Everyone knows the saying: “You can’t teach an old dog new trick!” And while there’s truth to that, the owner of an older dog knows that aging dogs develop some new tricks, even though they aren’t taught them. Since some of those tricks (like increased vocalization, accidents around the house, and night time waking) aren’t tricks you’ll like very much, you’ll need some tricks of your own, and maybe some treats and treatments, to keep life with your beloved pet pleasant for everyone.

Tricks to try with your aging dog

One of the most frequent conditions older dogs develop is urinary incontinence. This could be due to one of several medical conditions, but it’s likely just to be weaker muscle tone around the urethra. One of the most certain tricks to guard against wet spots in the house is to walk your dog more frequently. It’s an obvious thing to do, but it helps in two ways – it gives the dog more opportunities to empty his bladder, and it gives him the exercise he needs to help keep mentally and physically fit.

Many elementary school classrooms are tempted to keep pets in the classrooms to provide some experiential learning for the students. Guinea pigs are a common choice. Come December or June, however, the school will be closed for weeks or months at a time, and someone has to care for those pets. Teachers sometimes step in, but often a class parent is called upon to help, and sometimes that vacation visit turns into forever. What should you do if you inherit the class pets?

Learn the basics of guinea pig care

The first thing to know is that if the class has two guinea pigs, you should be kind enough to take them both. Guinea pigs are social animals and are happiest when housed with another guinea pig of the same gender. Each guinea pig does best with eight square feet of cage space, however, so two guinea pigs mean a rather large cage. Make sure that the one you’re given for the guinea pigs has solid flooring, as guinea pigs can’t stand up to wire mesh underfoot.

We all have some clothes lying around that either don’t fit or are simply out of fashion nowadays. Jeans, sweaters that our grandmothers have sown for us and other similar stuff can be creatively re purposed to fit our four-legged companions’ needs or, if you happen to own a fashionable dog or a contest-prize winner cat, their quirks. It has become very common nowadays to have clothes wearing pets, as they are getting closer to us. If you happen to have a sweater, some t-shirts and a pair of old jeans lying around and don’t really know what to do with them, but would love to re purpose, here a few tips.

    •    Turn the t-shirts into toys!

You’re going to want to use those old, time ridden t-shirts and jeans to make your adorable little pet some new toys, especially if you’ve just about had it with squeaky stuff all day long and can no longer hear your thoughts when trying to work. Let’s start by getting a few t-shirts for our best friend, the loyal dog. We’ll be using two t-shirts and a pair of scissors to make a braided chewing toy which you can throw away when you next take your dog for a walk in the park. The results are quite… fetching!

All cats love chasing mice. And we all cat lovers like our fluffy kittens to be happy. So every one of us needs to know how to make a toy mouse to keep our furry friends entertained and give them a way to consume the seemingly infinite amount of energy they have, climbing all day around the house, playing with us regardless of what we’re doing and chasing every little thing that dared to move in their line of sight.

What do I need to get started?

A mouse toy doesn’t require perfect skills or top quality materials. You can take something you have around the house and just put a little heart into it. You just need a piece of material, like an old shirt, a scarf or a tie you don’t feel like wearing anymore, a piece of paper with a printed mouse shape, a pair of scissors, a needle and a thread to sew everything in place.
Okay, I have everything. What do I do next?

The Lazy Man’s Pet

If you would like a low maintenance pet then Goldfish are a good choice. They don’t bark, wreck your furniture or wake you up in the morning but they are easy on the eye especially if they have different markings. These different markings are due to the fact that there are different varieties such as Shubunkins, Comets, Lion heads, Blackheads, Fantails and Veil tails. But in this instance we are going to stick with the beginners - one small round tank occupied by two small Goldfish of the same variety.

Selecting Healthy Goldfish