Posts from — January 2009

It isn’t surprising that you would want to take the best care of your dog as you possibly could. A dog is a faithful companion, they don’t look to you for anything but someone to stand by their side. They also depend on you to make the right choices when it comes to their health, and that can get quite confusing. Dogs are carnivores by nature, but most of the dog food companies use corn as their key ingredient in the dog foods that are sold in the pet stores and supermarkets, but is that good for your dog?

Dogs can live quite comfortably on a diet of vegetables, although having some meat will also help to reach their protein requirements easily. However, the corn and wheat that most dog food companies use is not the healthiest choice for your dog, and that really should come as no surprise. Dog food companies have been lying to their customers for years, and they continue to get away with it. Look at any dog food commercial out there and you will see a happy dog, eagerly eating it’s food. You walk away with the impression that what they are eating is good enough to get served on your own table, but the truth is that they probably deprived that poor dog of food for a couple days to make them eat it with more enthusiasm, and the products that are in commercial dog food are anything but wholesome.

Most dog food companies will use products that have been pumped full of chemicals, and as long as they do not add chemicals to the food once it reaches the plant they can legally call it chemical free. Some of the products that they use include road killed animals and dogs and cats that were put to sleep at the animal shelters. Sometimes they don’t even bother taking them out of the plastic bags and removing collars and tags.

The dog food and dog care industries are out to get your money, not to help your dog live a healthy life. By making simple changes to the way you feed your pet you could help them to live a much healthier and longer life. Download our Special Report at

Aquariums and fish keeping have come a long way from the preserves of the rich, when they first became fashionable, to a hobby every modern man may want to indulge in. The color an aquarium adds to a living room cannot be compared with mere furniture.

Most owners would naturally want to make the most of their aquariums by making them attractive and filling them with healthy fish. An important part of keeping that aquarium of your dream is to be creative and make use of aesthetic aquarium decorations. Apart from creating a more natural abode for your fish, aquarium decorations create a more stimulating landscape for the viewer; adding that extra color to your living room.

As with any form of decoration, there are a lot of alternatives you could choose from, when it comes to giving your aquarium that natural look. Thus, different people hold different beliefs about what should be and what shouldn’t be used in an aquarium as decoration. However, the bottom line is that personal preferences come first here. You should be free to decorate your aquarium with whatever item you think is OK, as long as it is not harmful to the fish. After all, it’s your aquarium and you should like how it looks. Now let’s take a look at some natural objects that can add that extra effect to your aquarium.

The first items we will consider here are stones and rocks. These make excellent natural decorations for your aquarium. One question that needs to be attended to here is whether you can use stones you collected yourself. Naturally, there should be nothing wrong with decorating your aquarium with your own collection of stones, however, you will have to be sure that these stones won’t affect the pH level of your aquarium and that they do not contain harmful toxins. For the pH, the best way to test a stone is by pouring some drops of a weak acid on the stone and see if it reacts. If it does, it’s probably not safe to use in your aquarium. But if you are not sure, or if you want to play safe, it is always better to get aquarium stones from your local pet shop or aquarist center, at least that will give you peace of mind. Besides the aesthetic value, your fish will appreciate the presence of stones and rocks in their water, as they can be arranged to create caves and hiding places.

Besides stones and rocks, other decorations you may find suitable for your aquarium are drift wood and mangrove. Not only can these be a very attractive decoration for your aquarium but some people believe that some fish require these materials to thrive. The only catch here is that drift wood should only be used as decoration in aquariums that have slightly acidic pH water. This is because wood has a tendency to lower pH levels of water and sometimes causes increased hardness of water. However, the beauty it brings to your aquarium is worth the extra effort in keeping the water as it should be.

What about corals and shells? These are wonderful decorations for your aquarium, but they don’t work well in fresh water and should perhaps be avoided as much as possible, as they tend to be harmful to fresh water fish. However, in marine aquariums, corals and shells constitute a great way to add some natural beauty to your aquarium and could even be very helpful to your fishes.

