The hottest new trend in dog training…there’s an app for that!

Still having trouble getting your dog to sit, stay, or down? Well, the answer is in your pocket. Just take out your phone and download an app that will walk you through the training process. 2014 will be the year when pet training apps blow up. They’ll have an answer for all of those unexpected issues, like say when you’re at the dog park and your dog just won’t stop humping the other dogs, or won’t come back to you because he doesn’t want to leave yet. I expect they will also feature emergency information such as how to administer first aid or where to find the closest 24 hour veterinarian. Some of the apps that I have looked at for our canine friends are Dog Park by Dogster.com, Pet MD Dog’s First Aid, Puppy House Training, The Dog Whistler App, Clicker Training, and The Dog Translator.  Some of these apps are really neat and I highly recommend them!  I have tried some of these apps with my clients at Gwinnett Pet Watchers and have really enjoyed them.

DOGTV

Have you heard of the cable channel dedicated to entertaining your dogs while you are away from home?  It is called DOGTV and according to the network’s creators, their research has proven that it really does appeal to dogs.  The theory makes sense…you are at home on a quiet night with your dog curled up next to you on the couch watching tv, when something peaks your pup’s interest.  They get up, get close to the television and stare at the screen.  Why not create a 24 hour channel with things like bouncing balls, dogs playing at the park together, and grassy fields that your canine friend can enjoy?  The channel offers three to six minute segments with sights and sounds that your dog will love.  Pair this with a favorite bone or chew toy and you will have entertainment for hours.  The channel started out in California, but is now available right here in Lawrenceville, Buford, and all of Gwinnett County through DirecTV or online.

Another Great WalMart Find

On the same day I found the Grandma’s Casserole, I decide to look up another dog food that had peaked my interest that is kept in a colder.  Freshpet Selects slice and serve.  Looking at the package makes one think this would be a very helpful dog food, but as we all know packaging can be very deceiving, otherwise I would be feeding my dogs Beneful  with all the pictures of vegetables and fresh meat on the package.

However when I did my research on Freshpet Select I was very pleasantly surprised as it gets a five star rating! And you can buy it in most grocery stores!!

This product comes in a roll, I take it and stuff my dogs Kong’s and that is how I now serve them there dinner.  Not only do the dogs love this new twist at dinner time, it takes them a while to eat it, so I get a few min to unwind or in most cases fix my two legged family their dinner.

We give Freshpet Selects Four Paws Up!   Let us know if your dog likes it as much as ours.

Your Puppy and their Pet Sitter

 

 

Well it is definitely that time of year where people have gotten puppies for Christmas presents. They are totally adorable bundles of fur and love.  You took the time to pick the perfect puppy that will fit in with your family. You have spent days coming up with unique name for this wonderful new arrival. Now the real work starts. While the puppy is young it is the perfect time to instill the rules of the house to ensure a lifelong loving happy relationship.

 

The phones at Gwinnett Pet Watchers are ringing off the hook. New and existing clients are calling to get our help in raising their new puppy’s. This is one of our favorite times of the year. After all we get all the snuggles all the puppy breath without ever getting our shoes chewed on.

We have a special product called a potty break. We offer this service for all of Lawrenceville, Buford, Dacula ,Sugar Hill and Suwannee . We also offer this service to most of Loganville, Grayson and Snellville. We added the potty break to our line’s of  services when we realized there were a lot of people in Gwinnett County that are away from home for long periods of time Monday through Fridaybecause of their long commute to work . The potty break is ideal for the dog whose owner is at home in the morning, and in the evening to walk and give it plenty of attention. What we do is come in the middle of the day and get the pup to outside for a bathroom break.

People with new puppies use this service a little differently. Many will have us come in at 10 or 10:30 AM for the first break and then come back around 2 or 2:30 PM for the second break. With this schedule the puppy is only in its crate for 3 to 4 hours in between breaks. The client pays $10 per visit and in this example $20 per day. A price that is well worth the jumpstart to house training.

