One of the best things to know is if their behavior is different. So take note if they're hiding, they didn't get up early in the morning, they didn't eat, they didn't drink, and they don't want to go for their walk. Maybe they're limping, vomiting, or breathing harder. Any of those things that are different from what you would know is their normal behavior would probably indicate something is amiss.

First of all, providing a nice safe environment, particularly when they're puppies, so that they don't get into anything that they shouldn't. As they get older, they're going to need a lot of exercise, so it's essential that more senior dogs get some activity and exercise, that they get plenty of appropriate food, that they have water down at all times. They love to be with people, so socialization is excellent. When they exercise well and get to explore and do things, they probably rest better at home and just make the perfect pet.

That is a good question, and I'm going to be honest with you. I'm going to say no on this one. Yeah, I'm going to say no. It'll make them less vocal at two in the morning right outside of your bedroom window, maybe. I won't go any further. Think about it, you can fill in the blanks. But yeah, just... Some cats are vocal, man. Some cats when they're hungry, meow, meow, meow. When they want your attention, meow, meow, meow. Yeah. So no, I think the answer to that question, to put it concisely is no.

There is pain involved in the procedure, of course. Yes. A female, for example, we are opening up their abdomen and we are physically removing their ovaries and uterus. So yes, of course there is some pain. The good news is, nowadays, the anesthetic protocols that we use, the pain control that we have afterwards, the pain is almost negligible. Most of the time now with the regimen of pain control that we use, if the animal is painful after surgery, we didn't do our job right, let's put it that way. So there are so many good drugs out there that make them pain-free and allow for quick, healthy recoveries. Yeah, it's virtually a nonissue now.

It's vital to dog wellness. Mostly, dogs love to explore new environments or the same environment again. So if they can be outside and be in the fresh air and smell things and get different experiences, they are overall more well-rounded, happier pets. And so it's very important.

No, they'll come in as Bruce did, where he had a checkup from the veterinarian, and had blood work to make sure everything was fine before the surgery. The cat will be sedated then anesthetized, so they will be completely asleep through the surgery and then they will ake up. And when he goes home that very day, he'll go home with a little bit of medication, an anti-inflammatory or pain medication. And they do very well.

Dogs do have different nutritional needs. So it's very hard just to put a label on a bag and tell everyone that this dog needs a quarter of a cup or half a cup. First of all, I would feed them twice a day, breakfast and dinner. I think that's a fair way to think that their nutrition would be absorbed and used.

They are going to get treats from time to time. They're delicious, and they needed to have treats, and it's part of being a part of your family. The treats, though, could be low calorie, and you can break treats into tiny little pieces so they don't get tons of calories, even though they may need lots of treats during that day. So those are some excellent ways to do it. You can also weigh them. We weigh them here, and we can give you some guidelines on that. And then you should also exercise them and have plenty of fun outside because that'll help keep their weight in good shape.

Yes. Yes, it will. Neutering will definitely help with that, because when we neuter, we are removing the testicles, we're removing the source of testosterone. Why do they spray? Because they're telling you that that's their spot, so if you can neuter them at a relatively early age, hopefully before it becomes a learned behavior, then yeah, it can absolutely avoid that.

Absolutely. One of the most common things is that sometimes our dogs get overweight. Keeping a dog a normal weight has been proven to increase the length of their life and better their lifestyle. The other thing you can do is make sure that their hair coat is clean. Look how beautiful Cash is. Ensure that they're clean, not matted, and they don't have any fleas and parasites. You should provide the correct nutrition, great exercise, heartworm prevention, and flea and tick prevention in this area. Those are things that you can do to provide them to make sure that they stay nice and healthy at home.

It's a very complicated question at this point because there are so many different foods and food sources and marketing. I think the first thing I would do is to find a person that you can trust. Hopefully, it will be your veterinarian and some other trusted sources. I think picking companies that make food might be one of the first choices that you should think of, some company that you can respect. We at Countryside highly recommend Hill's Science Diet, Royal Canin diets, and Purina diets. Those three companies do make prescription foods for us when we need them, and they are well-respected. They have veterinarians that we can reach out to very easily. They have nutritionists and specialists. So use those as the main guidelines. If you want to deviate from that, try to find out about that company and what particular needs that your animal has that you were trying to achieve by changing foods from there.