Archive for the ‘Pet info’ Category

The weather in Seattle is beautiful now that it is Spring. What is better then being outside on a gorgeous sunny Seattle day?!

Dont leave your dog home alone bored all day inside while you are at work. Let your dog come out with my pack and play in the great outdoors! They will go for a walk to work on leash skills and bond with the pack. Then we go to a park and they romp and have a party in the park.

For those dogs that like to swim..we go to Magnusun and we romp and swim!

I come to your home and pick up your pup. We go out for 3-4 hours and play!  I return them tired, happy and calm.

I also make sure they are clean and have fresh water.

Space is limited so contact me soon!

Sarah

Elite Pet Care would like to announce that we are expanding our pet sitting services. We will now have more availability for private dog walks and pawty breaks. These are great for older pets or puppies that just need to get out, stretch, potty, be fed,loved on, etc. Pet sitting services are great for those dogs that do not go to the dog park.

We also provide:

cat care

criter care

vacation visits

overnights

plus more!

Send us an email to see if we can help you with your best friends needs!

sarah@elitepetcare.com

Your Seattle dog walker and petsitter is adding a new feature! I will be putting a doggy video camera on your dog so you and I can see the world from your dogs point of view! The video will also have audio so we can hear what they hear! I am really excited about this new toy and hope you enjoy it!

If you want your Fremont pup to be the talk of the universe, contact Drew with Good Dogs Rule. http://gooddogsrule.com/ Drew can help people and their dogs have great long lasting relationships at any stage of life. He will help you with personalized training, thats training that best meets your dog’s needs!

With the help of Good Dogs Rule, you can achieve your training goals! Can you imagine a dog that comes when called? Adog that can do agility?  You can have a good dog! Just call Drew!

Good Dogs Rule can help you with any canine issue, including  both obedience and behavior modification training.

Not only is Drew awesome with dogs, he is an awesome person that is easy to get along with. He makes training something the owners can understand and continue at home.

Good Dogs RULE!

I walk dogs every day and I have to say that I LOVE walking dogs around Green Lake. The path is awesome and a perfect length around 3 miles. Its wide enough for me to be able to walk even when I have 7 dogs.

They even have some doggy poop bag stations! And they have a dog water fountain!

To make it even better adjacent to the lake there is an off leash dog park!

I love to walk my dog pack around the lake then to the dog park so they can have some off leash fun!

Green Lake is a great place to be a dog owner and dog walker!

Being a Seattle dog walker, my friends know they can come to me for dog advice. So while I was looking up some clinics for a friend I came across Greenwood Animal Hospital. They offer low cost spay/neuter as well as low cost vaccines for dogs and cats. The one thing that sold me was they offer dentals! And at a fraction of the cost of a normal vet! $149 for a doggy dental… I paid over $700 for Buddys dental in AZ!

How to grade your dog’s food:
Start with a grade of 100:

1) For every listing of “by-product”, subtract 10 points

2) For every non-specific animal source (“meat” or “poultry”, meat, meal or fat) reference, subtract 10 points

3) If the food contains BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin, subtract 10 points

4) For every grain “mill run” or non-specific grain source, subtract 5 points

5) If the same grain ingredient is used 2 or more times in the first five ingredients (i.e. “ground brown rice”, “brewer’s rice”, “rice flour” are all the same grain), subtract 5 points

6) If the protein sources are not meat meal and there are less than 2 meats in the top 3 ingredients, subtract 3 points

7) If it contains any artificial colorants, subtract 3 points

8 ) If it contains ground corn or whole grain corn, subtract 3 points

9) If corn is listed in the top 5 ingredients, subtract 2 more points

10) If the food contains any animal fat other than fish oil, subtract 2 points

11) If lamb is the only animal protein source (unless your dog is allergic to other protein sources), subtract 2 points

12) If it contains soy or soybeans, subtract 2 points

13) If it contains wheat (unless you know that your dog isn’t allergic to wheat), subtract 2 points

14) If it contains beef (unless you know that your dog isn’t allergic to beef), subtract 1 point

15) If it contains salt, subtract 1 point

Extra Credit:

