Dog Grooming Hints

Dog Crate

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EggCrate Foam Mattress Pad - Thickness 3 inches

Soft dog crates are a wonderful tool for any pet owner. Some people do not like the crate training concept, and one of soft crates might ease the mind of those who think of the crate as a jail cell. A soft dog crate will add fashion and usability to the pet crate training process. A soft dog crate can be looked at as your dog’s own personal house. A fabric version of the dog crate has quite a few advantages over its plastic and wire relatives. The main disadvantage that I have seen is it does lack the rigidity of its plastic and wire relatives and is susceptible to the biting and fighting of an untrained pet. They are not recommended for initial crate training purposes, but for a well trained pet, they offer a bunch of features and opportunities for you and your dog. If your canine companion is properly trained, the rest of this article will guide you in seeing some of the advantages of a soft dog crate and help you to finding one that will be durable and sturdy.

The main difference that soft dog crates offer to you and your canine is great portability. There isn’t any comparison when it comes to portability offered by any other kennel of any material. Most of the top quality models are made from very strong denier fabric. This fabric is then placed over an aluminum or other lightweight metal frame. This enables them to be extremely lightweight and easy to transport. They are very easy to put together and disassemble, which permits them to be taken from place to place with comfort. One of the most practical uses for a soft dog crate is on camping excursions or outdoor excursions. They fold easily usually to only a couple of inches thick for a top quality model. The overall appearance of a soft dog crate is just so much more appealing than a wire or plastic cage. Many people look at these types of enclosures as cages, which they are, but rest assured that your pet does not see them that way if he is trained properly. They really do resemble a customized tent for your dog.

One of the main things to consider when choosing a soft dog crate is definitely strength and rigidity. While no soft crate will hold up to a sharp set of dog teeth, a cheap crate will not do the best dog in the world any help. Top quality items will cost a little more, but in the long term will me much more economical than having to replace a less expensive one time and time again. The top brands all offer strong frames, top quality fabric, well stitched fabric, and high quality, durable zippers. These are the most important you should look for in soft dog crates.

Another thing to check for is security. You don’t want a soft crate that your pet can easily escape from. This is one of the other reasons I suggest quality when looking at one of these products. The top brands all provide a way for the door to be secured shut, keeping your pet safely inside and unwanted visitors out. Most of the higher quality crates also offer loops around the base to let it to be staked to the ground like a tent. One of the most convenient things about soft dog crates is the multiple storage pockets that they offer. There is plenty of room for dog treats, a leash, and any other product your dog may require while on your journey.

In conclusion, if you are the outdoors type and like to be in the mountains or camping, then a soft dog crate is definitely the way to go. If I haven’t mentioned it enough before, please make sure to choose quality over price when choosing one of these fine products for your pet. Actually, even the top brands are very affordable and will serve you and your pet well.

Dog Crate question by BushiKempo: Can I use a dog crate just for house training?
Hi, I want to use a dog crate just to house train my puppy. Once it’s trained and integrated into the family I’m planing on removing the crate and replacing with a bed. Main reason is space needed for a cage to fit a fully grown Labrador. Is this ok, or will it cause confusion/ anxiety to the dog?

Dog Crate best answer:

Answer by Fallen Angel
Perfectly fine! A lot of people do this.

Housetraining is the process of teaching a puppy where to go to the bathroom. Puppies have a natural instinct to not soil their bed or den, and one of the things you will be teaching your pup is to consider your entire house to be a “den”.

At the same time, puppies are developing their control over their bodies. When they are very young, they often have very little awareness of their needs and very little control, so they literally must mature some before they can learn to “hold it” and get to the right place.

If they’re not sure what’s “den” and what’s “toilet”, and they have little control over their bladder and bowels, how do you teach them? The secret is establish a history of going to the bathroom in the right place and getting rewarded for it, and at the same time preventing any “accidents” from happening.

It’s important to know when your puppy will have to go to the bathroom. Puppies also usually must use the bathroom:

right after waking up
after a few moments of excited play
after eating
after drinking
a few hours after the last time. As a general rule of thumb, a puppy can go one hour for month-of-age plus one. In other words, a two-month-old puppy can hold his bladder and bowels for 3 hours, a three-month-old for 4 hours, a five-month-old for 6 hours. Many puppies cannot be fully housebroken before they are 6 months old. By that age, they can “hold it” for up to 7 hours.
So here’s the secret: Always keep your puppy in an area where it’s OK for him to “go”. Never leave him where he’s not allowed to go. This way he can never make a mistake.

