Pet and Dog cartooniran

Posts Tagged ‘Cats and Dogs’

A dog is a man’s best friend. A saying very true about our canine companions, but not necessarily limited to dogs. Cats, too, are a favorite among many of the pet lovers around the world. Owning pets is actually welcoming them home, and taking them in as a part of our family like any other family members. Just as we care about our family members, don’t we all want to keep our pets hale and hearty? Well, the health of our pets is very important and a big responsibility for us since their well-being is completely dependent on us. You can prevent, postpone, or minimize pet health problems, and further improve your pets’ health by introducing special supplements in your pets’ food. Just like we humans need a balanced diet with exact proportions of proteins, vitamins, minerals, and carbohydrates, our pets too need nutrition as per their genetic makeup, and daily activities. Of course, this differs across species.

Being a dog trainer by hobby, I take keen interest in what people feed their pets. For pets, I prefer (and regularly advise people) to introduce supplements into their daily pet food as it is very important for pets like dogs and cats. As, our pets are not accustomed to eating foods we prepare for ourselves and when, we in our love for them, share certain eatables, it does affect their overall physical well-being. Say, for instance, dogs get affected, and may start shedding hair or may feel run out of energy. Pet health care requires us to closely monitor what our kids, too, share with our pets, such as chocolates, candies, chips, etc. Special pet care food such as dog food and dog treats, for different species of dogs, and even cat food with additional nutritional supplements are now available at various online shops. What we all need to understand is pets too need our constant attention and love that keeps them happy, just as they always bring a smile on our face when we walk in through the front door. In fact, you can just go in for pet training for dogs, and even dress your favorite pet in colorful, designer pet costumes.

George is a pet dog trainer by choice, as it has been his favorite hobby since high school days. He has been a pet dog trainer since the past 6 years, and has trained a wide breed of dogs. This passion also got him interested in, and working upon providing nutritional advice to pet owners – be it a dog or a cat owner.

According to a survey conducted by the American Pet Products Association, American pet owners spent nearly $22.45 billion on vet care, over-the-counter pet medicines and pet supplies in 2009. Pet medications are becoming expensive day by day. However, you can save lot of money and time by purchasing online pet medications.

While it is important to consult a veterinarian to diagnose your pet’s problems and to give you a prescription, you no longer need to travel great distances or pay high prices for pet medications. Online pet pharmacies come to the rescue in such cases, helping you get all the medication right at your doorstep, without needing to leave your house, except to visit the veterinarian.

Tips on Buying Online Pet Medications

Websites providing online pet medications usually offer both over-the-counter and prescription medicines. Also, they offer medical supplies for pets suffering from chronic illness or having special needs. In addition, they offer a wide range of pet products and animal foods. Online pet pharmacies are associated with a large number of expert vets, who offer assistance to pet owners.

Here are few tips for buying online pet medications:

1. Get a written prescription from your pet’s veterinarian for the medication. This is required to buy prescription medicines and other prescription-only items via the internet.

2. It is preferable to store some supplies to avoid extra charges of expedite shipping.

3. Compare the rates offered by various online pet medication pharmacies. Some popular websites may offer discounts. Further, lesser known websites usually have more competitive rates.

4. Remember to check the charges for shipping. The website may offer cheaper medication but have high shipping costs.

5. Once you have chosen a website you may undertake the usual online ordering process. You can add the desired medicine to your shopping cart.

6. Make an online payment by using credit card or PayPal.

7. You will receive a fax number and a customer order number. Fax the prescription to the pharmacy along with the order number.

8. Once the medication arrives, compare it with the original prescription. Also, check the dosage information. Consult a vet, in case of any confusion.

9. Keep your order number handy to place future orders.

I can’t think of a time in my life that I haven’t loved dogs. As a very small child, I wanted to run to every dog that crossed my range of vision and play with it. Size and shape didn’t matter, they all needed to be petted and talked to. We had many dogs in my family while I was growing up, all mixes that brought us joy and companionship. I have fond memories of their unique personalities and quirky behaviors.

