Keep Your Dog Cool And Happy This Summer (Infographic)

Every summer, our furry friend battle the unyielding summer heat. Even though they have a higher internal body temperature than humans (101 degrees compared to 98.6 degrees), with their smaller bodies they heat up much faster than we do. I've included an infographic from the fold at The Uncommon Dog who sent this over.

Let's Discuss!

Please share below how you keep your dogs cool this summer.

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Natural Balance Jerky Bark Review

When I first heard about Jerky Bark I first thought I was getting a type of jerky that's flavored in sweet potato and fish from Chewy.com that's similar to beef jerky. In actuality, when looking at them up close up and I realized that it was anything but a beef jerky replica.

It's much thicker than a regular jerky treat, roughly 1/4 inch. It comes in four flavor varieties which include: fish & sweet potato, chicken & sweet potato, duck & potato and lamb & brown rice. It's also a harder texture than regular jerky. It resembles the bark of a tree. It's easy to break into smaller pieces and having five dogs around, that's not an easy task.

So How Does It Taste?

The dog I was most worried most about was Gigi. With her sensitive stomach, she will turn her head to certain treats. That's why I was happy to see that this was a limited ingredient treat (L.I.T.). With only 10 ingredients, I knew exactly what was in the treat. Sure enough, Gigi loved eating the dog treat.

I was also worried about our Chinese Crested, Harry. Harry is a dog that has very few teeth. It's a common thing in the Chinese Crested breed that those dogs tend to lose their teeth easily. Happily, Harry ate the treat with no difficulty.

As for the other three, they will eat just about anything. Cookie, Homer and Fancy loved it as well. Anytime I pulled them out, all of them sat with excitement in anticipation.

Final Recommendation

I recommend this treat as an alternative to a regular jerky treat. This treat is ideal for helping to keep tartar down and dogs simply love it. Again, I'd like to send a huge thank you to the folks at Chewy.com, for making this review possible.

Let's Discuss!

Have your dogs tried these treats? What limited ingredient treats do you like making for your dogs?

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Too Kool Doggies Traveler Dog Bed Winner

Hi All, I would like to thank all of you for entering the Christmas In July Win A Dog Whisperer Traveler Dog Bed Contest. I loved reading your comments and with all of the responses, I didn't get the opportunity to respond the way I would have liked to respond. I also loved reading your tweets, pins and seeing the newest members on Facebook. There were 135 total entries. What I did was take the numbers and put the range on Random.org. I created a Google Docs Spreadsheet with this link. The range was 2 to 135. As a result, the selected number was number 23 (see below).

Congratulations Lisa M. She will be contacted by email and if successfully contacted, will have a dog bed shipped to her. After a week, if I do not here back from her, another winner will be chosen in her place. For the rest of you, we will be doing future contests here at Too Kool Doggies. I again thank you all.

Win a Free Dog Whisperer Traveling Dog Bed

Welcome to the Christmas in July Giveaway Hop hosted by Just Married with Coupons, Sweep Tight and Matter of Cents! Enter to win hundreds of dollars in prizes by hopping from blog to blog! The grand prize sponsor is Maggie Bags. They take recycled material & give it new life by creating eco-friendly & sophisticated handbags! Other sponsors include SodaTabs and JustSweep!
It's that time of year where Too Kool Doggies are celebrating Christmas in July. I've partnered with a bunch of fabulous bloggers for this event. You can participate in other giveaways by clicking on the picture link below.

To celebrate, I'll be giving one lucky winner a Dog Whisperer Traveling Dog Bed. Made for dogs up to ninety pounds, this is a prize that is ideal for most dogs. Made with a microfiber material, this brown dog bed can go anywhere and is very versatile. Selling at a retail price of $59.99, this is an ideal gift for the busy dog owner.

I am very appreciative for all of your support during this year. So here are the rules for the contest.

Rules for the Dog Whisperer Traveling Dog Getaway

Here are ways you can win (You can do one or all if you like): 1. Enter a comment below. Only one comment per person. Any duplicate comments won't count and the person will be disqualified.
2. Tweet this contest on Twitter. Here's a tweet for you: "I just entered the giveaway for a Dog Whisperer Traveling Dog bed from #TooKoolDoggies. #ChristmasInJuly" and link the tweet in your comment. Again only one tweet per person.
3. Like Too Kool Doggies on Facebook and share that in the comments.
4. Post this contest on Pinterest and share the link in the comments.

Other Rules

1. This contest is only open to people who live in the US and Canada.
2. Contest Ends July 17th at 12pm EST.

Enter to win the grand prize giveaway Follow my blog with Bloglovin

What You Need to Learn About Bladder Stones

Photo: Bob Mills

Types of Bladder Stones

Ever since Gigi was diagnosed with bladder stones, I've been wanting to learn more about these. There are two major types of stones -- struvite and calcium oxalate.The stones in the photo pictured above are the type of stones that Gigi has been fighting. They are called Struvite stones which is an alkaline-based stone. These are the type of stones that can dissolve in type. Struvite is composed of magnesium, phospate and ammonium (which is the main ingredient in ammonia). The bacteria in a dog's bladder will combine with this minerals to form the stones.

