By Janice Wolfe and Jade Selvy, United K9 Professionals

What to Feed

A large component of a pet’s health is its nutrition. You are what you eat. You are what you eat… eats. Think about that for a moment. If your dog is consuming beef, chicken, or grains that were raised or grown on a farm with heavy pesticides, growth hormones, and antibiotics, your dog will be indirectly exposed to those unwanted toxins.

There is so much new information coming out about animal nutrition that it can be overwhelming to make the healthiest decisions for your pet so here are some important guidelines to follow to make sure your pet gets the most out of their food:

• Buy organic whenever possible to ensure your pet’s body doesn’t have to deal with the added stress of indigestible and toxic ingredients.
• The first ingredient should always be meat, whole, quality meat. No unidentifiable meal, byproduct, or a grain but real meat. A dog’s wild ancestors would have eaten protein from real meat and so should your dog at home.
• Make sure there is no corn, wheat, soy, or gluten included in the food as these ingredients hold no real nutritional value, can cause allergy issues, and have even been found to negatively influence hyperactivity and aggression in dogs.
• Be sure to read the entire label to ensure no artificial or harmful additives have been included in the food. Some of the most common additives being: BHA, BHT, propylene or dipropylene glycol, ethoxyquin, or colorings such as Red #40. Ingredients such as these are indigestible, toxic, and build up in your pet’s body over time causing severe health problems such as cancer.
• Don’t forget to check the ingredients on treats, chews, and other edible snacks you may want to give your dog. Many treats have poor ingredients and hidden toxins that although fed in only small quantities, can still have harmful long term effects on your pet’s overall health.

Just remember, if you are conscious about your pet’s nutrition you can help ensure they have a happier, healthier, long, vibrant life.

Our dog likes to dart out of the door when it is opened, how can I stop this so he doesn’t potentially get hurt or run off?

Just like in a household, work environment, or school, dogs require rules to dictate what is acceptable and unacceptable behavior and to understand they are not the leader. Just as an overprotective parent might be accused by children of nagging, so can a dog “turn off” and disconnect from its owner. We recommend against micromanaging dogs’ behavior and telling them everything to do: sit! stay! come! off! no! down! Instead, show your dog that by following a few simple rules, he is following the leader.

• With your dog on a leash, place him or her a few feet back away from the door. They do not need to be told specifically to sit, lay down, or to stay, they just need to be a respectful distance from the door.
• Practice opening the door, giving the dog a firm SHHH! sound, and exiting the door BEFORE the dog. Once you have exited then you can gently tug on the leash to let your dog know it is ok to come outside. This says to your dog that you, as a pack leader would, have made sure the new space is safe for him to enter.
• Use these same steps both entering and exiting doorways. You will notice your dog beginning to respect this newly established rule and your act of keeping him safe.

Respecting a rule means following the pack leader which puts you both on the path to a respectful, trust-filled relationship!

My dog pulls me down the sidewalk when we attempt a walk, how can I make him stop and walk nicely?

A leader leads. A follower follows.

All dogs (and people) yearn for a purpose in life. If a dog (or a human) does not have a specific job to do, he will often try to find one. Therefore, if we do not clearly demonstrate that we are the leaders, the dog may mistakenly assume that he or she is in charge. Someone has to do the job of providing and protecting. Either you are the leader or the dog will assume he has been given that job.

In this walk situation the dog is out front and has assumed that it is now his job to provide for and protect the pack. This may include pulling toward every interesting and possibly fruitful scent, trying to chase a prey animal such as a squirrel, or worse yet — trying to protect you from any unknown oncoming being. In order to change this thought process, we as humans must begin to determine the purpose of the walk.

• Before you set out on your next walk have a specific destination in mind, even if that destination is merely a tree or a fire hydrant. Having a destination means that when you are walking there is a purpose to it, your dog will begin to sense this as it plays to his natural instincts to range out to hunt.
• Do not allow your dog to walk out in front of you, he should be kept next to or behind you because if he is in front then he cannot follow the leader — you.
• Do not focus on the dog, focus on your surroundings and drive your energy forward. If there is something that may pique the dog’s interest, avoid it. If there is a dog down the street that you know will upset your dog, avoid it. If your dog becomes overly interested in something, continue on your way ignoring whatever the distraction was. Set your dog up for success from the start and keep to your purpose of getting to that destination you chose before you started out.

It is up to you as a pack leader to establish the walk as a productive, rather than recreational, activity where you are keeping your dog safe and providing him with a purpose. A dog whose pack leader provides a purpose is on his way to becoming a calm, well adjusted member of the pack.