October 4th, 2009 by admin

Q: I have two Shih Tzu’s already on Halo but have a few questions for you. Buddy is a muscular intact male (the vet says in great shape!) who weighs 16 pounds and turns 3 in October. Pookie is a 1 year old female who weighs 8 pounds (a little thin for her) and just had 3 puppies 3 weeks ago who are nursing (which I am not keeping but would love to know how I can pass on a food plan to the owners of each puppy once they get them). I didn’t know Pookie was pregnant until almost the last couple of weeks in her pregnancy and the doctor had me switch her food to Royal Canine from her Halo food. I want her back on Halo food. Is Halo food high enough in nutrients for Pregnant dogs? She also has a lot of red marks on her belly and around some of the nipples. I believe it’s the puppies nails. Should I be putting something on her? I would like to breed her one more time but not too soon. When is it ideal for her to have puppies again? I want her healthier before she gets pregnant again. Buddy has also been eating the Halo puppy food…is this ok? When should the puppies start the Halo puppy food?

A: Halo natural dog foods are complete and balanced for dogs in all healthy life stages (which includes pregnancy and lactation)! Halo also recognizes the special needs of puppies and has created a dry food that is complete and balanced for their unique higher requirements. Halo is an excellent choice for all of your dogs!

Buddy: At 3 years old, he should not be eating the Halo puppy food. He does not need the additional fat, calories and minerals that young puppies do. An intact male dog does require more than a neutered dog and his daily calories should range from 400-490 calories per day based on a 15-16 pound body weight. This is just a calculated estimate. You describe him as slightly inactive, so you may have to decrease this amount by up to 30% (which would be around 280 calories). This 280 calories is what we call his resting energy requirement and dogs that are very inactive often need to eat only this amount. Likely Buddie will be somewhere between the 280 and 400 calorie range. This would equate to 3/4 to 1 cup of the Halo adult dry chicken or salmon per day if that is his only source of calories. Remember you have to cut back the amount he eats in food if you are giving treats or other calories.

Pookie: Her resting energy requirement at 8 pounds is 180 calories. While nursing 3 puppies, we need to multiply that by at least 4, therefore she should be eating close to 700 calories. That seems like a lot, but her little body is busy making fat, proteins and calories for those babies! Again, this is an estimate…she may need more or less. Try the Halo Healing Salve on her belly around the nipples. It can help with the scratching and chafing associated with nursing. You should ask your veterinarian when the best time to breed Pookie again is. He or she has the advantage of examining Pookie and assessing her body weight/condition and determining the best breeding date.

Puppies: The process of weaning is usually started by 4 weeks because most often puppies are placed in new homes by 8 weeks of age. It is good to start them on a “mush” which typically is a blenderized mixture of dry puppy food soaked with liquid puppy milk replace and water. It is blended until it has a gruel or mush texture similar to human infant cereal. Typically 3-4 very small meals a day are given and the amount of food gradually increased (and water/milk decreased) every week so that by 8 weeks of age they are eating the dry food. Your veterinarian can advise you on the best products to use during this transition.

A couple of other thoughts/comments….

I recommend that dogs and cats eat a combination of dry and canned food everyday. Their bodies are made of 75% water and they rarely drink enough water to support excellent hydration (very much like their human counterparts here!) and organ function. I recommend anywhere from 25-50% of their daily calories come from canned food. You can feed it all at one time during the day or break it up into 2 meals…whatever is easiest for you.

I recommend a diet transition time of 7-10 days anytime a dog’s diet is being changed to Halo. Their intestinal tract has a unique set of bacteria and enzymes that need to adjust to the proper digestion of the new food. Days 1-3, 75% old food, 25% Halo; Days 4-5 50% old food, 50% Halo, Days 6-7 25% old food, 75% Halo and then 100% Halo thereafter. If your dogs have any digestive upset during the transition, return to the amount that was not causing problems and keep them there for a few more days before continuing with the diet change. Once they are eating Halo, you can change between the flavors if you would like. There is no need for a transition period. However, you can also just stick with one flavor…personal preference.