This is in no way exhaustive; there are still several ways and items that can be used to adorn your aquarium, you only need to be creative. However, make sure whatever you put in your aquarium is not harmful to those lovely fish.

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to aquarium-fish-and-supplies.com/ Aquariums

Dogs And Horses

The size difference between dogs and horses is usually that the horse is very much larger than the dog. Nevertheless, most horses are much more frightened of dogs than the reverse. This creates unique problems – for dogs and horses, and for the person who has to control them both.

When introducing dogs and horses, unlike other animal training areas, it helps very little to start the interaction out when both animals are young. Young horses are at least as skittish as older ones, and are often accompanied by a mare. Neither is naturally fond of nor curious about puppies. To a horse, nearly everything but their owners and a few other horses are threats – at least until they’re mature. But when mixing dogs and horses it can be very useful to introduce your young puppy to older horses at a very early age, as this will help to avoid the barking problem.

But there are many circumstances where dogs and horses interact successfully. Whether the dog owner is a regular visitor to stables or riding schools, or whether the dog lives on the premises both can get along well.

In the early stages of dog and horse interaction. always keep puppies and dogs restrained around horses until they’ve learned what to do and what to avoid. A lead, for at least the first several weeks of training, is a must. And ensure that the horse is not in a position to rear or run where the dog can be injured.

Training dog and horses to interact involves a series of separate, but easily learned behaviours.

To start your dogs and horses training, first, the dog has to learn to respect a boundary, a dog can easily slip through a paddock with metal bars, or a series of stalls, or other enclosures. Begin by using a leash and collar and make the boundary training part of a more general walk where you train the dog to follow you. Be sure your dog follows you, not leads you.

When mixing dogs and horses, the dog, will sense of smell the horse and be naturally curious about the horse, as it approaches the boundary. Allow the dog to approach – but not move beyond – the boundary. If it tries to breach the boundary, tug on the leash and give a sharp ‘No!’ or ‘Stop’. (’Stay’ is a different behaviour, requiring a different – and unique – command.)

When dogs and horses first meet your dog will have a tendency to bark, this needs to be suppressed. Barking frequency varies with breed and individual temperament, but horses aren’t discriminating. When seemingly threatened, they react – and a horse’s reaction to barking is not usually something pleasant.

Dogs and horses are both pack animals and will usually follow the lead of the alpha (leader), unless, they’re trying to be the alpha. This drive for dominance, coupled sometimes with fear or simply the desire to warn of a threat, can lead to barking.

During your dog and horse training you need to reinforce your ‘top dog’ status, by a sharp jerk sideways on the leash, accompanied by a sharp verbal ‘No bark!’. Jerk sideways, not back, in order to get the dog’s attention without risking injury to the throat. Dogs have very strong neck muscles, but throats can still be too easily bruised by excessive force.

If the dog insists on barking, remove him from the area and try again another day. Don’t give up too easily, though. You don’t want to train the dog that every time he barks ‘Danger’, you obey by fleeing.

As with any dog training regiment, patience and consistency are the keys to success. Be firm, but not abusive, and execute the same unique command and physical movement regularly for each associated behaviour taught. Teaching dogs and horses to be comfortable with each others company you need to be sure that your commands to your dog do not frighten your horse.

For more information on training dogs please visit dogtrainingproblems.biz dogtrainingproblems.biz

Cats are carnivores, which means they have evolved to eat meat. They have claws and sharp teeth for hunting and catching their prey. However, this is not to say that a complete cat food should not have carbohydrates included.

Cats were originally domesticated in Egypt where they were used in granaries for vermin control. The stomach of their prey (mice and rats) would contain partially digested grains. Cooking grains at a high temperature mimics the action of the stomach, therefore an extruded cat food should contain easily digested carbohydrates.

It is also important to note that pet cats are not the same as wild cats. Pet cats do not need as much energy from their diet. They are kept in centrally heated houses, they do not have to hunt for food and have been fed on ‘left-overs’ of human diets which will be cooked food (they would eat raw food in the wild), including meat and carbohydrates (whether they are from grains, cheese, milk or other sources). Even feeding your cat a raw food diet will not be equal to a diet in the wild. The food is not freshly killed, the meat will not be at body temperature and the organs and contents of organs will be missing.

