Most dogs are normally not cooperative when traveling in a car. They usually pace around, jump and bark at passing strangers. They jump from front seat to back seat and back again which may lead to accident.

You can teach your dog to love car travel and will even look forward to enjoying rides with you.

Travel Don’ts

Don’t just form the habit of putting your dog inside your car when you intend to visit the vet or boarding kennel. The reason is that this will make him associate entering the car with the pain of long needle the vet used to give him a shot.

Traveling in a car

When you are traveling with your dog in your car you have to consider the safety of your dogs and passengers. He has to be restrained in one way or the other so as to protect him from being thrown out in the event of an accident or an abrupt stop.

Restraining him equally prevent him from disturbing the driver or even working his way on to the floor where he can get wedged around the brake pedals.

Restraining Your Dog During Car Rides

A. Use of crate (carrier)

A carrier provides safety and security for dogs when traveling. It’s the easiest form of restraint you can give your dog to ensure his safety and yours where traveling in car with him. You have to ensure that the crate or carrier is the right size for him by making sure that these is angle room for him to turn during the travel.

It is better to put this carrier at the back seat of your car where air enters to avoid him suffocating during the travel.

B. Doggy seat belt/leash

You have to create a pleasant area for your dog in the car probably the back or car to area for safety reasons.

Decorate this area with a mat and his favorite toy or bone. Then station him to a point with a special seat belt. This seat belt safety lead is a short lead that fastens onto a seat belt.

Place her preferably at the back seat in a harness or buckle collar.

If you are keeping him in the cargo area of large vehicles secure him to the security clip on the floor with a short cargo lead.

Ensure that this lead is short to prevent him from jumping into the back seat.

C. Car Gates.

You can as well confine your dog to the cargo area with a car gate that can be obtained from pet shops. Make sure you buy the best car gate that cannot collapse during the travel.

Ways to ensure your dog’s comfort during the travel

Allow him to travel on empty stomach
Do not feed your dog 6–8 hours before traveling. Keeping him on an empty stomach will make him less likely to vomit.

Take frequent rests
Some dogs usually get uncomfortable after a few miles and this makes it imperative for you to stop every hour or two to take a quick walk with your dog to straighten his legs. It’s equally advisable to pour a little water on his body to cool him.

Drive carefully
Ensure that you drive carefully avoiding flying around curves.

Keep the windows down
This will allow fresh air to come in case you have no a/c .

Have other ways you can ensure comfort of your dog during travels? Please share with us in the comments box.
Source:http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/travel-safely-dog/

A dog is a man's best friend, as the saying goes. This incident that happened in Bahia Blanca, Argentina proved the saying beyond reasonable doubt.A man who goes by the name Jesus Heuche took a bad fall while pruning a tree and his pet dog, named Tony, was seen hugging him until people came to help him.

"I woke up because I had my son, the dog, on top of me," Mr Heuche told Cadena3.

These pictures of Tony hugging Mr Heuche, shared by the civil defense authority of Bahia Blanca, have been shared almost 3,000 times on Facebook.

Mr Heuche said that Tony would not allow the civil defense or paramedics to approach initially because he thought they wanted to harm him.

Image may contain: 1 person, tree and outdoor

"The dog did not want to move away," says the Defense Director in Bahia Blanca, Jose Luis Holman, according to Cadena 3. "It shows his unconditional love."
Source:http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/dog-refuses-leave-injured-owners-side-help-comes/

Introduction

Japanese quail are hardy birds that thrive in small cages and are inexpensive to keep. They are affected by common poultry diseases but are fairly disease resistant. Japanese quail mature in about 6 weeks and are usually in full egg production by 50 days of age. With proper care, hens should lay 200 eggs in their first year of lay. Life expectancy is only 2 to 2½ years.

If the birds have not been subjected to genetic selection for bodyweight, the adult male quail will weigh about 100–140 g, while the females are slightly heavier, weighing from 120–160 g.

The females are characterised by light tan feathers with black speckling on the throat and upper breast. The males have rusty brown throat and breast feathers. Males also have a cloacal gland, a bulbous structure on the upper edge of the vent that secretes a white, foamy material. This unique gland can be used to assess the reproductive fitness of the males.



Quail eggs have well differentiated characteristics
Japanese quail eggs are a mottled brown colour and are often covered with a light blue, chalky material. Each hen appears to lay eggs with a characteristic shell pattern or colour. Some strains lay only white eggs. The average egg weighs about 10 g, about 8% of the body weight of the quail hen. Young chicks weigh 6–7 g when hatched and are brownish with yellow stripes. The shells are fragile, so handle with care.

Breeding

Research indicates that grouping a single male with two or three females will generally give high fertility. When quail are kept in colony pens, one male to three females is sufficient and reduces fighting among males. Pair matings in individual cages also give good fertility. Fertility decreases markedly in older birds. Avoid mating closely related individuals, because inbreeding increases the incidence of abnormalities and can greatly reduce reproductive performance. For this reason, it is desirable to record hen numbers on the eggs, incubate them in groups, and permanently mark the chicks at hatch time.

Pedigree records can be kept by using commercially available wing bands or leg bands to identify quail of all ages. Quails can be identified temporarily by a little oil paint on the back feathers (not on the skin) or fingernail polish on the toes.

Pre-incubation egg care

Successful quail propagation begins in the pre-incubation period. Eggs should be collected several times a day and stored at a temperature of 15°C; a household refrigerator is not satisfactory because it is too cold. Cracked eggs hatch very poorly, if at all. Best results are obtained when eggs are held no longer than 1 week before setting.

Quail eggs should be handled with great care as they are very susceptible to shell damage. The coloured egg shells of quail make candling difficult.

A dirty incubator or hatchery area is a major source of contamination and disease. Thoroughly wash and disinfect the hatching unit after each use with a quaternary ammonium compound or commercial disinfectant. Set only clean eggs, as dirty eggs are a source of disease or infection. Soiled eggs can best be cleaned with fine sandpaper or other abrasives — eggs to be incubated should not be washed.

Eggs should be fumigated after they are collected, but alternatively they can be fumigated within 12 hours after being placed in the incubator. Do not fumigate embryos that are between 2 and 5 days old. Fumigation procedures are as follows:

Use 25 g of potassium permanganate and 35 mL of formalin (40%) for each cubic metre of incubator space.
Put the permanganate in an earthenware or enamelware dish (volume ten times that of the ingredients), and add the formalin last. Avoid inhaling the fumes, or wear a suitable respirator.
In forced-draft incubators, leave the fan running and the vents closed during fumigation; open the vents after 20 minutes.
In still-air incubators, open the incubator and vent after 20 minutes.
During fumigation the humidity should be high, and the temperature must be between 20°C and 30°C.
Incubation and hatching

The incubation period for quail is 17–18 days, depending on the strain and the incubation procedures. Successful hatches depend upon a good understanding of incubator controls; study the manufacturer’s recommendations carefully, and save them for further reference. The two types of incubators generally available are fan-ventilated (forced-draft) and still-air machines.

A forced-draft incubator is preferable, but a still-air machine works well if carefully operated. Some models are designed especially for quail. Japanese quail eggs can be incubated in any chicken-egg type of incubator, although the egg trays in some machines may need modifying. Eggs should be placed large end up in the setting tray.

