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Select your new dog with your lifestyle and living situation in mind. In addition to your new family member's personality, consider its temperament, size, and coat as well. Some breeds have traits that may be objectionable in certain circumstances, such as hyper excitability or a tendency to bark. Your veterinarian is a valuable resource and should be consulted before you acquire a pet of any kind.
Breed Selection
There are two types of dogs--purebred and mixed breed. The 124 recognized breeds are grouped into seven categories: hound, working, terrier, toy, sporting, non-sporting, and herding. There are thousands of mixed-breed combinations. Each purebred or mixed-breed dog has a unique personality. Dogs originally bred for a specific purpose tend to retain these characteristics. These dogs may require additional training and patience. Selecting a specific breed does not guarantee a particular behavior, but choosing offspring from animals with desirable temperaments does increase one's chances of getting the best pet. Mixed breeds can be as beautiful, intelligent, loving, and companionable as purebreds.Veterinarians, breed-specific books (usually available at libraries and pet stores), and dog shows are excellent sources of information about individual breed characteristics and needs.
Friend or Protector?
Most dogs, even tiny ones, bark when strangers approach their home or yard. This bark is usually enough to deter intruders. A pet should not be trained as an attack dog. Attack-trained dogs require special handling and knowledge to prevent accidental injury to people, including members of your own family.
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Behavior and Training
Ferrets have powerful, distinct and engaging personalities, and a playful and fastidious nature. Ferrets are diurnal creatures with their periods of greatest activity just before sunrise and shortly after sunset. They sleep about eighteen to twenty hours of the day, waking up twice a day for very active
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Food and Housing
Food
Ferrets are exceptionally playful, so expect your ferret to tip over his food and water bowls. Check on them often, tape them down, or use an unspillable bowl. Rodent water bottles are not recommended as a ferret may damage his teeth on the spout. Because ferrets have such rapid metabolism, they
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Breed Characteristics
Each cat breed has certain characteristics. Although every cat is unique, certain breeds tend to be more inquisitive, lively, placid, vocal, or gentle than others. Veterinarians, cat-fancy clubs, pet stores, and cat shows are good sources of information about the personalities of various breeds. When
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Chickens
Choosing a Pet Chicken
Maybe, you want the luxury of freshly laid eggs. Maybe, you think chickens are interesting animals and would make good pets. Before you rush out and purchase a coop and chicken feed, you should understand what's entailed in keeping them healthy and safe.
General Information
Make
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Turkeys
While all animals have unique personalities, turkeys are usually docile animals. They can be interesting pets to have. However, like any pet, they require a certain level of care to remain healthy and content. Before you decide to purchase turkeys, you should understand what the care entails.
Housing
Keep
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Ducks
You might enjoy feeding the ducks at the pond. When you see them interact with their environment, it may make you smile. Ultimately, this could provoke you to want to go out and buy one, so you have that feeling all the time. While you might not think that a duck takes a great deal of work, there's more
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You & Your Vet
Your veterinarian will rely on your awareness of small changes in your pet's behavior or habits.
As the pet owner, you must communicate your pet's health care needs to your veterinarian. No one knows your pet like you. Many signs of illness are subtle. Your veterinarian will rely on your awareness of
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What We Do
Doctors of Veterinary Medicine and Veterinary Surgeons are medical professionals whose primary responsibility is protecting the health and welfare of animals and people. The term "veterinarian" comes from veterinae, which means "working animals." Every veterinarian has gone through extensive medical
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The Veterinary Approach
Veterinarians employ state-of-the-art technology that is very similar to technology used in the treatment of humans. Veterinarians in private clinical practice work to prevent disease and other health problems in their patients. They examine animal patients, vaccinate them against diseases, prevent the
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What We Learn
Students interested in a career in veterinary medicine should begin their preparation by doing well in general science and biology in junior high school. They need to take a strong science, math, and biology program in high school. Admission into veterinary medical school is competitive.
To be considered
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Euthanasia
You may have concluded that it's time to euthanize a pet. Or, maybe the vet told you that euthanizing is in the pet's best interest. Now, you have a responsibility. You now have to explain to your child what happens during the process. You also have to emphasize the fact that the procedure is humane
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Rainbow Bridge
You understand that pets get older, they suffer from health problems, and several other issues can affect their lifespans. Children don't quite understand that pets reach the end of their lives. Your child may have a great deal of emotion when a pet passes or is going to be euthanized. They might also
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Pet Therapy
If you have a child who is struggling, pet therapy for children is a proven therapy treatment that works for a variety of conditions. Your child will likely respond very well to an emotional support animal. Your veterinarian can offer more information about this form of treatment, too.
What is Pet Therapy
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Advantages & Benefits
If you’re still on the fence about getting a pet for your child, you should know that there are many benefits of owning a pet for children. Of course, there are responsibilities and other aspects of pet ownership that need to be considered. Owning a pet is a big decision. But there are definitely more
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Introductions
Bringing an animal home to become a member of your family is certainly an exciting time. However, you want to be careful when your new cat or dog first meets your kids. Here are a few of our best tips on how to introduce new pets to children in a way that fosters a bond from the very start.
Have Plenty
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Mistakes to Avoid as a Cat Owner
Do you make any of these common mistakes with your cat?
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