I know it seems alittle soon to post on this subject, but flea and tick season will be upon us before you know it and I just want to prepare you ahead of time.There are different types of ticks in the United States that, if your dog is bitten by them can cause diseases. I am going to list them and give the symptoms from my research.
The 1st one is called the Deer Tick or Black legged Tick. It can cause a bacterial disease that is transmitted through the bloodstream, when the dog is bitten, and remain on the dog for a long period of time. It is called Lyme Disease. Humans can also be infected, if bitten by a deer tick.
Symptoms: They are hard to recognize in both dogs and humans, but include, bouts of lameness, loss of appetite and possible kidney failure, in severe cases. If you have been bitten by a deer tick and you or your dog develop any of these symptoms, I suggest you contact, either your vet or your doctor right away.
Another tick in the United States is called the Brown Tick. This tick can cause a bacterial disease called Ehrlichiosis, if your dog is bitten by it. As withe the Lyme disease, it is also transmitted through the bloodstream and symptoms are also hard to detect, but again, if your dog has been bitten by a tick and develops these symptoms, call your vet right away.
Symptoms: Runny nose, loss of appetite, swollen glands, depression, and nose bleeds. Left untreated it can kill your dog. Also, symptoms can leave the dog for months or years and then come back. I am not telling you this to alarm you, I just want to make you aware of this, so you make sure that if your dog has been bitten by a tick and it gets these symptoms, immediate action is required.
Another bacterial diseases caused by a bite from a deer tick is called Canine Anaplasmosis or dog fever. Also, the brown tick causes another form of this disease.
Symptoms are: Joint stiffness, when the dog walks, high fever, diarrhea, and vomiting. Possible seizures and neck pain.
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever can occur from being bitten by several species of ticks and can last about 2 weeks and can also kill the dog, if untreated.
Symptoms: Include fever, stiffness and lesions on the skin.
Prevention is the best cure to protect your dog against any of these diseases. Check with your Vet. There are alot of different methods that he can suggest. I wouldn't advise buying any over the counter products, without checking with him first. I made that big mistake one time and all 3 of my Golden Retrievers had a terrible reaction from the product and later found many pet owners lost there dogs using this product. That is going to be in a later post. I will also write a post on fleas. The medication for ticks, most likely will also protect your dogs form getting fleas but I can't stress it enough, consult your vet. He is the professional!
I hope this has been somewhat informative!
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
Purr-fect Homemade Healthy Kitty Treats!
Here is a recipe for homemade treats for your kitty. I am sure they will love them. They are Purr-fectly delicious and healthy too!
Chicken Crunchies
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1-1/2 cups rye flour
1-1/2 cups brown rice flour
1 cup wheat germ
1 tsp. dried kelp or alfalfa
4tbsp. vegetable oil
1-1/2 cups chicken or beef broth
1lb ground chicken
1-2tbsp. brewers yeast
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a large bowl, combine the first six dry ingredients. Slowly add oil, broth, and chicken; mix well. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness, then place on a greased cookie sheet. bake until golden brown.
Cool, then break into bite-size pieces. Place pieces in a bag with brewers yeast and shake to coat them. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Chicken Crunchies
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1-1/2 cups rye flour
1-1/2 cups brown rice flour
1 cup wheat germ
1 tsp. dried kelp or alfalfa
4tbsp. vegetable oil
1-1/2 cups chicken or beef broth
1lb ground chicken
1-2tbsp. brewers yeast
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
In a large bowl, combine the first six dry ingredients. Slowly add oil, broth, and chicken; mix well. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness, then place on a greased cookie sheet. bake until golden brown.
Cool, then break into bite-size pieces. Place pieces in a bag with brewers yeast and shake to coat them. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Dog Biscuit Recipe
This is a recipe for homemade dog biscuits. Your doggy will love them and you know what goes in them!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2 cups whole wheat flour
1tsp. bone meal
1/4 cup cornmeal
2tbsps. corn or soy oil
1/2 cup soy flour
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses
1/2 cup sunflower seeds (I put them in blender to chop them, but that's your preference)
1 tsp. iodized salt
Large egg mixed with 1/4 cup milk
Instructions:
Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add oil and molasses, plus all but 1 tbsp. egg milk mixture. Knead a few minutes to make a firm dough, adding more milk if needed. Let dough rest 1/2 hour or more.
Roll out dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Brush with remaining egg-milk mixture and cut into biscuit size pieces, with pastry wheel knife or bone biscuit cutter. Bake on cookie sheet for 30 minutes or until lightly toasted.
To make harder biscuits, turn off the heat after baking and leave in oven for an hour or more.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2 cups whole wheat flour
1tsp. bone meal
1/4 cup cornmeal
2tbsps. corn or soy oil
1/2 cup soy flour
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses
1/2 cup sunflower seeds (I put them in blender to chop them, but that's your preference)
1 tsp. iodized salt
Large egg mixed with 1/4 cup milk
Instructions:
Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add oil and molasses, plus all but 1 tbsp. egg milk mixture. Knead a few minutes to make a firm dough, adding more milk if needed. Let dough rest 1/2 hour or more.
