Bathing your dog

I typically only bathe my dogs during the hot months or when one of them has played in the mud in the spring. The rest of the year they just get brushed out and groomed by me. The larger dogs I tie up on the lawn and use dog shampoo and the garden hose, minus a tub.

I see lots of photos showing people washing their dogs outdoors in a tub and I wonder why. It is so much easier to do without a tub. Now if the tub was elevated so you didn't have to bend over then that would be a good idea. They do make wash tubs for dogs that are on stands and some of them are walk in tubs for the larger breeds of dogs so you don't have to lift them up. Those types of tubs are usually for the professional groomer and can cost thousands of dollars.

There was a do it yourself dog grooming place where I use to live 7 years ago. It was called "Wash a dog, doggy" or something like that. They had human bath tubs set up with rings on the wall to tie your dog to while bathing your dog. I think the business closed after 3 years and I can see why. The customers had to sit down or bend over to wash their dog. It was almost the same as washing your dog in the bathtub at home. So why pay $5-10 to use their tubs? They had a good idea but the design was all wrong.

Bathing your dog should be easy, cheap, quick and not physically painful for you or the dog.

Dog owners are not made of money

The products that I have seen made and marketed to dog owners have run the gambit from great to useless and everywhere in between. One of them that starts out as a great idea is the Dirty Dog Bath Tub (pictured below). It looks like a neat item - doesn't it? That is until you find out the price.


The price for the tub is $65!! Heck I'll stick to the bathtub or get one of those big tubs with the rope handles you can get for $9 or less at Walmart. Dog products should not cost and arm and a leg.

Now there are some really great products for dogs out there and one of them is the hip support brace, shown below.
Now that item is great for dogs that have hip problems and still need to get out and exercise. I wish dog product manufacturers would concentrate on inventing items that dog owners need and not try to make something that can be replaced by something else (like the dog bath).

Chemicals and your dog

I once had a litter of puppies and sold one of them to a young couple who owned an auto body shop. About 9 months later they called me to complain that the dog was nuts. I had them bring the dog back as she was one of my favorites of the litter and I did not want to sell her in the first place (the couple begged and begged for her).

After a few hours at my home the dog started running around like crazy and would not stop. She ran around the property at full speed for almost 2 hours. We finally caught her and she had run the pads off of her paws off and they were bleeding. She then went into full blown seizures. Off to the emergency vet we went. We got her there but after 1 hour the vet came back to us and told us she had died. The vet filled out the cause of death as poisoning as the dog was exhibiting all the symptoms of exposure to a poison.

After confronting the couple I found out that the dog had gotten into some of the industrial supplies at the shop. It was the paint thinner she was exposed to over the course of the 9 months since they first bought her from me. The dog was taken to the auto body shop each day and often left in the side yard of the shop overnight. I checked out the side yard some months later and found that they used it as a dumping area for questionable chemicals that they did not want to properly dispose of. They had killed her by exposing her to chemicals that were either absorbed through her paws or she licked up off of the ground.

Her death was a horrible and painful one. I hope never to see a dog die that way again.

Your dog and water

Is your dog safe around lakes, swimming pools and other deep areas of water? Contrary to popular belief not all dogs can swim. Some dogs even panic when tossed into the family swimming pool. If your dog is out of shape, swimming could lead to their drowning.

Introduce your dog to swimming slowly. Play fetch over a body of water to encourage the dog to enter the water and play in it. If you plan on taking your dog out with you on your boat either get a life jacket or rent one for the day. One place near us called Outer Banks rentals not only rents out boats on the lake for the day but life jackets for humans and dogs.

Of course there are dogs that simply do not like water at all. I had a Labrador Retriever that would not go near water. She even stayed away from our swimming pool. After having her I know that the love of water is not breed specific but up to the individual dog.

