Owners like to share their life with their pets. When it comes to eating, some dogs maintain a steady diet of handouts, but what about coffee? What kind of an effect would this have on your dog?

Theobromine is highly toxic to dogs and you should be very careful having it around. Theobromine is only fatal in large doses, so a small amount will do relatively little harm to your dog. But some dogs make a habit out of eating out of the garbage can, and their owners feed them candy and extra food all the time. One or two M&M’s will not hurt your dog, but 1 pound of chocolate could be deadly.

Giving coffee to your dog is the same way, a few drops here and there will not hurt her (she may throw up, or have frequent bowel movements). But large amounts can be harmful. Please think about your dog the next time all of you are using your espresso machines - your dog does not need her own cup!

Thanks for reading!  As always your participation in comments and discussions are encouraged and greatly appreciated!! 

I don’t know about many of you, but where I live it is getting pretty cold outside. When chilly days start coming, the threat of snow gets great and greater. To help take our minds off the chilly weather outside, please send and photographs you have of your pet wearing sunglasses! They should be emailed to: dsheffler@petstrong.com.

I think the hardest part for me is the first few times it gets really cold. Our pets feel exactly the same way I bet! Except of course for those breeds that are perfectly comfortable in a chilly climate. Did you ever notice how your pet eats more in the weeks leading up to winter? That’s their natural instinct - it helps them build up body fat to keep them warm. Of course now, we have furnaces and fireplaces to help with that and my dog loved to lay right next to the fireplace.

Ok, enough talk about cold weather! Please send your pictures today, make sure your pet is wearing sunglasses or any type of summer accessory! All brands are welcome from Wayfarer sunglasses, to Ray Ban. I look forward to seeing your pictures!

Thanks for reading! As always your participation in comments and discussions are encouraged and greatly appreciated!!

Some bodybuilders take prohormones to increase their muscle mass.  But you need to be careful of leaving them out where your pet can get into them.  Just like any chemical, prohormones are not good for your pet at all!  You need to make sure they are kept in a cabinet that your pet cannot easily get into.

Your pet can become incredibly ill from just a short amount - and if she ingests any, you must take her to the veterinarian at once!  In addition, there are some things you can do instead of taking supplements.

If you have a pet, consider taking her out for a walk more often.  Not only will the exercise be good for you, your dog will love getting out into the fresh air and taking in all the sights and smells!  Depending on what breed of dog you have, more walks may actually be beneficial to their behavior!  Dogs that get easily excited, or are hyper-active will become more relaxed with increased exercise and you will notice a change around the house!

Thanks for reading!  As always your participation in comments and discussions are encouraged and greatly appreciated!! 

Have all of you seen any of these commercials? They are pretty cute, and have always been one of my favorites. It centers around the secret family recipe of the baked beans. Duke (the loveable Golden Retriever) knows the recipe and is willing to sell it.

The commercials I am sure have led to many other marketing jobs for Duke.  The commercials were always very clever and I haven’t seen any of them on TV for awhile.  I hope all is well with Duke and that they will think about airing more commercials soon.

The real Duke is not the one in the commercials.  The family decided to hire a professionally trained dog.  Duke sits at home and enjoys watching his commercials on TV.  Plus this way, he is able to spend lots of time with his family and he does not have to travel at all.  Do you have a favorite commercial with a pet spokesperson?  Leave a comment and let us know which ones are your favorites!

Thanks for reading!  As always your participation in comments and discussions are encouraged and greatly appreciated!! 

Is anyone else surprised at the amount of accessories you can purchase for your pet? Anything from shoes, to clothes, to ornate collars - you can pretty much find it all! Even though there are tons of unique products out there, there are a few things that have not yet made it to the market. Today, I would like to share with you some products that may be coming to a store near you soon!

Watches for your pet:

I am pretty surprised they have not come out with any Victorinox swiss army watches for pets.  They have jeweled collars, microchips, cell phones, just about anything you can imagine - but no watch?  For this product, it may just be a matter of time before you see a pet line released.

Toilets for your pet:

I know, I know…cats already have a litterbox.  But what about an actual toilet?  I know people have seen videos on YouTube of cats using a real, human-sized toilet - but don’t you think they could make one just their size?  This may sound ridiculous to some people, but if you’ve ever had to scoop kitty litter, you know how nasty and gross it can be.  Having your cat flush it down - that would be a great thing.

Implants:

These already exist - and I know some of you will think I am joking.  They make implants for your neutered pets.  What is the point?  I am not sure….but I am sure they are expensive.

I think I have ranted enough about products that are currently unavailable to your pets.  But keep your eyes on the shelves at your local pet store - they may be there soon!  Do you know of any weird pet products?  Or have an idea of your own?  Please leave a comment!

Thanks for reading!  As always your participation in comments and discussions are encouraged and greatly appreciated!!