Sunday, July 31, 2011

Canine Myotherapy, Common Dog Illnesses and the Benefits of Canine Muscle Therapy

It's a known fact that most dogs take on the personality of their owners. Just as our dogs learn by our body language and actions, we can also learn from theirs. Ever notice how your dog seems to know when you're sick?

As our dogs age, certain ailments, health problems, and dog illnesses may manifest. A change in gait, activity, energy, or appetite, are all signs of potential underlying health issues. Maybe you noticed she just seems stiff lately, has a harder time with stairs, or takes longer to get up from bed.

Although orthopediec problems are often the cause of such symptoms, muscular dysfunction may also be the culprit. In any case, myotherapy can be helpful to prevent and resolve the pain associated with a variety of dog illnesses and other health issues.

Initially, a certified Myotherapist will apply gentle pressure along your dog's muscle edges, finding and releasing trigger points, or "knots" as they are also known. These knots can be very painful to your dog, limit muscle range of motion, and cause her to adjust her gait or body positions to compensate for the pain. If left untreated, these compensations in posture made by your dog can lead to other painful problems.

By releasing these trigger points, and stretching each muscle group through their full range of motion, the Myotherapist stimulates endorphins and improves blood flow to the area. While the endorphins act as a natural pain killer, the increased blood flow helps to flush the muscles of lactic acid. The end result is a dog in less pain with increased flexibility who of course, is much happier.

Canine myotherapy is often used for issues such as poor gait, stiffness, lameness, lethargy, roached back, poor flexibility, limping, arthritis, cow hocks, Lyme disease stiffness, as well as many other similar canine ailments.

The number of sessions and length of treatment will vary for each individual dog and is based on the severity of its condition. Your Myotherapist will make an analysis during your initial visit. Once treatment begins, you may notice an increase in the need for water, increased sleep, and increased stretching. These reactions should resolve shortly and are a result of your dog's body recovering and healing.

Most likely you will be sent home with an exercise program to implement at regular intervals. This assures that the level of muscular health achieved by the canine myotherapy sessions is maintained.

If your dog shows symptoms of muscular dysfunction, or other health issues, consider a visit to a Canine Myotherapist. You will be rewarded with a more energetic, alert, and agile companion.




Jeff Zitzkat, Copyright ©
Founder & Editor
all-about-great-danes.com

For additional information on dog illnesses affecting large breed dogs, including those that may be treated with Canine Myotherapy, visit all-about-great-danes.com

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Mastering the Straps on Your Bra

The modern bra is a multifunction device. It provides support and shaping for the specific look you are after. Unfortunately, it doesn't provide comfort for many of us because we simply don't understand the purpose of the straps or how to use them.

One look at a bra and the mechanics seem simple. The cups shape things and the straps provide support similar to something you might see in a hanging plant. This assumption is accurate so far as the cup purpose goes, but the straps on a bra are one of the most misunderstood things in women's clothing.

At its core, a bra is a mechanical device. The goal of the design is to provide support to the breasts. Now here is the key thing to pay attention to. The support is provided from the bottom up, not the top down. What does this mean? It is pretty simple. Your bra should take the weight of the breast on the band that circles the bottom of brassiere around your body. The straps are intended to be a supplemental support system for the band, not the primary weight bearing element of the bra.

To get a better grasp of this, picture a strapless bra. How does it provide support? The band running around the bottom acts as the entire support mechanism. This is essentially how every bra you have should work. The straps should never provide more than 20 percent of the total support and rarely that much. Get this right and you are going to notice a major difference in how you feel. No more sore shoulders. No knot in the middle of your upper back. No deep red marks on your shoulders from the straps. It will be heaven!

Ah, but we are not done yet. The straps on your bra are adjustable. Obviously! So, how do you adjust them? Well, we all have different types of bodies so there is no pat answer. In general, the straps should be loose. Remember, they are a backup support system for the band on the bottom of the bra. As a general rule, adjust them so that you can fit two fingers under them without any problem. As you get used to wearing a bra the correct way, you can then adjust the straps to your preference.

