1) Protect Your Pet From Hot Weather.
2) Bringing a new pet home.
3) Dog Training.
4) Litter Box Training.
5) A Multi-Pet Household.

Never leave your pet in a parked car. Even cracked windows won't protect your pet from overheating or suffering from heat stroke during hot summer days.

Exercise your dog in the early morning or evening hours, instead of during the middle of the day when it's hottest.

If your dog or cat is out during the day, remember that asphalt and concrete can get very hot and burn the pads of their feet. Your pet must always have shelter available to protect it from extreme temperatures and inclement weather. Be aware that older and overweight pets, as well as flat-faced breeds such as Persian cats, pugs and bulldogs, are more likely to overheat in hot weather.

Keep your pet away from unfamiliar yards and grassy areas as many people treat their gardens with pesticides and fertilizers, which can cause severe intestinal upset in dogs and cats when ingested. Some types of mulch can also be hazardous.

Provide your pet with fresh, cool water every day in a tip-proof bowl.

Keep your pet well groomed, but resist the temptation to shave off all of his hair in an effort to keep him cool. Your pet's coat will protect him from getting sunburned. A matted coat traps in the heat, attracts parasites and can cause skin sores.

Keep your pet away from spots or puddles of oil/petrol in the garage, driveways or parking lots. The sweet taste of this poisonous liquid is tempting to animals, but can be fatal.

Don't let your dog ride in the back of an open vehicle, such as a pick-up truck. Unless he's riding in the cab with you, he could slide around, bounce or jump out of the moving vehicle. Also, the floor of the truck bed can get extremely hot and may burn the pads of your dog's feet. If your dog must travel in the back of an open vehicle, make sure he's in a kennel, safely tethered to the floor of the truck bed.

The ride home:

Use a cat carrier to bring the new cat home; never let a cat loose in the car or leave the cat alone in the car.

A room alone:

Prepare a room where the new cat can live for the first few days. A small, isolated room, like a bedroom, is perfect. Place a cat bed, a litter pan, and water and food bowls in the room. Do not push attention on the cat or make too many demands. He/she needs time to adjust and get used to the sounds and smells of your home. Do not rush this part of the "welcome to our family" process. Be patient and move to the next step only when you are sure everyone is really ready.

Prepare the kids:

Introduce each child to the cat one at a time, in a supervised visit. Remind children that it is important to be gentle with and speak softly to the cat; there will be plenty of time to play later.

Cat in residence:

Introducing a new cat or kitten into a home that already has a cat should be handled the same way. Give the new arrival a room of their own and plan on a two-week introductory period. Never force the new arrival on the resident cat. Never force them to interact. Accept that some hissing and posturing is normal and necessary; they will sort the situation out on their own. Try not to set the stage or permit a fight to break out. Have a blanket ready to throw on the combatants if it does! Realize that cat fights sound and look worse than they really are. Don't leave them together when you're away until they have clearly made their peace. Give each animal their own litter box and food bowls. A good rule of thumb on litter boxes is to add one to the number of cats you have, and that's how many litter boxes you should provide. Give the resident cat extra attention to minimize any negative attention the cat may focus on the newcomer.

Lack of properly housebreaking a dog can be the cause that owners either banish their pet to be tied up outdoors, or one reason they may relinquish their pet to the shelter to be re-homed. Below is some helpful advice for housebreaking your pet, so that you can keep them indoors with you as a family member - where they belong.
If you have recently adopted an adult dog from the shelter who was not previously kept indoors, or who came to us as a stray on which we have no history, this advice can work for you as well. Also please be aware that any dog who is re-homed may go through a stressful period where he "forgets" his previous good habits, so please try to be patient and help your pet to learn the rules in your household.