It’s no surprise that I told my fiance that we had to have a dog. Life wouldn’t be complete without one. He agreed, mostly because he wanted me to have some protection while he was at work. We spent the first two years of our marriage carefully researching breeds. We made a list of desired qualities and traits, looked at what kind of care we could give the dog, and started looking for a breed that fit the list. In the end, we decided on a Rhodesian Ridgeback. Do I love this breed? Absolutely. Would I recommend them to everyone? Certainly not. Why not? No one breed is ideal for everyone. In fact, dogs aren’t the ideal pet for everyone. Loving them is important, but that’s only part of the equation that leads to a happy owner and a happy pet. Falling instantly in love with the cute puppy does not qualify a person to own a dog!

I’m not saying everyone must take two years to decide on a companion pet, but research should always be the first step of bringing any pet into your life. Here are a few of the important questions that need to be asked and answered before getting any pet:

1. Are you willing and happy to train (or learn to train) a pet? If not, take dogs off the pet list altogether.

2. What is your activity level? How much time and space do you have for exercise with you pet?

3. How much time do you want to spend each week grooming?

4. Can you afford the costs of proper food and veterinary care? Does the pet/breed you’re interested in have a tendency for certain medical conditions?

5. Do you have (or are you planning to have) children?

6. Will you be traveling extensively?

7. Do you have rental limitations on pet ownership?

8. Are you willing to pay for the damage that pets will inevitably do to your property?

When you’ve answered those questions, you’re in a better position to do some in-depth research about breeds and breed mixes. Not all dogs are created equally. Never, ever, EVER get a dog based on looks alone. Find out what makes the dog tick. What are the instincts this dog is hardwired with? Was the breed (or dominant breed in a mix) intended to hunt, guard, be a constant companion, or some other work? Is the dog easily trainable? Is it independent or compliant? What are its exercise requirements? Is it calm or easily excitable? How much grooming is required each day/week?

Where do you start getting the answers to these questions? I recommend buying or borrowing the ASPCA’s book Complete Guide to Dogs. They have pictures and information on more than 150 breeds, as well as some of the most common breed mixes. The most helpful feature of this book is an easy to read key down the margin of each page that gives information about activity level, grooming needs, etc. It makes it much easier to find the breeds that fit your needs and lifestyle.

When you’ve narrowed down your list of breeds or breed mixes to a few options, there are several places to continue your research. National breed clubs are a great place to get information online. National breed clubs are parent clubs of a specific breed. They will have detailed information about the breed from people who specialize in that breed. You can find national breed clubs on the American Kennel Club website.

Internet message boards also exist for just about every breed under the sun. You can ask questions and get information from owners of the breed you’re interested in. Breed characteristics that are endearing and funny to one person may be terribly annoying and agitating to another. Don’t underestimate the value of talking to someone who lives with the breed every day!

After you’ve done your research, where do you get a pet? I have two dogs, each from a different source. We bought Rock from a breeder when he was a puppy, and a few years later we adopted Brodie as a young dog from a breed rescue. I recommend looking at a breed rescue group or your local humane society first. It is estimated that six million dogs and cats are euthanized each year because of irresponsible owners. They deserve a second chance in a good home. Breed rescues can be found on the American Kennel Club link or on a search engine. A good rescue will have you fill out an application and probably interview you to make sure you are a good match for their breed.

Most local humane societies will have a website where you can watch for the breed/mix you’re interested in. You can also search Petfinders website to see other dogs up for adoption in any geographic location. If you prefer to buy from a breeder who gives a health guarantee, the best place to find a responsible breeder is through the parent breed club or the AKC.

Having a purebred dog is not enough reason to breed! You should be prepared to ask a lot of questions yourself to ensure the breeder is ethical and responsible. A good breeder will have you fill out an application before the breeding is planned. They will normally not breed a dog unless it has earned its championship status. They may have you sign a contract to have your dog spayed or neutered on a designated timeline to prevent an unwanted, unplanned litter. A good breeder will have a lot of questions to ask you to ensure that you are the right owner for one of their dogs.