When it comes to bras, there is a certain element of Pavlov's dogs involved. If you've used the straps as the primary support mechanism for your bra, and many have, it is going to feel very strange when your wear the bra with the support from the bottom up. Stick with it. In a few days, the sensation will be gone and you'll be happy you made the change.




Tiffany Hart writes about issues faced by women wearing plus size bras for DivaBras.com - the top resource for plus size bras on the web.

Friday, July 29, 2011

Handmade Jewelry Designs - How to Create Spectacular Ones on Your Own!

Handmade jewelry designs can be easy if you follow a few simple steps. Making your own jewelry is not only easy, but relaxing. In fact, I consider it to be almost therapeutic! Here we'll explore how to make your very own Tin Cup style Necklace.

You will need the following supplies:
Cotton Cord
Clasp
6 to 10 pearls
Scissors

The fist step is to cut your cotton cord to approximately 24 inches in length. Thread the lobster clasp side of the closure and tie an overhand knot. With the scissors, cut the thread leaving a short tail. Your goal is to just make sure it doesn't come undone. Just to be on the safe side, you can add a dab of glue, but you don't have to.

Lay the cord down on a ruler and decide how often you want a pearl. You might want to mark the cord so that you can keep track of where they go. Make an overhand knot at the first mark on your cord, string on a pearl and then do another overhand knot. You can use special tools to make sure the knots stay nice and tight against the pearl, but again, it's not necessary. You will need to continue the pattern just described with the total number of pearls you have chosen.

You can vary the length of the necklace by including more or less pearls but here are a few words of caution. Since you need to tie knots in front of and behind each pearl, you will need to make sure that you add a few extra inches for each pearl. Otherwise, you will end up with a bracelet or a necklace so short that it won't fit. Also, keep symmetry in mind. Make sure you space them apart evenly, otherwise, your handmade jewelry designs will not look very nice. Finally, when you have the amount of pearls and the length you want, attach the other half of your clasp. Now it's important to look over the necklace and check the quality.

A great variation on this design is to replace the cotton cord with any type of link chain. What you will do is put wire through each pearl. Then you will make loops at the ends, attaching the chain to the loop you make. This is a classic and beautiful design. You can also choose to put more than one bead at each station. For example, you can place a crystal, pearl, and then another crystal to spice up the look.




The bottom line is that it is rather easy to create your own Handmade Jewelry Designs [http://hand-madejewelry.com/handmade-jewelry-designs-how-to-create-spectacular-ones-on-your-own/]. You just need to have some fun and get creative especially when creating Handmade Jewelry Rings [http://hand-madejewelry.com].

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Causes and Symptoms of Blood Transfusion Reaction

What is this Condition? Transfusion reaction accompanies or follows intravenous administration of blood components. Its severity varies from mild (fever and chills) to severe (acute kidney failure or complete vascular collapse and death), depending on the amount of blood transfused, the type of reaction, and the person's general health.

What Causes it? Hemolytic reactions (red blood cell rupture) follow transfusion of mismatched blood. Transfusion with incompatible blood triggers the most serious reaction, marked by intravascular clumping of red blood cells. The recipient's antibodies (immunoglobulin G or M) adhere to the donated red blood cells, leading to widespread clumping and destruction of the recipient's red blood cells and, possibly, the development of disseminated intravascular coagulation and other serious effects.

Transfusion with Rh-incompatible blood triggers a less serious reaction within several days to 2 weeks. Rh reactions are most likely in women sensitized to red blood cell antigens by prior pregnancy or by unknown factors, such as bacterial or viral infection, and in people who have received more than five transfusions.

Allergic reactions are fairly common but only occasionally serious. Febrile nonhemolytic reactions, the most common type of reaction. apparently develop when antibodies in the recipient's plasma attack antIgens.

Bacterial contamination of donor blood, although fairly uncommon, can occur during donor phlebotomy. Also possible is contamination of donor blood with viruses (such as hepatitis), cytomegalovirus, and the organism causing malaria.

What are its Symptoms? Immediate effects of hemolytic transfusion reaction develop within a few minutes or hours after the start of transfusion and may include chills, fever, hives, rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, tightness in the chest, chest and back pain, low blood pressure. bronchospasm, angioedema, and signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis, shock, pulmonary edema, and congestive heart failure. In a person having surgery under anesthesia, these symptoms are masked, but blood oozes from mucous membranes or the incision.

