Search Results
5731 results for “dog ear CT”
Should You Hit Your Dog?
A dog trained mostly by hitting may obey, but it is not a happy dogâand hitting breeds fear, not understanding. Beatings leave a shadow: many hit dogs flinch at any hand ('hand-shyness'), fail the 'good citizen' test, and may bite when forced to be touched. The cycle worsens as strangers trigger growls that get punished. Instead of hitting, show authority without violence: interrupt bad behavior with a sharp 'no', push it off the bed, and build obedience through control of food and walks plus positive reinforcement. A well-socialized dog starts with never hitting.
Why Dogs Shake Toys Side to Side
Shaking a toy mimics killing preyâdogs' front paws are less dexterous than a cat's, so the head shake helps tear meat. But if a dog shakes not just plush toys but also furniture, doors, and floors, the owner likely isn't meeting its needs. Most destruction comes from unmet daily exercise or too little companionship. Separation anxiety makes it chew items smelling of you (shoes, socks). The real fix is the root cause: spend more time with the dogâone extra hour a day is a week of extra happiness for an indoor dog.
The Shaping Method in Dog Training
Shaping (successive approximation) builds a target behavior the dog can't do at once, by reinforcing each small step toward itârooted in Skinner's operant conditioning. It has linked stages (break the final act into sequential sub-goals, each reachable from the last, like 'comeâsitâdownâlieâstay') and gradual progression. Trainers reinforce each step and then withhold reward to fade it and move on, using extinction to advance. Start from the easiest move and build to the endpoint behavior.
Can Dogs Eat Cheese?
Cheese is a familiar food that boosts a dog's appetite and supplies calcium, but is it really suitable? Over 4,000 cheeses exist. Harms: overfeeding causes obesity, but more importantly cheese delivers high sodium and lactose. Cheese-making uses salt, and its sodium can cause high blood pressure and organ damage, so experts do not recommend feeding cheese long-term. Benefits: good protein; essential vitamins and minerals; rich calcium; vitamin A; B vitamins; healthy fatty acids. Avoid: blue cheese and other French cheesesâblue produces a toxin fatal to dogs (difficulty breathing, racing heart, then seizures; needs prompt stomach pumping) and has the highest sodium; cheeses with garlic or herbs (Havarti, even cream cheese); Brie and feta, the highest in saturated fat, which can trigger pancreatitis. Dogs to avoid cheese: overweight; lactose-intolerant (diarrhea); picky eaters (cheese won't fix appetite); those with digestive disease (a burden). Choose: low-fat cheese, and cottage cheese if possible (lowest fat and sodium)âalways read the label.
The Dangers of a Dog Holding Its Urine
Many owners know holding urine is harmful but aren't sure what counts as 'holding it.' Veterinary medicine offers two views: one links urination frequency to breed, sex, size, and health; the other says it depends entirely on the individualâdiet, activity, water, and age. Either way, puppies urinate more than adults. Cesar Millan notes a healthy dog makes 10â20 ml of urine per kg of body weight daily and an adult needs to urinate at least 3â5 times outdoors daily; puppies need more. Trained dogs learn to hold, but don't assume that's fineâfrequent holders are more prone to UTIs and urinary disease. Long holding lets stored urine contact the tract, causing infection and even stones; one study links a urinary carcinogen contacting tract cells for long periods to higher risk of some urinary cancers. No proven upper limit, but experts advise not exceeding 8 hours. Resulting diseases include UTIs (common in females), bladder stones (can block the urethraâemergency), aggressive bladder cancer, kidney failure, incontinence (spayed females), and prostate disease (males; blood in urine).
The Right Way to Feed Dog Treats
What makes a dog fat? Beyond excess kibble and too little exercise, the most common cause is treatsâtheir excess nutrition silently fattens your dog. So how many treats a day? AAFCO defines treats as not meeting daily nutritional needs but meant to encourage the dog and reinforce training. In reality dogs love high-fat, sugary things, so popular treats add lots of fat and sugarâthey are a double-edged sword: they make the dog obey but also make it fat. How many? No standard answer; age, health, and breed matter, but the international rule is treats under 10% of daily calories. Don't fret over the mathâmost treats should be given only 1â2 times daily. Types: high-nutrition treats (meat, cheese, liver) â 1 time daily; ordinary nutrition treats (biscuits that look light but are high-calorieâcheck the label) â 2 times daily. When to give: anytime, but the best time is between meals so calories release better; if your dog eats three meals, give in the afternoon, not at night.
