Happy National Puppy Day

 National Puppy Day

National Puppy Day is March 23

All the puppies we have ever known seemed to think that every day was made to celebrate them and that every day was National Puppy Day.  And why not???they are so adorable!!!  If a puppy has recently joined your family please be sure to enjoy those early weeks and months. Soon… they will be a distant memory as those sweet pups mature.

To make certain you are meeting your puppy’s needs take a look at this checklist we have adapted from multiple sources.

  • Take your puppy to the vet of your choice within 48 hours of bringing him home. It’s important to get your puppy started on appropriate vaccines beginning around 6 weeks. This link provides a list of area vets.

 

  • trooper in the woods

    Trooper on the trail

    Ask your vet for recommendations about flea, tick and heart worm preventives. When we adopted Trooper he was heart worm positive. Going through treatment was painful for Trooper and for us. Treatment is always painful for dogs. Heart worm medicine used for dogs is not safe for cats. Heart worm prevention is key.

 

  • Consult with your vet about the optimum age to have your cats and dogs spayed or neutered. Irresponsible owners allow unplanned and unwanted litters to be produced daily. The only way to prevent pet overpopulation and the resultant high rate of pets being euthanized is to have your cats and dogs fixed. Just do it!!!

 

  • Take your puppy to new puppy classes. Seek a trainer who uses positive reinforcement techniques. Scroll to the bottom of this page for a list of positive reinforcement trainers we recommend.

 

 

  • National Puppy Day

    Dirty Trooper in the dog shower

    Learn what grooming requirements are necessary for your puppy. Matted fur is very uncomfortable for your pup. You can do routine maintenance at home by brushing your dog every few days. Some dogs can easily be groomed at home but others do better with the services of a professional dog groomer.

 

  • Be realistic about house training. It’s not a quick process. Set yourself and your puppy up for success and be prepared for a full year of close and careful management. Remember that a puppy can generally “hold it” one hour for every month of age. If you work be sure to enlist the help of a neighbor, relative or your local professional pet sitter. The minimal cost at this stage will save you money in the long run and prevent misery for your pup.

 

  • Provide toys for your puppy and interact often to build that all important bond.

Choose Adoption

The primary reason we celebrate National Puppy Day is to promote the adoption of orphaned, owner surrendered or homeless puppies and to make the public aware of what puppy mills are. We encourage you to adopt from your local shelter or rescue organization or from a breed specific rescue organization.  If you choose to buy your puppy please buy from a reputable breeder.

A reputable breeder does not ship their puppies and does not advertise on Craig’s List or similar outlets.  A reputable breeder will not breed the female dog every heat cycle. A reputable breeder will have one or both of the parents on site, will know the health history, will test the puppy for vision and other health issues and will provide adequate veterinary care for the dogs and puppies.

To learn more about puppy mills please visit the National Mill Dog Rescue.

ENJOY THAT NEW PUPPY!!

Love Your Pet Day

Love Your Pet

Love Your Pet Today and Every Day

 Love Your Pet Day

For us every day is love your pet day.  We love our three dogs to the moon and back.  And what a joy it is to take care of so many other well loved pets. Have you told your pet that you love her lately?  Check out our nine awesome was to demonstrate that you love your pet.

Nine Awesome Ways to Demonstrate that You Love Your Pet

  • Let your pet know how much you love his species by volunteering with a pet rescue group. You can transport rescued dogs or cats from a shelter to a foster home, be a foster parent, build a fence for a chained dog, rescue a bird, volunteer at a shelter to take photos of homeless pets or share about lost pets on social media.  We bet you have lots more ideas. Share those ideas with us.
Love Your Pet

Foster Brittanys on a transport

 

  • Take your dogs on a hike. You can go on your own trail on your property, visit a state or national park or just take a stroll around your local park.  Your dogs will thank you for the opportunity for a change of scenery and better yet a change of aromas.
Love Your Pet

Luke shows Daisy Mae around our woods on her adoption day.