Delayed hemolytic reactions can occur up to several weeks after transfusion, causing fever, an unexpected decrease in serum hemoglobin, and jaundice.

Allergic hemolytic reactions typically don't cause a fever and are characterized by hives and angioedema, possibly progressing to cough, respiratory distress, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, vascular instability, shock, and coma.

The hallmark of febrile nonhemolytic reactions is a mild to severe fever that may begin when the transfusion starts or within 2 hours after its completion.

Bacterial contamination causes high fever, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps and, possibly, shock. Symptoms of viral contamination may not appear for several weeks after transfusion.

How is it Diagnosed? Confirming a hemolytic transfusion reaction requires proof of blood incompatibility and evidence of hemolysis. When such a reaction is suspected, the person's blood is retyped and crossmatched with the donor's blood.

When bacterial contamination is suspected, a blood culture should be done to isolate the causative organism.

How is it Treated? At the first sign of a hemolytic reaction, the transfusion is stopped immediately. Depending on the nature of the person's reaction, the health care team may:

o monitor vital signs every 15 to 30 minutes, watching for signs of shock

o maintain an open intravenous line with normal saline solution, insert an indwelling urinary catheter, and monitor intake and output

o cover the person with blankets to ease chills

o deliver supplemental oxygen at low flow rates through a nasal cannula or hand-held resuscitation bag (called an Ambu bag)

o administer drugs such as intravenous medications to raise blood pressure and normal saline solution to combat shock, Adrenalin to treat shortness of breath and wheezing, Benadryl to combat cellular histamine released from mast cells, corticosteroids to reduce inflammation, and Osmitrol or Lasix to maintain urinary function. Parenteral antihistamines and corticosteroids are given for allergic reactions (arlaphylaxis, a severe reaction, may require Adrenalin). Drugs to reduce fever are administered for febrile nonhemolytic reactions and appropriate intravenous antibiotics are given for bacterial contamination.




Get the latest information about the diseases and conditions, their treatments and know about the effects of diseases like skin disorders, lung and breathing disorders on various body parts. For more detail you can visit http://www.atozdiseases.com

Monday, July 25, 2011

How To Treat Your Man Like A Man

Are you a controlling wife? Do you take your husband for granted? Most women don't realize it but they abuse their husbands daily just by their actions. Many women of today feel that marriage revolves solely around them and that their husband's are supposed to give them everything their heart desires.

If we aren't getting what we want from our man could it be because we are not treating our man like a man? Stop pushing him around and he'll come around.

1. Don't undermine your husband's decision making

This is a biggy in marriage. Isn't it true that we women want things our way! We have been taught from grade school to go after our dreams and aspirations in life no matter what the consequences, even if that means rejecting our husband's needs and wishes. We do what WE want and what WE need. Why would a woman of today be so determined to chip away at her husband's manly authority and advice?

Face it ladies, we haven't exactly helped to make our man feel like a man. If we don't accept the man we married, why would we expect to get what we want from him? If we are rejecting, blaming, controlling, demeaning, undermining, and complaining about our husbands we certainly aren't respecting the man we married.

If we weaken our husband's manly resolve what's left but our feminist attitude and bossy selfish egos? Are we taking the man we married for granted? I think we are and that's what's killing marriage! How do I know all this? I used to undermine my husband all the time. I wouldn't let him be the man of the house. I was bossy and rebellious. I want you to know what I have come to know. It's great!

2. Don't reject your husband

How many times last month did you tell your husband that you were too tired or had a headache or simply shrugged him off because you were mad at him? Probably more times then you really think. Shouldn't we want to satisfy our husband's needs every single day, regardless, whether we feel like it or not? We women need to please and satisfy the men we're married to and we'll get our hearts desire. We really will!

3. Give your husband space (time with buddies)

Do you complain because your husband likes to have free time away with the guys? Maybe you feel he should be home doing chores or watching the children on his day off. But face it ladies, our man deserves time away to be with his friends to play golf, fish or hunt, or whatever it is he does just as much as we deserve to be with our friends. Did you know that a husband that is allowed the freedom to be with his buddies is a happier and more content filled man? Isn't that what we want anyway?

