Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Zoe Makes A New Friend!


We were shopping at Petsmart the other night when Zoe decided to make friends with one of their birds. I'm not sure she was actually making friends with him, maybe she was thinking, "Oh! This is where chicken nuggets come from!" Either way it was pretty cute!


Here's a video of Zoe making friends with the bird! Look at how cute she is!

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Halo Liv-a-Littles Grain-Free Dog Treats Review


Hi everyone! I hope you're all having a fantastic Tuesday! It's time for our monthly Chewy.com review! If you didn't know, chewy.com is an amazing company that ships your favorite pet products right to your door! They have amazing customer service and their shipping is incredibly fast. We received our treats as part of the chewy.com blogger program in exchange for an honest review.


Today we are reviewing Halo Liv-a-Littles Grain-Free 100% Farm-Raised Rabbit Freeze-Dried Dog & Cat Treats! These treats are a bite-sized, single ingredient treat that are perfect for rewarding good behavior. They are high in protein and are freeze-dried to lock in the flavor and nutritional benefits of protein-rich rabbit. These versatile treats are especially fitting for multi-pet households, as they make a healthy snack for both cats and dogs. You can also crumble them up and use them as a topper for your pet's food. The treats are sourced from farm-raised rabbit in the United States.


Key Benefits Include:
  • All-natural rabbit treat
  • Suitable for cats and dogs
  • High-protein snack
  • 100% grain-free
  • Freeze-dried to lock in the flavor and nutritional benefits
  • Serve on its own or crumble over food at mealtime




My dogs absolutely loved these treats. They considered them very high value and were really excited to have them. They are the perfect size for training. I would definitely get these again and I recommend checking them out!

Happy Tasty Tuesday everyone!

Monday, September 28, 2015

Ouch & New Trick Video!!!


Happy Monday Mischief everyone! This past weekend I managed to get into some mischief all by myself. I accidentally sliced the tip and corner of my middle finger open on a blender blade. Of course it's my right hand, too. Sigh... I forgot it was in the dishwasher and stuck my hand in there to put dishes away. OUCH. It's deep and really sore.

So my fellow blogger friends, if you only get a few words and a sentence or two from me when I visit you this week, you'll know why!

One thing that I did manage to get done this weekend, before the disaster that was my finger, was the production of our newest trick video and YouTube channel trailer! I am really excited to finally show it to you! We did have a minor hiccup with a copyright issue on the first song I chose, so I had to take it down and redo the video with a different song. I don't like the replacement song as much as the first one but it works okay.



I hope you guys like the new video! Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Friday, September 25, 2015

Japanese Gardens


This week we visited a new park! We went to the main city park in Gresham. 

It's a really nice park and it also has a Japanese Garden. 


The girls had fun wandering around! They really like exploring new places! 


It was really quiet and we had the place to ourselves for the most part! 


Happy Fit Dog Friday everyone! I hope you all have an awesome weekend! 

Thursday, September 24, 2015

PetSafe Train 'N Praise Review


Hi everyone! I hope you're all having a great day! Today I have a review for you on a really neat device! The Train 'N Praise is a remote triggered treat dispenser! Zoe was very excited by this thing! She thought it was a puzzle toy! It was so funny! We received our Train 'N Praise in exchange for an honest review.

PetSafe is a company that makes a variety of pet products. They have all sorts of things! We've used their gentle leaders, harnesses and puzzle toys! Zoe really likes their interactive toys.

The first thing we did was break out the manual and read it! 
The directions are simple and we figured it out really quickly!

About the Train 'N Praise
The Train 'N Praise helps you teach your pet remotely. The handheld remote activates the treat dispenser from up to 25 feet away, so you can reward good behavior immediately. You can use it to keep your pet away from the door when a visitor arrives, to reward your pet for not barking, it can be used to add distance to your dog's training cues, you can use it to teach a long down stay, basically the sky is the limit! 

You can put treats up to 1/2" in size in it. I've been using some small round training treats and also kibble. The treat dispenser can be mounted to a wall or free standing, has a low battery indicator, and is AC adapter compatible. The treat dispenser can be used to train both dogs and cats! How cool is that!?


