heart+disease/feed/rss2/Rawhide%20chews%20are%20potentially%20dangerous%20because%20they%20can%20be%20a%20choking%20hazard%20or%20cause%20gastrointestinal%20obstructions%20if%20your%20dog%20manages%20to%20chew%20off%20a%20piece%20that%20is%20small%20enough%20to%20swallow,%20but%20too%20large%20to%20pass%20unimpeded.%20In%20addition,%20some%20rawhide%20chews%20are%20hard%20enough%20to%20break%20or%20damage%20teeth. - search results

In any given month, we have a number of new subscribers – people who are opening the pages of Whole Dog Journal for the first time. They may have heard about us from a friend, trainer, or breeder. They may have been told that we review commercial foods and discuss home-prepared diets. Or they may have heard that we're a great source of information about dog-friendly training, and offer honest product reviews. They may have learned about Whole Dog Journal when doing a web search for holistic treatments for a vexing health problem afflicting their dog. Within an issue or two or three, they should see that, indeed, we offer all that. But new readers may not realize right away what they won't find in WDJ.

Feed your dog raw honey rather than processed honey so that your dog receives all the nutritional benefits it has to offer. Raw honey is known to improve allergies in dogs, soothe kennel cough, help dogs' digestive systems and more! Raw honey is strained to remove debris, but that's it. It's otherwise as natural as you can get. Shop at the farmer's market or do an Internet search for local beekeepers. Processed honey, on the other hand, is manufactured with heat, which thins it and destroys many of its beneficial attributes.

If your dog has arthritis or is recovering from an injury or has a condition that restricts her range of motion, a variety of assistance devices ranging from simple to sophisticated can help her live a more comfortable, active life. Steps and ramps are affordable, portable aids for dogs who need help getting onto or off of furniture or into and out of vehicles. For dogs with neck or spine injuries or osteoarthritis, elevated food and water bowls may help reduce pain (or anxiety about pain) from reaching down to eat or drink from low bowls.

Carrot Seed (Daucus carota). Skin care, first aid, healing, scarring,skin conditions. Super gentle.Cedarwood, Atlas (Cedrus atlantica). Improves circulation,helps deter fleas. Skin care.Chamomile, German (Matricaria recutita). Also called bluechamomile. Skin-soothing anti-inflammatory. Burns, allergicreactions, skin irritations.Chamomile, Roman (Anthemis nobilis). Intensely calming andantispasmodic. Wound care, teething pain.Clary sage (Salvia sclarea). Different from common garden sage.Gentle, sedating, calming

Each essential oil has a chemical category that may have several different effects. Aromatherapy is a modern healing art, and the therapeutic quality of essential oils is still being discovered. In other words, aromatherapy is a complex subject that deserves careful study and expert guidance. There are many ways to deliver essential oils into your dog's environment. Essential oils – the volatile substances of aromatic plants – are collected, usually by steam distillation, from leaves, blossoms, fruit, stems, roots, bark, or seeds. The water that accompanies an essential oil during distillation is called a hydrosol or flower water. Hydrosols contain trace amounts of essential oil and are themselves therapeutic.

Exercise is essential for dogs of all ages. It helps maintain muscle tone, a healthy weight, joint flexibility, good circulation, and overall health and happiness – but when movement causes pain, it's only natural to slow down or stay still. That creates a vicious cycle in which inactivity contributes to pain, pain reinforces inactivity, and the dog's health deteriorates.

Last week, I was stressed with too many demands on my time, and trying to finish the December issue in time to travel to Florida for a dog trainer's conference (the Pet Professional Guild). But Woody (my adolescent dog) and even Otto, my 9-year-old solid (canine) citizen, were both telling me they needed a run. So, instead of taking them out for an hours-long hike, as I prefer to do, I headed for a school field I know, to throw a ball for them for a while, instead.

A friend called a little while before I left and asked if I was walking that evening. When I told her my alternative plan, she asked if she could meet me with her dogs. Sure, why not?

My close friends know that I have been looking for the perfect dog for my dog-crazy seven-year-old niece Ava and her mom for some time - and that this is in contrast to my usual stance in opposition to the whole concept of the "perfect" dog. I don't believe that dogs should be expected to come into a home that may not meet their needs very well and yet not cause a single ripple in the fabric (literal and figurative) of that home, any more than one would expect a new baby or adopted child or even an elderly relative to fit in seamlessly to a new home. In my view, adjustments and accommodations should be made on all sides, with respect for all the parties' needs considered, in order to make the relationships and living situation work for everyone. So, for example, when you bring home a Border Collie or German Shepherd Dog, you'd better accept - nay, embrace - the exercise and mental stimulation needs of that dog, if you want him to be happy, and you can be happy with him. At a minimum, you will likely have to carve out a significant chunk of time in your day to devote to physical and mental exercise for the dog, and you may well have to do some problem-solving if it turns out that the dog develops problem behavior/s, such as separation anxiety, counter-surfing, urine marking, barking, chewing, over-excitement with guests, etc., etc.

While it’s true that some herbs recommended for use with canine arthritis have drug-like actions, including contraindications and potentially adverse side effects, the plants mentioned here are easily acquired from reputable sources, widely used, and safe for most dogs. The descriptions that follow include safety notes as applicable.

Recently, a trainer friend asked me if I would be interested in volunteering my adolescent dog, Woody, to be a participant in some sort of nose work workshop. My friend was asking on behalf of another trainer she knew, and she vouched for her friend, saying that Woody would have a good time and that she thought it would be interesting for me. I didn't have time to get the details on what the workshop was, but quickly I agreed to the date – a week away, on a day when I would have ample time. It could not have been more fascinating.I attended just a few hours that one day, which was part of a six-day certification program for people who were learning how to teach dogs to detect cancer in noninvasive medical samples: blood, urine, and breath.

not "acting out."üSome dogs may be merely vigilant about the arrivals and departures of their humans until a traumatic event (such as a household move or the loss of a family member) triggers a major shift into dramatically anxious behavior."

The following pet food companies not only offer wet dog foods that meet our ingredient selection criteria, but also provided Whole Dog Journal with independent, third-party laboratory nutritional analyses of their dog foods – analyses confirming that their canned dog foods are not just formulated to meet