4. Cook your husband hot and nutritious meals every day

It is so true that one way to our man's heart is through his stomach. Ask any man and he'll tell you. I know that some of you ladies who work out of the home just don't have the time to cook nice meals everyday. Buy a crock-pot and a crock-pot cookbook and learn to make delicious homemade meals with it. Crock-pot cooking is so simple. You throw all the ingredients in the pot and it cooks safely all day, and the food will be ready when you both come home from work.

5. Respect your husband

What's so hard about respecting the man we married? If we control the marriage and feel that our husband can't do anything as good as we can, we certainly won't be able to respect him, right? Is treating your husband like one of the children respecting him? Is complaining about their faults respecting him? Is telling him what he's going to do respecting him? Is rejecting him sexually respecting him? Is belittling him respecting him? Well then, stop doing all these things and you are on your way to respecting the man you married.

6. Let your husband protect you

God made man to be the protector of women. Men love to do it, they want to do it, and they feel like a man when we let them do it. But most married women don't feel they need protected because they can take care of themselves. They carry mace, a gun and take karate classes and act like a man and still, they are getting beaten, raped, manhandled, and murdered. If a woman is married why on earth would she want to take away her husbands god-given natural abilities as a protector?

A married woman needs to allow her husband do his job in the manner in which he does it best, by protecting and loving his wife with the natural abilities God gave him. How can a man do that when the woman won't let him? This is how a man loves his woman!

Seriously now, it's really that simple. What would happen if we didn't allow our husbands to protect us? We would be rejecting their love for us. Don't you want to be loved by your man? Did you know that when we don't let our husband's love us the way God meant for a man to love his wife, we are rebelling against God?

7. Submit to your husband (love God)

Ladies, first you must learn to submit to God. This was a major issue in my marriage for many years because I didn't accept God. I was looking out into the world for the answers to my marriage problems when the answers were within my spiritual self the whole time. I finally grew to accept and love God. That is the root of submitting right there.

By growing out from the selfish person I was, I learned to understand what submitting to my husband was all about. Once a woman learns to submit to her husband she will see that by submitting she is actually in more control of the marriage and a better marriage wife because of it.

In other words, a woman will not lose anything of her self by submitting but will gain more of herself that was lost.

"Now I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God." 1 Corinthian's 11:3

~~




Angie Lewis has written another valuable book geared to married women and women who are thinking of getting married. In her book Angie shares her inspired divine wisdom that took her years to figure out and apply into her own marriage of 22 years. She shows you step by step biblical applications for a happier and forever lasting marriage.

"LOVE THE MAN YOU MARRIED" (A Woman's Handbook For Marriage) will be released to the public in Febuary 2006.

Subscribe to get your FREE monthly newsletter so you can learn to stay happily and forever married! http://www.heavenministries.com/

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Why Do Dogs Get Stuck Together When Breeding?

Nature is truly amazing! Nature has made a way to ensure that impregnation will occur in canine reproduction. If you have never seen mating dogs, you probably would worry that your beloved pet will be harmed because some of them would whine and appear to be hurt while staying stuck together end to end. Helping the dog by separating them could do more harm than good.

When canine copulates, the male dog would mount the female from behind. A cooperative and receptive female would move its tail to the side and allow the male to get a good hold. This is called flagging. The act of reproduction in canines is a lot different from humans. A dog's penis is not erect when it enters the bitch's vagina. Penetration is achieved because a small bone inside the penis called baculum holds the penis rigid.

Once penetration is achieved, the bulbus glandis, an erectile tissue situated at the base of the penis swells with blood and traps the penis inside the bitch's vagina. This is called the mating tie. The male dog would usually swing the legs over the female's back; turn around so that the rear ends of the dogs will be connected. Typically, the dogs would stay in this position from 5 to 30 minutes or even longer. The dogs will not the able to separate until ejaculation is finished and the bulbus glandis disengorges.

