Building a doghouse is not that hard. Dog owners can even do it themselves, with proper planning, selecting of materials, and practicality. If you are not a handyman, or person who really does carpentry, it is a big reward for you and it would be fun if you build one for your dog. You can even make it as complex as you want and customize it with your own designs. It doesn’t really matter what kind of kennel you will build. Plans and supplies are varied in different ways and there are a lot of options that will fit for your dog. Inexperience builders need to have instructions on how to make a dog house. Here are some of the simple ways to build one:

The first consideration when making a kennel are the materials being used. Keep in mind that materials have its own different attributes, it may cause a dog to overheat more quickly when staying in the dog house than out in the ground. Most importantly, make sure that you will not use pressure treated woods for the dog house. These woods contain chemicals that are toxic to animals. Be sure that you will not use treated woods for walls and floors that dogs may come in contact with. Dogs may lick or chew these parts and may get intoxicated.

In making a base, a 2 x 4 or a 150mm x 25mm board is needed to construct a square base according to the measurement of the dimensions. Nail the boards accordingly on the corner. Make sure that the materials that have been cut are according to the blue print in the planning phase.

Constructing and attaching the four walls is easy, use a 2 x 4 board and make sure that you put a stud in the center to make it stable, and at the same time for support. The studs’ length must be symmetrical with each other and place them two inches away from the center,this will give allowance in securing the strut. Make sure that the studs are placed on the rear of the wall for aesthetic purposes. In constructing the front wall, don’t put a support a stud in the center because it will allow a space for entrance. Cut plywood that will fit all four sides of the wall, and make sure the edges of the wall are washed out. Make a hole in the plywood that will be place in the entrance. Make sure that the dog will not have any difficulty in going in and out off the room.

Nail the walls on the basement to install it and additional nails are needed for it to be stable.

The strut is place at the center at the rear and front sides of the roof. To make the strut stable, placing it properly is the best way to achieve this. Overhangs are measured according to the blueprint, and is cut on top of the ridge of the doghouse or you may add additional length for the overhang to extend. Cut the rafters (number of rafters is base on how big the dog house is) to the needed length and cut the end of the rafters using a saw. To determine where to cut, use the doghouse’s corner to mark notches at the rafters. Make sure that the rafter is even with the ridge so you will know the angle, and this is the time to cut and nail it on its place. The right spot to secure the the bottom of the raft is the part where the notches and the wall meet.

Now that the it is finished , putting designs, styles, and customizing it is the next thing to be done. Customization is according to the builder’s preference, but keep in mind that the paints that you will use must be toxic free for the dog. Ask the manufacturer if the products that they are using are dog friendly or not.

Bill Jones has been a passionate dog house builder for 15 years. He can show you the exact steps on how to build a dog house. Visit his site to get a FREE mini guide with tips and plans on how to build a dog house.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Technorati Tags: dog care, dog house, dog house building, dog houses, Dogs, family pets, pet, pet care, pets, pets-animals

By trianing your dog to sit, it will help keep them out of trouble and from being a nusiance. This is one of the free basic dog training tips that you must have your dog obey, because your dog knowing this command will help them when they are learning more advanced commands.

Remember that your dog is very willing to learn so teaching them one of our free basic dog training tips on how to sit, must be taught with patience and compassion as some dogs take longer than others to understand commands. Teaching you dog to sit is a great way to bond with your canine.

Be sure and never hit your dog when you are giving them one of our free basic dog training tips. You should reward them with a treat when they do the task that you have asked of them.

When you first are training your dog to sit by giving them the verbal command “sit” and rewarding them with a treat after they have completed the task, realize that they do not still know this command. Start out by having your dog go through their own motions naturally, and when they sit, say the command “sit” command and give them a treat. Then give them the command before they are sitting to see if they understand your intentions.

You are going to need to take this one step further and let them know when you issue the sit command; it means that they should follow the command. A good way to do this is to take a treat over their head and have him follow the scent with their nose. Take the treat back and cause them to sit and then issue to command and give them the treat.

