Thinking Of Getting A Siberian Husky? Read This

October 27, 2017 by Fanna Easter

Things to Know Before Getting a Siberian Husky

Everyone remembers the first time she saw or met a Siberian Husky. The encounter is truly a magical moment. This dog breed’s striking double coat, coat coloring and gorgeous eyes are true showstoppers with which many pet owners fall instantly in love. Before you buy or rescue a Siberian Husky, there are a few things you should know before adding this stunning breed to your family.

Boy, Do They Shed!

Siberian Huskies shed like a raging January snowstorm in North Dakota. Their beautiful double coat blows out profusely during spring and summer. Daily brushings with the appropriate brushing tools will help, but loose hair will still stick to furniture and clothes, hide in your refrigerator, and land in your mouth. If shedding doesn’t bother you, then consider this breed, but there’s more!

Siberians are Strong

This breed was bred to pull sleds at high speeds, meaning they are super strong. Siberian Huskies can easily pull down or knock over a grown adult, so care must be taken with small children. They move fast and love to run, so it’s important to ensure your lifestyle provides them their daily exercise!

Super Friendly With Everyone

While this breed was created to work in cold climates, they are not fierce protectors. Siberians love everyone and easily jump on and over guests, so teaching polite greeting manners is vital. While Siberians can scare some people with their medium size, plush coat and prick ears, they probably won’t bark enough to protect your home. Many pet owners love this characteristic, and adore their Siberian’s “Walmart greeter” behavior.

They are Not Wolves

Siberian Huskies have risen in popularity lately due to shows, such as “Game of Thrones.” Unfortunately, this has resulted in rescue groups drowning in owner-surrendered dogs. Siberian Huskies are not wolves nor are they even part wolf. They are domesticated dogs. If someone advertises wolf or wolf-hybrid Siberian Huskies, stay away. Sharing your home with a wolf is an entirely different and dangerous situation.

Still Want a Siberian Husky?

If you’re still interested in getting a Siberian Husky, then I’d recommend meeting several Siberians in person at dog shows. Reputable dog breeders show their dogs to a certain strict breed standard and health test all dogs. These are the Siberian Husky experts. Believe it or not, responsible breeders charge the same prices as irresponsible breeders, and responsible breeders provide a lifetime of support. Before purchasing or adopting a Siberian, contact these reputable breeders and rescuers first. Better yet, join the Siberian Husky Club of America.

Take time to learn more about your desired dog breed before bringing him into your home. Knowing what you’re getting into is best for everyone, including the dog.

Why You Should Avoid Pet Stores Selling Puppies

March 13, 2017 by Fanna Easter

Puppy Mills & Pet Store Puppies

Over the last couple of years, passionate dog lovers have successfully brought attention to a sore spot in the pet industry—pet store puppies. It seems like this movement is finally picking up momentum, as many large cities are now banning pet stores from selling puppies and dogs. This is certainly a win for dog lovers everywhere, and here’s why.

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] Puppy mills are run by heartless individuals looking to raise dogs cheaply and make a quick profit.[/perfectpullquote]

What are Puppy Mills?

Puppy mills are deplorable dog breeding factories. They mass produce purebred and designer dogs to fill demand for new puppies. Puppy mills ship very young puppies to any location regardless of distance.

Why Puppy Mills are Bad

Puppy mill dogs are kept in tiny cages where they’re forced to live in their own feces and urine. They don’t have access to veterinary care, are skinny from lack of nutrition, and have matted coats and severely overgrown nails due to lack of basic care.

Breeding stock aren’t health or temperament tested. Instead, they’re forced to have litter after litter to feed consumer demands from pet stores and unknowing pet owners. Puppy mills are run by heartless individuals looking to raise dogs cheaply and make a quick profit.

Looking at pictures of puppy mills is sickening enough, but witnessing a puppy mill in person is gut-wrenching. The stench will knock you off your feet and burn your eyes. These poor dogs are barely able to turn around in their cages and are left in dark rooms with no access to sunlight. Most puppy mill dogs have never walked on grass.

