Tag: bestbullysticks

BestBullySticks is committed to providing our customers’ dogs with healthy, nutritious chews and treats. However, our interest in providing all-natural, healthy dog treats extends beyond the occasional snack and all the way to food! Maintaining a healthy diet is the biggest factor in maintaining long term health, staving off disease and enhancing general well-being.

Many store bought dog foods are nutritionally poor and contain scarce amounts of beneficial nutrients. Others are healthy and do provide complete nutrition. Either way, there’s always room to supplement. As the saying goes, you are what you eat!

All Food Isn’t Created Equal

Many pet owners get up in arms if you tell them you feed your dog food from the table. But the fact of the matter is many of the healthy whole foods we eat for dinner, are pretty good for Fido too! Of course, there are some exceptions. But on the whole, we’ve got a lot in common with our canine companions when it comes to food. For today’s post we’ve selected five super foods — great for both people and dogs — that stand out among the rest.

5 Super Foods for Dogs

1. Fish - Oily fish like salmon, trout and tuna pack the highest nutritional punch for your dog. These fatty fish have higher levels of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids — two nutrients proven to reduce the risk of heart related illnesses. Additionally, fish is a rich source of healthy low-calorie protein and it’s also easy to digest! Making fish part of your dog’s diet twice a week is a great way to offer them some long term health benefits. Read more

BestBullySticks is back to mix things up with a brand new offering! A great addition to our already huge line of products — speaking of huge, these things are massive! In fact, The Monster Gullet Jerky is one of the biggest products we have! Made from the esophagus of cattle, these treats are full of nutrients essential to a healthy lifestyle.

Measuring a whopping 18-20 inches long and 2 inches wide, these single-ingredient chews are sure to please even the biggest hounds. Our Monster Gullets are sourced straight from Australia and only made from the highest quality beef in the region.

Naturally packed with glucosamine — a supplement shown to support healthy joints and mobility— these treats are easy to chew and fully digestible. Aside from helping rebuild tissue around joints, our Monster Gullet Jerky also supports oral hygiene. This super chewy treat will massage your pup’s gums and the natural action of chewing helps clean teeth.

BestBullySticks recommends these tasty treats for medium to large dogs. And as with all treats, pets should be supervised while chewing! To see a full line of our healthy and all-natural dog treats, visit BestBullySticks.com.

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Our Training Tips series has provided dog owners with a solid introduction to a variety of training methods out there. First, we touched on How Dogs Learn, then we progressed into practical information about teaching tricks with clicker training. Now that we’ve laid a foundation to help you get your unruly pup in line, BestBullySticks wants you to get out there and put that knowledge to use!

The Loose Leash Walk

One of the most difficult things dog owners struggle with is being able to take their dog on a leisurely walk. All owners should train their dogs to go on a “loose leash walk.” This type of walk is simply one where the dog does not pull. There are many benefits to training your dog to do this.

First, dogs who pull exceptionally hard on the leash can injure themselves — especially if they’re not wearing a harness. Pulling on a collar can injure your dog's trachea and neck. If your dog does pull, invest in a harness to help reduce the physical stress of walking. Retractable leashes should be avoided as well. Not only to they offer little to no control while walking, the thin cords of these leashes can injure owners when trying to wrangle their dogs! We recommend a heavy duty leash like Krebs Reggie 6’ Leash. Thick and easy to grasp, it will make loose leash training way easier!

Second, dogs who pull are generally just excited to be outside. While they might be having fun, they are unable to remain focused on their owner and if they get loose, the chances of being hit by a car or running off increase dramatically. Loose leash walking will increase your dog’s focus on you (the owner) and put you more in control.

Practice Makes Perfect

Just like with any other form of training, practice is key! Many owners don’t realize it, but if their dog pulls on the leash, chances are they have unknowingly reinforced the dog to do so. Time to break this bad habit! Make sure you’ve got your clicker ready. Don’t forget to grab some healthy training treats like our Dried Bison Liver treats.

Begin loose leash training inside or in the backyard and with as few distractions as possible. The more distractions around, the harder it is to grab your dog’s attention.

1. Leash your dog and stand still. Wait until your dog pulls and the leash goes taut

2. Once your dog moves back and releases the tension, click and offer a treat

3. Remain still and only when your dog offers eye contact, click and offer a treat

4. Once your dog begins to seek eye contact, begin tossing treats closer and closer to your right foot

5. Begin walking slowly, click and reward when your dog maintains pace with you

Achieving results with these 5 steps won’t happen overnight. So don’t get frustrated right away if you can’t get past step 2. Only advance to the next step if the previous has been mastered otherwise you run the risk of confusing your dog.