Be patient about getting your dog. This isn’t something that should be rushed through. The right dog in the right home will make very happy owners and very happy pets. My dogs are part of everything I do, my constant shadows. They are great with my kids because I taught the kids and the dogs how to treat each other from day one. They are curious, intense in everything they do, sneaky, independent yet clingy, affectionate, protective, quick to learn, not so quick to obey, and absolutely perfect for me.
I’m glad I did my research.

Yes, my title was intentional. I am talking about the high temperatures in July and as we go into August. The temperatures are in the 3 digits. You feel hot and want to stay indoors with the air conditioner full blast. How is your dog doing? Have you paid attention to the coat of your dog? Have you trimmed their coat for the summer. One great way we all try to cool down is to get in the pool. Kate, my ‘grandpuppy’ was here over the weekend. It was really hot in the house, because the air conditioner was not working very well. We all had a hard time sleeping. I noticed that Kate was very restless, and when she did lie down her breathing was very forceful, as if she was sobbing. She really enjoyed being in the pool with us, and ran around the pool to cool down afterward. So what can we do when your dog is feeling too hot?

* Make sure there is water for your dog to drink, because they get very thirsty. You can tell if they are thirsty when their tongues hang out and their breathing is heavy.
* It would not hurt to add a few pieces of ice in the water
* Take your dog in the pool with you. Be sure that the pool does not have a heavy amount of chlorine. Chlorine hurts the eyes f your dog.
* Notice if your dog is having fun in the pool. After they get out, let them run around the pool so they can dry off. Running allows the air to circulate inside their coats. It works like a fan.
* There are cooling dog mats with foam that has special crystals that will keep your dog cool if soaked in cold water, and keep them warm when soaked with hot water.
* If you have tile, ceramic or wood flooring, dogs may feel cooler lying on them
* Make sure the room your dog stays in during the day is cool and maybe even a fan will really help keep them cool. If your dog stays in a crate during the day this would really help keep them cool
* If you keep your dog outside, give them shade and try to get them inside or at least a patio that is well ventilated and have a fan to help keep them cool.

The rule of thumb to know if your dog is hot is, if you are feeling hot and thirsty, you dog will too. Protect your dog and keep them cool. Dogs love us unconditionally, but should we not take good care of them so they are as comfortable as we are?

In Little Rock, Arkansas, a volunteer group called ‘Angels’ Care Animal Rescue’ is hosting their third ‘Dog-Gone Easter Egg Hunt.’ Dogs and their owners are invited to come and sniff and find 2000 treat-filled Easter Eggs. So what could the problem be with a harmless Easter Egg Hunt?

1. If the dogs bite into the plastic eggs they may swallow it and the plastic can be poisonous to their systems, or at the very least, it could cause minor cuts in their mouths.
2. All dog owners know or rather should know that if the eggs contain chocolate, it could be lethal to their pooches.
3. If owners decide to use boiled eggs, it spoils soon, and if the eggs are found several days later, it could cause stomach problems for the dog.
4. If baskets are left lying around and the dogs find them more interesting than the eggs, it depends on the type of basket, it may cause problems.
5. Now with lead in so many things made in china, one needs to be extra careful what their dogs bite into.
6. I am sure this group will be careful of what they bring, but one must always be aware of what else is around when it is in a public area like a park.

This group is also having an Easter Bonnet Parade, where all the dogs will be dressed in their Easter best, that would be designer dog clothes, or the most stylish dog clothes. The dogs will have a parade where they can strut their stuff and wiggle their tails in the finest clothes and Easter bonnet.

This will be a lot of fun for the dog owners.

Some dogs love to be all dressed up but there are some that are almost too shy to wear frilly clothes, It is important for the owner to make sure their dog likes to be dressed up, and that the apparel they choose for their dog actually suits them. Have you seen large dogs who look so unhappy in little tutus, and little dogs will trip over clothes that do not fit them well. The design and size of the clothes must suit the size and breed of dog.

