Lifestyle

That plastic Elizabethan cone that has been traditionally used to stop dogs from licking, biting, or scratching at wounds, surgical stitches, and skin irritations works, but it’s not comfortable. A dog recovery suit is not only less cumbersome for your dog, it is also a more effective option than a cone.

At last! You have an opportunity to travel, go on vacation, or attend a fabulous “destination wedding.” But what about your best friend? Who...

One might imagine that the world of animal sheltering would be filled with people who care about animals and want to save lives –...

From using GPS technology to help locate a pet who’s wandered off to accelerometer technology to track activity, modern dog collars offer more than just a functional way to attach an ID tag and leash.

the author's 9-year-old agility dog

Friendly wolves, pet heroes, canine yoga, dogs underwater, puppies shaking - and so much more! Check out Whole Dog Journal's January book recommendations. Last month, we listed just a few of our favorite dog reads. There are so many great books out there, we had to do it again!

While the concept of energy-based healing might be tough for some people to accept, professional animal trainer and flower essence practitioner Jennifer White of Woodinville, Washington, has a large database of client success stories to draw upon. It includes a 3-year-old service dog who was on the verge of being retired due to extreme car sickness. The dog had exhibited symptoms of nausea – drooling and panting – since early puppyhood, and he never outgrew the problem.

Thinking of getting a new dog? Chances are you're inundated with well-intentioned advice from every friend, family member, and canine professional you know about where to go and who to avoid in your quest to find your next canine pal. You may also feel the added burden of finding the right dog - one who will be as close to perfect as caninely possible. It's an awesome challenge. Many years ago, I was living on my own for the first time, and missed having a dog in my life. I went on a Collie search, and soon answered an ad in the paper for Marty's Pride, a tri-color Rough Collie whose owner had gone off to college. Marty was near canine-perfect: the first dog I showed in AKC obedience competition (he earned his Companion Dog title in three trials with scores of 194.5, 196, and 197), and the first dog I ever owned who died of old age. He was also the last dog I deliberately went looking to adopt. Since then my selections have been much more serendipitous. My husband and I tend to adopt the dogs who find us, or we trip over them at the shelter and bring them home. I realize that we're the exception, not the rule. Most people make more deliberate decisions than we do about the kind of dog they want, and where to find him - or her. Those decisions, although deliberate, are not always wise. I'm constantly amazed by the number of clients in my behavior consultation practice who thought they were making well-educated, well-researched decisions about the acquisition of their new four-legged family member, and ended up with something vastly different from what they expected. So how do you make an educated, responsible decision about selecting your next dog?

Paddlesports have been a popular trend for the past several years, in large part due to the convenience and lowered costs of inflatables, but...

So, you've recently adopted an adolescent or adult dog, or you're planning to adopt one from a rescue group or shelter in the near future. Good for you! It generally takes adult dogs a lot longer to get adopted than those irresistible, pudgy puppies – even when they are calmer, better-socialized, house-trained, and past the chew everything in sight" stage. Shelter staffers often shake their heads as families pass up ideal

Have you ever stopped to think about how many times a day you do something to your dog that involves physical contact? I’m not talking about petting him when he nudges up against your leg; I’m talking about grasping his collar, putting his leash on, picking him up, wiping debris from the corners of his eyes, wiping the mud off his paws, trimming fur somewhere on his body, and many more “husbandry” procedures that require various degrees of restraint and touch. Chances are you really only think about it when your dog protests, but chances are he thinks about it every time you reach for him.

People have been told that dogs’ mouths are cleaner than a human’s. This is a myth! Dogs’ mouths contain just as many bacteria as our own.