Keeping Fido Clean and Healthy On A Budget

Times are tough all over right now and many people have to cut back on dog expenses. Thankfully, there are many things you can do at home to keep Fido healthy and in tip top shape while saving money. Here's a few suggestions:

1. Inspect your dog. Fido can’t tell you if he’s under the weather, or even if he's uncomfortably dirty—you have to discover these problems yourself. An inspection allows you to gather, track, monitor, and assess the state of your dog’s health and cleanliness in a systematic and thorough manner. Moreover you’ll discover medical and grooming issues well before they become painful to your dog and your pocketbook. Once a week, using your hands, eyes, ears and nose, give your pooch the once over. Fido's eyes, however, require daily inspections. Be sure you check every nook and cranny. The entire process takes about five to ten minutes, and your dog will appreciate the attention. If at any time you see, feel, smell, or sense trouble brewing, call your veterinarian immediately. Your inspection may save your dog's life (and your bank account).
2. Dog-proof your house. Many household items are dangerous to dogs as poisons, or as choking/obstruction risks. Spending a few minutes a day clearing your counters, closing drawers and doors, and putting away medicine, cleaners, food, and small objects will safeguard your dog. It’s easier to clean up than to pay a huge a vet bill or replace chewed or swallowed items.
3. Brush, brush, brush! Brushing saves time, money, and is an excellent opportunity to bond with your dog. Brushing also extends the time between professional grooming appointments, loosens and lifts dirt, and keeps skin healthy. Brushing removes the dead coat before it can fall off your dog or cause mats, which can increase professional grooming costs. For most dogs, a slicker brush is all you need. If your dog has extremely short hair, such as a Boxer, Doberman, Dalmatian or a Pug, you can use a rubber curry. You don’t even have to brush the entire dog every time. Brush a quarter of your dog each day and by the end of the week, he’ll have been completely brushed twice. Besides, more fur in the brush means you'll spend less on lint rollers and dry cleaning!
4. Be smart about products. Most people use far too much product when bathing their dog at home, which wastes money and makes rinsing difficult. Dilute shampoo in a bowl or separate bottle. Don’t dilute it in the original bottle because adding water can spoil the product. All you need is one quality hypoallergenic CANINE shampoo and one CANINE conditioner. Although they’re fun to use, you don’t need fancy spa products. And there is no reason to purchase a shampoo for every doggie dirt situation—a proper wash with a regular dog shampoo followed by a regular conditioner is sufficient. Make sure you rinse thoroughly because product left on the skin can cause painful and costly skin infections.
5. Ask for a shorter haircut. When your dog gets a haircut, ask your groomer to cut the coat a “step” (or slightly) shorter. The shorter haircut can stretch the time between professional appointments, but make sure the cut isn’t too short since exposed skin is prone to sunburn. And because you’ll extend the time between appointments, brushing becomes critical—the coat on some dogs can mat up overnight.

In our next post, we'll talk about the most efficient way to spend your dog care dollars.

Fritophiles Unite! We Examine the Canine-Corn Chip Connection

There's been a surprisingly large amount of conversation on the web lately about whether dog paws smell like corn chips. Many people discover this phenomenon on their own dog but are reluctant to go public fearing that their opinion will cast a veil of shame on their precious pooch. As a public service, we at Happy Dog Land felt it necessary to compile some of the discussion so the issue could be solved once and for all and, thus, allow all of the corn chip smelling dog people to come out of the closet and proudly and publicly proclaim their view. So, with this blog entry we toss our Fritos into the fray.

Look at these sites for background discussions:

Steve Dale, pet expert and nationally syndicated journalist
Ken Foster, author of several dog books including The Dogs Who Found Me
4urPets, a "forum of our best friends and other animals"
Dr. Eric Barchas, DVM, Dogster's "Ask the Vet" expert

Billy has gotten up close and personal with thousands of paws over the past 30 years working and caring for dogs. Jill just checked Shadow's paws. As a result, both Billy and Jill publicly plant their flags in the Frito Feet camp.

What exactly causes Frito Feet? We've noticed that the corn chip bouquet is especially pungent when Fido needs a bath or has been playing hard. Perhaps the fragrance emanates from the sweat or oil glands on the paws. Perhaps the lack of air circulation between the toes is the culprit. We may never know what causes Frito Feet, but we can all rejoice in this uniquely canine phenomenon.

Whether the paws of your particular pal smell like Fritos or eau de generic corn chips or if you've never in your wildest dreams taken a whiff your pooch's paws, there's an important lesson here. You should know everything about your dog's paws: what they look like, what they feel like and, yes, what they smell like. The benefits of inspecting, touching and smelling your dog's paws regularly are myriad: Fido will be less likely to struggle when his nails need cutting, you'll discover injuries, medical issues or abnormalities well before the situation becomes dire, and you'll be spending focused, quality time with your furry friend.

Don't limit your tactile, visual and olfactory inspection to Fido's paws. Giving Fido a full blown bodily "once over" every week is not only good for his physical health, but his mental health too. Moreover, you'll benefit from the bonding time as well.

All you people in the canine corn chip connoisseurs can now hold your head high and shout "Fritophiles Unite!"

The Inspection Connection

Over the years, Billy has found a wide array of items, some outrageous and some humorous, on his furry clients. Here's a short list: mats, ticks, fleas so numerous that the dog could have made a living as a travelling flea circus, ring worm, rashes, very large and very small tumors, hemorrhoids, serious allergies, dandruff, oozing eye and ear infections, puncture wounds, bites, animal feces, paint, gum, multiple burrs, sticks, and even a gaping, oozing scabby hole the size of a dime.

If that list wasn't shocking enough, not once, but twice, Billy has discovered a condom protruding from a dog’s rectum, which proves that dogs will eat anything. Imagine Billy's chagrin when he told one owner who insisted that it was a worm until Billy pointed out that the “worm” had a rim and a ribbed tip. Clearly, these dogs had been eating the trash and the owner’s spent no time inspecting their dogs.

Alas, many perfectly good dog owners never think to touch their dogs all over. A pat on the head does not count as proper affection or proper dog care. Fido can’t tell you if he’s under the weather, or even if he's uncomfortably dirty -- you have to discover the problem yourself. An inspection allows you to gather, track, monitor and assess the state of your dog’s health and cleanliness in a systematic and thorough manner. Now that you know better, you have no excuse, especially since inspections are so easy and quick to perform.

So, give your pooch the once over with your hands, eyes and nose at least once a week. Fido's eyes, however, require daily inspections. Eyes are delicate and you must clean off any eye crust that forms while Fido sleeps.

Start at the nose and work back to the tip of the tail. Part your dog's fur and look at his skin, check his paws and pads, lift his tail and look inside his ears. Be sure you check every inch of his body and every nook and cranny. The entire process takes about five to ten minutes and your dog will appreciate the attention. You can even inspect while you're cuddling -- Fido will never suspect that you're inspecting his skin while you rub his belly.

If at anytime you see, feel, smell or sense trouble brewing, call your veterinarian immediately. Your inspection may save your dog's life (and your bank account).