As our dogs get older, they become subject to a number of age-related diseases such as canine diabetes. Diabetes in older dogs is a common metabolic disorder in which insufficient insulin is produced to process the amount of glucose required for energy. Alternatively the dog’s insulin receptors may be insensitive to the insulin produced and again insufficient glucose is processed to provide the required energy. Overweight dogs have a large amount of body fat which tends to reduce insulin production and they are therefore more susceptible to developing diabetes. Females develop diabetes about twice as often as male dogs. With proper treatment dogs can continue to live a fairly normal life. The first step in treating our beloved companion is to recognize the symptoms of age-related canine diabetes.

Diabetes Symptoms – Age-related diabetes is diabetes mellitus in which insulin is not available in sufficient quantity to remove glucose from the blood and convert it into energy. The result is too much glucose in the blood and too little in the cells which disrupts the normal functioning of the body. The early signs of diabetes that can be detected usually include increased thirst, more frequent urination and accidents or a break in housetraining. This is usually accompanied by an increase in appetite but also a weight loss. Later signs of diabetes may include bad breath that smells of ketones, vomiting, cataracts and blindness. As soon as you detect any symptoms that may be diabetes-related talk to your veterinarian. Your vet will test blood glucose levels for blood sugar control. Upon determining the presence of diabetes, your vet will probably recommend a two-pronged approach to treating diabetes. These include diet and exercise and insulin treatment.

Diet and Exercise – In the initial stages of diabetes, most dogs are too fat and don’t get enough exercise. Your veterinarian will probably recommend a high-fiber/complex carbohydrate diet to help reduce weight and slow down the rate at which food is digested and glucose released into the bloodstream. She will also recommend you feed your dog two or three smaller meals a day to reduce the spikes in blood glucose entering the body. The goal of a diabetes diet is to keep blood glucose levels as level or even as possible and minimize spikes in your dog’s blood glucose. Increasing the amount of exercise your dog receives will also help him to lose weight and ultimately lower blood glucose levels.

Insulin Treatment – Insulin treatment can involve giving oral diabetic medication but the vast majority of cases will require insulin injections. You will work with your veterinarian to select the best type of insulin and frequency of injections. Most diabetic dogs will require twice daily injections and regular visits to the vet to monitor the effect of dosages on blood glucose levels. Initially it is important to monitor blood glucose levels carefully as too little or too much insulin can have a very serious impact on your dog’s life. Diabetic coma can result if your dog exercises too much and/or misses a meal. Too much insulin can result in an adverse insulin reaction and your dog will need additional glucose to prevent weakness and convulsions. Insulin shots are easy to administer and most owners will become proficient in using blood and urine test strips to monitor blood glucose levels and adjust dosages.

Canine diabetes in the aging dog can be managed to maintain your dog’s quality of life and extend his life expectancy to three or more years. Untreated diabetes can result in many complications including kidney disease, blindness and death. See dog-breed-facts.com/old-senior-dogs.html for additional information on age-related canine diseases.

Mike Mathews is a contributing writer and editor for the popular dog breed site: dog-breed-facts.com Dog Breed Facts. He provides informative, real-world advice and tips on dog breeds, dog health, dog grooming and more. As well be sure to check out his new E-Book choosingadog.dog-breed-facts.com/” title”Choosing a Dog For Your Lifestyle Choosing a Dog For Your Lifestyle

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Have you taken your dog to the vet recently? Did you balk at the cost of a regular check up or the price tag of your dog’s medicine? In a more extreme example, your dog may have eaten something that didn’t agree with them and they are convulsing and coughing up blood. This frightens you and you rush them to the emergency vet hospital. The vet has trouble ascertaining the cause of their distress and runs several tests and pumps a plethora of medicines in your dog’s body.

Of course you love your dog and will do anything to save him. However, after the fright of the situation wears off you realize that your dog has racked up quite a vet bill. In fact, the bill may be over $1,000. Wow! There is no question that you should save your dog’s life by any means possible, but if this type of situation happens more than once your bank account might dwindle to nothing. Therefore, you need to purchase pet insurance for your dog.

Pet insurance for your dog you ask? Yes, you can purchase pet insurance for your canine companion. It is a great idea to purchase pet insurance for many reasons. Was your dog born with birth defects and other chronic problems? For example, some dogs are born with misplaced knee caps, “trick knees”, and will need costly surgery in the future. Another reason to buy pet insurance for your pet is that if they are getting on in years. Many times dogs will hit a certain age and it seems as if they are struck with several health problems at once.

Pet insurance is also a good option if you have an overly active or working dog. Does your dog tend to run around the country side and come home with scrapes and bruises? Do they bring home disease infested rodents for your viewing pleasure? Do they feel compelled to eat trash that is filled with bacteria even when they know they aren’t supposed to? Do you have more than one dog and fear the spread of a dog illnesses or infections? Pet insurance is something to consider in any of these cases.

