Grooming your Dog at Home
Every dog needs a grooming routine, as a vital part of keeping healthy.
A dog’s grooming needs will differ according to the breed, age and health issues, but regular attention will help to detect and prevent problems like runny eyes, ear and skin problems, flea infestation, and overgrown/in growing nails. For dogs that receive a regular professional groom maintenance is important between visits, it is amazing how quickly a dog’s coat can become a matted mess.
If you own a puppy, you may wonder when you should start grooming him/her. I would advise starting as soon as possible, to get your puppy used to the regime. A little gentle brushing every day with an appropriate brush or comb will get the pup used to being handled and give you a chance to check the mouth, ears, anal area and nails. It is useful to stand your dog on a table while grooming, a dog will usually stand more quietly that way, and it makes things easier for the groomer, but keep hold of the dog for safety’s sake. It may be useful to invest in a Dog / cat Grooming Table , which is built for the purpose, and should have a textured surface to offer more grip, and a control arm with loops. Safety comes first-if using a neck loop it is advisable to pass a second loop around the dog’s belly, and in any case, never leave a dog unattended on the table. Teach your dog to stand for grooming, using clicker or treat training, and you will have fewer problems later on. You will also be amazed at how a few minutes per day spent handling and grooming your pet will make such a difference in how he interacts with the family!
Choosing the right grooming tools is important -what may be great for one dog, could be totally unsuitable for another
. • For short coated breeds like the Labrador retriever the best tools massage the skin and bring out dead hair and dandruff, the ZoomGroom and the Furminator are good examples of this.
. • For medium double-coated breeds like the German Shepherd and Collie, you need a brush that will penetrate the coat more deeply. A slicker brush is ideal, accompanied by a comb.When the dog has been thoroughly brushed with the slicker, run the comb through the whole coat, checking for tangles, that way you can be sure the dog is groomed all the way to the skin. A Furminator or shedding rake can be useful for these breeds too-it is great for heavily shedding dogs, getting every last dead hair out till the coat shines with health.
• For single coated, non shedding breeds like the Bichon Frise,and any breed of dog that is clipped, a slicker and comb is my recommendation, with perhaps a pin brush for sensitive areas.
• For wire coated and hand stripped dogs i.e. Airedale, Fox Terrier, use a slightly blunted stripping knife, a Furminator or ZoomGroom, and a slicker brush.
Dog shampoo should also be chosen carefully as the right products can really aid your pet’s health and well being. If your dog’s coat is prone to tangling, use a good quality conditioner as well, which will not only make brushing easier, but also will speed up drying time for you, and keep your dogs coat and skin in good condition. Choose products that fulfil the needs of your dog’s coat and skin type.
Pet dogs can be washed regularly – you can use your judgement on how often, shampooing with the proper products should not harm your dog’s coat or skin. Skin problems are far more likely to be associated with diet and environmental factors than by regular bathing. It is wise to remove any tangles or knots before bathing, as water can cause them to tighten.
If, for whatever reason, the grooming regime has been temporarily abandoned, and your pet has knots that cannot be brushed out, then seek professional help from a groomer, as tugging at the hair will only cause pain, fear and resentment in your dog. In such situations, the kind course of action is usually to lift out the mats with clippers, and start fresh.
Nail clipping is another important procedure for your dog to get used to. Many dogs dislike having their nails clipped, particularly those of the front paws. Be very careful not to cut the quick of the nail, and remember to treat each nail as an individual when choosing where to cut. It is easier to tell where to cut when the dog has white nails, rather than black, if in doubt ask your vet or groomer to trim the nails. Some dogs never need their nails cut, some have nails that grow like wildfire, and some nails grow round and back into the foot if left unchecked. Many dogs will be professionally groomed every six weeks or so, in which case the groomer will have checked the nails and clipped if necessary as part of the service.
Ear care is another area of importance, excessive wax, redness, scratching, excessive matting of hair in the external ear, rubbing, head shaking, smelly ears and disorientation can all be signs of ear problems. Check your pet’s ears regularly for these signs-don’t be afraid to sniff the ears- healthy ears should not smell foul. Floppy eared dogs are particularly prone to infections, as the air doesn’t tend to circulate the ear canal. It is sometimes necessary to clear the hair from the ear canal, at least partially, to allow more air flow. Again this is a regular part of a professional grooming service. If you suspect ear problems do consult your vet, as those sorts of problems can become a long running battle without proper care.
