Is Your Cat Overweight?

Here are some tips to help Big Old Murphy kick his fuzzy booty in shape:

– Feed a restricted-calorie reducing diet. Current studies suggest that a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet works best. A high-protein diet is closer to the cat’s natural diet, too.
– Feed regular, measured meals two or three times a day rather than free-feeding.
– Don’t feed your cat table scraps or treats. Set aside a few bits of your cat’s regular ration for treats during the day.
– Monitor your cat to make sure she’s not sneaking food from other places or eating at neighbors’ houses.
– Chart your cat’s weight weekly. A digital baby scale is very helpful for this purpose. The cat should lose about 1 percent of her body weight each week.
– Provide daily exercise and human companionship. Toys, games, and even making your cat work for her food (by putting it into interactive toys or moving her dishes) will reduce boredom and increase the amount of calories she burns.
– Once your cat is down to a healthy weight, feed her a high-quality balanced food, in the proper amount, to maintain her new weight.

You can also feel free to encourage a little workout routine….Click the following link for this cute video: Kitty Treadmill

New Puppy and the Wonderful Job of Potty Training!

There’s a new puppy in the house, and “Oh My” is he cute! But everyone knows, along with the cute face, huge paws, and happy-go-lucky attitude come little accidents throughout the house, here and there.
The first step in puppy potty training requires that you learn the clues that indicate your puppy needs to potty. These clues are: restlessness, sniffing the floor, or returning to a previously soiled spot. Your pup will need to potty about 5-20 minutes after eating, sleeping or playing. When you take your puppy outside to potty, go to the same spot each time and don’t play. As soon as your puppy potties, praise enthusiastically. Give your puppy a small food treat to reinforce the positive behavior. Be enthusiastic after your puppy is done.
While you’re puppy potty training, you must keep the puppy close to you always so that the puppy does not have the opportunity to fail. This means starting the puppy out in a small area of the house and following the puppy nonstop. Alternatively, attach one end of a leash to the puppy and the other end to you, so that the puppy is no farther away from you than the end of the leash.
Of course, there will always be an accident here or there during this time of the puppy’s life. With Clear The Air Cat & Dog Urine Odor Eliminator just sprinkle the granules on top of the carpet leave on overnight and vacuum in the morning and the odor is completely eliminated. What a relief knowing there is a solution to eliminating odors from our new puppy!

The Nervous Peeing Dog.

I am sure you have either owned a dog, or come across a dog that urinates when nervous. It is usually upon touch by a human, or in reaction to being yelled at during bad behavior. Dogs that urinate when nervous are different then dogs that are not potty trained, or just old and can’t help it. Like both of those reasons mentioned, with nervous peeing, you can do something about it. You want to be able to identify that they are going to urinate from being nervous, and common signs are submissive behavior like a tucked tail, or even rolling over when you approach them. Ultimately they are nervous and giving up their dominance, and showing that you have the power, and they are not a threat. The best thing you can do is not to come closer to them to promote the nervous reaction of peeing but to back off, and even do something that shows you are not angry at them, such as give them a treat. At this point, yelling will not help, so try not to show anger in your voice . If you can get them outside as quick as you can, this would be the ideal thing to do. Let them have space, and when you feel it appropriate, reproach them in a social manner. Play with them and get them use to you in a way where they don’t feel threatened or have to submit to you, like throwing the ball and giving them a treat. While they are back indoors, praising them makes them feel comfortable, because it is all about them feeling comfortable with your presence and you approaching them. If they continue to urinate in these situations don’t continue to yell, after the fact because it will confuse them more, and not help the situation. Once they feel that they don’t have to give up dominance to you immediately, they will not react in a nervous way. Obviously, if all of this leads nowhere there are other options, but hopefully this will help somewhat.

Helpful Tip For Potty Training Your Dog

Setting Up A Schedule:
It is very important that you set up a schedule, and then maintain that schedule. This keeps things consistent for the dog, as well as yourself. By setting up a schedule and sticking to exact times, such as first thing in the morning and last thing at night, will allow your dog learn much quicker this new endeavor. Dogs will pick up things like this very quickly if it becomes regular behavior. Its all about getting the dog to first get use to going outside, but also teaching the dog to let you know when it needs to go. Making it routine will relieve the stress of you always wondering does the dog need to go out, soon enough the dog will let you know. Setting up a schedule for eating is just as important because the dog will most likely digest the food at the same rate and therefore have bowel movements roughly around the same time. Its all about the schedule and consistency, so it starts with you the owner setting it up and sticking with it. Good luck.

Choosing The Right Dog For You And Your Family

Owning a dog is a huge responsibility, and deciding if you can properly care for a dog should be your first decision. After you have decided that you can properly care for a dog, the fun part comes in trying to choose what breed. Choosing the right breed can make a huge difference in how much you enjoy the ownership of your new companion. There are many different breeds to choose from, making the task difficult, but with a little research you can make an informed decision. The American Kennel Club recognizes 160 breeds of dog, which leaves a lot of choices for you. Each breed has their own uniqueness about them with more than just appearance, but temperament, activity level, and other needs. Finding the right fit for you and your family will make a difference. Lets go over the different categories to consider when looking for a dog.

