It is the duty of your vet to inform you about the following aspects of the medication that he or she is prescribing for your dog. If your vet omits to inform you, it is your duty to ask and gain this information.

The vet should tell you:

• The expected functions of the medication.

• The time period after which improvement will be noticeable.

• The time period after which lack of improvement is a cause for concern.

• The duration of the medication.

• Whether the medication should be stopped abruptly or the dose be abruptly reduced?

• How the stoppage or reduction should be implemented?

• Whether the medication should be stored away from light or in airtight conditions or in the refrigerator?

• The possible side effects of the medication.

Either the dispensing label or the prescription of the vet should specifically give direction for use of the medication. Do not forget whether the medication should be given before, after or with the food. Follow all instructions which require the stomach to be empty for a specified time before the administration of the dosage. These requirements are imposed due to the possibility of chemic interference of the medication with the stomach or small intestine. Ignore these instructions at your own peril.

If more than one type of medication has been prescribed, confirm whether they can be administered simultaneously or whether there should be a time gap between the same. Certain drugs complement each other while others cause adverse side effects.

Confirm whether ‘three times a day’ means a dose every eight hours or a dose at every meal or a dose at morning, noon and night. These small points, if ignored, may cause a lot of harm.

Some drugs can be reduced in size if the number of doses is increased. Giving a large pill twice a day may be troublesome. Confirm before halving the pill and administering it four times a day. The answer may be ‘yes’ in some cases and a resounding ‘never’ in other cases.

Leave nothing to guesswork. Make it a habit to clarify even the smallest points. Do not hesitate to ask whether the ‘three times a day’ dose begins with effect from the day ‘on which the medicines were prescribed’ or ‘after the day of prescription of medicines’.

There is no need to use any special training equipment for older dogs. Just use the standard chain collar and the six-foot web leash used for all dogs.

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As such, the training procedure is not affected by the age of the dog. Irrespective of whether the dog is young or old, the training techniques remain the same. However, you may have to modify certain aspects of your training to accommodate the less than perfect eyesight and hearing abilities of the dog. Your hand signals should be distinct and your verbal commands should be extra clear. These minor changes should be made to the training process. However, just because an aged dog is being trained does not mean that the training need not be perfect. If necessary, extend the training period by a week but do not leave the dog half trained.

One area where persons training aged dogs must be very patient is the reaction time of the dog. Many a times, the trainer feels that the dog is purposely reacting in a slow manner. If the dog is aged, the slow reactions may be due to the overall slowing down of the movement of the dog. The dog may suffer from arthritis and this may hamper the movement. Be flexible while training the dog. If the dog finds it difficult to sit, then simply dispense with the ‘sit’ command. The dog will resist training if it causes pain to him. If there is no pain, then you can train the dog to not only sit but also to sit and stay.

If your dog finds it difficult to walk or find it difficult to get up after being ordered to lie down, try training the dog for a longer period of time on a soft surface. This will reduce the discomfort of the dog. Most dogs take a bit of time to get up after a ‘down and stay’ command. Give your dog that extra second after you command the dog to heel.

Other important points:

• Older dogs do develop cataracts. However, this condition can be found in young dogs as well.

• Despite what self appointed experts tell you, there is no evidence of mixed breeds living longer than pure breed dogs.

• If you have an older dog, watch out for hookworms as they are found more in aged dogs than young dogs. However, the susceptibility of the dog depends on the well being of the dog.

• Organ transplants are being performed on an experimental basis. However, they are very expensive operations.

• Generally older dogs shed less than younger dogs.

Notable, too, is that humans are at risk of rabies, ringworms, sarcoptic mange and ticks as these can be communicated to humans from dogs. Ringworm is a fungus and not a disease although it is popularly termed as a disease.

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As far as a male dog is concerned, castration will prevent two reproductive disorders which occur in aged dogs. However, castration has extensive side effects. Hence, this surgery should not be done for mere preventive reasons. Performing this surgery after the reproductive disease affects the dog makes more sense.

Male dogs suffer from balanoposthitis, which is the inflammation of the penis and the prepuce. This disease can affect even young puppies. However, it is far more common in aging males. The condition leads to yellow or grayish discharge at the opening of the prepuce. In some cases, greenish pus like discharge takes place. The surface of the penis and the prepuce develops many little bumps and bacteria growth will take place in the secretions. The dog will begin to discharge the secretions if it lies on any surface for any length of time.

If the problem is not very severe, you can treat it yourself. Gently flush the sheath twice a day with hydrogen peroxide solution for at least ten days. Use rubber human ear syringe to clean the penis and the sheath. However, avoid contact between the syringe tip and the penis. Fill in hydrogen peroxide until the sheath bulges. Massage the fluid back and forth within the sheath and let the fluid drain out. Clean the surrounding areas carefully.

