Did you know:
The dog’s shoulder blades (scapula) sit unattached from the rest of the dog skeleton. This allows for greater flexibility and stride length. Unlike humans, the dog's shoulder are partially disconnected from the skeleton. They are completely unattached at the top but there are several muscle and ligament attachments at the bottom. This is why they are such great runners!
Here is a list of items that are commonly found around the house during the holidays that pose a number of dangers to our pups:
Food
Plants
Decorations
Be careful when decorating your home for the holidays. Keep all dangerous items elevated and out of Fido's reach. When preparing for Christmas dinner, be sure to keep your pup out of the kitchen to ensure that they don't swipe any delicious items off the counter.
Source (Image): Buzzfeed
Did you know: Dogs have 3 eyelids!
That's right, they have 3 eyelids. They have the obvious upper and lower eyelid like we do, as well as a 3rd eyelid on the very inside of their eye that is also known as the nictitating membrane.
The 3rd eyelid serves many purposes. It helps to clear debris off of the cornea, acts as a shield to protect the cornea from trauma, it produces tears which helps keep the dog's eye lubricated, and contains lymphoid tissue which acts as a lymph node and produces antibodies to fight infection.
Source (Image): Merck Manual
Source (Image): TopTenz
Body condition scoring is a way to determine if your pup is of the appropriate size for their body. Sometimes we think that they look great, until we bring them for their annual Veterinary visit and the doctor notes that they under or overweight. Body condition scoring is a standardized way to assess an animal's size.
Scoring allows Veterinarians and owners to share information back and forth. It can be used to determine the % of body weight a pet may need to gain or loose. You can also use it to track progress along the way.
Below is a scoring chart by Hill, click this link to see the chart and descriptions close up: Hills Pet Body Scoring Chart