  • Brush your dogs’ and cats’ teeth every day.  Did you know that one way to show your pet that you love your pet is to assure they have teeth free of pain, plaque and tartar? Just like humans, dental health is important.  Infection in the mouth can get in the bloodstream and lead to serious damage to major organs.  Even more important, our dogs and cats can not tell us their teeth hurt and will probably try to hide their pain. The link at the beginning of this bullet point provides a self test about your knowledge regarding dental health and gives step by step instructions to teach your cat or dog to accept having their teeth brushed.
Love Your Pet

Our pet dental kit includes various styles of toothbrushes, toothpaste made for dogs and dental chews.

 

  • Play with your cats.  Contrary to popular belief cats do enjoy quality time with their humans. You can use flirt poles to get your cats to turn on their prey drives, spray catnip spray on tiny stuffed mice to get them to engage or drop a ping pong ball on the floor for them to bat around.  And what cat does not like to play in a bathroom sink with the water faucet on? Tell us what kind of play your cat most likes.
Love Your Pet

Nibbles loves to play if approached quietly and calmly.

 

  • Plant a cat grass garden for your cats.  This is particularly important for indoor only cats.  The grasses will stimulate their senses, give them something to nibble on, help to prevent hairballs, aid digestion and steer them away from potentially toxic house plants.
Love Your Pet

Tootsie enjoys her kitty garden.

 

  • Feed your pets the best quality food you can afford.  Prices of kibble ranges from very low to very high.  We know that you have to stay within your budget.  Check out an objective resource to learn what your pet needs and what is in the food you are buying. We recommend against buying your food at a big box retail store unless it specializes in pet supplies.  Two great local places to purchase pet food in the Lake Norman area are Village Paws and Claws in Mooresville and Huntersville and the Dog Supplies in Huntersville. You will find knowledgeable staff at these stores.  You will not find low quality food and that’s important. Both stores offer discounts.

    Love Your Pet

    Canned cat food provides necessary water content for your cats.

 

  • Learn about ways to make your home feel safe, comfortable and inviting for your cat.  Remember that cats love vertical spaces and don’t like to be backed into corners.  That’s why cat trees, elevated shelves and tunnels, and sunny windowsills make them so happy.  You can create “Cat TV” for them by placing a bird feeder outside a window they can easily see out of.  Go a few steps further and put a cat grass garden in the enlarged windowsill or bay window.  Add a scratching post nearby so your cat can keep his claws neatly trimmed and avoid shredding your furniture.
Love Your Pet

Cat lounging in window sill. All he needs is a view of a bird feeder!

 

  • Take your dogs on a pet friendly vacation. There are scores of beach and mountain rentals that accept dogs.  Our two favorite places to vacation with our dogs are Duck, NC on the NC Outer Banks and Hot Springs Log Cabins in the mountains of NC.
Love Your Pet

Daisy Mae and Trooper in Duck, NC.

 

  • Provide regular veterinary care for your pets.  Getting them examined yearly while young and more often when they are seniors ensures that you catch little problems before they become big problems. Regular immunizations and preventives for fleas, ticks and heart worm are essential. Those dental cleanings can be lifesavers tool. No one wants their pet to be in pain.  Our sweet senior Luke had his dental cleaning earlier this week. We had no idea that he had cracked a tooth and that infection had set in. Fortunately his tooth infection had not caused damage to his internal organs but sadly he did have to have a tooth extracted.  I shudder to think what would have happened if we had not gotten a routine dental cleaning for him.
Love Your Pet

Luke with Ms Kim at Village Animal Hospital in Mooresville. He was still a little glassy eyed after his extraction.




We would be remiss if we didn’t recommend that you hire a professional pet sitter when you must leave your pets at home.  We provide daily dog walking services and vacation pet sitting services in the Mooresville, Cornelius, Davidson and Mount Ulla communities.  Call us at 704-662-0973 to arrange a free meet and greet consultation.