Many breeds of dog suffer from weepy eyes, which can stain the coat in an unsightly way. Keeping the area clean and free of excess hair will help reduce the cause of the staining, which are the tears. Have the eyes checked whilst at the vets, to make sure there are no underlying causes. Stained eye hair can usually be removed by the professional groomer, to good effect, as can similar staining of feet caused by saliva as the dog washes his or her feet.
To conclude, regular grooming little and often, and with the right products , will help keep your dog beautiful ,comfortable, healthy and happy, which is what we all want for our beloved companions!
Submitted by Sue Gardner of Mutley Makeovers, Tamworth UK . For more information and grooming pictures visit http://www.mutleymakeovers.com
Making Money From Home Is It Still Possible?
Almost everybody would love to work from home in some way or another. I am not talking about your job allowing you to spend a couple of days a month working at home on your computer. I am talking about a business that you own, run, and make a profit from, and one which you can operate either full or part time in the comfort of your living room.
So where do you start. Some people pick up the local newspaper and scan the business opportunity section whilst the majority of us search for a business online. Most of us will go straight to Google and type in something along the lines of Make Money From Home. From there on all internet hell breaks loose, as you’re now bombarded by thousands of adverts from all walks of life telling you how great they all are, and how, by just working a few hours a week in your slippers you will be able to retire in 3-5 years and spend the rest of your days sailing around the Caribbean in your swanky new yacht! Sounds familiar?
So now what? Well here are some choices which might help you to decide your next course of action.
1. Spend the next few days/weeks trolling through all these different adverts, clicking on page after page of endless generic sites telling you what they want you to hear. Or you can do what I should have done when I first looked at a home based business all those years ago.
2. Turn your computer off, make yourself a cup of tea and then sit down with a pen and notepad and write the following:
What type of business do I really want? Now you might be thinking that going through all the home working adverts on the net will give you the answer to this question, but it will not. Sure, it will give you some ideas about what you are after, but at the same time it will also be very confusing. Working from Home covers such a broad spectrum, in fact just about any type of business can be operated from home, ranging from dog walking to e-commerce and everything in between, so narrowing it down a tad will save you hours of endless frustration. Working from Home generally falls into one of the following categories; Network Marketing, and Online Marketing.
Network Marketing (also known as multi level market) has over the last two decades become very popular as a home based business. Most people have heard the names of some of the big players in this industry, companies like: Amway, Herbalife, Forever Living Products, ACN. In fact there are over one thousand different MLM companies worldwide and the truth is that most of them won’t make it past the first couple of years. Networking is generally started very part time and in most cases has a tangible product line such as: weight loss, nutrition, health and beauty etc. How Network Marketing works is simple, but do not confuse simple with easy. It is easy to stack shelves at your local store, this is why they pay minimum wage, but it is not easy to build a business from home from scratch. When you join a MLM company you normally pay a nominal sum to register and you become what’s called a distributor, and from there on you are entitled to sell and market both the company’s products and opportunity to others. Most MLM companies train their distributors to work with their circle of influence, in other words; you friends and family, as these people are less likely to say no to you when you try to sell (or recommend as the companies like to put it) to them. You can also sponsor or introduce other people into your team who intern, can sell and sponsor people into their team which is also a part of your team. And when they sell to their friends and family you will receive a small percentage payment of their sales going down several levels below you. In short, over time and with a lot of work on your part, you can build a substantial income which, like the advert says, will enable you to retire on your yacht around the Caribbean. In reality this life style only happens for less than 1% of distributors, as the majority start part time with the hope of making a few bucks to help pay the bills then after a few weeks fizzle out, never to be seen or heard of again. Putting it simply, Network Marketing is a people business; you will be selling to people, sponsoring people and telephoning people. This part of the business is absolutely unavoidable and is the reason why it is called Network Marketing. So if you don’t like selling to your friends and family or you’re not too keen on using the phone then this type of working from home is not for you. But if on the other hand you like all of the above, then find a product and company that you love and give it a go, just do not expect to make a full time living for a while.
