Pet Owners: The Benefits of Using an Air Purifier

Pet Owners: The Benefits of Using an Air Purifier
by Debra Goh

Are you a pet owner? With the popularity of household pets, there is a good chance that you are. If you are a pet owner, what type of pet or pets do you have? Popular household pets include cats and dogs. Unfortunately, with many household pets, including cats and dog, many pet owners develop allergies to their beloved pets. Are you one of those individuals?

If you are allergic to your family cat or dog, or any other animal for that matter, what do you plan on doing? Unfortunately, a large number of individuals make the decision to get rid of their pets. While this will completely solve the problem, it can't always be done. There are some individuals who love their pets too much to get rid of them. It may also be even harder to get rid of your family pet, especially if you have children. It has been noted that children attach quicker to family pets, when compared to everyone else. If this is the case with your pet and your family, you will not necessarily want to get rid of your pet, but you will need to look for alternatives.

One of the reasons why pet allergies are such as problem is because of the air particles that are created, from those pets. These particles often come from pet hair or droppings. To eliminate or reduce this problem, and maybe even your allergy, you will need to have cleaner air. While this may not sound like something that would be easy to do, the reality is that it actually is. All you really need to do is purchase an air purifier.

The easy part is making the decision to purchase an air purifier. The hard part comes when you need to make the purchase. It has been noted that all air purifiers are effective at eliminating air particles caused by pets, but they are not all the same. That is why it is important that you know what you are buying. A little bit of research online and you will walk away well informed. It may also be a good idea to examine air purifiers that specifically mentioned pets on their boxes or in their product descriptions. These types of air purifiers are often better, when it comes to eliminating harmful pet pollutants from the air.

Although an air purifier can help, there are also some things that you may want to do. One of those things is keeping your pets in a specific area of your home. Everywhere that your pet travels, pollutants and air particles will be left behind. Unfortunately, most air purifiers are not designed to treat a whole house. In fact, many air purifiers can only control the air in one room, sometimes three rooms, at the most. Therefore, the less space you allow your pet to invade, the easier it will be for you to keep the air in your home clean.

In addition to improving your home's air, you can also improve other indoor air. For instance, if you operate a business that is centered on pets, you may also be able to benefit from the use of an air purifier, especially those with a focus on pets. Essentially, this means that whether you are a vet, a pet sitter, or a pet groomer, you should not only be able to keep the air in your home clean, but also the air in your office. There is a good chance that you would not be the only one benefiting from the purchase of an air purifier. Your other employees, as well as your customers may also notice the improved air inside your office.

If you like what you just read, you are advised to start shopping for an air purifier. As previously mentioned, you are advised to look for air purifiers that specifically mentioned pets. They will be your best bet, when it comes to creating healthy, breathable air for you and the rest of your family.

Debra Goh is an internet entrepreneur and a freelance writer. Her blogs are at http://air--purifier.blogspot.com and http://free--downloads.blogspot.com

Tips for Traveling With Your Dog

Tips for Traveling With Your Dog
by Terry Hanson


Taking your dog with you when you travel, whether you go by land, air or sea, can present real problems. I know - I do 100k miles a year, and most of them I get to take Beck with me. It's worth the extra hassle, no question. But what tips can I offer you?

Air travel with your dog

It takes most dogs a long time to get used to traveling by plane. It took Beck about 6 flights before he stopped getting stressed about it. The big thing is to make sure your dog knows that it's just a temporary thing - to a woofer, a flight can seem to last forever! Each airline has their own set of rules - you need to check these before the flight. No good turning up and finding you are denied access to the plane because you didn't bone up on the regs!

Number one tip is - get a vet to sign a health certificate for your dog certifying that he has no diseases. Also make sure the dog is up to scratch on his anti-flea programme, and bring documentary evidence with you if you can. No airline wants a flea infested plane! Check his dog tags. Make sure YOUR contact details are there and easy to read. If you do get separated, this ensures you'll be re-united fast. For the same reason, you carry a photo of your dog in your wallet.

Number 2 tip - no food for Fido for 6 hours before the flight, and no water for 2 hours before. We wouldn't want any nasty 'accidents' now, would we???!!! Also put a note on his crate saying what his eating and drinking needs are - if the flight gets delayed, the ground staff will have a duty to live up to these.

Number 3 tip - buy a crate big enough for your dog to stand up in. Only buy custom made crates from your pet shop. Buy one that is designed for the rigors of air transport. NEVER try to 'get by' with any old crate. Trust me - your dog will thank you for the gift! Also remember that the airline you are using may have specific requirements for cases that go in the hold. Check the livestock regs.