One of the most imporant things about training your dog to sit is that when they do sit, then you must give them the treat right after that, so they know in their mind that they get a treat when they sit. If you give them their treat before they sit they will not obey your command.

During the process of training your dog to sit, it is important that you understand that doing this a couple of times doesn’t teach them to sit. Instead, you will need to do it several times over a week. This ensures that your dog remembers the trick as you teach it to them. Just make sure when you first begin, never to go over 5 minutes as they will lose interest when you are first training them.

Learn more about dog training. Stop by Dogs-Are-Family.com where you will find all about training your dog to sit.

Popularity: unranked [?]

Technorati Tags: Dogs, family pets, free basic dog training tips, pets, training your dog to sit

Training your dog to stop barking is a lot easier said than done. It is especially hard if you are not home during the day and that is the main time he is barking annoying your neighbors. Dog barking does not just effect you, it can effect a whole neighbourhood and it can really upset people. The last thing you want as a dog owner is animal control on your door step all because your neighbors complained about the excessive barking.

Anti barking collars are not designed to be worn every day. They are designed to be a corrective method only and once you starting seeing results then you need to discontinue use, and only reuse the collar if your dogs behaviour is starting to slip. If your dog is neurotic then its best that you search for alternatives to a stop barking collar. This is because the unpleasant vibrations that your dog will be feeling may set the dog off to try and get the collar off, this could leave to your dog being hurt.

There are two main types of dog barking collars. A static collar is where the dog will receive an unpleasant vibration when it is triggered off by barking. This shock has no electricity in it, and will not cause your dog any pain. If you do not like the idea of the static collar then a citronella collar is your option. A citronella collar will disperse a spray of citronella each time your dog barks. Dogs do not like the smell of citronella so it will soon associate the smell with barking.

Boredom, anxiety, stranger alert and excitement are some of the reasons why your dog will be barking. If there is something in his or her life bothering them, then this can lead to excessive barking. To stop your dog from barking once and for all you need to identify why they were barking in the first place. Once you do this then you can remove what ever is bothering them and restore peace back in your house.

Its normal for a dog to bark, its his way of expressing himself. However, there is a fine like between normal barking and excessive barking. A stop barking collar will help correct the excessive barking almost immediately, which is good if you do not have the time or patients to train your dog to stop barking.

Popularity: 9% [?]

Technorati Tags: animal, barking, barking dogs, dog barking, Dogs, family pets, house, pets

Educating yourself on what to feed your dog can be very confusing. Every expert out there has his own favourite canine diet and there is such a vast selection of dog food available that it can be quite confusing for the first time dog owner to decide what to feed.

In fact lets be honest even us seasoned dog owners get caught up in all the different opinions and who knows what is what? Think of it—-Fresh, tinned, dried, vacuum-packed ..the list is endless. Obviously a puppy has a different food requirement from an adult dog so make sure that you feed the puppy the correct puppy diet from the range of food available.

The majority of pet shops and many vets will probably advise feeding your new puppy or dog on a complete dried food which is considered nutritionally balanced. Some will suggest tinned food or vacuum packed meat products. These types of food are many and varied and are advertised as suitable for most dogs. In fact most of the advertising will suggest that it is the only way to feed your dog if you want him or her to have a long and healthy life. To discuss each and every type of manufactured food product would be a major book in itself so lets look here at another choice…the Natural diet.

This diet is structured on what your dog would eat in the wild and what wolves eat in the wild today. It is a diet based on raw meaty bones and what most people fed their dogs until the dog food manufacturers got into action about 30-40 years ago. It is the diet that your dog is designed to eat. They have the teeth to tear,shred,rip flesh and crunch bones and their stomachs are designed to digest both raw meat and raw bones. Remember that dogs are carnivores and their diet would be mostly meat and bones. They may eat the stomach contents of prey ,that is the vegetable matter but it is not a vital part of their diet and they do not need it.