The second type of home based business I am going to talk about is Online Marketing. This type of business is relatively new as it has only been around for a few years, but despite this, it has already had a major financial impact on many people’s lives. Where MLM generally involves pitching or selling to people, either in front of them or on the phone, then Online Marketing is the complete opposite. Its title tends to sum up exactly what it means; Marketing Online and this should give you a clear indication of what it is about. Online Marketing has many of the features of MLM, but the big difference is that in most cases there is no face to face or phone contact with your customers or potential customers. You still have products or services, but these tend to be e-commerce and are therefore not tangible like weight loss or health care products. Instead you will find products such as books, courses, web training, motivational material, as well as internet and computer software and alike. In fact anything then can be either sent or downloaded via the internet. Online Marketing has now become one of the fastest growing industries in the world, and as the internet expands then so does the business it produces. A good example of this was the introduction of broadband internet. Since its inception a few years ago, companies such as YouTube and Face Book have come out of nowhere and now dominate the industry, and with the introduction of video streaming came more Online Marketing companies as this gave them an even greater forum to present their business from.
MLM companies realised decades ago that people do not buy from faceless companies; people buy from people, which is why the whole concept of Networking worked and still works. Now with the internet being available in most households, customers or prospective customers are able to click on to your web site and see you as a real person talking to them about what you do, and how if at all it can be of benefit to them. If they like what they see they can click on a few boxes, pay and have their products or services delivered with ease, and you make a profit. This type of business can sometimes take a while to set up and learn, but once done it can often be run virtually on autopilot, freeing up time which you can spend on other pursuits such as your family. So putting it simply, Online Marketing is not a people business; you won’t be chasing your friends and family and delivering products. Instead you will have people coming to you via your web site, and any questions that they may have are usually dealt with via email.
So if you are a people person and like getting out and meeting new friends and dealing face to face with your customers, then Online Marketing is most probably not for you. But if on the other hand you want to work online from home or anywhere in the world for that matter, then this business would suit you down to the ground.
Now I would like to end with one last question and answer; is building a business from home easy? No, nothing is easy, there is no such thing as a free lunch, and if you are planning to run a home based biz then you’d better get used to that. It takes time and energy to create an income from nothing, but once you have mastered it you will never look back. Learning your trade and working hard in will reward you and make you financially free, but more important it will give you time freedom, which together will give you choices on how you live your life.
So my advice is; Start Now, because it is better to make your family rich than to go on working and making some other family rich!
Enjoy Your Day
John Drake
John Drake
http://www.onlinetrainingbiz.com
I can show You how to make money from home with a Simple Online Marketing Business. To find out how please go to http://www.onlinetrainingbiz.com
Notice: The Author gives permission to reprint the article free of charge if the article remains unchanged and includes the resource box.
5 Stress Reduction Tips For Moms! (Read This Before You Run Away From Home!) Part 1 Of 3
Part 1 of 3 of the Stressed Mommies to Successful Mommies Series
I recently read multiple postings by mothers that are so stressed out, that they would likely sell off one or both kidneys to be able to create more time and have more money to devote to themselves and their family.
These were just a handful of the situations:
“I’m a single mother, I work full time, I have a 7 and 4 year old, I’m exhausted when I get home, but then I have to do school work, laundry, make dinner, clean the house and then get ready to do it all over again! I have no time for myself!”
“I have three kids, I work full time, go to Grad school and still feel like I can never get ahead!”
“My husband is in the military and gone half the year, my son has lost all ability to potty train, and my daughter does exactly opposite of what I tell her to do!”
My heart just ached when I read all of these stressed out Mom’s postings. They were screaming for help onto a random forum posting, not knowing where to go, just hoping that someone would listen to their cries for help!
Are you this mom? Are you burning the candle at both ends? Are you crying for help and thinking that no one can help you?
1. Listen to the flight attendant:
The first rule here is just to be aware that if you are at this point in your life where you are hanging on by a thread, do what every good flight attendant suggests in the event of cabin pressure failure: “Put the Oxygen Mask on yourself first before you put them on small children.” Easier said than done?
If you consider the reasons, you are like the HUB of the WHEEL of your family. You are what keeps the family together, ungreased, the wheel doesn’t turn well, it’s squeaky and sticky. With a well greased HUB, the wheel turns smoothly, effortlessly and can do more rotations than an ungreased hub. Consider your goal to be as smooth as a greased hub.
Taking care of yourself means doing what you need to do to stay healthy. Eat well, take time for yourself, exercise, meditate etc… Imagine what your family would do without you? If you are not taking care of yourself, you may continue down the road to sickness due to stress. So first things first –You are first!