At the beginning of the mating tie, the male dog releases sperms and prostatic fluid. Getting stuck together while copulating is normal in dogs. This ensures that the semen will get inside the vagina and that the bitch will be impregnated. The mating tie prevents the semen from leaking. A female dog in heat will draw male dogs. This is due to the distinctive smell that seems to advertise the availability of the bitch. It would not be uncommon to see a female dog in heat surrounded by several male dogs. The mating tie ensures that the reproduction process will not be interrupted. It will prevent the female dog from being mated with other dogs.

The mating tie may distress the animals especially if one or both are mating for the first time. Never attempt to separate the dogs even if they seem to be hurt or distressed. Closely supervise the dogs instead to avoid any accident from happening. A bigger female that gets scared and panicky may hurt the male and vice versa. You may get on the floor to calm and settle the dogs until they are separated.




You now know a bit about dog mating. More about why dogs get stuck together when breeding and answers to many other questions about dogs at Sarah's Dogs.

Friday, July 22, 2011

How to Make a Hands Free Dog Leash With Paracord

This is a useful leash to have if you are a jogger that likes to run with their dog. If you don't know how to tie the knots to make this leash, they're very easy to learn.

Supplies

You will need; Paracord (or a similar kind style rope) two leash snaps, one O-ring, a measuring tape, a pair of scissors and a lighter.

Remember to preshrink your paracord in hot water. Paracord loses 10% of it's length when it gets wet and when you are walking a dog it IS going to rain at some point.

Step 1 - Measuring Your Waist

Loosely measure your waist. This measurement should be comfortable enough to that you can walk, but not loose enough to slide over your hips.

STEP 2 - Measuring the Paracord

Add your waist measurement to however long you want your leash, in inches. To that number, add a 20 inch allowance for the knotting of the paracord.

STEP 3 - Fastening the O-ring

This is the first step for making the "belt" part of the leash. We are going to use the Surgeon's Loop Knot.

Using the measuring tape, measure off your waist measurement PLUS 5 inches. Slide the O-ring thru the paracord to the measurement and fold the rope. Now form a loop in the end of the line

Make an overhand knot with the O-ring.

Make another overhand knot with the O-ring

Now tighten up the knot that you have made.

STEP 4 - Adding the First Snap.

You will find that there is a long and short end of paracord. The SHORT end is forming the belt part. Attach the snap to the end of the paracord with the Surgeon's Knot as illustrated in step 3. Try the belt on for size, making sure that it is comfortable. If it isn't, undo the knots and start over until it is to your liking.

STEP 5 - Adding Knots to the Dog Leash

While you are out and about with your dog, you might face a situation where you have to control him quickly. This is where a few knots in the leash will come in handy. We will be tying Double Overhand Stopper Knots to accomplish this.

With the leash on you waist, mark the spot on the leash to where you can comfortably extend your grasp.

Wrap the end of the rope round itself.

Wrap it again.

Now pass the rope through both turns.

Tighten the knot. Make as many knots as you feel necessary to make a good leash to grab onto. I made two knots.

STEP 6 - Adding The Second Snap

Now you are knotting the snap for the dog's collar onto the leash. Use the Surgeon's Loop Knot from step 3

STEP 7 - Finishing The Leash

All the is left to do is trim the loose ends of paracord.

Cut the paracord, leaving about 1/2 inch of excess. You will need a little extra since the knot has not fully tightened from dog walking

Take your lighter and melt the end to keep it from fraying in the future.




Karen Friesecke is the author of Bloggie Stylish a new blog dedicated to recipes and free projects for dogs. Please visit Hands Free Leash to see this tutorial, complete with pictures.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

How to Make a Paracord Dog Collar Using the Seesaw Knot

Paracord is an awesome cord to use for braiding! It's tough, lightweight, washable and virtually indestructible! This tutorial will show you how to make a "manly" collar for your dog using the seesaw or zigzag knot.

Supplies and Tools You Will Need

You'll need a few basic tools to make this project. A C-clamp, hemostat clamps, scissors, a lighter, a flexible measuring tape, a 3/4″ plastic snap and D-ring and paracord.

Preparing The Paracord

You need to preshrink the paracord before you use it. To preshrink the paracord, soak it in hot water for 5 minutes and then hang it to dry.To determine how much paracord you will need for your project, take the neck measurement from your dog and multiply by four. A sample neck measurement will be 18″ X 4 = 72″. So you will need TWO strands of paracord that are EACH 72″ long.