Roll out dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Brush with remaining egg-milk mixture and cut into biscuit size pieces, with pastry wheel knife or bone biscuit cutter. Bake on cookie sheet for 30 minutes or until lightly toasted.
To make harder biscuits, turn off the heat after baking and leave in oven for an hour or more.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Recipe for Beefy Mushroom and Barley Soup.
There is nothing like a nice hot bowl of soup on a cold winter's night! This is a hearty soup. Hope you enjoy it! Recipe is for cooking in slow cooker.
1 1/2 lbs. beef bottom round steak, trimmed of fat, cut into 1 inch cubes.
(if you like, you can use stew meat, which is already cut up)
5 cups of sliced fresh mushrooms( whatever kind you prefer. about 10 total)
3 medium carrots, sliced(about 1-1/2 cups)
Celery( about 1 to 1-1/2 cups)
2 lg garlic gloves, chopped( you can subtitute 1 tbsp store bought chopped garlic, in a jar)
1/2 cup uncooked pearl barley
5-1/4 cups beef flavored broth (from 2- 32oz cartons
1/2 cup dry sherry(optional)
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4tsp. pepper.
1. Spray 5 to 6 qt. slow cooker with cooking spray. In slow cooker, mix all ingredients
2. Cover; cook on low heat setting 8 to 10 hours. Stir before serving
This is a very simple recipe, especially if you have to work!
1 1/2 lbs. beef bottom round steak, trimmed of fat, cut into 1 inch cubes.
(if you like, you can use stew meat, which is already cut up)
5 cups of sliced fresh mushrooms( whatever kind you prefer. about 10 total)
3 medium carrots, sliced(about 1-1/2 cups)
Celery( about 1 to 1-1/2 cups)
2 lg garlic gloves, chopped( you can subtitute 1 tbsp store bought chopped garlic, in a jar)
1/2 cup uncooked pearl barley
5-1/4 cups beef flavored broth (from 2- 32oz cartons
1/2 cup dry sherry(optional)
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4tsp. pepper.
1. Spray 5 to 6 qt. slow cooker with cooking spray. In slow cooker, mix all ingredients
2. Cover; cook on low heat setting 8 to 10 hours. Stir before serving
This is a very simple recipe, especially if you have to work!
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Update on Goldberg
Goldberg's wound is healing nicely and he got rid of the e-collar. He sure was glad to get that thing off!. He is scratching and rubbing his neck on everything. Can't say I blame him. I wouldn't care too much for having something around my neck for 2 weeks either! We called him cone head. The way he banged into everything with it on, I'm surprised it is still in one piece. I am very happy with his progress and he is back to his old begging ways. He has an obsession with food! You don't even want to feed him anything by hand. He would take it off!
I guess we will never know what it really was, but he is doing good and that is all that matters.
I guess we will never know what it really was, but he is doing good and that is all that matters.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Goldberg's Mysterious Lump
My older Golden was acting lethargic and after checking him over, I found a lump on his side. Right away I thought it was a tumor. I made an appointment with my vet. She shaved the area and she took all kinds of blood work and they returned clean. She said it looked like some type of wound. She put a drain tube in it, gave him antibiotics, and wanted me to bring him in 3 days. Some how he pulled the drain tube out, even though he had an e-collar on. When I took him back for check up, she said she really couldn't explain what it was, other than some type of wound. We were both puzzled.
After taking the antibiotics for 10 days, it is healing nicely and he is back to his old self! He is a tough guy!
After taking the antibiotics for 10 days, it is healing nicely and he is back to his old self! He is a tough guy!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Help For Pet Owners or Looking for a Pet
In my post on animal cruelty I said I would do some research on where you could go for help, if you have an animal that you could no longer take care of. A good place to go online is:www.petfinder.com.
They have alot of information listed on that site.You can advertise on the classified or find a shelter in you area.If you are looking for a pet, that is a great place to go. They not only have dogs and cats, but also have horses, birds and farm animals. I was going to buy an Arabian mare, but she was already sold.There is alot of purebred dogs listed. There is a place where you can search for what you are looking for, what type of animal, location, male or female, adult or baby, and more. If you are looking for any type of animal, this is a great place to go! Great resources there!
Like I mentioned in my last post, it is very important to have your pet's spayed or neutered. In most states , listed by county, human societies offer discount rates or they can refer you to agencies that do.It is not a good idea to let your pets run free. Most states have a leash law.
These are just some options to help the animals. They are just helpless little creatures, that depend on us for caring for them. Hope this was of some assistance. Let me know if it was!
They have alot of information listed on that site.You can advertise on the classified or find a shelter in you area.If you are looking for a pet, that is a great place to go. They not only have dogs and cats, but also have horses, birds and farm animals. I was going to buy an Arabian mare, but she was already sold.There is alot of purebred dogs listed. There is a place where you can search for what you are looking for, what type of animal, location, male or female, adult or baby, and more. If you are looking for any type of animal, this is a great place to go! Great resources there!
Like I mentioned in my last post, it is very important to have your pet's spayed or neutered. In most states , listed by county, human societies offer discount rates or they can refer you to agencies that do.It is not a good idea to let your pets run free. Most states have a leash law.
These are just some options to help the animals. They are just helpless little creatures, that depend on us for caring for them. Hope this was of some assistance. Let me know if it was!
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