There will be a photographer to take pictures of the dogs and their owners, but I hope the owners don’t forget to get their own pictures as soon as they dress their dogs, so they will be fresh and may even pose for a few lovely pictures that can be saved for posterity.

Bearded dragons make an excellent addition as a pet to any family especially if you have kids that want a reptile because bearded dragons have a very easy going attitude. They are great for beginners and are becoming very popular as pets, but dragons are a serious commitment and do require some special care. For a bearded dragon to live a long healthy life, it needs a proper enclosure and a proper diet

Before you even choose a bearded dragon, you need to set up the enclosure and make sure it is ready to go before you bring the bearded dragon home. Baby dragons can be housed in a 20-30 gallon enclosure and adult dragons need to be housed in at least a 40 gallon breeder enclosure. Now dragons grow fast, so I just bought the 40 gallon breeder to save money from buying two different enclosures. You need to use a screen top to provide air circulation and to let the humidity out. Dragons are from the desert region and do not need any humidity in their enclosure.

Along with choosing the right enclosure, bearded dragons also need special lighting. They are diurnal lizards and require twelve to fourteen hours of UVB light a day to process calcium and vitamin D3. The best way to provide them with this lighting is taking them outside and let them enjoy the sun. It can be difficult to provide this all the time, so you can use a UVB fluorescent tube as long as the bearded dragon can get within five to six inches of it and the UV rays are not going through glass because glass will reflect the UV rays and make it useless for the bearded dragon. The UVB in the florescent tubes does run out and you have to replace the tube every four to six months. You know it is time to replace it the bulb when your bearded dragon is slowing down and is not as active as he/she usually is.

As with any other reptile, bearded dragons can’t digest their food without heat. A dragon’s basking spot should range between 100-110 degrees farenheight for baby bearded dragons to sub-adults and 95-100 degrees Fahrenheit for adults. You can provide this with a regular 75 watt house bulb. The cool side of the cage should be around 85 degrees farenheight. It is very important to have a warm and cool side because dragons need to thermo regulate their body temperature. At night time, temperatures can fall down to 65 degrees farenheight but not below that. It is very important that you never use heat rocks because they will burn your bearded dragon. Dragons sense heat using the top of their heads and heat rocks only provide heat to their belly. A dragon will never know if it is too hot and will just sit there, even if it is burning him/her.

The last two things you will need for a bearded dragon’s enclosure is substrate and decoration. For baby dragons, it is best to use paper towels, newspaper, or repti-carpet because they poop a lot and it is easier to clean up poop on these substrates. As they reach adult hood, you can use play sand but I prefer to keep using repti-carpet. You do not want to use sand for baby dragons because they can get compacted from it. Sand is not the only thing that can cause compaction, any loose substrate can cause it. You will also need some decoration in the cage. You do not need much, you only need a branch, or something similar, so a dragon can get close to the heat and UVB light and a cave on the cool side of the cage.

Now that your dragon’s enclosure is finished, you need to know how to feed your dragon. Bearded dragons are omnivores so there is a variety of live food items that you can feed to your dragon. Some of these food items are healthier than others. The healthiest food you could feed to your dragon are crickets. An alternative to crickets are super worms. The rule for feeding live food to your bearded dragons is the width of the food item should be no larger than the width between your dragon’s eyes. If it is larger than your dragon’s eyes, it could cause impaction. You can also feed your dragon mealworms and wax worms as a treat. You should feed a baby dragon three times a day, a sub-adult two times a day, and an adult once every other day. Do not feed wild bugs because they could have parasites or pesticides that can harm or kill your dragon.