In the real world, that means that the puppy stays in your kitchen (or other parts of the house without carpeting) with newspapers all over the floor. Use doors or baby gates to keep your puppy off of carpeted areas.

You can keep him confined in a crate, pen or other sort of “bed” area where his instincts will keep him from peeing. But remember they can only “hold it” a certain amount of time (see the rule of thumb above), so be sure to let him out frequently to go to the bathroom. (For a guide to crate training, click here.)

As often as you can – every half-hour is best for a young puppy, at least every hour – take him outside to the area where you want him to go. Take him on leash if you need to. Wait patiently 10-15 minutes out there; be calm and uninteresting so the puppy becomes more interested in sniffing than in playing with you. If the puppy goes to the bathroom, praise him, and maybe even give him a small tasty treat. Now you can play with him gleefully (if time allows), and then let him join the rest of the family “pack” on the carpets for some further playtime or exploring until the next potty time.

If he doesn’t go to the bathroom in the right place, take him back to his crate or bed area or to the newspaper-covered “safe” area, and try again in another 30-60 minutes.

This way you can establish a history of the puppy going to the bathroom in the right place and getting rewarded, while avoiding the possibility of his making a mistake and going in the wrong place. The puppy will learn that it’s really worth his while to pee outside, and that inside, on the carpets, is the place for fun and games, and he can only access it if he’s “empty”. (See also “House-proofing Your Puppy “).

Immediately after your puppy has peed and pooped, you can usually consider him “empty” and therefore “safe” to leave on your carpet – until you encounter one of the conditions listed above. If your puppy has not yet emptied his bladder somewhere, do not leave him unsupervised on your carpet! Only leave him in a crate or bed where his natural instincts not to soil his bed will make him hold it, or some place where it’s OK if he goes (like on a newspaper-covered floor or outside), or you must be watching him closely. “Watching him closely” means he doesn’t have a chance to go when you’re not looking.

What if he makes a mistake? If you follow these rules, you won’t discover a nasty wet spot or a smelly surprise. You’ll catch him in the act. If you see him sniffing or squatting, try to interrupt (not scold) him by saying “Ah, ah!”. Pick him up (if possible!) and immediately take him outside. Put him down, and watch him. As soon as he goes outside, praise him. Never scold or punish your pup for going to the bathroom in the wrong place. He won’t get it. They don’t understand pointing, they often don’t understand “no”, and they won’t remember the action of peeing if they’re not in the middle of doing it. He’ll only learn it’s not safe to go to the bathroom in front of you, or to be near you when you’re near “the toilet”. “Rubbing his nose in it” will only teach him to avoid you.

Clean up any accidents with an enzyme cleaner like “Nature’s Miracle”, available in any pet store. Also, be sure not to give your puppy too many salty treats (such as rawhide) – the extra salt will make the puppy drink more water, which of course will lead to more needs to pee! (Occasional rawhides are okay, as long as your puppy chews them safely. You might be better off with a stuffed Kong, instead, though!)

It’s important to start dog training as early as possible, so your puppy can learn good manners now before he has the chance to develop bad habits. See the Classes page for the next Wag’N'Train Puppy Kindergarten class, or click here to find a good trainer near you.

http://www.wagntrain.com/Housetraining.htm

Houdini Puppy Escapes Crate

Our Yorkie puppy kept escaping from her crate and we couldn’t figure out how. So we set up a camera and went for dinner. when we came back this is what we saw…
Dog Crate Video Rating: 4 / 5

Dog Crate

Precision Pet SnooZZy Sleeper Mat, Medium/Large, 4000 35x23", Black

• Size 4000; Measures 35 by 23 by1.5 inches
• Luxurious plush sleeper bed for both dogs and cats
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• Non Skid backing for secure placement
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Precision Pet SnooZZy Sleeper Mat, Medium/Large, 4000 35x23", Black

Dog crates are an important part of responsible dog ownership. They give your canine companion a nice safe place to call his own. These crates also give your dog a place where he can be if you need to secure him for any reason. Dog crates not only come in fixed and folding styles, but also have many accessories that can be added. Let’s take a closer look at some of the different options.

