Adventure Dog Blog

I almost feel that if I have to tell you NOT to give a dog as a gift, then perhaps I’m wasting my time/breath/energy. However, I do realize there are lots of people out there that do not know a lot about dogs, and probably have no idea what can happen if they give someone a puppy or dog for Christmas.

Dogs do not make good gifts. Dogs are living creatures and as such, they come with hefty responsibilities. There are many reasons why you should not give a dog as a gift, and here is a list:

1. People should choose their own dog. Every breed of dog has it’s own personality, and all dogs come with their quirks. It’s extremely important that a person or family choose a dog that suits their home. A border collie, a breed that is known for it’s unstoppable energy, would never be happy in a family of couch potatoes, and an avid jogger wouldn’t do well with an English Bulldog. Giving someone a dog that doesn’t suit the needs and personality of their home will cause problems, and probably lead to that dog ending up at the pound.

2. Poop isn’t cute. Dogs come with all kinds of responsibilities, from walking and exercise to feeding and scooping poop. While these may seem like minor tasks, they can really become a major chore when someone receives a dog they didn’t ask for. Puppies require extensive work to housetrain and chew up everything in sight, while older dogs may come with bad habits and require devoted attention. All of these things can be too much stress on a new dog owner who didn’t realize how much responsibility a dog can be, and again, you end up with a dog in the pound.

3. Dogs are a personal decision. Everyone has a preference. Some people love big dogs who wrestle and tumble around while others enjoy a quiet tiny companion. Some people want mutts while others want a particular breed. There are rescue foundations to get dogs from, local pounds, and breeders. To some, spots are beautiful, to others it’s curly hair. You could think that the dog you are gifting is the most adorable dog around, but that’s not necessarily what others think.

When you give a dog as a gift you are almost dooming it to become just another unwanted dog in the pound. If you are certain that your friend or family member is just dying for a dog, think about giving them gift certificates to their favorite pet stores to use when they do get their dog. Maybe you can give donations of blankets, food, or money to the local shelter in your loved one’s name. Or get them a stuffed animal!

Please don’t give dogs as gifts for Christmas!

I have begun worrying about a coat for my little guy this winter. He has a coat from last year that he has outgrown, so I’ve got to find something for those cold winter days. Little dogs don’t just wear clothing because their owners are weirdos, contrary to popular belief. In winter, small dogs have trouble keeping warm. My guy can’t walk around the block without getting a terrible case of the shivers and it inhibits how much he can exercise.

I posted earlier about a specially designed coat for pugs that is fantastic, but this BUB coat also looks interesting. It was obviously designed with care and attention to the real life shape of dogs, unlike a lot of other coats out there, as seen on this funny page.

I wish I could afford to buy several coats and decide for myself which was the best design! For now, I will keep shopping around, and I will post what I find so that perhaps you will find a good coat for your dog as well.

Visit BUBcoat.com now!

Surfing around, I found this website called Dog and Collar that happens to feature a section of dog recipes. In it, I found a recipe for soft treats, intended for senior dogs. Perhaps I could make some of these and see what Chublet thinks of them. That way, I could purchase whatever type of baby food I wanted to flavor the treats with, and I would know that there weren’t any horrible unhealthy ingredients in his treats.

Soft Chews Recipe from DogAndCollar.com:

Ingredients:
3 jars Chicken Flavoured Baby Food
1/4 cup Skim Milk Powder
1/4 cup Wheat Germ

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in bowl and mix well. Roll into small balls and place on well-greased cookie sheet. Flatten slightly with a fork. Bake in preheated oven at 350°F for 15 minutes until brown. Cool on wire rack.

Recently I had to take my pug to the vet. He was having a myriad of problems, from an irritated eyeball and itchy pink ears to a rash appearing in his back armpits. (can you call them armpits if they are on the back legs?) The vet has suggested that it could be the chicken that is in the food we’ve been feeding the dogs recently.

In my quest to eliminate chicken from Chublet’s diet, I have been looking at the ingredients on many different types of treats, and it has been a bit disheartening. The treats that you find in regular stores are certainly unhealthy, what with all the corn products and meat byproducts. Meat is often the sixth or seventh ingredient on the list, meaning the treats have hardly any meat in them at all.

Chublet likes to eat squishy fake meat type treats, but I quickly discovered that nearly all of these have chicken. If I wanted something healthier, I would have to buy the hard biscuit type treats. If I wanted any meat that wasn’t chicken, I would have to settle for a bacon style treat where bacon was so far on the list it was kind of laughable that they bothered including it as an ingredient at all.

Tomorrow I am going to head to the health food store and see what kind of treats they can offer me. Here’s hoping!

I think the look on the tiny kitten’s face is just precious!

The Pug Snuggly By YOGI is a dog coat designed specifically for pugs. If you own a pug, you probably already know how hard it is to find a coat that will fit their uniquely shaped body. Their necks and shoulders are so wide that most jackets simply do not fit.

I’ve brought home so many pug jackets and had to take them back to the store because they were too tight on my little guy’s shoulders. Or, the opposite problem of having something fit around the neck which makes it too big everywhere else. Then there are clothes that ride up and get all bunched up around him.

All this might sound like a lot of hulabaloo, but pugs tend to get chilled quickly in the winter. My problem has always been that my big girl needs long walks, but my little guy couldn’t stand the cold longer than half a block. With a coat, he plays outdoors for a long time. I think the Pug Snuggly by YOGI looks like it might just be the perfect fit.

For those of you with pugs, or similar shaped dogs like French Bulldogs, check out the Pug Snuggly by YOGI and tell me what you think.

President Bush’s dog Barney bites a reporter, on video. Poor Barney, it looks like he was having a bad day. And people should know better than to just reach towards a dog without letting them choose to come to you for a nice sniff first. On the same note though, perhaps Barney isn’t as well socialized as he should be.

I know Halloween is over… but….

Thanks to the folks at Bark Slope’s blog!