Car Travel with your Dog

Tip 1 - Just like air travel, make sure your dog has all his ID with him, and you carry a photo. Even in the car, keep him leashed. Dogs have been known to get excited and leap out the window. Bad things happen on the freeway!

Tip 2 - Always book your hotel or motel ahead of time. If they don't allow dogs, you will be turned away whether or not you have a booking. I learned this the hard way with Beck - sleeping in a car ain't fun!

Tip 3 - acclimatization. Get your dog used to trips - start out with short trips, and gradually extend them. Let him experience the aircon, and maybe even stick his head out the window (dogs love this - make sure he's on the leash first, and that there is no contra traffic!)

These tips have enabled Beck and I to enjoy many great trips together, and believe me, it's nice to have some company on those long empty miles! If you like Beck, please vote for him on the petmillions.com contest at Vote for Beck in the petmillions contest!

Terry is in sales, but doesn't like to be separated from his pooch Beck, who is entered in the http://www.petmillions.com/ pet contest.

How A Dog Helps You Lose Weight

How A Dog Helps You Lose Weight
by Dorrie Ruplinger

If you are one of those people that find it hard to motivate yourself to exercise like you should, enlist the help of your furry four legged friend, your dog.

Dogs love to go for walks. Even if you are not feeling motivated and up to a daily walk, your dog is still more than happy to follow you around with those puppy dog eyes waiting for you to give in and go.

At our dog's last vet visit, we were told our dog needed to lose a few pounds and were asked about how much exercise she got. Although we live in the country on several acres of land where our dog has the freedom to romp and play at will; our vet pointed out it's not the same as giving her daily exercise like a walk or run would. And, he only half-jokingly pointed out as he patted my husband's found stomach, it a daily walk with the dog wouldn't do my husband any harm either.

So a few month's ago the daily walks with our dog and my husband started. I go along on the walks but I don't actually hold the leash because our dog doesn't really walk, she pulls on the leash like an Alaskan sled dog because she wants to go faster and smell more things. I have a hard time controlling the dog when she's in the mood to pull on the leash like that, which is most of the time and she's not a huge dog, she weighs less than 50 pounds but she's strong enough to nearly pull my husband off his feet if he's not paying attention when she sees a rabbit or squirrel that she thinks needs to be chased.

At first the walks were only a mile in duration. Now my husband and dog, her name is Montana, walk three to four miles a day, walking for about 45 minutes to 1 hour. There are days my husband does not feel like going for a walk. But, Montana knows the routine at our house. After my husband walks in the door at night and has eaten she knows it is time for a walk. That's when Montana starts to act like she glued to my husband. She follows him around the house, dancing around him, licking his hand when she can, wagging her tail, and looking at him in that happy "we are going for a walk now aren't we" way.

Even on the nights he has looked at her and said "Montana, I don't feel like going for a walk tonight," the dog just tilts her head as if to say "But we have to go." Now that the dog is used to the routine of walking, my husband never lasts more than 10 minutes after saying he doesn't want to walk. He gives in and goes because he can tell how much Montana wants to go because like any dog worth its furry coat, she doesn't give in. She just keeps waiting and being excited about that walk and stays right next to my husband as a reminder that he needs to take her. Now, even if it's raining (or snowing) they go for a walk.

They have only missed a few nights and that was because it was storming with lightning. On those nights my husband rewarded the dog by playing a game where he chased the dog (yes, he chased her around the house much to her delight), and played a long game of tug of war with her to tire her out and make her not miss her walk too much.

Has all that walking helped? It sure has. When our dog got her shots last week she had lost two pounds. My husband has lost nearly 10 pounds over the last three months by going on the daily walks. He hasn't made any modifications to his diet or added any other exercise. Just the walking itself has resulted in the weight loss for him.

I'm not advocating that you get a dog just to help you exercise every day. But if already have a dog, get up off that couch and take him or her for a walk every day. It will be good for both of you. And, if you have been wanting to get a dog anyway and are ready for the commitment of caring for a dog and giving it the exercise it needs, then visit your local pound and talk to them about adopting a dog who needs a loving home.

Dorrie Ruplinger has written several articles about weight loss. For a free report on how to lose 10 pounds before Christmas visit LoseWeightForChristmas.com.

How To Fight Fleas The Natural Way

How to fight fleas the natural way
by Wayne Foster

How to fight fleas The natural way:

• Vacuum your home frequently and seal vacuum bags before disposing.

• Wash the bedding of your dog weekly in warm soapy water. This is where fleas usually breed.