• Limit your dog to two meals (or for young puppies three meals) per day on a regular schedule.
• Young puppies or excitable adults may need limited access to water as well. Water may be taken up at night.
• Verify that your dog is healthy.
• A urinary tract infection may cause the dog to need to urinate small amounts frequently.
• Parasites may cause loose stools.
• Stress can also play a role in housebreaking difficulties. Try to stay calm about accidents. You may want to supplement your pet with a tablespoon or two of yogurt (plain or flavored) a couple times per week.
• Puppies and some toy breeds have limited bladder and bowel capacities and will need to be taken out more frequently.
• A young puppy may need to go out every one or two hours.
• A general rule is to take the puppy's age in months and add 1 for how many hours under ideal conditions the puppy can hold its bladder. (ie. a 3 month old puppy would need to go out every 4 hours).
• Many puppies can, however, hold themselves for an eight hour work day while confined in a crate by the age of 5 months of age. Also by 4 to 5 months of age most puppies can hold it all night.
• Take your puppy out after he/she wakes up from a nap, immediately after periods of active play, within 20-30 minutes after meals, or if you notice your puppy sniffing or circling.
• I generally do not like to play doorman for my dogs, so I do not advise you to wait for the dog to go to the door to indicate that they need to go. But do make sure that you get your dog out on a reasonable schedule. If my dog goes to the door, I will make a mental note that they look like they may have to go out and I will keep my eye on them, and then I wait until I see them move away from the door. I will then let them out at this time.
• Take the dog or puppy out for 5 to 10 minutes, and ignore all attempts of the dog to engage in play (ie. leash tugging), and with your hand and voice gently encourage the dog to sniff the ground and say "go pee" or "do your business". It is especially helpful for people who travel with their pets to have a dog that will eliminate on cue.
• Take treats with you in your pocket and when the dog does squat, praise the dog calmly, then follow up with a food reward.
• If the dog does not go within 10 minutes, take it back indoors, but keep the dog with you, either by tying the leash to your waist or holding the leash, or put the dog in a crate. Wait about 20 minutes and try again. If you stay outside with your dog longer than 10 minutes, you will not be encouraging the dog to eliminate on your schedule and quickly. If you let your dog loose when you go back indoors, and there is an accident, your dog has not learned the appropriate time and place to eliminate.
• If the puppy or dog has an accident when you are not watching, do not scold the dog, do not rub their nose in it. Clean it up with an odor neutralizer, such as Simple Solution brand product.
• If you catch the dog in the act, don't scold, but use a simple "no reward marker" such as "oops" and take the dog by the collar to the door and escort it outside.
• Generally try to keep an eye on the dog, and try to take him/her out on a schedule that is proactive rather than reactive.
• If you have rooms, or a basement in the house that are seldom used, you may want to block the dog's access to these rooms, since they will often choose out-of-the way places to soil.

Cat preferences:

• The litter box should be in a location where the cat has some privacy.
• A litter box with a cover may or may not work well for cat.
• The litter in the box should be deep rather than shallow.
• Most cats prefer clay, clumpable litter, but you may need to experiment.
• The litter should not be heavily scented or perfumed.
• After using a disinfectant to clean, rinse well and allow the litter box to air out a bit. Lysol may be toxic to cats.
• Keep the litter box clean. Scooping litter should become a routine daily chore, even if you cannot smell it, or you are using a covered box.
• Never startle your cat while using the box.
• Do not catch your cat in the box to medicate, or for other unpleasant purposes.

Cat with litter box problems:

• Has your cat been to the veterinarian lately?
• Rule out any potential health problems that might be caused by a bladder infection, parasites, or other physical cause.
• Try confining the cat to a small area when you are unable to supervise your cat, or at times when you know he/she is likely to use the litter box. A large dog crate may work well for this. You are trying to develop a new habit, so you may have to do this for an extended period of time.
• Experiment with the type of litter you are using.
• Cats stress easily and often respond to stress by eliminating outside the litter box. Ask yourself if there have been any changes in the cat's environment lately.
• Has a new person joined your household?; a new baby?; recently married?
• Have you added a new pet to the household?
• Did you move to a new home recently?
• Did you rearrange furniture, or remodel?
• Has your schedule at work changed?

