penny mini dachsund on bed

penny mini dachsund on bed, originally uploaded by houstonryan.

Bring along your dogs favorite bed for comfort while away on a trip. This goes a long way to help ease anxiety while away from home. They love the familiar smell and feel of their bed. Use it in the car, in their crate, in the hotel room, or at your friends house.

Travel With Your Dog - A Guide - 5 Road Trip Car Tips

Traveling with your dog can be great fun, adding to the pleasure of a trip. Most dogs love the adventure of traveling and when your dog comes along, you won't have to worry about him when your gone. Here are some trip tips to make traveling with your dog enjoyable.

A pet travel guide for dogs of all sizes is highly recommended to take on your adventure. Meet up with friends, other dog owners, or if you have a few dogs of your own and they are different sizes. Look for pet friendly hotels, bed and breakfast. Book your reservations before your trip. Make sure you log the phone number of the hotel into your cell phone in case of an emergency or just to check in from the road.

Bringing a dog travel guide with you will not only help with planning a vacation with your dog, but also help you find listings of sites that feature dog friendly accommodations and travel tips. One tip for those planning a trip to a hot destination is to pack vaseline or bag balm to comfort your dogs paws after walking on hot sand or sidewalks. Another comfort I have found in my travels is Rescue Remedy, which is a Bach Flower Essence available in the health food section of most stores. This natural, gentle stress reducing liquid can often help both people and animals with travel sickness, injury, fright, illness, travel fatigue and irritation. Add a drop in your water bottle and in their water or rub some on their ears. Rescue Remedy can be used in conjunction with other meds.

When traveling, packing, preparation and other trip tips. Whether you are taking your pet or boarding her, make sure all vaccinations are up to date. You want to be prepared, you most likely will take your dogs to pit stops where many other dogs have come and gone before you. Keep your dog protected from kennel cough, rabies, lyme disease, fleas, tics, and any other common ailment your vet recommends. Bring dog medical records, make sure his collar has an ID tag with your cell phone number on it, and carry a picture of you and you dog with you, in case he gets lost on your trip. Make a dog traveling kit which may include dog food, water, portable food and water bowls, dog brush, wipes, baggies to clean up dog poop, blanket, towels, pet first aid kit, a flashlight, dog bed, and dog crate.

5 tips for safe car travel with your dog. For some pet parents, a trip's no fun if the four-legged members of the family can't come.
* Riding in a well ventilated dog carrier they are used to will keep them calm, comfortable and safe in the car.
* Feed them a light meal three to four hours before you leave.
* Bottled water is best.
* Never leave your animal alone in your parked car.
* Microchip your canine companion.

When hitting the road with a four-legged friend, prepare your dog for the journey. Travel tips, identification, good travel manners and sight seeing will go much smoother when your dog is trained in the basics of obedience commands. One thing that is a must, your dog must come to you every time he is called. Although your dog will most likely be in a harness or on a leash, being trained in obedience to the basic command of "come" is the number one rule. For your plans to go well, make sure your dog is properly socialized. You will be happy to know that your dog is at ease around other animals and people. So, if you haven't socialized your dog yet, start now, before you leave. Call up your friends or neighbors and plan a doggy play date on neutral ground, a dog park or a local pet shop.

Hotels have tips for becoming pet friendly. Make sure you treat your hotel room like your home away from home. Be sure to clean up after your dog because many hotel owners have stopped allowing pets due to the mess they make and havoc they wreak. Remember to call ahead even after you have booked your reservation in case they have changed their minds on allowing pets since the original time of booking. Most of all, enjoy your get away together!

Have A Heart! :)

Have A Heart! :), originally uploaded by meg price.

I do like these little heart shaped doggy biscuits :) Barney likes them too, but to eat, not for balancing purposes... He is a long suffering pup but always gets well paid for his patience, with cuddles, treats and toys, so it isn't too bad :) We've also had fun balancing books, rope toys, and even (very briefly!) tennis balls on his nose. (Barney would like to take a moment to send his sympathies to Ella, who has to put up with this sort of thing too!)

We've been busy training the last few weeks, taught him to "spin" in an anticlockwise circle the other week (we need to get working on going in a clockwise direction now!), he learned "bow" yesterday, he'll also give the correct paw when asked "left" and "right" (it's taking time to get this one consistent though) and of course, he learned "beg" a few weeks ago too...

