Archive for November 11th, 2008

Outdoor Dog Houses – Build Your Own Doghouse Or Buy Pre-Built Dog House

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

Today, you can find many types of outdoor doghouses available in pet stores such as wooden doghouses, cedar wood doghouses and even igloo dog houses with heaters.

If you have a large sized dog, it would be best to keep it outdoors. However, before you do that, you need a shelter for your dog. Dog houses protect your pet from the wind, sun and cold winters. What type of doghouse you need depends a lot on your needs and your budget, so do a bit of thinking before buying one.

Traditionally, most doghouses come with a triangular roof which looks like a small hut. The most common material used is mostly wood which is practical although nowadays, you can choose different types of wood for your dog house such as cedarwood.

If you decide on building your own outdoor doghouse, I found several simple dog house plans online that are practical and shouldn´t require too much time and money. Alternatively, you can visit the bookstore or Amazon to buy doghouse plans.

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What to Know for Breeding Labradors

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

There are some things you should know if you are interested in breeding Labradors.  Especially if you want to breed labradors for a dog show. The goal of breeding Labradors, or any dog, is for the puppy to have the ideal characteristics for which you are looking.  However, you won’t know which dogs to breed if you do not know which characteristics are most favorable in Labrador dogs. Learning these traits will help you to be a successful breeder of Labradors. It could make all the difference in winning that first place ribbon at any dog show.

There are certain variations of the Labrador breed that would be actually be penalized in a dog show. For instance, the Labrador retriever could be one. The retriever is a medium-sized dog with a short coat, small ears, and a short thick tail and is not considered “show” qualities.  Likewise are the weedy, light dogs, the leggy, tall dogs, the low-stationed, long dogs, and the lumbering, cloddy dogs. These will all earn penalties in the dog shows as they are contradictory to the proportionate and sturdy build of the ideal Labrador.

Certain anatomical characteristics are important when breeding Labradors. Ideally, the Labrador’s head should include a broad snout, clean cheeks, powerful muzzle, and, white teeth.The dog's nose color can vary, depending on the dog&quots coat color. The nostrils should be wide and open. The eyes should be a slightly triangular-shape and have a kind expression.  Finally, the ears should be short and be triangular in shape and should drop.

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