Fan-ventilated (forced-draught) incubators

Forced-draft incubators should maintain an incubating temperature of 37.5° ± 0.3°C (99.5° ± 0.5°F) and a relative humidity of 60% wet bulb reading of 30° ± 0.5°C (86° ± 1.0°F) until the 14th day of incubation. Eggs should be turned every 2–4 hours to prevent embryos from sticking to the shell. On the 14th day, candle and remove any cracked eggs, infertiles and dead embryos. Transfer the eggs to hatching trays and stop turning. A separate hatcher should be operated at 37.2°C (99°F) and a relative humidity of 70% wet bulb 32.2°C (90°F).

If the incubator is a combined setter and hatcher, it should be operated at a temperature of 37.5°C (99.5°F), but the relative humidity should be increased to 70% wet bulb 32.2°C (90°F) during hatching.

The hatcher should not be opened during the hatching process. If all recommended incubation procedures have been followed, the chicks may be removed on the 17th or 18th day of incubation.

Still-air incubators

If a still-air incubator is used, normal incubating temperature is 38.3°C (101°F) for the first week, 38.8°C (102°F) for the second week and not exceeding 39.5°C (103°F) until hatching is completed. Temperature should be measured at the top of the eggs. Humidity should be less than 70% wet bulb 29.4°–30.5°C (85°–87°F) until the 14th day of incubation; it should then be increased to 70% wet bulb 32.2°C (90°F) until hatch is completed in 17 or 18 days. Maintaining proper humidity in small still-air incubators can be a problem; do not open the incubator more frequently than is needed to turn the eggs, and do not leave it open for long periods of time.

The eggs must be turned by hand at least three, and preferably five, times a day. A pencil mark on the side of each egg may help to ensure proper turning. It may be desirable to move eggs to different locations in the incubator in case the temperature is not uniform throughout. Newly hatched chicks often tend to sprawl in hatching trays. To prevent this, crowd the eggs into a small area or fasten cheesecloth to the bottom of the hatching tray before the chicks begin to hatch.

Natural incubation

It is also possible to set japanese quail eggs under a broody hen. Bantams are ideal. A group of eggs should be saved and then placed under her so they will hatch together. Any chicken eggs should be removed from the nest. Japanese quail hens rarely go broody.

Quail chicks need supplementary heat

Quail chicks need supplementary heat
Brooding and care of young birds

Newly hatched quail chicks are small, and proper brooding temperatures for young quail are very important. They need supplementary heat for about 3–4 weeks after hatching. A commercial brooder or any other heat source that provides sufficient heat can be used successfully, and should be placed 30–46 cm above the floor of the pen. The photo at right shows a gas brooder providing supplementary heat for quail chicks housed on deep litter. Measure the temperature at the level of the chicks. Maintain it at about 35°C during the first week of brooding. This temperature may be decreased by about 3.5°C a week until the chicks are fully feathered at about 3–4 weeks.

The best guide for adjusting the temperature is chick behaviour. Chicks that crowd near the heat source and seem cold indicate the temperature is too low. When the chicks tend to settle a just outside the hottest area, the temperature is about right. Failure to provide adequate heat during the early days of the brooding period invariably results in increased mortality. Chicks should be protected from draughts of cold air, especially at night.

Care must be taken with small quail to prevent drowning in water troughs. A canning jar with a glass or plastic base, or automatic chick mini-drinkers, work well provided the drinking trough is filled with pebbles or marbles to stop the baby quail getting into the water.

When the chicks reach 1 week, the pebbles can be removed with safety. It is important to provide clean water at all times; water containers or troughs should be cleaned daily.

Litter is used to dilute the droppings and absorb moisture. Wood shavings, sawdust and sand are good litter materials. Litter should be 5–10 cm deep on the floor and covered with paper for the first week for chicks. Use soft, rough types of paper, as chicks tend to spraddle on hard, smooth paper. Old newspapers are satisfactory but not ideal. Paper towelling is better. Food should be sprinkled on the paper to encourage young chicks to eat. If chicks are raised in wire cages or on a wire floor, the floor surface must be covered with coarse paper for the first week or so to prevent leg injuries.

Feather picking or other forms of cannibalism may occur when japanese quail are kept on wire. Beak trimming may be necessary as early as 2 weeks of age and is usually done with a hot-blade-type commercial beak trimmer. The tip of the upper beak can be temporarily removed with nail clippers. After birds are beak trimmed, the level of feed and water in the troughs may need to be increased. Other generally effective preventive measures are to reduce the number of birds per pen to avoid crowding, reduce the light intensity and increase the dietary fibre and grit.

Japanese quail are territorial and will defend their home against intruders. If two groups of quail are to be combined, put them together in an unfamiliar cage or pen.

Housing and equipment

Quail are frequently housed in rooms similar to garages. However, such rooms need to be well insulated, well ventilated and free from draughts, and must provide protection from cats, rodents and predatory birds.

Housing should be designed to ensure comfort for the birds, to make food and water readily accessible and to permit easy and effective sanitation. The adult facilities should reflect the purpose of the project. For example, if the birds are to be raised for commercial egg or meat production, then small pair-cages are suitable. Hobbyists may prefer aviaries or small deep-litter pens that do not require regular removal of droppings.

For cage or pen construction, 7 mm square welded wire mesh is recommended to provide secure footing, prevent leg injuries and prevent chicks escaping through side walls.

Adult quail will live and produce successfully if they are allowed 145 cm2 of floor space per bird (125 cm2 per bird on wire floors). Often, in community pens, they will not build a nest but will hide their eggs in the litter. For this reason quail egg producers usually prefer to house their birds in cages. A cage 13 × 20 cm is large enough for two birds. The cage should have a solid metal or plywood roof to minimise head injuries if the birds take fright.

Adult quail need 1.25–2.5 cm of feeder space per bird. Ample feed should be present, but if the trough is too full, excessive wastage will occur.

Clean, fresh water should be provided at all times with a minimum of 0.6 cm of trough space per quail. Nipple drinkers and cups are suitable for adult quail. One nipple or cup should be provided for every 5 birds.

Light requirements

Japanese quail require 14–18 hours of light per day to maintain maximum egg production and fertility. This means that supplementary lighting must be provided in the autumn, winter and spring months to maintain production.

Males not required for breeding, or any quail being grown for meat production, can be given only about 8 hours of low-intensity light per day. This is not enough to initiate sexual maturity; therefore, the birds do not expend energy on fighting and mating and will tend to fatten more quickly.

Adult japanese quail eat between 14 g and 18 g of food per day

Adult japanese quail eat between 14 g and 18 g of food per day
Nutrition

Continue reading @[url]theprofarmer.com/detailed-guide-quail-farming/
[/url]

The Lagos State government has acquired 500 hectares of land in Eluju-mowo, along Itoikin-Epe road for Farm Estate Initiative, to address the various challenges facing agriculture in the state.

It has also compensated the five affected communities, whose crops were affected.Speaking during a cheque presentation ceremony, held at the Ministry of Agriculture, Ikeja, Special Adviser to the state governor on Food Security, Mr. Ganiyu Okanlawon Sanni, said that the compensation was in fulfillment of the promise made by government to residents of the communities.

He said that acquisition of the land and payment of compensation is part of effort of government to address the various challenges facing agriculture in the state, such as declining land for agricultural activities, encroachment by land speculators, as well as, promoting the utilisation of agricultural land for its intended purposes.


The Special Adviser, who added that the effort is also geared towards boosting food security in the state, explained that the land in these communities would be allocated to farmers after the compensation.

While urging members of the affected communities to continue to cooperate with one another and also carry every member of their communities along, the Special Adviser said their cooperation is key in the development of their communities.

