Watchdogs make a great addition to your home security system. A watchdog should never be considered your only form of home security. The Rottweiler is a very protective dog that naturally keeps watch over his or her boundaries. There is a common misconception that this guardian breed is dangerous.

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This breed is a calm and confident breed. These courageous dogs have a strong desire to protect family and home. Rottweilers will "wait-and-see" whether a potential threat is a problem. They will quietly watch and then alert the family that someone is too close to the home boundaries.

As a family pet Rottweilers are very lovable and desire to be close to their people. They are loyal companions as well as guardians. If you are considering this breed as your watchdog for home security it is important to remember that your Rottweiler will need daily exercise and quality time with the family in order to raise a balanced, happy dog.

Selecting a Rottweiler should be done with great care. To ensure the correct breed temperament look for an AKC registered litter. These puppies will cost more but it is worth the extra money to have the peace of mind that you are getting a puppy that was bred with high standards to create the right temperament. Look for a breeder that is well-respected and responsible.

When selecting your puppy look for good coloring and size. Do not let your emotions get in the way of selecting a puppy. A puppy that is too friendly or too shy will not make a good watchdog. You want a puppy who is a little wary of you but appears confident.

Rottweilers have a black body with mahogany markings. The markings are typically clearly defined. The throat and paws will be rust colored. This breed has large paws and is massive in size. There should not be any white or straw colored markings on the dog. Do not accept a puppy that does not meet the AKC standards. An unusual coloring could indicate that the puppy may be a mixed breed or have a temperament that will be undesirable.

After you have brought your puppy home it is important to sign the puppy up for obedience training. A watchdog that has unruly behavior will not be a good addition to your home security solution. Sign up for a reputable training course and work with your dog daily. Puppies should be socialized with children and other pets.

A watchdog can be an excellent perimeter security addition but should not be the only source of security. If your home does not have a home security system it is still vulnerable to potential break-ins. A watchdog will keep petty thieves at bay but professional thieves have ways of getting around your watchdog.

ADT Security is the leading provider of residential monitoring systems in the U.S. Help protect your home and family today with an alarm system from ADT, the number-one name in home security.
  

Whether your dog has a short coat (Boxer, Basset Hound, Labrador Retriever), long coat (Lhasa Apso, German Long-haired Pointer, Samoyed) or one that falls somewhere in between, he’ll need to be groomed regularly.

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All dogs need to get used to being groomed, and starting as early in its life as possible. Good pet grooming habits will prevent future grooming problems from happening later on in their adult lives.

One Size Does Not Fit All When It Comes To Dogs

There are a variety of coats require different grooming steps, but basic grooming care such as bathing, brushing, ear and teeth cleaning, and nail trimming is needed for all pets. If you own a long-haired dog, grooming will have to be practiced more often and may be a little more challenging. So, it is imperative to introduce your dog to grooming early on in her life. Life will be more pleasant for both you and your dog if she learns to enjoy this experience while he’s still young.

Good Grooming Habits: Groom Your Dog Everyday

To ensure that your dog creates a positive experience with grooming, you must introduce her to the process slowly and often. Get your dog familiar with each piece of equipment by introducing it to her one at a time. Show your dog the brush, let her sniff it for a few seconds and then give her a small treat.

The next step is to gently touch her with the brush and the treat. Once your dog has fully accepted the object, gently brush one stroke and follow with a treat. Do this process about three more times until your dog realizes that being brushed is a great feeling. Break down this method into small steps as this will give your dog the chance to create a positive experience within each step of the way.

Take your dog to the grooming station and let her get to know the area before you begin the grooming process. A few days prior giving your dog a bath, put her in the bathtub while it’s dry and let her play with a toy and throw in a favorite treat. Repeat this technique the next day, adding some water and a sponge. See, it’s not as difficult as you probable thought it would be.

Warning: Don’t allow your dog to simply jump into a tub filled with water out of the blue, allow your dog get used to the water before filling the tub. Dogs are just like children, they have to be handled with care as well. So, before your dog gets in, you may want to dip your elbow into the tub to make sure that it isn’t to cold or hot.

Lastly, repeat this same procedure goes for the nail clipper, toothbrush, and other grooming tools. Take your time when introducing them to your dog and she will enjoy grooming for the rest of your pet’s life.

Authored by Kelly Marshall from Oh My Dog Supplies - the place to go for dog steps in all shapes and sizes.
 

Look, I know how it is. You buy your dog food, you take him/her for a walk every morning… You make sure the water is clean for him/her to drink… You make sure there is a warm, dry place for him/her to sleep… And how does your dog repay you? By running off when you let him/her outside maybe? Or maybe your dog makes periodical "messes" in the house? Or maybe it never fails, that every time you have company, your dog who you love SO MUCH, and do SO MUCH for, jumps up on your company! Or barks at your company, or even worse… Well, don’t get too down just yet. Lets face it, your dog has some behavior problems. But Correcting dog behavior problems may not be as hard as you thought. Perhaps you just need to be reminded of the reasons why you even "put up" with a dog in the first place.

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Don’t lie to yourself. Even you cannot deny that when that floppy eared, furry, drooling dog comes lolling up to you, you can’t help but admit that you love your dog. So he has some issues, SO WHAT? Together, you can get through them. And here are a few things to remember next time your dog messes up.

Firstly, remember that your dog LIVES to please you. He wants your love, your attention, and he wants you to tell him, "good boy" when he does a good job. He doesn’t want to anger you, he only messes up because maybe he has bad habits, or maybe because he doesn’t understand what is acceptable. Don’t get angry, don’t "punish" your dog, teach your dog. Help your dog understand what is acceptable, so that he can be the well behaved, best four-legged friend that you and he both want him to be.

