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Monday, January 9, 2023

How To Make Sure Your Dog Remains Fit & Healthy

 Looking after your dog is about much more than showing them love - though that is of course very important too. It’s also a case of making sure that you are doing everything you can to keep them as fit and healthy as possible. This is the kind of thing that might actually be more challenging than you first think, and if you are currently just thinking of getting a dog in the near future, you might want to be aware of some of the following. Let’s take a look at how you can ensure your dog remains healthy throughout their life.


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Walk Them Every Day


This is the main headline need that most dogs have. Your dog needs a lot of exercise - quite possibly more than you assume at first - and you need to make sure that you are helping them to get it. This means taking them for a walk once a day. And for some breeds and dogs, that might increase to twice or even thrice a day. You can also try to provide them with plenty of space to run around at home, if possible. If that is not possible, even more walking might be necessary.



Feed Them Regularly


The regularity of feeding is hugely important, just as it is with human beings. See https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/health/how-to-keep-your-dog-healthy/ for more on this. You need to make sure that your dog actually knows when their food is coming each day, because this actually helps them to regulate their metabolism, and that is vital for ensuring their ongoing good health too. So feed your dog regularly, at two or three of the same times each day, so that they are more likely to have a decent regularity in their internal system as well. That is more important than most people give credit for, so make sure not to overlook it.


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Provide Them With Plenty Of Nutrients


One of the main things with regard to their food is that it is actually a complete diet. There are a couple of main ways you can make sure of that. One is by ensuring you feed them with so-called complete dog food. This is food which has all the nutrients and minerals a dog needs. The other is to occasionally feed them other vegetables that you know are good for them. If you look at https://www.nextritionpet.com/blogs/nutrition/can-dogs-eat-spinach you will see that spinach is particularly packed with minerals and nutrients your dog needs, for instance.



Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate


Finally, a word on providing plenty of fresh water. If you are not doing this, it doesn’t really matter what else you are doing. Hydration is even more important to dogs than it is to us, because they lose a lot through panting. You should always provide it as much as possible, and you should make sure they especially have a lot of cool, fresh water in hot weather, or after exercising. As long as you do that, it is going to make a huge difference to how healthy and fit they are.


UK Visitors

Welcome UK visitors to Family Disaster Dogs online! Although I'm an American author and dog professional the worldwide web has given me the opportunity to connect with some wonderful folks who have contributed pictures for my books. The "Start Mantrailing" book features RRI K9 North Scotland Search and Rescue Dog "Amber" on the cover and her teammates in the book, plus American dogs training that I know. A portion of the sales of the Start Mantrailing book or copies are donated to RRI North Scotland. The children's picture book "My Puppy Can Find Me" has my daughter and bloodhound as illustrations by UK cartoonist Scotty King. You can find the books on Amazon UK or visit my book page above to order from me.

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My Children's Picture Book
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Author Amber Higgins

Author Amber Higgins
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