Watching these sickly momma dogs covered in mats and feces feeding tiny puppies just makes your heart hurt. Since these dogs have been handled and treated this way, puppy mill dogs are completely terrified of humans.

Given these horrible conditions, it’s easy to see why puppy mills are bad. Unfortunately, puppy mills are everywhere. Most are hidden in rural areas. When one is shut down due to animal cruelty laws, another one pops up to fill demand for puppies. It’s a never-ending battle, and dogs are the victims.

Pet Store Puppies

High consumer demand for puppies is the reason pet stores turn to puppy mills. Pet stores selling puppies are looking to fill inventory quickly, and puppy mills are the most convenient way to fulfill these needs.

Pet stores don’t help these poor puppies out. Pet store puppies are kept in crates 24 hours per day with no access to the outdoors and are forced to potty where they sleep. Potty training a puppy mill puppy is beyond challenging because they’ve learned to potty anywhere. Puppies are little sponges until they’re 16 weeks old, so keeping a puppy in a crate with limited interaction with the world is detrimental. In addition, pet stores don’t properly screen prospective pet owners. This means these innocent pet store puppies could end up anywhere.

Just Say No

Nothing will be done until we do something about it. As a concerned pet owner, I urge you not to buy pet store puppies and educate prospective dog owners on why puppy mills are bad. Don’t shop at pet stores that sell puppies and don’t purchase dog treats from pet stores that don’t sell dogs or puppies. At the very least, please share this article to educate others.

Don’t feed puppy mills. Just say no.

Dog Breed Of The Week: Havanese

December 12, 2016 by Fanna Easter

Havanese Dog Breed Information

The Havanese originates from Cuba, and is known as the national dog. While it’s difficult to determine when and how Havanese dogs were exported from Cuba, we do know “Queen Victoria and Charles Dickens” shared their home with this darling breed (Havanese Club of America, 2016). It’s uncertain when the Havanese arrived in the US, but the American Kennel Club (AKC) accepted this dog breed into their club in 1996. Another interesting fact about this breed is the Havanese name serves as both the singular and plural form. 🙂

General Characteristics

For the most part, Havanese are between 8½–11½ inches tall at the shoulder and their weight varies by height. This dog breed’s coat color can come in red brindle, sable brindle, white, gold or any variation in between. Havanese have a longer coat with a bit of texture. It’s believed that Havanese are related to Bichon Frises. This long coat protects Havanese from heat and sunrays because their coats are “extremely light and soft, and insulating against the tropical rays” in Cuba (Havanese Club Of America, 2016).

It’s easy to confuse Havanese with Shih Tzus and Maltese, but if you look closely, you can certainly tell the differences right away. Havanese have a longer muzzle than Shih Tzus and have wider bone structure than Maltese. While Havanese’s coat colors may resemble other breeds, look closely at the texture and you can easily distinguish between the dog breeds.

Health

Havanese are a healthy dog breed, but they’re prone to inherited diseases like most other dogs. Common health issues with this breed include:

Eye abnormalities
Heart abnormalities
Hip dysplasia
Patellar luxation (moving kneecap)
Elbow dysplasia
Legg-Calve-Perthes (abnormal femur head)

Reputable dog breeders will test all dogs for inherited diseases before breeding them. If health screenings and tests show an adult Havanese is afflicted with any of these inherited issues, they will be spayed and neutered immediately. If someone claims their dogs have no inherited health issues, they’re lying.

Grooming Havanese

As with all long-coated dogs, Havanese need daily brushings and weekly baths. If you choose to keep your Havanese coat’s clipped short, you should maintain it every 6-7 weeks. Of course, you should also keep your dog’s nails trimmed to an acceptable length (i.e. nails shouldn’t touch the floor) and brush his or her teeth daily.

Exercise & Dog Training Needs

Even though they’re small dogs, they do need daily exercise. Plan to walk your Havanese at least 30 minutes per day, and provide mental stimulation games and puzzles during mealtime. Havanese puppies should be enrolled in a Puppy group class between 10-16 weeks of age and a Basic Manners group class between 4-6 months of age. As with all dogs, Havanese do best with positive reinforcement dog training methods.