Learn about all types of dog training and find dog training articles at http://www.DogTrainingCity.com your place online to find everything about dog training. Be proud and enjoy the company of a well trained obedient dog!

Dog grooming is essential to make your pet look sharp and pretty. Like human beings, you will notice a change in your pet as soon as you start grooming. It is a known fact that a well groomed human is high on confidence, energy and of a satisfied mind, and the same goes for pets. Good dog grooming also adds to the longevity of the pet’s life. Here are some direct benefits of the dog grooming:

Photo: aquariumguys.com

Healthy Coat: A regular brushing of the coat of any pet; be it a dog or a cat ensures that it has a smarter, brighter coat. It also keeps the coat and skin healthy. While most dogs do not require baths for a long while, a gentle brushing during the bath will work wonders for the pet coat. Brushing is essential for the distribution of the natural oils all through the body of the pet.

Other than that, the brushing has you spend some quality time with your pet. You can, at this time, find out and explore any bruises, small injuries, lumps, bumps and sores that you would find in your everyday life. The most important thing to remember when buying pet supplies is a quality brush for your pet’s coat. There are many sorts available from hard bristle to very soft, all depending on the type of coat your pet has, a Dobermann Pinscher will need a different type of brush to that of an Old English Shepdog or Afghan hound. Therefore, make it a point to add a good coat brush to the list of your pet supplies.

Nails: are another problem in animals. One has to check the nails of their pets from time to time. Long nails do disappear themselves over the course of time, but they can create quite a nuisance value before they finally disappear. Scratchy pets, like a dog or a pet may have many abrasions and injuries due to scratching with a long nail. The nail itself may grow too long and get stuck in the flesh, make it quite difficult to remove it after a while.

You would require a pet nail cutter to cut your pet’s nails. Adding a nail cutter to your list of pet supplies is a very good idea. After the coat, the hair of the pet is quite an important issue for the pet. If your pet has long hair, it is only proper to trim and cut them time to time. Some cats and dogs have too long hair and those may go into their eyes and ears, and cause problems. Therefore, adding a hair clipper to your list of pet supplies is a very good idea.

The best way to ensure that your pet is nicely groomed is to take the services of a professional pet groomer. A professional pet groomer has the experience and talent to take proper care of your pet. Make sure to do a proper research about the pet groomer. Some pet groomers specialize in cat grooming and dog grooming, while other pet groomers specialize in the grooming of other pets.

If you need further information on pet supplies including dog food and dog beds visit our on line store. We also have a great section on dog grooming for all sizes and breeds.

When we "adopted" our latest dog, Hamish, he was about 6 years old, and had already gone through at least 3 homes that we know of, and perhaps more . He was originally a rescue dog from the RSPCA, and was found living wild in a cemetery.

Photo: dogsblog.com

Now Hamish is a very small dog (6Kg), so he had to have his wits about him to survive in such an unforgiving place. Needless to say he had a little bit of a wild streak in him, and he was very distrustful about food.

When we first got him home, he insisted on sniffing all food, and would not eat in front of us. When we put his food down, we would hold some out for him to sniff, but he’d sniff it then walk away. However we often found that the food was gone by next morning.

The problem is that we also have a cat, who is fed nearby, and at dinner we feed them the same food (raw chicken necks, raw chicken wings, meat, etc). So we had to be sure that it wasn’t just our 6.5 Kg cat stealing his food!

He also wouldn’t eat cooked food - and I had always cooked for our previous dogs and they loved it! I’m not sure Hamish had ever seen a vegetable before, and they definitely didn’t smell right! Actually, our previous dogs were bull terrier crosses, and they ate anything that didn’t move! Their favourite food was what I call "dog porridge", but it actually has meat, lots of vegetables, and just a couple of cups of rolled oats - our boys just couldn’t get enough of that. This was a whole new experience for us!

So how did we solve it?

The first thing was to get Hamish into a routine - to expect food at the same time each day. That meant not leaving the food bowls lying around if he didn’t eat his food right away.

Straight after our walk in the morning, I would put out a little commercial dog food for Hamish, and cat food for the cat. After 15 or 20 minutes, it was taken away, whether eaten or not. I did however leave out a small bowl of dried biscuits for each of them.

At night, both animals are fed fresh food, and generally the same thing. I feed them around 6:30, just after I have watched the news. And I use the same method. The food goes down, and it is lifted after 15 or 20 minutes, whether eaten or not.

The second thing was to introduce vegetables slowly. I started with a meat loaf, as you can hide grated vegetables in meat loaf pretty well! Then (and I know you’re not supposed to do this!) I would feed him tidbits of vegetables from my dinner. Of course he loved them, because it wasn’t dog food. So slowly we got Hamish to start eating vegetables.

The final thing we did was to buy him a glass (or china) dog food bowl. I know I don’t like drinking tea or coffee from a Styrofoam or plastic cup, and I wondered if the plastic food bowls didn’t have some smell or taste that sensitive dog noses could pick up. So, he got a proper food bowl.

I’m pleased to say Hamish has now turned into a normal dog, food wise. He eats his food 95% of the time, he even hangs around the kitchen while I’m cooking in case I drop anything on the floor. It’s not always worth stealing, but he checks it out anyway, and sometimes whatever is dropped is worth eating!

Di Ellis is an avid dog lover, and co-author of the site http://www.BestDoggieTips.com where you can get loads of useful tips and information about our four legged friends including free recipes, dog cartoons (updated weekly) and links to the best free dog stuff on the Net. And when you sign up for our free newsletter, we’ll send you a copy of our Dog Recipe Book which includes the "dog porridge" recipe above.