Stuffed Animals

One thing that Shih Tzu dogs are famous for, and not in a good way, is the terror they are to train. Of course they are exceptionally cute and adorable to look at, but there’s got to be a catch, right? Training the dog is hard enough, so you need to make sure that if you get a puppy, you need to begin his training process as early as a few hours into his entering your home. You will see that these little puppies have a very (very) short attention span. So, you need to be patient and keep repeating yourself when you want to train a Shih Tzu puppy. They’re a little slow on the understanding meter, but will definitely get the hang of what you’re trying to make them do, if you’re patient and hold regular and repetitive training sessions of the same thing.

Be Persistent
When you see that your Shih Tzu is not able to match up to your great expectations of getting trained within a few hours (seriously, why would you think that in the first place??), you may lose hope, get frustrated and give up on the little one. That’s probably not the wisest thing to do, especially when it comes to training a Shih Tzu puppy. With this breed, because of its limited attention span, you need to be extra patient and extra persistent about getting him to do what you want. This goes for simple sit, stand, roll over tricks and also for housebreaking a Shih Tzu. As an owner of a Shih Tzu puppy, you need to be very adamant on getting him house trained as early as possible. You can do this by familiarizing him with the process doing the following things.
•When he does his business at home, you can first give him a firm verbal warning.
•Next step, you can repeatedly take him out to the place where he’s supposed to go whenever he defecates indoors and tell him clearly that this place is meant for pooping. Use whatever word you wish repeatedly to make him aware of the purpose of the place.
•Continue this for about 3 weeks and then reprimand him if he still goes within the home.
•Once he understands that he’s supposed to go out and thus can avoid the shouting, he’ll automatically do it.
•Once again, remember to be patient as this process could take anywhere from 4 to 8 weeks.
•Do not yell or beat the puppy even if he makes a mistake once in a while. and don’t forget to applaud him when he does it where he’s supposed to. Read the rest of this entry »

The tabby or domestic cat suffers from many health problems like obesity, diabetes, conjunctivitis, urine problems, kidney failure, etc. Most of the problems can be treated if diagnosed in a timely manner.

Worms
The problem of worms is of common occurrence in cats. Different types of worms that affect cats are the roundworms, hookworms and tapeworms. Weight loss is one of the notable symptoms observed in cats with this problem. Presence of white specks in the stools and flea infection are other symptoms of worm infestation. In serious cases, cats are also infected by heart worms. Monitoring the health of your cat should help in citing the problem quickly. Worms can be treated with medications but if neglected, it leads to a fatal condition.

Obesity
It is one of the common cat health problems. Overeating is the cause of obesity in tabby cats. Owners of these cats need to monitor their diet. They should keep the food intake of cats to a certain level. Providing the cat with food at fixed timings of the day should solve this problem to some extent.

Diabetes
Cats suffer from diabetes mellitus when the insulin level in their body is unable to control glucose levels. Male cats are more prone to this disease. Laboratory tests for blood samples are conducted by veterinary doctors in the process of diagnosis. Diabetes is treated by giving insulin shots to the cats. Once again, the diet factor plays an important role in preventing problems like diabetes. A balanced diet should help in keeping you cat fit and fine. Read the rest of this entry »

☞ Facial Wrinkles
The folds on a pug’s face end up collecting a lot of muck. The reason being that teacup pugs spend a lot of time lolling around, with their faces on the carpet, in the garden, on the floor, and in their food bowls . The wrinkles trap grime, dirt and food particles, which tends to smell after some time. It would be ideal to clean the pug’s facial wrinkles at least twice a week. However, this part of the skin is very sensitive and will require immense amount of care while cleaning. You can clean the area using a cotton ball or a fluffy Q-tip. Do not use a hard bound Q-tip as this might injure the inner areas of the fold. You will need some warm water, a few drops of antiseptic or hydrogen peroxide diluted with it, and a paper napkin. Wet the Q-tip with warm water and then gently clean the inner folds. If you find the area wet or infected, you must use some more antiseptic and clean out the gunk. You will need to get your pet checked by a vet in case the infection shows no signs of relenting.

☞ Eye Corners
You should be extremely careful while cleaning the corners of a pug’s eyes. They have extra sensitive eyes, which need special attention. Wear a surgical glove and dip you little finger in warm water. Use you finger to gently slide the grime and mucus out of the corners of the eyes. If the grime has hardened up, wet it with some water and gently slide the muck out. You can use your fingers to clean the pug’s facial folds above the eyes as well, or repeat the process using a cotton ball or Q-tip. It would be best to finish all of this in one sitting, every once or twice in a week.