 

When the puppy gets to be about eight months old (like children each puppy develops at a different rate) we can usually move to one 30 minute walk. This gets the puppy out of its crate for a nice walk to get some exercise and to expel some energy. This  makes for a much happier experience for the owners when they come home from a long day at the office.

Call us today 404-819-3641 to  set up your free consultation. We can come up with the perfect plan for you and your new puppy.

Puppy Boot Camp :Potty Training

 

New Puppy Boot Camp: Potty Training

Introducing your new puppy to potty training can be a frustrating and grueling task but with patience and consistency you will succeed. In this post I will describe ways to make potty training easier for both you and your pup.

Eliminate the Possibility of Accidentspuppy white background

Accidents are inevitable but there are a few things you can do to lessen their likeliness of happening.

  • Keep a constant routine. Make feeding time and potty breaks the same time each day. Eating at the same time each day will usually mean needing to go out at the same time too. Scheduled potty breaks can also teach your pup that they can rely on you to let them out and they won’t need to resort to going inside.
  • Take away water in the evening so that your pup doesn’t need to go out during the night.
  • Clean up soiled surfaces. Pups are likely to return to the same spot, especially if a residue or scent remains. Invest in carpet cleaner to get out tricky stains.

Praising & Scolding

  • When your puppy goes to the bathroom outside make sure you immediately respond with praise, whether in the form of cheer or a treat. This reaction lets your pup know that he or she has done something good and that this good thing makes you happy (and might even result in a yummy snack). Be consistent with your potty praise so that your pet associates one with the other.
  • Scolding when your pup goes to the bathroom indoors is necessary but needs to be done right. If you come home to an accident, it’s too late. Your pup will unlikely connect your anger with the accident. However, if you catch your pet in the act, it is wise to quickly interrupt them by distracting them (speaking loudly works) and then instantly taking them outside so they can continue. Once they have finished outside it is then appropriate to praise as usual to signal that the change in behavior was good and appreciated.puppy potty training bells

While You’re Away

Pups under a year old need a little more TLC than older dogs. A young puppy will need to go to the bathroom every couple of hours so if you have a fulltime job or expect to be out of the house for a long period of time, it is best to have someone let your pup out for you during the first year.

At Gwinnett Pet Watchers we offer an affordable service called Potty Breaks. Monday through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. you are able to call on us to let your pup out for a quick ten-minute break. Call us at (404) 819-3641 or send us a message if you’re interested in learning more about this service.

 

Dog Food Avalible at WalMart

Feeding five dogs a good diet can be  expensive, so when I find a good deal I like to share it with my dog lover friends.
I was at Wal-Mart the other day picking up medication for my mother and I needed some canned dog food to add to my crew’s kibble.
I found Grandma’s Casserole made by Variety. I read the label and it looked good, so I looked it up on my favorite website when choosing dog food DogFoodAdvisor , and I see it has a for star rating. After reading there review I decided to give it a try. Well let me tell you it gets four paws up at my house, the pup’s love it, and it is only $1.50 a can, so I love it too!
Let me know if your dogs like it as much as mine.

Power Pet Sitter: New Scheduling Software

Power Pet Sitter logoThanks to you, our wonderful and loyal clients, Gwinnett Pet Watchers continues to grow as a company in a time when many others are not so fortunate. Due to the increase in business and the addition of many new clients, we have undergone some recent changes that we would like to share with you.

In order to keep our services up to your standards we have invested in new virtual scheduling software, Power Pet Sitter. We now ask that all clients utilize this software to schedule new appointments and make changes to existing ones. In the past we were able to accept appointment requests and schedule changes by emails, texts, and phone calls. However, the increase in business has brought an overwhelming amount of texts and calls daily, so it is no longer practical to attempt to accommodate all of these changes through so many means of communication. Please be assured that this does not mean we do not want to talk to you; we just want to ensure that no mistakes are made when it comes to your pets. The Power Pet Sitter service helps Gwinnett Pet Watchers to eliminate any scheduling conflicts or miscommunications that may be due to human or technological error.