Check out our video of the girls trying the Train 'N Praise!

The girls were a little wary of the treat dispenser at first. It beeps and vibrates and it is sort of loud. Zoe got over her fear of it a lot faster than Phoenix and she actually thought that it was some sort of weird puzzle toy. I think Phoenix's fear of it was more that she was worried about Zoe eating her for touching "Zoe's toy" than the noise it made. Once I put Zoe away and gave her a chance to try it on her own, Phoenix was fine. 

My dogs have had a lot of different puzzle toys in the past and because of that, Zoe did try pawing at it a bit to see if that made the thing work. When she wasn't rewarded for that behavior she stopped doing it. She quickly figured out that I was the one triggering the machine. You definitely have to 100% supervise with this treat machine. It isn't very secure and a determined dog could definitely knock it over and get the food out. My cat was able to get into it one night when I forgot to pick it up. 



I've been using the Train 'N Praise to teach long down stays (especially during our dinner time, to stop the begging) and I've also been using it for counter conditioning my dogs to "apartment complex" noises. They've been reactive lately to the sound of other dogs, specifically tags jingling. It's been going really well! I've had a couple of times where the machine jammed and didn't spit the treats out, but I just shook it and that was all it needed. 

The only thing I don't love about the machine is that I think it spits out too many treats. Emma's mom told me to set it for smaller treats and that did help! I also wish there was some different settings on it. The only way to trigger it is by pushing the button. It would be nice if I could tell it to dispense X amount of treats per X amount of seconds. I also wish it held more food and was a bit more secure. I'm sure if I mounted it that would solve the secure issue, but I'd like to be able to move it around so I'd rather not mount it. As long as my pets are supervised and I remember to put it away at night, things have been fine.

Overall, I really like having a remote treat dispenser. It's been very useful over the past few weeks and I am pretty happy with it! I don't always hit my mark when I toss treats, my aim is very poor so it's nice to have the treat machine right there. It's also been helpful for rewarding both dogs at the same time. The dog that's near me gets a cookie hand delivered to them and the other dog gets the button pressed. I'm going to try working with Phoenix and getting some distance with the treat machine next! I'll keep everyone updated on how that goes! 

I would recommend checking the Train 'N Praise out! It could be the perfect addition to your training program! My dogs have had so much fun with it!






Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Kisses!


I recently took the girls to the pet store and we practiced some tricks there! 
Here's one of our favorites! 
Kisses! 

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Brothers Complete Premium Dog Food Review


Hi everyone! Happy Tasty Tuesday to you! Today I am really excited because I have a review for you on a new brand called Brothers Complete! Brothers Complete makes dog food, they offer 4 different formulas (3 out of 4 cater to pets with allergies) and they also have a great selection of treats! Brothers Complete has a 5 STAR rating on Dog Food Advisor

Zoe and Phoenix are fed a rotational diet and we were happy to work Brothers Complete in! We received our food and treats in exchange for an honest review.

Sorry for the glare, their packaging is a bit difficult to photograph! 



 About Brothers Complete  

Brothers Complete is a small family-owned and operated business! The Brothers Complete family made the decision to create their own kibble as a result of their experience running a successful dog food store in Florida, where they observed the recurring problems that affected so many dogs who eat commercial food. After years of research running elimination diets with their customer's dogs in an effort to find solutions to the sensitivities the dogs had, they decided to take matters into their own hands and make the healthiest kibble possible themselves. As a starting point they eliminated all grain, potato, and sugar that their elimination diets had shown to have a negative impact on the animals health and well being. They designed their kibble with high levels of protein, and over 90% of it is species appropriate animal based protein. They use ingredients that are sourced in the USA. Brothers Complete includes "selective prebiotics" and "encapsulated probiotics" combined with digesztive enzymes, nutrients, and ingredients that are intricately balanced in relation to one another (instead of random quantities that simply fall somewhere in between the high and low limits that AAFCO recommends).


