Guess Who...

'SHARON!'

Your dog and Arthritis.

As our pets age their bodies begin to deteriorate and health issues can begin to arise. One of the most common problems in dogs, both young and old is Arthritis. We’re all aware of Arthritis but how does it really affect our dogs?

Although it is more common in older dogs and larger breeds it can affect any dog of any age and size. 

What is Arthritis?

Cartilage cushions the ends of bones throughout the body and allows smooth and frictionless motions in the joints. Arthritis occurs when this cartilage breaks down; it becomes rough and eventually wears away, exposing the sensitive bone underneath. This results in pain, inflammation and stiffness in the joints and ultimately it loses its stability. 

What Causes Arthritis?

There are a number of different causes of arthritis but the most common cause in dogs in chronic wear and tear of the joints. This is more common in medium to larger breed dogs who can put extra stress on their body with their weight. Other causes can be injury, such as cruciate ligament damage and fractures to the joint. Once a joint is injured it can become unstable would then lead to damage of the cartilage.
Congenital joint problems such as hip dysplasia, luxating patella etc. can also lead to Arthritis. These health issues cause the joints to develop abnormally in a young dog and lead to instability as the dog ages.
Infection can also lead to arthritis, bacteria and other organisms can invade the joint and cause 

How do I know if my dog has arthritis?

Arthritis is something your vet can diagnose with a variety of tests and scans. With this in mind, if you notice your dog struggling to get up in the morning or showing any signs of pain it’s best to get seek the advice of your vet, this way you cross out any serious injury or underlying health issues. 

How is Arthritis treated?

There is a variety of medication available for the treatment of arthritis that your vet can recommend but there are things you can do yourself at home to help ease the symptoms.

The most important thing you can do for your dog is manage their weight, an overweight dog that suffers from arthritis is a painful mix. Keeping your dog at their ideal, healthy body weight is going to prevent any unnecessary extra weight bearing down on their sore joints. It’s also very important to keep your dog at a healthy weight from a young age, this will help keep their bones strong and healthy and help avoid arthritis from a young age. This is vital in the growth stages for larger breeds especially. It’s best to consult your vet to find out the best weight for your dog, although you can find the average weight for specific breeds every dog is different.
It’s important to maintain regular amounts of low impact exercise as this can actually reduce stiffness and help to strengthen the muscles that support the joints. Soft leash walks and swimming are ideals forms of exercise; in older dogs it’s best to exercise them for smaller amounts of time more often during the day instead of one large walk once a day. 
Try to make life as easy as possible for your dog, if needing to get in and out of the car give the option of a ramp or steps. Make sure their bedding is thick and warm during the cooler weather but is still low line to the ground so it’s easy for them to move on and off.
If you find that pet is in pain or have any questions on their health, weight or exercising it’s best to contact your regular vet and have your dog examined.

More great information from
http://www.doghealth.com/senior/arthritis-in-dogs

Gemma & Frodo - come visit us?

Welcome to the start of February, can't believe we've already passed the first month of 2013!

We're so excited for what 2013 holds for Dogs Country Club and we are so keen to show it off to everyone.

With all our grand plans coming together during 2012, many great changes have happened to the Resort and we just love to show our friends around.

So if you haven't ever had a look at Dogs Country Club or had a tour quite a while ago, why not drop by when you get the chance and have look? You're more then welcome to bring some friends along and show off to your friends where pooches enjoy their holiday.

We take our tours during our Off Peak periods, which is outside of the School Holiday and Public Holiday long weekends. For those of you with calenders, our Peak periods are highlighted in blue!

 In our Off Peak times, you can drop by for a tour on a Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Friday between 12noon - 3.30pm, no appointment needed.

Or on a Sunday afternoon by appointment. Please remember that the office is closed on a Wednesday so no tours are taken.

If you have any questions or would like to book a tour, please call our office on 5971 1127.

We'd really like to see you :)

We'll be here to welcome you as your arrive, cuddles are appreciated but not a must!

Come and check out what all the fuss is about with our K9 Grass, Gemma will be the first to show you why she loves it!

Marley and Rusty will be more then happy to show off our Special Needs Suites to you!

So why not come down and say hello?! 

February Dogs of the Month!

We are very excited to introduce two of our very good friends, Joe & Georgia as our February Dogs of the Month!

Joe & Georgia are two beautiful souls, they are both Cocker Spaniels with lovely natures and we absolutely love every time they come to visit us.
Joe & Georgia love spending time at Dogs Country Club relaxing in the sun, getting plenty of cuddles and especially enjoy their back scratches! They also enjoy trips in the K9 Kab, cruising in luxury to get to and from the Resort.

Beautiful Joe, coming in for his glamorous close up!

Madam Georgia!

 Very proud to be February Dog of the Month - Joe & Georgia!

It's a Pug's life...

Mishka's a bit popular...

We know we've already introduced you to Mishka, the amazingly talented Husky, but she was very popular with our on line friends and with so many new people joining us on a daily basis we couldn't let anyone miss out!

Check out Mishka showing off her amazing talent!

Have you ever heard of....

…The Redbone Coonhound? 

This stunning dog is a strong hound but had little known about its ancestry. Years ago most racoon hunters owned a red dog that they used for tracking and treeing racoons, all that is known is that they called their dog a ‘Redbone’. Over time a few breeders who were both series about the dogs and the sport started a campaign to produce a hound with exactly the right characteristics to be a superior coon hound. They made sure that this breed would be true to the other known ‘Redbone’ in both colour and conformation. Breeders throughout the USA desired a hound with more speed and a hotter sniffer dog. The first breed of dogs were known as ‘Saddlebacks’, their background colour was red but most of them produced black saddle like markings. With selective breeding the black saddle was bred out and the solid red became known as the Redbone Coonhound. It is believed their ancestors were Foxhounds with possible a cross of Bloodhound thrown into the mix along the way.
 

The Redbone Coonhound are a courageous and reliable hunting dog. The average around the 30kg mark and are a lean dog, growing to around 55 – 65 cm in height. 

What breed of dog can you see in the Coonhound?