If you have not already signed up for the Power Pet Sitter service, please do so by clicking here. You can also access this service by visiting the home page of the Gwinnett Pet Watchers’ website and clicking on the ‘New Clients Register’ button. Once you create your account, you will be able to:

  • Schedule or make changes to appointments 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
  • Update your pet’s profile at your leisure, even if you forget to do so before you head out of town – this means no more worrying, “Did I remember to tell Robin that Fido takes a new medicine with his evening meal?”
  • Instantly find out what each service costs before being receiving a bill

One thing that makes Gwinnett Pet Watchers stand apart from other pet sitting companies is our flexible schedule and ability to accommodate last minute changes. We want to keep that flexibility, but do so while knowing that the new scheduling software provides us with a safety net to make sure that no pet falls between the cracks. We understand that from time to time everyone has last minute emergencies and schedule changes, and we will make sure you are taken care of when these instances occur. This means that last minute emergency schedule changes will continue to be accommodated via phone call and/or text message. If direct calls and texts are used only for emergency situations, it will be more workable for us. If you must make a change by text or phone call we ask that you please follow up with an email restating the change as soon as you are able. Please note that we will still be sending daily text message updates to those clients who like receiving them.

Do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns. Thank you for understanding!

Best,
Robin TaylorCat on Computer

Domino’s DNA Testing

Back then the DNA Kits were a little bit expensive back around $90.00.  But if you watch you can catch them on sale for under $60.00.

The hardest part about getting the sample was isolating the dog.  In my house we have dogs, a cat, and even a bunny rabbit. So we had to put Domino in a room by himself, no toys (not that he would care) that another animal may have had in their mouth, clean water bowl … After two hours we went in and got our swap, put it in the envelop that came with the kit, and put it in the mail box. Then waited for the answer, Border Collie or imposter!

It did not take long  to get a package in the mail from BioPet.  With anticipation we all made our last bets then opened it … Imposter!  I knew it!  It turns out that Domino is German Shepherd Dog, Chow Chow and Labrador Retriever …. Not a drop of Border collie not even a little bit!

Most of you would think the fun would end their but no now instead of saying, “He doesn’t act anything like a Border Collie,” we say, “That’s the chow in him!” Even his groomer says, “See, that’s the German Shepherd in him.”  Goodness we love our Domino no matter what his ancestry is.

On that same Christmas I gave a DNA kit to my kids for their new pup Bella… great minds think a like! But as they say, that is another story for another day.

Be safe and have fun.

Keep Your Dog’s Feet Healthy

When I first saw my older dog Suzie lose her footing on the hardwood floors and fall, it not only broke my heart, it also scared me. I knew I was going to have to make some changes around the house to both keep her safe and keep her interacting with the family. After taking a close look at Suzie I noticed that her nails were very long.

When Suzie was young and active she wore down her nails with everyday activity and nail trimming was a monthly chore. Now that she’s not as active I have to do it weekly. Because Suzie has always been a very high strung Border Collie (you might even call her a little unstable) I always muzzle her before I trim her nails. Suzie is one of those dogs that when you put a muzzle on her she just relaxes. She knows that she has to submit to whatever I’m going to do. I have also found that using a Dremel makes fast work of nail trimming.

Dr. Debra Primvic writes in her article How to Trim Your Dogs Nails with a Nail Grinder or Dremel Tool:

“Dog’s nails continue to grow and trimming them can be a challenge for some dog owners. This depends on the dog, his personality and the dog owner’s ability to trim the nails.”

While taking care of Suzie’s nails I also keep the hair that grows between the pads of her feet trimmed. This helps keep her footing more stable when walking on the hardwood floors in my house.

If you have an older dog and you see that they are frightened of walking or very cautious of walking on slick surfaces, take a look at their feet to see if their nails are too long or if they have long hair in between the pads of their feet.  Both of these can be easily maintained and will help keep your dog safe. If you don’t feel comfortable doing this maintenance on your own, just have your groomer do it. It is well worth the time and effort.

Have fun and be safe!