Childhood Pet Allergies

Have you or your children ever been allergic to indoor pets. Here is a study that I just heard about that suggests that exposure to indoor pets in the first year of life may reduce the risk of developing allergies. Click Here for the article!

Help! What Do I Do About Dog Bug Bites? Part 2

Let me first say that any serious bites or stings should be looked at by a vet.  A pet with fleas will need some type of anti flea medication.  There are also natural remedies that can be tried.  If there is a stinger still attached to the pet’s skin you should remove it by scraping it away.  Itchiness can be helped by mixing a paste of baking soda and water.  If there is swelling a cold compress will be helpful in short intervals or 5-10 minutes.  I will sometimes take several pieces of ice, place them into a wash cloth and hold directly on the sting or bite.  You may find homeopathic products containing tea tree oil, oil of cajeput and Echinacea to be very helpful.  You can do a little research on the internet as well.

Here are a few more inexpensive remedies that may already be readily available in your medicine cabinet or in your kitchen.  I have successfully used every one of these over many years to treat my dogs.

This first tip is one that you may have never heard about:

Meat Tenderizer. Yep! You heard right. All you have to do is mix the meat tenderizer with water. Once it has thickened into a paste simply apply it directly to the sting or bite. There is a good chance your dog will experience almost instant relief. The really cool thing is you can reapply it if needed without any concern about it causing any harm.

2nd Tip: Chances are this one is going to shock you, but again it works. Try dabbing ammonia directly to the bite or sting with a cotton ball. However make sure not to apply around the nose and eyes of your 'Pooch'.  However if your animal has extra sensitive skin I would advise against it.

The 3rd tip I have for you is absolutely one of my favorites.  I apply aloe vera gel, from an aloe vera leaf, when I can get my hands on it.  But for a backup I keep aloe vera gel that I get from my local drug or health food store.  Again it's a simple matter of applying the gel directly onto the bite. The results are almost instantaneous.  Not only does it work well on my dog, but, I use it on myself for mosquito bites and the occasional wasp stings.  Aloe vera can provide much relief during the healing process as well.

The final tip for now is to search the area to see if the stinger is still attached.  If it is you will need to remove it.  If not then you can apply some healing gel or even bathe it with a cold cloth.  This will reduce the swelling and itching right away.

Help! What Do I Do About Dog Bug Bites?

Whether your dog is active and loves to explore or not chances are that they will probably at some point get bitten or stung by an insect.  The good news is that these insect bites are not usually very serious in pets although they are irritating.  Since your pet can’t tell you what they are experiencing I’ll be providing some signs and symptoms that will help you determine if your pet is suffering from insect bites or stings.  If you are like me - when your dog suffers pain you want to relieve that suffering as quickly as possible.  Relieving suffering is great but I may also be able to save you the possibly $100.00 plus dollars on a vet bill.  Many of these bites and stings can be treated at home.

But first here are some signs and symptoms to be aware of.  The first pest I’ll discuss are fleas.  They are actually parasites that feed on your pet’s blood.  If you will see your dog biting and scratching a certain area there may be fleas there.  You may also see dark spots on the skin of your pet and there will be more than one. 

On the other hand stings from wasps, bees, mosquitoes will produce localized swelling and itching.  Spider bites may also produce shivering and/or vomiting which would probably warrant a visit to your vet.  Ticks attach to an animal and suck their blood.  They can be quite a problem if the tick is diseased.   

In part 2 we will talk about some natural treatments to help your pet.

Birthday cakes for pet's!

I don’t recommend making any major changes to your pet’s diet without confirming with your vet but I found a recipe for Birthday cakes I’d like to share.  It’s good for cats too!

Dog Food Recipe Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups All-Purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. Baking powder
• 1/2 cup Margarine, softened
• 1/2 cup Corn oil
• 1 Jar strained beef or liver baby food (2 1/2-ounce)
• 4 Eggs
• 3 Strips dog beef jerky, crumbled (optional)
• Plain yogurt (for dogs) or cottage cheese (for dogs or cats), for icing

Dog Food Recipe Directions:

Sift flour and baking powder together; set aside. In large bowl, with electric mixer at medium speed, cream margarine until smooth. Add corn oil, baby food and eggs; mix until smooth. At low speed, gradually beat flour mixture into beef mixture until batter is smooth. Fold in beef jerky. Pour batter into well-greased and floured 8"x5"x3" loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 325F. oven 70 minutes. Let cool on wire rack a few minutes before removing from pan to cool completely. Ice each slice with yogurt or cottage cheese for dogs, or with cottage cheese for cats. Yield: 1 (8") loaf cake.

We hope your best friend enjoys this tasty dog food recipe

Dog Food Recipes courtesy of I-Love-Dogs.com