Over the last thousands of years, cats have pretty much handled their breeding themselves.  In the beginning, they were used for one purpose – hunting and killing rodents.  As the years progressed, we began to breed cats more to our liking.  Now days, there are several different breeds of cats – which you can tell if you look closely.

These days there are over 70 distinct cat breeds, which are recognized through cat registries.  There are several registries that will recognize around 40 breeds or so, as they exclude the more domestic breeds such as tigers.  There are also many variations as well, including wild cats that have longer hair.

There are some cat breeds who have roots going back quite a bit in history.  Some Japanese breeds, such as the Japanese Bobtail, can be traced back more than 1,000 years in history.  These cats were very common and well known throughout Medieval Japan.  Now days though, they are all but a myth throughout Japan and the entire world.

The more common cat breeds that are found in North America include the alley cat, long haired cat, and Persian cat.  Siamese cats are also common, although they are well known to be destructive and to have a foul temper.  Persian cats are very popular, proving to be loving companions.  Persian cats can be very expense, depending on where you get it and what type of Persian cat it is.

Alley cats are the most common in North America.  There are actually several different breeds, although most of us just refer to them as alley cats.  They make good pets, although there are literally thousands of them in existence.  Cats are known to breed more than any other pet, and they will continue to breed until they are stopped.  Alley cats are among the most bred, as there are hundreds of thousands of cats that are homeless – and have nothing to do but breed.

The look of the cat is the easiest way to tell what breed he or she may be.  Some people choose to go by color, although color isn’t as easy to identify.  Different breeds of cats have different looks, such as the Siamese and Persian cats.  Siamese cats are almost always black, and easy to identify by their color and their eyes.  Persian cats on the other hand, are easily identified by their body type and their hair.

Over the years, there has been quite a few breeds come along.  Cats were one of the first pets, and easily one of the most popular.  Millions of people around the world own cats, with many people preferring a cat over any other pet – including dogs.  No matter breed of cat you get – you’re sure to get a pet who make for a great companion for years and years to come.

Is it worth to invest on your dog’s training? Yes. Is it worth to invest big time? On some occasions no.

It is perfectly okay to buy very expensive dog collars if you fancy doing so. There are a lot of choices for you. Starting from stone studded collars to fashion dog collars, you can get anything by spending a fortune. However, for some owners it is never practical to spend so much for an item that could be obtained at a lot lower price with the fundamental functions.

Dog training could be pretty stressful especially if your dog is highly independent and has a high level of curiosity which tends to yield problem behaviors to owners.

After investing for your dog’s training without satisfactory results– including the emotional and financial investment- many owners tend to cut down from spending too much on other things that contribute nothing to improving the behavior of the dog. One good example is the dog training collar.

For many owners it does not make much sense if the dog does not respond well to training and its accessories especially when the dog has begun nibbling on the corners of the dog collar. What is more important to them is the improvement of the behavior and not really on how expensive or sophisticated the collar and other accessories look.

While dog collars are instrumental in gaining better control and lesser unwanted dog behaviors, the expensive ones could still dent the budget of the owner. This is the reason why many owners resort to buying cheap dog training collars as good alternatives without having to sacrifice the function of the item and without having to add to the financial burden.

To get a cheap collar with good value it is best to first evaluate the product before looking at how much it costs. It is a common mistake among buyers to use the cost as the basis for assessing the value of the item based on its function and reliability.

Cost is a good margin for getting the right collar but it should not affect the way one sees the item. For example, an excellent collar could give the best value at its lowest possible price. However, since it is tagged with a low price the buyer would immediately conclude that it does not perform well.

Remember, we were made to believe that price equals quality. Items at the lower end of pricing have lower quality while those having expensive tags have the best quality. This usually happens but it is not always the case. So be sure to find the best bargains at their best prices.

Advanced technology integrated into the collar could often command much higher prices. The popular electronic dog collar is a good candidate. The price of this collar runs anywhere from $100 to $999 depending on the types of features installed in the item. You can expect a lot higher prices when more advanced technologies are used in making the collar.

Dog collar can cost a few hundred dollars and many people find it very impractical to buy items with outrageous tag prices. So if you are someone wanting to be practical while trying to get a cheap dog training collar, it is best to do your homework.

from wikiHow – The How to Manual That You Can Edit

If you have a new Oriental Fire-Belly Toad (Bombina orientalis) and don’t know how to take care of it, this article may be for you. Fire-belly toads are a popular pet in the USA that can live for ten years or more if properly cared for. In the wild the toads are mostly aquatic, inhabiting warm, humid regions, often forests. They spend most of their time soaking in shallow pools, among dense vegetation.

