Thanksgiving Greetings 2015 from Fad to the Bone

Best wishes for a happy Thanksgiving, all our US readers. 

Here's a timely warning for pet lovers: 16 Holiday feasting do's and don'ts for pets." Please bear in mind that turkey bones, chocolate, and lots of other festive foods humans enjoy can be perilous for pets. A simple wishbone can quickly become a scary emergency vet visit.

Greetings all around.

Packing list for dog boarding

Are you planning to board your dog in a kennel while you travel for the holidays or a vacation? What essential canine care items do you need to pack?

Consider this checklist, whether you are boarding your dog in a professional kennel or simply stashing him with a friend or family member:

1. Collar and leash
2. Crate or pet carrier
3. Dog coat or outerwear/blanket
4. First aid kit or supplies
5. Food dish and water bowl
6. Grooming brush and comb
7. Housebreaking pads (for a puppy)
8. ID tags
9. Shedding blade
10. Toys
11. Treats
12. Vaccination records

Most dog kennels have their own rules and suggestions pertaining to clients’ packing for short or extended stays. Some dog boarding facilities insist upon use of their own food and water dishes, dog beds, or other items. Many kennels do not encourage pet owners to bring their own dog toys. It’s always a good idea to ask ahead of time before packing up the pup and his supplies.

NOTE:  This blogger has no affiliation with any product/s or companies mentioned in this post and received no remuneration from the manufacturer/s or product promoter/s for this post.

Image/s:

 Adapted from public domain image

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Does your dog need a job?

Working dogs aren’t just an American Kennel Club (AKC) breed category. Nearly any breed of dog can perform some kind of job, given the right training. It’s all about fitting the task to the dog’s build and disposition.

Sure, the AKC categorizes certain canine breeds as working dogs. These include:

• Akita
• Alaskan Malamute
• Anatolian Shepherd
• Bernese Mountain Dog
• Black Russian Terrier
• Boerboel
• Boxer
• Bullmastiff
• Cane Corso
• Chinook
• Doberman Pinscher
• Dogue de Bordeaux
• German Pinscher
• Giant Schnauzer
• Great Dane
• Great Pyrenees
• Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
• Kmondor
• Kuvasz
• Leonberger
• Mastiff
• Neapolitan Mastiff
• Newfoundland
• Portuguese Water Dog
• Rottweiler
• Saint Bernard
• Samoyed
• Siberian Husky
• Standard Schnauzer
• Tibetan Mastiff

Dogs of these breeds have been found to be particularly adept and trainable for useful tasks.

Still, many other sorts of dogs can perform essential tasks to help their owners and others. How about these canine careers? Here’s a fetching list of nearly two dozen jobs for dogs:

• Cart dogs
• Circus dogs
• Companion dogs
• Drug detection dogs
• Emotional assistance dogs
• Fashion model dogs
• Firehouse dogs
• Guide dogs
• Herding dogs
• Hunting dogs
• Mascot dogs
• Military dogs
• Pest catching dogs
• Photo model dogs
• Police K-9 dogs
• Search and rescue dogs
• Security guard dogs
• Show dogs
• Sled dogs
• Therapy dogs
• TV and movie dogs
• Water rescue dogs
• and more.

Often, a dog will reveal to his owner what responsibilities he might best perform, simply by demonstrating his own abilities and behavioral temperament. At that point, it may be time to give the dog a job. Then again, some dogs are ideally suited to spend their lives simply being occupied as their owners’ best friends and companions.

Image/s:

 Adapted from public domain image

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Pet product marketing is a dog-eat-dog world

Pet owners shell out plenty to pamper, protect, and provide for their domesticated animal companions. Last year, it seems pet lovers spent $74 billion in the U.S. on pet products and services. That number is projected to increase to approximately $91 billion by 2019, according to a recent edition of Packaged Facts Reports.

It sounds like it’s raining cats and dogs for pet product and service marketers. An estimated 56 percent of all American households own at least one pet, and these animal lovers seem to be more than willing to spend generously on their behalf. Pet purchases include goods and services for boarding, clothing, comforting, entertaining, exercising, feeding, grooming, housebreaking, pet sitting, training, transporting, treating, and more.

Hot dog! That’s a lot of kibbles.

Image/s:

 Adapted from public domain image

Feel free to follow on Google Plus and Twitter.  You are invited to subscribe for free to my General Pets Examiner column, so you will receive email notifications whenever new articles appear.