Purdue Vaccine Studies & Concerns on Dogs
A team at Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine conducted several studies (1,2) to determine if vaccines can cause changes in the immune system of dogs that might lead to life-threatening immune-mediated diseases. They obviously conducted this research because concern already existed.
Check out the link below.
http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/purdue-vaccination-studies/
The Benefits of dog walking vs off leash run/park
The benefits of a walk compared to an off leash run.
All dogs, just like humans will benefit from exercise both mentally & physically. For dogs, the mental stimulation is more beneficial then we can imagine. It’s like going to the gym and working out with a personal trainer compared to you just going and working out on your own. There are more health reasons for the walk as well, that can potentially save your dogs life.
The benefits of a walk are as follows:
1. Great for your dogs heart, helps them live longer
2. When your dog runs off leash, they have a higher probability to eat something that’s poisonous that will get them ill
3. Most of the time, dogs off leash will eat other dog poo
4. More important reasons why walking your dog is more beneficial is that if they do have blood in their stool or if they do have a runny stool, you can monitor it and give them rice or pumpkin to help or if it keeps happening after a few days, to take them to the vet
5. No impact on your dogs joint like running off leash chasing a ball, running back and forth (it’s like a human jogging – over time it does impact & damage your joints)
6. You bond with your dog as a pack leader
7. They will respect you walking to an off leash, having the off leash as a reward because when doing that, you are establishing yourself as the leader therefore when called in an off leash area, they will come & not run off when they see another dog across the street, etc.
8. Both dog and owner get a workout by walking, moving forward instead of standing in an off leash area
9. They will learn more on walks. The street lights, stop signs, cars. If ever in an emergency, if they are walked every day, they will not run across the street when they see a dog, they will respect you as the pack leader and walk beside you looking to see where you both are going next. It’s like going for a walk with your best friend….you have that bond.
Don’t go every day and have your dog run after the ball for 1 hour when he/she can get more of a workout – getting a mental and physical stimulation from a 1 hour walk. A 1 hour walk is equivalent to a 2 hour walk. The mental paired with the physical!
You will notice they are more tired then running off leash plus more trained (i.e.: stop at the lights, not wanting to run across the street to chase the dog, if the leash ever got loose, they would be there beside you, etc.)
Athletes, who put a lot of pressure on their body and joints, do retire at a young age because their body at 30 is like the body of a 60 year old. The same goes for your dog.
Everything in moderation and those are a few reasons why walking is more beneficial to your dog then running off leash, chasing the ball, every day!
Dog Harnesses – Pulling
I just want to give everyone some information on what the purpose and the use of a harness is!
I have seen a lot of people walking their dogs with a harness on and having a hard time controlling their dog because they are pulling. The truth is the use of a harness has always been used for pulling therefore when you are putting it on your dog, you are psychologically telling them to pull you. The harness is used on working dogs!
The only way to control a dog is with a collar. Some might need special types of collars but the harness will not help you with control. There are some harnesses’s that control your dog from the front, making it uncomfortable for them to pull. A harness is more expensive then a collar therefore most places might want to sell them to you. There are different tools out there beside the harness if you’re looking at walking your dog heeling beside you.
Hope this helps everyone — I’ve just seen many people out there struggling and once I give them this bit of information, it all makes sense.