Looking at the recent evolution of cats and their anatomy and physiology, we can see several adaptations which allow them to successfully digest carbohydrates:

• Kittens naturally eat carbohydrates. They ingest lactose (the sugar found in milk) from their mother.
• The pancreas of a cat secretes the enzyme Amylase. Amylase is used to break down carbohydrates (starch). If cats could not eat carbohydrates then they would not have the ability to produce amylase.
• The intestinal length of a carnivore (cat) is much shorter than that of an omnivore (e.g. dog) because of the way food is metabolised. However, domestic cats have been shown to have a longer intestinal tract than wild cats, thus proving dietary evolution. Source: ‘You & Your Cat’ By David Taylor BVMS, FRCVS. 1986.

The 4th Edition of ‘Small Animal Clinical Nutrition’ By Hand, Thatcher, Remillard and Roudebush. 2000.
‘Dry foods containing 40% or more dietary carbohydrates with an average digestibility of 85% are well tolerated by cats.’

‘Although no requirement for dietary carbohydrates has been demonstrated for adult cats, carbohydrates are a good source of energy and appear necessary for adequate lactation in queens.’

‘Strombeck’s Small Animal Gastroenterology’3rd Edition. Guilford, Center, Strombeck, Williams and Meyer. 1996.
‘It is perhaps surprising that cats can efficiently digest carbohydrate considering the low carbohydrate of their ancestral diet.’

There is also a huge difference between simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates. Simple carbohydrates are the ones more likely to cause diabetes and weight gain.

Complex carbohydrates can be divided in to two groups: (1) digestible ones, known as starch and (b) indigestible ones, known as fibre.

Digestion of complex carbohydrates takes longer than simple carbohydrates. This means that there is a slow absorption of food and thus a steady supply of energy rather than sudden sugar surges that you can get from simple carbohydrates. Rapid absorption of sugar also increases the likelihood that it will be converted in to body fat.

The starch available in cooked and extruded pet foods are easily digested. The extrusion process (cooking with heat and pressure) increases the digestibility of starch by causing it to gelatinize (canning food also does this).

The reason we use brown rice as the main ingredient in our cat food is to keep the protein and fat quantity at controlled levels. Although cats need higher amounts of protein and fat than dogs, excess dietary fat and protein may cause health problems.

John Burns is a qualified veterinarian who for the past fourteen years has also been producing a natural, holistic and complete food for dogs and cats, Burns Real Food – free of artificial colours, flavourings and preservatives.
As a practising Veterinary Surgeon, John became increasingly concerned about the quality of pet foods on the market, and how nutrition was playing a part in the poor health of the pets that he was seeing in his surgery.
Burns Pet Nutrition are known for being an ethical company with excellent customer service and nutrition support which can be accessed via their website burns-pet-nutrition.co.uk burns-pet-nutrition.co.uk

Pythons are generally arboreal, that is, they occupy trees and broadly considered to be a longer lived snake and the ball python is no exception. They are the world’s largest snakes. Pythons are exothermic or cold blooded and can reach a length of 25 feet. Pythons are vertebrates. All pythons are members of the family Boidae. Unlike boas, pythons are egg layers.

Burmese Pythons are typically 18″ to 24″ long at birth. Burmese pythons are one of the largest snakes in the world, able to exceed 20 feet in length. These pythons are jockeying with the native alligators for the top spot in the in the Florida Everglades food chain.

African Rock Pythons are tan with brown spots that have black outlines.

Adult Ball Pythons are usually a little over one meter long, that’s 36 – 48 inches in American measurement. Ball pythons are popular due to their small size and docile temperament. They can also be anyone’s favorite snake to keep and breed. Ball Pythons are native to Central and Western Africa and are ‘crepuscular’ being most active at dusk and dawn. Ball pythons are one of the longest-lived snakes.

Reticulated Pythons are meeting extinction within the subsequent fifty years.