The state government has also started Agricultural Equipment Hiring Centre geared towards providing mechanised tools at a reduced rate to farmers which will reduce drudgery in agriculture; increase farm land under cultivation; promote competition and enhance the value of money for farmers.

It is important that your dog switch dog food gradually from his current dog food to avoid digestive upset or stomach trouble like diarrhea and vomiting.

You have to remember these facts when changing your dog’s food:

Puppies become adults at 12 months of age and should transition to an adult dog food to ensure they are receiving proper nutrient levels for adult dogs.
Large breed puppies and small breed puppies should switch to a large breed or small breed adult dog food to ensure that their special needs are met.
For small and medium size dogs who are older, about the age of 7, they should transition to a mature adult or senior dog food that ensures that they are receiving the appropriate level of nutrients for that older life stage.
For large breed dogs that are around 5 years of age, their food should switch to a mature adult or senior large breed dog food so that their special nutrient requirements are met.
Pregnant or nursing dogs need energy-dense foods with increased calcium content so be sure to transition them during this special time to a puppy food. However, during pregnancy or nursing, large breed dogs should be switched to a regular puppy food, not a large breed puppy food.
If your veterinarian has recommended a therapeutic dog food for a specific health condition, please be sure to discuss transitioning his dog food in detail. There could be some special considerations and suggestions to ensure success.

Method for switching food for your dog

To transition, mix your dog’s current food with his new food. Over 7 days, gradually decrease the amount of the current dog food while increasing the amount of new dog food.

In order to avoid this problem change to the new food gradually. Get the new brand while still keeping some of the old brand.

Mix one part of the new food with three parts of the old food for at least two days.
Then observe the stool of your dog, if it does not have watery or loose stools, then mix equal amount of the foods for at least two days.
If he is still dry without having any loose stools, then mix three parts of the new food with one part of the old food for at least two days.
If the stool is still normal, give him the new food wholly for a few days.
If he has any loose stools during the switch from one food to another, revert to the ration in which the stool is solid and normal.
There may be some reactions during this change like losing some of his coat, this is normal because the fur grows back within some few months.

If the diarrhea ensues at any time consult your vet. You can stop the diarrhea at times by withholding food and water for twenty four hours
Source:http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/best-way-to-switch-food-for-your-dog/

Dogs are mostly sensitive to smell and this is their most developed sense organ. At birth, pups are borne blind and they only recognize their mother through smell. The nose is fully developed at birth and by the time they grow to depend mostly on their sense of smell. They have stronger sense of smell than humans and without this sense they get confused and lost in the world.

It’s estimated that a dog can catch a smell of something that is 100 times less concentrated than what humans can decipher.

This makes it easy for dog to find lost humans buried in rubble.

This leads us to the story of how a dog follows woman wearing her owner’s wrapper to their home.

This story was narrated to me by a client of mine sometimes ago. According to him, his wife gifted one of her friends a piece of wrapper that is usually worn by some tribes in Nigeria.

It happened that one day, the friend visited her wearing the wrapper, on smelling the woman, the dog become very excited, wagging her tail. Unfortunately the woman didn’t see her friend at home and the dog followed the woman to her house mistaken her to be her owner.

Later, the woman came back to see her friend still tying the wrapper, this time she was lucky to meet her friend. Then another drama ensued, this time the dog started barking at the woman wearing her owner's wrapper, she went as far as pulling on the wrapper, kept disturbing the woman that she had to leave immediately to remove the wrapper. By the time she came back wearing another cloth, the dog became calm.

She was confused earlier by assuming that the woman was her owner. Dogs understand and can distinguish any smell that goes into their nostril. Just as humans identify people by their face through their sense of sight, so do dogs identify humans and animals through their smell.

As a vet, when I get to a home for house call, on nearing the gate even without knocking the dog begins to react. Some will go and hide, others will continue barking depending on the temperament of the dog.

Stories like this abound on how dogs use their sense of smell to see the world around them.

We will like to hear story of other funny or intelligent things you dog have done in the past.
Posted by http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/dog-follows-woman-wearing-owners-wrapper-house/

You are welcome to Nigeria's premier online community for pet owners and lovers who cherish their pets so much.

This community promises to be a hub, community and market place for everything pets.

The arena promises to help pet lovers care for their pets by being a learning and information sharing center.

In this arena pet owner gets information on how to maintain the health of your pet.you get to know different breeds of dogs and then select the best for personality through the breeds subcategory in the arena.

By the time you must have selected the right breed for you, the arena will guide you in choosing and feeding the right food that will make your pet blossom and live longer.

In the course of living with your pet,pets arena will give you enough resources that will help you moderate the behavior of your pet so that he becomes a good canine citizen thus safe guarding his life, and equally making him not to be a nuisance to his human community. The arena will give you practical tips to train your dog yourself.

As a living being your pet is bound to be sick from time to time and as the popular axiom that says that prevention is better than cure, the arena give valuable advice on how to keep your dog healthy at all times.

Peradventure your pet comes down with any illness or accident, there are valuable information on pets arena that will help you keep your pet stable before calling your vet.

Feel free to ask our vet any question bothering on the well being of your pet in ask the vet section of the arena. You have the opportunity of connecting to vets, trainers, breeders,groomers in the directory section

In this community you can connect with fellow pet owners, make friends with them chat with them when you create a profile. You can equally bring any of your questions or concerns to the forum.

You can initiate or contribute to any discussion in the forum.

When you create your profile it offers you the opportunity to upload pictures and videos of your pets to the arena.you can equally write any article about your pet in your profile and invite your friends to view.

Pets arena equally offer you the opportunity to acquire any pets from vetted and reputable breeders and dealers. You can as well upload your pets for sale after passing through the sites terms and conditions as a breeder, pet seller, or pet owner.

There is an opportunity for you to get stud for your female pets that is on heat and you can as well make good money from using your dog for stud services .

You can equally adopt any pet and put yours to be adopted by responsible pet lovers.

There is a market place where you can shop quality pet food and accessories at competitive price.

There is an opportunity for you to advertise for any job opening in your clinic, kennel or in our home in the appointment category.

As a pet product marketer or producer there is an opportunity for you to advertise your product in the arena. Your product can be reviewed as well.

All these will certainly increase your visibility, bring more business to you subsequently increasing your profits.
Source: [url]petsarena.com.ng[/url]

Pet urine can be very offensive and embarrassing if you keep your dogs indoor as the odour may persist even long after cleaning the urine. Dog urine has a very high content of uric acid that’s why it has strong pungent smell.

Regular cleaning agents like soap and water won't bind to the uric acid, so no matter how many times you clean the area, those crystals stay put. An enzymatic cleaner will break down the uric acid and finally release it from the concrete.

Even if you think the smell is gone after using conventional cleaning products, it will only take a little bit of moisture (even just a humid day) to revive the smell of urine. The presence of water causes the uric acid to release a gas, which creates a strong, foul odor.

So it becomes imperative to use enzymatic cleaners made especially for the removal of pet urine (you can even get one specifically for dogs or cats)

There are a lot of places that our best friend can soil in our home and it includes the upholstery, tiles, floor, beds

Method

Start by putting all the furniture apart – pillows, blankets and others, and vacuum everything thoroughly. If the sofa and chairs have removable slipcovers or cushion covers, take them off and wash.

Get into the crevices of the furniture as deep as possible to remove all the hair, and flip the bed mattress to get both sides.

On the floors, make sure to get under all of the furniture and in the corners, where “hair bunnies” tend to gather.

Depending on your choice you can use homemade remedies or commercial odour removers to remove this foul smelling odour in home.

