Bored Dogs and Cats – Pet tip 196

Even though many pet owners realize that they aren’t spending enough time with their pets, and that their pets are becoming bored, some pet owners are at a loss as to how to rectify the situation. If your cat or …

Dog skin – cat skin – skin problems in pets – Pet tip 143

The skin is the largest organ in the body. This is true for all animals. Being the largest organ in the body also means that it is very important to the health of the animal. If the skin and associated …

10 tips on being a great pet owner – Pet tip 155

Our pets are amazing additions to our lives and they enrich us in so many important ways. It is common knowledge that pets reduce human blood pressure, can help with depression and can even make us live longer. People that …

Surgery in Cats and Dogs

In North America, every household pet is likely to undergo at least one surgery throughout its lifetime. Surgery, in veterinary medicine, refers to more invasive procedures usually performed under general anesthesia. The most common surgery performed is the spaying or …

Dog Breeds for Older People

Dog Breeds Suitable for the Retired or Elderly
For retired or older individuals, there are particular concerns to think about when choosing a dog breed. An older individual may have physical or health issues that restrict the duration or intensity …

Basic Learning Theory and Dogs

Before taking on the rewarding task of training your pet, it might be a good idea to learn about how dogs (and any other animal, including ourselves) actually learn. Classical conditioning and operant conditioning are two terms you may have come across. They are two of the most important concepts governing learning.

Classical conditioning was made famous by the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov and his dogs. Perhaps you have heard of the experiments he conducted, which eventually got the dogs salivating and drooling simply at the sound of a ringing bell, because they were expecting food. How classical conditioning works is that a neutral stimulus, such as a bell, is paired with giving food. Eventually, after a number of pairings the animal mentally associates the bell with the food.

Deaf Dog Psychology

Dealing with issues faced by most deaf dogs

For all dogs, the main lesson during puppy-hood is normal dog behavior through socialization with their mothers and littermates. Puppies learn lessons in dominance and submission by roughhousing and getting responses such …

Tip – 14 – Submissive urination in dogs – Submissive urination is not a house training problem

Dogs are genetically programmed, to live in a hierarchical group. Some dogs are more dominant, and other dogs are less dominant or more submissive. Normally dogs will accept their owners as the leaders of the pack. They are in essence, …

Dog Walking

Who ever said that walking your dog should be a chore? Your dog, your companion, needs exercise every day. If you’re going to do something every day, you may as well enjoy it. Maybe you’re in the wrong mindset, or …

Pets and Fads

Any type of pet can become a fad – even among the most common domestic animals, breeds go in and out of fashion. In the 1980s, Dalmatian breeding and sales exploded after the release of a popular Disney movie. Currently, …