Archive for February, 2010

The wintry months of the year are a tough time for many dog shelters, especially if they are amongst the wide number of facilities that rely heavily on the generous donations of others. Snow removal and heating costs alone make it difficult for many facilities to survive the season. Now, more than ever, shelters and humane societies need your help.

Now is the time to give to your local shelter, or better yet, make your house a home by adopting a pet. Dogs are always in need of a home no matter what the time of year, but in these trying times, it’s crucial for homes to open their doors to the possibility of finding lifelong companions in terriers, Labradors, and countless other breeds that spent the winter in a shelter.

Give or take home a pet you’ll love for a lifetime. Make March the month where you finally commit to adopting a special dog from your local shelter.

Want a healthy treat for a happy pup? Give him an extra boost of nutrients without added fat or sugar by making this wonderful recipe for veggie woof woofs – one of our favorite homemade dog treats!

Ingredients
1 cup fresh baby spinach
¾ cup of mixed vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots
¼ cup plain fat free yogurt
½ cup applesauce, unsweetened
2 ½ cups whole wheat flour
½ teaspoon of baking powder
½ teaspoon of plain yogurt (for glaze)
2 teaspoons water (for glaze)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Then, finely chop the spinach and vegetables. Add veggies to a large mixing bowl along with yogurt and applesauce. Mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. Add to the veggie mixture a little bit at a time and stir. Knead the dough until firm. Roll into a ball and roll out on a floured surface to about ½ inch thick.

Then, using a cookie cutter, cut out dog treat shapes. Place the treats on a lightly greased baking sheet and set aside. In a small bowl, mix together the water and yogurt. Brush each dog treat with the yogurt glaze using a pastry brush. Bake for about 20 minutes and let cool completely before serving.

To store these treats, you can keep them in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks, or in the freezer for 6 months.

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and if you’re looking for the best gift for a dog lover in your life, consider getting that special person one of these four fabulous books about dogs that you simply can’t put down once you start reading!

1.) If Dogs Could Talk by Vilmos Csanyi
This book is a bit more scientific and details a variety of different experiments involving our furry, four-legged friends, but it proves interesting for any dog lover who wants to learn about how dogs think and learn. Definitely gets you thinking!

2.) For the Love of a Dog by Patricia B. McConnell
This fabulous read focuses on the emotions of dogs and of the people who interact with them through a series of personal stories, behavior guides, and anecdotes about how dogs view the world. A great book for any dog owner.

3.) Bones Would Rain from the Sky by Suzanne Clothier
Filled with practical training advice, this book challenges dog owners to think about the differences between dogs and human being s and how we both can improve communication to be happier – and have more fun!

4.) Marley and Me by John Grogan
Everyone has heard about this story of a man and his wife and their foray into parenthood by adopting a puppy named “Marley,” but if you’re looking for a great piece that warms the heart, brings laughs, and just generally makes you feel good about your relationship with your dog, you’ve found the right book.

Want to make one of these books shine as a gift? Add on a custom or homemade bookmark featuring your loved one’s dog or favorite breed, or include this gift as the final flourish on a dog-themed Valentine’s Day date where you enjoy dinner, a movie, and maybe even a nice walk in the park – with the dog, of course!

Have you ever wanted to give your pet some of your hot cocoa while you’re curling up on a winter’s day? Well, hot chocolate isn’t great for your pet, but there is indeed something you can treat him with when you’re both watching the snow fall outside. Puppy pretzels are an easy to make and hearty treat that any dog will love and can be a great comfort food when the weather outside gets frightful. Try out this yummy recipe the next time you’re expecting a snow day.

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2/3 cup water
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons soy flour, low fat
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
1 tablespoon dried liver powder
1 tablespoon bone meal flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg – beaten, divided (1/2 in recipe, 1/2 in glaze)
2 tablespoons cooking oil
3 tablespoons wheat germ

Directions
First, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Then, in a separate bowl, combine the rest of the dry ingredients. To the dry ingredients, add half of the beaten egg, oil, and then the yeast mixture. Mix well until a dough forms.

Remove dough from bowl and knead on a well-floured surface until the dough is firm. Add dough to an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until it nearly doubles in size. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. After the dough has risen, roll out and shape into pretzels. Place the pretzels on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and brush them with the remainder of the beaten egg. Sprinkle with wheat germ. Return to oven and bake at 300 degrees for about 15 minutes or until they are nicely browned and firm.

Way back when we started this blog, we introduced you to a very special dog: Rakker. This spectacular dog is very special to us and we consider him to be one of the inspirations for starting up K9HealthSolutions.com.

The story of how this business was started is really rather unique. The owner of K9HealthSolutions.com, Jeff Button, was working at the Pentagon Police Department as a Bomb Dog Handler and his assigned canine, Rakker, a Belgian Malinois, had developed some severe digestive issues and was also shedding like crazy. They tried everything to help him…and nothing worked.

Then, one of Jeff’s coworkers mentioned a product called Dinovite. Jeff read all the information and felt it was probably too good to be true but decided to give it a try for Rakker’s sake. Within about a month the problems were gone and the then 8 year-old Rakker was once again acting like a puppy.

Dinovite was able to help Rakker be the best Bomb Dog he could be, and in turn, it inspired Jeff to start up a business where other dog owners with similar problems could find a solution that would really work. That all happened back in 2007.

Since then, K9HealthSolutions.com has developed into one of the top retailers of Dinovite, as well as other dog care products, with Rakker as a chief tester of any new toys, treats, or other dog care supplies we add to our selection.

Jeff resigned his position as a Police K-9 Handler to take on the business full time and his old partner Rakker was granted retirement. He still lives with Jeff and his wife Joanna today – and he still gets his daily dose of Dinovite.