2. Slow down to ½ speed!
It is easy to feel that because we have more to do, we need to do it faster, more hurried, and feel rushed. Yet, when we deliberately slow down the speed of our life, we are able to think more clearly and specifically about the task at hand. It really is a funny paradox! You may not actually be doing less tasks when you slow your reaction speed down, it just feels like it! What happens often is you feel more deliberate, your awareness comes into the present, and you can concentrate on the NOW task and not the FUTURE task.
3.Notice How Your Vibrations are Felt Through your Household Like ShockWaves:
Do you notice that when you have a bad day, and you are stressed, the moment you walk in the house, all of a sudden the kids are fighting and arguing, the dog is barking, there is chaos spreading like wildfire? Believe it or not, our energy levels have certain vibrational frequencies. Children are very sensitive to these frequencies and react in strange and curious ways, and usually ways that tend to sound like nails screeching across the chalk boards. Notice when you walk into your house calm, centered and peaceful? The house can sense your “centeredness”, and mimics this energy level. Its one of those mysterious universal principles.
4.Use your transitional Times and Take Mental Health Minutes:
When time is a precious commodity for you at this time in your life, it is imperative that you use small portions of time to re-center, recharge and rejuvenate. You probably know this, but don’t mindfully practice this. So, now I challenge you to mindfully practice this. When you are driving home from work, put in peaceful calming music (I like to call it yoga music, easily downloadable from i-Tunes). When you take a bathroom break, take 5 minutes, close your eyes and do some deep breathing exercises and positive thinking.
5. Design Your Day:
This was a new concept recently introduced to me. At the beginning of the day, spend 2 minutes, grab your journal and decide consciously HOW you want the day to go, and HOW you want to feel. For example, “I choose to happily drive to work, I will use the free time in the car to relax. I choose to have joyous interactions with my coworkers. My meetings will go easily and I will have easy resolutions to my challenges today. When I leave work, I will happily use that time to transition and be prepared and centered for my family. I consciously choose to be present with my family in the evening, turning off my email and my phones.” This only takes a couple of minutes, but you can see the impact that this has on your conscious and subconscious mind. One of the beauties of this exercise is that you will not script your day to say “I wish work is difficult, I wish the kids will be bad, and I want to be angry and stressed!” It just doesn’t work like that!
Do not expect that you will immediately practice all five steps right away. Take one step a day and practice. A mommy’s job is so important and vital to the health of the family. So mind your thoughts, mind your health and have fun!
Stay tuned to Part 2 Tips for Stress Management – Moving into Action to Reduce Your Stress
Let me know what’s going on with your stress!
Makenzie
http://freedomventureproject.com
read more about me here
http://freedomventureproject.com
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Get Business for Your Home Business
Home businesses, like other businesses, aren’t successful just because they exist. If you want to work at home, you have to learn about marketing your home based business.
Marketing depends in large part on the type of business you have. Marketing on the internet works for most kinds of home business. Even if you plan the bulk of your business from your local area, a website adds professionalism. One of the first things a prospect will ask nowadays is; what is your website address? The next question of course is; what is your email address? The next one will likely be; do you have a copy of your business card, with all this info and more you can give me? Woe be to you who don’t have all three of these valuable business commodities fresh and ready to go.
When sending emails, make sure you include information about your business in your signature file. Think of your signature file as your electronic business card. You want to include your website address so interested leads can find you. Also include a very focused short message exactly about what you do.
Of course, if your home based business is also internet-based, it is essential for you to learn to market on the internet. Obvious yes, but most of us do not do this when we first start out and miss out on the easy sales and leads. Techniques for marketing a home based business on the web include pay-per-click advertising, weblogs, and your website.
You can also network online through message boards and mailing lists. Message boards and forums are easy to do but they do not do themselves. You have to click on forums and messageboards with your specialty after and go to at least one a week. If you can do more, you will do better. Type in a word after forum when you search that you know about. It can be baseball, writing, health products or anything as long as you like and know about it and feel some enthusiasm about it and like to share with others that you communicate with.
An often overlooked tool for marketing a home based business is staying in touch with former clients. You can do this through the phone or through email. Email is often the preferred choice because potential clients look at email when they have time and are not interrupted to do it, as they are on the phone. When emailing former clients, let them know you enjoyed working with them and want them to remember you for future projects.
