Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Use Homemade Dog Treat Recipes For Dogs With Allergies

Utilizing homemade dog treat recipes may be the best alternative to dog owners whose pet has severe allergies. Although some dogs have no food allergies as all there are many dogs that are either severely allergic to one or two specific ingredients and other dogs have allergies to many ingredients. Buying dog treats for dogs with allergies can be a difficult task. You have to examine the labels carefully to ensure that you the dog treats do not contain any ingredients that can cause an allergic reaction in your dog. This can be difficult because sometimes it is hard to determine what is included in the dog treat and there may be derivatives of the ingredient that your dog is allergic to that can be hard to identify.

dog food container storage

Homemade dog treat recipes are one of the safest ways to provide treats to dogs with allergies. When you use homemade dog treat recipes you are cognizant of each and every ingredient that goes into your homemade treats. You can modify the homemade dog treat recipes to exclude any ingredients that your dog is allergic to or you can find homemade dog treat recipes that do not include these ingredients in the first place.

Dog Food

Use Homemade Dog Treat Recipes For Dogs With Allergies

Dog Food

eye Why Heartburn and Upset Stomach Have come to be Big Business!

While watching television or listening to the radio lately have you noticed that there are more commercials for heartburn relief? The calculate is because more americans suffer from heartburn and stomach nausea than ever before. There is a huge market for heartburn relief because our lifestyles are more stressful and we we eat foods that are not as wholesome for our bodies.

dog food for sensitive stomachs

Although most cases of heartburn and nausea that are episodic or those that happens only occasionally are carefully harmless, those people who are suffering from chronic heartburn and nausea may be suffering from some more serious conditions such as acid reflux.

Sensitive Stomachs

There are a variety of reasons why people in the United States suffer from heartburn and nausea. The former cause of this condition is the eating habits and lifestyle of the americans. According to studies, there are certain foods that would plainly growth the risk of a person to have heartburn and nausea. Eating food such as chocolate, peppermint, citrus fruits, fatty or spicy foods, raw onions and those which have lots of vinegar in it would growth the risk of having heartburn.

Furthermore, consumption of a large quantum of food would often cause heartburn and nausea, as the stomach would secrete more acid to process all the food faster. Eating slowly therefore would help cut the possibility of suffering from heartburn after meal.

When it comes to drinks and beverages, alcoholic beverages and those, which consist of caffeine, could cause heartburn and nausea. Drinks, which consist of alcohol or caffeine, would cause irritation in the stomach and trigger the acid from the stomach to rise up into the esophagus causing that burning sensation. On the other hand, citrus fruits juices, which may consist of large amounts of acids, could also trigger heartburn and nausea. According to experts, the acid contents in citrus fruits could be bad for sensitive stomach too.

The lifestyle of americans also contributes much to the growth in the whole of people in the United States who sense heartburn and nausea every month. Studies show that stress is one of the former factors that could cause heartburn and nausea. When a person is stressed out, the acid excretes more acid into the stomach and would trigger irritation. To avoid suffering from this condition, a straightforward change in lifestyle would do the trick.

eye Why Heartburn and Upset Stomach Have come to be Big Business!

Sensitive Stomachs

Dog Nutrition - Comparing the Guaranteed Analysis on Dog Food Labels - Why You Need to Know This

There are several premium dog food companies that will actually provide other nutrients along with their Guaranteed Analysis to let you know that they are using premium ingredients. Examples of these are phosphorus, sodium, calcium, etc. which are excellent for your dog. In order for you to know you're getting premium food, here's an example of how the guarantee analysis label should look like.

dog food dispenser

Guaranteed Analysis:

Dog Food

Crude Protein - 28.0%

Crude Fat - 16.0%

Crude Fiber - 5.0%

Moisture - 1.0.0%

The guaranteed analysis is based on "AS IS" or "call it as fed". Don't worry, this is fine. But you need to compare the products on their different moisture content. Make sure you calculate the percentages for each product you are looking at. This isn't difficult, so let me show you how to compare different brands.

