Jixie Dogs & Pets

We all know how it feels when we have aches and pains.  This is also the case with our four legged friends who are suffering with these dog health symptoms. Good dog joints are essential to a long and happy life for your dog.  This condition seems to be more apparent in some larger breeds.  I think the reasons are obvious though.  Bigger frame means more wear and tear over time. Not all dog health symptoms involving dog joints are related to size though.  There could be other reasons for abnormal joint degradation.

Dog Joints – Dog Health Symptoms how and why?

As they get on in years it is understandable that our favorite pooch will start getting those old aching bones.  Dog joints are continuously in motion, and this is even more so in the busier breeds.  As the cartilage, that is the cushioning stuff in the joint, wears away, it can cause the bones of the joint to grind on each other.  This will result in a lack of movement in the joints.  The dog’s joints will become stiff.  Age is just one factor.

Other joint health factors could be excessive weight. This will obviously affect the dog joints. Your dog may have been in an accident or accidentally hurt himself whilst playing or doing silly dog stuff. As always breeding is also a factor.  Breeds at risk to these dog health symptoms are Labradors, German Shepherds and Rottweilers.  Notice these boys are all the relatively large breeds, who knew!

These dog health symptoms can be extremely painful and can get progressively worse as time marches on.  We therefore must try and start on the right foot from day 1 with mister new puppy and ensure that the dog joints are well maintained form an early age.

Dog Joints – Dog Health Symptoms warning signs!

If your dog is suffering from joint problems, you need to be able to pick this up.  Dogs can handle huge amounts of pain, so they may not show it outwardly.  Believe me, if your dog is making noise because of sore dog joints or any other pain, GET HIM  TO THE VET NOW!!!  When your boy struggles to get up or refuses to chase the neighbors cat away, you need to start taking action.  If not you will soon be walking alone and not have the great company of your best mate.  Here are some signs…

• Your dog is not keen to go walkies or tires easily whilst walking
• The dog does not come to you readily when summoned
• The dog walks stiffly and has lost that spring that he used to have
• He does not groom himself as well as he used too
• Growls when touched in certain affected areas

Dog Joints – Dog Health Symptoms help?

In this case prevention is the best advice by far.  That means start with your new dog by providing the most optimised diet and nutrition available to avert dog joints problems later in life.  These dog health symptoms usually only manifests after a number of years and could be as a result of poor nutrition and lack of exercise. Healthy dog joints need a diet rich in fatty acids. I am talking about the Omega fatty acids here, check the dog food label.  Some dog foods will actually reduce the loss of cartilage in the dog joints and also improve the retention of existing cartilage.  Remember to get regular exercise, yes, you and your dog.  This will help strengthen the muscles which ultimately support the bones and dog joints.  As always, healthy body, healthy mind, healthy dog and a long and happy life.

Dog health food is fast becoming an essential part of having a happy, healthy dog. With all the recent dog food recalls it has become obvious that we need to be much more careful about what we feed to our best friend if we want them to have a long and disease free life.

Some of the recalls were due to mould on a batch of dog food which poisoned the affected animals, while in other cases plastic ended up in the food. These cases should be making us question what sort of quality control is allowing these deadly substances to get onto the processing line. These tragic accidents should prompt us to look more closely at what is purposely added to our dog food.

Although it is often hotly denied by the commercial dog food industry, independent laboratory tests have found a wide variety of animals that have been rendered and put into dog food. Some test have even found dog dna to be present!

It has been widely reported that pets which have been put down, are processed and then put dog and cat food. If you notice ‘animal meat’ listed as an ingredient, it would be a good idea to stay well away from that food. If there was nothing to conceal, why wouldn’t the type of meat be listed?

Not many animals are cannibals and it?s not like your pet is making a choice if dog meat is hidden in the ingredients that we feed them is it? Even if you and your dog would be ok with this state of affairs there?s something a whole lot worse going in as well.

Most pets that are put down these days are given a lethal injection of sodium pentobarbital which doesn?t break down very quickly. This means that the flesh and bone that is being put in to dog food still contains this chemical. So, by putting these carcasses into pet food means that there’s also lethal chemicals going in as well! Obviously this isn?t the way to give your dog the best and most healthy life.

In addition to this, there have been cases where the dead pets were delivered in garbage bags, complete with plastic ID tags. Then pets, plastic bags and ID tags were all processed as one mass. So at the end of the day, not only are our dogs being fed other dogs, but there?s also lethal poison and who knows how much plastic in there too.

Dog food is required to have a certain amount of protein in it but there is no stipulation of what type of protein or what quality. So anything that can be defined as protein is acceptable (to the dog food companies anyway). Insiders have claimed that putrid road kill has been added to pet food as well to add more protein content. All this is just a cheap way to add protein content, with absolutely no regard to the health effects on our beloved pets.

Many people are turning to making their own dog health food as the only way to be sure that there is only quality ingredients going into the pets food. It doesn?t have to be expensive either, as a matter of fact it often ends up being even cheaper, and it’s almost certainly going to be better for your dog.

By: Mark Syme

If you?ve ever wondered if dog health food might be good for the health of your Labrador, then you?re probably right. These days it is harder and harder to believe in the safety of commercially produced dog food. With so many recalls being made on dog food, who knows when or where the next contaminated batch of dog food is going to land?

Not only is there the possibility of contamination, but what about the actual nutritional value of your dog?s food? With the focus on profit margins, the only thing you can be sure about is that the dog food companies want to use the cheapest ingredients they can get.

In 2007 there was a widespread recall from over 100 dog food manufacturers after it was discovered that there was melamine (a type of plastic) in much of their dog food. It was eventually traced back to a factory in China, which manufactured rice protein and wheat gluten (neither of which have any real nutritional value for a dog). So what that means is that it doesn?t matter what standards the US based company may have for their production plants if the ingredients coming into the plant are already contaminated!

And although this was a couple of years ago, recently melamine was discovered in milk powder ? produced under standards for human consumption! So based on that I think that it?s safe to say that it?s only a matter of time before another similar incident occurs. I certainly don’t want to take the chance that my puppy is going to suffer because I didn’t act. At the end of the day our dogs depend on us to give them all the nutrients they need and now we also need to make sure there’s no nasty chemicals as well.

So leaving the accidental toxins aside, what other things are going into your Labrador?s food? a really nasty preservative called ethoxyquin is often present in dog food but isn’t listed. If your dog food contains fish meal it almost certainly contains ethoxyquin which has been linked to numerous allergic reactions, cancer and liver failure in dogs. Often the only time that it’s mentioned is if it’s not there!

So take a moment and check your dog?s food just to see if there is fish meal listed as an ingredient, often it?s promoted as being a source of omega 3 (which it is) but that isn?t going to offset the long term side effects that your dog is likely to suffer from continued consumption of this preservative.

All this is just scraping the surface and for the sake of your Labrador and it?s long term wellbeing, it?s vital to learn about dog health food. The best way to be absolutely certain about what you’re feeding your dog is to make it yourself.

About the Author

How would you feel if your dog died at a young age and it was completely preventable? We need to know what goes into the food that we feed our dogs and if it’s making them sick. Our dog health food newsletter is chock full of tips for healthy eating, delicious recipes and information about what really goes into commercial dog food. Click here to subscribe http://www.dog-health-food.com

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Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/ – Dog Health Food