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DoD Overseas Newsletter / April 2005 / volume 3 / Issue 28

LOVERS

Rescue a Poodle, Snowy

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who weighs about 100 pounds and is about 9.5 years old as of Feb 2004. She has one blue eye and one brown eye. Chelsea is very sweet. She is a very docile dog. Unless you know her well, you can’t tell when she gets excited other. Chelsea guards the back yard these days and in her old age she is still very healthy. We still have no major health issues with Chelsea.she is still very healthy. We still have no major health issues with Chelsea. pounds and is about 9.5 years old as of Feb 2004. She has one blue eye and one brown eye. Chelsea is very sweet. She is a very docile dog. Unless you know her well, you can’t tell when she gets excited other. Chelsea guards the back yard these days and in her old age she is still very healthy. We still have no major health issues with Chelsea.she she is still very healthy. We still have no major health issues with Chelsea.

Current Issue Cover Story

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Adoption Information

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Obedience Training

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Nutrient for Dogs

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Photo Taking Tips

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New Event

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Next Issue • Competitions Entrying • Homemade Dog Food • Tricks Training • Travel with your Dogs

Snowy is turning three and happyly living with the Sun

How and Where to Adopt a Pet If you are interested in adopting dogs, please come to visit us. U.S. citizens who live overseas having military or civilian ID are able to adopt pets from the base clinic. Most military overseas vets clinics open from 9 am to 4pm through the weekdays. You can come anytime during office hours to search for a pet. But the adoption process will be handled from 3pm to 4pm only. Prior to the adoption procedures, please have pet cage, ID, and US$70 ready. The pet will be checked, administer required shots, and implant ID chip, before leaving the clinic. If you have further questions, please contact your local military vet clinic.

DOG LOVERS

illaryis a black with a white chest, female Collie mix who weighs about 80 pounds and she is almost 12 years old as of Feb 2005. She is overweight and I’ve had her on a restricted calorie diet. Hillary’s nicknames are, “Hills”, “Billy”, “Billy Goat”, and “Goat”. Hillary knows everyone of these names is hers. Hillary lives in the house. She does not care for strangers, and can bark or cuss a stranger pretty convincingly. We got Hillary in August of 1993. She was being given away at the local Safeway in Conifer, Co. She was the last puppy, and no one seemed to want her. We took her and she is now a best friend. Hillary has developed lots of gray in her face as she has aged. Hillary has developed a cough and has a large breast tumor. The vet thinks it is cancer, but a biopsy was inconclusive. Okie is a black and white female long haired Chihuahua, who weighs about 6 pounds and about 13 years old as of Feb 2005. Okie’s nickname is “Okie-Bokie” or just “Bokie”. Okie is a very sweet lap dog. She gets along very well with all of the other dogs. We found her in June 1996, while on a fishing trip to Oklahoma. The vet said it appeared by her condition she had probably been out on her own about 3 weeks. She was eaten up with mange and near death. It took her three weeks to get her strength back and to get rid of the mange. She is very happy today. In Okie’s old age she suffers from skin allergies and is having a hard time seeing in the dark. She has also developed a catarack in both eyes.Update- Okie has lost her left eye due to glaucoma. She has become my mother-in-law’s dog but not by my choice. Ann allows her to sleep in the bed, so Okie stays with her. We just had Okie’s teeth cleaned and blood work done which showed slight elevated enzymes in her kidneys. She is pretty healthy otherwiseeat Pyrenees,

stories | care | health | training | events

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By Kelly B. Holland Photograph by Brian Smith

and your dog are skilled at several obedience commands, then take these commands to different areas. Keep the obedience training sessions short and sweet. It is dull and boring to schedule tedious and lengthy training sessions. Instead, integrate training into your daily routine. Make obedience training interesting and meaningful to your dog. If Puppy insists on following you from room to room while you are getting ready for the day, then insist he have something to do too. “Rollover” for your wakeup greeting. “Heel” from the bedroom to the bathroom. “Downstay” while you’re brushing your teeth. “Heel” from the bathroom to the kitchen. “Sit-stay” while grinding the coffee beans. “Go find the ball” while you get dressed. Now “go get the leash” so you can go for a walk. “Sit” when the door is opened, “sit” again when the door is closed. And so on. Be sure that obedience training infiltrates your dog’s favorite activities and that your dog’s favorite activities infiltrates training. Your dog’s favorite activities should become training, so that training becomes the dog’s favorite activity.

