Dogs, Blood Pressure, and Peace of Mind

Owning a dog is an excellent way to improve your health and wellbeing. Dogs are well known for providing physical companionship but the friendship between a dog and its owner can also help to provide peace of mind and improve a person's general health. Negative thoughts and emotion cause a build up of stress and over time this can result in age related disease. Feeling good and positive is as important as choosing the right foods and getting the right exercise and this is where dog owners are one step ahead.


What is it about dogs that can affect your health?

Dog owners have many opportunities to exercise with their dogs. Daily walks around the neighborhood can help you maintain your own physical wellbeing as well as your dogs. Playing ball and other physical activities with your dog will also make you healthier and stronger. Your walks may also turn into social outings for both you and your dog, giving you an opportunity to meet other dog owners in your neighbourhood and at your local dog park. Taking regular walking paths, routinely will not only provide your dog with vital exercise, but also help to improve your own health by providing you with daily exercise and fresh air.

Spending time with dogs can also have unseen physical benefits. Spending time with dogs can change the rate of your blood pressure, and other biomarkers of stress such as cortisol levels in the blood. Spending time with a dog helps bring us into the present moment and thus to a degree, frees us from the stress of our minds. For a little while we can appreciate the sunset, or the comfort of sitting on the couch, or even a program on TV, just a little bit more because the time is spent with a dog. The mind induces stress by capturing our attention on repetitious thought cycles, most often with negative underlying themes. By focusing on what's happening in the here and now - something a dog specializes at - we can dramatically reduce our stress levels.

It is common to feel alienated from other people, and while under the grips of depression or stress, it is then difficult to relate your feelings, or find the energy to articulate them into words to another person. A dog requires no explanations of you, and can sit in presence and non judgement for hours in your company. In the face of our animal's joy at the sheer fact of being, our problems will often dissolve, or are put fairly into perspective. You can share your whole story with a dog, and at the end of the tale the dog will not reaffirm it back to you, and they will never hold it against you. They will think nothing of it at all, and in doing so, might lighten the load of importance the story had burdened you with.

Neuroscience has shown us how social connections and interactions can increase our well overall well being. Mentally, a social network assists against depression and anxiety, while physically we are less impacted by age related diseases, and our immune systems are proven stronger. In the vacuum of an ideal social life, a dog provides the same stimulation to our brains, and allows us to enjoy the same mental and physical benefits of human to human interaction. And with a fraction of the drama that can often entail.

In fact, neuroscience has offered a window into how we can perceive a dog's impact on our state of mind. Alpha waves are produced when our mind is in a relaxed and focused state. People who spend time with dogs can be shown, through use of an EEG, to produce on average more alpha waves than those people who do not. With the science to back it up, we now know the importance of dogs to us, and us to them.

Science aside, anyone who has lived with a dog can attest to their own direct experience. Dogs provide fun, love and laughter. They are not pets, but part of a family.

Can Dog Diapers Help With Incontinence?

Dogs can suffer incontinence for a number of reasons ranging from illness to age. Sometimes a dog comes from another owner who never properly housetrained him or her, and they can even be good for female dogs in heat. Luckily, dog diapers are available for all of these circumstances in a variety of forms and sizes, and you can even make your own. Different options mean that you should be able to find something that suits your own needs and environment.


The main three types of dog diapers are washable, disposable, and biodegradable. Washable diapers can be made from several materials. The important thing is that the outer side will not leak, so it requires some sort of protective coating. Washable diapers tend to come in colorful or plain designs, allowing you to make it more of an accessory than a necessity.

Disposable diapers are perhaps the easiest to deal with after use, but they cause a build-up of waste for yourself and the world. They are also generally less stylish and much more expensive in the long run, since you constantly have to replace your stock.

You also need to get new biodegradable diapers, although you avoid the problem of knowing how to dispose of them that you face with the more traditional ones.

Most dogs will reach their senior years around five years of age, although individual and group factors obviously play a role. Along with less bladder or bowel control, your dog could start to experience symptoms of arthritis, vision loss, and low energy. Travel will become more difficult, especially if you have a large dog and are travelling for a long time by airplane to a destination with a significant difference in temperature from your home.

None of these issues need to mean the end of your relationship with your pet, however. Simple solutions exist to help make your life easier and to keep your dog as healthy and happy as possible during its later years. Diapers are one way that you can maintain your peace of mind while letting your dog roam where it wants. You won't have to worry about allowing him or her onto the furniture, if you are so inclined, or sharing a bed.

Many people keep some sort of pail for used washable and regular disposable diapers. Biodegradable ones can be buried in the backyard, but it is advisable to do so in a manner that will not encourage the dog to dig it back up again.