Pythons are also one of the few snakes that exhibit parental behavior. Most pythons are rather ill-tempered, contrary to the boas. Most pythons are terrestrial to semi-arboreal, and a few, such as the green tree python (Morelia viridis) of Australia and New Guinea, are strongly arboreal. The pythons are possibly the only species aside from humans that can take on alligators. Royal pythons are most operational at night, when they hunt for their food. Contrary to what one might think, pythons are gentler and easier to maintain than rats.

BOAS

Boas are a type of snake that is members of the Boidae family. These boas are very secretive and mostly nocturnal or crepuscular. Calabar Boas are a burrowing species, and rarely come above ground during daylight hours. Nearly all Halmahera Island Boas are wild caught; this species is hard to breed and even harder to rear. Boas are very strong, and can easily topple such a structure when moving about.

Pythons and Boas are both of the Family Boidae. Boas are known for their placid temperament, which make them ideal as pets. Boas are live bearers; a small litter of babies is born 6 to 8 months after mating. Red tail boas are a very tame and docile snake.

Boas are also non-poisonous snakes that usually reside in Central and South America and are from the same family as the python and anaconda. Emerald green tree boas are solitary. Generally Boas are much nicer in temperament. Boas are ambush predators and rely on this camouflage to capture their prey.

Arjun is an ardent lover of travel, video games, photography and music. Get to learn more about him at

There are thousands of local and online Pet Stores but most people only know about Petco and PetsMart. The reason these businesses have succeed is because of consistent advertising so the customer does not forget their name (brand). Branding is the key to success of any business regardless of size.

A brand is your organization’s personality. Without a brand you’re only a small business. You need to start with targeting your potential customer base. If you provide a Pet Sitting service, make sure people in your area know about you. Try to take advantage of all possible advertising opportunities. Have good references ready for potential customers. People feel more comfortable with the businesses who provide customer feedbacks.

Try different marketing strategies before you decide on one. Measure your advertising performance periodically and make changes accordingly. Try to advertise on media that provide you longer visibility. For example, it is better to advertise in Yellow Pages or Online Business Directory who provide one year listing than your one time ad in the Newspaper.

Other thing you could do is, study marketing strategies for big businesses who are successful. You may not be able to spend same money as big businesses but it could give you enough information to make the right marketing decisions. Based on the Overture keyword tool, there were 3,95,015 searches performed for the keyword “Pet Supply” in the month of May 2005. This information is to give you an idea that people are looking for your products or services, but they should be able to find you. This can be done with branding your business.

Courtesy of petboro.com Petboro.com – Gateway to the local pet community!

Dog training command is a significant adjunct to maintain dogs as pets. Larger dogs most importantly must be submissive, or else taking care of them becomes a problem. Here are some of the commands your dog should react to:

Come: This is a crucial command. He is not an obedient dog if he won’t come when called. It begins by permitting your dog to roam out on a long leash and then simply calls his name by using the command “come”.

Sit: It is also a crucial dog training command. Sitting dogs are beyond the owner’s direct domination. Using a treat placed in surface of the dog’s nose and forcing the dog to sit by passing back the treat over its head, is one way of teaching your dog.

Stay: This will give you a peace of mind. You can park your dog while performing other jobs. Training includes putting the dog in a down or a sit position, then commanding him to “stay” while moving away.

Down or Lie down: This dog training command enables even larger control compared to sitting. One method for training is to use a treat pulled forward and down towards the dog’s face, bringing him to lie down.

Get in or Go to bed: This is to command your dog to go inside its crate or to its bed and to stay there until he is allowed to. He has the liberty to move such as turn around, to stand and lie down in that place not like when he is under a “stay” command.

Drop: Dogs steals all sorts of things everyday. A dog under the direct control of the owner is a dog that drops anything no matter how attractive it is, whenever you command. This will avoid from damaging worthy properties or eating unsafe items.

Free, Okay or Release: This dog training command will free your dog from Sit, Stay, Heel, and etc.