Most vets will recommend one of the commercial diets as the instructions are on the packet and they do not have the time in a normal consultation to go into the benefits of natural feeding and the quantities needed. Some vets sell dried dog food and so will recommend it. Some pet food manufacturers sponsor Vet colleges so therefore the alternative ways of feeding are not given priority or even discussed and veterinary students do not learn them.

In fact to be honest many dog owners are told that raw uncooked bones are bad for their dogs. The convenience of opening a tin,or scooping out a couple of mug fulls of dried food is simple, requiring little or no thought which suits the busy lives that many owners now lead. The fact that there is now a massive multimillion pound industry which effectively tells dog owners that they the owners couldn’t possibly work out how and what to feed their dogs on their own,has lead to increasing numbers of dog owners accepting that the manufacturers must know best and being drawn into buying commercially prepared food and artificial bones.

All tinned and processed foods have been cooked and the resulting changes in the structure of the food means that the dogs digestive system has to work much harder as it was designed to digest raw ingredients. Then there is the major effect that cooked processed food has on the dogs teeth. The majority of dogs fed on an artificial diet will have to have their dirty teeth and infected gums attended to by a Vet several times through their lives.The processed food gets stuck in the teeth causing infection. Just take a look at at your own teeth after you have eaten a biscuit…..that’s what your dogs teeth look like after eating dried pellets. Even using artificially produced teeth cleaning products will leave a deposit on the dogs teeth.! Bacteria enter the body through the diseased and infected gums and teeth and this can set up chronic infections which later may result in liver,heart or kidney problems.

Cleaning your dogs teeth is not going to remove all the gunge and honestly who is going to clean their dogs teeth twice a day! By eating raw bones the dogs floss their own teeth in the ripping and shredding action. The only teeth that need to be artificially cleaned are the canine teeth which are the teeth designed for killing the prey and are not involved in the ripping and grinding motion. Try cleaning your dogs teeth with an electric toothbrush …not as bad as you think! If you start when they are a puppy I can assure you they will get used to it.

Popularity: 29% [?]

Technorati Tags: dog food, Dogs, family pets, fosters and smith dog food, natural dog food, organic dog food, organic food, pets, premium dog food, wellness dog food

Having the correct knowledge of what to feed your dog can be very confusing. Every expert out there has his own favourite canine diet and there is such a vast selection of dog food available that it can be quite overwhelming for the first time dog owner to decide what to feed.

In fact lets be honest even us seasoned dog owners get caught up in all the different opinions and who knows what is what? Think of it—-Fresh, tinned, dried, vacuum-packed ..the list is endless. Obviously a puppy has a different food requirement from an adult dog so make sure that you feed the puppy the correct puppy diet from the range of food available.

The majority of pet shops and many vets will probably advise feeding your new puppy or dog on a complete dried food which is considered nutritionally balanced. Some will suggest tinned food or vacuum packed meat products. These types of food are many and varied and are advertised as suitable for most dogs. In fact most of the advertising will suggest that it is the only way to feed your dog if you want him or her to have a long and healthy life. To discuss each and every type of manufactured food product would be a major book in itself so lets look here at another choice…the Natural diet.

This diet is structured on what your dog would eat in the wild and what wolves eat in the wild today. It is a diet based on raw meaty bones and what most people fed their dogs until the dog food manufacturers got hold about 30-40 years ago. It is the diet that your dog is designed to eat. They have the teeth to tear,shred,rip flesh and crunch bones and their stomachs are designed to digest both raw meat and raw bones. Remember that dogs are carnivores and their diet would be mostly meat and bones. They may eat the stomach contents of prey ,that is the vegetable matter but it is not a vital part of their diet and they do not need it.