There are good number of homemade odour neutralizers you can use

A. Home Made Remedies For Removing Pet Urine Odour

If you notice a wet spot that may have happened earlier in the day, sprinkle it with baking soda and let it sit overnight, After the patch dries overnight, spray it with distilled white vinegar and let the carpet bubble a bit so it can interact with the compounds so as the remove foul odour.
On the carpets, bed and furniture, sprinkle baking soda liberally, using a cleaning brush to spread it around and into the fabric. Let it all sit overnight so that the baking soda has a chance to absorb the odors.


You can as well mix vinegar and baking soda together in a spray bottle, according to a green cleaning coach Erinn Morgan, author of Picture Yourself Going Green. She advocates mixing one cup of distilled white vinegar with one cup of water and two tablespoonfuls of baking soda and shake it very well. Then spray it on the carpet and allow it sit for five or six minutes, then gently blot it up with a fresh cloth.
2. Here is another homemade preparation you can as well use to remove these foul smelling urine odour.

Pour the following ingredients into a spray bottle:

5 oz hydrogen peroxide
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp dishwasher orange soap (something about the orange scent help break up the urine smell), or use 3 drops of wild orange essential oil for best results.


When all of the ingredients have been added, gently shake the bottle. Now simply generously spray the affected area with this solution and allow to completely dry. It will become powder-like once the formula dries.

Once it dries vacuum up the powder. If the smell is still there, then repeat this step again and add the extra step included below.



B. Commercial Preparations

1 Get a heavy duty-cleaner like trisodium phosphate (TSP).A heavy-duty cleaner will ensure that all the all the other elements of the urine (like the bacteria) are completely removed and the enzymatic cleaner can work faster to dissolve the uric crystals.Make sure you wear protective goggles and rubber gloves, as TSP can damage your skin.

Mix TSP in a bucket of very hot water at a ratio of 1/2 cup for every 1 gallon of water.
If you don't want to use a heavy-duty chemical like TSP, try cleaning with a water and vinegar mixture (2 parts vinegar to 1 part water) instead
2 Pour the TSP mixture onto the floor and use a broom to lightly scrub the area. Work in small increments (about 3x3 feet). It is important you do not allow the TSP to dry out too quickly. It should sit wet on the surface of the concrete for at least 5 minutes.If the mixture dries before 5 minutes have passed, add more TSP mixture or water to the area. The longer it remains wet, the deeper the mixture can penetrate the concrete.

You will probably notice the urine smell grows very strong as you pre-treat the floor. This is a normal reaction of the uric acid crystals and the water.
3 Pour hot water over the treated area and use a wet/dry vacuum to vacuum up all the liquid.This will remove much of the spent TSP solution. Then rinse the floor with hot water twice more and allow the floor to dry naturally overnight.

Don't use fans to speed the process along you can saturate the concrete and loosen up as much of the urine residue as possible.
If you find your vacuum smells like urine after sucking up the TSP mixture, spray the hose with the enzymatic cleaner (diluted to 1 part concentrate to 30 parts water) while the machine is running. Then turn the machine off and spray the inside of the dirty water tank.
If you use a carpet cleaner, add water to the tank instead of pouring water on the ground and run it in a rinse/removal cycle.
Treating the Concrete

Prepare the enzymatic concentrate according to the instructions. Some cleaners must be mixed with a carpet cleaning solution, while others just require the addition of water. Follow all instructions carefully, and be sure you don't dilute the concentrate by adding too much water.

Make sure the floor is entirely dry from the pre-cleansing the day before you begin applying the enzymatic cleaner.
Saturate the area with the enzymatic cleaner

You want to work in small sections of about 3x3 feet. Use enough of the solution that there is standing water on the area for at least 10 minutes. Add more solution if the area begins to dry out--again, it is essential the liquid permeate every layer and ever pore of the cement so it can break down the uric crystals.

For easier application, use a clean deck or household sprayer. Using a dirty sprayer will cause whatever residue (like mildew or dirt) to be sprayed into the absorbent concrete and may result in another bad smell.
Be especially aggressive in areas where you noted the urine stain with the UV light. You may want to get a scrub brush and use that to really work the enzymatic cleaner into those areas.
The most heavily marked areas may bubble. Take note of these areas, as you may need to treat them again if the smell persists.
Repeat the process until you have treated the entire floor.
There are other commercial preparations you can use remove foul smelling pet odour which you can easily get in a pet store.

Source:[url] http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/rid-home-foul-smelling-pet-urine/[/url]

Pet urine can be very offensive and embarrassing if you keep your dogs indoor as the odour may persist even long after cleaning the urine. Dog urine has a very high content of uric acid that’s why it has strong pungent smell.

Regular cleaning agents like soap and water won't bind to the uric acid, so no matter how many times you clean the area, those crystals stay put. An enzymatic cleaner will break down the uric acid and finally release it from the concrete.

Even if you think the smell is gone after using conventional cleaning products, it will only take a little bit of moisture (even just a humid day) to revive the smell of urine. The presence of water causes the uric acid to release a gas, which creates a strong, foul odor.

So it becomes imperative to use enzymatic cleaners made especially for the removal of pet urine (you can even get one specifically for dogs or cats)

There are a lot of places that our best friend can soil in our home and it includes the upholstery, tiles, floor, beds

Method

Start by putting all the furniture apart – pillows, blankets and others, and vacuum everything thoroughly. If the sofa and chairs have removable slipcovers or cushion covers, take them off and wash.

Get into the crevices of the furniture as deep as possible to remove all the hair, and flip the bed mattress to get both sides.

On the floors, make sure to get under all of the furniture and in the corners, where “hair bunnies” tend to gather.

Depending on your choice you can use homemade remedies or commercial odour removers to remove this foul smelling odour in home.

There are good number of homemade odour neutralizers you can use

[b]A. Home Made Remedies For Removing Pet Urine Odou[/b]r

If you notice a wet spot that may have happened earlier in the day, sprinkle it with baking soda and let it sit overnight, After the patch dries overnight, spray it with distilled white vinegar and let the carpet bubble a bit so it can interact with the compounds so as the remove foul odour.
On the carpets, bed and furniture, sprinkle baking soda liberally, using a cleaning brush to spread it around and into the fabric. Let it all sit overnight so that the baking soda has a chance to absorb the odors.


You can as well mix vinegar and baking soda together in a spray bottle, according to a green cleaning coach Erinn Morgan, author of Picture Yourself Going Green. She advocates mixing one cup of distilled white vinegar with one cup of water and two tablespoonfuls of baking soda and shake it very well. Then spray it on the carpet and allow it sit for five or six minutes, then gently blot it up with a fresh cloth.
2. Here is another homemade preparation you can as well use to remove these foul smelling urine odour.

Pour the following ingredients into a spray bottle:

5 oz hydrogen peroxide
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp dishwasher orange soap (something about the orange scent help break up the urine smell), or use 3 drops of wild orange essential oil for best results.


When all of the ingredients have been added, gently shake the bottle. Now simply generously spray the affected area with this solution and allow to completely dry. It will become powder-like once the formula dries.

Once it dries vacuum up the powder. If the smell is still there, then repeat this step again and add the extra step included below.



B. Commercial Preparations

1 Get a heavy duty-cleaner like trisodium phosphate (TSP).A heavy-duty cleaner will ensure that all the all the other elements of the urine (like the bacteria) are completely removed and the enzymatic cleaner can work faster to dissolve the uric crystals.Make sure you wear protective goggles and rubber gloves, as TSP can damage your skin.

