Rachel's Pet Care Service

08/15/2023

Pet services are once again on hiatus until August 2024 while I work abroad! Photo uploads will resume next year 🐾

08/07/2023

05/16/2022

As of May 2022, pet services are on hiatus for one year 🐾 I will be traveling until May 2023. Photo uploads will resume next summer!

06/23/2021

***Topic: Puppy Socialization Guide***

The most important thing you need to do when you get a puppy is socialize them! This post serves as a checklist for new owners, with a few pointers along the way.

To start, I want to point out that socialization is much more than letting your puppy play with other dogs. Socialization is also not about forcing your puppy into situations that they're uncomfortable with. Always pay attention to body language and signs of fear or anxiety.

Your puppy is learning about everything in their environment, and that includes YOU! Love will come naturally. With proper training, obedience will follow. You must show them that they can also trust you. Once trust forms, you will be able to work through their fear periods smoothly.

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I highly recommend exposing your puppy to everything listed below. Please note that the crucial socialization period for puppies ends at around 16 weeks. You MUST start socialization before the end of this period for best results. There will be a note on vaccinations/safety at the bottom of this post.

•Houses
Take your puppy to your parents, your friends, your neighbors... anywhere you regularly spend time.

•Stores
All pet stores are dog friendly - use them! Check what other stores allow dogs in your area. Keep in mind that you should never let your puppy approach a service dog if you see one working.

•Water
Your puppy needs to be exposed to lakes, canals, rivers, pools, sprinklers, etc if you want them to enjoy summer fun with you. Water can be a common fear for some puppies, so remember to take it very slowly.

•Weather
If possible, try to expose your puppy to stormy weather. Rain, wind, shaking branches, etc. Again, this is a common fear, and the trust between you and your puppy should be well-formed before you do this. Exposure and desensitization now will prevent panic during their first thunderstorm later on.

•Sound
Puppies should be desensitized to loud sounds. This includes voices, fireworks, thunder, garbage trucks, trains, motorcycles, construction, etc. Remember to take it slow, and don't be pushy. Let your puppy set the pace.

•Events
If you're going to a crowded party or outdoor gathering, bring your puppy! Remember, it's not just about your puppy saying hi to everyone they come across. Exploration is important, but this is a good opportunity to work on the trust and bond between you. Have your puppy follow direct commands in a chaotic environment.

•Outdoor Areas
If possible, expose your puppy to a mix of outdoor environments. Busy streets, bustling cities, wide open spaces, different parks and neighborhoods, etc. However, be careful before they are fully vaccinated (more on this below).

•Moving Objects
Socialize your puppy so that they are completely comfortable around bikes, trucks, cars, joggers, children playing, etc. I especially recommend this for herding dog breeds. Make sure to immediately correct any kind of reactivity.

•Car Rides
Your puppy will need to be okay with car rides, whether it's for a fun outing or a trip to the vet. Socialization isn't the only factor here - some dogs get motion sickness. However, socialization will lower the risk of future car-related anxiety.

•Grooming/Handling
Take your puppy to the groomers as soon as they are fully vaccinated, whether they need a haircut yet or not, and especially if you have a breed that will require lifelong grooming. At home, your puppy must be desensitized to you touching their nails, ears, paws, etc. Expose your puppy to nail clippers, brushes, baths, etc.

•Humans
Expose your puppy to people. I recommend teaching your puppy to sit and stay before allowing interaction. This is a good opportunity for training and trust building. That aside, make sure your puppy encounters people that are different races, heights, weights, ages, genders, etc. Introduce them to children but make sure that the kids behave appropriately.

•Animals
Dogs teach each other manners. In a controlled, off-leash environment, let your puppy play with other friendly dogs (I recommend one dog at a time). Just like with humans, you want to expose your puppy to dogs of all sizes and shapes if possible. I want to point out that letting your dog meet other dogs while walking on a leash is generally not recommended by trainers. That being said, I do allow my dogs to do this. It's a personal choice - you risk reactivity, pulling, and loss of focus due to the excitement if you start allowing this, but many dogs enjoy it and don't encounter any behavioral problems.

•Objects
Make sure your puppy comes across every little thing you can think of. This is wide open and includes items like harnesses, leashes, wheelchairs, strollers, hats, bike helmets, balls, scooters, crates, traffic cones, fences, Halloween decorations, leaves, sticks... the list goes on.

