It’s a known fact that dogs love food. Whether the food they eat is harmful or not, they will always try to get their hands on a snack. Humans might even give their dogs harmful food as treats, because they are unaware it will hurt their dog. This can be detrimental to your dog’s health, and it’s important for every dog owner to know what food their dog can, and can’t have. 

First let’s start off with things that dogs can’t eat. These foods contain toxic substances with varying effects on your dog such as kidney failure, internal bleeding, seizures, and even death.

• Chocolate 
• Raisins and grapes
• Avocados
• Onions
• Mushrooms 
• Macadamia nuts

Some of these are more common knowledge than others, such as chocolate or grapes. But there are many of foods that people don’t know can harm their dog. Because of this, it is very important to do research when owning a dog on foods they can’t eat. 

Even though there are many foods that dogs can’t eat, it’s not all harmful to them. Some foods can even benefit your dog by helping their health, fur, skin, and reducing inflammation. 

• Carrots
• Eggs
• Peanut butter
• Salmon
• Cheese (small quantities)
• Blueberries
• Popcorn (plain)

All of these foods make great treats for your dogs, and can be helpful while training them, when used as rewards. Lots of these foods don’t only help your dog, as they also make a great snack in between meals. 

Different foods can have varying effects on your dog, some being deadly and some helpful. It is very important to research what foods you can give your dog as a treat. Next time you throw your dog a piece of some food you are eating, make sure to look up if they can safely eat it beforehand.

Crate training is a popular way to keep your dog safe and comfortable, and keeps owners at peace of mind. Although crate training can be harmful if done wrong, it is strongly suggested that all dog owners crate train. 

One reason for this is it can keep your dog comfortable and help them self-soothe. If things in your household can get too loud or overwhelming, a crate gives your dog a quiet safe place to calm down in. This is especially helpful if you have a naturally louder house like mine because of having a larger family with children. 

Another reason crate training is beneficial is because it keeps your dog safe and its owner at peace of mind. If you have to leave your house for any reason, it’s nice not to have to worry about your dog eating your furniture or getting into something they shouldn’t get into such as food or tv remotes. This also keeps your dog safe from digesting something that’s bad for them or hurting themselves in some other way. 

The last reason you should crate train your dog is it helps potty train them. This is a major help for dog owners everywhere, and makes potty training extremely easier. Dogs know that their crate is their safe place and they won’t want to contaminate it by going to the bathroom in it. They will associate this with having to wait to go outside rather than inside. 

Crate training isn’t absolutely necessary but proves to be extremely helpful for families. It conveniences the family by saving their belongings from being torn apart and helps potty train, and conveniences the dog by giving them a safe place to calm down and get some alone time.

Corgis are very energetic and loving dogs that crave attention. I have had 3 corgis in my life and currently have 1, and there are a few things that everyone should know before getting a corgi. 

The first thing future corgi owners should know about is the attention needed for the dog. All of my corgi’s need constant attention and have lots of energy. They like to play, go outside, and be loved by their owners. So If you are looking for a chill dog that you can leave alone for a few hours, maybe start thinking about a different breed to get. 

The next thing people should know about corgi’s is the shedding. These dogs have thick coats and shed all year round. While all of this fur makes these dogs very soft and fluffy, it can be annoying to have dog hair all over your clothes and furniture. So, you will need to make sure that they have the opportunity to get groomed at least twice a year, typically in the spring and summer because that is when they shed most. 

Depending on the personality of the dog, your corgi could also bark a lot. Corgis are known to excessively bark which could lead to annoying you or your neighbors. 

The last thing to know about corgis is that they are very loving animals. All of the 3 corgis that I’ve owned love to jump on people, lick them, and be close to people. They don’t give you personal space and love people, so be prepared to have a small crazy dog as your new best friend.

Whenever I mention to others that my dog wears a muzzle, or I show someone a picture of my dog and he’s wearing his muzzle, I usually get negative reactions. Some will be confused, others will tell me that muzzles are cruel, and most are curious to why he has it on in the first place.

My dog, Bandit, has been wearing a muzzle for a few months now. Bandit is a boxer-lab mix and the biggest out of my three dogs. He has separation anxiety and gets very protective of his family. Ever since a few months ago Bandit and our smaller dog, Moe, have been growling at each other and things have been tense between the two. Whenever me and my siblings would go to my dads house and saw Bandit he would get anxious and want to protect us, leading Bandit and Moe to get into a fight once they growled at each other. 

Naturally Bandit did more harm to Moe because of the size difference. Moe had to be taken to the vet to get stitches, and we were told to give Bandit away, but we gave him a muzzle to determine if it could change the outcome of their relationship. 

Immediately once the muzzle was put on Bandit he calmed down. He didn’t mind it, and it didn’t hurt him. All it does is lower his energy and stop being aggressive around Moe. We have a finished basement that the dogs aren’t allowed to go in, so whenever someone in my family goes down there we take Bandit with us and take off his muzzle. Then, whenever he has to go upstairs, we put it back on. We also do this at night when he goes to sleep and when he eats. 

So, whenever people tell me that muzzles are cruel or they hurt the dog, I usually come to the conclusion that they don’t understand everyone’s perspective. Sure the muzzle may be annoying sometimes for Bandit, but it doesn’t hurt him at all. If Bandit has to be inconvenienced to keep Moe safe then that’s the decision we will make for everyone’s safety. 

In all, I definitely recommend muzzles to dogs who will harm themselves or others. Muzzles can keep everyone safe and if used correctly doesn’t bother the dog. It can also help calm their nerves, if they are known to have anxiety or take it out on other people or dogs.

Getting a new dog can be a very fun but challenging experience. I currently have 3 dogs, and I know that they are amazing friends to have, but they can sometimes be very hard to train and take care of. One of the most difficult things, in my opinion, is potty training your dog. 

It can be very discouraging when you’re trying to teach your pet to use the bathroom outside, only to turn around to find a mess they made that you have to clean up. Whenever this would happen to me or my family, we would immediately take the dog outside so they associated using the bathroom with being outside. 

We would also tie some bells to the doorknob. Every time we would bring my dog Bandit outside, we would ring the bell before opening the door. This is my favorite trick to use because as Bandit was learning, he eventually started to ring the bell every time he needed to go outside. This way we would know to let him outside when he needed to go, and he didn’t have to bark or use the bathroom inside. 

I have also learned that potty training gets easier with every dog you have. When we got our corgi, oddy, he would almost learn from our two other dogs that he uses the bathroom outside. He would still sometimes have accidents, but it was much easier for him to learn what to do from our other dogs. 

Potty training is hard to teach to dogs, but there are many ways to do it. Giving them treats and pets after they go outside helps, but the most important part is being patient.