As all dogs are different, certain dogs are prone to getting struvite stones.Some of these breeds include: Shih Tzus(Gigi is a Shih Tzu/Poodle mix), Miniature Schnauzer, Yorkshire Terrier, Labrador Retriever, and Dachshund. Females are twice as likely to get this stones than males. The main way we've been treating Gigi's affliction is through giving antibiotics daily and giving her specially prescribed food by Royal Canin (their SO variety). Another good treatment for this which is also prescription is the SD variety by Hill's Prescription Diet.

Calcium Oxalate Stones

Another main type of bladder stone is the calcium oxalate variety. These are brown-colored in contrast to the white struvite variety. They are primarily found in most male dogs and are rarely spotted in females. Breeds who typically get these stones include: Shih Tzus, Miniature Schnauzers, Bichon Frise, Lhasa Apso, and Yorkshire Terrier.

Unlike Struvite stones, these stones have to be surgically removed. It's possible that a dog can pass these through their system, but only if the stone is small enough. It has been said that the commercial foods can speed the formation of Calcium Oxalate stones. With the increase in commercial food over the years, the incidence of bladder stones has increased. Combined with a lack of water, bladder stones can grow at a fast rate.

Life After Bladder Stones.

The funny thing about dogs who get bladder stones, the chance of them recurring is very high. For this reason, it's important to keep your dog on a strict diet, watch the treats, and make sure they don't ingest too much protein.

Let's Discuss!

Has your dog had an incidence with bladder stones? If you are a veterinarian, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this.

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Gigi's Battle With Bladder Stones

Gigi's Battle With Bladder Stones

We never know what ailment our dog will have. All that we do know is we hate to see our dogs having any pain or discomfort whatsoever. Over the past month, Gigi (pictured with Fancy above), was diagnosed with bladderstones.

What are Bladder Stones?

Bladder stones are crystals that form in a dog's bladder when there is a ph level imbalance. Most bladder stones have an excess buildup of alkali caused by a bacterial infection. In Gigi's case, it was a staph infection. As a result, dogs who suffer from bladder stones will urinate more frequently and may have accidents in the house. They will also strain when trying to eliminate holding themselves longer than usual.

After the dog is diagnosed with bladder stones, the veterinarian will examine a urine sample to see if there are any crystals floating around. By pinpointing what types of crystals are existing in the urine, the vet will determine whether or not the bladder stones can dissolve on their own or they need to be surgically removed. Vets will x-ray the area to better see the bladder area. In Gigi's case, there were no crystals at all so the results were inconclusive. So we took the conservative route to try to dissolve them by giving her a combination of food and antibiotics. It did start to make a difference because Gigi had more of an appetite with her new food and was having fewer accidents in the house.

When Gigi had her first x-ray done, her bladder looked like they had a handful of marbles inside. An example similar to what Gigi had is included in the photo on the right. Today, I just took her to the vet to get a second x-ray because I spotted blood in her urine. Many times, bladder stones will irritate the lining of the bladder while the process is dissolving the stones. As a result, blood in the urine is a side effect of this. After Gigi received x-rays a second time, it seems like the stones that didn't dissolve much.

Photo Source: Wikipedia

However, there were a few on the bottom that were smaller. The doctor also informed me that in some dogs, it takes longer to break down the crystals.

Looking Down The Road

It seems that surgery is probably going to happen. Gigi has been undergoing this treatment for only three weeks. I'm going to wait and see if more crystals dissolve in order to do surgery as a last resort. My vet advised not waiting longer than 6 to 8 weeks so by then, it should be around six weeks. I'll keep you guys posted as time goes by.

Let's Discuss!

If any of you have had a similar situation with one of your dogs, like I did with Gigi, I'd really like to hear your thoughts on this. Thanks to all of you who stop by.

Orijen Lamb Freeze-Dried Treats Review

Recently, I received a package of freeze-dried dog treats from Chewy.com.

I was familiar with freeze-dried dog food and was more than willing to give freeze-dried treats a try. When I first opened the treats, like all freeze-dried items, they reminded me of the astronaut's snack treats that were released in the 80s.

It really is all about taste though. The dogs absolutely loved them. Even Harry, our Chinese Crested pooch who can chew hard foods, gobbled these up wi What I liked about the treats was the fact that they had only three ingredients. On my bag that I received, only had three ingredients: lamb, lamb liver and tripe.

This simplicity is what makes these easy to digest and irresistible to dogs. As far as a downside goes, there wasn't one. I highly recommend the Orijen freeze-dried treats for dogs. They are a great healthy alternative to many commercially- produced treats that contain artificial colors, flavors and fillers.

Let's Discuss!