Example:

Let's start out with three fictitious companies that you want to compare. Paws Foods, Barking Foods and Dog Food Excellence. (no, these are not real companies)

Paws Foods: Protein:22%, Fat:12%, Fiber:4%, Moisture:10% AS FED. This would contain 90% dry matter. (100-10=90%)

Barking Foods: Protein:22%, Fat:12%, Fiber:4%, Moisture:12% AS FED. This would contain 88% dry matter. (100-12=88%)

Dog Food Excellence: Protein:22%, Fat:12%, Fiber:4%, Moisture:14% AS FED. This would contain 86% dry matter. (100-14=86%)

I think you're getting the picture here. The more moisture the guaranteed analysis shows you, the less nutritious dry matter there is. You are paying more for the extra water and getting less nutrients. In the case above, the better dog food company would be Paws Foods.

Another thing you should see on the label in addition to the guaranteed analysis is one of two statements coming from the AAFCO (Association of the American Feed Control Officials)

1. "Paws Foods" is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles.

The AAFCO lets you know they have passed all the proper nutrient tests that a dog food requires by their standards. The dog food contained the proper amount of protein, calcium, and other essential nutrients that a dog needs to stay healthy.

2. Animal feeding tests using AAFCO procedures substantiate that "Paws Foods" provides complete and balanced nutrition.

This lets you know that the dog food has actually been feed to dogs using certain guidelines by the AAFCO and has been found to provide proper nutrition.

I hope you now have a better understanding on how you can choose a good premium dog food. Naturally you want your ingredients to start out with a good protein, carbohydrate and fat. In addition you should always check "Guaranteed Analysis" and one of the statements from the AAFCO. All this combined should help to put your mind at ease.

Dog Nutrition - Comparing the Guaranteed Analysis on Dog Food Labels - Why You Need to Know This

Dog Food

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

The Correct Amount of Food For Your Maltese

When your Maltese puppy comes home, you will have to plan on the kind of food to use. Again, you will be confronted with almost as many choices as you have when buying cereal and almost as many televised commercials for "the best food" for your growing dog. However, you will need to conduct a bit of research prior to the brand of food decision. It's typical of the Maltese breed to come with some digestive sensitivity. Therefore, you may need to exercise caution when choosing the food. Even though there may be some differences between food for the puppy and food for the adult dog, the Maltese still needs the proper balanced diet.

dog food for sensitive stomachs

When looking into food brands, you may want to do some investigation about what ingredients are necessary for appropriate dog food. You can do your own research, but you may also want to discuss this with your veterinarian. In addition you will want to know about the specific stomach issues presented by the Maltese breed. Your Veterinarian should have lots of information about the type of food to feed your Maltese. They can also prescribe prescription food for sensitive stomachs or skin irritations. The choices may include brands and also the various forms of food available in a specific brand. Also, the type of food you choose also affects the dog's coat and skin. Type of food can help keep the hair healthy and reduce the amount of shedding as well as scratching.

Dog Food For Sensitive Stomachs

You will not be restricted to only one brand of food for your Maltese, but there may be some restrictions within a brand. There are numerous dry foods called "kibble" that contain protein and about 40% carbohydrates. The lined bags for these kibble type nuggets of food keep in the fat coating of the dry food. Also, there are foods that could be called "semi-moist" or "semi-dry" if you will. You have probably seen these in the store where they are found packaged in "pouches" with a certain number of pouches included in each box. However, with these foods, make certain there is no artificial coloring in the food. Then, of course, there are canned dog foods and frozen dog foods. Now, as you peruse the canned varieties, you will find several subcategories. You will see ones that are "stew," ones that are "ration," ones that are "all animal tissue," and ones that are "chunk." Most pet stores and super markets sell these canned varieties.

