Dog Training Nation

In Dogs We Trust

You are here: Home / Archives for Health

How to Save Money on Prescription Dog Food

by

Prescription Dog Food: Money Saving Tips

Prescription Dog Food
pedphoto36pm/iStock

When your veterinarian utters, “Your dog must eat a prescription diet for life,” your heart and wallet sink. Prescription dog food diets can slow down a progressing disease due to their specific ingredients, vitamins, minerals and supplements.

Veterinarians prescribe prescription diets specifically formulated for kidney, cardiac, diabetic and gastrointestinal disease, and these diets do work. However, prescription dog foods are expensive, especially for dogs weighing more than 70 pounds. On average, a prescription inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) diet for dogs can cost between $200-$350 a month for a 110-pound Rottweiler. Ouch!

Check out these money saving tips on prescription dog food.

Check With Pet Insurance

Pet insurance is a must due to rising costs of veterinary medicine. Many pet insurance polices cover prescription dog food costs, so check your policy or contact your pet insurance company for more details. If your dog isn’t currently covered by pet insurance, reach out to several companies for quotes. Many companies offer discounted pet insurance rates for employees too, so it’s certainly worth asking your Human Resource department for information.

Some monthly insurance premiums may be cheaper than your dog’s monthly prescription diet bill, which is an added bonus since pet insurance premiums will cover additional vet bills. Before enrolling, calculate prescription dog food costs and vet bills, then ask if a pet insurance policy will cover pre-exisitng conditions.

Purchase Kibble Over Canned Food

By far, purchasing prescription kibble is much cheaper than prescription canned food. Additionally, dogs consume more canned food than kibble, which again makes kibble an affordable option. Sometimes, purchasing prescription kibble in bulk will keep costs down. Ask your veterinarian about this option. Surely, bulk orders will keep shipping costs to a minimum, saving you money in the long run.

Turn Prescription Dog Food Into Treats

Skip expensive prescription diet treats, and make your own instead. Purchase a case of prescription canned food and turn them into dog treats. Each week, chop up the contents of 1 can of prescription dog food into pea-sized bites and bake at 200 degrees for 20 minutes. Baking will remove excess moisture, so treats will hold their shape. Place prescription dog treats in a zipped plastic bag and keep refrigerated for one week.

RELATED: Healthy Dog Treats

Make Your Own Prescription Dog Food

This last money saving tip will save you hundreds of dollars on prescription dog food each year. Plus, homemade foods are better for your dog’s health and immune system. Ask your veterinarian for a homemade prescription dog food recipe to make at home.

At first, your veterinarian may seem a bit stubbed, but explain that dog food costs are a concern. Most veterinarians will certainly accommodate your homemade food requests, and will likely point you to Balance It supplement website, which contains numerous homemade prescription diet recipes targeting most diseases. Also, Monica Segal’s “Optimal Nutrition: Raw & Cooked Diets- The Next Level” contains oodles of raw and homemade prescription diets for dogs too.

How do you save money on prescription dog foods? Please share your tips below!

5 Tips For Sharing A Home With An Incontinent Dog

by

Managing Senior Dog Incontinence

Senior Dog Incontinence
BigRedCurlyGuy/iStock

Sharing a home with a senior dog should be a badge of honor. As pet owners, we work hard to provide the best nutrition, veterinary healthcare, exercise, mental stimulation, dog training and unconditional love throughout our dogs’ lives. So, if we’re lucky enough to share our home with a senior dog—even if she’s incontinent—be proud.

Managing dog incontinence is stressful, but it can be done successfully. It’s important to remember, your older dog isn’t choosing to potty indoors. She simply is unable to hold her urine or feces any longer. With that said, making a few easy changes within your senior dog’s environment will make the process much easier. Fortunately, I’ve had the pleasure of sharing my home with many senior dogs, and these dog incontinence tips have worked every time. 🙂

Reminder: If your dog suddenly becomes incontinent, always follow up with your veterinarian first.

1. Use a Plastic Bed Protector

For the most part, accidents happen most often while your dog sleeps. Instead of washing your dog’s bed several times a day, wrap a waterproof bed protector around her bed. Depending on the size of your dog’s bed, choose between a large waterproof mattress bed protector or a waterproof pillow cover for smaller beds.

