Enjoying Your Walk With Your Best Friend

A great way to walk your best friend is to be able to be hands free yet have control of your pet for it's safety.

I love to use a harness and recommend Ruffrider brand you can find them at ruffrider.com. Everyone asks me where I got mine. (The cool thing about them is that you can put the seatbelt through the loops when riding in the car. Sadly most people do not realize the dangers of not securing their pets while in the car for their safety.) I just slip my dogs front legs into it and we are ready to go -- it takes a few times to get used to it, but then it is a piece of cake. The great thing about the harness is that you are not pulling on the collar compressing the windpipe of your dog. I have used them with large and small dogs and find they also provide greater comfort for the dog and you have more control from their center of gravity.

I then put on a strong nylon waistpouch with pockets for items such as doggie bags and my cell phone, etc. Then I run the handle of the dog's leash that is attached to the harness through the strap and then latch it on myself. I have adjusted the length of the leash so that my Moofie cannot get too far on his own as I live in coyote country. He has learned to walk on my right side and it is such a pleasure to be hands free we both enjoy it!! Try it you'll love it! Happy trails!!

We love our cats but not always the litter box!

A common issue to most cat guardians "the cat box." I will for the sake of this blog assume that all cat lovers keep their cats as indoor only (I will discuss further in another blog). There is a rule that for each cat you should have at least one box, i.e., two cats=two boxes (I even heard three, but who has the room?).

We have a small home and do not like the box in sight so we put a small pet door in bathroom sink cabinet (best to take the flap off) then we put the cat box inside the cabinet on one end. Next to the box in the cabinet there is a litter catcher mat so keep tracked litter to a minimum. To clean the box which I do at least three times a day I simply open the cabinet doors and scoop into a plastic bag, seal it and throw it outside. I convinced my husband to install a pet sized door between the bathroom and bedroom so that even if the bathroom is in use they can have access to their box. Everyone loves it especially the kitties.

If you live in an apartment you could opt to purchase a mobile cabinet that would fit in your bathroom and do the same thing even use the top for practical reasons and/or decoration.

People that visit my home always look for the catbox! And they never smell it because it is always cleaned consistently. Cleaning the box consistently has another advantage besides smell control. By doing this you can monitor your cat and ensure they are voiding properly. Bladder infections or blockages are a silent health threat and given the fact that you could not know until it is in an advanced stage, this is an easy way to keep in check.

I hope this helps my pawsitive friends out there!

Fresh food for your dog

Every day I feed my dog three times a day. I divide the daily portion of food in half and give him half in the morning and half at night. At lunchtime I give him his "treats" his multivitamin, his joint supplements, a Wellness snack and a Halo snack and always two or three fresh small organic carrots.

Do you ever think to give fresh vegetables and some fruits (apples are good) to your dog? It is very good for them like it is for us. When you make salads always give your dog a few tastes of lettuce, cucumber, green or red peppers. Almost all are good for them. When you are cooking vegetables think of your dogs (yams are super), just no onions please!! They will be healthier for it!! Think of it as a snack for them as they need their protein and high quality balanced food for their meals.

(Sharing unflavored non-fat yogurt with your dog is so very good!!)

If anyone out there has a healthy recipe for dog biscuits or other treats please share them and I will post it on this site.

Helping your pets with stress

Today I have workers in my home working on one of our bathrooms, so I thought perhaps my first blog would be about keeping your pets peaceful and feeling safe when things in your home are not routine. Pets thrive on routine so when it is disrupted they are out of balance.

I always secure them as far away from the source of noise and confusion as possible. This keeps them safe and away from any danger. Right now they are in the bedroom that has an adjacent bathroom where they have access to their cat box, food and water. They also have fresh air, a fan and peaceful music playing on the repeat mode on a CD player. I also give them homeopathic flower essences to help them feel calm. This is a topic I will blog further on at a later time, but will say briefly that flower essences are safe and are efffective. A good example would be Bach Rescue Remedy, but there are other high quality and effective remedies available just be sure they are from reputable sources.

Be sure to walk your dog for a good long walk prior to activities and provide comfortable sleeping area with familiar toys and chews.

Finally, always routinely check on your pets and before you do check yourself to be sure you are feeling calm. No matter how you act calm your pets will not truly be reassured if they feel you are not calm. Offer them, as always, kind and warm words of praise and lots of love!!

Welcome to a place to share pawsitive thoughts and ideas!

There is a world of good souls who love their pets with all their hearts and these are my kind of pawsitive friends.

We know that our pets depend on us to fulfill our promise when we brought them into our family to provide the very best care and love possible. We all want to do this, but do not always know what to do or how. I have found in my experience over the years a few ways to enhance the lives of my pets and would love to share them and hope that someone can benefit. I also welcome ideas from others that I can learn from and share with others as well.

I am not an expert or a professional and anything I suggest in this blog should be run by a professional first if you have any question.

Now that I have introduced my blog, I will begin to post some ideas and please share yours!!