STEP 1 - Putting The Cords and D-ring on the Snap

Fold the cords in half and run each of them through the end of the snap that has the single slot. Now run the D-ring through the cords and place close to the snap. You will now run the loose ends of the cord through the loops of cord that are sticking out of bottom of the snap. Pull the cords tight

STEP 2 - Clamping the Snap

Clamp the snap down onto a steady surface like a table. This will keep the snap steady and you will be able to put tension on the cords when you are knotting.

STEP 3 - The First Knot

To make the seesaw knot, you will be knotting alternating half-hitch knots. Take the first set of cords, bring it behind the second set of cords and through the loop that you have just created. Gently tighten up your knot. Don't tighten too much or your knot work will begin to twist.

STEP 4 - The Second Knot

You will now take the second set of cords and make a half-hitch in the OPPOSITE direction. To keep going, take the first set of cord and make a knot in the same direction as you did with knot 1. Keep knotting in alternate directions until you make a knotted cord two inches less than your final measurement. Don't forget to take the snap into account when taking your measurement. Stop knotting at 16″.

STEP 5 - Attaching the Loose Cords To The Snap

Run the loose cords through the double slotted end of the cord and leave a one inch length of cord from the end of your knotting work.

STEP 6 - Finishing The Cord Ends Part 1

Take one cord from each set, run then around the front and through the top of the loop that you have created on the back side of the collar.Lay the cords that did not make the knot flat against the backside of the collar. Tighten the knot as much as it will go.

STEP 7 - Finishing The Cord Ends Part Two

Find where a set 1 cord passes under a set 2 cord. Pass the hemostat clamp underneath the set 2 cord, grasp the set 1 cord with the hemostats and pull through. Repeat this with the second set of cords. Do this "back knotting" one more time. Now stretch the collar out with your hands and trim the cords as close as you can to the collar.

STEP 8 - Melting The Cord Ends

*NOTE* hot plastic is dangerous and can burn you very badly! Use caution when melting the cord ends!!

Take your lighter and place the flame as close as you can to the cut cords. You really need them to get nice and hot. When the cord ends turn brown and get bubbly, take the flat side of your scissors and press the hot cord onto the collar. You might have to have another pass with the lighter if the cords haven't fused properly.

Once the melted ends of the collar have cooled, you can put it on your dog.




Karen Friesecke is the author of Bloggie Stylish a new blog dedicated to recipes and free projects for dogs. Please visit Seesaw Knot Dog Collar Tutorial to see this tutorial, complete with pictures.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Homemade Dog Toys From Socks

Learn how to make homemade dog toys such as a Sock Swing Ball and a Sock Ball from old or holey socks in under five minutes.

SOCK SWING BALL


  • Take 4 or 5 discarded socks. At least one of them should be knee length.


  • Use this knee length sock for the base. If it has big holes in the foot part, push another sock inside it so that the holes are covered


  • Roll up and stuff the remaining socks inside


  • Tie a knot in the base sock(s) just above the stuffed area

That's all there is to it! Go play fetch or tug-of-war with your dog! (Just watch carefully to make sure your buddy doesn't swallow any pieces of sock. These can cause choking or digestive problems.)

SOCK BALL


  • Use a minimum of 4 socks


  • Use your longest sock with the smallest holes for the base


  • Roll and stuff the other socks inside


  • Tie a firm knot in the base sock above the stuffed area


  • Double the end of the base sock back over the entire ball


  • Tie a knot above the stuffed area again


  • Repeat until you cannot tie a knot any more


  • Cut the end off the sock just above the last knot

Sock balls are best used for playing fetch or soccer, indoors or out. Again, please supervise your dog at all times to make sure he or she does not choke on or swallow any sock pieces.

Notes: Sock balls can be washed and dried along with other dog items.

For a bigger ball, use thick stockings or several layers of old pantyhose for the base sock.




Jo Soliday has been a dog lover and crafter since childhood. For more ideas for making things for dogs, check out her website at http://www.make-and-build-dog-stuff.com

Dog knot women idea