Aloha Bears Kennel RELOADED

The house is undergoing renovation. And so is our kennel. Here are some shots of the work in progress.The big dogs are squatting here in the meantime while their own dog houses get refurbished.

Shih Tzu Care

A little Shih Tzu Grooming Info from dogbreedinfo.com--

Grooming
These little dogs require a good daily grooming using a bristle
brush. A topknot is usually tied with a bow so that the dog can see properly.
Some owners prefer to have them trimmed to make the coat easier and less time
consuming to care for. Keep the ear passages and area around the eyes clean.
Shih-Tzu's have sensitive eyes that should be keep clean. There is special drops
you can buy to put in them if needed. Ask your vet what to use on your dog. This
breed sheds little to no hair and are good for allergy suffers if their coats
are kept very well groomed. (Due the fact that they shed little skin dander.)

More info on the Chrysantemum Dog at http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/shihtzu.htm

Dogs and Pneumonia

Been researching on pneumonia in dogs ever since two of ours got diagnosed with it recently. I found this site where you can ask questions about dogs and other experienced dog owners can help you out with the answers--

Expert: Patti

Date: 7/11/2004

Subject: dogs-pneumonia

QuestionA friend recently got a puppy who came down with double pnumonia. She is currently being treated, but how long will it take before she is 100%? Now her other dog has begun to cough, will he recover quicker if it is treated sooner? how long should I keep my dogs away for?

Answer

Hi Meredith, The outcome of dogs with pneumonia is largely dependent on the cause of the pneumonia and the severity of the infection. It can take at least 2-3 days before the antibiotics to begin working. Tell your friend to follow the directions which the vet has given, and be sure to dispense all of the medication, and the puppy should have a total recovery. Antibiotics are usually given for at least three weeks, but that can go longer depending on the dog's clinical results. Regarding your second question, yes, a quick diagnosis will lead to a quick recovery, with less possibilities for complications. If the other dog is coughing, it should be taken to see the vet as soon as possible. It may have been exposed, and pneumonia is very contagious. Ask the vet how long to keep the dogs separated. Keep the puppy warm and dry and see that he gets plenty of water to drink while he's healing from pneumonia. If your friend has a moist air humidifier, place it near where the puppy spends a lot of time, as the moist air will help him breathe easier. (Make sure the humidifier is kept clean). Tell
your friend not to over-exercise the puppy; allow only what your puppy can tolerate. Do not allow the puppy to get short of breath during exercise/activity. Use a harness instead of a collar; this is less restricting to the neck, and will allow the puppy to breathe easier. The puppy should not be around people who smoke. I hope I've been a help.

Best of luck,

Patti

http://experts.about.com/q/Dogs-701/dogs-pneumonia.htm

Aloha Bears' Beagles

Aloha Bears' Snoopy

Aloha Bears' Shorty

Aloha Bears' Scooby

Dam: Jemane's Jeeper

(Sire: Puerto Rico of Timbuktu)

Show Quality Dogs

Somebody asked me what the difference between show quality and pet quality dogs. I did some research and found this informative article about the difference between show quality and pet quality beagles--

ALADAR BEAGLES

PET QUALITY OR SHOW QUALITY

The average dog owner considers all dogs "pets". But in show dogs terms this has a different connotation. While all my dogs are my "pets" (dogs that I love and care for)-I make a distinction between the show potential and pet quality puppies when selling them.

The term "pet quality" to a show breeder means that there is something with that particular puppy that would decrease or remove any chance of it being championship material. To the untrained eye, often these imperfections would not be seen.

In beagles this may mean, short ears, wrong coat color, one crooked tooth or many crooked teeth, legs too long, toes too flat, tail with a small kink, light colored eyes, undescended testicles, muzzle too narrow, tail set to low on body, tail carried to high over back,bow legged in the rear, chest two wide in front, too large with potential to grow to over 15 inches height at the shoulders( this is a disqualifying fault with AKC).... etc. These things do not make a dog less a pet or less able to love his new home. Again to the average person many of these things would not even be noticed.

Here is a picture of a puppy I sold as a "pet". She was very small, had short ears and her muzzle looked short to me and I could not imagine breeding her due to her size. The family that got her loves her dearly. She has made a wonderful "pet". She has turned out as I expected and has the home she deserves; sleeping in her human's bed and being the center of attention.

Determining "pet quality vs show potential" is an individual breeders decision based on the interpretation of the AKC beagle standard and the needs of a breeding program. REPUTABLE BREEDERS sell all "pets quality" puppies with a spay/neuter contract and limited registration. PET QUALITY puppies are NOT breeding stock.

"SHOW POTENTIAL" puppies are those puppies that I judge at that age to be capable of achieving an AKC championship at maturity. This is of course depends on the fact that they grow up to look as I expect. A breeder makes an educated guess based on past experiences. I recently had big puppy bitch that I would have bet the house would grow to be a 15". Well, at six months of age she is only 12 1/2" and may stay a 13" MUCH TO MY AMAZEMENT. Her father is a line which I have not used before, so there were different genetics at work.

The cost of pet quality and show potential varies with show potential being the most costly. Most show breeders will not sell their show quality puppies to homes that only want pets. Many breeders have waiting list-so if you are looking for a pet beagle contact those in your area.

Please read the sections on TEN REASONS NOT TO BUY FROM A PET SHOP and WHAT ARE BACKYARD BREEDERS???

Reputable breeders want all their puppies to be loved and to be someone's "pet". But we must make decisions on which of our puppies are good enough to be shown and hopefully mature in to future breeding stock. Future breeding stock should be better than their parents and are to be cherished. Many champions are finished but this alone does not make that beagle breeding stock. A breeder should only breed the best;striving with each generation to improve the health, structure, and overall quality of their beagles.

Author-Ruth Darlene Stewart

source: http://www.geocities.com/aladarbeagles/pet.html