However, if the problem is a severe one, contact your vet and apply medications to the delicate tissues. Since the medications cause irritation, it would be applied under anesthesia. Soothing antibiotics should be prescribed to control the irritation.

Aged dogs would be frequently bothered by this problem. Regular flushing with the peroxide solution and application of antibiotic ointments should be done at least once or twice a week. This will keep the discharge under control and also prevent any other serious problems.

As compared to humans, the man’s best friend does not face similar risk of cancer. Cancer exists in the form of a lipoma, which is a usually benign fatty tumor or breast tumors, which usually are malignant in nature. Even if the cancer is malignant, the malignancy does not pose the risk of death. Occasionally, dogs face liver or spleen tumors. Such tumors may spread to the lungs as well. Only in such cases does the risk of death occur as the tumor may bleed and cause death. If the tumor is malignant, it can cause sufficient damage to organs like liver and cause the death of the dog.

Dogs commonly face the problem of fibrosis of the heart and kidney. It is the most common cause of death in those dogs which die due to any disease.

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First, bad breath occurs in a dog due to a constipated digestive system. Such a digestive system locks the putrefying toxic wastes in the body of the dog and the stench is emitted from the mouth. Bad breath occurs due to a diet consisting of dead, refined food having no raw, live food or fiber.

Just because a dog has a daily bowel movement does not mean that the dog is not constipated. All dogs suffer from constipation at some point of time in their life. There are very few exceptions to this rule. However, very few owners ever get to know that their dog is constipated. The best way to get rid of bad breath is to give the dog a mix of rosemary leaves and flowers or lemon juice and water or apple juice or raw honey and water. It is advisable to make the dog fast for a few days to get rid of the immediate problem. To prevent recurrence, make the dog fast for at least one day of the week. Feed it nothing but distilled water and raw honey on that day. Use lots of raw fruits and vegetables, yogurt and raw or slightly braised meat. These changes should solve the problem bad breath.

Aged dogs are found to face the problem of slow loss of hair due to ill health. To solve this problem, feed the dog a diet of raw meats, vegetables and fruits. Feed brewers’ yeast, kelp, desiccated liver, raw corn, olive, peanut or safflower oil to provide the dog with unsaturated fatty acids. Bathe the balding areas with rosemary leaves, marigold flowers or daffodil leaves. You can try massaging castor oil or eucalyptus oil as well.

Unspayed female dogs often face the problem of breast tumors. These occur due to hormonal imbalances and changes. If the dog is facing the problem of toxemia and ill health, the chances of breast tumor increases. It may also be connected with the estrogen in the body. It is important to remember that a tumor is an attempt by the body to isolate a harmful condition. A tumor is usually benign in some of its areas and malignant in other areas. You must keep in mind that a biopsy can aggravate the malignant portion and cause the tumor to spread even more rapidly.

A tumor is a message from the body that something is not right. Simply removing the tumor is not the solution. You must focus on removing the tumor as well as the cause of the tumor. It is very essential to remove the toxicity. This can be done by enriching the diet with live, raw foods which will ensure the supply of vital enzymes to the body. You can also opt for enzyme therapy along with the raw foods. You can also use herbal therapies to rectify the problem.

The general theory about cancer is that it is caused by faulty protein metabolism. A shift to raw, live food diet will give the body the opportunity to rectify the fault. The shift will clean up the blood stream and this will enhance the overall health of the body.

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The obedience training of an aged dog should not cause physical and mental discomfort to the dog. Training the dog to obey the ‘down and stay’ command ensures that your dog does not disturb you when you want to spend a few moments in private with your spouse. The ‘down and stay’ command is effective for a longer period as compared to the ‘sit and stay’ command. If you train your dog to obey this command, you need not lock it in the basement or the bathroom.

It is imperative that you remain cool and calm during obedience training. Becoming emotional will only drain your energy and your dog will take advantage of that to disobey your orders. Dogs are very quick to spot any weakness in their masters and this is true even for an aged dog. If you let your dog take control, then you will have difficult and resentful training period where you have to continuously assert your authority. Avoid such problems by speaking and acting in calm, slow, deliberate and rational manner. Be consistent in your actions to maximize your training benefits. You can get your older dog well trained a lot faster if you adopt a cool and calm approach.

Older dogs often lose weight and lose some of their fatty components of his weight in the process. This results in a scenario where the aged dog loses his ability to regulate his body temperature as he is not as well insulated as before. Hence, when you are conducting obedience training of your aged dog, do not make him work in extremes heat and cold. Older dogs are more susceptible to problems due to heat variations.

