected them from harsh sun.

The Havanese was brought to Europe in the 18th century where it
found favor in the courts of Spain, France and England. By the
mid-eighteenth century Queen Victoria owned two Havanese and
Charles Dickens had one. In Cuba during this same time period
the Havanese became the family dog, playmate of children, a
watchdog, and herder of the family poultry flock.

Only a handful of Havanese found their way to the United States
after the Cuban revolution. All the Havanese in the world today,
except those from the iron curtain countries and those remaining
in Cuba come from those 11 Havanese immigrants. Havanese type
has remained almost unchanged from that of the dogs painted in
the 18th century.

Health Problems of the Havanese

Cataracts in Havanese can develop early or late. They can cause
blindness or be slow in growth and not progress to blindness. To
date, all the early onset, blinding cataracts have been found in
Havanese with chondrodysplasia.

Surgical correction of cataracts (removal) is best done before
they become mature. For this reason, annual CERF exams are
highly recommended for the Havanese.

Orthopedic abnormalities such as Chondrosysplasia are literally
"faulty cartilage." It can be manifested in a variety of ways:

.By premature closure of the growth plates of long bones either
symmetrically or asymmetrically which can result in shorts legs
(dwarfism0 that are straight or bowed either unilaterally or
bilaterally.
.Chondrodysplastic Havanese dogs can also have legs of normal
length but deviated unilaterally or bilaterally.

Treatment for Chondrosysplasia is surgical in cases where
deviations are severe enough to interfere with function.
Surgical treatment consists of straightening the leg.

Luxating patellas is also a concern in the Havanese breed. It
is one of the defects that is considered genetic by the AKC.
Surgical correction renders the Havanese ineligible to compete
in conformation shows. It is also not recommended to breed a
Havanese with luxating patellas as this can be passed into
future generations.

Legg-Calve-Perthes results when the blood supply to the femoral
head is interrupted resulting in avascular necrosis or death of
the bone cells. This also is considered genetic and it is
recommended that Havanese dogs affected with LCP not be used in
breeding programs.

Treatment for LCP involves removal of the head of the femur and
the femoral neck on the affected side.

The incidences of hip dysplasia in Havanese are not known
because of the low numbers of dogs that have been checked.

There appears to be a significant number of heart murmurs
showing up in the Havanese breed. Treatment of cardiac problems
may include drugs, diet and/or surgery.

Deafness has been found in the Havanese breed. Deafness can be
diagnosed in Havanese pups as young as 5 weeks of age by use of
BAER testing. The incidence in Havanese is not known as testing
has not been widespread or consistent.

Other conditions with lower incidences found in Havanese
include, but not limited to, seizures, kidney dysplasia,
hypothyroidism and skin problems including sebaceous adenitis.

All these problems can be screened in breeding dogs. While
there is no guarantee that health problems will not crop up,
good, reputable breeders can certainly tip the odds in their
favor by screening their breeding dogs for health issues in
order to make intelligent breeding decisions.

About The Author: Author: Connie Limon. Visit us at
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