Dog breeds - the Labradoodle

Now before you get your knickers in a twist, yes I know that the Labradoodle is currently a cross breed in the USA. In Australia where the breed was developed in the 1980's it is a different story. There it is considered a breed with breed standards. It officially became a breed in 2004. In Australia the Labradoodle was actually a mixture of several different breeds, not just a Labrador Poodle cross. The other breeds that are recognized as parent breeds are: Poodle (Standard, Miniature, Toy), Labrador Retriever, Irish Water Spaniel, Curly Coat Retriever, American Cocker Spaniel and the English Cocker Spaniel.

In Australia they have some pretty strict guidelines for the Labradoodle breed. They even recognize the fact that Labradoodles are prone to certain genetic disorders and require DNA testing of ALL Labradoodles to prevent the spread of the mutated genes. In fact any signs of lameness is a disqualification from the breed.

Labradoodles are shown in Australia and they must conform to the breed standards. There are major faults at which the dog being shown can be disqualified. The very top of the list is temperament. If a dog shows signs of aggression or is overly timid or shy it can be disqualified. Other faults in the breed are a coat that sheds, any sign of an under coat, a short thick neck or being an albino. Of course those are only just a few of the faults. The breed also has size limits and coat types.

The Australian Labradoodle Club also is aware that backyard breeders would want to cash in on this new breed and they have in acted strict guidelines for anyone wishing to become a breeder. First they assign a mentor breeder to help the new breeder understand the breed, it's standards and the clubs code of ethics. Now if that took place here in the USA, along with the DNA testing then the Labradoodle would be recognized as a breed in no time.

Breeding of the Labradoodle in Australia also has to follow strict guidelines. The offspring of the cross is only considered a "purebred" after 6 generations. The Poodle can reintroduced into the bloodline a limit of twice in those 6 generations and it is the only breed that can be reintroduced.

All registered Labradoodles must be microchiped and or tattooed as well as being DNA tested for genetic mutations and bloodlines.

Now if only we could get that type of dog breed association here in the USA for any of the dog breeds then we could put puppy mills out of business as well as many unscrupulous breeders trying to make a fast buck.

Health insurance for your dog

Did you know that you could get health insurance for your dog? Your local vet can tell you the insurance plans that they honor so you don't have to shop around for insurance quotes. What you will need to find out is what each plan covers. Some plans just cover major medical for your dog and others cover vaccinations a well pet visits.

Become a veterinarian

My dream career as a child was to become a veterinarian. At the time it was extremely hard to get into the university, there was a waiting list for the program as well as only straight "A" students were being considered. Money was not part of the equitation since you first had to have the grades and then the money.

Nowadays the system is so much different. With the internet you can even acquire Online master degrees at such places like Gonzaga University. More and more older people are considering going back to school and changing careers entirely. I am one of those at the crossroads of my working career. I probably won't opt for a master's degree or even fulfill my dream of becoming a veterinarian but I might be a support specialist for an animal hospital or turn to a medical career.

Obesity in dogs

I am sure you have seen a fat dog or 2. Maybe even your own dog is fat. Did you know that obesity is now a growing concern for dogs? Dogs have short enough lives as it is with some dog breeds only living to 9 years old. At the age of about 7 years most dogs are turning grey around the muzzle and are middle aged. Add to that any extra weight on the dog and now you have a dog that will have a shorter life expectancy than normal for that breed.

In recent years there have been a few diet pills just made for dogs but it is still too early to tell which is the best diet pills that work. The best way is to quick overfeeding the obese dog. Don't give in to those soft begging eyes.

What you name your dog tells people about you

What names a person comes up with for their dogs often lets other people know what kind of person they are. Off the wall names like XX (double ex), crevax or laxative let people know that the person who named the dog has a fun but bizarre side to them. Human names like Mike, Katie or Sam let people know you are a down to earth person. People who name their dogs Spot, Dog or Rover simply lack imagination or don't think that the dog is very important in their family.

Most people name their dogs with a touch of personal individuality. The dog is either named after a favorite fictional character, historical person or favorite place. Even if the dog has a registered name they also have a "call" name for everyday use.

What did you name your dog?