If there has been a change, can you find a way to minimize the affects of the change?

• Use an odor neutralizer product specific to cleaning up cat feces and urine in the soiled areas of your home. You may want to place something like the cat food bowls, or other barrier over or around the soiled area.

Introducing a new pet into a household of other pets can be challenging, but the end result of having a multi-pet household can be a lot of fun and very rewarding too, so don't give up! These tips may help you get off to a good start. If you are still having trouble after following this advice, consider getting professional help.

• Best to introduce your dogs in an open, spacious environment.
• Introduce off-leash in a fenced yard if possible.
• If off-leash introduction is not possible, introduce with a loose leash making sure that leashes do not get tangled.
• Stay calm and relaxed. If you are tense your pet may feel they have a reason to be on guard.
• Remember to give your old pet an equal amount or more attention than you are giving the new pet, so that they do not feel that they are being replaced by the new pet.
• Praise both dogs when they meet, if they think that you are happy when another dog is near them, they will be able to relax and be happy about it too. Talking using a 'happy voice' can also be helpful.
• Do not touch or cuddle one pet or the other, let them meet on their own terms.
• Do not force them to greet each other, if introduced off-leash and one or both dogs go off to sniff, that is perfectly okay.
• If some low-key growling occurs, just ignore it. Growling is how dogs talk with one another and how they tell one another that they need a little space. This is okay, as long as it doesn't escalate. Don't necessarily praise it, as you do not want your dog to growl, but respect it.
• If you scold a dog for growling, they may learn to attack without giving any verbal warning, and this can create a much worse situation. You will want to be wary if dogs start snapping at one another. Stay as calm as possible, but be ready to intercede if the argument escalates.
• Do not have toys or bones or other objects that one dog might try to guard from the other dog in the area.
• Remember that in most cases aggression is caused by fear and a dog's perceived desire to protect him/herself, not because the dog is mean or trying to be bad.
• Use common sense when introducing an unknown large dog to a dog that is significantly smaller, you may want to handle this indoors as in a dog to cat introduction.
  
  
  Because this method did not work the first time, does not necessarily mean that you should give up. Some pets need several days to relax and adjust.
  
  You should provide areas where your pets can remain separate until you know for certain that they are getting along well. You, of course, have to make the decision about how much effort you are willing to put into creating a multi-pet household, but the rewards can be quite great, if you are able to work through it.
  
  See the Additional tips below.

• Unlike the dog-to-dog introduction, it is best to introduce dogs and cats indoors in close confinement.
• Allow your cat a place to get away from the dog, such as a high shelf or table, or an escape route into another room under a baby gate, if it needs some space.
• Use praise when you see your dog and cat play appropriately together.
• Do not force them to be best buddies. Let them meet on their own terms.
• You will find some cats will be very dog savvy, and even enjoy playing with dogs, and other cats do all the 'wrong things' that encourage the dog to chase it or play rough. Your cat just may not be cut out to be good friends with your dog. There is nothing wrong with this.
• Use common sense.

Note from the author: I have enjoyed a great variety of dog-cat, and cat-dog relationships over the years. It is great fun to see a cat sitting and waiting on a chair then carefully reaching out and batting playfully at the dog with her paw as he races by, or to see a dog gently nuzzle the belly of a cat lying seductively on her back.

Additional Notes:

• Never leave multiple dogs playing together unattended with collars on. The possibility that a dog could get its mouth caught in the collar of another dog exists, and strangulation could occur.
• Do not leave multiple dogs unattended after initial introduction until you see that they are very comfortable with one another. If you feel your dogs may be at risk when not supervised, find a way to isolate the dogs from one another when you are not home.
• If you already have two or more dogs at home and are introducing a new dog, it is usually best to make the introduction to the new dog with each of the old dogs individually before putting all the dogs together. The dogs that are already established in your home are less likely to form a pack against the newbie if the introductions are done in this manner.
• If you continue to have problems, but feel committed to providing a home for both pets, please don't be afraid to seek out professional help.