For more information on dog training commands and dog training in general check this out: DogLearn.com DogLearn.com

The Working Dog group includes most of the guard dog breeds such as the Rottweiler and Doberman Pinscher as well as the northern sled dogs such as the Alaskan Malamute and the Siberian Husky. Most of these dogs need lots of exercise and a fair amount of living space. Many of these dogs have thick double coats and can be heavy shedders. The heavy shedding breeds include the: Akita, Alaskan Malamute, Great Pyrenees, Newfoundland, Saint Bernard, Samoyed and Siberian Husky. The top 10 most popular Working Dog breeds in the US according to the American Kennel Club 2005 registrations are discussed below and their registration rank is included in brackets.

1. Boxer

The Boxer (#7) is a large, strong and muscular dog that is energetic, good-natured and playful. Boxers are very popular because they love children and are a good dog breed for active families with children. Toddlers and young children should be supervised carefully when around young or adolescent dogs that will knock them over when they get excited. This breed needs early socialization and obedience training while they are puppies and exercise while adolescents to control their exuberance. Boxers are alert, intelligent and eager to please and can be trained to a high level for agility sports and obedience competitions. Boxers make good watchdogs and can even be trained to be guard dogs.

2. Rottweiler

The Rottweiler (#16) is a very heavy, muscular and large dog breed. A well-bred Rottweiler is calm, intelligent, confident and courageous but can be aggressive toward strangers and strange dogs. Therefore it is important that this breed be thoroughly socialized and obedience trained starting when it is a puppy and continuing through adolescence. The Rottie needs exercise and mental stimulation and makes a good obedience, agility and schutzhund competitor. Rottweilers are not suited for indoor life and enjoy being outside. A well trained Rottie does fine with older children but this breed should be restricted to people who have the time to thoroughly socialize, obedience train, and keep this dog active.

3. Doberman Pinscher

The Doberman Pinscher (#21) is a strong, muscular and athletic large dog. Dobermans are usually protective but also are sweet and docile family dogs. This intelligent breed needs early socialization and obedience training when it is a puppy and this should be continued through adolescence. Dobermans do fine with older children if they are raised with them. Male Dobes can be very aggressive with other male dogs and shouldn’t be trusted with small pets and strange children. Dobermans need lots of exercise and companionship and shouldn’t be left alone for long periods of time. This breed should spend a significant amount of time at a dog training school. Dobermans make good guard dogs and good watchdogs.

4. Great Dane

The Great Dane (#24) is a very large and strong dog and is known as the gentle giant of dog breeds. The Dane is gentle, quiet, loyal and affectionate towards its family. This breed would rather lean against you for a pat, than be aggressive towards anyone. The Dane is great with family children but small children must be supervised carefully to avoid knockdown. The Dane is so large that it must be socialized and trained to behave very cautiously around children and pets. Because the Dane is so large early obedience training is essential to prevent it from exerting dominance. Young Danes, up to three years old, can be boisterous and need strict supervision. Danes make excellent watchdogs.

5. Siberian Husky

The Siberian Husky (#25) is a very handsome medium to large dog breed that is playful, friendly, athletic and independent. Siberians get along well with older children but are not recommended for toddlers and small children unless raised with them from a puppy. Too many people are attracted to this handsome dog without realizing this is a working sled dog that needs a lot of physical activity. Siberians belong outside in an escape-proof large yard but get bored and destructive if they have too little exercise. Training is quite challenging and must be started when the Sibes are puppies and continued through to adulthood. Siberians don’t bark much (although they howl from time to time) and are too friendly to make good watchdogs.

6. Mastiff

The Mastiff (#33) is a gentle giant dog and one of the heaviest dog breeds. This gentle giant is a great family dog that is calm, dignified, good-natured and very fond of children. Because of its giant size, toddlers are in danger of knock-down, and should always be supervised carefully. Mastiffs need a house with a large fenced yard. This breed needs lots of companionship and should have early and on-going socialization and obedience training so that you can control the Mastiff with only voice commands. This breed is naturally protective of its home and family and must be socialized early and often with other dogs to prevent it from becoming combative. Mastiffs make good watch dogs and guard dogs.