Taking the Show on the Road

Once you feel your dog has the 5 basic steps of loose leash walking down, it’s time to hit the road. A new environment will distract your dog but by remaining consistent with the previous training sessions, things will get easier.

If your dog does pull once outside, come to a dead stop once the leash becomes tense. Don’t resume the walk until the leash goes slack and your dog comes to your side. Click, offer a treat and resume the walk. During a slow walk you can even place treats at your feet to help your dog maintain an even pace. By refusing to be led by your dog, he/she will begin to understand you’re the one in charge. Before you know it, going on walks will less stressful and way more fun!

BestBullySticks.com offers best selection of safe and all-natural dog chews and treats anywhere. Follow us on Facebook & Twitter to catch the latest news and product specials!

National Mill Dog Rescue recently received a donation from BestBullySticks.com and we always love learning more about the rescues we donate to and sharing their stories with our customers and fans. We didn’t know we would be so affected by the stories that were told, but are so grateful for National Mill Dog Rescue’s experience, care and love they pour out on dogs. Keep reading for more about National Mill Dog Rescue, their beginnings, their inspiration and their successes.

When & Why did you start?

National Mill Dog Rescue was established in February 2007, in honor of a forgiving little Italian Greyhound named Lily. Theresa Strader, NMDR’s Founder and Executive Director, rescued Lily from a dog auction in Missouri. Prior to that day, Lily had spent the first seven years of her life as a commercial breeding dog, a puppy mill mom. Determined that her years of living in misery would not be in vain, Strader started NMDR, giving a voice to mill dogs across the country.

During her years as a breeding dog, Lily spent all of her days confined to a small, cold wire cage in a dark, foul-smelling barn. Never was she removed from her cage for exercise or socialization. In her dreary confines, Lily was forced to produce one litter after another with no respite. Like all commercial breeding dogs, she was a veritable breeding machine whose worth was measured in only one way - her ability to produce puppies.

By seven years of age, Lily was worn out. Commonplace in the industry, she had received little to no veterinary care throughout her life, the result of which, for her, was terribly disturbing. Due to years of no dental care, poor quality food, rabbit bottle watering and no appropriate chew toys, the roof of Lily’s mouth and lower jaw, had rotted away. Her chest was riddled with mammary tumors and she was absolutely terrified of people.

Strader brought Lily and twelve others home from the auction and declares that even for a highly seasoned rescuer, the following months were the education of a lifetime in rehabilitation. That she would take up the cause for the mill dogs was never in question and National Mill Dog Rescue was promptly underway. In five short years, NMDR has amassed over 1,300 volunteers and has rescued over 6,300 puppy mill survivors.

Run almost solely by volunteers, NMDR has pledged to put an end to the cruelty of the puppy mill industry. Through widespread informative efforts, NMDR hopes to educate the public to acquire their companion animals through reputable breeders or better yet, from shelters and rescue groups across the country. Read more

If you hadn’t already heard, this week is Animal Rights Awareness Week! BestBullySticks, being all about everything dog-related, is using the opportunity to spread the word about animal rights. In honor of this important week, we’ve put together a brief history of animal rights as well as some valuable information about how you can become involved in your community.

Animal rights as we know them today are a far cry from centuries past. Luckily, modern times have brought about a progressive shift towards recognizing animal rights and welfare. Things began to change in the 19th century —  during these times there was a dramatic and sudden interest in animal protection. A movement which got it’s start in the United Kingdom would eventually spread worldwide and become law in many countries.

Baby Steps

Until the early 1800’s, people were only punished for animal cruelty because it was seen as a destruction of the owner’s property! However, thanks to some caring minds of the era, the animal rights movement slowly gained momentum. Initially, many activists focused their attention on “baiting” — a practice of setting game dogs against a captured or chained animal with the intent of incapacitating or killing it. The first major accomplishment in the protection of animals was made in the fight against baiting and led to the practice becoming illegal.

The first animal rights bill in history, named Martin’s Act, was introduced into Irish law in 1822. This groundbreaking set of laws sought to protect beasts of burden from abuse. People outside the United Kingdom were taking notes, too. Soon thereafter, other countries followed suit and by the 1850’s many Western nations had passed comprehensive laws with severe penalties for animal abusers. Read more