\nAnother part of weight loss is getting more active. \u00a0Things you can do with your dog to help get more activity for both of you include walking, jogging, running, hiking, and skijoring. \u00a0If one or both of you is a bit out of shape or just is not used to a lot of exercise, a slow build up to activity is recommended, as pets can get sore too! \u00a0You can also increase activity for your pet indoors-play with toys, lasers, or even use feeder toys to help stimulate\u00a0both your pet’s mental and physical wellbeing. \u00a0Schedule a set play time each day or incorporate small amounts of increased activity and interaction (during commercial breaks of your favorite show perhaps).<\/p>\n
There’s a saying that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but this is not true. \u00a0Try having your pet learn a new trick. \u00a0Positive reinforcement techniques such as clicker training are a great way to help shape behavior. \u00a0Cats can learn tricks too with the right encouragement! \u00a0Sit, lay down, shake, roll over, play dead, and high five are some popular tricks, but there are endless possibilities. \u00a0Other options include joining\u00a0a training class<\/a> or canine good citizen class, or look into becoming a certified therapy pet.<\/p>\n Vow to do a better job with your pet’s home care. \u00a0Did you know that it is recommended to brush your pet’s teeth daily? \u00a0Just like with humans, plaque (soft food particles, bacteria and debris) hardens into tartar after about 24 hours. \u00a0Use a pet safe toothpaste and lots of positive reinforcement. \u00a0Even if you can’t get daily, every little bit helps, and it gives you a chance to see inside their mouth to notice changes earlier.<\/p>\n Some breeds require daily or weekly hair brushing as well. \u00a0Nail trims should be performed every 4-8 weeks depending on the pet, and ears may need to be cleaned periodically also. \u00a0Getting into a routine can help the pet become more accustomed to these procedures, and again, you may spot changes earlier allowing easier treatment or even prevention of problems.<\/p>\n Put reminders on your calendar to do these things as well as giving monthly heartworm and flea and tick medications. \u00a0While discussing things to put on your calendar, make sure to schedule your\u00a0pet’s yearly examination appointment as well.<\/p>\n Lastly, make yourself a reminder to update your contact information on your pet’s microchip and ID. \u00a0These items are not useful if they contain old contact information such as incorrect addresses or phone numbers that are no longer in service. \u00a0You can update microchip information through Home Again here<\/a>.<\/p>\n We wish hope both you and your pet the best of luck in achieving your goals, and hope that you have a wonderful new year! Every December many of us start to think of the coming year and we often make resolutions for things we are going to do differently or try to achieve in the coming months. \u00a0This year, why not set a resolution for your pet or for both of you? In America, 54% of dogs and 58% of cats are classified as overweight or obese. \u00a0So while you may make a resolution to lose weight yourself, why not include the household pets as well? \u00a0Start by using an actual measuring cup instead of “eyeballing” amounts of food, look for lower calorie foods and treats, limit overall treat intake, and try meal feeding instead of leaving food out all the time. \u00a0Contact us to learn more about how to formulate a safe weight loss plan for your pet. \u00a0We can recommend diets and calculate the amount of food you should be feeding. Another part of weight loss is getting more active. \u00a0Things you can do with your dog to help get more activity for both of you include walking, jogging, running, hiking, and skijoring. \u00a0If one or both of you is a bit out of shape or just is not used to a lot of exercise, a slow build up to activity is recommended, as pets […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,12,21],"tags":[55,197,248,345,360,495,505,507,540],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/479"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=479"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/479\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.heritageanimalhospital.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"screen-shot-2016-11-29-at-12-50-34-pm\"](\"https:\/\/heritages.primebeta7.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Screen-Shot-2016-11-29-at-12.50.34-PM.png\")
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