 
Brothers Complete offers four different formulas: Venison & Egg, Turkey & Egg, Chicken & Egg and Lamb & Egg

Having a variety of different proteins is great because if your pup has food sensitivities you can pick the food that will work best for them! The girls do not have food sensitivities but I sympathize with anyone who is going through it with their dog! Our kitty has really bad food allergies so we know your pain! It can be really tough finding a food that works well. 

Brothers Complete uses eggs in all of their formulas. Eggs are great because they contain all 22 amino acids! They are the only protein source that is 100% bioavailable, which means the body uses them completely! 

All of their dog food formulas are grain and potato free! Grains and potatoes tend to be problematic for dogs so it's awesome that they don't include them in their foods. 

 
Brothers Complete has very high standards for their foods, not only do they make their food in small batches, they are also very careful how the food is stored. They do not allow their food to sit around in hot warehouses, like most companies. The warehouse at Brothers Complete are air conditioned to make sure that the food maintains it's freshness and nutritional bioavailability. 




Zoe was so excited about trying this food that she couldn't hold her stay. She just started eating! 




Both girls really enjoyed the food! They did very well on it, too! No tummy upsets and no itching.




Brothers Complete also offers a variety of treats and chewies! Their treats also cater to dogs with food sensitivities! Just like their food, their treats do not contain any grain, white potato or sugar.
They have biscuits, dehydrated chicken or sweat potato treats and a variety of bully sticks! 

Phoenix wants me to hurry up and take the photo so she can eat the biscuits!

Buffalo Biscuits

Zoe tries Dehydrated Sweet Potato

The Dehydrated Sweet Potato was a huge hit!
 
Overall I am really impressed with Brothers Complete! I really appreciate their care and attention to detail when making products for our dogs. My dogs really liked all of the items we got and they did great on the food! I really wish they'd make an allergy-friendly cat food! 
 
I would definitely recommend checking out Brothers Complete and giving them a try! You won't be disappointed!
 
ZoePhee was provided with a variety of food and treats from Brothers Complete in exchange for an honest review. Brothers Complete is not responsible for the content of this blog post. All opinions are my own. As always, please do your own research and possibly consult a professional before switching up your dog's diet. ZoePhee is not responsible for any issues that occurs by using these products.

Monday, September 21, 2015

If It Fits, It Ships!


Christmas came early at the ZoePhee house!


 We recently received a rather large package from my inlaws, so big that both dogs fit in the box! 

Sunday, September 20, 2015

Sleepy!


Phoenix says it's hard work being a review dog! It's time for a nap!

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Friday, September 18, 2015

Fit Dog Update!

Zoe looks amazing! YAY!

Today I just wanted to give a quick update on Zoe! If you remember, when we lived with our inlaw's there wasn't a whole lot of activities for the dogs to do. Zoe ended up gaining a bit of weight there. She never went past "ideal" to "overweight", thankfully but I generally prefer my dogs on the other end of ideal.



Now that we've moved back to Oregon, she's lost 4lbs and gained a ton of muscle. I am really happy with the way she looks and I think she's feeling a lot better, too! There's a lot of more activities and things for us to do here and we've been having so much fun!


I hope everyone has an awesome weekend! Happy Fit Dog Friday!

Thursday, September 17, 2015

Littermate Syndrome and the Importance of Getting Dogs Out Separately


When I was thinking about getting a second dog, someone told me "two are easier than one!" She was wrong, SO wrong. Let me tell you, two are not easier than one, especially if you get two littermates. (My two dogs are NOT littermates.) Sure, having two dogs and watching them cuddle and play is wonderful but it's not all rainbows and butterflies. Let me explain. Two dogs are actually three times the work! Each dog needs separate walks and training sessions but they also need to walked and trained together!

In the past, I didn't do so good with the separate walks and outings. The past few weeks I've been trying to get better about it and I've been walking the girls separately in the afternoon. When we first got Phoenix we took her wherever Zoe went and she learned a lot of things from Zoe. Zoe taught her that not all strangers are evil and not every dog is bad. It's been really good for her but I've also recently learned that she depends on Zoe for her confidence. She's is very unsure of what to do without Zoe around. Zoe does a lot better than Phoenix on her separate walks. We had a few moments of "hey, where's the other one?" but Zoe was mostly fine and actually happy to be out by herself.