Temperament: Just like humans different personalities get along and others don’t. Since you will be living with this dog for the span of its life, you want to make sure it has a personality you can handle. Yes, dogs have personalities and you can find some that surprisingly will match yours. There are active dogs and there calmer, laid back dogs, dogs that train well, and others as stubborn as a mule. A great dog for families is one that is social, loyal towards its owners, but weary of strangers. This kind of dog is great for protection but also a family pet that will bring much joy to the family. Some dogs need a lot of attention and this can be dangerous because with out it they grow bored which leads to mischief behavior. Some dogs like to be left alone, which isn’t always bad, but if they are never social they might not provide you with the companionship you are looking for.

Size: Depending on where you live, the size of dog you chose can be important, but sometimes the size is just personal preference. Many people these days like small, lap dogs, while others like huge dogs that you can give bear hugs too. Learning about the breeds average height, and weight will determine if you can handle a dog of that size once it is fully grown. They start out small as puppies, but some grow quickly and by large numbers. Larger dogs will require more food so factoring in cost of extra food is something good to remember. Little dogs can be more hyper and need to run around a lot, so having ample space for them to do so is important too.

Coat/Grooming: Keeping your dog groomed regularly not only keeps your house cleaner but is good for the animals health. The majority of dogs will shed, so keep that in mind. If you choose the right breed, some shed all the time, while some only certain times or very little. The more beautiful the coat, the more groom most likely necessary to keep it looking beautiful. Dogs with out long coats may need protection from the cold weather because of lack of fur, but they can still shed somewhat. Factor in how much it will cost for speciality grooming needs, for some breeds, or if you can handle properly doing it yourself.

Male or Female: There isn’t a huge difference between male and female dogs, but if your going to own a dog you have to take responsible measures by getting them spayed and neutered. That is if you believe in the practice of these procedures, but when done, they will eliminate the worry of unwanted breeding.

Puppy or Adult: Puppies are cute, we all know that, and the advantages of getting a dog as a puppy is raising it from the beginning, and hopefully training it to your liking. Training young dogs can be difficulty though, and costly if you need the assistance of a trainer. Puppies also need attention and can not be left alone for more than a few hours, meaning that you need to know that you can properly dedicate time to being with the puppy at a young age. To get them accustomed to things they need to be let outside frequently, eat frequently, and socialize frequently to get use to their surroundings. Older dogs, and or just adult dogs not puppies anymore, can be ideal in that they have fewer needs. Though, be careful of choosing one that might not have been trained properly. Like the saying you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, is true in that it can be difficulty to train a dog that is already set in its ways. Older dogs can be well trained already and sometime calmer and easier to handle and integrate into your lifestyle.

Health: Researching a breeds health history is really important, because some breeds are known for having hereditary diseases or conditions. Knowing everything up front will allow you do decide if those things are a problem if they occur down the road or not. Sometimes you want a breed for so many other reasons and are willing to risk having to deal with health concerns in the future. That is perfectly fine, but just remember the cost that might incur from them, you want to be able to proper care for a sick dog when needed. Pet health insurance is an option for being a responsible owner, because it will alleviate he stresses of a dogs lifelong health care needs. They will always need preventative care but sometimes the unexpected can occur and being ready for it will help. You can get pet health care insurance from many different sources and just like human health care insurance finding the right one can take time.

Hopefully this post gave some insight into the different things to consider when looking for a dog, take your time and you will find the perfect companion for you and your family. I would like to give credit to the source of information for this article The American Kennel Club. We here at Clear The Air, Earth Care Products are dedicated to eliminating the unfortunate side of owning a pet, that is odors from house-training new pets. We have one of a kind products to eliminate cat and dog urine odors, not just cover them up, and that are safe around your family and pets. We want owning a pet to be an enjoyable experience, and not a headache.

Hints to Keep Your Kitty Using the Litter Box

Here are some tips for creating a pleasant environment for your kitty’s sandbox:
– Keep the litter box in a safe and quiet location. Make sure it is not in a corner with no escape – like the end of the laundry room with one entry/exit.
– Keep litter box clean….no one likes a dirty outhouse!
– Keep litter box and the cat’s feeding area in separate places.
– Don’t place litter box on carpet…often the feel of carpet is more attractive than the litter.
– Don’t move the box around and if you have to change the location of it, do it gradually (a few inches a day)
– The bigger the box, the better.
– Add Earth Care’s Clear The Air Odor Eliminator to the box every time you scoop or clean the box.

If your kitty misses the sandbox or has an accident somewhere else he/she isn’t supposed to, clean up the spot and sprinkle Earth Care on the soiled area. Cat urine is a very strong odor and unfortunately it stays in the carpet if you do not have the proper way to get rid of it. That is why Earth Care works great for cat urine odor. Earth Care draws in odors like a powerful magnet. The odors are adsorbed and neutralized.