13 Jun How to Have a Healthy Dog? (Part 2)

In the first part of this article, we stated the important and golden tips in keeping a dog. The first point was dog food. We said that the best food for your dog’s body’s growth and vitamins supply is balanced, high-energy and quality food. For this type of food, you can consult a veterinarian to prescribe exceptional food according to your dog’s age, breed and allergies. Whether canned or dried, proper food is essential in keeping lactating, newly born, sick, pregnant, or other special condition dogs. The second point was dog training. We said that dog training should start from the time of birth. You can make your dog well-behaved and obedient by giving him a treat. In this case, you can easily keep him in the apartment. In the second part, we review the third and fourth point of having a healthy dog.

Tip 3: A plan to take care of dog bodies.

Many dog ​​owners think that getting vaccinated and giving their dog the right food is the only thing they can do to have a healthy dog and prevent him from getting sick, and the rest depends on luck and environmental factors. Caring for dog skin and hair is also very important. The most important thing to keep in mind is that over-bathing dogs and constantly shampooing them can be harmful. Many of us compare dogs to ourselves, and we bathe them a lot too. The truth is that dogs don’t need constant bathing; Because:

• Unlike us, their skin doesn’t have sweat glands. So their hair doesn’t get greasy and smell bad. excessive bathing dries the skin and reduces the quality of their hair
• Dogs aren’t sensitive to dirt, and it doesn’t harm them! You want your dog always to be clean and smell like shampoo! He prefers to be dirty and have a dog smell!

Therefore one of the important points in keeping a dog isn’t to bathe him more than once a month or wash it as much as possible with plain water or dog shampoo. 

The next point is brushing the dog. Depending on the amount of hair and the dog’s breed, the brushing varies. If you don’t know how to take care of your dog, I suggest you leave it to Mishka professional Groomer. The brushing rate in different dog’s breeds: 

• In a thick body covering and Double coated or long hair breeds, twice a day
• Medium hair breeds once a day
• Short breeds once every 2 to 3 days

Things to keep in mind when brushing your dog:

• Open the ends of his hair and examine his skin for freckles and external parasites.
• Check for bruising, dandruff, redness and pimples
• Untie the knots
• After brushing, give him the treat to make it a pleasant memory.

In addition, you should trim your dog’s hair several times a year, especially near summer. So that it’s easier to balance his body temperature and the hair doesn’t get tangled. If there’s a tangle, don’t brush at all; it causes the hair to be pulled out and makes brushing painful. First, gently untangle your dog’s hair knots using a knot comb, then brush.

Don’t underestimate the care of dog teeth! Fortunately, dog teeth aren’t prone to decay. But they may have other problems such as plaque (tartar) and gingivitis. In this case, bad breath and yellowing of the dog’s teeth are the least to worry about. Unfortunately, dental problems in dogs can lead to infections, heart, liver and kidney problems. So caring for your dog’s teeth is so important. Brushing your dog’s teeth may seem impossible, but it can be done; do the following:

• Brushing his teeth
• Use dry dog ​​food and chewable bones.
• Regular checking of his teeth and, if necessary, scaling by a veterinarian.

Eye and ear diseases are also prevalent and, of course, serious, But you can play an important role in preventing them. The likelihood of developing these infections in your healthy dog depends largely on his breed; Some breeds such as Pug, Pekingese, Cocker Spaniel and Maltese are more susceptible to eye problems. Dogs with drooping ears are also more susceptible to ear infections and need more care because their ear canals aren’t exposed to the air. To protect your dog’s eyes, do the following:

• From time to time, look at his eyes in the right light and check for redness, inflammation, discharge, pain and any abnormal problems.
• Look at the lower eyelid and inside. The texture of this part should be pink, not red and bloody.
• Carefully clean the corners of her eyes daily with a damp cotton ball to prevent discharge.
• Give your dog a treat every time you cleans his eyes to make it a pleasant memory.
• Keep your dog’s hair short. Long hair is sharp. If inadvertently enters the eye, it can cause infection.
• When you go out in the car, don’t let your dog’s head go out the window. Wind and dust can cause serious problems for the dog’s eyes.
• If you see any abnormal changes in the dog’s eyes, go to a veterinary clinic.

To protect your dog’s ears and prevent ear diseases, do the following:

• When bathing your dog, be careful not to let water get into his ear. To do this, put a cotton ball soaked in Vaseline in the ear.
• Once a week, clean the inside of the ear. To do this, wrap your finger in a piece of clean cloth or gauze soaked in dog ear cleaner and insert it into the earlobe (don’t enter the ear canal).
• Look inside the ear while doing this. If the discharge was more than normal, the ear was inflamed and red, or you could smell bad in the ear, go to a veterinary clinic.
• After cleaning your dog’s ear, give him the treat to make it a pleasant memory.
• One of the most important symptoms of ear disease is scratching, clawing and holding the head unilaterally.

Another problem that a healthy dog can face which makes life difficult for him is allergies. As you know, allergies are the immune system’s response to an external stimulus. Three types of allergies are common in dogs:

• Food allergies
• Skin allergies
• Allergy to environmental stimuli

Allergies can occur for a variety of reasons. But the most important reasons are food, environmental stimuli and some external parasites. The most annoying thing about allergies is finding the source of the allergy and the cause. Therefore, before allergies develop in dogs, it’s better to observe some points:

• Smoking and hookah in front of dogs are prohibited
• Reduce the use of detergents and cleaners on fragrant and spicy surfaces
• Be careful that your dog doesn’t consume spices or allergenic foods
• Don’t use perfume or spray in front of the dog (use them in another room or outside the house)
• Don’t prescribe any medication without your veterinarian’s permission.

Tip 4: Pay attention to the dog breed and its decisive role in the dog’s health.

Dog breeds, especially when purebred, play a crucial role in predicting their health and future illnesses. Because several diseases that are common in certain breeds are genetically transmitted to future generations, for example, in German Shepard dog, hip dysplasia, in Doberman dog, Wobbler syndrome and heart disease, in Dalmatian dog, urinary stone, in West Highland terrier dog, eye disease and patellar dislocation of the knee, and in Shitzu dog, progressive retinal atrophy are seen a lot. Here is what you can do about your dog’s diseases to have a healthy dog:

• First of all, before buying your favourite dog breed, be thoroughly informed about its breed diseases.
• Recognise the signs and ways to prevent diseases specific to your dog breed and check him regularly
• Prevent the disease as much as you can with your veterinarian’s help