Waterproof bedding protectors can be purchased online or in the baby department of most stores. Some plastic waterproof bed covers make strange sounds, which can frighten dogs. Additionally, some are slick, which can cause your dog to slide off her bed. If this happens, choose a soundless bed protector made of coated plastic, such as Pet Dreams waterproof bedding cover.

Once you’ve wrapped your dog’s bed with a waterproof protector, cover her bed with old blankets or comforters that can be easily washed. In the past, I’ve used old twin bed comforters wrapped in soft waterproof covers. Each day, I swapped out the comforters and washed as needed. Adding a soft waterproof cover protector on the outside of a comforter protected the interior padding and made washing super easy.

2. Create a Safe & Comfortable Space

Senior dogs deserve a warm, clean, safe and comfortable spot to rest each day. Choose an area that can be easily cleaned up as washable items. When leaving home for work, I’d fence off an area inside my kitchen, covering all accessible flooring with rubber-backed rugs, adding a super comfy bed and toys, and filling a bowl with water.

While it’s tempting to cover your dog’s entire space with Wee Wee pads, it’s not in the best interest of your incontinent senior dog. Potty pads have plastic backing and are super slippery when walked on, which can cause your old dog to slip and fall. Instead, choose rubber-backed rugs with short carpeting. They’re easy to rinse and clean in a pinch.

Each day, as I’d head out for work, I’d give my senior dog a frozen stuffed Kong for her to enjoy. Around noon, my pet sitter would arrive for potty breaks and cleanup. After work, I’d sanitize my senior dog’s area and wash rugs and bedding as needed.

RELATED: How to Stop Your Senior Dog From Slipping

3. Throw Out Diapers

This is a tough topic, as many pet owners disagree on the effectiveness of doggie diapers. Dog diapers will catch urine and fecal accidents, but will also cause skin scalding if dirty diapers are left in place for longer than 10-15 minutes.

It’s understandable to assume dog diapers will prevent accidents from happening in your home, but they should only be used when you’re home to change them often. When left alone for hours, senior dogs should never sit or lie in their own mess; it’s simply cruel. When leaving your dog home alone, keep your incontinent dog in a safe and easy-to-clean area because accidents will happen.

4. Use a Waterless Dog Shampoo

For easy cleanup after potty accidents (because they will happen), keep a large bottle of waterless dog shampoo close by. After potty accidents, simply wipe up any urine or fecal matter from your dog’s skin and coat. Then, spray waterless shampoo onto soiled areas of your dog’s coat and wipe with a clean towel. For dried fecal matter, brush your dog’s coat to remove first, and then clean the area with waterless dog shampoo.

5. Clean Up After Accidents

With so many cleaning solutions available now, purchase or make a natural and odorless product out of hydrogen peroxide, baking soda and water. Keep a spray bottle nearby, and clean and sanitize the area immediately after accidents. When cleaning up accidents, keep the mood light and bring your incontinent dog outdoors, so she doesn’t slip on wet flooring. As you’re cleaning up, remember it’s not her fault. 🙂

We never had enough time with our dogs, so enjoy every moment with your senior dog. 🙂

Are Antler Chews For Dogs Safe?

by

Antler Chews for Dogs: Pros and Cons

Dog Antler Chews
Hoard11/iStock

Chewing provides plenty of mental stimulation and exercise for dogs. Plus, most high value dog chews taste pretty good. Puppies must have plenty of chewing opportunities, especially during the teething process. While we assume younger dogs enjoy chewing, most senior dogs enjoy a good raw bone, bully stick or antler chew too. 🙂

Providing antler chews for dogs can be a good or bad thing, depending on your dog’s chewing style. Let’s discuss the pros and cons of antler dog chews to help you in this decision.

Pros of Antler Dog Chews

Antler dog chews have recently become a very popular chew item for dogs with good reason. Here’s a short list of antler pros:

  • Antlers are available in most pet stores or online
  • Last a long time (six months to a year, depending on your dog’s chewing style)
  • Different sizes to choose from, depending on your dog’s size
  • No animals are harmed because antlers are shed naturally
  • Odor-free
  • Antlers contain nutrients, such as collagen and calcium
  • Most importantly, dogs love them

Cons of Antler Dog Chews

While antlers are extremely popular dog chew toys, they have some very serious cons too.

