Best Pet Supplies

The dog owner can do much to help a dog’s haircoat achieve its full potential and to keep it in good condition: feed a good quality nutritionally complete and balanced dog food; keep the dog free of internal and external parasites and maintain a regular grooming schedule with the appropriate pet grooming equipment.

Grooming your dog not only helps him/her look their best at all times, but also helps keep them clean and healthy.

Grooming sessions are an excellent time to assess your dog’s health. Learn what is normal for your dog, what characteristics distinguish him. Changes in appearance or behavior may be signs of illness. If a dog displays constant problems such as itching, sudden loss of hair, inflamed areas, any signs of tenderness or lumps under the skin, a veterinarian should be consulted.

A dog who is accustomed to grooming will be more at ease when he is examined or treated by a veterinarian.

The kind of grooming routine you establish for your dog will depend on how much time the dog spends outside, weather conditions and whether the dog is a longhaired or shorthaired breed.

Shorthaired breeds should be groomed two to three times a week. Longhaired breeds require daily grooming. Many terrier breeds require periodic plucking to remove dead hairs and to give them a trim appearance with careful brushing and combing between pluckings.

If your dog’s haircoat requires complicated grooming, you may want to have it done professionally. However, trips to the groomer’s are not adequate to maintain a healthy, handsome haircoat. Your dog still needs to be brushed and combed regularly between professional grooming sessions.

Playing “fetch” games provides some good exercise for your puppy. It also provides a good way to get those toys back so you don’t end up getting all the exercise. In the beginning, roll the fetch toy away from the puppy and let him get it. When he picks it up, say, “Fetch!” so he begins to associate the command with the action. Then praise him with an excited voice.As he gets older, throw the toy a little farther. When he brings it back, give lots of praise and let your puppy play with the toy for a few minutes so he gains some benefit from his effort of retrieving it. If he doesn’t bring it back, use a long lead attached to his collar. Gently reel your puppy in with the toy and praise him for coming back. Touch him, but avoid his head so he doesn’t think you’re going to immediately take the toy from him. Some puppies enjoy the chase of the toy and retrieving it and want you to throw it back immediately. Others want the toy with less chasing and retrieving.Once he’s had a minute or so to play with the toy, puppy may drop it on his own. If he does, say ‘Drop’ to reinforce the behavior. If he doesn’t drop it on his own, get a light grip on the toy and give the command to drop. Praise him when he lets go of it and throw it again.

Prevent puppy from chewing and destroying your house and belongings by providing proper training and chew toys. Afterall, chewing and playtime are part of normal puppy growth and development.

DO

-Provide several of a variety of toys for your puppy. -Teach your puppy to play with these toys.-Praise puppy every time you see him chewing or playing with his toys on his own.-Teach your puppy to get a toy to greet you. Each time your pup runs up to greet you or anyone else, encourage him to find and get a toy. All humans, especially the owners should always be greeted by a dog with toy in mouth.-Any area that the pup has access to must be kept clear and clean. Put out of puppy’s reach anything you don’t want him to chew or destroy, such as trash, shoes, hazards, etc. Your dog does not know what is valuable or dangerous and what is not.-If you find your puppy with your best shoe in mouth, distract him away from it and replace the shoe with one of his toys. Praise him for chewing his toy. Do not reprimand him for chewing your shoe. Reprimand yourself for leaving it out where he could find it.-Booby traps items and articles to show your puppy that these things are no fun to chew, in fact, they are an annoyance even to touch.

Deciding to adopt or purchase a puppy for the very first time is a joyous experience that comes hand in hand with a lot of hard work. Although cute and cuddly, puppies are just like human babies in that they require constant care and attention. Prepare yourself for the yipping and whining as a wet nose pokes you in the middle of the night. And don’t forget about the fact that a puppy needs to be walked every hour as he learns to control his bladder.

When you do take your pup for a walk, you’ll want to make sure that you have purchased one of the many available dog leads. Also like children, puppies don’t know not to run out in the street or simply not to run off at all. By keeping your dog under your control he will begin to understand that you are his master. Pretty soon you’ll have him trained to pick up his leash in his mouth and sit by the door when he wants to go for a walk. Imagine that!