7. Saint Bernard

The massive Saint Bernard (#37) is the most famous of all giant dog breeds and one of the best known of all dog breeds. The Saint is an intelligent, courageous, obedient and good natured dog breed. The breed is very good with children and also other pets but because of their very large size, young children and toddlers should be supervised carefully to avoid any accidents. The Saint is relatively easy to train but must be thoroughly socialized and trained while it is young and hasn’t grown too large to handle. The Saint Bernard makes a good watchdog even though it doesn’t bark much and is fairly tolerant of strangers.

8. Bullmastiff

The Bullmastiff (#42) is a very large dog that is a cross between the Bulldog and the Mastiff dog breeds. The Bullmastiff is loveable and trustworthy but also fearless and afraid of nothing. Normally this breed is mild mannered and docile but once aroused can be aggressive with other male dogs and strangers. Bullmastiffs make great family pets for families with older children but young puppies or adolescents are too exuberant to be around toddlers or small children. Bullmastiff puppies must have early socialization and obedience training that is reinforced through adulthood. This dog breed is too large to allow it to have any unruly behavior and at any sign of aggression get professional training assistance. Bullmastiffs make fantastic watch dogs and great natural guard dogs but should never receive additional guard dog training.

9. Newfoundland

The Newfoundland (#46) or Newf is one of the giant dog breeds whose teddy bear appearance gives an indication of what a wonderful family dog it is. The Newfoundland has a wonderfully sweet and gentle disposition that is reflected in his kind expression. This intelligent, gentle and good-natured giant dog is great with children and makes a terrific family dog. Toddlers should be supervised carefully as one slurp from his big tongue could knock a little one over. Newfs and all giant breeds should be socialized and obedience trained early while puppies and through adolescence. Newfs need lots of companionship and need to be involved in family activities.

10. Bernese Mountain Dog

The Bernese Mountain Dog (#47) is a very handsome large dog which is outgoing, intelligent and affectionate and makes a terrific family pet. Berners love children but should be supervised with young children because they are large and can knock the toddlers over. Berners should be socialized early with small children and animals when they are puppies. Bernese are intelligent and very trainable and make good dogs for competitive obedience trials. These mountain dogs like to be outside and thrive in cold weather. Berners are fairly tolerant with strangers but still make excellent watch dogs and guard dogs.

About the Author – Mike Mathews is a contributing writer and editor for the popular dog breed site: dog-breed-facts.com dog-breed-facts.com He provides informative, real-world advice and tips on dog-breed-facts.com dog breeds, dog-breed-facts.com/dog-health.html dog health, dog grooming and more. As well be sure to check out his free report on Dog Training.

Post hibernation anorexia (PHA) is a very common problem in pet tortoises at this time of the year, and can be frustrating to treat. Prevention is much preferable to treatment, and with the correct husbandry, dietary practices and hibernation preparation, this is easily achievable.

Sadly, post hibernation problems recur each year. Many pet tortoises are still kept by owners who are ignorant of their requirements regarding heat and UVb light provision, and the fact that many tortoises can cope with poor husbandry for relatively long periods before showing clinical signs can mask the problem.

What is post hibernation anorexia (PHA)?

PHA is when a tortoise fails to eat in the days and weeks following waking from hibernation. It is not a disease in itself, merely a descriptive term that reflects underlying disease(s).

Why does PHA happen?

The main reasons for PHA occurring are:

The tortoise was not fit enough to hibernate in the first place.The hibernation was inadequately set up or poorly monitored.The hibernation lasted too long.

A veterinarian treating a case of PHA must first play detective to find out the previous husbandry practices, diet and health problems of the tortoise, and ascertain the precise hibernation set up the owner was using.

Tortoises are particularly vulnerable during the post hibernation period. When they wake they are usually very weak and have a low white blood cell count, meaning they are susceptible to infection. They also have a high urea level, due to the accumulation of metabolic toxins. This is exacerbated if the tortoise is dehydrated or has had a very long hibernation period. The combination of a high white blood cell count and a high urea level means that if anything else goes wrong, there is very little time available to diagnose and treat the problem.