A dragon also needs to be fed vegetables everyday starting a week after it was born. Here are some healthy vegetables you can feed; Dandelion greens, Collard greens, Mustard greens, Bok choy, Kale, Turnip greens, Escarole, Chicory, Butternut squash, Any form of squash, Green beans, and Parsnips. You should not feed spinach because it causes calcium to bind and won’t be digested. The vegetables should be diced up to be smaller than the width between your bearded dragon’s eyes.

Even though bearded dragons are becoming more popular as pets because of their docile temperament, they do require special care and attention. With a proper enclosure and a proper diet, your dragon will live a long healthy life.

Everyday someone asks me, “How do you start a pet-sitting business?” I try to answer their question succinctly. But the truth is, starting a pet-sitting business, or any business is not always a succinct process. Following are 21 tips that I know can lead to pet-care business success in any economy.

1. Accept what you don’t know. Not everyone who starts a pet-care business is an expert on every type of household pet. Be honest with clients who call requesting care for a pet you’ve never cared for. Your honesty and commitment to learning from them will go a long way in building long-term trust in you and your company.

2. Commit to learning about business. Unless you’ve run a series of successful small businesses before, you must create a self-education plan for yourself. No matter how much you love animals (and they love you) your business will flounder without attention to the mundane details of accounting, sales, marketing and filing.

3. Have a realistic budget. Set up a realistic budget for running your business. Be honest about how much money you need in order to pay your bills and invest in your business. Many pet-sitting businesses close because the owner did not evaluate how many visits they would need to perform in order to meet their basic financial needs.

4. Evaluate the competition. Make sure you understand what the other pet-sitters in your area are already doing, and what you can do better or more efficiently. If there are no other pet sitting companies in your area, find out what your potential customers currently do to care for their pets when they can’t be there.

5. Set realistic rates. Yes, you love pets and you can’t believe that you can get paid to have fun – that’s what a great many star athletes say too, yet they manage to make millions of dollars each year. You won’t likely be able to draw clients in by charging thousands of dollars for your services, but you won’t be able to serve pets well if you quit in 6 months because you need more money to survive.

6. Listen to pet-lovers. Ask pet owner’s what is most important about their pet’s care. Never imagine that you know everything – a pet owner always knows their pet best. Listen and you will learn how to serve them better.

7. Enjoy the people. I often joke that “Until that puppy can write a check, I work for his Mom!” And it’s true. The people who love their pets are your customers – even if you don’t see them. Check in with them and find out how they feel about your service. Make sure they understand that you are happy to work with them and you appreciate being part of their care giving ‘family.’

8. Make business decisions. You are in business, so treat yourself like a business owner. If you intend to work as a sole proprietor, make a decision to work only with the clients that contribute the most to your bottom-line.

9. Build Alliances. Work with the other pet-sitters in your area. If you need a back-up or you are booked, you need to know the other quality caregivers who service your area. You can ruin your great reputation simply by recommending someone who doesn’t live up to your standards.

10. Build alliances with other small business owners in your area. Who better understands the ‘downside’ of pet ownership than the dry cleaner or housekeeping service in your neighborhood? Their businesses are based partially on the pet-owning clients in your area. Ask to place your cards in their shops, or if you can run put a flyer in their monthly bills sent to their clients.

11. Serve the client, not your ego. It’s a heady experience to feel the power of running a business and sometimes you will think you know what’s best when caring for someone else’s pets. Realize that you need to ride the fine line between educating customers and talking down to them.

12. Be genuine. Everyone wants to work with someone “real.” When people are making decisions about letting a stranger into their home to care for their most precious possession, they want to feel that you are a real human being with an understanding and appreciation of their relationship with their pet. You need to be a business person with a heart – have all your forms and policies in place, but let your personality shine through.

13. Believe in yourself. This is the most important success factor I have found. Define your success by your rules and wake up every day with the knowledge that you can and will succeed.

14. Ignore the naysayers. Plenty of people are going to doubt you when you tell them this is your goal. Don’t listen. Surround yourself with people who believe in you and never stop moving forward.