The same principle applies to the pail, if you go that route. Sometimes dogs like to stick their head in these, for some unfathomable reason. So it can be a good idea to make sure it is well sealed and preferably kept in a location where your pet can't get at it. Or your young kids, for that matter.

The best policy whenever possible, of course, is to house train your dog, if they are going to be inside. Diapers can be useful for this phase, as well, but if you can avoid them, your life will be that much easier. That being said, when they start to seem like a necessity, my advice would be to check out some of the many online resources about making your own. It really isn't very difficult and requires no knowledge of sewing.

At the end of the day, you are going to have to deal with a mess either way, so the main factors to consider are your finances, your aesthetic sense, and your concern for creating garbage. Once you can sort those out, you'll be on your way to choosing the best diaper for your dog.

Dog Behaviour Problems - The Cause and Natural Solution

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Dog training methods usually completely lack understanding about where the dog is coming from. They are often harsh, frightening or even downright cruel. The veterinary treatment is little better, with the invention of dog antidepressant drugs to add to the myriad of toxic medication that suppresses rather than heals.


Without understanding the dog and why he is behaving the way he is, you have no chance of rectifying the situation. In fact, it is likely to worsen.

To give you an example, my neighbour brought home a new puppy some months ago. He has grown into a large dog. He is the only dog. They are out at work all day. I suspect he is meant to be a guard dog.

This dog is very lonely. He is intelligent and has discovered how to escape. He doesn't go far. As far as my place. To visit my dogs. To start with, he was content to connect through the fence. But he's young and active. So he quickly learned how to jump the fence.

He and my dogs thoroughly enjoyed their time racing around at full speed, taking it in turns to chase each other.

When his people discovered this, they shouted at him. They chastised him as he was coming to them, as he was returning home. This sets up another problem in his mind - don't go to them when called as they are likely to be angry.

I suggested to them that he is lonely, that as they are out at work all day, they should have another dog. Dogs are pack animals and don't fare well on their own. They didn't like this idea. Instead they have restrained him, so he can no longer escape.

Dog behaviour problems develop because of such basic misunderstandings. Now he is restrained, when he needs to race around, learn about life, stretch his legs, happily engage with others. He is lonely, when he needs a pack, of at least one other dog, a human or other animal equal to him.

Psychologically, he is likely to go slowly crazy if he is so disposed. Or perhaps depressed, if that is in his nature. Perhaps he will become frustrated. Or angry. This may lead to aggression.

And all because people only look at animals through their own limited perceptions. Dogs are not people. Dogs are dogs and need their basic canine needs met.

The vast majority of dog behaviour problems stem from this human misunderstanding of a dog's very basic needs.

Of course they need good food. Of course they need shelter. Of course they need exercise. Of course they need your love. But they also need you to understand where they come from. They desperately need the interaction of other pack animals - other dogs, you or another animal who can interact with them.

Without this, you can expect your dog to develop serious psychological problems. These dogs are then invariably killed, as they are deemed unsafe to keep within human society. Yet it was the humans who created the problem.

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Regards,
              John Smith

The Important Role of Breeding and Keeping Service Dogs

Not everyone knows of the important role that service dogs play in our everyday life. And meanwhile service dogs are helping people worldwide in such tasks like, f.e. guarding property.


Service dogs help to pasture and protect sheep from numerous predators. They help in finding minerals. And of course they have proven themselves great as guides for blind people.

They also made a significant contribution to scientific research. In Russia there is even a monument of the dogs that took part in the research of I.P. Pavlov. They played an important role in Space Exploration and during the hard years of World War II service dogs were used to search for the badly wounded, carried weapons, ammo and food, and even managed to blow up enemy tanks.

Service dogs were used to warn scouts about closing enemies. They helped to find and disarm thousands of mines, missiles and bombs. Service dogs trained to sniff out mines made a significant contribution to the mine clearing of Budapest, Vienna and many other cities.

Service dogs are also widely used in border guard. They warn about trespassers, help in their pursuit, arrest and disarming. Millions of movie and TV viewers love the fearless dogs that help the movie heroes in their hard work.

There are different ways to keep such animals: in a field, in group, in the yard or in the apartment.

Group keeping is common in many specialized nurseries, for example in the army, large livestock farms, where dogs are bred, or in the police.

The field option is usually a temporary solution in case of an expedition, seasonal pasture or hunting season.

Yard keeping of service dogs is stationary, for long periods of time and provides comfortable conditions for a single dog in the country.