Aged dogs suffer from constipation and incontinence as well. Just allow the dog to relive itself before and after an obedience training session. If the dog relieves itself during the session, simply ignore it and proceed with the training. Avoid feeding your dog just before or after the obedience training session. This can upset the digestion of the dog. Further, the dog may consider the feeding as a bribe and may insist on being fed every time before and after the training. Avoid such a scenario as you would lose control over the training process. When you are training aged dogs, always opt for many short sessions as opposed to a single long training session.

Dogs do not become ordinarily become senile. It is only when they are affected by conditions like brain tumor that a dog becomes senile.

Dogs have a huge capacity for learning. They can learn new things even at an old age. This potential is seldom tapped by dog owners.

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If you suspect that your dog has kennel cough, take it to the vet right away. It always pays to be sure whether your dog just has a mild case of cough or a more complicated respiratory disease. The vet would perform the necessary diagnosis for your pet and he can give your dog the medicines that it need.

But aside from following the vet’s orders, you also have to do several things to speed up your pet’s recovery. Milder cases of kennel cough rarely require medication. But it is still necessary to give your pet the drugs that the vet had prescribed. Antibiotics are usually prescribed to dogs with kennel cough. And they have to take it as frequently as indicated in order to experience eventual relief from the disease.

If your dog has kennel cough, try to keep it away from your other pets as much as possible. All of them could easily contract the same disease just with mere association. If you must, keep your pets in their respective cages. This way, you can prevent their contact with each other. There are also preventive medicines that you can give to your other pets so that they would have stronger immune system. This way, they won’t easily acquire the disease. Ask your vet about the possible vaccines against kennel cough.

The best home remedy to give dogs with kennel cough is Vitamin C. There are Vitamin C soft capsules that can be bought at pharmacies today and you can simply add it to your dog’s meals. Break the capsule and put the content in the food of your dog. It is also possible to use similar tinctures and herbal remedies that are easily available at pharmacies today.

The cold weather can make your dog suffer from the disease even more. Try to keep its environment warm and humid. Use a vaporizer or a home humidifier to keep the dog house or crate comfortable enough for your sick pet. It is also possible to use a cough medicine used for children on your dog. However, this should be done only as a first aid and never as a continued medication for its disease.

Honey can help so much in easing an irritated throat. You should also do your best to keep your pet from pollutants such as smoke. For the entire length of time that your dog is sick, try to keep smokers out of the house. This way, your pet would experience speedy recover from its condition.

Be sure to monitor your pet’s health all the time. This is very important so you can stop the onset of any diseases. Prevention and early cure are your best defenses against kennel cough and similar health concern.

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Old or young dogs with arthritis can still live a normal life if owners just give them what they need to ease the pain. For starters, your dog is going to need comfortable bedding. Arthritis is a joint and muscle condition that could really be crippling. The most you can do is give your pet soft beddings, ideally a rubber foam mattress that is about five inches thick.

Dogs with arthritis would benefit most from regular exercise. However, never allow your dog to perform any extraneous exercises any longer as it may negatively affect their condition. Mild and gentle walking exercises are good enough. Make it a point that you walk your dog a few blocks everyday. Running is discouraged. If your pet is a guard dog or a field dog, maybe you should consider retiring it and just make it a regular household pet.

What complements good exercise is proper diet. Always watch the weight of your dog, especially if it belongs to the larger breeds. These dogs can easily become overweight. But just the same, smaller dogs can be obese. And being overweight limits their daily activities. As such, they won’t be able to do several long walks with you. What’s more, your dog’s weight will be putting too much strain on its joints. This aggravates the condition even more. If your dog is overweight, give it a light diet. Don’t wait for it to contract arthritis before doing something about its meals.

On the other hand, there are dog food formulas that are especially designed for arthritic dog. Ask your vet about it. Sick dogs require a change in their diet plan. Your vet should be able to provide the right nutritional meals for your pet. He might advise you to use Purina’s JM dog food or Hill’s RX J/D formula.

It may also be necessary to give your dog commercial medicines to aid in its health. These medicines are again, prescribed by the vet. Give it to your pet as indicated and always bring your dog to its regular checkups. The vet needs to monitor the health of your pet so that it can adjust the medications as needed. Some dogs respond well to certain medicines while others don’t. This is the reason why post-diagnosis visits are always crucial. Never miss one or your dog may suffer unnecessarily from arthritis.

Aside from prescription drugs, there are over-the-counter medicines and natural remedies that can help your dog. Aspirin is known to relieve pain and inflammation in pets if used the right way. As for natural medicines, Omega 3 supplements, vitamins, and minerals can contribute so much help alleviate the condition. Under the guidance of the vet, give your dog a combination of these medicines so it can live longer and much happier with you.

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