A Guide To Feeding Your Pet

iwellbc | Coalition | Saturday, 20 March 2010

This article will discuss pet feeding and how to properly feed your pet to ensure they receive all the nutrition they need to live a long and healthy life. However, more and more pet owners are resorting to making meals for their pets or feeding pets raw food.

Some people believe that pets should only be fed raw food, as the animal would have eaten in the wild, in order for the pet’s nutrition to be “balanced” in a more natural way. There are many articles available which discuss the possibility that the man-made pet food of today and straying our pets from raw, natural food is the cause for so many diseases that are cropping up in our pets. It is believed that most of these diseases are nutrition-based due to the lack of raw meat and other nutrients in our pets’ diets.

However, veterinarians usually recommend a well-known and trusted brand of pet food that has been specifically designed for your pet. This is where pet feeding can become difficult. The quality of pet food can vary tremendously between brands and can differ in the amount of animal nutrition, therefore it is usually a good idea to choose a brand with a good reputation. For instance, Science Diet dog food and Purina dog food are very well-known and trusted brands.

Pet Feeding for Dogs: Commercial brands of pet food for dogs include canned food, dry food and semi-moist food. Up to 50% of your canine’s diet can come from carbohydrates such as grain. Vets do not recommend semi-moist food because of the additives and chemicals in them. Adult dogs may be fed once or twice per day, while puppies require more frequent feedings. There are brands that specifically specialize in all natural dog food, so if you decide you do want to feed your dog a more natural diet, you may look into it.

Never feed your dog chocolate, onions or garlic in any form (fresh, powder, flakes), persimmons, plant leaves (potato, tomato, rhubarb), mushrooms, grapes / raisins, or macadamia nuts. Also, do not let your dog chew on dryer sheets or eat human vitamins. The chemicals are harmful to them.

Cats also have a variety of food to choose from, ranging from dry, to semi-moist, to canned (wet). As with semi-moist dog food, veterinarians do not recommend it due to the preservative chemicals it contains. Cats require a high moisture content in their food, therefore it may be a good idea to stock up on canned food, which has a terrific balance of moisture.

There are also foods which are unsuitable to feed to a cat, such as: dough that contains yeast, onions, mushrooms, plant leaves, garlic, sugary foods, raw eggs, salt, persimmons, macadamia nuts, and raisins/grapes. Regardless of the rumors that milk is good for cats, you should never feed a cat cow’s milk, as they cannot digest it properly. There are some brands of cat food which offer small bottles of milk, usually intended for kittens.

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Adopt a Pet

iwellbc | Coalition | Friday, 26 February 2010

There are three main ways to adopt a pet for your family. The location of the pet really depends on what type of breed you are looking for. In this article we will discuss mostly dogs and cats, how to adopt them, and where to adopt them.

The three main ways to adopt a pet include a breeder, private owner, or retail location. The retail location can be a pet store or humane society. First let’s discuss a breeder. If you are going to adopt a dog or cat of a specific mix, you are going to want to find a breeder that offers that particular combination. Most often you can find a breeder through an online internet source that gives you a description of the breed. You will want to check out a few breeders to compare the cost of that pet, as well as the facilities. You should never exchange money until you have seen the dog or can be guaranteed the breeder has the animal’s best interests at heart. Most often, adopting through a breeder is going to be expensive, and they do not pay for vet costs once you have adopted the pet. In other words, if you have exchanged the money but haven’t picked up the dog, any vet visits will be for you to take care of, even neutering or spaying will be out of your pocket.

With a humane society, you will find any pet is going to be neutered or spayed before the animal will be released. This type of location offers rescued animals, pre-owned, and occasionally new pets. The retail stores will be the same depending on what city you are located in. Although some retail stores will just have specific breeds directly from the breeders. In these places you cannot adopt a dog or cat until it has all of the proper shots and has been neutered or spayed. They will also be looking into your background.

In fact, both the breeders and retail shops are going to want your history. They will ask why you are adopting a pet, perhaps even stop by your home or ask where it is located, as well as call some references. Most places will not allow a pet to be adopted until they are satisfied that it is going to a good, “forever home”.

With private owners you will experience something a little different. Private owners are not breeders, but someone who can no longer take care of their pet or has had a litter of kittens or dogs. It is very easy to adopt from most private owners as they have the pets up for free or a small fee. You will be responsible for the neutering or spaying. Also, the fee is usually less than the humane societies and breeders. The conditions may be less than stellar for some homes. It will depend on where you have found your pet. You always want to make sure the cat or dog is healthy and has had at least one visit to the vet before private adoption.

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