Probiotics and Prebiotics in Dog Food?

Are prebiotics and probiotics worthwile food additives
in dog food?

Good question!

Probiotics are microorganisms that help tip the balance of bacteria in the digestive tract toward the types of bacteria that maintain a healthy internal environment in the gut. They are popular supplements in both the human and veterinary markets, and more dog food companies are adding them to their kibble.

Prebiotics are fibers that stimulate the growth and function of the good bacteria and also rank as popular additions to food and supplements.

According to most veterinarians, the problem with adding them to food is that they are hard to quantify. There is no way to know how many are in one diet versus another, or whether the bacteria have survived processing, storage, and stomach acid. Since the amount and efficacy of probiotics in food is hard to measure, pet owners who what to give their dogs probiotics may look to giving them in supplement form.

Sounds similar to our unregulated vitamins issue. How do you know what is on the vitamin label is what is in the bottle or in the right quantities as well as good quality?

Research from Nestle Purina suggest that probiotics boost immunity in young puppies and dogs under great stress, such as working and performance dogs in harsh climates.

Apparently, no one know for sure if the probiotics in dog food are effective.

Puppy Raisers Needed

Do you love puppies?

Here is the perfect volunteer job.

Guide Dogs for the Blind, a San Rafael, California based organization that provides highly trained service animals to visually impaired people, needs volunteers to temporarily house and train its puppies.

Yes, the hardest part of the job is returning the puppy (between 13 and 18 months of age) for further training and placement with a visually impaired person.

Qualified volunteers receive their young canine charges - Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, or their mixes - around 8 weeks of age to teach them basic obedience, good house manners, and to begin introducing them to the real world. That means the pup goes with you everywhere to become familiar with life's sights and sounds.

Prepping puppies as future service animals is a lot of work, but volunteers do not do it alone. Local puppy raising clubs meet a few times each month to give volunteers guidance on proper training and socialization.



Guide Dogs is currently looking for volunteers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington.

Are you ready to be a Puppy Raiser?

For more information about volunteering call Guide Dogs for the Blind at 800-295-4050 or visit them online.

Puppy Size

Puppy Size

Danielle keeps repeating it over and over again. "We've been back to this animal shelter at least five times. It has been weeks now since we started all of this," the mother told the volunteer.

"What is it she keeps asking for?", the volunteer asked.

"'Puppy size!'" replied the mother.

"Well, we have plenty of puppies, if that's what she's looking for."

"I know... we have seen most of them", the mom said in frustration.

Just then Danielle came walking into the office

"Well, did you find one?" asked her mom. "No, not this time," Danielle said with sadness in her voice. "Can we come back on the weekend?"

The two women looked at each other, shook their heads and laughed.

"You never know when we will get more dogs. Unfortunately, there's always a supply," the volunteer said.

Danielle took her mother by the hand and headed to the door. "Don 't worry, I'll find one this weekend," she said.

Over the next few days both Mom and Dad had long conversations with her.

They both felt she was being too particular. "It's this weekend or we're not looking any more," Dad finally said in frustration.

"We don't want to hear anything more about 'puppy size', either," Mom added.

Sure enough, they were the first ones in the shelter on Saturday morning. By now Danielle knew her way around, so she ran right for the section that housed the smaller dogs.

Tired of the routine, mom sat in the small waiting room at the end of the first row of cages. There was an observation window so you could see the animals during times when visitors weren't permitted.

Danielle walked slowly from cage to cage, kneeling periodically to take a closer look. One by one the dogs were brought out and she held each one.

One by one she said, "Sorry, but you're not the one."

It was the last cage on this last day in search of the perfect pup.

The volunteer opened the cage door and the child carefully picked up the dog and held it closely. This time she took a little longer.

"Mom, that's it! I found the right puppy! He's the one! I know it!" She screamed with joy. "It's the puppy size!"

"But it's the same size as all the other puppies you held over the last few weeks," Mom said.

"No...not size... The sighs. When I held him in my arms, he sighed", she said.

"Don't you remember? When I asked you one day what love is, you told me love depends on the sighs of your heart. The more you love, the bigger the sigh!"

The two women looked at each other for a moment. Mom didn't know whether to laugh or cry. As she stooped down to hug the child, she did a little of both.

"Mom, every time you hold me, I sigh. When you and Daddy come home from work and hug each other, you both sigh. I knew I would find the right puppy if it sighed when I held it in my arms", she said.

Then, holding the puppy up close to her face, she said, "Mom, he loves me. I heard the sighs of his heart!"

Author Unknown

Puppies Grow Fast

Puppies do grow and develop quickly. Have you ever seen a puppy grow in only a couple of minutes?

A dog basically goes from a baby to an adult in one year's time - which is equivalent to almost 18 years of human life. After that, their growth slows down, but the first 6 months are amazing.

