Health

Foods that Are Rich in Vitamin D

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Vitamin D can be found in many foods including most dairy products and fish. Vitamin D is different than other vitamins in that the body is able to synthesis vitamin D using sunlight. The amount of sunlight needed to produce sufficient levels of vitamin D is only fifteen minutes of direct sunlight, three times a week. In many countries including the United States, milk is often fortified with vitamin D to ensure children receive the recommended daily allowance during weather and seasons where direct sunlight is unavailable. Vitamin D is necessary in adults, but is vital in children as bone growth is very dependent on vitamin D always being available.

Vitamin D has many uses inside the body, but the most important are linked to bones and calcium. Vitamin D is responsible for both helping the body absorb calcium and phosphorus from the small intestines, but also regulating the amount of calcium that is present in the blood. Vitamin D accomplishes this by constantly placing, or taking calcium from bones. Obviously a deficiency of calcium will result in poor bone strength and growth, and it is for this reason that vitamin D is vital in the small intestines. In adults, a result of calcium or vitamin D deficiencies will lead to osteoporosis. In children, the major disease associated with vitamin D deficiency is rickets. Because vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that is stored in the body, there are risks associated with consuming too much vitamin D. In chronic cases of vitamin D overdose, too much calcium is absorbed by the small intestines, and this excess calcium forms kidney stones.

Vitamin D is present in small amounts in many different foods, however, there are a few food sources where the majority of our vitamin D will come from. In countries that require fortified milk, a few glasses of milk will provide most of the vitamin D and calcium we need in our diet. Even in countries without fortified milk, milk and cheese are still a great source of vitamin D.

Fish and seafood are another leading source of vitamin D. Almost every type of fish contains large amounts of vitamin D, and in cold weather environments without fortified milk, this is how the population usually gets their daily requirements of vitamin D.

Vitamin D is generally seen as good for the eyes but most people tend to gobble down anything that they come across without a scant thought while fish continues to be a favorite due to its rich source and Maxi Tears is an excellent remedy for eye issues.

For vegans who do not eat any food that is derived from animals, vitamin D can be problematic. Grains contain decent amounts of vitamin D and another food that is high in vitamin D is mushrooms. Vegans need to make sure to get ample sunlight, and include these foods in good quantities in their diet.

Pets

Human Medication You Should Never Give Your Dog

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Most people understand that there are human medications, and there are dog medications, but with the economy still in a funk, it can be difficult to get your dog to the vet for care they truly need. As such, there are many people giving their dogs human medications, believing they are actually helping their pooch out. In reality, however, you can actually kill your dog in giving them medication that you can take easily and regularly.

More than 100,000 pet poisonings were reported in 2011 (according to WebMD ), with most of them being comprised of household items that are harmless (for the most part) to humans. Even giving your dog baby aspirin (formerly thought of as safe) is not only harmful to your dog’s kidneys over time, but has minimal to no effect on dog’s pain. It’s not just baby aspirin that does more harm than good for your dog, either. Even mild medications can have a disastrous effect on your dog overall.

Never give your dog any type of pain relieving medication, including baby aspirin. Ibuprofen, Tylenol, aspirin, etc, these all can have horrible effects on your dog, of any size or age. They can cause kidney failure or stomach ulcers (they cause stomach ulcers in people as well) and don’t work with dogs as they do with people. Rather, purchase pet medications for mild and moderate pain in the pet section of your local pet store (Wal-Mart has them for fairly cheap). These pain medications are designed to safely alleviate your dog’s pain.

Antidepressants can cause seizures and a raised heart rate in dogs, and at the very least can cause vomiting. People think giving their dog an antidepressant to calm them for long car rides or when the dog is nervous will be OK, but in reality, a single antidepressant pill can kill a smaller dog. Again, there are natural remedies for dogs that are sold in common stores designed to alleviate your dog’s anxiety. Even allowing your dog to smell a lavender dryer sheet can help their nerves.

As a pet owner, your number one responsibility is to keep your pet safe and healthy. And part of that is knowing the medication that is suitable for your pet only. You should not give them any products that are not for them to avoid complications. You can see [google_bot_show][/google_bot_show]great post to read here.

