Unfortunately, I am not as frequent on this blog as I had hoped, but with that said, I want the content to be helpful and encouraging to the various stages in life we go through.
Recently, Ross and I have been going to our local PETCO here in Pasadena for puppy play time. We are finally starting our Level 1 course on Sunday, which will hopefully teach us a thing, or two, about discipline. However, we have been engaging in other dog questions, like: what do you feed your dog (to the next owner) or, how much exercise do they need? We have these intentional conversations with the hands-on trainer right there and she always gives her feedback.
Well the last conversation we had was about food. This subject seems to create a lot of uproar in the blogging sphere, as well as the vet, along with local pet stores, like PETCO. We attended a teeth-cleaning seminar a while back where the local groomer gave his two-cents about food and healthy lifestyles of dogs. Throughout this seminar we each asked about our brand of food, and how that related to our individual breed. Come to find out, we thought our "organic" food was healthy for Riggs, but in all reality it only gave him half the nutrients he really needs. After the seminar we kept feeding him the rest of the bag of Canidae, but I didn't feel right about this.
Dog food is much like human food I am coming to underdstand. And for many pet owners out there they scoff at the use of RAW foods, which this groomer recommended for us. RAW meaning that the dog has real meat, real veggies, and real bones (not cooked) to eat. At first I thought RAW food was bad for dogs, but then our trainer challenged us to look into it and to read about it. So I did. And I found that RAW food is the best for all dogs based off of their evolution from the wild and wolves. It's actually a very interesting philosophy adapted by many dog owners who are wanting to give their dogs less gas, healthier energy, and less shedding.
I did not accept that the RAW food diet would also benefit us financially, so I asked some questions and came up with a cost-sheet from one website and blog. The meat and the veggies you purchase do not have to be for human use, so day-old veggies, or fatty meats, (cheap meats) can be acceptable because dogs don't process bacteria like we do. However, with the meat though, same rules apply about sanitary refrigeration etc.
Here are the websites and the pioneers of the RAW foods. Our vet didn't say much, as we find out that no matter the vet, most of them are paid to promote products and to say they are healthy like most drug companies, toward humans. I am also not saying to tune-out your vet, but to try this, and if it doesn't work, go back to what does. We haven't tried it yet, but are starting tomorrow. I will post updates as well.
http://www.barfworld.com/
http://voices.yahoo.com/how-feed-dog-raw-food-diet-budget-679495.html
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Thursday, February 14, 2013
DIY Playing Cards TLC: Valentine's Edition
In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I thought it would be fitting to post a low-budget idea I found on Pinterest. http://pinterest.com/pin/493073859172809168/ to celebrate with. If you are like me, and don't have the Hallmark-spirit of spending a pretty penny, here is a fun, and conversational idea to share with someone you love. Ross and I had a great time with this because it allowed us to be funny and serious, and also remember some of the key reasons why we love each other. But also in the spirit of Valentine's, I thought this could be a good present for friends, siblings, co-workers etc.
Supplies You'll Need:
scissors
colored post-its
a deck of playing cards
string (optional)
hole-puncher (optional)
1 inch binder rings (optional)
ballpoint pen
How-to:
The instructions for the project are listed on the website.http://pinterest.com/pin/493073859172809168/
I made my deck a little different. To make my deck I followed a couple of steps:
1)for the sayings, I cut the post-its in half and used the adhesive part to write on.
2) for the creativity part, I used the theme of the suits to spell out different ideas for the notes
Hearts- a description of his heart
Spades- things I wouldn't have without him
Diamonds- attributes and querks that were precious to me
Clubs- a bucketlist for our future
If you make this, be creative with it. I took the idea, but made it my own!
Happy Valentine's Day from our family!
Supplies You'll Need:
scissors
colored post-its
a deck of playing cards
string (optional)
hole-puncher (optional)
1 inch binder rings (optional)
ballpoint pen
How-to:
The instructions for the project are listed on the website.http://pinterest.com/pin/493073859172809168/
I made my deck a little different. To make my deck I followed a couple of steps:
1)for the sayings, I cut the post-its in half and used the adhesive part to write on.