When you consider "frozen" dog food, you need to know that these foods contain nothing to "extend" them. They are only defrosted when you feed the dog and the doggie leftovers cannot be kept in your plastic food containers because of the possibility of growth of poisonous bacteria that can harm your Maltese. As you might have guessed, it can be quite expensive to feed a Maltese given their limited diet. If you do your preliminary groundwork, you should be able to make appropriate food choices. And if you're lucky, you might get a Maltese who doesn't have any food allergies, making feeding easy.

The Correct Amount of Food For Your Maltese

Dog Food For Sensitive Stomachs

The Dangers of Omeprazole Medication

Omeprazole medication is a drug used to treat ulcers (including stomach ulcers) and symptoms of Gerd. It is the generic name for the brand Prilosec and Prilosec Otc. Omeprazole medication is in the proton pump inhibitor class of drugs which blocks yield of stomach acid to sell out symptoms of acid reflux.

dog food for sensitive stomachs

Omeprazole medication is doctor prescribed and picked up by you at your pharmacy. Multum is the enterprise that generates the medication guide for doctors and condition care facilities that supply omeprazole medication. Unfortunately treatment even with the spoton dose of this treatment can corollary in a wide range of side effects that range from the mildly unpleasant to the embarrassing and down right deadly.

Sensitive Stomachs

Omeprazole medication side effects include:

· Constipation
· Diarrhea
· Sensitivity to light
· Loss of taste
· Swelling of the hands, feet, legs and more
· Mouth inflammation
· Gastrointestinal infection
· Nausea
· Headaches
· Muscle infirmity
· Muscle aches, pain or tenderness
· Vomiting
· Stomach and abdominal pain
· Dizziness
· Fainting
· Feeling light headed
· Itching
· Rashes
· normal feeling of being ill
· Dermatitis and skin problems
· Insomnia
· Aggressiveness
· Agitation
· Hair loss
· Blurred vision
· Drowsiness
· Urticaria
· Vertigo
· Aangioedema
· Anaphylactic shock
· Bronchospasm
· Fever
· Kidney problems
· Male breast enlargement
· Joint pain
· Depression
· Dry mouth
· Hallucination
· Impotence or other sexual side effects
· Profuse sweating
· Arthritis
· Blood and bone marrow issues
· Jaundice
· Stevens-Johnson syndrome
· Toxic reactions
· obscuring
· Problems with metabolism
· Liver problems
· Hypersensitivity

Now assess the side effects with the symptoms that it is meant to prevent and control:

· Sore throat
· Regurgitation
· Hoarseness
· Heartburn
· Chest pain

Clearly the side effects of omeprazole medication can be much worse and far more perilous than the symptoms they are meant to treat. Now that doesn't mean that you should avoid any treatment all together. As over time reflux of stomach acid can corollary in erosion of the esophagus and other condition problems.

Fortunately there are many ways to naturally combat and prevent symptoms of Gerd and to sell out the amount of acid in the stomach without omeprazole medication. Your plan for natural treamtent of acid reflux and Gerd symptoms without omeprazole medication should consist of the following:

1. Eliminating bad habits that growth acidity.
2. Changing diet by reducing acidic foods and addition the ratio of alkaline foods.
3. Getting quarterly practice
4. Watching activities after meals
5. Taking natural remedies and home cures to balance ph levels

1. Bad Habits

Whether or not you are following a natural plan for treatment or are going to risk the dangers of omeprazole medication you should begin be eliminating bad habits such as smoking and drinking alcohol which originate acidity in the body.

2. Diet

Again omeprazole medication is not a magical cure and while it may help some symptoms even with major risks it does not prevent the causes. You need to sell out the amount of acid in your diet which will sell out the amount of acid produced in your stomach. Try to consume a ratio of 2-3 parts alkaline foods to acidic foods.

3. Exercise

Even short walks after meals will promote great digestion and metabolism.

4. Activity

Avoid laying down or bending over directly after meals.

5. Natural Remedies

There are many natural remedies to help balance ph levels to ensure the right balance of stomach acid to ensure allowable digestion. These consist of a wide range of herbs, and natural foods and drinks that are easy to find and join into your daily routines and do not carry side corollary like omeprazole medication.