Where to Find Havanese

Of course, adopting a Havanese from a rescue is always best because you’re saving a life. If you decide to purchase a puppy or dog, please choose a reputable Havanese breeder. It’s important to note that reputable breeders charge the same amount or less for a puppy unlike unethical breeders. Plus, responsible breeders will guarantee your dog’s health for his or her entire life and will take your puppy or adult dog. To find out more about this dog breed, please visit the Havanese Club of America. This website is packed with invaluable information about this happy little breed.

Double Merle Dogs Come With A Price

December 5, 2016 by Fanna Easter

You Might Want to Think Twice About Double Merle Dogs

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 Breed Of The Week: White German Shepherd Dog

December 2, 2016 by Fanna Easter

White German Shepherd Dog Breed Information

Americans are very familiar with German Shepherd Dogs (GSDs). They’re the second most popular AKC dog breed nationwide. When Americans think of German Shepherd Dogs, they picture sable, black-and-silver, solid black, black-and-red, and black-and-tan color varieties. However, there’s a controversial white coat color rarely discussed called the White German Shepherd Dog.

History of White German Shepherd Dogs

German Shepherd Dogs originated from Germany where they’re called Deutsche Schäferhunde. In 1889, Captain Max von Stephanitz created a breed standard for GSDs, which included white varieties in the show ring and whelping box. Many years later, the white variety was extinguished from the original GSD breed standard. We don’t know exactly when and who started removing white GSDs from the gene pool, but history points toward the Nazis.

White dog coats are usually caused by a recessive gene.

This carries:

Deafness
Blindness
Diluted skin pigments (pink skin)
Light eyes
Complicated skin issues
Other serious health concerns

Basically, a recessive white dog coat is called an albino dog. So it makes perfect sense why ethical breeders would remove this problematic gene from their breeding programs.

Are White German Shepherd Dogs Albinos?

No, White German Shepherd Dogs aren’t albinos. Interestingly, the White German Shepherd Dog recessive gene doesn’t cause albinism. White GSDs have dark mouth pigment, dark-colored eyes and normal health issues associated within the German Shepherd Dog breed.

Even though White German Shepherd Dogs continue to pop up within a litter, responsible dog breeders remove them from their breeding population by placing them in pet homes that will spay and neuter them. It’s understandable that breeders aren’t willing to take the chance, so white GSDs are disqualified from the show ring.

However, things have changed a bit, and it seems an entire breed club was created entirely for White German Shepherd Dogs. After researching several of these white GSD breed clubs, I’ve discovered that their by-laws are very loose—buyer beware.

Are White GSDs Different?

No. In a nutshell, this white breed variety requires the same dog training, health and grooming needs as any German Shepherd. They’re a medium to large dog that needs daily exercise, mental stimulation and grooming just like any other GSDs.

Remember, white is just a coat color variety and not a different breed. White German Shepherds are the same as German Shepherd Dogs except they’re a white version. 🙂

This color variety is strikingly beautiful with a gleaming white coat, black lips and mouth, and a total GSD appearance. Expect lots of stares and questions from strangers! 🙂

Beware of False Promises

This is where it gets tricky. In an effort to market white GSDs, some breeders promise friendlier temperaments compared to “traditional” German Shepard Dogs, but that’s impossible to guarantee and promise. All dogs are different, and each puppy in a litter will have his or her own individual personality. Saying a specific coat color will be friendlier than his littermates or other GSDs is just not true. Plus, it’s completely unethical to charge more money for a white puppy than his typical colored littermates.

Where to Find White German Shepherd Dogs

Purchase

Honestly, there’s no real reputable White German Shepherd Club or organization that follows very strict dog breeding practices. Strict breeding practices ensures all dogs used for breeding must be health tested. If they don’t pass, they’ll never be bred. Additionally, dogs must be over 2 years old before being bred.

Many white GSD clubs don’t include these vital rules in their by-laws. If you’re interested in purchasing a white GSD, it’s best to contact reputable German Shepherd Dog breeders and request a white-colored coat puppy.

Rescue

Even better is to check out local rescue groups. They have plenty of white German Shepherd Dogs looking for forever homes. Plus, you’re saving a life.