15. Create systems to work smarter. Everything can be systemized to help you get everything done. Make a list of all your ‘must dos’, ‘should dos’ and ‘want-to-dos’ and determine how often they happen (annually, quarterly, monthly, weekly, and daily). Sit down with a calendar and plug in the activities that will accomplish your lists.

16. Network. Just like building alliances, you need to step up your ‘face-time’ in your community. Investigate several networking opportunities in groups that are industry specific (like pet-rescue organizations, pet-sitter networks) and business or community specific (like the Chamber of Commerce, or NAWBO). After visiting several, select the ones that are most effective for your business – both in terms of referrals for new business and for educational purposes.

17. Evaluate. If something is working (or not) for you – find out why. Ask questions of everyone – your happy (and unhappy) clients. Find out what keeps happy customers coming back. If someone decides not to hire you for their pet’s care, ask them what influenced their decision. If their decision was based on an area where you can’t compromise – you won’t provide every other day service for cats – move on. If it’s something you can improve upon – they thought you were too abrupt on the phone – fix it! Get to the heart of what drives your business and take time each day to improve.

18. Set goals and action plans. You must know what your objectives are for you and your business. When you envision your life in a year, three years and ten years, what will you be doing? How will your business be running? Whether you intend to serve ten clients for life, or you want to establish the top pet-sitting franchise in North America and Europe – you need to have a goal and a plan.

19. Find your niche and stick to it. When I started peggiespets.com, I was intimidated by narrowing to a niche. By defining your niche and marketing to them, you are not turning away other business (our niche is big dogs and puppy potty training) you can continue to accept all the business you want that is outside of your niche (ask all the terriers, birds and rabbits we care for!).

20. Strive for success everyday. Never compromise your ideals to meet someone else’s expectations. The reason you started your own business is because of your passion, so always stand by your convictions and work hard to exceed your expectations each day.

Someone said that a pet is the only being in this world that you will love more than yourself and how true that is! If you own a pet than perhaps you know better how mush you love them. Pet owners leave no stone unturned to ensure that the pet that they love so much gets all the attention and love that the need. Taking care of a pet whether it is a cat, a dog or any other pet takes a lot of time, effort and hard work. Now it may happen that footing the vet’s bill can prove to be very costly for you and to take care of this by taking insurance for your pet. Unlike humans, pets cannot say when they are suffering form any kind of problem and this is where a real pet lover will understand what his or her pet is going through. As owners, you need to be very careful about this and if you find any kind of abnormal behavior from your pet, you must see a vet immediately.

Like humans, they also suffer form aliments and it is very important fro the pet owner to understand and find out what is bothering them health wise. Pets can suffer form different types of health and medical conditions and you can opt for a pet insurance that covers several aspects. Pet owners know that the bill of the vet can add up dramatically and after the treatments, you will find that you have to pay a pretty large amount to the vet for the treatment and that is why opting for a pet insurance makes much more sense. Therefore, the first thing that pet owners need to do is find out an insurance broker that will provide them with the kind of insurance cover they are looking for their pet.

The whole idea behind pet insurance is to ensure that as a pet owner you are prepared to meet any kind of emergencies that you may face while looking after your pet. Today you will find that more and more pet owners are opting to take a pet insurance to make sure that their pet gets all the treatment it deserves in case it is diagnosed with any kind of ailment. The advancements in the field of medical sciences have insured that treatments for almost all type of ailments are available today. All you need to do is make sure that you have the money to take care of your pet and even this can be arranged with the help of pet insurance.

You can opt for cat insurance, dog insurance or pet health insurance depending on the kind of pet that you have. The pet insurance company will offer you with a wide range of pet insurance policies. All these policies will have different options and you must make sure that you read all this thoroughly and find out which policy you would like to take for your pet. There are some pet insurance policies that cover the advertising cost and reward money that you may need to put up if your pet is lost somewhere. Now pet owners must be familiar with the number of times the have lost their pets and the cost accompanying this.

