All about Dogs - Dog Breeds and Dog Names

From time immemorial names were chosen to describe the attributes of people or animals. In some cultures names are changed when a child reaches puberty. This is because a tiny baby is basically featureless and characterless. All that the parents can do is name it after a family member or a character trait they hope the child will have. At puberty a person has emerged with a definite character and personality.Of course this doesn't always happen with animals, although it is not unknown. A tiny puppy starting off as "Titch" can easily emerge as "Tiger" or "Brutus" later!Quite apart from the dog breed, the name you give your dog says a lot about you and your own personality. If you have a sense of humour you might call your black pooch, "Snowy" or your ferocious Rottweiller, "Sweet Pea" or your timid, shivering Whippet, "Buster", or your Chihuahua "Hercules".A down-to-earth type of personality, you might call your dog, "Sam", or "Joe" or "Bobby". Most human boy and girl names can be adapted to animals too.A more dramatic, artistic or colourful person, you might choose names like "Vincent", "Ponsonby", "Ajax", "Darth Vader", "Conan", "Twilight", or "Montmorency". Literature and the movies are full of famous dogs and ideas for dog names.A mischievous dog owner might name their dog after their best friend, or worst enemy, a politician, or a person involved in a delicious scandal.If you decide on dog adoption, the chances are that you will get a full grown, or partly grown dog.

These usually have decided bodily characteristics and personalities of their own already.You simply pick out your dog's dominant characteristics and find a nice, descriptive word for it that sounds right. These are often such names as "Freckles", "Ginger", "Rascal", "Frisky", "Droopy" or "Fluffy".As with choosing names for human babies, many people find out the origins of names, and choose those with appealing meanings.Some of these are, "Fido" meaning "faithful", "Felix", meaning "happy", "Sam" meaning "listener", "Ava", "like a bird", and "Ethan" meaning "firm and strong".If you choose a pure bred puppy you may find that different dog breeds tend to have their own style of naming. Most show dogs usually have long, sometimes quite spectacular, registered names. They usually include the kennel or breeder name followed by each puppy's unique name. Frequently the dog has a more homely name as well, for every day use. Sometimes there are three or even four names, such as "Miss Margaret of Marhue" (called "Maggie" at home)It is very common for breeders to name their litters alphabetically, such as "Gregorex Abigail", "Gregorex Amber", "Gregorex Alex", etc, for the first litter, and then for the second: "Gregorex Blue Peter", "Gregorex Blarney", and "Gregorex "Belinda".

The third litter would follow with "C" for each puppy's unique name.Different breeds sometimes have characteristic names for registered dogs. It is typical for German Shepherd Dogs, Rottweilers, and Dobermans to have German names, such as "Fritz", "Dieter", or "Gisela".Australian Cattle dogs frequently have Aboriginal, or other typically Australian names, like "Alkina" (the moon) "Ryshia" (love and peace) "Dainan" (kind), or "Sydney".The purebred dogs on the British Isles originate from different areas, such as Scottish Terriers from Scotland, Irish Setters from Ireland, and various Spaniels from England. Often the owners, in recognition of their dogs' origins give them names associated with those areas. Border Collies traditionally have one-syllable names, such as "Ross", "Skye", "Zest" or "Fly".Every country in the world has its own breeds of dogs, sometimes with names from their own country or language, sometimes with names that just appeal to the owners.

All about Dogs - Dog Grooming

If you are going to groom your dog, go online to your pet supplies and pet stores and order some basic grooming tools. If your dog is short haired, a curry brush/comb or a curry brush is fine. Longer haired dogs need a slicker brush, a pin brush and if they are moulting, an undercoat rake. You also get de-shedding tools and blades which remove loose hair easily. You may also need a flea comb to check whether he has picked up fleas, especially if he has been near other dogs. Your pet supply store will have all sorts of remedies for fleas.Start brushing your dog from as early an age as possible so that he gets really used to it. If you have an older dog unused to brushing, be really gentle and sensitive to him. Let him get to know the dog grooming tools before you even touch him with them. Pet and reward him constantly.Even if your dog is going to a doggy parlour for grooming, you should get him used to the process before he is handled by strangers.Really short haired dogs may not need brushing more than once a month unless they go into mud or into a really dirty environment.Longer haired dogs usually need brushing every week.

