Will your dog Survive   your family returning to school and work?

Will your dog survive the return to normal? We have had a couple of years of Covid 19 and there were lots and lots of pets acquired during that time. Now that things are starting to return to normal will your dog be able to cope with the new routine? This sudden increase in pet ownership raises concerns about pet welfare. Puppies acquired during lockdown have been missing out on

Help! My dog wants to kill every dog it sees.

Help! My dog wants to kill every dog it sees. By Nancy Milburn Dog on dog aggression is something every dog owner dreads.   How embarrassing to have your dog lunging and barking at the end of a leash.  If you have a large dog then there is a real danger of being dragged down the street. Help! My Dog wants to eat every dog it sees {start article} Help! My

What do dogs dream about?

by Nancy Milburn Do dog even dream?     Dream researchers for humans know that people dream during REM sleep and non REM sleep.  Dogs do have REM (rapid eye movement) sleep so it is very likey that they dream too.     As to what they are dreaming about we can take a look at the sort of things humans dream about.  On the whole people tend to dream

Alert!  Is your pet food safe?

In Canada we have very pet food manufacturers , apart from Menu foods  which was involved in a massive pet food recall in 2007,  Menu food produces canned pet food for all most all North American pet food companies.  The food was contaminated with melamine — a chemical used in plastics, countertops, glue and fertilizers — in samples of recalled wet and dry pet food and treats. The chemical was

April Showers and May Flowers

April Showers and May Flowers By Nancy Milburn Well what a winter we had. Mother Nature sure had an icy grip, and the snow!  Well enough said.   But all that snow is melting and joining with the rain to make walking around quite wet and muddy.  This means that keeping your dogs clean so that they do not track it into the house can be challenging.     Sometimes there

What do you do when the Dog Groomers are closed

    One of the problems caused by the shutdown and stay at home orders that the whole world is experiencing is what to do when your dog needs a groom?    Even humans are having that problem right now.  Shaggy hair and braids are going to become the norm even if they are not the height of fashion !     Dogs who have continuously growing hair need to be

Alert! Deadly Fungal Infection in Dogs

Fungal Infection (Blastomycosis) in Dogs This terrible disease has killed one of my dogs, and over a hundred on Manitoulin Island over the last few years. Poor Popeye was only sick a couple of weeks before he died. Not long enough for the medication to start working. Symptoms can include coughing, lesions and skin irritations, it sometime lodges in the eyes and blindness can result. Although cross contamination between humans

Study shows Dogs can Count

  In a new study at Emory University in Atlanta science has found that dogs process numbers the same way as humans.   The dogs entered a functional magnetic resonance imaging scanner, where they were kept motionless. Resting their heads on a block, they focused on an array of light grey dots on a black background. The number of grey dots changed every 300 milliseconds, and as the number changed,

Puppy Biting

    Puppies are lovely , that  sweet face and gamboling gait is enough to melt anyone’s heart.  But they can also be bad and frustrating and exhausting.  This is normal for any puppy, When thery are in a ltter, they canb take out their energy on each other, and sometimes their mom.  Doggy moms are good at disipline, they will let a puppy crawl  all over them but if

Want to have an easy peasy way to train your dog?

Want to have a happy pup? Trick training is an easy way to get your dog to be obedient, and always pay attention to you.  It is fun and even children can learn to train their dog.  In fact because children have very little control over their lives they really enjoy the empowerment of having another being do as they say.  I have found that when a child takes on

Did you Know using essential oils can harm your pet?

by Nancy Milburn Essential oils are very popular.  Most of us want a home that smells nice and an essential oil diffuser is often the way people choose. But a number of essential oils are toxic to dogs and cats and can cause severe damage and even death.   The diffuser spreads the oil through the air and a dog that is indoors has no chance to escape.  Liver and kidney

Raw Food for Pets - Convenient?

By Nancy Milburn People who know me, know that not only do I feed my own pets raw food but I encourage others to do so too.  There are a great benefits to raw food, long life, health, lack of dental problems, less behaviour problems the list goes on and on.   But the one thing that stops most people from switching is that it usually comes frozen.  This take up

Dog Bite!

I have been bitten. It hurts, and can be a start of infection Dogs that bite are a real danger to people and they can cause serious damage. The larger the dog the more sever the damage, although a small dog can can cause damage to a face or even  take an eye out NO DOG BITES WITHOUT WARNING When someone says the dog just bit with no warning, it

The "Ethical"  treatment of Animals.

I love all animals and dogs in particular,  I consider myself  a caring compassionate person.   But I have what I consider a balanced outlook.   I feel that as long as we treat our food animals  well and they have a good life and quick, painless and  free of stress death, there is nothing wrong with using them for food.  This means I do not agree with battery house chickens or

Why do Dogs bury bones?

  Why is it that the expensive bone you bought from the Pet Store is taken and instantly buried in the garden?  Is it not   something he would enjoy chewing?  So why instead of settling down for a nice long chew he immediately rushes outside to dig a hole and then bury the bone. Sometimes the dog will take the bone and chew on it a while and then will

Why are dogs noses wet?