Hope this helps.
Dr. Donna Spector

October 4th, 2009 by admin

For many there seems to be a real barrier to training their Dogs successfully. Hopefully this course of Dog training online posts will go some way to help once it is completed. Most of us want well trained Dogs but do we know what we are doing? Are we ever going to be successful in our endeavours?

If you have ever thought “I can’t train my Dog” then here are a number of reasons why you were right. All Dog owners will be guilty of a few of these (me included) and if you can rectify at  least some of these reasons then you will be on the road to having much better trained Dogs and a happier more controlled relationship.

11 Reasons Why You Can’t Train Your Dog

1. You completely fail to give adequate exercise. Do you take your Dog for two good walks each and every day? You should. The main factor in successful Dog training is adequate exercise. If a Dog has lots of energy it will never respond as well to your training.
2. You have a completely unsuitable Dog. This is tough but often true. You have a Dog but it is totally unsuited to the life you lead. If you have a Dog thats nature is to hunt but you live in a flat on the sixth floor maybe the Dog is not for you. It is harsh but you must be realistic or accept the consequences. Certain breeds need certain stimuli to keep the happy and well rounded. If your home life prevents you allowing the Dog to express its natural instincts you will always be fighting a losing battle.
3. You are too lazy. You just can’t gather the enthusiasm to do what you know you should. You find it a chore to teach your Dog to behave and would rather shout at it without doing anything constructive. No matter how much you read on this Dog blog you will simply never get around to spending the time needed to train your Dog properly. Your choice.
4. Your Dog is too lazy. You have a Dog that is simply too cool for school and simply does not want to be involved in activities that will benefit its behaviour. Some Dogs are simply lazy and, although rare, it does happen.
5. Your Dog is too fat. Unless it has a serious medical condition then this is entirely your fault. My largest Dog Faye would be fat if I did not monitor her food very carefully. She eats less than the other two Dogs by a large factor. Here genetics have simply made her a naturally heavy set Dog.If you feed scraps at meal times or have allowed your Dog to beg then it is your fault. Stop doing it and turn it in to part of your training.
6. You don’t let your Dog express its natural instincts. Some Dogs simply need to retrieve. It is at the core of what they are. You must use appropriate training that centres around your Dogs natural instincts. Use its natural tendencies and preferences to your advantage by basing training exercises around what it loves to do best. You will be much more successful this way.
7. You don’t stick with it. You try training your Dog for a while to perform a certain task but give up too soon. Always remember that some Dogs may take to training very quickly while others will take a seriously long time. If you don’t give up you will get here in the end.
8. You lose your temper. There is not a single person who lives with Dogs who has not totally lost their temper with them. Try keeping chilled when your Dogs have just eaten your Chickens that you allowed to escape. Even though you know they are bred from a mix of Spanish hunting hounds and who knows what else. You will always lose your temper on occasion but if all you do is shout and give off negative vibes you will not succeed as well. Try to keep calm whenever you can and things will go better in the long run.
9. You give off an air of defeat. You slump your shoulders, give a sigh and practically tell your Dog “I know this won’t work but lets try it anyway”. Dogs are very sensitive to moods and the energy you give off will greatly effect the success of your Dog training.
10. You simply aren’t very good at training Dogs. We can’t all be good at everything. Some people simply aren’t suited to training Dogs. This is, however, only the case for more advanced training. Anyone can get a Dog to be obedient to basic commands. Don’t use the “I’m no good at it” excuse to give up. That is your call and you live with the results.
11. You have a mad Dog. Dogs are bonkers at the best of times. Some Dogs, however, are inherently unstable and will never be what we would call normal. You may have to simply admit to the fact that you live with a mad mutt that has serious mental issues.

We will all be guilty of some of these and if we can find a way to improve on these negatives when it comes to training Dogs then life will be a lot better.

Stay tuned for the next round of Dog training online tips.

May the Doggie Force be with you all,

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Related posts:

1. Dog Training Online Episode 5 – Dog Training For Dummies
2. Online Dog Training Tip 12
3. Online Dog Training Tips Number 7 – Training Never Ends