How Climate Change Affects Dogs
Autumn is the most comfortable season, loved by people and dogs alike. Notice that whenever weather changes, a dog's mood shifts noticeably. Heat: most dogs grow listless in hot seasons, preferring the AC; short-nosed breeds lose many companions each summer, and double-coated dogs struggle (owners go mad from shedding)âthey need regular brushing for airflow. Cold: dogs turn lazy in severe cold, especially short-haired and lean breeds lacking insulation; long-haired and double-coated dogs thrive. Low pressure: dogs sense weather via air pressure and can foresee storms; the AVMA found pressure changes strongly affect behaviorârestlessness, even aggression, or unusual excitement before storms. This doesn't permanently change behavior, but comfort an intense reactor. Do dogs get depressed? A UK vet charity survey found 40% of UK dogs show winter mood drops, suspected of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD); affected dogs sleep more and move less, and sunny outdoor time (as in human SAD treatment) eased symptomsâbecause winter SAD comes from extra melatonin, the sleep hormone, which sunlight stops the pineal gland from releasing.
A Sudden Lump Appears on Your Dog
You may have experienced this: a dog that was fine a moment ago suddenly sprouts a big lump. Understandably worryingâ'is it cancer? a terminal disease? a bug bite?' Learn to judge the cause yourself. Reassurance first: most lumps are benign lipomas and not hard to manage. Causes include lipoma, sebaceous cyst, hematoma, and follicle infection. Many lumps appear and vanish quickly, but answer 7 questions before relaxing: appeared suddenly? slowly growing? smooth surface? uneven? moved recently? other lumps nearby? after it appeared, any appetite loss, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, or behavior change? More than 4 'yes' answers means see a vet at once. Urgent signs also include rapid growth, changing shape, very soft texture, hair loss around it, or color unlike skin. Treatment: benign lumps are not costly, but no vet can diagnose by feel aloneâresponsible ones aspirate tissue fluid and may run blood tests and X-rays, because accurate diagnosis needs multiple tests.
Why Dogs Get Puffed-Up Fur (Raised Hackles)
When a dog is angry, scared, or thrilled, the fur along its back may stand upâa reaction called piloerection, or 'raised hackles.' The fur around the neck is special: it has a strong self-restoring ability, so even after a long episode, it returns to normal once the dog calms; other body areas lack this. Some breeds show it more, some less, and the extent variesâneck only, neck-to-rump, or tail. A special muscle attached to the follicles pumps air between hairs to create the effect, and it is involuntary, part of instinct. The purpose is to look bigger, like cats, porcupines, and pufferfish. You can even read a dog's mindset from the pattern: a narrow band from neck to tail means confidence (and a higher chance of initiating attack); three-quarters of the neck raised means insecurity; neck and tail raised but the middle calm means confusionâthe best moment to build trust.
Why Does My Dog Urinate in the House?
When a normally clean adult dog urinates indoors while you are out, scolding and punishment aren't the only responses to considerâwhy is your adult dog doing this? Puppies peeing inside is just the cost of dog ownership, so we focus on adults. Occasional accidents are normal ('nature calls'), but frequent, repeated indoor urination deserves attention, because it brings urine odor and possibly other problems. Medical causes: urinary disease (often a UTI causing random urination, usually treatable with medication); incontinence (dribbling or peeing while sleeping points to incontinence, treatable early with medication; large-area urination suggests something worseâsee a vet); senior dogs (canine cognitive dysfunction makes them forget where they are, causing accidents). If your dog is healthy and not old, the cause is behavioral: intact males may mark after sexual maturityânormalâbut a dog that never peed inside suddenly doing so may be stressed by household changes (a new member, a departure, new smelly or noisy objects). To change it: don't yellâcatching the act in the moment matters, not the old puddle; remove or relocate the trigger; and clean thoroughly with an enzymatic cleaner that fully removes the odor so the dog doesn't remark the spot.