Lots of such dogs belong to the members of the service dog club and a kept in apartments. But in order to contain and care for the animal, the owner needs to know few basic rules and must also be aware of the influence of different environmental factors on the dog.

You know that temperature and air have a huge influence on the dogs. Our atmosphere is actually a mixture of gases, where the main ingredients are nitrogen (79.0%), oxygen (20.96%) and carbon dioxide (0.04%).

Like humans, dogs need air to breathe. Breathing creates the vital gas exchange between the environment and the organism. An organism that stopped breathing might eventually die. Steam is also released during breathing, together with the gas exchange.

Service dogs have no problems in case of a slight decrease of the oxygen in the air. But the lack of oxygen will affect the dogs condition. The air that contains 0.1% of CO2 is absolutely not suitable for breathing. The dog will die if it stays long in such atmosphere.

The body temperature of a service dog is higher than of a human body. That's why the dogs have a faster metabolism and they have a higher respiratory rate.

The air temperature also has a big influence on the dog, which increases with the age of the dog. The respiratory rate of pups is much higher than of an adult dogs.

Reap Considerable Benefits From Rescuing Mature Dogs

Many folks believe that their dog ownership days are over either because of their age, children no longer at home or simply feel that they are no longer willing to invest the work of training a puppy. What they do not appreciate is that they will reap considerable benefits from rescuing mature dogs.


I am going to arbitrarily, for the purposes of this article, establish that a mature dog is any dog five years old or older.

There are many reasons for such a dog to be deposited into a shelter. Age related infirmities, financial considerations, illnesses, behavior related concerns, incompatibility, job related loss or move, and travel related inconvenience or abuse are but a few.

None of these are the fault of the animal really. Many of these issues can be resolved with varying degrees of effort and expense. None of these are cause to destroy an animal if it can be coupled with the right ownership/environment.

I could go on describing why we should rescue these animals from the animals' point of view. Many articles are often written with this perspective so I will not do so here.

Let's take a look at how YOU can reap considerable benefits from rescuing mature dogs.

Although less tangible than other reasons, the satisfaction that results from saving an animal that is almost assuredly destined for destruction is palpable. There are truly few things that we can do as quickly and inexpensively as this that has such an emotional payback. Plus doing so also provides a wonderful example to your family, friends and neighbors alike.

Rescuing this type of animal is basically "what you see is what you get". Fully grown and infirmities either clearly defined or visible, there are no surprises. Many puppy buyers have been quite surprised when their little friend grows up to an unexpected size, shape or inclination. Questions surrounding size, color, demeanor and behavior are most frequently obvious or answered with a mature rescue dog.

It is safe to say that all healthy rescues are house broken. This is a considerable benefit. Gone are the months of house training. Non-existent are the puddles and piles. Absent are the many rolls of paper towels and the very frequent hourly trips to that "specially allocated area". You may not be able to use this time for bonding but with a mature dog, you may begin the bonding process immediately with long walks and playtime.

Mature rescue dogs are generally less demanding. Their maturity lends itself to self immersion. They will find their preferred spot and enjoy some time each day enjoying it. They are relatively less inclined to require continual attention. This is tempered by the individual needs of your rescue should they be physically impaired or ill.

Especially if your dog came from a friendly, caring family, it will usually be responsive and obedient towards basic commands. Beyond convenience, this eliminates the need for training and provides a safer environment for you and your rescue.

Most shelters will ensure that the animal is basically healthy and behaviorally stable enough for adoption. Any verified infirmities are openly discussed and plans to deal with them are established. So, when you adopt a mature animal you can feel certain that you clearly know its physical and emotional condition.

These are but a few ways in which you will reap considerable benefits from rescuing mature dogs. It is true that you probably won't enjoy their company for 15 or 20 years, but for those years that you can enjoy them, they will provide you with a tremendous payback, as a companion, friend, protector and "sounding board".

Beagle Training - Clicker Training 101

Would you like to accelerate your beagle's obedience training, teach your beagle tricks faster or change some of your beagle's behaviors more efficiently? Then read on about this technology.


What is a clicker?

A clicker is a device that makes sounds and that you can use to train your beagle. If you apply proper clicker training, this technology can help accelerate the learning process or modify certain behaviors without having to resort to punishment. What you actually do is to make your beagle want to learn the commands and tricks or the new desired behavior.

How does it work?

Clicker training is a way of training your beagle to perform a desired action by marking the desired action with a sound and reinforcing it, thus making the behavior more likely to be repeated again in the future.