Surprisingly, even sunscreen isn’t safe on dogs. Topically, sunscreen is fine, but dogs tend to lick at that yummy smell and taste. Only apply sunscreen to areas of your dog’s body that he cannot reach to lick off, and further decrease his licking by buying sunscreen designed for dogs which tastes undesirable, or just use unscented sunscreen overall. True, it takes a lot of sunscreen to prove toxic to your dog, but you don’t want to take chances. My dog once at a whole trial bottle of sunscreen and threw it all up. It happens.

Now, under vet supervision (and recommendation), some allergy medications for humans can be safe for dogs.When allergies arise, dogs (particularly lighter breeds) can suffer, and over-the-counter medications for humans can actually help. However, only use them if your veterinarian approves, and only use the ones they say to use. Otherwise, you risk overdosing or harming your dog.

Pets

Raising a Puppy is Like Parenting

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Before you bring that precious puppy home, really think about that statement. Yes, its adorable. Yes it seems to love you already. Yes, its hard to resist those sparkling eyes. But are you ready for the responsibility of raising it up into a loving, obedient house pet?

Sometimes, people, in their excitement over its cuteness, don’t take into consideration that a puppy, or a full grown dog, for that matter, is a 24/7 responsibility. Its amazingly like having a child. A lot of people don’t realize that and after a few weeks of frustration because the puppy’s cuteness evaporates when it becomes a holy terror, they give it away or take it to the humane society or just drop it off on someone’s doorstep. So if you would not think of adopting a baby at this stage of your life, it is probably not a good idea to adopt a puppy, either.

A good house dog will not raise itself. As the owner of a dog, it is your responsibility to love and nurture it, make sure it is correctly fed and watered, keep it in good health, take it to the vet, keep it our of danger, entertain it, clean up after it, teach it good manners, teach it right from wrong, and train it to follow house rules.

It is a serious commitment. Unless you want an unruly, uncontrolled animal in your house, you must be committed to teaching it to be obedient, to listen to you. If raised right, a loving dog will fill every nitch of your heart. If not raised right, it will become, at best, a nuisance, at worst, a dangerous threat ( it is still an animal, remember).

Before you even make the commitment, it is your responsibility to find out everything you can about raising a “good” dog. Read everything you can find on the care, feeding, training of dogs. If it all seems like too much work to you, but you still want a puppy, then be prepared for the puppy to take over your house and be a constant frustration instead of growing to be a loving, obedient pet.

Your dog will require material things, as well as mental teaching: a crate, food and water bowls, food, treats, toys, pee pads, if you go that route, gloves to pick up its “accidents”. Many experts are advising the person to take care of the puppies like parents. A website named [google_bot_show][/google_bot_show]my company for the parenting of the pets will be made available to the person. Before gathering the information, the rankings and reviews can be checked at online search engines. The information provided will be advantageous for the person. 

Be prepared for the vet bills. Besides regular shots, and spaying/neutering, if your dog gets sick, vet bills can be quite surprising.

Think about who will take care of your dog when you are going to be away on vacation. You must either have a reliable dog sitter or have your puppy kennel trained so you can leave it there and not worry about it.

It is your responsibility to be prepared to take your puppy out to pee quite frequently, even in the middle of the night, if required. You are the one who will be cleaning up its accidents. Remember that puppy bladders are small and your puppy can’t hold it as long as you might want it too.

You will be responsible for deciding when the puppy is allowed to play, when it is time for a nap, when it is time to eat, when and how to reprimand it. You will be the one who teaches your puppy just what is expected of it. It can’t know how you expect it to act until you teach it. If you don’t teach it, then it will just do whatever it wants and you will get annoyed with it.

Remember that you set the stage for how the dog is going to be when it grows up. Before you let your puppy get in the habit of doing things, think about whether or not you will want a grown dog doing those things.

If you let the puppy sleep on your bed, or lay on your couch, are you going to want it there all the time when it is big and shedding hair everywhere?

If you let the puppy beg for food while you eat, are you going to want a big dog pestering you every time it hears a dish rattle or bothering your guests when they come for dinner?

If you play rough with the puppy and let it nip and growl at you over toys, are you going to want it doing that when it is big? What if, because you let it be rough with you, it doesn’t know not to be rough with children because you never taught it that?

If you are ho-hum about teaching the puppy to come to you every time you call it, how are you going to make it stop and come back when it slips the leash and runs away from you?