If your long haired dog is inside your home a lot, you may even want to brush him daily to prevent hair loss all over your carpets.Do just a little brushing at first each day and before you know it he will love the experience. Many dogs get all excited and jump around in anticipation when you take out their grooming tools.You will also need cloths, paper towelling, and cotton wool for cleaning eyes, ears and anal area. You can go to YouTube or your local pet parlour to see how to express the anal glands. This must be done or it can cause blockage and discomfort and even infection. If your dog has not developed years of plaque build up on his teeth, you can clean them yourself with a special brush and toothpaste developed for dogs, or wipes or a glove. Most dogs prefer the wipes or toothbrush-glove to having a brush forced into their mouths.Otherwise take him to a vet to have them cleaned the first time. After this you should be able to clean them yourself. It is estimated that up to 80% of dogs have dental caries and gum disease. A great way to help prevent this is to give your dog a special dog chew.

My dogs just bury them! But if you soak them well in tasty gravy then freeze them, they will enjoy a good chew! Some people give their dogs large frozen bones, but beware, even large bones can be crunched up and cause blockages. In some countries really huge ostrich bones are available.His nails should be kept trimmed and you need a dog nail clipper. If you take your dog for regular long walks, his nails may not need clipping. Metalled or tarred roads especially keep the nails beautifully short. If you do cut them, until you are more experienced, rather take off too little than too much. Remember, if the dog's nails have been allowed to get really long, the quick, or live part, seems to get longer too. So just cut a little off each week until they are normal length.If he has very matted hair you may need to cut out thick matting with blunt tipped scissors.If you bathe your dog, use special dog shampoo and, if possible, a dog dryer.

Ordinary hair dryers can cause burns, so you need to be careful if you use them. Dogs need to get gradually used to these as most dogs hate them at first. If it is warm weather, just a towel will be enough. Beware though, dogs tend to look for the dirtiest place to go for a roll after their baths! I like to take my dog out for a long walk to dry off properly and forget about the rolling.

Nutrition Can Ruin a Dog's Oral Health

Your dog is your best possible friend. Each time you pass through the door your dog is so happy to see you that he wags his tail and practically smiles at you. How will you show your dog just how much it means to you? Well, a method is to take care of that smile for the dog. Do you realize that the dog's nutrition may influence it's health?People ought to brush and floss their teeth as often as appropriate to keep their teeth, tongue, and gums healthy. Research has recently shown a link between good oral health in humans and a noticeably lower risk of heart disease. If good oral health can have this profound effect on people, then it only makes sense to think about the impact it can have on man's best friend.It is important to brush your pet's teeth frequently to prevent plaque and tartar from becoming an issue. Even wiping his gums with a clean, damp cloth may be of help.

Your dog's nutrition also plays a role in it's oral health. Do you typically feed your dog canned or dry dog food? What sort of treats and toys do you provide? All of this stuff can affect the probability of trouble with your dog's teeth.When your dog's diet is nutritionally sound, containing essential vitamins, nutrients, and enzymes, it's oral health tend to be at its very best. Feeding dry dog food instead of a moist canned variety is best for the dog. The little kibbles' hard surface rubs against the teeth to remove and reduce plaque. The act of moistening the dry pet food with water or gravy eliminates this property from dry dog food.The treats you give your pet are a part of it's diet similar to snacks are part of a person's diet. As humans, we need to overlook our snacking habits, so it can be easy to overlook the treats you give your dog. This is not a good idea. Carefully consider any and every one items your pet will consume.

Do you give your dog bones, rawhides, jerky treats, or dog biscuits? Maybe it prefers greenies or corn starch chews. You might not have considered it, but tossing Spot a rawhide chew is like giving him a candy bar. The rawhide, for example, contains calories and is often provided between meals.Many of the treats and snacks you provide in your dog's diet is often just empty wasted calories. Some treats, alternatively, provide excellent opportunity to boost oral health. Greenies, rawhides, bones, and hard dog biscuits all help to maintain tartar at bay. The softer snacks, like jerky treats, do not provide much relief from plaque. The healthy treat, on occasion, may also prevent your pet from having bad breath.