Why are dogs noses wet?    There seems to be no one reason why dogs’ noses are wet. It is a combination of a number of different factors :         A) Grooming Dogs are constantly licking their noses to clean themselves from all the trouble they’re sticking their nose into. And will lick dirt and sticky things off their nose                

I am so Grateful

Nancy at 8yrs.   Among the thing I am grateful in my life is that I was born with a great love of animals.  My heart would be emptier and life would be so much less without them.     Click on the picture below to see comfy pet beds.

Dog food

As those close to me know I have been an advocate for feeding raw food to dogs and cats for a long time.  Over 25 years in fact.  I know that people struggle with the concept of raw, and also there are lots of communities where access to raw is non existent. It has been shown that adding even 20% raw to a traditional kibble diet significantly improves the health

Spirit and her Journey

After living her life outside for nine years Spirit found herself out of a home when her elderly owners moved into senior housing.   The Manitoulin Pet Rescue heard about her and offered to take her and re-home her. When Spirit came to me she was very overweight and severely matted. She has been with me for a couple of days.  On first trip to the vet she weighed in at

What to expect when you adopt a Dog

Adopting a dog – what to expect The times we live in mean that more and more people are working from home,  or are in forced isolation due to the COVID-19 crisis.   Because there are more stay at home people, lots of them think that this is the time to get a dog.  The rescue shelters are becoming empty which is a good thing but I worry that a lot

Why I Feed my Dogs Raw Food

I have fed my dogs raw food for over thirty years.  How I came to do this started when my children were small. My eldest had HADD disorder (Hyperactivity Attention Deficit Disorder)  and he was an extremely difficult  child to handle.  Taking him to the doctor was no help, as the doctor put his disruptive behavior down to jealousy of this younger brother and lack of discipline on my part. 

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

  Is this a good or bad premise?     The training climate today is that you should be able to do anything to a dog without a bad reaction.  Well I do not agree.   There are definitely times to ‘Let Sleeping Dogs Lie’     So many people post pictures and videos of their children doing things to dogs that are very dangerous.  Children riding, hugging and kissing dogs are all potentially dangerous. 

Hidden dangers for your pets this Christmas.

Holiday times are full of joy and laughter, having get-togethers with friends and family. Don’t spoil your Christmas with an expensive trip to the veterinarian. Note: If your pet has consumed a dangerous item, or is acting abnormally, contact your veterinarian immediately. Here are some dangers that can ruin a holiday: Most people know that the bones from your chicken and turkey are not good for pets.  The cooked bones

How to make a dog pay attention

By Nancy Milburn Have you ever had that sinking feeling when you call your dog and it just keeps walking away. Sometimes they look at you and decide that something else is worth their attention, and they ignore you.   You are calling their name shouting and screaming and still they ignore you.   In the worst case you will be running after them trying to catch them. Or when you are

Does your dog hate to be groomed?

Petting a dog is usually pleasurable for both you and the dog.  In fact studies have shown that just by petting a dog a human’s blood pressure will decrease.  This is a great benefit for both you and your dog.  Many dogs will come and push their head and nose under your hand in an effort to get you to pet them.  Brushing a dog is a very similar action

First Time Every Time Come When Called

Coming when called is one of the most misunderstood ’command’ in the dog training world. First of all it should not be a command but and invite. Come over to me and good things are going to happen is how the dog should perceive the word come. Loose dogs learn early on that when they come close to you after being called they are going to be put on a

Pee and Poop...what to do about it when things go wrong!

Getting a puppy is a wonderful thing.  Teaching your pup that the correct place to relive himself is outside is relatively simple, But there is a lot of misinformation out there and this can go horribly wrong.   Dogs that go for two hour walks and without a pee or poop and then come into the house and immediately “go”.   It is so frustrating.  Then there are those that hide themselves

So you got a puppy!!

What a wonderful addition to your family. But make sure that you will not be one of those terrible people who after a few weeks give the dog away ‘to a good home’. few simple techniques will help you in the early days so that your dog becomes the best dog anyone could ever have. Ignore all unwanted behaviour as far as possible, and only reward things you want to

Keeping your pets Safe during the Holidays

Sometimes we can forget that some things in the house at this time of year can be toxic to our furry friends.   Poinsettias are toxic and can easily be left where the animals chew on leaves.  Chocolate also has a toxic effect and a small dog can become very sick, even die with ingestion of chocolate.   Other plants that are in the home at this time of year are Holly

Pets as Gifts

Pets as gifts sounds like an awfully good idea.. actually it is an awful idea most of the time.  The giver of the gitt may think that the person, especially a child, will love the new “furbaby” and initially this may be so.   But a pet is at least a 10 yr commitment, with a lot of expense to the owner.  Can the person receiving the pet afford this expense? 

Dog Guru

    People often ask me how is that dogs obey me almost instantly. It is simple. I give undivided attention and positive feedback to dogs.   What this means is that when I meet a new dog I look it in the face and say to it “What a good dog “ And then caress behind the ears and on the chest. I then hold something that they want in such a

How to stop a dog from Jumping up.

                                                                                                                                                                                                             Dogs jump up at people to greet them.  It starts when they are puppies.  Young pups jump up and lick their mothers mouths to encourage her to regurgitate food and they will  do this to us as well.    So when your puppy excitably licks your face they are hoping you got food not that the are giving kisses! Because they are generally a lot smaller than us we