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Lastly, a note about health and safety. Unfortunately, the last round of puppy shots only occurs at approximately 16 weeks of age. Before this set of shots, your puppy is not fully protected against diseases, one of which is the deadly Parvovirus. You will have to use your best judgement in order to socialize within the critical period, but without the full set of shots. Here is my personal advice:

Everything can be sorted into high risk and low risk activities. I strongly suggest not skipping any of the socialization aspects, but proceeding with caution for a few.

•Visiting different homes and stores is a generally low risk activity. Many pet stores hold puppy classes and puppy playtime - these are wonderful for socialization. Floors are constantly sanitized, but keep in mind that dogs do come in and out all the time.

•Depending on where you live, walking around your neighborhood should not be too risky. Your own yard/property is even lower risk. Use your best judgement - do your neighbors vaccinate their dogs? What's the rate of Parvovirus cases in the area? Whatever you do though, don't keep your dog inside until they're 4 months old. Use a dog stroller if you are extremely concerned.

•Parks, lakes, forests, busy public places, etc can be higher risk. In general, you want to be cautious about outdoor areas that consistently have dogs and other animals moving through them. If you don't want to take the risk of letting your puppy walk and sniff around, I suggest using a doggie stroller or backpack. When it comes down to it, it's not the end of the world if you start this piece of socialization at 18 weeks instead of 8 weeks, as long as you are doing everything else.

•Good dog parks require all dogs to be fully vaccinated, and typically don't even allow puppies in until they're a minimum of 6 months old. Using dog parks that don't have these rules in place or have no way of checking vaccination records is a very high risk activity.

•Letting your puppy play with vaccinated dogs is safe! So is exposing and desensitizing your puppy to objects within your home.

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01/10/2021

***Topic: Everything about Puppy Mills***

Over the last few years, information about puppy mills has become more readily available. Unfortunately, puppy mills have adjusted their selling methods and continue to scam buyers through new, creative ways.

I want to point out that I'm going to make some comparisons to reputable breeders in this post. Whether breeding dogs should be done in the first place is a completely separate (and often heated) debate. You can be for or against regular breeding practices -- puppy mills are in an entirely different category.

*What are puppy mills?*

Puppy mills are breeding facilities that mass produce puppies for profit, with zero attention to health, socialization, safety, and humaneness.

Adult dogs that are used to make these puppies are abused and heavily neglected, often living their entire lives in small, outdoor cages with no proper heating, cooling, or protection from the elements. These dogs do not receive any proper grooming or medical attention - they become matted, their teeth rot in their mouths, and they sit all day and all night in their own filth. They are malnourished, unsocialized, and miserable in every sense of the word.

Female dogs are bred every single heat cycle from the time they are old enough to produce puppies. It's not uncommon to see a six month old puppy in heat being used to produce puppies of her own. If a female dog manages to live past 15 years of age, this means that she could have had up to 30 litters of puppies. A litter of seven puppies for a large breed is pretty average -- that's 210 puppies through her lifespan.

When adults become too weak to produce puppies, the best case scenario involves them being dumped at an animal shelter. The worst case scenario involves them being shot, drowned, or beaten to death.

Puppies that are produced and then sold often find themselves with loving families who were completely unaware that they supported animal abusers. Unfortunately, while these puppies are far better off than their parents, a large number of them inherit debilitating genetic conditions, diseases, and temperament issues due to the fact that puppy millers breed dogs without any proper health or genetic testing.

It's common for puppies to be sick when they are picked up by families, often arriving with treatable illnesses such as giardia. The real heartbreak comes later, when young dogs get diagnosed with fatal diseases such as dilated cardiomyopathy or mitral valve disease. These diseases can be breed specific and exist in dogs that come from reputable breeders as well, but the chance of encountering them with a puppy mill dog is much, much higher.

Most people have at least a vague idea that puppy mills are bad, even if they don't dive into specifics. Despite this, puppy mills successfully sell over 2 million puppies per year.

*How do you avoid puppy mills?*

1) Never buy a puppy from a pet store.

Puppy mills sell directly to pet stores, including major chains such as Petland. Reputable breeders do not sell dogs through pet stores or any kind of third party. While you might find an exception to the rule in some small town, family owned pet store, keep in mind that as a general rule, pet store = puppy mill.