1) If any of the meat sources are organic, add 5 points

2) If the food is endorsed by any major breed group or nutritionist, add 5 points

3) If the food is baked not extruded, add 5 points

4) If the food contains probiotics, add 3 points

5) If the food contains fruit, add 3 points

6) If the food contains vegetables (NOT corn or other grains), add 3 points

7) If the animal sources are hormone-free and antibiotic-free, add 2 points

8 ) If the food contains barley, add 2 points

9) If the food contains flax seed oil (not just the seeds), add 2 points

10) If the food contains oats or oatmeal, add 1 point

11) If the food contains sunflower oil, add 1 point

12) For every different specific animal protein source (other than the first one; count “chicken” and “chicken meal” as only one protein source, but “chicken” and “” as 2 different sources), add 1 point

13) If it contains glucosamine and chondroitin, add 1 point

14) If the vegetables have been tested for pesticides and are pesticide-free, add 1 point

94-100+ = A
86-93 = B
78-85 = C
70-77 = D
<70 = F

Here are some foods that have already been scored. If you don’t see your dog’s food here, ask and someone will score it for you.
Dog Food scores:

Alpo Prime Cuts / Score 81 C

Artemis Large/Medium Breed Puppy / Score 114 A+

Authority Harvest Baked / Score 116 A+

Authority Harvest Baked Less Active / Score 93 B

Beowulf Back to Basics / Score 101 A+

Bil-Jac Select / Score 68 F

Blackwood 3000 Lamb and Rice / Score 83 C

Blue Buffalo Chicken and Rice / Score 106 A+

Burns Chicken and Brown Rice / Score 107 A+

Canidae / Score 112 A+

Chicken Soup Senior / Score 115 A+

Diamond Maintenance / Score 64 F

Diamond Lamb Meal & Rice / Score 92 B

Diamond Large Breed 60+ Formula / Score 99 A

Diamond Performance / Score 85 C

Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Ultra Premium / Score 122 A+

Dick Van Patten�s Natural Balance Venison and Brown Rice / Score 106 A+

Dick Van Patten’s Duck and Potato / Score 106 A+

EaglePack Holistic / Score 102 A+

Eukanuba Adult / Score 81 C

Eukanuba Puppy / Score 79 C

Flint River Senior / Score 101 A+

Foundations / Score 106 A+

Hund-n-Flocken Adult Dog (lamb) by Solid Gold / Score 93 B

Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Formula Premium / Score 73 D

Innova Dog / Score 114 A+

Innova Evo / Score 114 A+

Innova Large Breed Puppy / Score 122 A+

Kirkland Signature Chicken, Rice, and Vegetables / Score 110 A+

Member�s Mark Chicken and Rice / Score 84 C

Merrick Wilderness Blend / Score 127 A+

Nature�s Recipe / Score 100 A

Nature�s Recipe Healthy Skin Venison and Rice / Score 116 A+

Nature�s Variety Raw Instinct / Score 122 A+

Nutra Nuggets Super Premium Lamb Meal and Rice / Score 81 C

Nutrience Junior Medium Breed Puppy / Score 101 A+

Nutrisource Lamb and Rice / Score 87 B

Nutro Max Adult / Score 93 B

Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice / Score 98 A

Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy / Score 87 B

Nutro Natural Choice Puppy Wheat Free / Score 86 B

Nutro Natural Choice Senior / Score 95 A

Nutro Ultra Adult / Score 104 A+

Pet Gold Adult with Lamb & Rice / Score 23 F

Premium Edge Chicken, Rice and Vegetables Adult Dry / Score 109 A+

Pro Nature Puppy / Score 80 C

Pro Plan Sensitive Stomach / Score 94 A

Purina Benful / Score 17 F

Purina Dog / Score 62 F

Purina Come-n-Get It / Score 16 F

Purina One Large Breed Puppy / Score 62 F

Royal Canin Boxer / Score 103 A+

Royal Canin Bulldog / Score 100 A+

Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult / Score 106 A+

Science Diet Advanced Protein Senior 7+ / Score 63 F

Science Diet for Large Breed Puppies / Score 69 F

Sensible Choice Chicken and Rice / Score 97 A

Solid Gold / Score 99 A

Summit / Score 99 A

Timberwolf Organics Wild & Natural Dry / Score 120 A+

Wellness Super5 Mix Chicken / Score 110 A+

Wolfking Adult Dog (bison) by Solid Gold / Score 97 A

Its winter in Seattle and there are things to keep in mind for your pets and also for those stray kitties that have to live outside.  As a Ballard and Green Lake area dog walker I am out walking dogs in the winter and I have found that most dogs don’t mind the cold! They even walk on the white crunchy grass with no problem.