As a pet owner myself, the favorite thing I like about dog crates is that when I need to put my dog somewhere where I know he will be safe, or out of the way, his crate is easy and convenient. My dog is not aggressive, but if yours is, then having somewhere like a crate becomes increasingly important when people come over to visit. Nobody likes how it feels to arrive at someone’s house only to be met by a barking dog who “has never hurt anyone”. Yeah right, I’ve heard that one before. Out of courtesy for others, just put Fido away if you know someone is coming over.

There are many sizes of dog crates on the market to choose from. It is always better to have a larger, rather than smaller, dog crate. Just use common sense when choosing one. If you have a small dog you obviously don’t need a monster sized crate. However, if you have a Wolfhound or a Dane then you need a huge crate. What’s important to remember is the comfort and safety of your dog. Dogs like to den by instinct. If the crate is just the right size they will feel safe and protected.

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Dog crates that fold are wonderful. They allow you to store the crate away when not in use. When these are assembled and in use they do take up quite a bit of space. So, being able to collapse them and store them away flat is really convenient. When we got our last pup we bought a folding crate that we used to house train him. This particular dog crate had a plastic tray as the base. This was wonderful when it came time to clean it. Easy spray off and that’s it. After the pup was grown we no longer used the dog crate for housing as we had other arrangements. We simply folded it up and slid it behind some other things in the garage.

One accessory for dog crates that many people don’t even think about is a divider. These allow you to buy a larger crate when you first get your pup. You simply insert the divider, which in effect, makes a smaller useable space for your pup. Having a smaller space in the crate makes puppy training much easier. Another accessory that is good to know about is a replacement crate pan. These come in plastic and metal and make cleaning much easier. They come in a wide variety of sizes, so if you already have a crate and just need to replace the pan, it should be no problem to find just the size you need.

Dog crates make for both happier dogs and even happier dog owners. I wouldn’t go without one. It’s not like you need to put your dog in it all the time. It’s just that when you do need a convenient place to have your dog stay for awhile, dog crates are ideal. Easy to use, easy to clean, and easy to store.

Dog Crate question by Karli B: What’s a good thing to use as a temporary dog crate?
I’m going to be fostering two puppies starting tomorrow so they won’t be put down on Wednesday. I need to go ahead and buy a dog crate but I cannot do that until next week. Is there anything I could use temporarily that would work as a dog crate that is inexpensive?

Dog Crate best answer:

Answer by h gs
If you have a small, tiled bathroom, you could use that as a temporary crate. You can also use a cardboard box with holes cut in it (and no lid). The first option is better for larger puppies and the second is better for smaller puppies. You don’t mention the breed or age, so I’m not sure what would work best for you.

Edit: For the cardboard box, you can line it with newspaper scraps if you don’t want to use one of your blankets. This will help keep the puppies comfortable until you can get them beds/crate liners.

Dog Training Information : How to Stop a Dog From Barking in a Crate

Stopping a dog from barking in a crate begins with proper crate training where the dog feels comfortable and relaxed when locked up, but positive reinforcement during quiet times is another approach to use. Keep a dog from barking in the crate with tips from an experienced pettrainer in this free video on dog training and behavior. Expert: Heidi Dixner Contact: www.redrovercomeover.com Bio: Heidi Dixner has been training dogs professionally since 2001 and a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers since 2003. Filmmaker: Dimitri LaBarge
Dog Crate Video Rating: 5 / 5

"This will not be a book to be placed on the shelf and left there. I forsee this to be a much-used handbook, witten in, and peppered with dates of accomplishments both for dog and handler."

"Matthew Duffy’s love for dogs comes across so well though out this book. The idea of teaching manners first is brilliant. The exercises are very easy to understand, and I like that he gives ‘what if the dog responds this way’ scenarios. This book makes it obvious that he understands and highly respects a dog’s natural behavior and that his goal is to strengthen the human-animal bond by teaching both the owner and the dog their roles to coexisting."
Read more…

Dog shows are a fun and exciting event, but they can quickly become stressful if you are not prepared. Knowing what to expect will help you prepare for the dog show and have a good time with your canine companion.