  • Antlers are made of bone, on which chewing will cause tooth and gum damage
  • Antlers will splinter during the chewing process
  • Most dogs can whittle down areas into needle-sharp points
  • Antlers are expensive! Prepare to pay between $10-$50 per antler, depending on size
  • Imported antlers contain chemicals

Tooth & Gum Damage

This is easily the most common health issue with antler chews for dogs. Veterinary dentists don’t recommend antler chews due to the alarming amount of slab fractures (i.e. fractures running horizontally along a tooth) and gum lacerations that result from chewing on them. Not only are tooth fractures and gum lacerations extremely painful for your dog, but painful for your wallet as well.

RELATED: Best Dental Products for Dogs

Know Your Dog’s Chewing Style Before Giving Antler Chews

Before giving your dog an antler to chew on, it’s important to understand your dog’s chewing style. Don’t be fooled by your dog’s size because little dogs can chew through tough toys like termites too.

Moderate Chewers

A small percentage of dogs fall into the moderate chewer category, as most dogs will devour a high value chew within minutes. Moderate chewers are usually older dogs, or dogs that take their sweet time when chewing. When watching a moderate chewer, you’ll notice they’ll lightly gnaw and lick a chew, and then take frequent breaks. Some moderate chewers will hide chew toys for later, or just enjoy burying them in the yard or sofa cushions.

Antlers would be an appropriate chew option for this category. When choosing an antler size for your dog, choose one size bigger than recommended on the package. Choosing a larger antler prevents accidental swallowing, and will last much longer.

Strong Chewers

Most dogs fall into this category. Strong chewers will gnaw through chew toys like a termite. When given a chew toy, strong chewers will plop down on the floor and chew until the entire item has been consumed or broken into tiny pieces.

Unfortunately, antler chews aren’t recommended for strong chewing dogs. Antlers are rock hard, and strong chewing dogs will bite down on antlers with all their might. This is how teeth are broken or gums are lacerated. Plus, strong chewing dogs will whittle down antlers into sharp points that are painful to touch. Antlers splinter too, and splinters cause gastric upset, intestinal obstructions, fractured teeth and gum damage. Flexible, yet tough, rubber toys work best for strong chewing dogs.

Use caution when giving your dog an antler chew, and always supervise your dog with any chew toy.

Can Dogs Be Vegan?

by

A Look Into a Vegan Diet for Dogs

Vegan Diet for Dogs
Indigo-stock/iStock

Many animal lovers choose a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle because they refuse to harm any animals. As a fellow animal lover, I can completely understand this life choice, especially with news media frequently reporting on animal cruelty and overcrowding of livestock. Of course, animal lovers transfer their personal life choices to those they love most, and for some, it’s their dogs. Before grabbing vegan dog treats, it’s important to understand that dogs don’t thrive on a vegan diet.

Are Dogs Strictly Carnivores?

Just taking a peek into your dog’s mouth will give you a hint. Dogs’ teeth were made to chew and ingest meat. Dogs have canines, molars and incisors made to scissor, pull and saw meat off a bone. When comparing omnivore and carnivore teeth together, it’s pretty obvious that dog teeth look completely different than human teeth. Humans, who are omnivores, have flat molars perfect for grinding fruits, vegetables and grains while dogs have needle-sharp molars that can grind meat effectively.

Look at your dog’s entire body too. Dogs’ eyes are close together for hunting, ears turned like radars to locate sound and sense of smell is simply amazing. Plus, dogs share 98% of the same DNA as wolves, and we know wolves hunt and kill animals.

With that said, wolves and dogs will consume fruits, vegetables and grains from the stomach contents of a killed animal. But are dogs and wolves consuming stomach contents in need of grains or because organ meat is highly nutritious? No one knows for sure. Although there’s plenty of research supporting dogs as carnivores.

RELATED: Raw Dog Food: Not All Dogs Can Eat It

Cat in a Coal Mine?

About 15-20 years ago, pet food manufacturers increased grains in cat food to reduce costs. When grains were increased, whole meat and meat meal were reduced, limiting essential amino acid profiles. Cats consumed this new grain-based cat food, and pet food companies lined their pockets.

Something terrible happened over time—cats went blind. Extensive research showed that taurine was missing from grain-based cat foods. Taurine is an essential amino acid found in muscle and organ meat. Diets without taurine will cause blindness in cats.