• Bathing your pet weekly with a mild dog shampoo prevents flea invasion.

• Use cedar shampoo for your dog, and put cedar oil in their sleeping mats. Cedar will repel fleas and other insects.

• Fleas are attracted to dry skin, so to avoid it, give your dog Linatone oil mixed with its food. Excessive shampooing should be avoided.

• A mixture of brewer's yeast and garlic, available in powder or tablet form can be given in small doses to your pet. This creates a certain odor in pets, and fleas are surely to avoid them.

• Fresh or dried pennyroyal leaves is a natural flea repellent. Use this in carpets to avoid the abundance of fleas in the home. Do not use it if you have small children around, as this could be toxic.

• A mixture of 60 ml of lavender oil with 2.8 liters of rock salt can also be placed in areas where dogs usually come in contact with and this solution could also be used to wash your dog.

• Planting marigolds in the yard is helpful too, it repels certain types of bugs as well as fleas.

• Boiled lemon or orange peel in water can be used as a dip for dogs and can be used too to soak in dog bedding for a few hours, then washed with warm soapy water.

• Lukewarm water with little shampoo and detergent is a good way to prevent fleas. A dog's body may be dipped into the solution for fifteen minutes and then rinsed. This only works if flea infestation is light.

The natural way of treating fleas is effective only if the level of flea infestation is average to very few. This method usually is recommended for prevention only.

Read more about dog allergies and training at http://www.gamebird-hunter.com/Hunting-dogs.html

Different commercially available products with chemical contents:

• Advantage. Active ingredient is imidacloprid. This is a flea poison, from Bayer. It is in a liquid form and applied to the skin, at the back of the dog, and works for about a month. This works by upsetting the nervous system of fleas when they come in contact with the liquid. This product is fast acting and is not absorbed into the internal organs and bloodstream of the dog.

Studies indicate that this product is highly toxic to fleas and other insects as well. A dog will be free from fleas in just a couple of days.

Ingredients are: imidacloprid -- a chloronicotinyl nitroguanidine integrated from the nitromethylene class of a compound. This joins the nicotinyl receptor sites of insects, thus upsetting normal nerve transmission which causes death.

A set of two vials costs 15-20 dollars.

• Frontline. This product is very similar to Advantage, but is not water soluble, so alcohol is needed to wash it off. This can safely be used in pups, dogs, cats and kittens.

Efficiency in repelling lasts up to four months.

Active ingredients include: Fipronil 5-amino -1- (2, 6-dichloro-4 [trifluoromethyl]phenyl) -4- (1,R,S)- (trifluoromethyl0sulfinyl) -1H-pryazole-3-carbonitrile 0.29% inert ingredients 99.71%.

Fipronil works as a nervous transmission interruptor, which causes quick death to fleas and ticks. It is proven to kills 96% of fleas for the first two hours and 100% within 24 hours. Ticks die sooner than they attach themselves to the host. Fipronil is from the new phenylpyrazole class. Very effective and can be considered safe, so long as dogs are not allergic to fipronil.

• Knockout. Performs like Frontline and is as effective, but can only be used in dogs. Active ingredients: Pyriproxyfen: 21[1-methyl-2-(phenoxyphenoxy)ethyoxy] pyridine....0.05% cyclopropanecarboxylate 2.00% inert ingredients 97.95% Also has NYLAR, which is flea growth regulator.

• Biospot. This is for topical application and kills up to 75 percent of fleas, eggs, and ticks. It also is a good repellant of mosquitoes and works for about a month. Temporarily, at times, it turns white hair to yellow. This can not be used in cats and contains permethrins and IGR.

• Proban (cythioate) and Prospot (Fenthion). While not to be used in cats, they are widely used in dogs. This is absorbed by the bloodstream and fleas die due to the poison that is present in the blood. For it to work, it requires the bitting of fleas. There are certain conditions to be considered though. You are injecting a small dose of poison into your dog's body and side effects are not known. Then this does not help if a dog has flea allergy, and can not risk to be bitten.

Generally fleas abound during the summer months, when it is their breeding season. These commercial products can greatly help in fighting heavy flea infestation and needed where severe invasion occurs. However, it is always best to consult with your veterinarian as the choice of flea control will greatly depend on your life style.

Wayne Foster the webmaster gamebird-hunter.com gives a comprehensive review of game birds, their habits and habitats, plus gun dogs, hunting knives and hunting guns for the hunting enthusiast to enhance your next hunting experience. At his site he also gives a comprehensive review of all hunting topics.