We hung out together, played and did tricks!

Littermate syndrome is a real thing. I've seen it in client dogs and we are experiencing a mild form of it when the girls are separated. There are different types of littermate syndrome and your dogs don't actually have to be littermates to have it. It can happen with family dogs just as easily. I generally don't recommend getting two puppies at the same time but sometimes it can work out if the family is dedicated enough. Each dog needs individual time with the owner and the puppies should be separated every single day. Teaching dogs that it's okay to be alone should be a part of everyone's training program.

One type of littermate syndrome that is common between two female puppies (it can happen with male/females and male/males but it's not as common as female/female) is hate for each other. This happens all the time. The dogs were fine when they were little then suddenly they got older and they were no longer fine. People go on dog forums and contact trainers to find out what they should do and usually it is recommended that one of the puppies finds a new home. I'm not a big fan of crate and rotating but that can be an option for some people. I've personally seen serious fights between two female dogs who grew up together and most of the time they required a vet to patch them up. If the dogs have decided that they hate each other and they are fighting, please get a pro trainer or behaviorist to help you.

Don't take my sister away!

Another form of littermate syndrome is hyper-attachment and depending on the severity you might need a pro trainer here as well. If you can't take one dog away from the other without them freaking out, you have a hyper-attachment problem. It's a lot like separation anxiety and I've heard of some cases where one dog was removed and another destroyed an entire door trying to get out to find them. Or barking and screaming endlessly. This is not healthy. At some point in your dogs lives, they might need to be separated. One of them might get sick and have to stay at the vet hospital. You might have to take them to the groomer and they need to be crated separately for their safety. At some point they may need to be apart and preventing an anxiety attack is important.

When you have multiple dogs, you should be doing separate walks, separate training sessions and they should each have one on one time with you. When we got Phoenix she was so skittish of us that we relied on Zoe to help us out with her. We needed Zoe to show Phoenix that she could trust us. I did separate training sessions with each dog but I didn't do a whole lot of separate outings. It was a mistake and I'm lucky they are not hyper-attached to each other. They both experience some mild anxiety when the other dog leaves. I think the anxiety on Zoe's part is more that she wants to go and she can't. Zoe is actually fine if I leave her with a stuffed kong and she is able to eat. Phoenix is very attached to both Zoe and myself and is definitely upset that I'm taking Zoe away. She will not take a stuffed kong and she doesn't want any other special treats either. She is better if I stay home with her and it's my husband who is leaving with Zoe.

I love separate walks with mom!

So what do you do with a dog who freaks out when the other dog leaves? I'm treating it just like separation anxiety and we are doing a separation anxiety protocol. The link I provided goes into great detail on how to work with the dog and it's an amazing article. There's also a great video by Kikopup on training your dog to love being alone and you can find it here: How To Train Your Dog to be Left Alone

With doing the training, it can sometimes take me a little while to get out the door with Zoe but I'm noticing that Phoenix is less worried about it. She's not thrilled that we are leaving without her but she does okay. When we started this training I began with very short outings with Zoe. We would go out and come right back in and then I gradually increased the time we were gone. I'm hoping that by continuing to do this, Phoenix will be confident going out into the world without Zoe and also be okay with staying home when I take Zoe. I'm wanting to do dog sports eventually with them and they would likely be attending separate classes so this is a really good start.

If you have multiple dogs, I would highly recommend doing the separation training. It's good for them and they need one on one time with you. I've been loving spending time with each of my dogs on our own and we've been having fun. I always feel a little guilty right as I'm leaving but it passes pretty quickly.

If you have any questions or need help, feel free to email me. I also have additional resources on my training page.









Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Serious Recall!


Phoenix cracks me up! She's really serious about coming back so she can get her cookies! 

Is your dog serious about their training?