Please share what types of treats your dog loves to eat below.

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The Power of Dogs as Human Companions

Hello Everyone! I've been quite a bit behind in my blogging because of a large scale website I've been trying to finish. Today, I'd like to announce a special guest post by Rupert Brown of Muddy Paws in the United Kingdom. Enjoy!

The Power of Dogs as Human Companions

It's long been said that man's best friend is his dog. Loyal, loving and with unquestioning trust, a dog's relationship with its owner is like no other. While cats can be aloof and independent, a dog is affectionate and dependent. Cats don't care whether their owner is there, but dogs crave the company of their master. It's little wonder that dogs make such devoted companions for humans; their unwavering faithfulness and intelligence prompts them to fulfill many different roles: guard dog, babysitter, protector, friend, rescuer, playmate, servant, guide dog, worker and soothing presence, to name but a few. Here are some examples where dogs have become more than simply an adored pet:

The confidence booster

Seven-year old Owen Hoskins sufferers from a rare genetic condition that has him confined to a wheelchair. He was shy and felt like the odd one out. Then 'disabled' dog, Haatchi came into his life. Haatchi lost a leg in an attack with another dog, but immediately connected with Owen. The two have been inseparable ever since. The little boy became more confident as a result of this new-found friendship and says he feels stronger. His parents told huffingtonpost.com that the courageous dog has turned their formerly withdrawn son's life around.

Life saver

Adopted German Shepherd, Bear learned to tell his owner Debbie when she needed to take medicine for the seizures she had been suffering from for 18 years. When Bear leaned on her legs, Debbie would know she should prevent an attack by taking her medication. On the one occasion that she ignored Bear's guidance, Debbie had a seizure and fell down the stairs, blacking out. Bear immediately sought help, barking for a neighbor, then found an animal control officer who came for help and called an ambulance, saving Debbie's life. This and eleven similar stories appear in the Niagara Falls Reporter.

Children's therapy

Dogs are often used in therapy for children, making hospital visits to cheer up the most discouraged young patients. At a hospital in Quito, it was discovered that playing with dogs Juci and Lancelot raised the children's adrenaline levels and consequently boosted their resistance to the side affects associated with chemotherapy. As a result, fewer children need to stay overnight when receiving treatment. According to a volunteer hospital dog handler, Veronica Pardo, the dogs 'infuse children with life'.

The soldier

In 2011, American Navy Seal Jon Tumilson was killed in action by Afghan Forces, paperblog reports. A photograph of the hero's funeral 'went viral' after it was posted online. Why? Because it featured the forlorn image of the soldier's Labrador Retriever, Hawkeye. He is seen laying under the coffin grieving for his master. It's both one of the saddest and most touching examples of a dog's devotion. These are just a handful of stories in which dogs have exceeded expectations and become a friend, counsellor to those that need their companionship the most. What's probably one of the biggest factors is that dogs don't discriminate. They don't shy away from someone who is different, or avoid an uncomfortable situation. They only love and want to be loved in return. That's the power of dogs as human companions.

Let's Discuss!

What's a story of dog and human companionship that has warmed your heart? Please share below.

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About The Author

Understanding Your Dog's Behavior and Keeping Him Happy Rupert Brown is the Managing Director of Muddy Paws, a leading UK retailer of dog products. He lives in the stunning county of Dorset in southern England with his family and dog (as well as Muddy Paws product tester!) Oscar.

A Tale Of Survival From Oklahoma City

I must admit, I was totally blown away by the damage and devastation when the tornado from last week, demolished several parts of Oklahoma City.I only hope that Oklahoma City recovers from this quickly, and my heart goes out to all of those who have lost a loved one in the midst of this tragedy. There was one story that really captured my attention when I saw it on CBS This Morning last week. It was so heartwarming seeing that moment. I've shared the video above for you all to see. The good news about this horrific tragedy is that it's brought together people from all over to help this woman and her beloved bowser. There's already two programs on www.gofundme.com. One fund was started by Erin DeRuggiero. Her fund has already raised over $36,000 towards her $50,000 goal. You can see her fundraising page here. This story has had a reach that has gone everywhere. Actor John Barrowman (known from being on Torchwood, Desperate Housewives and Dr. Who) has also created an assistance fund on Go Fund Me that is off to a good start. To date, they've raised 1,000 dollars.

The Appeal Of This Story

This is a story of survival that has struck a chord with people. Many of us have a grandmother or relative who is a senior citizen who live by themselves. Many, like Barbara, are lucky enough to have a dog or cat for a companion but otherwise are living alone.

Let's Discuss!

What are your thoughts about the Oklahoma City tornado?

Dog Mourns Loss of Beaver Friend

Losing a valuable friend is not easy to go through in life. It has been said that dogs experience loss just as much as humans. First spotted on Huffington Post, this video illustrates beautifully the loss that Bella experience when she lost her good buddy, Beavis the beaver. Hope you all enjoy this and please share your thoughts below.