Important Note: When it comes to puppies, please make sure the vet cleared your puppy for contact with other animals. How do I introduce my dog to other dogs? Preventing is always the best way to handle unwanted dog-related issues. Dogs are very intuitive by nature and experts when it comes to quickly assessing and reacting to different situations. This is simply how they have learned to deal with and experience everyday activities, such as going for walks, interacting with other animals, or meeting new people. When it comes to meeting other dogs, you want to make sure you’re doing everything you can, to set your dog up to a good start. Here are a couple of useful exercises, to help your dog, when it comes to meeting other dogs. 1. Preemptive Actions Begin by asking yourself “How does my dog usually behave when meeting other dogs?”. The answer to this question will vary depending on what your dog’s past experiences have been. If you’re not sure how your dog will behave when meeting a new dog, regardless of your dog’s age, or if you’re just about to begin introducing your pup to other dogs, you will want to learn to pick up on your dog’s cues as soon as you can. Much like people, dogs are very expressive creatures that will use different tools to communicate how they feel at a particular moment, about whatever they’re facing at the time. Your part in this exercise will be to determine how your dog feels about different situations through the different cues he/she is using, to communicate these feelings. You can work on this by simply watching your dog as he experiences different sounds, sights, and scents. Each different type of reaction (happy, excited, unsure, curious, etc) will have its own unique set of physical cues that your dog will display, and although most dogs share the same traits when it comes to this, not all dogs will be as expressive as others, thus you need to keep your eyes sharp when it comes to the most subtle cues. As you get to know your dog more and learn his/hers quirks and quarks, you will be better prepared for when the time comes to not only introduce your dog to other dogs, but also people, new activities, places, and more. This is because you will now be able to develop and earn your dog’s trust, as you begin understanding how your dog communicates with you, so you can discern whether something is either exciting your dog, or frightening him/her, and so on. 2. Going For A Stroll Now that you’re learning how to best understand your dog and his/hers ways of communication, you’re ready to begin meeting other dogs! This part is very exciting, as most puppy/adolescent dogs will have no problem when it comes to making friends, however, we can help them a lot, when it comes to making not just a good, but a great impression on others, more likely, older and experienced dogs. The main idea behind this exercise is to have your dog master two things: respect and trust. Dogs show respect by giving others space and distance. This is something a lot of pups will have to learn by pushing the limits and patience of their mother, father, or siblings. Not all dogs will be as patient, however. But to help this, when meeting a new dog, what you will want to do is do your best to get the owner of the other dog to walk side by side with you and your dog, towards your desired destination. This is how dogs and most animals develop trust, by moving forward, side by side. This exercise, where you, the other owners, and the two dogs are simply walking side by side will remove the possibility of the youngest, likely less experienced of the two dogs to behave in a manner that the other might not tolerate. Walking side by side puts both dogs on a leveled playing field, where they get to know each other, first as teammates, before they decide whether or not they will want to take that further towards creating an actual friendship. This walk can of course be a jog or run if needed, especially if the dogs are getting a little excited by each other’s presence. Running towards a park, for example, will not only accomplish the main objective of this exercise but will then reward the two with a pleasant destination and experience, where they can then decide to play with each other or other dogs that are there.

First practice in a closed space with few distractions. Throw the ball and say "Go get it!" and patiently (and quietly) wait for your dog to bring it back before getting excited, giving them a small treat and throwing it again.

Do not chase your dog, instead wait nearby for him to relax as much as possible and presenting them with a strong smell (chicken, bacon, ham) can help. Once your dog lets go, provide them with something you'd rather they have instead and/or provide them with a reward like a treat and your excitement to let them know that letting go is more enjoyable than not.

Start by first considering the root of the issue (most commonly boredom, uncertainty in a social setting, confused, overtired) and guiding them towards a better choice that they can potentially make at that moment, and rewarding them for that decision. When heading towards a scenario where you know they’re likely to bark, first make sure that they’ve had access to outlets for both their physical and mental energy. During the scenario where your dog is barking, make sure that you’re working in that particular environment with tools that will help you succeed. Such as a leash (a harness), treats to reward good behaviour (such as a any moment where your dog isn't barking), patience, taking distance and above all your listening skills! So that you can pickup on changes in your dog’s non verbal cues, so that you can focus on reinforcing the desired choices your dog makes along the way. Dogs bark in many different ways and for different reasons, to convey how they're feeling. The most important thing you can do to start helping them is listening for patterns and signs that lead to this behaviour. Chances are you will recognize repeating indicators that will lead to the barking. This is when it's the best time to practice redirecting, walking away with your doing, showing them that you and they can do something else instead that will feel and be more rewarding than barking. In many instances the barking stems from dogs not knowing how or what else to do about the trigger (like someone being at the door) which is where you will neec to be extra patient as it takes time for your dog to adopt a new behaviour to replace the old one. A new behaviour could be waiting for your dog to lay on their bed before opening the door and getting a treat, for example. This requires a lot of practice, will and patience!

Female dogs are pregnant for around 62-63 days (or just over 2 months) with each trimester being roughly 21 days in length.

Use a commercial de-skunking spray, or if worse comes to worst, combine 3-4 parts hydrogen peroxide to one part of baking soda with a teaspoon of dish detergent, and apply that to the affected area, being especially careful near the eyes or mouth.

First and foremost make sure you take your dog to your vet (and it never hurts to get a second opinion!) For a dog to not eat their poop they need to have developed great impulse control, and we also need to work with them in a way that their environment is setup for them to succeed. This means that while still training, you nee to avoid as many instances where your dog is able to eat poop, as possible. Not having our dog repeating an undesired behaviour is always a win! Next you want to practice on those impulse controls. Do so by redirecting their attention little by little when faced with other no-to-harmful temptations indoors like treats and toys. Once the impulse control skills have improved greatly, you can then put those to the test out on walks where you may want to actively seek out dog poop but practice again redirecting your dog's attention away (walking away is always best at first, as opposed to practicing a command like sit or leave it) and further practice by closing the distance between your dog and the tempting poop!

Change how your dog sees their food! The reason dogs love treats is not only the taste but rather how we present each piece to them. Make use of food puzzles, snuffle mats, fun/challenging new toys and your dog's walks to provide them their kibble, instead of their bowl. Most dogs are not interested in their dog bowls because they don't meet a core need of a dog which is to have to figure out, search, scavenge and hunt for ways to find and get to each bite!

An ounce per pound is a common ground rule you will hear but you can double check with your vet as well as take into account your dog's daily activities, the weather and the temperature inside your home.

Dogs think and make decisions every second. What they are thinking of depends mostly on their environment and what they're already doing at the time. However, the most common instance where you're probably wondering what your dog is thinking is when they're looking at you, at home, and the answer would be: "What's happening next?" That's all there's to it! Dogs have become mankind's best friend partly because they're ready and happy to do things with us, at all times. There are of course exceptions to the rule if you can think of dogs that would rather spend most of their time napping, but as you can imagine most dogs will get up from their bed, wag their tail and jump the moment you grab their leash to go for a walk thinking of what will happen next.