There are many ways to feed a dog – dry food, canned food, raw food. How do you know what’s best for him?

What to feed your dog varies with his age, his lifestyle and whether or not he is overweight.

Young pups should be fed a good quality balanced puppy food. Puppy foods have lots more energy in them per ounce. This means that, although they have only a small stomach, they can still take in enough calories to help them grow.

Adult dogs tend to need less food, unless they are particularly active. Working dogs burn up energy at a greater rate than a dog who is a couch potato, so need either more food or a food with a higher energy content. If your dog is overweight, certainly feed him less, but also choose a food with a lower fat content.

The frequency of feeding changes throughout your dog’s life. Puppies will need to eat up to 5 times a day, again to allow for their rapid rate of growth. Adult dogs are best fed twice daily.

You have the choice of feeding canned or dry food to your dog. Canned food is often more palatable, but is mostly water. This makes it quite an expensive way to feed your dog as you’re paying for that water.

Kibble is more economical, but you’ll notice that the price of dry dog food varies quite markedly. How do you choose? Read the label, and look at the list of ingredients. You’ll notice that the more expensive foods have meat and meat products at the beginning of the ingredient list. The cheaper foods are based more on cereals. Obviously the more meat in a food, the better, however your budget may not allow for an expensive dog food. Choose a food that has meat products in the first two spots of the ingredient list.

When you’re working out how much kibble to give your dog, start with the guidelines on the kibble packet. Then, watch your dog. If you find he’s getting a bit too round in the middle, reduce on the amount that you feed him. The suggestions on the packet are fine to start with, but always use your dog’s body condition as a guide to how much food he really needs.

Raw bones are essential to make sure your dog’s teeth stay in good condition, and save you the expense of having to visit your vet for dental care. You can start your pup on small soft bones from around 4 months of age. Adult dogs can have raw meaty bones several times a week. Never feed your dog a cooked bone as it can cause gastrointestinal problems.

There’s no problem with feeding your dog table scraps or leftovers from your dinner. He’ll probably love it!  Make sure that he doesn’t get too much; human foods may be quite fatty and can lead to obesity.

It’s not hard to feed a dog correctly. By doing so, you’ll keep him fit and healthy, and his skin and coat will be in great condition.

The Chow Chow is an extremely cute dog, which is often perceived by many to be a teddy bear or lion. This breed has been around for thousands of years originating from Mongolia, where they were kept as watch dogs. What makes it so special and different from other pets is its fierce loyalty. On the outside side it may look adorable and cuddly, but don’t let its innocent appearance fool you – they are very capable of attacking and will do so if provoked. Strangers aren’t to be taken kindly with this pooch; it grows suspicious of everybody it doesn’t know.

Another attribute that makes it stand out is its “coolness”. Some belonging to this breed would rather keep to themselves and only sometimes do they seek the attention of its human companions. Even in scenarios where other breeds would be jumping up and down with eager anticipation wouldn’t excite it much. This is one cool pet we’re talking about here, staying calm and passive when it doesn’t have much to do. The Chow Chow, when kept as a family pet, will choose one member of the family to be its “buddy”. From that point on, it’ll be spending more time with the family member it has chosen and be that lucky winner’s body guard.

This pooch will become even more protective over the individual and more obedient to the commands given. This doesn’t mean that it’ll have total disregard for the others; it’ll still obey (depending how well the others of trained it) the commands of others, but it’ll be giving more favor to the member that it has bonded with. An extremely independent spirit manifested in a 59 pound and 22 inch tall body (average weight and height) shines through clearly. The Chow Chow needs a strong owner, one that will be able to have control over it and quickly establish its authority over the pooch.

You have to gain its respect for it to do the same in turn. This pooch is certainly not for some spineless weakling or somebody that cuts it way too much slack. There must be a balance between firmness and gentleness when dealing with it – being to harsh can trigger aggressiveness while being to soft will trigger bossiness. Because of its hair type, dog grooming will of course be needed – like daily brushing of fur, toothbrushing, bathing when needed, etc. If you feel that you got the balls to take on the Chow Chow breed, then I suggest you do additional research on the needs of it first.

To successfully win a battle, you’ve got to gather all the info you can get and analyze every detail of importance. I’m not saying you’re going to war, but rather you should be thoroughly prepared, so you won’t get surprised when you actually do get one. Don’t expect things to go you’re way instantly; teaching it won’t be an easy task (another thing that could help make things easier for you are bribes coming in the form of doggy treats). I hope all of the information stated above helps you make up your mind and wish you the best of luck.

In a multi-cat household, skirmishes tend to erupt. One cat establishes himself as the Alpha cat. The Alpha cat is the cat that automatically seeks the highest spot in the house, demands to be fed first and will at times spray his mark (urine) on the home.

As the other cats grow and mature, their own alpha tendencies come into play. Gradually they challenge the alpha attempting to take over. The Alpha cat will engage any other cat that challenges even kittens. Kittens learn early from mom cat and littermates how to wrestle and roll together, rabbit -kicking each other as instinct kicks into gear and the survival mode engages.

You should never step in between two cats that are fighting. They are not focused on you. Their stress pheromones are at maximum level. You stand a good chance of getting scratched or bit. Even after the cats separate, you should leave them alone for a few hours. Never pick up a cat that has been fighting!

Use a broom to guide one cat into a room, and shut the door. Go in later; ignoring the cat leaving food, water and litter pan. Then leave, because your cat is still in the moment of the battle fully aroused and angry. You will know it is safe to approach your cat once he begins to start grooming or eating.

Here are some tips to stop cat fights:

• Spay and neuter! Spaying and neutering goes a long way to stopping aggression.
• Keep claws trimmed.
• Don’t have to many cats. Cats need their individual space. If you have multiple cats, be sure you have places where these cats can get away from the others.
• Startle them out of their behavior by taking a heavy blanket and tossing it over them.
• Use a wooden kitchen chair and gently set it between the two cats without hurting the cats. This takes patience and a gentle touch. But it will startle the two cats and they will back away. Use a broom to guide one cat into another room for a break. Remember to close the door, isolating the cat temporarily.
• Turn on the vacuum cleaner.
• Spray bottles do not work to stop fighting cats. The cats are so engrossed in their battle, that a tiny stream of water will not even bother them.
• Yelling and screaming to break up a cat fight is not recommended. Cats react to our stress level. If you are upset and anxious, making a lot of noise, look for the cat fight to accelerate not diminish. Staying calm tends to work the best.
• That can of compressed air by your computer? Spray it near the fighting cats, but NOT at them.

Most battles between cats are mock battles. You can tell the mock battles from the real conflicts by learning about the body language of cats. Your key points to watch are the tail, the ears and the eyes and where the body is in relation to the ground. Understanding the true body language of cats goes a long way toward knowing when cats are playing and when they are fighting.