Look for ways to meet potential customers. Go to trade meetings or conventions. For example, if you are selling pet products, attend dog shows and county fairs.
The major ways to start out for marketing a home based business are similar to other businesses. Find customers you can serve and find ways to let them know you exist. After they become clients, serve them well and ask for future business. Give them referral business whenever you can and they will surely refer business to you also. This is how you keep your business running.
Diagnosing Dog Health Problems at Home
Dogs are no different from humans in the way their bodies respond to disease and changes in their environment. When exposed to contaminated food, extreme cold, or infectious disease they can get sick. Dog illness symptoms can usually be diagnosed by changes in behaviors. Weight loss is also an indicator that something is wrong. Although it may be something minor, anytime you notice your dog losing weight, it’s best to take them to a vet and let them deal with this problem. Since weigh loss could be a sign of a serious problem, don’t wait long to make an vet appointment if you notice a sudden reduction in weight.
Dog illnesses can be separated into two different categories; 1) chronic dog illnesses like skin rashes and dog allergies which can be easily treated; and 2) acute illnesses that are life threatening like poisoning, Parvo or heatworms, which you can’t do much about and require veterinary assistance as quickly as possible. Loss of appetite is another dog illness symptom. If your dog suddenly stops eating, it may be a sign your dog is in substantial pain. Dogs are a lot like people in terms of illnesses. Well, more like toddlers because they can’t really explain what’s wrong. So that’s the way you need to treat them.
Just like people, dogs can suffer from a fever. A fever is usually a sure indicator that there is some type of internal body malfunction. If this symptom is left untreated, it can turn into a high fever and become life threatening. A fever is also a key indicator that your dog may have Parvo. A dog infected with this disease will also show signs of nausea, malnutrition and dehydration. If these signs are present, you need to get them to a vet or pet hospital as soon as possible. Once the disease has been treated and your dog is feeling better, you will still need to administer antibiotics to help prevent other infections. Parvo wrecks the immune system for several weeks.
Food or other dog allergies are another common problem dog owners have to deal with. Chronic scratching is a sure indicator that allergies are present. Dogs with food allergies will scratch year round, while dogs with other types of allergies, like grass and tree pollen, will usually only start scratching during certain seasons. Some dog will even display symptoms like diarrhea, vomiting, and weight loss if the allergies are severe. Food allergies are slow to develop because a dog’s body must be exposed to the allergen long enough to build up a sufficient number of antibodies to trigger the dog’s symptoms. With food allergies, most dogs will have been eating the offending diet for months or years before your dog’s symptoms start to appear.
If your dog is over 7 years old and you see it limping, especially after climbing stairs or sleeping, it might be a symptom of arthritis. The AKC recommends your dog have a comprehensive examination once every year to check for liver, kidney or heart problems. Older dogs also are likely to develop vision and hearing problems and this will be discovered during an annual exam.
An yes, dogs can also have heart attacks. The are several various cardiac and pulmonary problems that can cause major heart attacks in dogs. If a heart attack is detected early, the problem can be treated and the dog can live a normal healthy life. Heart attacks should be a special concern for owners whose dogs are obese or very old.
You should always keep an accurate vaccination history of your dog in case treatment by a professional is ever needed. Remember, our dog’s health depends on us.
Garry Neale is and avid dog enthusiast and creator of the popular e-book, “The Dog Lovers Guide“, a FREE dog owners handbook you can download at no cost from his Dog Lover Website.
How To Groom Your Dog At Home ***updated***
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Dog Owner’s Home Veterinary Handbook
- ISBN13: 9780470067857
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
The classic bestseller—expanded and updated The guide dog lovers have relied on for more than twenty-seven years, this handbook has been extensively revised to include the latest information on everything from canine healthcare to nutrition to holistic treatments. Dog Owner’s Home Veterinary Handbook, Fourth Edition, is the definitive guide for every dog owner. It puts vital information at your fingertips, with: An index of signs and symptoms to help you find information fast Clearly written, step-by-step directions for handling common canine ailments and problems A chapter on emergencies that explains what to do immediately for shock, broken bones, burns, dehydration, heat stroke, poisoning, insect stings and bites, wounds, and more Hundreds of photos and drawings that illustrate what to look for and what to do to provide the best care for your dog A glossary of terms … More >>