The problem is made worse in countries with an unnatural climate, such as the UK. In the wild, most tortoises have a long summer to prepare them for a short winter, and therefore a short hibernation period. In countries like the UK, tortoises have a short summer to prepare for a long hibernation period. It is very important therefore to artificially control the duration of hibernation, or else the tortoise may be fatally weakened and unable to recover organ function properly.

The recommended maximum length for a hibernation is 3 months for a healthy adult tortoise, so most of them will need waking toward the end of January, and kept inside a warm enclosure until the summer.

The owner responsibilities

When a tortoise wakes from hibernation, the owner should carefully check for clinical signs such as sunken eyes (suggests dehydration) or wounds to the limbs (usually due to bites from rodents when tortoises have been hibernated outside). If any problems are suspected, veterinary help should be sought immediately.

If all seems well, tortoises should be bathed daily in shallow warm water and housed in an indoor enclosure, kept at 22 to 25 degrees centigrade, with both a basking lamp and a UVb light provided.

A healthy tortoise should start to eat and urinate within a week. If this does not occur, veterinary attention is required. The owner must closely monitor appetite, thirst, urination, defaecation and activity for at least three weeks post hibernation. If the tortoise fails to urinate within 6 weeks of waking, the prognosis is very poor sadly.

MAJOR CAUSES OF PHA

Excessive duration of hibernation period

Basically, those longer than 3 months. This occurs in tortoises left outside for the winter. Low white blood cell count This can sometimes have been present before hibernation. Stress and seasonal changes in reproductive hormones can play a role. The tortoise will be immunosuppressed on waking and if warmed too quickly, disease causing microorganisms will multiply and cause infections such as runny nose syndrome.

Disease or injury during hibernation Rat bites and frost damage are two common injuries that occur during hibernation. Blindness can also occur, which is sometimes overlooked.

Poor post hibernation management This includes failing to rehydrate the tortoise by bathing etc, not realizing the hibernation was over and inadequate food or heat provision.

Undetected long term diseases Health problems have often developed over a very long period, with hibernation being the final straw which pushes the tortoise over the edge. Examples of diseases affecting tortoises are mycotic (fungal) infections, viral infections, kidney failure, egg retention, liver disease, disease of the digestive tract and eye problems.

Treating PHA can be very frustrating for the veterinarian. It is much preferable to do all you can to stop it from occurring in the first place. Good vets will suggest a pre hibernation consultation for the following season, where long term husbandry and care can be discussed.

Dr Matthew Homfray is one of the veterinary pet experts at whydoesmypet.com WhyDoesMyPet.com. Our dedicated community of caring pet experts are waiting to offer you advice, second opinions and support.

By now everyone has heard of dog clothing and all the other countless specialty pet products, so unless your store is selling some new invention your pet products are similar to everyone else. How does one separate from the crowd? By having the usual products with unique flare – that’s what will keep customers coming back. Providing dog clothes with panache, lowering prices and providing superior customer service are a few ways to distinguish oneself from the crowd.

Unique pet products are the key to driving sales. In choosing what dog clothing to stock, search for unique designs and prints. Keep in mind the season and any upcoming holidays. Dog costumes are very popular around Halloween and Christmas, and manufacturers offer many holiday designs that will sell. Finding dog clothes with style is easy, the hard part is finding those everyday necessities with flare. For example, it helps boost sales and grab attention to have items such as dog collars with a unique design. It can be crazy, colorful or ritzy, but it has to be different if one expects to really make some money.

Superior customer service and lower prices will keep customers coming back. No matter what, a business should always make customer satisfaction a number one priority. Ship all orders quickly, and follow up with customers regularly. Send a lot of free little gifts. It’s very cheap for the store but can help someone decide to keep shopping. As for prices, the markup should not be more than 30% – 40%. Any more and customers will catch on that they’re paying too much. These steps will help any store owner have success.

Grant Carroll proud father of four dogs and co-owner of littlepamperedpets.com littlepamperedpets.com with littlepamperedpets.com Dog Clothes and Dog Coats.

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