I found this very sweet video. This owner took a photo of their dog every day from the time he was 6 weeks old until he turned 6 months old, and turned it into a 2-minute video! It is very cute!

Check out how quickly this pup grows!

Puppy Lullaby

I have sung my babies to sleep, have you?

Here is a gentleman who sings puppies to sleep.

Very cute!

Puppy Tips

Happy and confident adult dogs don't just "happen". They are the product of good decisions and correct treatment of the puppy from birth right up until the juvenile period (around 6 months of age). This is a time when primary social relationships and emotional attachments develop between dogs and people, and between dogs and other dogs.

How to raise a good puppy has been discussed almost ad nauseam by numerous authorities, though the message has still not penetrated to all new puppy owners. In essence, for training a new puppy, new owners need to concentrate on being patient and considerate while using primarily positive reinforcement with, if necessary, negative punishment (withholding benefits) as a consequence for any deliberate, unacceptable behavior. But even informed owners sometimes fail to appreciate the absolute no-no's of puppy raising.

ABSOLUTE NO-NO's OF PUPPY RAISING

Don't Expect Your Pup To Understand Sentences. It's okay to babble along to your pup as you care for it, just don't expect it to understand anything you're saying. It will only understand the tone of your address. Dogs can learn a number of word cues ("commands") - even hundreds of them - but they are just that, word cues. A pup can and should be taught at least a few words of human language. In English, "Sit!" and "Dinner!" are a couple that might be useful on occasion. But if you tell the dog, "Sit in your Dinner", the meaning is lost. Dogs do not have a language center in their brains like humans do, and they cannot fathom syntax. Use one-word commands when communicating. Say the word clearly. Say it only once. And say it with importance. Reward the desired response immediately. Do not use the pup's name when addressing it (unless the pup is at a distance). Do not repeat commands. Dogs hear even better than we do. Their "deafness" is usually not attributable to poor hearing. It is selective - they choose not to obey. Remember that if a dog does not respond to a verbal cue it should not be punished. The opposite of reward is not punishment - it is no reward.

Don't Allow Young Children (Under 6 Years Old) To Interact With Your Pup Unsupervised. It comes as a surprise to many people to learn that children and puppies, though both cute, cannot be trusted alone together. Bad things can happen. Children are naturally curious. Often a child will do "something bad" to the pup by way of experimentation. If accidents are to be avoided, complete supervision is necessary. It's not usually the dog that starts the trouble, it's the child. If you can child-proof your dog, there should be no cause for concern.

Do Not Feed It Human Food: Do Not Feed It From The Table. Puppy food is best for pups. Adding an assortment of human foods in who-knows-what quantities will not only detract from the optimal (proprietary) food but will encourage fussiness. Also, if the human food is fed from the table, you will wind up with a dog that mooches around the table at mealtimes, always begging for food. Start out the way you intend to continue. Set limits and be firm about them. Make sure that you feed your pup a good quality food. This is essential to his good health.

Do Not Expect Love And Attention To Substitute For Good Puppy Parenting. Young pups are so adorable that it is very tempting to always give them all of the love and attention you possible can. But it is also important to set limits of acceptable behavior. This is especially important as they go through the canine equivalent of "the terrible twos" at about 4-5 months of age. Bad behavior, like excessive or hard nipping, should be punished by immediate withdrawal of attention (following sharp exclamation of a word like "Ouch" or "No-bite"). This is how puppies communicate their likes and dislikes to each other. Spare the "Ouch" and spoil the dog!

DO NOT SUPPLY ALL THE GOOD THINGS IN LIFE FOR FREE. One simple rule is to make the pup work for food and treats. "What's work?" you ask. It's having the pup "Sit" or "Down" in order to receive food and treats. This will make sure that the pup always views you as its true (resource rich) provider and, therefore, leader. Problems of owner-directed aggression downstream can be all but completely addressed by this simple measure. Don't give everything away. Insist on good puppy manners: Manners maketh the pup.

DO NOT EVER GET ANGRY WITH YOUR PUP. Work hard to remind yourself, whatever happens, that this is a baby you are dealing with. If you lose your cool, you will act incorrectly, your puppy will think you have gone crazy, and you will lose its respect and trust. Be a good puppy parent. Think cool.

Following these simple rules of what NOT to do can help create the dog of your dreams as opposed to a canine nightmare. The basics are the same as in child raising. Be fun, be fair, but be firm (the 3 F's) and set limits. Children are happier when their parents are obviously at the helm, and so are dogs. Dogs need strong leaders if they are to be model canine citizens.

The moral of this story is, "As you reap, so shall you sow." Pay attention at the beginning and the rewards will be unimaginable.

Puppies Are SOOO Cute!

This little 5 week old pup is too cute for words!

The puppy uses a stair for a pillow.

Watch the pooped pup.