2) for the creativity part, I used the theme of the suits to spell out different ideas for the notes
Hearts- a description of his heart
Spades- things I wouldn't have without him
Diamonds- attributes and querks that were precious to me
Clubs- a bucketlist for our future
If you make this, be creative with it. I took the idea, but made it my own!
Happy Valentine's Day from our family!
Dog Training Blues
Dog training for Rigby, our naughty-but-cute English Bulldog, has been interesting of all words I can find. Like most dog-owners, I could write a book about all of the situations that come up on a daily basis between feedings, potty, and training. Well, lately my husband and I have been at a loss. We are three months in with our dog, and no where to go. (Dogs under four-months have to be kept away from other dogs i.e. dog parks and walks are out the question)
We are constantly reading and trying to figure out ways we can exercise him. At night and in the middle of the night, we are finding that he doesn't like to sleep, so right before bed we try to exercise him. Ross likes to play soccer, and I like to play chase. However, for some reason, those games aren't enough. So I took these concerns to our local dog trainer and she gave me some wise advice:
Figure out how to be creative with his mind. A tired dog=a happy dog. So, for the past couple of meals I have tried a few ideas she recommend and a few of my own I thought I would share. Hopefully for those of you who have dogs, and run into the same problems, or want to change it up, these seem to work:
1. Buy a KONG toy from your local pet store. These usually run you around 10-20 dollars. They aren't the cheapest, but they help reduce your mealtime from 30 seconds, to 30 minutes. And if you are having trouble finding kennel activities, give your dog his meal right before you leave so you can escape without him noticing you're gone.
2. Home-make a feeding toy. Recently I took my Greek yoghurt container and cut a hole in the bottom and placed some food in it and let Rigby go nuts. So at least for 5-10 minutes he was occupied with it. Cut a hole that is big enough for his dog food to come out of either one-at-a-time, or however many kibble pieces you want.
3. Scatter the food around your house. The other dog I stumbled upon this because I dropped some of his food on the floor and watched as he chased the pieces around. So I took the rest, dumped it on the floor, and watched as he chased the food for 5 minutes. This seems like a strange idea but in the end he was definitely tired.
Our trainer gave us some good pointers, which I needed to hear: She encouraged us to relax and to raise our dog with as much creativity as we wanted. So her challenge to me this week was instead of going to the bowl, go somewhere else for a meal, or two. And I couldn't be happier with how it's turned out for Riggs and for us.
We are constantly reading and trying to figure out ways we can exercise him. At night and in the middle of the night, we are finding that he doesn't like to sleep, so right before bed we try to exercise him. Ross likes to play soccer, and I like to play chase. However, for some reason, those games aren't enough. So I took these concerns to our local dog trainer and she gave me some wise advice:
Figure out how to be creative with his mind. A tired dog=a happy dog. So, for the past couple of meals I have tried a few ideas she recommend and a few of my own I thought I would share. Hopefully for those of you who have dogs, and run into the same problems, or want to change it up, these seem to work:
1. Buy a KONG toy from your local pet store. These usually run you around 10-20 dollars. They aren't the cheapest, but they help reduce your mealtime from 30 seconds, to 30 minutes. And if you are having trouble finding kennel activities, give your dog his meal right before you leave so you can escape without him noticing you're gone.
2. Home-make a feeding toy. Recently I took my Greek yoghurt container and cut a hole in the bottom and placed some food in it and let Rigby go nuts. So at least for 5-10 minutes he was occupied with it. Cut a hole that is big enough for his dog food to come out of either one-at-a-time, or however many kibble pieces you want.
3. Scatter the food around your house. The other dog I stumbled upon this because I dropped some of his food on the floor and watched as he chased the pieces around. So I took the rest, dumped it on the floor, and watched as he chased the food for 5 minutes. This seems like a strange idea but in the end he was definitely tired.
Our trainer gave us some good pointers, which I needed to hear: She encouraged us to relax and to raise our dog with as much creativity as we wanted. So her challenge to me this week was instead of going to the bowl, go somewhere else for a meal, or two. And I couldn't be happier with how it's turned out for Riggs and for us.
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