Steps to clicker training your beagle

The first step is to build the right connection in your beagle's brain. The connection you want to build is: "clicker sound equals reward; something good is on the way". How do you do it? You get a bag of treats and your good clicker and you click, pause, and treat your beagle. Sometimes in less than 15 minutes you can complete this step.

The second step is to teach your beagle a certain behavior or command by marking the behavior with the clicker every time your beagle displays that specific behavior that you desire and rewarding your beagle with a treat. The dog must be convinced it has achieved specifically what you had instructed. For example, you may try teaching the Beagle how to sit, come, or bring you the newspaper. The dog then learns to respond specifically to the sound of the clicker and, of course, to the reward that follows.

Repetition is the key to making the dog understand the behavioral response you expect. By clicking and rewarding your beagle every time they perform the desired behavior, you are helping them making powerful brain connections. Later on you can substitute treats with praise. The ultimate aim is that the sound of the clicker is enough reward for your beagle.

In step 3, you incorporate verbal commands. Following the adaptation stage of clicker training, verbal commands can be slowly initiated, especially when you are not carrying a clicker with you. The transition is possible by first using the clicker, repeating it with a verbal command, and then using the clicker again. Don't forget the reward.

A Dog In Mourning

When Jake died, Couper became a dog in mourning. He took to his bed and I was left trying to help him cope while also deeply mourning the loss myself.

Knowing in advance what to expect, can enable you to help your surviving pet.

It's okay for them to mourn

Know that it is very likely that your surviving pet will mourn the loss. Understand that he too is grieving. Let him go through the process and let him know it's okay for him to grieve. Grieving and healing is a process, and just like people, and each pet will move through it at their own pace.

Behaviors

Your pet may exhibit behaviors you don't understand. Immediately following Jake's death, Couper would start taking Jake's toys and putting them in his own bed. This was usually a ritual he reserved for one purpose; to annoy Jake.

He would also constantly alternate beds; switching every few minutes between his bed and Jake's. Why was he exhibiting these behaviors? Research showed that what he was doing was trying to call Jake to come to him. He remembered things he has done in the past that caused his buddy to come to him. So he constantly repeated these rituals thinking that if I steal Jake's toys, or sleep in his bed, Jake has always shown up to put me in my place and will therefore show up again.

Couper exhibited a number of these behaviors and we let him go through the process feeling it was necessary for him to understand that Jake was not coming back.

We briefly tried removing Jake's favorite things but it only made the situation worse and it is not something I would recommend. Having the other pet's toys around will help him understand the situation.

Helping Others to Help Your Pet

Every so often you come across people who seem to be completely clueless. I remember someone saying to Couper in a very excited voice "where's Jake"? His reaction was to go running around trying to find him. I caught up with him, hugged and reminded him that Jake was gone. Did he understand my words? Likely not, but he understood my tone.

How To Help The Surviving Pet Move Forward

At first, we just let Couper grieve. Afterall, we were feeling the same way. We wanted to wallow in our sorrow, wrap it tightly around us and just shut everything else out.

After a week of Couper not getting any closer to moving forward, we started to get involved in trying to help him. We would set up playdates, both with people he liked and with dogs he enjoyed. He would be thrilled when they were here but the minute they left, he was back in bed.

Pets Do Mourn. Proof

It was now 12 days after Jake's death and although neither my husband nor myself felt like it, it was time to make our annual trip to Florida for the winter. We both felt that this was either going to be a great thing for Couper or a disastrous move.

Couper normally would spend most of the day looking out the car window during our travel. This time was different. He barely moved. It was heartbreaking to watch.

However, each night as we got into the hotel, Couper became his old self. Happy, funny, and full of personality. Yet as we would head back into the car for the next leg of the journey, Couper's depression returned. We soon realized that every place that carried Jake's scent, caused depression. Yet the hotel rooms held did not have any of Jake's scent, and this made Couper happy.

The day had arrived and we drove up the driveway to our place in Florida. Couper was beyond excited. We opened the car dog and he ripped his seatbelt, jumped out of the car and made a mad dash into the house. He ran into every room. We know he was looking for Jake. I imagine he was thinking "Hey, Jake's not really gone, he's waiting here for me!" The excitement as he searched every corner of every room was heartbreaking to watch. Depression set in immediately following the discovering that Jake wasn't in Florida either.

We decided to take him over to visit his all time favorite pal in Florida; a funny pit bull mix whom Couper adored. We did this day after day; making sure each day was filled with old friends for him to meet as well as many new friends.

Fortunately this worked. I'm sure he still has the odd sad day; but his funny, easy going personality has finally returned. Jake was the only pack Couper ever knew. It was a difficult transition for him to realize he no longer has a pack.