Insure your dog with a Churchill pet insurance quote

Nowadays, it has become a kind of fashion to keep pets, especially pet dogs. Many celebrities have their own dogs, such as Paris Hilton, Miranda and Orlando Bloom. Many people hold the view that owning a dog is simply about getting a dog, feeding it, and loving it. Actually, bringing a dog home is just the beginning of the whole dog raising thing. Converting a predominantly wild animal into a pet would be a lengthy process. There’s so much to do.

A dog, like human beings, needs a certain amount of foods, gets to drink fresh and clean water and exercises. If your dog is the one with long hair, regular baths are necessary to keep him clean and disease free. Next don’t forget dog’s bed. Many dog owners let their dogs sleep on their bed every night. Well, there’s nothing wrong with that. But what if your dog wants to take a nap in the room where you are working, watching television or doing other things? Providing a bed for your dog is a good way to solve this, additionally, dogs have their own places to go when it wants to simply get some privacy and be alone for a while. And dogs need outdoor exercises, and this time you can’t forget the leash and collar. When you’re ready to take it for a walk, make sure it has something to wear around its neck, which will distinguish it from others and have a place to latch its leash onto. If you want to go out shopping with your puppy dog, you can choose dog carriers. It’s really hot trends around if you take a notice.

Normally, dogs are quite docile and can easily be turned into a friendly and faithful pet, but that needs a little bit of patience and a considerable amount of tact. Remember that an untrained dog can really be a bad pet. You must be careful while training, maybe you will find easier by following a new complete dog training manual. When you teach your dog the right commands to obey, be sure in a strict way but not a harsh way. Or you will find no training effect even minus effect. You just need some training skills. In fact, dogs are easy to train and learn to obey easily because dogs are man’s best friends. So be affectionate to your dog at all the times, for nothing works better than strenuous training mixed with a little bit of love. That’s the magic potion that fails almost never.

If you own birds and keep them in an enclosed area, filtering the air you and your birds breathe is just as important as proper housing, food, and water. Here are 7 reasons why filtering the air your pet bird breathes is a necessity.

1. Birds’ respiratory systems are very easily clogged by airborne particulates. Clogged airways foster disease and infection. Birds instinctively hide signs of illness so that other animals don’t see them as weak and ideal as prey. In many cases once your bird develops symptoms, the condition is grave and the bird cannot be saved.

2. Their air passages are so effective at delivering oxygen that birds can become ill very rapidly when exposed to airborne chemicals, smoke, and other gases that can sometimes be present in your home. Fumes from a burned Teflon pan can be fatal. Making sure that you are able to filter gases as well as particles is crucial.

3. If you have more than one bird, it is even more important to clear the air because the additional volume that is produced by several birds can make the entire population ill, and their owners as well.

4. Bacteria and viruses travel most often by attaching to airborne particles. If the air is thick with dander, this makes it easy for disease to move from one host to another through inhalation and/or ingestion. And even though many viruses are smaller than the .3 microns that HEPA filters can remove, by clearing the air of particles you are also greatly reducing the number of pathogens as well.

5. There are numerous other airborne particles that are common in the cleanest of households that can also stand in the way of your bird’s good health. Household dust, dust mites, mold and mildew spores, pollen, and dander from other pets are just a few. Removing these pollutants from the air will increase your bird’s chances of staying healthy.

6. Now let’s focus on the people in the house. The protein found in bird dander is one of the most common allergy triggers. Your feathered friend will only stay healthy if there is a healthy human to provide top notch care.

Filtering the air with a medical grade HEPA ( which stands for high efficiency particle arresting) filter will remove dander (as small as .3 microns) that is invisible to the eye, but let’s an allergy sufferer know it’s there by causing watery eyes, congestion, itchy nose and throat and a general discomfort when close to the birds. Clean air means you feel better and are able to take better care of your bird.

7. Some birds are more susceptible to diseases that can be transferred from birds to humans. Constantly filtering the air to remove these germs greatly reduces your chances, your bird’s and your family’s chances of becoming infected.

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