Reward While Training The single most important aspect of training is rewarding your dog for good behavior. The more times the dog is rewarded, the quicker he will learn. Therefore, it’s essential that you set up situations repeatedly in order for your dog to get plenty of practice at doing Obedience training is one of the best things you can do for your the right thing. It’s equally as important that you always praise dog and yourself. It doesn’t solve all behavior problems, but it is your dog for good behavior instead of taking it for granted. It’s the foundation for solving just about any problem. Training opens easy to forget to praise good behavior because it goes unnoticed. up a line of communication between you and your dog. Effective But the very nature of misbehavior gets our communication is necessary to instruct your attention. We don’t notice when our dog is dog about what you want her to do. Dogs are lying quietly, but excessive barking gets our social animals and without proper training, attention. How many of us take notice and they will behave like animals. Nearly all The single most praise our dogs when they chew their own behavior problems are perfectly normal canine important aspect of toys? But we all go berserk when we notice activities that occur at the wrong time or place training is rewardour favorite pair of shoes chewed up! Praise or are directed at the wrong thing. The key and reward are the most important part of to preventing or treating behavior problems ing your dog for good maintaining good behavior and preventing is learning to teach the dog to redirect his behavior. natural behavior to outlets that are acceptable problems from arising. in the domestic setting. Obedience training Reprimands While Training is also an easy way to establish the social hierarchy. When your dog obeys a simple request of ‘come here, Some dogs feel they are constantly bombarded with, ‘NO, Stop that, sit,’ she is showing compliance and respect for you. Most dogs love get off, Bad dog!’ They tend to get used to it and so the reprimands performing obedience commands for you which also pleasantly become meaningless and are ignored. If most of our interaction acknowledge that you are in charge. with the dog is praise for good behavior, then reprimands will take Obedience training should be fun and rewarding for you and your on much more meaning. Whenever you find the need to reprimand dog. It can enrich your relationship and make living together more your dog, immediately show him what you want him to do, then enjoyable. A well-trained dog is more confident and can more safely reward him for getting it right. If you catch him chewing the furniture, tell him, ‘Off!’ Then immediately direct him to his own be allowed a greater amount of freedom than an untrained one. toys, enthusiastically entice him to chew on them and praise him Some people debate whether or not it is possible to train puppies, and others ask whether it is possible to teach an old dog new trick. for doing so. The answer to both questions is an unequivocal YES. Whatever If done correctly, your voice alone is sufficient for reprimand. A the age of your dog, the right time to begin train ing is right now! correct reprimand is short, sharp and immediate. Don’t continue The most important time in your dog’s life is right now. Your dog’s to nag the dog and never reprimand him unless you catch him behavior is constantly changing. A dog that is well-behaved today in the act. Never hit, kick, slap or spank your dog. This type of will not necessarily remain that way forever. New problems can inappropriate punishment always creates more problems and always develop. Existing problems can always get worse. It is best usually makes existing problems worse. Not only will you have to begin training in an area that is familiar to your dog and with the a barking, chewing dog, but one that is leery, hand-shy, fearful or least amount of distractions as possible. When you feel both you aggressive.

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Nutrient Requirement of Dogs Your dog’s behavior, happiness, health, longevity and overall well-being are inextricably intertwined with what you feed him. Dogs, just like everyone else, have specific nutritional needs. BY SUSAN McGRATH Feeding Puppies

Feeding Adult Dogs

When a dog reaches full maturity, it enters the maintenance period. Normal healthy dogs who are not pregnant, nursing, or hardworking have relatively low nutritional requirements for maintaining an appropriate body condition. A good body

condition is one in which the animal is well proportioned, with observable waist behind the ribcage, and ribs that can be felt with a slight fat covering over them. With the variety of nutritionally complete and balanced dog foods available, providing a proper diet for an adult dog can be straightforward and simple without the need for supplements of any kind. If supplemental meat or table scraps are fed, they should account for no more than 10% of the total diet. Higher levels can dilute the nutritional value of the commercial diet, predispose an animal to obesity and may create a finicky eater. For dogs with lower caloric needs and/or for dogs that are less active, attention should be paid to the potential for excessive weight gain. Often a dog’s weight can be reduced simply by eliminating table scraps and treats from the diet and by avoiding high-energy dog foods. Overweight dogs may have more health problems and a shorter life expectancy. Feeding recommendations for adult dogs can vary, depending upon the breed, activity, metabolism and owner’s preference. Whether or not an animal is fed once or twice each day, it should be fed at the same time, and fresh drinking water should always be made available. Just as with humans, a dog’s appetite may vary from day to day. This should not pose a problem unless the loss of appetite persists or the dog shows signs of illness or weight loss. In these situations, the dog should be examined by a veterinarian.