Mix TSP in a bucket of very hot water at a ratio of 1/2 cup for every 1 gallon of water.
If you don't want to use a heavy-duty chemical like TSP, try cleaning with a water and vinegar mixture (2 parts vinegar to 1 part water) instead
2 Pour the TSP mixture onto the floor and use a broom to lightly scrub the area. Work in small increments (about 3x3 feet). It is important you do not allow the TSP to dry out too quickly. It should sit wet on the surface of the concrete for at least 5 minutes.If the mixture dries before 5 minutes have passed, add more TSP mixture or water to the area. The longer it remains wet, the deeper the mixture can penetrate the concrete.

You will probably notice the urine smell grows very strong as you pre-treat the floor. This is a normal reaction of the uric acid crystals and the water.
3 Pour hot water over the treated area and use a wet/dry vacuum to vacuum up all the liquid.This will remove much of the spent TSP solution. Then rinse the floor with hot water twice more and allow the floor to dry naturally overnight.

Don't use fans to speed the process along you can saturate the concrete and loosen up as much of the urine residue as possible.
If you find your vacuum smells like urine after sucking up the TSP mixture, spray the hose with the enzymatic cleaner (diluted to 1 part concentrate to 30 parts water) while the machine is running. Then turn the machine off and spray the inside of the dirty water tank.
If you use a carpet cleaner, add water to the tank instead of pouring water on the ground and run it in a rinse/removal cycle.
Treating the Concrete

Prepare the enzymatic concentrate according to the instructions. Some cleaners must be mixed with a carpet cleaning solution, while others just require the addition of water. Follow all instructions carefully, and be sure you don't dilute the concentrate by adding too much water.

Make sure the floor is entirely dry from the pre-cleansing the day before you begin applying the enzymatic cleaner.
Saturate the area with the enzymatic cleaner

You want to work in small sections of about 3x3 feet. Use enough of the solution that there is standing water on the area for at least 10 minutes. Add more solution if the area begins to dry out--again, it is essential the liquid permeate every layer and ever pore of the cement so it can break down the uric crystals.

For easier application, use a clean deck or household sprayer. Using a dirty sprayer will cause whatever residue (like mildew or dirt) to be sprayed into the absorbent concrete and may result in another bad smell.
Be especially aggressive in areas where you noted the urine stain with the UV light. You may want to get a scrub brush and use that to really work the enzymatic cleaner into those areas.
The most heavily marked areas may bubble. Take note of these areas, as you may need to treat them again if the smell persists.
Repeat the process until you have treated the entire floor.
There are other commercial preparations you can use remove foul smelling pet odour which you can easily get in a pet store.

Source:[url] http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/rid-home-foul-smelling-pet-urine/[/url]

After his beloved dog died, a Toronto man spared no expense to have Woofie cloned.

“I would compare it secondary to losing my mother,” he said.

Not wanting to say goodbye to his canine best friend, Johnson contacted an American company to clone Woofie.

The cloning cost US$80,000 but for Johnson, it was worth every penny. He told CTV Toronto that he would recommend it to any dog owner who doesn’t want to part with their pet.

“If you have the money do it,” he said. “If you love your dog and your dog meant that much to you it’s definitely worth it.”

The company managed to create two genetic replicates of his dog; one named Blondie and one named Woofie Jr.



Johnson met the clone dogs a few days ago and said the first encounter with the puppies was surreal.

“Like holy **** that’s Woofie!” he said. “The mole, the colouring, […] they have the exact same markings. The only way we can tell them apart is that Blondie’s a little heavier.”

According to Johnson the dogs’ temperaments are also similar to the original Woofie.
Source:http:[url]//petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/canadian-man-doles-80000-clone-dead-dog/[/url]

A couple of weeks ago I posted that most farms fail before their 10th year anniversary, the post raised a lot of questions as to why is that so. For this reason I am using this medium to shed more light on the causes both noticed and unnoticed.

Summarily, I will like to highlight the points which I will buttress as we process. These include:

IMPROPER STRUCTURE
– Wrong orientation
– Substandard structure
– Poor waste management



IMPROPER FEEDING
– Low quality feeds
– Wrong feeding methods
– Incorrect feed quantity.



IMPROPER MEDICATION
– Incorrect diagnosis
– Incorrect drugs
– Incorrect drug administration

POOR MANAGEMENT
– Failure to employ professionals
– Untrained workers.
– Regular replacement of workers

SECURITY

Today I will talk on the role being played by improper structure in the eventual collapse of farms with preference to layer farms, with the assumptions that all the necessities are already catered for.

The soul of every poultry farm are the structures especially the pen houses hence there is need to build the best structure that can provide not only accomodation for the birds but also security and hygiene without compromising quality and longevity of the pen houses.

Firstly pen house orientation is adjudged negligible by most small scale farmers who are usually not trained animal scientists but people with money and passion for the business – they usually construct their pen houses without prior knowledge of how the pen should be positioned, they simply call their carpenter and bricklayer and site the pen house wherever they desire.

Whereas the pen house MUST be in the East – West direction to eliminate the incidence of sun light in the pen as much as possible.

Now let’s analyse the effect of wrong orientation on the birds, production and income. Birds are known to be thermo-regulatory feeders i.e they eat to meet up their body’s energy requirement and are more prone to eat more of carbohydrates when fed with cafeteria feeding method because that supplies more of the energy their body requires (that’s the purpose of feed mixing to enable them eat all the other ingredients responsible for their health and productivity), hence on sunny days they eat less because the energy from the sun takes a quota in their energy requirements and on cold days they eat more in order to meet up their body’s energy requirement.

Therefore when your poultry pen is not properly sited, a portion of the birds are usually in the sun at every hour of the day and those birds in the sun will not eat adequately thereby affecting their production.

Assuming you have 3000 laying birds which are expected to perform at 80% overall, those ones in the sun will not produce beyond 70% and their mortality rate is higher as a result of incessant heat stress, that automatically brings your overall production to around 77% meaning you are unknowingly losing around 3 crates of eggs per day which amount to around 1000 crate in a year (#800,000 @ 800 per crate) that means in the 10 years duration of this study the farmer has lost 8 million naira which can never be recovered.

Assuming he started with 10 million naira that means he has unknowingly lost 80% of his start up capital at which stage the farm is already at the edge of collapsed that’s if he is not yet downsizing and/or in the ocean of debts by then.

Substandard structures are another issue, most farmers just construct a pen house as they desire without putting in mind how long they want the pen to stand. I go to farms and see must of those structures already collapsed and some braced here and there with concretes, Iron pipes and wooden planks (they are only managing the inevitable anyways).

Like I will also say to my clients NEVER build a pen with WOODS- over time the woods are being eaten up by termites and nature as most of these woods get severed from the ground level.

Usually the upper level are still strong if hard wood were used but the rain water over the years had softens the part below the ground level, these leads to a dislocation between the hard and the soft part and the pen is suspended in the surface at the mercy of the wind.

There is no point building a pen that will only last for 10 years with 2 million when you can build one that will last for 30 years with 3 million. I personally recommend the use of concrete pillars as the frame of the pen house and galvanized 4 – 6 inch pipes in between or 4 – 6 inch galvanized pipe althrough.

Maybe I need to add that when pen houses collapse the loss is not limited to the structure only but also the cages and the birds therein (imagine a pen collapsing on 3000 birds and cages, that’s a loss of almost 5 million in a day) most farms I know don’t survive the ordeal of a pen house collapse.

Lastly on the issue of structures I will talk on waste management. Though most lay man farmers didn’t put more of this into consideration when building their pen houses, all they had in mind was a standing roof that can easily accommodate the cages which will house the birds.