However, short haired dogs will do best with a jacket.

These winter pet tips are courtesy of the ASPCA, http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/pet-care-tips/cold-weather-tips.aspx

Brrrr…it’s cold outside!  The following guidelines will help you protect your companion animals when the mercury dips.

1. Keep your cat inside. Outdoors, felines can freeze, become lost or be stolen, injured or killed. Cats who are allowed to stray are exposed to infectious diseases, including rabies, from other cats, dogs and wildlife.
2. During the winter, outdoor cats sometimes sleep under the hoods of cars. When the motor is started, the cat can be injured or killed by the fan belt. If there are outdoor cats in your area, bang loudly on the car hood before starting the engine to give the cat a chance to escape.
3. Never let your dog off the leash on snow or ice, especially during a snowstorm—dogs can lose their scent and easily become lost. More dogs are lost during the winter than during any other season, so make sure yours always wears ID tags.
4. Thoroughly wipe off your dog’s legs and stomach when he comes in out of the sleet, snow or ice. He can ingest salt, antifreeze or other potentially dangerous chemicals while licking his paws, and his paw pads may also bleed from snow or encrusted ice.
5. Never shave your dog down to the skin in winter, as a longer coat will provide more warmth. When you bathe your dog in the colder months, be sure to completely dry him before taking him out for a walk. Own a short-haired breed? Consider getting him a coat or sweater with a high collar or turtleneck with coverage from the base of the tail to the belly. For many dogs, this is regulation winter wear.
6. Never leave your dog or cat alone in a car during cold weather. A car can act as a refrigerator in the winter, holding in the cold and causing the animal to freeze to death.
7. Puppies do not tolerate the cold as well as adult dogs, and may be difficult to housebreak during the winter. If your puppy appears to be sensitive to the weather, you may opt to paper-train him inside. If your dog is sensitive to the cold due to age, illness or breed type, take him outdoors only to relieve himself.
8. Does your dog spend a lot of time engaged in outdoor activities? Increase his supply of food, particularly protein, to keep him—and his fur—in tip-top shape.
9. Like coolant, antifreeze is a lethal poison for dogs and cats. Be sure to thoroughly clean up any spills from your vehicle, and consider using products that contain propylene glycol rather than ethylene glycol. Visit the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center more information.
10. Make sure your companion animal has a warm place to sleep, off the floor and away from all drafts. A cozy dog or cat bed with a warm blanket or pillow is perfect.

Dog walking in Seattle leads to somewet weather walking. The dogs reallydont mind once they are out and moving.

I have found that the best thing for winter dog walking is a dog jacket that has fleece on the inside for warmth and a raincoat outside for rain protection. I have this jacket and Buddy likes it! http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4061034

If your dog doesnt want to walk in his coat, start slow.Put the jacket on and give him a treat. take it off. Then next time put it on, give him a treat and leave it on. Give him treats while he has it on and associate treats with jacket. Then walk. if he resists, put the collar behind his ears and shorten the leash. This will put your dog in a heel. You can pull up and get your dogs feet moving! Be the leader and assertive.

I find that the dogs stay clean and dry under their jackets. They also stay warm!

I am a ballard dog walker and I always recommend dog jackets to myclients during the winter.

warmwalking

Sarah

Well besides walking dogs all day, this Seattle dog walker likes to host events for the dog community. When it is too rainy for the little dogs to go to go to one of our Seattle dog parks, bring them to Petapoluza for an indoor dog playdates! Just like a mini seattle dogdaycare, but with treats, pup-tinis and you!

Please rsvp at Petapoluza or email me at sarah@elitepetcare.com