There are so many different coats, jackets, and hoodies that are a must for keeping your beloved dog or puppy warm in cold or wet weather.  You have many options bcause there is a wide variety of colors, styles, and sizes that are available.  You can go classic college style sweaters, vintage 60’s, camo, knit, or anything you can think of for all types of dog apparel.  Boots protect your pet’s paws from not only the elements, but from salt, stones, and rough terrain.  There are raincoats, hoodies, and tee shirts for all tastes and all sizes of dogs and puppies.  All pet parents want their pets to be safe and protected from the elements when they go outside for whatever reason and you can find any kind of dog apparel to fit your needs and your pet’s needs at First Rate Pets where you can shop and get friendly expert advice about pets at anytime.

Most all dogs love to go for rides in the car with their owners. Car restraint harnesses made especially for dogs are not only stylish but will keep your beloved dog safe by keeping him safely in the seat and preventing him from trying to get on your lap while you are driving which is very dangerous and could cause an accident.  It also keeps him from sliding around in the vehicle if you should have to make a sudden stop or turn.  Many harnesses are made for either taking your dog for a walk and can also be used in most vehicles using the seatbelt which is very economical and smart!  You should also keep in mind that  you shouldn’t leave your pet in a vehicle during hot weather as it can get over 120 degress inside very fast which could cause heat exhaustion and even death. 

Most people don’t really think about how important dental hygiene is for their dogs or cats.  It’s been stated by veterinarians that approximately 70% of cats and 80% of dogs have some form of gingivits by the time they are 3 years old.  If it is left untreated, this disease can also destroy gums, teeth, and supporting structure just like in humans and it will also cause very foul breath.   If allowed to go on too long, serious problems such as irreversible bone loss, chronic pain, continuous foul breath, and even eye problems if a tooth abscesses can occur.

The only sure way to prevent plaque buildup and dental disease and to keep that bad breath away is to make cleaning your pet’s teeth a frequent routine just like grooming routines.  There are so many dental products to make it easy for you to clean your pet’s teeth such as dental gel which is made especially for pets and doesn’t have to be rinsed out.  There are also great toothbrushes in a variety of styles made just for pets.

Maintaining your pet’s dental health is another way to help make sure your pet lives a long happy and healthy life, after all we want to keep them around for as long as possible!

For most pet owners, trimming their pet’s nails can be intimidating but it doesn’t have to be.  There are many good reasons you should keep your pet’s nails trimmed.  Untrimmed nails can cause a variety of problems for your dog:

• Untrimmed nails can break causing pain and bleeding
• Long nails can affect the way your dog walks causing strain on his legs and hips
• Long term overgrown nails can actually contribute to the development of arthritis
• The quick of a dog’s nails actually grows with the nail making it more difficult to trim their nails shorter without causing pain and bleeding

There are many different types of trimmers for your pet’s nails and each has it’s own advantages.  The important thing is to take your time while trimming your pet’s nails making sure you and your pet are relaxed and not in too big of a hurry.  Trimming nails that are white are the easiest to trim as you can see where the quick is and hopefully not cut into it.  Most dogs have white nails and black nails which are more difficult to trim.  Usually you can use one of your dog’s white nails as a guide as to how short you can trim the black nails.

If your pet’s nails have grown rather long, there’s still hope.  Start out by trimming just a little bit off until you can see a dark, round, moist looking disk in the center of the nail.  This indicates you are getting close to the quick.  Repeat this about every week, and the quick will gradually get shorter.  If your dog’s nails have grown so long that it is causing health problems, consulting a veterinarian should be done.

Once you get your dog’s nails manageable, nail clipping should be done about once a month or when you notice that they are interfering with his normal walk using good quality dog nail clippers.

One last point to remember is to keep lots of treats for your dog close at hand so you can reward him when he allows you to trim his nails.  He’ll soon think of nail trimming as a good thing because he get’s lots of treats and attention when he’s being good.

Your dog always loves to play with all kinds of toys, but these days it’s important to make those toys last!  You should always have different types of toys for your pet to play with such as chewing toys for puppies or big chewers, hide and seek toys to keep them active and challenged, soft plush toys for having fun and for babying, and of course the all important interactive toys where you and your pet can have lots of active personal play time!  The key is to only let your pet have a couple of toys at a time for a week or so  and then rotate them to different toys for another week.  Your pet will be amazed and they will think they’re getting new toys all of the time!  It will save lots of wear and tear on your pet’s toys and will keep them interested in playing with their toys thus keeping them from chewing up or playing with things they shouldn’t.  Always make sure that the toys you buy are suitable for your pet’s size and activity level.  One last important note:  Dog toys are very important in keep your pet happy, active, and enjoying themselves and for enjoying playtime with you.  There is no end to the kind of dog toys you can find to suit your taste and your dog’s preferences.