Tuesday, September 15, 2015

One Dog Organic Bakery Review & GIVEAWAY


Hi everyone! Happy Tasty Tuesday! Today I have a review for you on some freshly baked goodies from One Dog Organic Bakery! One Dog Organic Bakery is a small family owned and operated business located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Every treat is hand crafted by the owner, Veronica and her husband, Dale! How cool is that? All of their recipes are grain, wheat, soy, corn and gluten free. We received our treats in exchange for an honest review.


About One Dog Organic Bakery:
The beginning of this business has a sad story. Veronica and Dale lost a beloved kitty due to kidney failure caused by the Melamine Food recall 8 years ago. From the tragedy, a passion for pet safety, health and wellness was born. Veronica had been dreaming of starting her own business and with the love and support from her family she is able to live her dream by providing our dogs with a trusted, safe organic dog treat that are free of imported ingredients, by-products, fillers, dyes, colors and chemicals. All the ingredients they use in their recipes are sourced from America and they are certified Organic and GMO-free! They also offer custom recipe options for pets who have food allergies at no extra charge. I think that by itself is amazing. You will not find very many companies willing to make a custom recipe for your pet's specific allergy. They have a huge selection of over 40 different products! They are also a certified Green business, which means they use recycled materials in their packaging and shipping materials.

Here are the goodies we received: 

 

Ingredients: Organic Buckwheat Flour, Organic Peanut Butter, Organic Dried Cranberries, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Nutmeg, Organic Cage-Free Eggs, GMO-Free Vitamin C, GMO-Free Vitamin E

This is a nice size biscuit treat. The girls really liked these!




The Monster Bone

Ingredients: Organic Buckwheat Flour, Organic Peanut Butter, Organic Cinnamon, Gluten-Free Baking Soda, Organic Eggs, Organic Chia Seed, Organic Vitamin C, GMO-Free Vitamin E

The girls loved the Monster Bone so much that they couldn't wait for me to take the photos! I think this treat would make a fantastic "Birthday" bone, although One Dog Organic Bakery also offers special occasion treats and you can find them by going here: Special Dog Treats


 
 Peanut Butter Honey Trainer's Treats

 Ingredients: Organic Buckwheat Flour, Organic Peanut Butter, Organic Cinnamon, Gluten-Free Baking Soda, Organic Eggs, Organic Chia Seed, Organic Vitamin C, GMO-Free Vitamin E

These training treats are a fantastic size! They are small to medium biscuit and they break apart easily. The girls really liked them!




Ingredients: Organic Buckwheat Flour, Organic Ginger, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Cloves, Organic Eggs, Organic Safflower Oil, Organic Molasses, Organic Vitamin C, GMO-Free Vitamin E

These treats smell so good! I wanted to try them. The girls weren't as enthusiastic about these as they were for the other treats. I think it might be because we used to give them Ginger Root pills before driving on the windy road where we used to live. I found that breaking them into smaller pieces helped and they did eat them. They just weren't their favorite.




 Ingredients: Organic Buckwheat Flour, Organic Pumpkin, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Eggs, Organic Flaxseed, Organic Vitamin C, GMO-Free Vitamin E

Another fantastic smelling biscuit! Pumpkin Spice is one of my favorite things and these smell great!


The girls enjoyed the treats from One Dog Organic Bakery and I really love supporting small businesses. It's nice to know where the treats are coming from and that all the ingredients are safe. Their recipes have even been vetted by a Canine Pet Nutritionist. You can really tell how much Veronica and Dale care about our pets. I would definitely recommend checking One Dog Organic Bakery out!

ZoePhee received our treats from One Dog Organic Bakery in exchange for an honest review. We were not monetarily compensated and all opinions are my own. One Dog Organic Bakery is not responsible for the content of this blog post.

ZoePhee is partnering with One Dog Organic Bakery and hosting a giveaway! The winner will receive a $20 Gift Certificate to the bakery! How cool is that!? Please use the rafflecopter below to enter. If the rafflecopter acts up, please try clearing your cookies and refreshing the page.

The giveaway is open to residents in the US and Canada, 18 years of age or older.  

a Rafflecopter giveaway