1. I feed as much variety as I can manage in her diet. Usually that means rotating the protein source of her kibble between chicken, turkey, duck, beef, bison, lamb, pork, rabbit, venison and fish. I also try to make sure she gets something "real" for dinner most nights, be it canned food or raw meat, fish or eggs.
2. I pay as close attention to dental health as possible. Right now I'm brushing daily and when I move in with my dad I'm going to start offering raw meaty bones. I personally don't know any 5 year old dogs with teeth as nice as hers.
3. I also pay close attention to her nails, as she came to me with them severely overgrown. She gets dremeled every couple of days and every day for a while if I ever let it slide a bit.
4. She gets heartworm meds during the months when they are a threat in my area and she is tested every year or so.
5. She gets vaccinated for rabies once every 3 years because it's the law, but more because it offers her some protection should she ever bite someone. Everything else I give on an as-needed basis.
6. This is admittedly the last thing I usually worry about because she is not a high energy dog, but I offer her adequate exercise in the form of indoor fetch/tug and primarily nighttime walks due to her reactivity. To me it's more important that she gets the mental stimulation of play and going different places frequently than it is that she get massive amounts of exercise.
7. I guess the last bit would be regular training and affection, though I'm not as good at the former as I would like. But still we've made socialization progress that is good for her.
2. I pay as close attention to dental health as possible. Right now I'm brushing daily and when I move in with my dad I'm going to start offering raw meaty bones. I personally don't know any 5 year old dogs with teeth as nice as hers.
3. I also pay close attention to her nails, as she came to me with them severely overgrown. She gets dremeled every couple of days and every day for a while if I ever let it slide a bit.
4. She gets heartworm meds during the months when they are a threat in my area and she is tested every year or so.
5. She gets vaccinated for rabies once every 3 years because it's the law, but more because it offers her some protection should she ever bite someone. Everything else I give on an as-needed basis.
6. This is admittedly the last thing I usually worry about because she is not a high energy dog, but I offer her adequate exercise in the form of indoor fetch/tug and primarily nighttime walks due to her reactivity. To me it's more important that she gets the mental stimulation of play and going different places frequently than it is that she get massive amounts of exercise.
7. I guess the last bit would be regular training and affection, though I'm not as good at the former as I would like. But still we've made socialization progress that is good for her.