You will first need to purchase a dog, preferably from a breeder who is currently showing their dogs in conformation. The dog should be purebred, and should be a good representation of its breed. Each dog breed has a breed standard, which is the ideal by which your breed will be judged. The closer your dog matches to the breed standard, the better chances you will have of winning in the show ring.

If you obtain your dog as a puppy, you will need to train the dog to walk on lead (leash) and to stand for examination. Handling classes are a good investment and will help you get a feel for the ring. These classes will teach you where to stand, how to stack, or pose, your dog, the best speed at which to move your dog around the ring, and general ring etiquette. Once these skills have been mastered and your dog is of sufficient age to be shown (minimum of six months of age for AKC shows), you can enter your first show.

Register your dog for the show before the closing date of the show you wish to enter. You will need to know which “class” to enter your dog into. There are classes for both puppies and adults, and they are separated by males and females. Most dog shows only allow entries up until two weeks before the show. If you miss the deadline for entries, you will not be allowed to show. Know when the show entries close and get your registration in on time, so that you are not disappointed by registering too late.

The night before the show, you should have your dog freshly washed, and your equipment packed for departure. Make a list of items that you will need for the trip.

Check the items off your list as they are packed. The following items may be on your list, depending upon the duration of the show, and the grooming requirements of your particular breed:

Dog Crate

Exercise Pen

Grooming Table

Extension Cord

Hair Dryer

Brush

Comb

Bowl

Dog Food

Treats

Poop Bags

Leash

Hairspray

Bows (for breeds that require them; ie., Maltese, Shih Tzu)

Clippers

Paper Towels

Water from home

Snacks

Judging Program

It is best to arrive at the show site at least two hours before you are scheduled to show. This will allow you enough time to find a spot to set up the grooming supplies, locate the ring, pick up your armband and groom your dog. If you have a long-coated breed, you will need ample time to brush out and arrange the coat into the preferred style. By talking with other exhibitors of your breed, you can find out how long it takes to transform the dog from freshly washed to show groomed, and plan your time accordingly.

Show times are posted in the Judging Program, which you should receive about a week before the show. You will need to be ready to show at your appointed time. You may see that your breed is scheduled to show at a certain time, but there are other breeds listed at the same time ahead of yours. The number in front of each breed indicates the number of dogs of that breed that are registered for the show. You can estimate the judge spending two minutes judging each dog.

At five minutes to show time, take a spot near the ring steward. If you have not already picked up your armband, do it now! The ring steward will call your armband number when it is your turn to enter the ring. Remember to breathe, relax, and have fun. Good Luck!

After you have made the decision to add a canine companion to your life, you must then decide what kind of dog will work best for your home and your family. Whether you have limited space or have concerns about a large dog toppling over your toddler, making the decision for a small breed dog can be rewarding but can also come with challenges.

The best small dogs for families will greatly depend on the time and energy you will put into the raising and training of the dog. For example, the Pomeranian will remain fairly small, and tend to be great companions for children with whom they have been raised. However, these dogs, bark frequently and are quite high maintenance when it comes to grooming.

A Chihuahua will make a great pet for those in smaller places and without a lot of time to put into exercising the dog. These dogs are very loyal and affectionate to their owners and tend to be quite stubborn.

Boston Terriers are great companions for families. These dogs make great playful pets and are quite loyal. These dogs remain small into adulthood and require very little upkeep. The downside of the Boston terrier is their habit of chewing on things that they shouldn’t. With proper training these dogs can make great pets.

The Bichon Frise makes an excellent pet. These dogs are relatively easy to train. They are playful and lively. These dogs are great with kids and require very little maintenance. These dogs are love attention and are very loyal.

Shih tzu’s are great family dogs as well. They are rather small in stature and are great with children and other animals. These dogs are medium maintenance dogs and will require daily grooming to keep their coat pristine. These dogs make excellent family dogs.

Regardless of the breed you choose to add to your family, factoring in your home situation is vitally important to consider before making your decision. Choose a dog that will get along well with the space that you have to provide, interact well with your children, and that you will have the time and energy to bathe and groom as necessary. Once you have made your decision contact your local humane society and consider adopting a dog from them.