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| Tips on Health and Grooming---This Page is Under Construction |
| Grooming your Golden | ||
| Excellent
grooming tips are available from the Potomac Valley Golden Retriever
Club, so rather than reinvent the wheel, below you will find links
to their information on grooming feet,
ears, tail and
shoulders. Just click on the appropriate word to link to their
corresponding informational page. In addition, we will soon list equipment
you should have in your grooming kit. Other things you should know are: Dogs should not be bathed with human shampoo as the pH of their skin is DIFFERENT than ours. So only use a dog shampoo that says that it is pH balanced when bathing a dog. DRY your dog, use towels and blow dry them using a LOW or COOL setting. Drying helps avoid hot spots (moist eczema-- a very painful weeping sore) by drying the skin. So avoid hot spots by blow drying and/or towel drying your dog. There are dog blow dryers available on the market at reasonable cost. |
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Canine
Nutrition Common
myths: That my dog can choose what he prefers and it will be
a healthy diet. Fresh water always should be available. AND WASH THE BOWL--it can get very nasty with saliva. READ
the Label on the dog food. Be a wise consumer. The ingredients
are listed in order from what the food MOST contains to the LEAST.
You may find it mostly contains grains rather than meat. Find out
about what 'chicken meal' really means in a brand. For example,
in pet grade chicken meal the government permits ground up
chicken legs and feet as well as bones and sick animals. Read the
label--and watch for items that might trigger allergies in your
pet. Some pets are alergic to wheat or soy, leading to development
of new brands that contain non-typical sources of protein (like
venison) and one source vegetable (like sweet potato or rice) that
have not been linked to allergies. Check on the label for the type
of preservatives; some like ethoxyquin, BHA or BHT are of concern
to many owners. Vitamin C or E used as a preservative seems to cause
little or no concern. A Golden owner has done extensive analysis
of brands in an article called 'Kibble
Ingredients,' which may be of use to you in understanding the
ingredients listed on a label. In addtion, on that website are links
to each brand's website. Some of the newer entries into healthful
canine nutrition such Newmans Own brand or Natural Balance were
not evaluated, but are more organic. Many
commercial brands carry out extensive research on proper nutrition.
Contact the company you prefer for more detailed information on
their brand(s). For those who value organically grown foods, such
brands as Neuman's Own (Paul Newman and his daughter Nell Newman)
provide only organic chicken fit for human consumption, organic
vegetables, and so forth. This can be found at health food stores,
among other similar organic brands carried at such stores. They
also have treats available at PetSmart and PetCo. In addition, there are brands available by mail-order which are very fresh (often baked shortly after you order). These brands use top quality meat and vegetables. More information on these will appear here in the future. LINK
for nutrition information |
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Foods
and Plants that may poison your dog Medications:
Keep your medicines away from dogs. Household
items Automotive
items |
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Pesticides
and Cancer |
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