Most vets will recommend one of the commercial diets as the instructions are on the packet and they do not have the time in a normal consultation to go into the benefits of natural feeding and the quantities needed. Some vets sell dried dog food and so will recommend it. Some pet food manufacturers sponsor Vet colleges so therefore the alternative ways of feeding are not given priority or even discussed and veterinary students do not learn them.

In fact to be honest many dog owners are told that raw uncooked bones are bad for their dogs. The ease of opening a tin,or scooping out a couple of mug fulls of dried food is simple, requiring little or no thought which suits the busy lives that many owners now lead. The fact that there is now a massive multimillion pound industry which effectively tells dog owners that they the owners couldn’t possibly work out how and what to feed their dogs on their own,has lead to increasing numbers of dog owners accepting that the manufacturers must know best and being drawn into buying commercially prepared food and artificial bones.

All tinned and processed foods have been cooked and the resulting changes in the structure of the food means that the dogs digestive system has to work much harder as it was designed to digest raw ingredients. Then there is the major effect that cooked processed food has on the dogs teeth. The majority of dogs fed on an artificial diet will develop dirty teeth and infected gums and will have to be attended to by a Vet several times through their lives.The processed food gets stuck in the teeth causing infection. Just take a look at at your own teeth after you have eaten a biscuit…..that’s what your dogs teeth look like after eating dried pellets. Even using artificially produced teeth cleaning products will leave a deposit on the dogs teeth.! Bacteria enter the body through the diseased and infected gums and teeth and this can set up chronic infections which later may result in liver,heart or kidney problems.

Cleaning your dogs teeth is not going to remove all the gunge and honestly who is going to clean their dogs teeth twice a day! ..imagine it? By eating raw bones the dogs floss their own teeth naturally in the ripping and shredding action. The only teeth that need to be artificially cleaned are the canine teeth which are the teeth designed for killing the prey and are not involved in the ripping and grinding motion. Try cleaning your dogs teeth with an electric toothbrush…believe me it works! If you start when they are a puppy I can assure you they will get used to it.

Popularity: 23% [?]

Technorati Tags: dog food, Dogs, family pets, fosters and smith dog food, natural dog food, organic dog food, organic food, pets, premium dog food, wellness dog food

Probably any dog owner can tell you that training your dog isn’t always as easy as it seems it should be. Most owners assume that after a few days or sessions of rehearsing commands and actions then the dog should just pick up on basic skills and that should be it.

Many owners are surprised to find out that training your dog can take literally months depending on the dog, the owner, and what exactly is being taught. However sometimes there are common mistakes that dog owners make that are causing the process to take much longer and be much more difficult than it needs to be.

For one thing, it’s good to remember that training your dog should be a positive experience for you and your dog. It’s too easy for owners to get caught up in every little “mistake” that a dog makes and concentrates on punishing these mistakes rather than concentrating on rewarding a dog when she obeys or does something right

Your faithful friend loves the approval and attention of you, his owner, so when they do get something right that you have asked them to do, heap on the praise and approval, and it will pay dividends.

And another common mistake that a lot of owners make is in thinking that your dog understands English. They don’t, all they can do is to associate a few words with certain actions.

If they make a mess for instance in your house while you are out, its no good yelling at them when you come in, they will not connect the two things. Just show some tender loving care, and a big spoonful of patience.

Don’t make the mistake when training your dog of getting upset if she doesn’t understand you or continues to make the same mistake if you’re not catching her right then and there. Punishing her after the fact is pointless and ineffective.

The last mistake that I want to talk about is the one of having too high an expectation for your training. If your dog does not progress as rapidly as you hoped, then its no good getting mad about it, just accept it, and perhaps consider the possibility of some professional training.

There’s nothing wrong with asking a professional to help with training your dog and a pro may be able to show you some other mistakes you’re making or help to readjust your expectations. Either way, by asking for this help in training your dog you’re sure to not only be more successful but to also have a happier and calmer dog as well.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Technorati Tags: animals, dog behaviour training, Dog Training, Dogs, family pets, home, pets, training, training your dog