The Dangers of Omeprazole Medication

Sensitive Stomachs

Is Dry Dog Food Healthy For My Dog to Eat?

Not long ago, dogs used to be fed scraps from the table, with whatever else they managed to scavenge from elsewhere. Now, as animals become a bigger part of families, we want to feed them food that they will enjoy and like. There are so many brands out there though, how do you know which one to choose? Dry dog food is certainly very convenient for the busy pet owner, but there have been many reports of dogs getting ill from eating it. What are the alternatives?

dog food dispenser

Is it healthy for my dog to eat dry biscuits?

Dog Food

Is it healthy for any living animal to eat the same thing every day? Of course, most animals do not have nearly as much variety as humans do. But, a mix of food types and textures is important in making food enjoyable. Dog biscuits are made with convenience in mind. They are supposed to have all the nutrients and minerals needed to keep an animal healthy. However, the nature of biscuits mean that they are preserved and dry. Not all dogs like dried food. Older dogs might struggle to crunch biscuits. Preservatives and other ingredients in 'complete foods' have been known to cause skin and stomach problems in some dogs, although this isn't always the case.

What else can I feed my dog?

Most raw meat is a healthy and good alternative to feed your dog. Many people are shocked at the thought of feeding raw food - and particularly bones - to their pet, but it is actually not a problem or health risk to feed your dog raw bones. In fact, dogs love them. And they keep their teeth fantastically clean. It is actually only cooked bones that might splinter and cause internal problems with your pet. However, even if you don't want to feed your dog raw bones, raw mince and chicken is absolutely fine. If you choose to feed your dog this sort of diet, you will have to bear in mind that your animal will also need fibre, roughage and vegetables. You can mix these in with the raw meat, or you can provide your dog with a mix of different foods: raw meat, tinned food and dried biscuits.

There is little doubt that dry dog food is the most convenient way to feed your beloved pet, but consider your pet every now and again. Try him or her with different types of food and see what they prefer.

Is Dry Dog Food Healthy For My Dog to Eat?

Dog Food

People Food Can Be Harmful to Your Dogs Health - 10 Human Foods to Never Feed Your Dog

Growing up twenty years ago people didn't really know about table scraps harming their dog. After dinner we would take all the leftovers and make a leftover gravy to dump over their dry dog food. You just can't do that anymore.

dog food bowls

Most dogs will eat anything. Sometimes without even chewing. But you need to be careful on what to feed them. There are certain foods you should never feed your dog.

Dog Food

First of all, never give your dog any chicken bones. Pork and fish bones are also just as bad. They can splinter and get stuck in their jaw or throat. This can cause choking and even tear up their digestive system.

2. You may have heard not to feed dogs chocolate. This is true and includes white and baking chocolates. The darker the chocolates the more harmful.

3. No tea or coffee or anything with caffeine in it. There is a substance that can be extremely toxic and cause seizures. It can also effect the heart and nervous system.

4. Grapes or raisins if fed to your dog can cause diarrhea, vomiting, and even kidney failure.

5. Dogs should not drink dairy products. Unlike most cats,dogs are lactose intolerant. There are however special milks made for dogs.

6. No Avocados. Everything to do with avocados including the tree, is toxic to dogs.

7. Dogs love gum, but sugar free gum contains a substance called xylitol. It can rapidly lower your dogs blood sugar levels and that can be deadly.

8. Do not give your dogs mushrooms because they may contain toxins that cause liver and kidney damage.

9. Onions that are raw or even cooked can be bad for your dog. They can damage a dogs blood cells and cause anemia.

10. And last on this list is macadamia nuts. They contain a compound that if eaten by your dog will cause temporary hind leg paralysis.

No one wants to feed their dog anything that will make them sick or worst. Hopefully this list will help you avoid those mistakes. Also take some extra time to analyze what you have been feeding your dog. It could make all the difference in their health and well being.

People Food Can Be Harmful to Your Dogs Health - 10 Human Foods to Never Feed Your Dog

Dog Food