Ballinduh

I read this article that talks about "de-barking" your dog and how these people from Coalition to Protect and Rescue Pets started a petition to the AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Association) asking to alter its position and stand firm against devocalization surgery for dogs and cats.

I think it's cruel and inhumane. There is absolutely no reason to devocalize your pet. It's part of how they communicate with you and everything around them. If you don't have the time or skill to correct the behavior of constant barking, then you don't deserve to have a dog. It makes me sad that people can even think of this.

What's your view on de-barking? Is it cruel or is it humane because it conveniences you?

ARTICLE HERE: http://www.lifewithdogs.tv/2012/11/petition-agains...

I've had dogs before, but this one loves licking my legs after I get out of the shower. She's not thirsty or anything because she constantly has access to water. Even after I dry my legs off, she still licks them. She'll follow me around, licking my legs, until I put pants on.

She's taking a nap right now, and our scheduled walk is in about 10 minutes. Should I keep with the schedule and walk her or wait until she wakes up?

We live in a wooded area, and my cat is indoor/outdoor. She's a longhair and she always comes inside mildly dirty to really dirty. Burrs are also always stuck to her fur and I have to pick them out because she won't. I brush her every other day if not every day, and sometimes there's just so much dirt. She has a lot of white on her too.

Would it be okay to bathe her once or month or every 2 months?

I should add that I used to have to bathe her once a week when she was a kitten because she wouldn't clean herself, so bathing her wouldn't be anything new.

Or am I just lucky?

She's 11 weeks and sleeps the entire night without having to use the bathroom. She doesn't sleep in a crate, but on her bed on the floor next to my bed. I got to bed between 11 and midnight and she comes with me. I let her out to use the bathroom right before bed. She sleeps all night and wakes up between 6:30 - 7:20 (my alarm is set for 7:20) and if she wakes up before my alarm, I usually hear her cuz she does the shake and starts trying to jump on my bed. She uses the bathroom when we get outside.

She's been able to sleep the entire night for 2 and a half weeks now.

Today I went to the pet store to get some dog supplies and decided to take a look at the puppies that they had there. For the record, I would never purchase a puppy from a pet store/shop. To me, it's wrong and I know all about the puppy mills and stuff, that's a totally different subject. Anyways, the puppies themselves looked pretty healthy on the outside which is always good. (Hate going to see puppies that look sick). I was appalled to see that they had breeds in there that aren't usually in pet stores! Great Danes, Akitas, A RHODESIAN RIDGEBACK! They're starting to get to more "rarer" breeds that aren't popular with families and I was completely surprised. I was also appalled to see that their mixes were so expensive. An english/french bulldog mix was over $2k! According to this pet store, they say that their puppies come from reputable breeders, but I obviously don't believe that for a second. I was pretty disgusted and didn't stay long.

What are your views on pet stores/shops that have puppies, or even small animals? Do you think it's okay to purchase puppies, kittens, or small animals (rodents, birds, reptiles) from a pet store?

Note: I should also add that the puppies are displayed in 4 large glass rooms according to their size. And they play/sleep together.

Today I went to the pet store to get some dog supplies and decided to take a look at the puppies that they had there. For the record, I would never purchase a puppy from a pet store/shop. To me, it's wrong and I know all about the puppy mills and stuff, that's a totally different subject. Anyways, the puppies themselves looked pretty healthy on the outside which is always good. (Hate going to see puppies that look sick). I was appalled to see that they had breeds in there that aren't usually in pet stores! Great Danes, Akitas, A RHODESIAN RIDGEBACK! They're starting to get to more "rarer" breeds that aren't popular with families and I was completely surprised. I was also appalled to see that their mixes were so expensive. An english/french bulldog mix was over $2k! According to this pet store, they say that their puppies come from reputable breeders, but I obviously don't believe that for a second. I was pretty disgusted and didn't stay long.

What are your views on pet stores/shops that have puppies, or even small animals? Do you think it's okay to purchase puppies, kittens, or small animals (rodents, birds, reptiles) from a pet store?

Thanks!

Or lips or anywhere inside their mouths?

Last night, my puppy started crying in pain. I immediately went to see what was wrong. I opened up her mouth and she cried again, but I kept it open to see if she swallowed something. I didn't see anything so I pet her and she just looked at me. She had the hiccups for about 30 seconds. She then went and got a drink of water and started playing again.

My friend was watching her while I was on the computer and he said she was chewing on her toy. So I figured it might have something to do with her swallowing something, but I didn't see anything chewed off on her toy.

She was acting normal this morning and was eating and drinking fine.

I was just reading an article on lifewithdogs.tv and it said that it can be dangerous to kiss your dog (or cat) because humans and dogs can share the bacteria from our mouths. Quoted: "The study demonstrates that germs can spread easily between a human and a dog by kissing. Some of the bacteria that is spread can lead to periodontitis, a severe form of gum disease." I for one, have been kissing animals since I was young and never once have gotten sick from my dogs and vice versa.

So I was wondering, do you kiss your dogs?

The article is here: http://www.lifewithdogs.tv/2012/10/new-study-warns...

My puppy is 10 weeks old, and I'm finding it hard to find a suitable dog park in my area that allows puppies under 4 months. Is it a good idea to bring a puppy her age to the dog park?

Seeing as my puppy is a basenji, and they have little to no undercoat, I got her a small sweater to wear. Where I live in New England, it's starting to get really chilly, especially in the mornings and evenings when we go for a walk. She shivers like crazy on our walks! She doesn't seem to like the sweater. She either sits there and looks at me and doesn't come or play, or when we go for a walk, she sits on her butt and looks at me. Once I take it off, she's the perfect puppy that she is; bouncing around and playing and walking on her leash fine. It seems like she would rather shiver than be warm!

Are there suggestions anyone has so I can keep her warm on our walks?

My puppy is 9 weeks. I made the mistake of mixing some "puppy" canned food with her dry kibble since she wasn't eating her dry kibble. She ate almost everything and then later today she had diarrhea. When is it okay to feed a puppy wet canned food? Before I got her, she was fed a tablespoon or 2 of plain yogurt, would it be okay to mix that in with her kibble instead of the canned food?

My 9 week old puppy finished eating and then went straight to her bed. Her tummy is making these gurgling noises. She wasn't eating her food before, but she was eating the cat food (whenever she could sneak some) and treats just fine. So I mixed in some wet puppy food with her dry food and she ate most of it. Am I being a worry mommy or is her tummy just upset or is she just digesting?