March 2006
Prevention Plus
Subscribers Only
The Canine Central Nervous System
Subscribers Only What’s on your dog’s mind? You may never know, but it can be helpful to know at least a little something about his brain – and the rest of his central nervous system (CNS). The CNS describes the system of neurons formed by the spinal cord, brain stem, cerebellum, and cerebrum. This month’s installment of the Tour of the Dog focuses on the CNS, its diseases and disorders, and treatments for those ailments.
Fun Training Techniques for You and Your Canine!
This training technique can be used to get your dog to do just about anything. The best part is, it’s really fun for you and your dog! The shaping process works because behavior is variable. In any series of repetitions of a behavior, your dog will give you variations in the manner that the behavior is performed – faster/slower, bigger/smaller, higher/lower, harder/softer, etc. If you wanted to shape your dog for a perfect obedience competition sit – straight, fast, and in proper heel position — you’d break the behavior known as “Sit” into those three components and work on them one at a time, capitalizing on the variability of your dog’s behavior for each one.
Heartworm: Don’t Take it Lightly
Subscribers Only People have learned of the benefits of a natural diet and limited vaccinations, and have seen the health improvements in their dogs from these changes. Now, many want to know if they can discontinue administering heartworm preventatives to their dogs, or whether those can be replaced by natural options.
Training a Dependable "Stay"
Subscribers Only How to produce a completely dependable "stay" in your dog, no matter what the distraction. (Hint: It takes a lot of practice!) We were on our usual morning neighborhood walk. All of a sudden, three children on bikes sped past us on the sidewalk, racing each other on the way to school. The faster and older children raced around the corner, leaving the younger bicyclist in their dust.
Is Cancer Prevention for Dogs Possible?
What could be better than curing your dog’s cancer? That’s easy! How about avoiding the illness in the first place? No one has done any clinical trials or statistical studies that prove you can prevent cancer in at-risk dogs. “But common sense and clinical experience make a strong case for avoiding anything that exposes an animal to known carcinogens or weakens the immune system,” says Stacey Hershman, DVM, a holistic housecall veterinarian in Rockland County, New York.