Taking this horrible incident into consideration, it’s important to know you can put your dog on a vegan diet, but he won’t thrive on it. You should also keep in mind the sources from which your dog consumes vitamins, amino acids and minerals. Vegan dog foods contain synthetic versions, so whole foods are much better. Knowing that dogs are carnivores, we understand it’s impossible to provide a dog essential nutrients from a vegan or vegetarian diet.

Choosing a Dog Food

Health and humane treatment of animals intended for food is a major concern for animal lovers. Animal lovers find it easy to make decisions about their plates, clothing and households, but it’s difficult for their beloved dogs. Rather than put your dog on a vegan diet, choose dog foods made from animals that were humanely farmed. Check out Open Farm dog food. Their ingredients are certified cruelty-free, and they even list where each ingredient was farmed.

Living a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle is challenging, yet rewarding. However, for your dog, choose a meat-based diet from humanely treated livestock. Your dog requires animal protein.

Double Merle Dogs Come With A Price

by

You Might Want to Think Twice About Double Merle Dogs

Double Merle Dogs
onetouchspark/iStock

Lately, it seems pet owners are actively seeking merle dogs and puppies. It’s understandable because merle dogs are strikingly beautiful. However, possessing a gorgeous merle coat color comes with a price that is it carries a recessive gene. This recessive gene becomes a massive problem when two merle dogs are bred together, producing double merle dogs.

What’s the Difference Between Merle & Double Merle Dogs?

Merle dogs have white patches intertwined with blue-and-gray or red-and-tan marbling throughout their bodies and heads. All merle coat dogs carry a recessive gene, as that’s part of inheriting their merle coloring. When two merle dogs are bred, they pass on their recessive genes, which ensures 25% of their litter will inherit two recessive genes (double merle).

Double merle puppies and dogs have large white patches along their bodies and heads more so than merle dogs. Some double merles have completely white coats with little or no merle coloring at all. Dapple and piebald are other names for merle coloring, which means they carry the recessive gene too.

Double Merle Dogs Have a Slew of Health Issues

Double merle dogs are certainly a problem. Recessive genes cause dilation of pigment and coat, producing white dogs. In addition, they carry health issues, including:

  • Blindness
  • Deafness
  • Severe skin issues
  • Lack of pigmentation (pink skin)
  • Light eyes affected by sunlight (pale blue eyes)

Now, it’s important to understand, merle dogs carry a recessive gene along with a normal dominant gene, and may not exhibit any health issues. But some merle dogs do; it just depends. When two merle dogs are bred together, a puppy inherits double recessive genes. He or she now has a double dose of health issues that could’ve been prevented.

Double Merle Coats are Produced Unethically

Genetics is a fickle game, and much more complicated than filling out a Punnett square with possible genetic outcomes. One thing we do know is breeding two merle dogs will produce a double merle puppy (or puppies, depending on litter size). Knowingly breeding two merle dogs together isn’t fair to puppies and their pet owners. It’s unethical and irresponsible.

Responsible breeders, on the other hand, not only health test all dogs before breeding, but they also have a complete understanding of genetics with possible outcomes. Check out this link for more information on the devastating effects caused by this unethical breeding practice.

Why is This Happening?

Due to the overwhelming request for merle and double merle dogs, uneducated breeders are breeding two merle dogs together assuming this will increase the likelihood of an “all-merle” litter of puppies. Plus, unethical breeders advertise and charge more money for merle or “rare” white coats, which is despicable.

If someone advertises “rare white” puppies for a breed that rarely produces white coats, you can beat your bottom dollar that these puppies are double merle or albino. Breeding dogs should only be done to improve a dog breed and not create puppies with severe health issues that impact their lives forever.

Please, if you decide to purchase a dog or puppy, only purchase from a responsible and educated breeder.

UP NEXT: White Australian Shepherd Dogs

Dog Training Nation is a dog training blog for pet owners and dog lovers. We cover a range of topics from puppy socialization tips to dog aggression to dog health. It is our hope you share our content to make the world a better place for dogs.

Dog Training Nation

Quick Links

Dog Training
Dog Behavior
Dog Training Videos
Become a Dog Trainer
About
Contact Us