All about Dogs - Dog Training

There are basically two schools of thought at the moment when it comes to dog training.The one belief is that you need to replicate as far as possible the wolf pack ethos, and the other is that you don't.We know that all dogs originated as wolves and selective breeding has developed all the different types of dogs we see today. It is assumed that all the basic instincts of the wolf are still there somewhere in your dog.The "pack" school of thought believes that you have to establish yourself as the "leader of the pack" and your dog will follow and obey you willingly. As far as possible they believe in holding themselves aloof from their dogs, encouraging an element of respect bordering on fear.An experiment done with tamed wolves shows that when a wolf gets into trouble or difficulties, even though he has accepted human authority, he does not go to a human for help but rather struggles himself to sort things out.

A dog, on the other hand, looks immediately for help to his human owner. I believe that the relationship between dog and owner is unique, and nothing like that between a wolf pack leader and the wolves.The more loving you are to your dog, the more he loves you. If he disobeys you it is from misunderstanding, or lack of bonding. Get the bond right and the respect will come by itself. He needs to know without doubt what you will not tolerate, and with absolute clarity what you do want of him.In return, you have to know and understand his needs. There is indeed a lot of the wolf still there and you need to respect that.Whatever your personal philosophy is about packs and dogs, your dog training follows a similar route. As early as possible, start working with your dog. Handling, playing and gentle brushing can be done when he is just a few weeks old.Once he starts eating, a whole new leverage opens up to you. Most dogs love food and unless you live somewhere where there is a threat of poisoning, you should encourage him to take food rewards. Also particular areas of their bodies where they love being scratched, such as between the neck and the shoulder blades. These things can be used as rewards to show that you are pleased with them. Never use them in conjunction with displeasure or punishment, though.

Time and again I have seen a dog scolded for doing something wrong and then patted. How confusing is that!You have to find ways to communicate. This is the way you build up a common language with them. Your different commands should sound different. Your tone of voice and movements are more important than the words themselves. Even a really intelligent dog understands relatively few words. But he is a sharper reader of body language than even you are! Be consistent at all times. Dogs, like all animals, don't like surprises. They like to know what to expect, and for you to be entirely predictable. This is the basic building block of trust. When dogs know, trust and love you and they understand what you want of them, they are almost unbelievably anxious to please.Once this basic relationship has been established, you can go on to whatever discipline of training you prefer. There are many. Basic home dog obedience, protection and police dog work, tracking, sniffing out dangerous substances or trapped or buried people, sheep herding, flyball, jumping and agility, blind dog training and other disabled helper functions, to name just a few.

Rewarding Your Dogs Safety Tips For Giving Treats, Especially if You Have Multiple Dogs

You might have two, three or four dogs and love them all. Many owners find that having multiple canines living together can help them stay happy. Your dogs will always have a companion with them, and someone to play with or cuddle next to when you're not home. On the other hand, having more than one dog can be a handful. Food can be a big issue between multiple dogs. Even canines that are otherwise friendly towards each other can bite, nip and growl when food is placed between them.
Quarantined Treat Giving
The safest, most guaranteed way to give two or more dogs treats is to quarantine them from each other before they receive the treat. Some people prefer kennels or crates while others might move the dogs into separate rooms. If you have obedience issues, this is probably your best choice. If there are any doubts about whether your dogs will listen to you at all times, you are best to confine them and then offer the treat. The same method can be used for feeding time as well. This method also helps prevent nipping and biting of children who might wander close by when your dogs are eating.
The Alpha Stays Near
Avoid giving your dogs treats and leaving the room. If you have gone through obedience training, then your pets should view you as the alpha. What the alpha says goes in the dog world. In your presence, they are going to be on their best behavior. However, if you leave the room, structure goes with you and your dogs may squabble. It takes only one dog to pick a fight. Try to position yourself at the center, insight of each dog and physically blocking access to the other dogs. By placing yourself between them, you are discouraging any attempts to steal the other's treats.
Future Treating Goals
Obedience training is very important; especially if you have multiple dogs. Make a point to work with each dog individually, going over the basic sit, stay, down commands. After they are comfortable, begin working in pairs. Once your canines can adjust to listening regardless of who is in the room, you can begin to safely treat without using your body as a wall or confining your pets.
Even once you have met your treating goals and can hand each dog a treat and walk away without concern, you should still avoid leaving them unsupervised with food. Stay within sight or nearby while your canines enjoy their treat.
It is important to note here that dogs by nature are competitive. Some have a stronger alpha drive than others. Those that do will constantly try to push the others to maintain his or her position. Even if you are the alpha, they want to be the beta. This is how life in a wolf pack works as well. As far as your dogs are concerned, you are all just one big pack. Learn your dogs' individual personalities and you can quickly identify which pet is more likely to instigate a fight. By staying close by, you are maintaining order and keeping the ambitious beta in line. This is actually better for your pets and puts less stress on even those that are alpha-minded. They know you are there to maintain order and keep the pack inline, so they can sit back and enjoy their biscuit!