How does pet insurance work? Pet insurance is very similar to your own health insurance plan. There are several different pet insurance plans to choose from that range in the amount of services and cost. Many pet insurance plans offer coverage regarding annual checkups, lab tests, vaccinations, drugs/medications, spaying/neutering and emergency visits. Often you will visit the vet, pay for the service and then submit your claim to the pet insurance company.

The range of coverage varies as does the deductible and reimbursement percentage. Some pet insurance plans will pay up to 80% of your vet bill after you have reached the $100 deductible. Pet insurance is an especially thankful gift when your dog has an emergency and racks up the medical costs.

In addition, pet insurance plans also allow you to choose the veterinarian you would like your dog to see. You do not have to worry about veterinarians “in your network” like you commonly do with your own health insurance plan.

When choosing a pet insurance plan you have a host of pet insurane companies available. Many of these companies have websites that can provide you an instant pet insurance quote. You type your contact information, the breed of your dog, and your dog’s age. You can find the costs for pet insurance plans that are basic to comprehensive and whether you want to pay the pet insurance premium monthly or once a year.

It depends on the age and breed of your dog, but you can find pet insurance premiums as low as $10-$15 per month. As your dog gets older, the cost will increase slightly due to the fact that older canines are prone to more illnesses and veterinarian visits. This rise in cost can be offset greatly by the amount of money you will save by purchasing a pet insurance plan.

Think pet insurance is too high or unnecessary? Consider the fact that if you don’t purchase pet insurance, you will have to pay the full amount for every vet service out of your pocket. This can soon add up to over thousands of dollars during your dog’s lifetime.

If your dog is susceptible to illness or you find yourself at the vet’s office often then check out pet insurance plans. You can peruse the Internet for instant quotes or contact your vet for possible pet insurance options. Finding pet insurance is as easy as signing up on the Internet. If you don’t feel comfortable with the Internet, then seek out the guidance of your vet. They may know well respected pet insurance companies that offer affordable pet insurance plans. Your pooch and your pocket book will thank you.

Katie Brandt’s website, dog-breeds-infosite.com/ dog-breeds-infosite.com is the ultimate dog lover’s resource. Research dog breeds & get free tips on dog training, dog supplies, dog health, dog school, dog grooming, dog laws, dog products & how to find dog sitters & dog walkers.

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The more authentic information about pet grooming you know, the more likely people are to consider you a pet grooming expert. Read on for even more facts that you can share.

We all know that basic dog grooming or cat grooming is a necessary evil, but do we give our animals all that they deserve? Do we even know what kind of dog grooming supplies we need? Why own a pet at all if we are not going to love and care for it properly? There are so many animal facilities available, both stationary and mobile, there is absolutely no excuse for an unkempt animal. Whether you have a dog, cat, rabbit, horse or other animal you care for it is imperative that they get the attention they deserve.

Admittedly there are a few owners that go way overboard when it comes to their pets. There are places that will provide exercise and socialization, spa treatments and even birthday parties. Some owners think of their pet as a family member and indulge them unmercifully. When it comes to cucumber facial masks and aromatherapy that may be taking things a bit too far, but that is an owner’s exclusive right or privilege. However, this article is not concerned with overindulgence, but with the basic necessity of rabbit , horse or cat grooming plus shih tzu, poodle or other types of dog grooming. A well-groomed animal is much easier to love.

So exactly what does pet grooming involve? What type of dog grooming products do we need? The basics to cat or dog grooming, and even the job to groom other animals for that matter, is simple. It boils down to a shower, shave and a haircut along with a couple of other easy procedures. Obviously, keeping your animal’s hair the proper length is very important for its appearance. This can involve either cutting or brushing the hair. Some pets never need a cut while others look much better with an occasional clipping. With some animals regular brushing will be enough to keep the hair nice and neat.

Bathing is another important step in keeping your pet groomed properly. This is a simple matter of hosing them down, rubbing in some shampoo and then rinsing them off. This can be done in a tub or outside with a garden hose. With regular bathing and brushing 90 percent of the chore is done. The other main ingredients to successfully keeping your pet looking its best are using clippers for clipping nails and possibly a little flea control. There is not much more to it than that. Sure, it is possible to spend a lot more time and money on mobile pet grooming, pet grooming supplies, oiling down the coat, tools, products and other extravagances, but it is not really necessary. Now if you have a show animal on the other hand it becomes a whole new ball game. But the basics are simple, wash, cut or brush, clip and flea control.

If you are the lazy type or just do not have enough time to spend on this job it is a simple matter of finding a mobile pet grooming company that will do the job for you. Or even a dog grooming school. Of course you will pay more, but if having your animal look its best is important to you this is certainly a consideration. If you are going to do the work yourself you might want to search for some online instructions, videos or tips.

You cannot predict when knowing something extra about pet grooming will come in handy. If you learned anything new in this article, you should file the article where you can find it again. As your knowledge about pet grooming continues to grow, you will begin to see how important of a subject this really is.

