EVERYDAY DOGCARE

Trimming your dog’s nails isn’t just about protecting your hardwood floors. Here’s what can go wrong if you don’t cut your pet’s nails regularly. The nails can grow into a circular shape and back into your dog’s paw pads. That doesn’t just hurt. It sometimes causes infections serious enough to turn red and ooze pus, […]

While dogs in general are predisposed to liking people and may even have evolved to bond with us, that does not mean that every dog is interested in being petted by strangers with whom they happen to cross paths. That’s okay. “A dog that’s not interested in people outside of her family or social group […]

Virtually all dry dog foods have an abrasive action on the teeth, so their labels may legally contain wording that the contents are able to “cleanse, freshen, or whiten” teeth. But some foods also meet standards for controlling plaque and tartar. Plaque is the soft, sticky film that builds up on the teeth and contains […]

In a small but telling piece of research, researchers in the United Kingdom equipped dogs with special collars that tracked their heart rates for 7 days and found the following: When a dog’s human companion said, “I love you,” their pet’s heart rate shot up by 46 percent, from an average of 67 beats per […]

Q. Five years ago my wife and I rescued and adopted an abused and abandoned Labradoodle. Today she is a therapy dog and a Canine Good Citizen, a designation given by the American Kennel Club for dogs who can pass a 10-item test designed to rate such things as how politely a dog moves through […]

If you’re making New Year’s resolutions, why not improve your dog’s health by adding a daily dental hygiene regimen to your list? Consider the accumulation of plaque that develops on your pet’s teeth and eventually hardens under her gum line, bringing bacteria, discomfort, and eventual destabilization of the teeth that can largely be avoided with […]

It’s important to keep your dog protected from fleas and ticks all year round in order to prevent the transmission of infectious diseases from those two parasites, some of which can be very severe. But which product should you use? Herein, a guide to help you select the preventative that will best suit your dog. […]

What could be better than going to the movies and enjoying a glass of wine while snuggling with a loved one who adores you? In Plano, Texas, you can do just that at a theater that allows dogs. Fifteen dollars will get you and your furry companion seats, wine (or whiskey), and the screening of such movies as A Dogs Journey. All you have to do is show proof on the first visit that your pet has had all the necessary vaccinations, be prepared to take your dog for potty breaks, and, if you dont make it outside in time, clean up.

“Some dogs, you put on the leash and they happily run right up the ramp and into the back of the SUV,” says Tufts animal behaviorist Stephanie Borns-Weil, DVM. “Or you put a treat at the top of the ramp, and they immediately get the hang of it. Others have to learn how to use […]

Even though many people give their dogs rawhide, it can prove a significant safety hazard. If a pet lazily tugs at the rawhide little by little, there’s no danger. But if she is an aggressive chewer who swallows chunks with gusto, they can become stuck somewhere between her throat and the other end of her […]

What looks like an open wound on your dog’s skin is causing an itch that won’t quit. She keeps scratching, licking, chewing, or biting to relieve it, and the area just keeps becoming redder and more inflamed. There’s a patch of hair loss, too, and it all looks very wet. What’s going on? She has […]

As a dog lover, you’ve no doubt experienced that tug on your heart — and your conscience — when you’ve spotted a dog roaming the streets, running around a parking lot, or wandering alongside a busy strip small. But perhaps you’ve kept walking or driven by because a) there was too much traffic to stop […]