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Homemade Dog Food May Improve Your Dog's Behavior |
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Written by Rosana Hart
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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 |
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Are your dog's behavior problems worrying you? We're not talking here about puppies who piddle on the carpet, dogs who jump up on visitors at the front door, or other similar issues which all dog owners deal with. But if you have a dog who seems to be showing unusually difficult behavior to control, you may be wondering how to handle it.
by RosanaHart
Are your dog's behavior problems worrying you? We're not talking here about puppies who piddle on the carpet, dogs who jump up on visitors at the front door, or other similar issues which all dog owners deal with. But if you have a dog who seems to be showing unusually difficult behavior to control, you may be wondering how to handle it.
One natural way to deal with your dog's behavior problems is to get him or her better trained. You could take a dog training class locally, or consult a trainer if you find one whose approach you like. There are a lot of excellent dog training books. The internet is full of advice, of varying quality, though! If you work at it and Lady Luck shines on you, you will solve the behavior problem through one of these means.
A good next step is a vet exam to rule out all sorts of common or obscure ailments that you might never think of yourself. And if the vet should find that your dog is experiencing pain somewhere in his body, taking care of that could solve the behavior problem.
Plenty of exercise can also improve your dog's behavior. Does your dog really get a lot of exercise? Dogs are meant to be active a lot of the time, yet their modern lifestyles in our homes rarely provide this. Make sure your dog gets abundant exercise and you may be quite amazed at the changes in his behavior.
Well, that's all very well, but what if none of it stops the unwanted dog behaviors?
I have blogged at length about one such case. A dog owner with whom I was in connection by email did everything she could to stop her large breed puppy from attacking her two children. It was biting them pretty severely, and the kids had become afraid of the dog. After trying everything else, she did a detailed examination of what was in the commercial dog foods she was feeding the pup. Luckily, she discovered that if the dog ate no beet pulp (often found in dog food), then the dog showed no attacks. Allergy was the culprit.
Beet pulp is not at the top of the list of foods dogs are allergic to, but do remember that what you feed your dog may be affecting his behavior. This concept is quite common when thinking of people, but less widespread when thinking of dogs.
In general, veterinarians are not particularly well informed about the pros and cons of feeding dog foods that contain additives and other questionable ingredients. They received little training back in vet school and most are far too busy to explore the topic now. Also, if they sell dog food in their clinics, their inclination is going to be to trust that they made a good choice of food to sell.
The good news for dogs is that some dog breeders and veterinarians have been experimenting and keeping records for many years. They have learned that dog health and behavior is enhanced by a homemade dog food diet, and you can follow their suggestions for what to do.
By feeding a homemade diet to your dogs, you may well be enhancing not only their behavior but also their health. One breeder has seen the longevity of her dogs increase gradually over the more than thirty years that she has been developing a natural diet which she shares freely on her website.
For any dog with behavior problems, it's an excellent idea to try a homemade dog food diet and observe any differences that may turn up over time!
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