Caring for Your Dog » Big Dog Blog

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie, on their own Bed! A Dog Bed! Well that can be tough today with so many options available. It can be especially hard finding one that our spoiled Danes, Shepherds, Rotties and all, would find comfortable, and that we would find durable. Well BarkSlope, who is a sponsor of our gentle giants, has the Bowser Dog Bed, superior in comfort and durability. These are beds that your dogs will love!

“Bowser Dog Beds use only “high-loft” 100% virgin polyester fiber for superior “memory”, resilience and comfort.”

Be sure to take a look at this great online dog boutique, and the Bowser brand dog bed.

There are certainly a lot of different pet ID tags for your pups, but how many dog tags let Rex carry around his MP3s? The Top Tag™ pet ID tag is a tiny USB stick that when plugged into a computer instantly launches Rex’s complete profile including his name and home address, diet and medical needs, and it doesn’t stop there! This dog tag even stores what words and commands Rex understands, a photo album, and a function to print the data for records. And because the Pet ID tag has 64 MB, Rex can carry with his favorite tunes, word docs, any anything else he finds essential.

Top Tag™, $39.99.

This little gadget may be digital, but it’s as rugged as your dog is. It comes enclosed in a clear rubbery plastic mold that snaps together to keep out dust, water, drool and hair. Bear our Newfoundland can be one dirty dog, and is always in the mud or water when outdoors and this little thing comes back clean and dry every time.

We happened to wrangle a couple out of the company to give away, so if you’re interested, let us know in the comments and we’ll pull from the hat. As usual, we want to hear what you think so keep us posted!

* Don’t post your addresses online. We’ll contact two random dogs (people) in two weeks for their home address.

After intense playing or long walks/jogs have you noticed your dog heavily panting? tongue hanging low? lacking focus?

As noted in the Sept/Oct issue of Bark magazine (www.thebark.com), they are all symptoms of dehydration.

Other symptoms to look for are: loose skin, dry and sunken eyes, dry mouth and nose.

Though temperatures are dropping outdoors, dogs can still suffer from dehydration.

Usually shade, water and a cold surface are enough to cool down your dog after physical activities. However, if your dog is severely dehydrated and you are not able to get him to a veterinarian immediately, “K9 Kitchen” author Monica Segal suggests the “Quick & Easy Hydration Solution.”

Quick & Easy Hydration Solution:

1 qt. water
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. regular table salt*

*For additional potassium, substitute:
½ tsp. regular table salt and
½ tsp. light salt

Severe dehydration in dogs can prove fatal. Avoid potential dangers by monitoring your dog during exercise and providing your pooch plenty of water and breaks. Also observe your dog for signs of dehydration during illness. If you think your dog is suffering from dehydration, contact your vet immediately.

A report in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association has just shown a link between the sugar substitue Xylitol, and illnesses in dogs. In fact, it is so bad, possibly causing acute liver failure that out of eight dogs found to have ingested xylitol, 5 died or had to be euthanized.

Xylitol is a commonly used sweetner used in sugar free gums, candies and even baked goods. So keep an eye on the ingredients when feeding your dog human treats.

California Govenor Arnold Schwarzenegger just signed into law a bill that would prohibit people from tethering their dog(s) to any stationary object for more than 3 hours.

From San Francisco Gate:

“We’re very excited the governor has joined other compassionate Californians in taking a stand against this practice,” said Pam Runquist, a member of the board of the California Animal Association, a coalition of 15 animal rights organizations.

Violation of the new law, which will go into effect Jan. 1, could result in an infraction or misdemeanor, depending on the offense, punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000 per dog and up to six months in county jail.