2) Puppy mills don't health test their dogs.

This rule is a little less black and white. Reputable breeders always health test their dogs. Puppy mills never health test their dogs. There are quite a few people that fall between millers and reputable breeders - just because the dogs aren't health tested doesn't mean they're abused. Still, if you want a guarantee against puppy mills, get a puppy from health tested parents. Keep in mind that health testing is not the same as vet checks -- every breed has different requirements (OFA, cardiac evaluations, etc).

3) Puppy mills use third party sites.

If you find a website that is hosting more than one "breeder," you're likely looking at a website that hosts puppy mills. One example of this is the site "Lancaster Puppies." Keep in mind that these websites often say something like "no puppy mill guarantee" or "help stop puppy mills." They do it to give buyers a false sense of security.

4) If you can't meet the mom, there's a problem.

If you choose to buy a puppy, you MUST ask to view the parents of your puppy and their living conditions. Some breeders will not have the sire on premises, but they will always have the mother. Do NOT settle for a photo. If you are purchasing from a breeder in another state, ask for a live video call and tour of the area. Some breeders don't let buyers into their homes due to parvo concerns - again, live video is a must. The behavior and appearance of the dogs and living condition will tell you all you need to know. Any kind of excuse is a MAJOR red flag.
As a side note, most reputable breeders will also have plenty of pictures and videos of dogs lounging around on their couch, playing with kids, going on hikes, and clearly being treated like family members. Puppy mills obviously can't provide this.

5) Puppy mills sell many different breeds.

Regular breeders, whether they're reputable or not, don't keep a massive amount of dogs. Puppy mills are unique in the sense that they almost ALWAYS have puppies for sale, and those puppies can range from Golden Retrievers to Yorkiepoo's to mini Schnauzers, and everything in between. Puppy mills have a constant supply of puppies of all different shapes and sizes - purebreds, cute mixes -- whatever sells. If you see any kind of page or website advertising a large amount of unrelated breeds, you're looking at a puppy mill.

7) Puppy mills use brokers. Brokers lie.

In my opinion, this is the scam that is most difficult to avoid. Puppy mills work with brokers to sell their dogs. Brokers pretend they're breeders. They set up good looking websites that show cute puppies. There can be detailed personality descriptions, pages full of advice for new owners, testimonials from previous buyers, etc. It's all there. Some brokers even avoid advertising too many breeds so that they don't arouse suspicion. The one thing that is typically missing is information about the parents. Brokers won't have any kind of health testing information to give you, and if they say that they do, demand proof. They typically won't have a good picture of the adult dogs used for breeding, and again, if they do, demand an in-person meeting or video call.

As a concluding note, I'd like to say that many kind, loving people have accidentally bought a puppy from a puppy mill without knowing. People make mistakes, and at least with this mistake, some puppies ended up in wonderful homes! The scams are getting better and better. Education is the best way to move forward!

01/09/2021

***Topic: Can dogs really be hypoallergenic?***

The short answer to this question is yes, dogs can be hypoallergenic. However, there's a bit more to it.

Hypoallergenic does NOT mean "non-allergenic." When people start throwing this term around, more often than not, they assume that hypoallergenic dogs cannot trigger allergic reactions in people with pet allergies. This is incorrect. The definition of hypoallergenic is a LOWER chance of causing allergies.

Whether or not you will get an allergic reaction from a hypoallergenic dog depends on several factors.

People with dog allergies are typically allergic to proteins in dander, saliva, and/or urine. When discussing hypoallergenic dogs, the hypoallergenic element applies ONLY to dander allergies. Unfortunately, if your allergy has to do with saliva, it won't matter whether you are licked by a Poodle or a Great Dane - you will experience a reaction.

If you have a dander allergy, a regular, non-hypoallergenic dog will clearly trigger an allergic reaction. A hypoallergenic dog is LESS LIKELY to trigger the reaction, and if a reaction is triggered, the strength of the reaction is often lower than it would be otherwise. However, this will be determined solely by your body's response to the allergen and the strength of your allergy.

Next, the question is what makes a dog hypoallergenic. There is a clear correlation with non-shedding breeds being hypoallergenic, even though most people aren't allergic to dog hair.