Feeding Older Dogs

Aging dogs are defined as older or geriatric when they have reached the last 25 percent of their expected life span, which is directly related to size or breed, as well as the care received during a lifetime:  Small breed dogs greater than 12 years of age  Medium breed dogs greater than 10 years of age  Large breed dogs greater than 9 years of age  Giant breed dogs greater than 7 years of age Some signs of aging are described as: changes in body weight  difficulty in locomotion (movement)  changes in hearing and/or eyesight  changes in skin and/or haircoat  changes in urine or bowel habits  bad breath associated with teeth or mouth problems Studies have shown that healthy older dogs utilize protein in a manner similar to the young adult dog, and that geriatric dogs may need about 50 percent more protein than younger adult dogs. However, current commercial diets formulated for adult dogs at maintenance generally provide adequate protein. Less active animals may have reduced energy requirements, and caution should be used when feeding energy dense diets to avoid the risk of excessive weight gain.

DOG LOVERS

For the first seven to ten days of life, the newborn puppy’s eyes remain closed. Yet during that time, puppies double their birth weight and become increasingly more active. As a rule of thumb, each puppy in a litter should gain approximately its birth weight each week during the lactation or nursing period. While most females are excellent mothers, some nervous or inattentive dams may require special attention to help them calm down and accept their new offspring. This may involve working with both the dam and/or puppies, and placing pups near nipples at feeding time. Poorly nursing puppies may be smaller in size, cooler in body temperature, and weigh less. Routinely handling the pups will allow for an opportunity to check their condition and progress, although excessive handling may be stressful for the dam and pups and should be avoided. The typical introduction of a puppy to solid food (around 3 to 4 weeks of age) usually amounts to the pup romping around and through the dam’s food bowl, and licking moistened dry food from its paws. Puppy traffic will tend to compact the food, so stirring the compacted diet or offering fresh amounts periodically should be considered. By six weeks of age, most puppies are ready to be weaned. If they have started to eat solid foods from the dam’s dish, it is not unusual for puppies to begin to wean themselves at about four to five weeks of age. The nutrient requirements to support normal growth and development of puppies are greater than those for an adult dog. For this reason, nutritionally complete and balanced diets designed for growth and reproduction or all life stages are recommended. No additional supplementation in the form of vitamins, minerals, meat, or other additives is needed. A puppy’s stomach capacity is not large enough to hold sufficient food in one feeding to provide its daily requirement of needed nutrients. Young puppies should be fed at least three times a day until their food requirements, per pound of body weight, begin to level off as they mature. Feeding schedules can be reduced to twice a day when pups are four to five months old, and once a day when they are eight months or older. Fresh water in a clean bowl should be available at all times. Establishing routine eating habits by feeding a puppy in the same place and at the same time each day is recommended and can help in housebreaking. Offering human foods from the table is not recommended because it encourages begging and may create a finicky eater. Puppies consuming a complete and balanced diet do not need supplemental vitamins, minerals, or meat. In fact, over supplementation has been shown to be detrimental to proper development of young, growing pups.

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Pet Photo Tips By Rose Mary 

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Take the photos outdoors, on a fair day, in early morning or late afternoon, or indoors in a bright and well-lit room. Avoid taking photos outdoors at high noon or on overcast days, or indoors under artificial lighting. You want the colors in the photos to reflect the true coloring of your pet Take the photos in a place where your pet is comfortable "being him/herself", such as in the corral, in your yard, in the park where you walk your pet, etc Have help. Someone should be free to take the photo and someone else to pose the pet. Use a telephoto lens to get close-up photos without getting too close to your pet. An ideal photo for portraits has the pet filling over half of the picture, with the surroundings filling the rest. Get down or up to pet eye-level to take your pet’s photos. You should be looking straight at your pet from the camera. Take many photos, several rolls, if possible, in many different poses. Don’t use instant film developing types of cameras. Watch the background! If your pet is dark-colored, try to take photos in front of lighter backgrounds; if your pet is light-colored, try to take photos in front of darker backgrounds. In general, keep backgrounds simple and uncluttered. Try to use a camera with an automatic focus. Animals move quickly and often, and adjusting the manual focus can take a little time.

D G LOVERS 1520 St. Bank Avenue Los Angeles, CA 91704

COMING NEWS Winners of 2005 spring canine photo and essay competitions will be announced on next month’s issue. The summer season canine photo and essay competitions will be entering on June 30 and end on Aug. 30. This year’s theme is “Dog’s Best Summer Spot.” For details, please visit the Dog Lovers Web site: www.doglovers.org.

FIRST LASS MAIL U.S. POSTAGE PAID Los Angeles, CA Permit No. 337

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