They never thought waste management could be an issue in the future owing to the fact that poor waste management means poor hygiene and poor hygiene means poor animal health and poor animal health automatically means poor production and high mortality.

A well constructed pen must be self cleaning and it’s wastes proper disposed (like I will always say to my clients, if you can’t eat in your pen house – your birds are not suppose to live there).

Firstly the self cleaning pen houses requires less labour while the other requires more. For instance, a 3000 laying birds with nipple drinker and self cleaning pen house can be handled by just one worker while the one that’s not self cleaning and in need of regular packing of litters needs at least 3 workers to ensure cleanliness, that automatically means an additional 30,000 monthly salary which equals 360,000 per year and 3.6 million in 10 years.

The farmer has unknowingly lost that much for what he could have corrected from the beginning with maybe an additional 200,000 to the construction cost.

Source :http:[url]//theprofarmer.com/farms-fail-10th-year-part-1/[/url]

Hey Nairaland farmers, we are glad to introduce theprofarmer. com to you.Theprofarmer. com was created by popular demand to serve as a resource and hub for the agricultural sector in Nigeria, Africa and beyond.
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With an estimated income of more than $100 billion annually, agriculture remains Africa’s largest sector. Agricultural production in Africa continues to increase gradually and is almost at par with South America.

However, as Africans become more tech savvy, innovations are on the rise as technology experts turn their attention to creating mobile solutions for the modern farmer.

Analysts have shown that by 2025 half of Africa’s population will have internet access with about 360 million smartphones on the continent.

Also based on their estimation, internet technology could increase annual agricultural productivity in Africa by $3 billion per annum.

Nowadays, it is almost common knowledge that smartphones and apps have the potential to help farmers increase their yields and revenue.

Mobile services (voice, SMS, simple data) are perfect for areas where infrastructure and financial limitations prevent broadband Internet.

They are already playing a valuable role in African agricultural markets, in many cases only two years after introduction.

Of course, many farmers still lack access to these relatively new mobile opportunities. Expect that to rapidly change in the next few years as mobile costs are driven down, as governments create agricultural frameworks, and as private business realizes the tremendous opportunity at hand.



With an estimated income of more than $100 billion annually, agriculture remains Africa’s largest sector. Agricultural production in Africa continues to increase gradually and is almost at par with South America.

However, as Africans become more tech savvy, innovations are on the rise as technology experts turn their attention to creating mobile solutions for the modern farmer.

Analysts have shown that by 2025 half of Africa’s population will have internet access with about 360 million smartphones on the continent.

Also based on their estimation, internet technology could increase annual agricultural productivity in Africa by $3 billion per annum.

Nowadays, it is almost common knowledge that smartphones and apps have the potential to help farmers increase their yields and revenue.

Mobile services (voice, SMS, simple data) are perfect for areas where infrastructure and financial limitations prevent broadband Internet.

They are already playing a valuable role in African agricultural markets, in many cases only two years after introduction.

Of course, many farmers still lack access to these relatively new mobile opportunities. Expect that to rapidly change in the next few years as mobile costs are driven down, as governments create agricultural frameworks, and as private business realizes the tremendous opportunity at hand.



Here is a list of how African developers, governments, and organizations operating in Africa are harnessing mobile technology to improve agricultural practices. Private companies, budding IT entrepreneurs, NGOs, as well as governments are all involved in a variety of mobile phone-based products, services, and applications aimed at boosting small-scale agriculture.



Farmcrowdy

This is Nigeria’s digital Agriculture Platform focused on connecting farm sponsors with real farmers. Farmcrowdy gives Nigerians the opportunity to invest in Agriculture by selecting the kind of farms they want to sponsor.

Farmcrowdy uses investors funds secure the land, engage the farmer, plant the seeds, insure the farmers and farm produce, complete the full farming cycle, sell the harvest and then pay the investor a return for their investment.



WeFarm

WeFarm is a free peer-to-peer service that enables farmers to share information via SMS, without the internet and without having to leave their farm. Farmers can ask questions on farming and receive crowd-sourced answers from other farmers around the world in minutes.

SALI

(Sustainable Agricultural Livelihood Innovation) done in Mbeere, Embu by Christian Aid, uses mobile phone technology to notify farmers of weather updates.

SANGONeT

Sangonet allows small-scale dairy farmers in East Africa to record the lactation history of their cows.



CocoaLink

This app launched by the Ghana Cocoa Board, Hershey, and World Cocoa Foundation, connects cocoa farmers with information about good farming practices. The free service uses SMS and voice.



Infotrade

This is a platform built to integrate collection, analysis and dissemination of agricultural and other market information especially in Uganda.

(WOUGNET) Women of Uganda Network aims at promoting and supporting the use of ICTs by women in Uganda. One of their projects known as “Enhancing Access to Agricultural Information (EAAI)” targets rural women farmers in Northern Uganda.

The Mayuge Farmers Exchange provides farmers with access to email communication and information for learning best practice farming.

.

CountrySTAT

This is a web-based information technology system for food and agriculture statistics at the national and subnational levels has launched in at least 16 African nations.

iCow

The iCow platform has a series of dairy agri products that are available over a simple menu system.

Farmers dial a short code, *285#, and access a simple menu that guides them on how to subscribe to the various products. After subscribing, the system sends messages to users at intervals – depending on the product choice.

iCow’s objective is to increase farmer productivity through access to knowledge and experts and to encourage the development of a younger generation of farmers.



Rural eMarket

This platform developed for rural Africa is a simple yet powerful solution to communicate market information, using smartphones, tablets or computers. Rural eMarket is multi-lingual, easy, quick to adopt, and most of all, affordable for most rural projects. The use of appropriate ICT solutions can improve transparency and access to market information and transform the livelihoods of rural populations.

mFisheries

mFisheries is a suite of open-source mobile and web applications for small scale fisheries. It was developed at the University of the West Indies with International Development Research Centre (IDRC) support and comprises a virtual marketplace application, which displays market prices using open data. There is also the ‘Got Fish Need Fish application’ which, in real time, connects agents in the fisheries value chain. It includes navigational tools such as a compass and a GPS logging and retrieval application, as well as training companions including abbreviated first aid lessons from courses delivered by the Caribbean Fisheries Training and Development Institute.

Esoko

Esoko is Africa’s most popular mAgric platform for tracking and sharing market intelligence. “We have a range of apps that you can choose from to suit your needs,” they state. It links farmers to markets with automatic market prices and offers from buyers, disseminate personalised extension messages based on crop & location, and manages extension officers and lead farmers with SMS messaging. Esoko is a totally customisable comprehensive platform designed to transform how you manage your information needs – all bundled into one easy-to-use interface, and backed up with a unique deployment team to help you anywhere.

Fashiba an app by Esoko is a simple and easy mobile money solution that allows smallholder farmers to lay-away and borrow money to purchase the right inputs at the right time. With Fasiba, Esoko brings together input suppliers, financial institutions and farmers in a virtual marketplace to provide a new way for rural communities to get what they want, when they need it.

Insyt also developed by esoko helps farmers recruit field agents and carry out research through customized software development for Android and web, call centre surveys, and agent recruitment, training and management.

FarmerConnect

The FarmerConnect platform is a cloud-based and mobile-enabled platform that delivers personalised agricultural extension services and text/audio information intelligence in local languages to smallholders and farmers who otherwise do not have access to- or can comprehend information from traditional sources. This service helps them stay connected with the information and aiding agencies on a daily basis, increase their yields/incomes, and reduce hunger, poverty and under-nutrition. FarmerConnect, in a nutshell, is a one-stop market place for agricultural communities, including service seekers (Farmers), service enablers (Government, NGO and Private agencies) and service providers (Agronomists, Markets Trackers, Weather Stations etc.).

