It Takes a Community to Raise a Child
Domestic animals have very similar social requirements to people; a shared set of expectations that pets and people satisfy together. Being deeply social requires mixing with others – both pets and their people. They are most open to acceptance when young and preferably Pet Care pre-adolescent.
Pets and people are so open to acceptance when young that opportunity needs only to be provided, without direct effort. Our beautiful Bribie region offers many venues for wide and safe social mixing. The dog off lead beaches at north Woorim and south Red Beach are my favourites, and there are plenty of fenced dog parks, walkways and a variety of dog training facilities. Take your pick, but start young, especially for jumpy or nervous dogs!
Dr Jackie
NUTRITION IN DOGS – Part Three How to read labels on dog commercial products –
1. look for marketing claims accompanying pet food. In the USA pet food labels are regulated at a federal level (FDA) and on a state basis (AAFCO). However, these provide only a minimum requirement. In Australia, labeling needs to comply with our consumer laws and the Australian standard for manufacturing and marketing of pet food (AS5812).
PFIAA represents the pet food industry with State and Federal Government departments, the Australian Veterinary Association, and the RSPCA.
2. Food label listing is in order of weight in descending order with the exception of water. If the meat ingredient is over 25% then the meat needs to be labeled for eg beef or chicken.
3. The first three ingredients are the most important. From this, you can tell if the diet is vegetable base, with corn, rice, wheat, and soybean meal or if the diet is meat based with meat, lamb, fish or poultry listed as the main ingredient.
4. Labels also indicate how much to feed your animal but it’s only a guideline as it depends on their lifestyle and life stage. For eg, if it’s written up to 5 kg dog feed 1 cup. This is a daily requirement. Individual dogs may require more or less food than recommended. It all depends on their metabolism, lifestyle, and age. This can also vary from time to time.
Happy training, Yvonne