Children and Dogs - Dog Attacks, Why;

There are hundreds of dog bites in the United States every year. I say with absolute confidence that a minimum of ninety-five percent of dog attacks or dog bites on people could easily be prevented or avoided. That includes all manner of dog attack, such as problems between children and dogs, as well as dogs chasing or charging someone.Often people ask me: "Big numbers - Where is your proof?" The proof is simple truth. Thousands of people in this country are dog owners, but very few are educated in the way to read dog body language, or how to stop a dog in attack mode. Very few dog owners understand dog instinctive behavior.What usually happens when an adult and child are involved in a dog attack is something like this:

A mother (call her "Mary") and elementary school child (call him "Joe") are walking down the sidewalk. Out of nowhere looms a HUGE dog who really seems threatening. They follow the old school of "avoid eye contact and run - he won't see you as a threat and he will not get you." Terrified, they make a run for it. Those poor people are in for it! This is one bubble I am happy to bust. Dogs are stimulated by a chance to chase. Mary and Joe turn themselves into targets as the dog goes into prey mode. Dog instinctive behavior is to run down their prey, or to run off intruders. The dog MAY decide not to pursue you. But what you have done is contribute to his confidence, make him powerful in his own mind, and encouraging his dog aggressive behavior. Next time, you or someone else may really be bitten.So here is the correct way to handle such an encounter and why.

Once again, same scenario - Mary and her young son, Joe, are out for a walk. A huge, frightening dog suddenly appears and starts to charge. Mary should shove her child behind her for safety, demonstrating that she is in charge.What should Mary do then? Straighten her shoulders and lift her head, for a body language which projects power and control. LOOK AT that dog - not with anger, but with authority. POINT at the dog. Immediately, walk TOWARD the dog with confident strides while watching the animal. Say, "Hey, STOP" - or "stay" or similar language, again with authority but not shouting (as that would escalate the problem). As you do so, spread your hand out toward him with the firm "stop" gesture. (No flailing hands and screaming, please, or you become a more attractive target!) After advancing toward the dog with the authoritative "stop" words and gesture, HOLD YOUR GROUND. Hold it unless the dog moves forward. Then you must move forward to maintain control of the situation.How am I sure this will work? Simple. Dogs use eye contact and confident posture to speak to one another. The dominant dog always stands his ground. It is the dog of lower rank who runs away.

You must stay in control at all times. It works. I know. I have done it over and over in otherwise "impossible" situations. Use dog instinctive behavior to your benefit, not against you - and do not be victims of dog attack!

Aggression In Dogs

There is several aggressive dogs’ behavior that you should know are aggressive dogs due to its territorial, pain or illness, when they have puppies, dominating nature, and punishment.

1. Aggressive dogs due its territorial
For dogs, their territory is important. This is the most common of aggressive dog behavior. They are very protective with their territory. A dog tends to come out, growling or even biting those who intrude their territory. Aggressive dogs also come to what they possessed, when someone or something goes close to anything that they considered theirs, they’ll growl or attack them.

2. Aggressive dogs due to pain or illness
When dogs in pain or hurt or sick they can shows their aggressive behavior. Beware when your dog in pain or sick, in this condition dogs can attack suddenly. And this can endanger you.

3. Aggressive dogs due its puppies
Dogs are surely become very aggressive in few days after they born their puppies. You better be careful when your dogs just give birth their child and not too close or touch their puppies. This aggression will calm down after few days.

4. Aggressive dogs due its dominating nature
Aggressive dogs with dominating nature could be very troublesome. They can be scared to your neighbors or your family members. Aggressive dogs like this should be aware of, because their behaviors are unpredictable.

5. Aggressive dogs due to punishment
Be careful when you punish your dogs! This can become the cause of aggressiveness in dogs and this is the worst, and you need to avoid it. Dog with punishment aggression won’t listen to the owners orders and will start to act violently soon or later. As an owner, you must adored and train your dog with love, you can punish them, but not too much.