M-Shamba

M-Shamba is an interactive platform that provides information to farmers through the use of a mobile phone. M-shamba utilises the various features of a mobile phone, including cross-platform applications accessible in phones, and SMS to provide information on production, harvesting, marketing, credit, weather and climate. It also provides customised information to farmers based on their location and crop/animal preference. Farmers can also share information on various topics with each other. M-shamba is currently being used by 4000 rice farmers in Kenya to help them adopt new technologies in rice farming.

Mobile Agribiz

Mobile Agribiz (mogribu.com) is a web and SMS mobile application that helps farmers decide when and how to plant crops, select the best crops for a given location using climate and weather data, and connect to the available market. It helps connect farmers to buyers, and helps them to source important, relevant information (e.g. how to plant crops, how to use fertilizers) and necessary data aggregates (e.g. weather, crop pricing) from various sources. Farmers can easily connect with customers by sending an SMS with their phone number, information on goods, prices and quantities fort sale. This information is plotted into a map on servers, enabling customers to see farmers’ information, the goods they are selling, their quantities and location, and make a connection.


Continue reading@http://theprofarmer.com/top-farming-appsservices-revolutinizing-agriculture-in-africa/

The Boerboel, a native of South Africa is one of the most popular dog breeds in Nigeria and is being used for guarding purposes.
There have been a lot of questions on how to know a thorough-bred boerboel.
This post will help you distinquish a pure-bred boerboel from a mixed breed whether you are trying to buy a puppy or adult . You have to know the approved breed standard of Boerboel before you can get a pure-bred one.
According to South African Boerboel Breeders’ Society Europe:
The Breed Standard is a guideline which describes the ideal characteristics, temperament and appearance of the breed and ensures that the breed is fit for function.
The aim of this Breed Standard is to provide guidelines to breeders, appraisers and judges, who should at all times be vigilant to avoid obvious conditions or excessiveness, that would be detrimental in any way to the health, welfare or absolute soundness of the Boerboel.
We will be talking on different features of pure bred boeboel and what you will look out for for when buying a pure or thorough bred boerboel.
General Appearance
• The Boerboel is a large dog with a strong-boned structure;
• The body is 10 – 15% longer than the height (at the withers) and is measured horizontally, from the prosternum (breastbone) to a vertical line at the rear of the rump;
• A dog with prominent and well-developed musculature;
• Impressive and imposing in appearance, created by a combination of conformation, carriage, confidence and powerful, buoyant and unencumbered movement – notwithstanding its size
• Males are distinctly masculine, larger, while females are distinctly feminine, but without weakness of substance or structure.
• The ideal height of a male is 66 cm but not lower than 60 cm,while the ideal height of a female is 61 cm but not lower than 55 cm.
• Height must always be in relation to mass (minimum of 1:1 and a maximum of about 1:1.25), overall balance and conformation of major body components.
Colour
When you want to want to buy a dog, the first feature of the dog you will notice is the colour of the dog.
Some dogs come in a one particular colour distribution, while others can come in more than one colour. Others can come in any colour.
Boerboel can come in various colours
The recognized and approved colours in boerboel are: –
• all shades of brown (tan, red) or fawn; –
• Brindle: a color pattern with irregular, apparent vertical lines of only black hair on a brown (tan, red) or fawn base color; –
• Piebald: white spots on a brown (tan, red), fawn or brindle dog; –
• Irish: a brown (tan, red), fawn or brindle dog with a white blaze, a white chest that can extend to a white collar, and white feet and legs.
• A black mask is optional.
• All the colors and associated patterns should be accompanied by good pigmentation. The dog should have adequate overall dark skin pigmentation, and the nose leather, eye lids, lips, sexual organs, anus, ears and paw pads should show adequate melanin pigmentation.
For a detailed list of colours found in dogs check our post http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/04/checkout-beautiful-coat-colours-seen-in-dogs/
Disqualifications: Any color or combination of colors other than the ones described above such as
• Liver color on any basic breed standard color.
• Ticking on any basic breed standard color. Split face on any basic breed standard color.
• Dilute/powder and solid blue colored dogs.
• Black and tan dogs.
• More than one-third white of the total body surface.
• Solid black.
• Tri-color.
Serious Fault: Excessive/large white areas in all colors.
Head

The Head is a very important and distinguishing feature of the Boerboel, as it represents it’s total character.
The head is short, broad, deep, square and muscular with well filled cheeks. The top of the skull (occiput) is broad and flat, and from the side the muzzle and head are square. The skull must gradually decrease in width to the eyes and the stop should be visible but not prominent. Moderate wrinkling is observed over the forehead when the dog shows interest.
Eyes – Eye color comes in all shades of yellow and brown, but 90% of dogs’ eye color is lighter than the pelt. The eyes should be horizontally and wide set and looking straight forward, with firm well-pigmented eyelids. Eyes should not be protruding or set too deep, and haws should not show.
Disqualification – Blue eyes must be seen as a serious fault
Ears – The ears should be of medium size, V-shaped and of moderate thickness. The ears are set high and wide against the skull. Ears should drop side ways close to the cheek. When the dog is interested, the ears should form a straight line with the top of the skull (occiput). The ideal length is when the lower tip of the ear is in line with the eye.
Disqualification – Rose, tulip, pricked or full drop is a serious fault.
The nasal bone is straight and as near to parallel as possible to the top line of the head, and should taper slightly from eye to muzzle, with or without a black mask. The nasal bone should be in proportion to the skull (approximately 8-10 cm long). The ratio between skull and nasal bone being 1/1.5:1
The muzzle – is black with large nostrils which are largely spaced.
Disqualification – Liver colored, white or spotted nose.
Lips – the upper lip is loose and fleshy, and should not hang lower than the lower jaw. The upper lip (beneath the muzzle) should cover the lower lip
Jaws – upper and lower should be strong , broad and muscular. The jaws should not be flat or snipey.
Teeth – The teeth should be white, well developed, correctly spaced, a complete set of 42 teeth and should have a scissors bite- a bite in which the outer side of the lower incisors touches the inner side of the upper incisors. Disqualification – badly overshot and badly undershot – i.e. more than 1 cm.
NECK
The neck gradually increases in width from the head to the shoulder, is of medium length, powerful and with an arched crest. The head and neck does not show excessive skin. The scruff may be loose, the dewlap may be noticeable, but not excessive, and the skin is tight across the sternum.
Continue reading @http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/05/boerboels-breed-standard-get-pure-bred-boerboel/

On behalf of [url]petsarena.com.ng[/url] this is wishing all vets in the house a happy 'World Veterinary Day' celebration.

World Veterinary Day was created by the World Veterinary Association (WVA) in 2000 as an annual celebration of the veterinary profession. The event falls on the last Saturday of April and sees the WVA and World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) choose a theme – which for 2017 is "ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE - FROM AWARENESS TO ACTION"

Are you sure you did your research before writing this piece? I totally disagree with you.Businesses have since left Apapa for other areas.

Dogs are carnivorous by nature, but may eat anything that is available to them. This makes them to scavenge the garbage in search of food or out of curiosity to check what’s in the garbage.

Once they found any left-over food, it will make them to get used to scavenging the garbage in search of food regularly.