Steps

1. Choose a fire-bellied toad
2. • Look for toads that are hopping around when you tap on the glass. Since these are probably the healthiest and most active toads, pick the lively ones.
   • Choose the brightest colored toads as they will be the healthiest. Fire-belly toads are bright green above and have red or orange bellies with black markings, thus the name. They look like frogs but are really toads. You can tell because they do not live in water but need it to stay moist to survive and the rough bumpy skin is a give away that this creature is in fact a toad. There are two common varieties, one of which is brown.
   • Consider picking two toads as animals often do better in pairs. You can wait a few days and go back to get another.
3. Set Up the Right Habitat
   • Keep your toad in an amphibian tank.
   • Make sure you provide 60% water and 40% land both with hiding places for the toads.
   • The water half should be about 4-10 cm of water. For the land, you can use rounded rocks to help the toad climb out of the water,”DO NOT use gravel or any other sharp items in the habitat, they can hurt your frog if swallowed or puncture their skin!”
   • The toads are extremely sensitive to chlorine, de-chlorinate any tap water you use in the tank. De-chlorination supplies can be obtained at your local pet store, don’t get worried it’s very easy to do. #* Also provide some moss (preferably sphagnum moss) for your toad to burrow into.
   • Provide your toads with light. DO NOT USE A HEATER OR A LIGHT THAT HEATS UP! Use a fluorescent bulb with low light as they do not like it bright, and put it outside of the tank, preferably over the side with water. When you feed your toad, put the insects on the land side AWAY FROM THE LIGHT! If they look at the light, it will damage their vision.
4. Feed your Toad
   • Feed your toad with live food, the toads need to see movement in order to know what to eat.
   • Typical food includes crickets, small worms, or cut up regular worms and guppies (not the fancy ones).
   • Feed the insects “gut load” and vegetables. The nutrients in the gut load and vegetables will be passed on to your fire belly toad.
5. Try not to handle your toad.
   • The salts on our skin will hurt your toad and can be fatal.
   • Their oils are slightly toxic and can cause a rash.
   • Fire bellied toads are known to become extremely excited when touched by a human. They are not meant to be touched.
   • Only handle the toad when cleaning the tank. Use latex gloves to take it out and put in in a container that is NOT PLASTIC – the chemicals will harm your toad.
6. Wash the tank
   • Wash rocks thoroughly in a strainer.
   • Wash tank. Do not use any soaps or other chemicals, toads are very sensitive to chemicals.(hot water works great)
   • Put the rocks in the bottom of the tank.
   • Put toads back into tank.

Tips

• You can remove chlorine from tap water by letting it sit in an open tank or container for 24-48 hours. Do not use a container that has had chemicals. Water quality should be the same as for fresh water fish.
• Always use a water purifying product, such as AquaSafe to get rid of harmful chloramines. These do not evaporate with the chlorine.
• Dust their crickets in calcium powder to increase the health of their toad.
• Do not feed your frog dead food, because it is rare they learn to recognize food. They also hunt by motion. However, rarely, firebelly toads become tame enough to eat from your fingers, whether the food is live or dead.
• Give them a variety of foods for enhancement
• Allow three frogs (at most) for every 10 gallons of space a tank contains. 1-3 frogs will do good in a ten gallon tank, 4-6 frogs will do good in a twenty gallon tank, and so on. Longer tanks will also provide more space for frogs than taller tanks.
• Give one frog all by itself at least 4 or 5 gallons of space. The small tanks with vented covers are available for cheap at any pet store, and the larger ones should provide enough space for one stress-free environment for one frog. *You can mix these guys with house geckos,green tree frogs or critters of similar size

Warnings

• Toads have poison glands which, if it is not used to your handling, as is with a newly purchased toad, they will secrete a white toxin which can cause a rash. Wash your hands after handling to prevent this.
• Do not use soap to wash any materials.
• Do not feed your toad meal worms, as these larva possess hard shells which fire-bellied toads have a hard time digesting. The worms can also eat through their tummys, as has been witnessed. Most toads can digest small meal worms and grasshoppers occasionally but should not be your toad’s primary source of food. Crickets and guppies are your best bet for healthy, happy toads.
• Do not feed your toads grasshoppers, as they are hard to digest and sometimes poisonous to them.
• Make sure the tank is always clean. Dirty water can cause diseases in your tank.
• Loss of appetite, bloated abdomen, laziness (this may be due to lack of nutrition), and cloudy eyes can be signs of disease. Clean your frog’s tank and contact an expert if any of those occur.
• Do not add gold fish or fish to try to keep the tank clean, as they will eat the fish. Guppys are a good food source if there are enough of them, but you must also feed them crickets regularly. While not suggested, they can go for 2 weeks without eating.
• Some say that these frogs don’t need a heat source, but they do: 72-76 degrees is the best, 77-82 degrees could make them mate. This is not suggested (as they will eat the babies) unless you can provide more than one tank, to take the adults out.
• You must have a cover, as they will climb up the tank corner to escape.
• You may hold them, but try not to handle them too much.
• Avoid feeding your toads bugs such as spiders, ants, and beetles.

Things You’ll Need

• smooth rocks/bark size 0-5MM or a little bigger.
• Toad food (optional vitamin-mineral supplement).
• Crickets work the best, or if you can catch flies as well.
• Tank with a secure lid.
• live plants.
• Moss (Preferably Sphagnum Moss)
• Hiding places.
• Light
• 60% water
• Do not use fake plants that are hard, the hard plastic could poke them, or if a small piece comes off the fake plant, the frog could eat it.
• Think of it this way.. if it moves and they can put it in there mouths, they will.
• DO NOT mix with other toads or frogs, remember they produce toxin that will harm others. Also many toads and frogs will kill/eat others.
• Chirps from both fire belly toads are loud but can sound like a rain forest.

Related wikiHows

• How to Care for Green Tree Frogs
• How to Prevent Aggressive Behavior in Poison Dart Frogs
• How to Learn More About Amphibians
• How to Assist in the Admiration of Amphibians on wikiHow
• How to Purchase a New Aquarium
• How to Create Aquariums So Lizards and Fish Can Coexist
• How to Create a Habitat for a Toad
• How to Make a Frog Home in the Garden

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Care for Fire Belly Toads. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

I came across an article on how to protect your pet from the swine flu and thought this might be something readers of this website might be interested in.

How to Protect Your Pet From the Swine Flu

Let me know if you like reading these additional articles and I will add any interesting ones I find that might be of interest to pet owners.

We used to have a guinea pig many moons ago and the smell was one of the downsides. It only makes sense that a bath once in a while would be a good thing for this pet as well as others.

Let me know how you like this video. I will add some good pet videos from time to time and I always watch them to make sure they are something I think you will enjoy and/or learn from.