☞ Ear Cleaning
Clean the ears only when they are dirty and need cleaning, which would ideally be every once in a month. Pugs really have tiny ear openings, which is why all you need to do is to clean the area around the opening. If there is dirt inside the ear, take a soft Q-tip, wet it and gently slide the dirt out.

☞ Nail Trimming Read the rest of this entry »

Stink bugs can prove to be a real nuisance, especially when they release the horrible odor within your house. One tries to get rid of them the traditional way of getting rid of bugs: squishing them under your feet. However, this is a bad idea as it will make them release more of the terrible, terrible odor. And this dirty smell will attract more of these bugs to the house and fill the entire house with a nauseating smell. But, what do these nasty bugs feed on?

Stinky bugs are loathed by farmers as they destroy their crops. These bugs love to feed on a number of crops and destroy a farmer’s hard work. Some of the favorite edibles of the stink bug include: •Leafy crops
•Cherries
•Peaches
•Berries
•Tomatoes
•Corn
•Peppers
•Soybeans
•Mustard
•Rice
•Cabbage
•Cotton
•Sunflowers
These bugs love drinking the juice of various fruits that can pierced by their beak.

What Do Stink Bugs Eat in the House?
We discussed what do bugs eat and drink outside in the wild. But what is it that it eats in the house? The bugs invade our homes from the nearby gardens and farms. But, with the approach of autumn, they begin to look for warm places to hide. These bugs are attracted to bright lights. Thus, the attractive bright lights placed outside our houses, sends them an open invitation to visit. The bugs come flying through the windows, and into our house. They find heaven in the dark, warm places within the house. They have everything they need. They have access to the food in your kitchen like tomatoes, fruits in the fruit basket, onions hung to dry, a rubbish bin with goodies inside, etc. They are well protected and receive all the warmth required to spend a winter. And, it is a good place to catch a mate and reproduce. Read the rest of this entry »

To begin with the facts about elk, let us study about some of the major aspects of these animals’ life in the wild, which essentially include their diet, behavior, migratory nature, and reproduction.

Diet
These mammals are cud-chewing hoofed mammals, therefore, have four-chambered stomachs. Per day, elk require to feed on about 15-20 pounds of vegetation. And morning and evening are known to be the time when most of these animals can be seen foraging for food. One of the interesting elk facts is, their diet depend on or vary according to the seasons of the year. During the low mercury days (winter), tree barks are on the menu. And when it is hot during the summer months, forbs such as clover, sunflower, milkweed, and tree sprouts (especially Aspen sprouts) make up for the diet. But what is available year around for them is the supply of the native grass. Another important fact about elk is associated with their digestive system. As cited, with the change in the season, the food source changes. So how do these animals cope with such changes in their diet. The credit goes to the microbacteria in the digestive system of the animals. These microorganisms change to adapt themselves to the varied food source.

Behavior
When the mating season kicks off, it is common to hear the bull elk echoes bugling through the mountains. The average size of the (bull) male’s antlers reach up to 4 feet above the head. And these antlers are the ones the male elk make use of in combating against potential rivals in order to attract the attention of females (cows), and to defend other females in the group. Typically, males with bigger antlers, which happen to the matured ones, gain an upper hand in the fight, thus getting to control smaller herds. One interesting technique the bulls put to use for wooing the cows is bathing in their own urine. And they have a special way of doing it too. They dig holes in the ground, fill them with their urine, and roll over. This is what is called the ‘fatal attraction!’

Migration
Coming to another important segment of this article on elk facts, here we would read about how they migrate. Migration is a common phase in the lives of most species of deer, which include the elk too. In early summer, these animals make their way for higher grounds in the mountainous regions. And they spend the late summer in the same region, and it is there that the breeding season takes place. And when the mercury starts dropping, these animals get back together in large single sex-groups (known as gang). They retreat to lower valley pastures, wherein wooded areas and sheltered valleys provide them not only with the required food supply, but also cover from the wind. However, some species of elk do not show any migratory behavior in their lifetime; a common example being the Roosevelt Elk.

Reproduction
The early summer, when the elk move to higher grounds, the cows give birth to their offspring. A single calf delivery is common with every cow, and amazingly within 20 minutes, the new-born becomes ready to stand on its legs. 15 and 16 kilograms (33 and 35 lb) is an average weight of an offspring. One must-know fact about the elk reproduction is, when a cow nears her delivery, she finds herself a place isolated from the main herd, and chooses to stay there until the new-born becomes able enough to escape predators. In the wild, the average lifespan of elk is 10 – 13 years, mainly due to predation. While in captivity, it is 20 years or more. Read the rest of this entry »