Top 10 Persistent Pet Myths That Just Won’t Die

With love of pets leading to some amazing and outrageous beliefs, don’t wait for your next vet visit to begin researching them. Below are the top ten pet myths that have plagued pet owners for decades as debunked by veterinarians, researchers, and other experts. 

1. Cats smother babies. As answered by the U.K. site Safe Kids, the myth that cats will purposely smother babies is just that. While cats have been known to explore the new nursery and curl up next to a heat source such as a baby, it has not been proven that cats smother on purpose. The most important thing for cat owners with an infant to remember is to keep the nursery door closed.

Symptoms you should never ignore in your pets

In these tough economic times, pet owners are looking for ways to save money on their pets. Unfortunately, this also leads people to delay seeking medical care because they're uncertain if a visit to the vet is absolutely necessary. Most people know if a pet has collapsed, had a seizure, is bleeding, bloated, unable to walk, or has been injured they should see their veterinarian quickly. But what about other, more subtle symptoms? When should you absolutely, positively take your pet to the veterinarian? Here are examples of some common clinical signs that you should never ignore in your dog or cat.

1. Difficulty Breathing

Any changes in your dog's or cat's breathing needs to be addressed immediately. Because cats and small dogs have small respiratory tracts, even seemingly minor breathing issues can quickly lead to life-threatening situations. If your dog or cat is coughing, panting more than normal, fatigues easily, or suddenly has loud or noisy breathing, it should be examined by your veterinarian immediately. Heart and lung disease, infections, obstructions, and more can cause sudden breathing problems.

11 things you probably dont know about pet deaths

Pets die with their eyes open. It takes active muscle control to close the eyes. (The same is true of humans.)

2. Many pets "hide" when they are sick. This is a defensive mechanism to prevent predators from spotting them in a vulnerable state.

Puppy Socialization; What it entails.

You have your new puppy. You want to do everything right. Friends have told you that you need to “socialize” her, @wildeji always mentions the concept on Twitter, yet you are still confused.
Socialization is an important,yet often misunderstood concept in raising puppies. In the next few paragraphs, I am going to help explain what we,as trainers mean by socialization, what type of socialization exercises are beneficial to your puppy and which can be harmful.
In a nutshell, socialization means exposing a puppy to a variety of experiences,places, animals, other dogs and people in a manner that will not frighten the puppy, but rather allow her to gain confidence in these situations.