***This is because most non-shedding breeds produce and spread less dander than shedding breeds.***

I'd also like to point out that when referring to dogs as non-shedding, I am talking about dogs that do not leave any hair on clothing, furniture, etc. All dogs lose a little hair, especially when being groomed or brushed, but non-shedding dogs don't leave traces around the house. Their "shedding" is comparable to how humans lose hair.

Common hypoallergenic purebreds include but are not limited to: Poodles, Shih Tzu's, Havanese, Maltese, and Bichon Frise. If you have a severe allergy to dogs, I personally recommend sticking with a purebred due to the hypoallergenic guarantee.

The popularity of mixed breeds has skyrocketed over the last few decades, and while there are several reasons for this, one of them is that people want to get a low shedding, hypoallergenic version of their favorite breed. For example, people hope that the popular Cavalier King Charles can be turned into a non-shedding dog by breeding them with a Bichon Frise, creating Cavachons, or with a small Poodle, creating Cavapoo's.

The question becomes... does it work? Can a Cavalier/Poodle mix really be hypoallergenic?

**The answer is: it depends on how the genetics play out.**

If we stick with the example of a Cavapoo, you will find that some are non-shedding and hypoallergenic - producing and spreading far less dander than a purebred Cavalier. You will also find that some Cavapoo's DO shed, and produce and spread as much dander as a purebred Cavalier. Welcome to mixed breed genetics :)

I'm not going to dive too far into this, but if you have allergies and want a mixed breed dog instead of a purebred, follow this guide. I will keep the example of a Cavapoo, but it can also be applied to other mixed breeds as well. We are specifically looking at breeding a hypoallergenic dog x a non-hypoallergenic dog --- two different hypoallergenic breeds mixed together will produce hypoallergenic puppies 100% of the time.

F1: purebred x purebred - 50% Cavalier, 50% Poodle

This mix produces a range of pups - SOME are hypoallergenic, but I would not recommend it to allergy sufferers. This mix can range from heavy shedders to non-shedders, with many owners reporting that their dog has some mild shedding, but nowhere as much as a purebred Cavalier.

F1b: purebred x F1 - 25% Cavalier, 75% Poodle

This is the best *common* mixed breed option for people with allergies. Again, I'd like to stress that with a non-hypo x hypo mixed breed, there is never a guarantee that the puppy will turn out hypoallergenic. However, MOST F1b puppies have very low shedding or no shedding at all. As a personal example, my F1b Goldendoodle is completely non-shedding and does not trigger any allergic reactions in my family.

*Note: F1bb (87.5% Poodle) is the mix that will produce the highest rate of hypoallergenic puppies. This mix is very hard to find due to many buyers wanting their Cavapoo to be at least 1/4th Cavalier.

F1b reverse: purebred x F1 - 75% Cavalier, 25% Poodle

This mix is less common, but AVOID IT if you have allergies. The chances of getting a hypoallergenic puppy are very low - most will shed, and some will shed as much as a purebred Cavalier. This mix is really more for people who want Cavalier's with greater genetic diversity and less for people who care about shedding or allergens.

F2: F1 x F1 - 50% Cavalier, 50% Poodle

This mix is the least predictable - overall, it's not good for people with allergies. In the same litter, you can end up with a huge range of different coats, including puppies that will grow up to shed as much as a purebred Cavalier. It is possible to find a hypoallergenic puppy, but I personally would not play these odds.

F2b: F1 x F1b - 37.5% Cavalier, 62.5% Poodle

This mix is not a bad option for people with allergies, especially if they're fairly mild. While the chances of getting a hypoallergenic puppy aren't quite as good as they are with the F1b mix, people who are willing to gamble are still playing with pretty good odds here. This mix is a good compromise for people who want a hypoallergenic dog with a high amount of Cavalier in it.

As a reminder, this post has nothing to do with whether breeding mixes is good or bad, right or wrong, etc -- I am focusing ONLY on the topic of hypoallergenic dogs 🐾

(Photo Credit: Suzie Gardner Photography)

10/22/2020

My team 🖤

Remy - my Goldendoodle. He plays with the dogs and keeps them company during walks! He especially likes hanging out with his best friend Maizie, a Dachshund mix.

Nola - my Shih Tzu. She helps welcome new dogs into my home and kindly shares her favorite spaces with them. She's too lazy to play, but she makes them feel right at home.