It's important to keep his mind busy, especially as he isn't getting as much free running currently, due to his noise phobias. Learning new things, combined with playing fetch for a bit in a "safe" playing field behind the house and having leash walks seems to be keeping him sane (or as sane as collies ever are!), which means I can also keep what remains of my sanity!

Reached Explore #289 (My 200th to reach Explore, thank you very much everyone!!)

Uploaded by meg price on 13 Aug 09, 10.13AM AKDT.

For more about training dog treats click here!

Puppy And Dog Training Made Simple

Dog Training Made Simple

If your Dog or Puppy is driving you crazy with it's excessive barking, whining or chewing, or if your dog is too aggressive and bites or growls at your visitors, you need an immediate remedy. Make a checklist to go through to stop annoying behavior. Ask yourself, does my puppy need food or water? Is there something causing your dog pain? Groom your dog or have him professionally groomed to find out. Sometimes groomers will find skin problems and areas that are susceptible to tangles, burrs, or rashes. Does he need exercise? Does he want to play? It's a good idea to have a dog run available in your yard to let him release excess energy if you don't have time to take him for a walk. If he is barking at your visitors, ask yourself, does he feel safe? Am I the one in charge of the house or does he feel like it's his job now? Make sure you are the "alpha dog." His dog crate will keep him feeling safe, close to you inside the house, and away from your visitors. Always make sure he has a good bone or toy to chew available in his crate to curb boredom.


ABC's of Dog Training, answering some important questions you may have about owning and raising your puppy. "How do you make your dog sit when you tell him to and I can't get mine to do so?" Sound familiar? If so, then it's high time that you immerse yourself in undertaking a little bit of basic dog training. Here is a good tip to start...when your puppy happens to come to you, take this opportunity to say the command "come," as he is walking to you. When he gets to you, tell your puppy, "good boy, good come" in a higher tone of voice. This will help your dog know when he is behaving appropriately and give him him confidence to take on more training.

In some ways, young puppies are like young children… training goes a lot easier if you start early and are consistent. Keeping an eye on your dog is very important in the first few weeks after bringing them home. That is where you will get the most progress in your training. When your dog does something you don't like, it is imperative that you let him know during the act, immediately. Say for example, he lifts his leg on the houseplant, if you have been watching him before he did it you will be able to stop him with a clap or a "sssst" sound. If you are close enough you can nip him in the rear or side with your hand. Use your hand like a dog would use their mouth. Say, "no" in a deeper tone of voice. Right away, show them what you want them to do, where to go, what to chew, ect.

Teaching your puppy crate training is the first and best step in his life. Dog training is simple with crate training as it makes all the other steps in his training go so much smoother. Take them outside to where the designated potty area is and give the command, "potty", or whatever word you choose to use for that command. If your puppy goes potty right then, praise him with your voice while he is going potty. When he is done, pet him and praise him again. If he doesn't go right away, make sure your dog is comfortable, wait two minutes or so. If he still doesn't go, put him back in his crate and wait 10 to 30 minutes or so and repeat the process again. Do this for a day or two and your puppy dog will be potty trained! Keep it up! If you get your puppy from a breeder, ask them if they have already started the process of crate training the puppies before they come home with you. This is a great way to instill positive training for a lifetime from the beginning. If you are a breeder and do this with your litters, great job! If you are thinking of breeding, this method will make your life and the new owners of the puppies life so much better from the start.


Training your dog is the basic and fundamental steps to communicating and teaching your dog proper obedience and good behavior. Your friends will feel welcome in your home and appreciate your dog being there instead of being annoyed by your dog. Take your puppy with you to visit friends and family, they will be impressed with you! Once you are communicating with your dog and she understands what is acceptable doggy behavior she will be happy to please you and anyone else who wants to communicate with her as well.

Professional free advice on puppy training, dog training, temperament, behavior, and raising the family puppy dog can be made simple when you apply the guidelines outlined here. You can dig deep into an issue your dog is having and you will find that it all comes back to the fundamentals. Be the leader of your pack, use body language to communicate and you will have an easy time of training your puppy. Enjoy the precious time you spend with your adorable puppy, and the years to come with your loyal dog.

Puppy Dog Training Made Simple was created expressly to help the average dog owner understand his or her pet and train it to be a well-behaved, happy dog. Click here to learn more about training your puppy dog.