This habit is annoying and disgusting as they will litter the whole compound with rubbish. This will encourage the dog to feed on rubbish such as disposed baby diapers that has feces since they are commonly attracted to baby’s feces.

They can get some disease causing organism through this scavenging habit if left unchecked.

Keeping Dog Away From garbage Can

Cover the garbage can with a lid.
Avoid giving your dog table scraps before or after your meal.
Place the garbage far away from your dog where he cannot get access to it.
Use a ten foot leash to train your dog by walking him around the garbage. Throw something he cannot resist into the trash. The moment he starts to show interest quickly step on the leash and say “nope” Rush up to the trash can and kick and scream at it without yelling or looking at your dog his back to whatever you are doing. Praise him if your dog ignores the temptation to pick up the thing.
Construct a pyramid of penny cans on top of the garbage can or next to it. Put 10 pennies each in 6 cans and arrange the cans with three on the bottom two in the middle and one on top. Tie a string to the middle can on the bottom row and hold the other end. When your dog shows interest, pull the sting and shout “No” at the can.
You can try the balloon stay away by blowing up a few balloons and thrust them one at a time when your dog is present with a pin. Don’t pay attention to your dog as he will be watching you. Next take the balloons to the edge of the garbage car and leave then for some weeks.
Soak a paper towel in bitter apple or tabasco sauce and leave it on top of the garbage on. This will deter the dog from the garbage can.
Set up a mirror so that you can keep your eye on the garbage can when you are not present. When you see your dog approaching it, step in and correct him.
Source :http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/04/keep-dog-away-garbage-can/

While researching the internet I happened to come across this South African innovative company that produces feed additive from worms in fact maggot. I was fascinated that I decided to share their success story with our audience.
This company known as Khepri Innovations Pty Ltd is a 100% black owned Biotechnology company established in 2012 and based in Gauteng South Africa.
They produce Khepri FF( wholedried insect), Khepri insect Meal and lately Khepri oil.

Khepri FF™( whole dried insect)
Khepri FF™ is simply de-hydrated larvae that are supplied in bulk to the pet food industry and small organic farmers.It can be fed to a number of insect eating reptiles and birds. It can also be used as a protein and energy source in formulated diets for monogastric animals like chickens, pigs and fish.

Guaranteed Nutritional Analysis

Crude protein (min) 400 g/kg
Moisture (max) 100 g/kg
Crude fiber (max) 121 g/kg
Crude Fat (max) 100 g/kg
Calcium (max) 5 g/kg
Phosphorus (max) 30 g/kg

Khepri Meal™ consists of highly nutritious dried defatted larvae that are ground into a high protein meal
Khepri Meal™ Dark rich texture with a slightly nutty flavour. Product can be supplied pelleted, crushed or milled for blending into animal feeds.
Khepri Meal™ can be blended into a variety of animal feeds and used just like any other protein such as fishmeal its nearest nutritional equivalent. It is specifically useful for the feeding of monogastric animals including chickens, pigs and fish.The product is cheaper than conventional feed based on fish meal, reducing the cost of animal farming. The enterprise also produces compost that is sold to farmers to organically improve yields.

Preparation
The larvae is grown in decomposing waste like abattoir waste. They larvae are then harvested, sterilised and then dried under strict conditions at a very low heat to yield the highest quality protein. This protein source compares favourably with fish meal
Guaranteed Nutritional Analysis

Crude protein (min) 400 g/kg
Moisture (max) 100 g/kg
Crude fiber (max) 121 g/kg
Crude Fat (max) 100 g/kg
Calcium (max) 5 g/kg
Phosphorus (max) 30 g/kg
Other Products
Khepri oil is gotten from extracting the oil during preparation of the meal.
Source: [url]theprofarmer.com[/url]

A Client once approached me to dock her dog’s tail sometime ago; I asked her why she wanted to do so. She told me that:

The dog’s tail is reaching almost to the ground because it’s too long.
She wants the dog to be aggressive.
She wants the dog to look finer.
She feels the tail should be docked
Here are few reasons some pet owners want their dog’s tail docked. I then told her that the dog’s tail cannot be docked because

The tail bone has been formed because the Dog is about Four months of age.
Docking the tail is equivalent to cutting his communication with fellow dogs and humans via tail.
The Dog is a mixed breed and it does not belong to Molosser breeds people like docking their tails. Such breeds as Boerboel, Rottweiler.
I went on to tell her that tail docking is an outdated practice and has been outlawed by many kennel clubs abroad.
I finally told her that personally I don’t like docking tails and that I am doing the dog a disservice by amputating his tail for any reason. I love seeing dogs wag their tails when they are excited. It actually amuses me to see a dog tuck his tail in between his legs on sighting a fearful situation. I laugh when I see a dog I go to treat leave quietly with his tail tucked in between his legs.
Dogs use their tail to communicate different moods to their fellow dogs and humans alike. Why do you want to cut this communication for aesthetic purpose. Someone once told me that docking a dogs tail is akin to cutting part of a man tongue so as to make him finer. Is that not wickedness? Is it not high time we stopped this wickedness called tail docking? Apart from dis-enabling this all important communication channel of dogs, there a lot of draw back to docking of tail.

These drawbacks to docking of tails in dogs include

Injury that may lead to death

This just reminded me of one fellow who killed his mongrel by using a knife or matchet so it say to cut his tail. The dog eventually bled to death, this is attitude to amateurism on the part of this person .in uncontrolled bleeding this practice could lead to death to anaemia or shock.

Injury to nerve

The tail of a dog is highly innervated and if by mistake any of these nerves is severed during this cosmetic surgery , other complication may set like paralysis of a part of the body.

Infection

When not properly treated post surgery the docked tail may become infected with its attendant consequences.

Trauma

Another drawback to this wicked act is the trauma the dog passes before and after the amputation of the tail. On different occasion I carried this surgery before made up mind not to do it any longer,I could see the dog wriggling his body in pains even after administering anesthetic. The dog feels this pain overtly after the surgery he keeps licking the area while crying.

Source: [http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/03/lets-stop-wickedness-called-tail-docking/]

Just love this girl, check out how she replied Reuben Abati intelligently without sounding insultive. Nobody can take away her intelligence and audacity.

Most times people use colours like brown,grey,black when describing the colour of a dog , but dogs come in a whole rainbow spectrum of different coat colours and patterns that often come accompanied by unusual and exotic sounding names as well!

When describing colour of a dog you notice some exotic names like agouti ,belton, merle,harlequin and others are as well used.One may need to check up these words in a dictionary to know what colour is being referred to.

If you want to brush up on your knowledge of canine coat colour combinations and the proper terms to refer to different shades and mixes of colour on dogs, this post got you covered. Read on to learn about all of the main dog coat colour terms and what they mean.

Read more at[http://petsarena.com.ng/2017/04/checkout-beautiful-coat-colours-seen-in-dogs/]

Designer dogs are dogs which have been intentionally bred from two or more recognized dog breeds and not from dogs with no purebred ancestors.These cute dogs are cockapoo, a cross of cocker spaniel and poodle.t is the first registered designer dog.
Read more at http://petsarena.com.ng/2016/11/meet-cockapoo-first-designer-dog-comes-various-sizes-colours/

Nigerians are not used to keeping cats and they are still attached to the superstitious belief that cats are 'witches'.Some believe that witches can use their cats to attack them if they keep one. Western world once believed in this myth earlier, though they outgrown it with civilization.Nigeria will reach that level too as we develop in our evolution. Cats are really cute pets to keep any away.

They call them designer dogs.can some one identify the dog breed these dogs belong to.