This article is presented to you by best-pet-grooming.com Best Pet Grooming, an online source for best-pet-grooming.com pet grooming products. For more information about pet grooming visit Best Pet Grooming.

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In my lifetime I have had my share of dog companions. The one that I hold closest to my heart would be Thor. His picture is on the main page of my web site. He had a hard start in life. When he was 6 months old he was hit by a vehicle and the impact broke his humerus in one leg and snapped the ball joint of his other leg in half. He ended up with lots of screws and a metal plate. He started going to the dog grooming shop with me after that. He was considered the greeter at the shop.

When he was about 4 years old he was chasing the horse and got kicked. When the humerus was broken again a longer metal plate replaced the first one. Despite all this, he lead a very healthy life. And Thor was full of life, a real character. He lived to be 17 years old. His favorite place was in the back of my truck on an adventure. That is where I had the doctor give him the shot. It was the hardest thing I have ever done. But he was ready and seemed relieved. He just lay his head in my lap and went to sleep. I buried him next to the garden.

Many months went by. One day I decided that it was time to build a nice memorial for Thor around his grave, something permanent. A friend had given me about 6 bags of mulched leaves and I planned to put those in my garden and on Thor’s grave to protect the flowers I was planning on planting. So my 4 year old daughter and I built a rock and wood planter. On the bottom level we planted purple irises, day lilies, gladiolus and other plants. On the top level we planted a red rose bush. It turned out beautiful. My daughter and I then emptied out the leaves into the garden and put some in the planter.

It was a beautiful day. About 70 degrees with no wind, barely a inter mitten breeze. Where we live we are prone to wind so this was a nice change. My daughter and I stepped out of the garden area and looked at our work. We had done a fine job honoring our beloved Thor. Just then, from out of nowhere, a dirt devil picked up the leaves and twirled them about 10 feet high for about 5 seconds. Round and round they flew. The dirt devil then moved them a short distance and ended. Well you can just imagine my daughters delight. She just stood there in awe of such an amazing thing. Then the excitement exploded out of her. She was jabbering at a 100 miles and hour. “What was that?, I want to see another one. Can I see another one mommy?”. So naturally I joined in the excitement and explained what a dirt devil was. After getting the general idea she still wanted another one. And I can tell you that a 4 year old can be relentless. Well I started to explain to her that the odds of another dirt devil in the same place were huge. Bigger that as far as she could see, trying to keep it in terms she could understand. “You just have to keep your eyes open and watch for them and you might see another one” I said. As I ended that sentence, out of nowhere, another dirt devil appeared, picked up the leaves and flew them about 100 feet in the air and into the field next to our house. Well shut my mouth! Because it was wide open at this point. As hard as I tried I couldn’t explain that one.

Katherine Durr has been a professional dog groomer for over 17 years and is the author of “How to Groom your Mutt”. Visit her website at doggiedews.com Doggie Dews

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Are you a serious dog lover? Do you want to make a career out of taking care of pets? Perhaps you’d like to be a certified pet first aid expert, or the manager of a dog day camp or kennel. How else should you start on your dream, but to check out the dog training schools in your home town?
Dog training schools are always in great demand. In fact, the most popular ones are always fully booked! Sometimes the students are merely pet enthusiasts, eager to learn how to take care of the dogs they already have, and would like to have in the future. But sometimes, the students are serious-minded academicians, ready and willing to plunge into the world of pet psychology.

But these schools are in demand precisely because pet care experts are needed everywhere. Licensed and qualified dog trainers are indispensable to dog owners who breed pedigree dogs, intent on raising them to become champion performers. Dog training schools are also great launch pads for those who are seriously thinking of a career in veterinary science.
What can you get in dog training schools that you won’t be able to get all by yourself, off the Internet, and for free? Well, the biggest thing waiting for you in schools is the privilege of getting hands-on experience. You get practical training in things that would remain theoretical, otherwise. Practical training gives you the experience you need, so you are never caught short-handed in case of emergencies on the job. You are able to exercise all your senses and learn how it feels to put your back into your work.

Another thing is, you get to mingle with certified professionals, as well as other pet enthusiasts. Nothing beats being able to see pet care professionals in action, getting to talk to them and sometimes even participating in their basic and advanced exercises. This interaction is the best way to supplement your stock knowledge. Plus, you are able to network with other pet care professionals who may be able to help you get jobs, or further your pet care education.

There may be schools offering distance certification in pet care, via the Internet, which allows you to study from home and just submit proof of your achievements online. But this does not come with the benefits of enrolling in dog training schools and attending classes. If you really want to be an expert, spend time and money on your training: it’s worth it!

Puppy-train.com provides you with information on dog barking, dog training collars, puppy-train.com/dog-training-schools.html” target=”_blank dog training schools, dog grooming supplies and homemade dog treats. Go to puppy-train.com/ puppy-train.com/

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