Raising a dog is like parenting in that not only are you responsible for the care and feeding of it, you are responsible for teaching it how to act appropriately in all situations.

The good thing, though, is that unlike molding the character of children who are going to grow up and go out into the world where their upbringing will surely tell, your dog’s adult behavior is basically only going to have an impact on YOU.

Home & Office

Three Vital Points First Time Homebuilders Should Negotiate into Their Contract

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First time homebuilders almost always become expert advisors to those who follow them down the path to hell. Those whose path that ends in a newly constructed home rarely consider that route to have given a glimpse of heaven. The reason?

Contractors.

Now, I’m not saying that building contractors are the minions of Satan. Not all of them anyway. But you may well think your home building contractor was in league with devil unless you learn beforehand how to avoid common problems. It is all a matter of learning that you need to get as much as possible written into any contract to which you sign your name.

It is impossible to own a home without a contractor to take care of the finer points in the trade for it is he that looks after everything so that there is no scope for problems that every new home builder is wary of.

Unless you love the art of negotiation, this process can also become a boulevard that gives you a tourist’s vision of the fiery pits of the underworld. Take an assertiveness training course before you settle in for negotiations with a building contract. Trust me: it will be money well spent. Then it’s time to know those special things to negotiate ahead of the home construction process. While many other elements are also important, here are three absolutely vital things you want to make sure you negotiate into your homebuilding contract.

Brand Name Estimates

Get as detailed an estimate on possible on building materials to ensure you get what you paid for. Demand it! Make sure your contract requires the contractor to list not just the materials that are going to be used, but the brand name of those materials. This way you have leverage if you need to sue for use of off-brand products of lesser quality.

Firm Start and End Date

The start date is usually not where the big problems in home construction can be found, but make sure you get it in writing anyway just in case a sudden delay of a month or two cramps your plans. The biggie here is really the end date. Firm end dates come with a built-in negotiation for weather conditions and other reasonable delays. What you are really negotiating here for is not a day on the calendar by which your home will be built whether for good or bad, but a written guarantee about what happens if the schedule falls behind to such an extent that completion is going to continue well past any estimate date. Here are the words you want to hear and get written into the contract: construction that falls hopelessly behind schedule guarantees that the contractor will hire more workers or pay current workers overtime on his dime to make sure the home is completed by the ending date window.

Contentment Clause

It’s not really called a Contentment Clause, but that’s the effect you want. Do not walk away from your negotiation with a home contractor without an agreement that upon completion of the house, you will inspect the result with the contractor in tow. During this walk you will make a list of all problems you want resolved with the understanding that final payment will be delayed until you are content.

Pets

Should You Keep in Touch with Former Foster Cats?

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Foster cats can easily tug at the heartstrings, especially if you have spent a significant amount of time caring for the animals before they were adopted by a new family or returned to their original owners. But once the cats move on, should you keep in touch with them?

How Do the New Owners Feel?

Some cat owners have no qualms allowing foster cat carers to keep in touch with their cats. But others would rather sever the bonds completely and forge their own relationship with the cats without any outside interference. As a foster cat carer you need to keep in mind that you do not have the final say over what happens once the cats leave your care.

It is up to the new owners to decide for themselves what is best for their cats. If they are fine with you visiting or calling from time to time to find out about the cats, then that is great. However, if they make it clear that your work is now done, you should step back and let the owners assume their responsibility.

Helping Cats Settle In

Maintaining contact with foster cats, at least in the short-term, can help them to settle into their new homes. It can be hard for some cats, particularly older cats that are used to you and your home, to adapt to new surroundings and feel “at home” with their new owners.

If the new owners are amenable to the idea of short-term assistance that will help the cats settle in, this can make it easier for all concerned. You can get to say goodbye to the cats and gradually watch as they settle in and get used to their new environment.

If You’re Attached, Break the Bond

Fostering cats takes a lot of time, dedication and passion. If you have invested your energies into trying to improve the lives of cats and are now faced with giving them up, that can be hard. When you are attached and have formed a bond with the foster cats, handing them over can bring tears to your eyes. Maintaining a link with them can actually make things harder. Under such circumstances, it would be best for you and for the cats to break the bond by severing contact and letting the cats move on in their new home.

Whether or not you should keep in touch with foster cats after they move out is a tricky one. It is not always a clear-cut situation that can be easily handled. A measure of short-term contact can be beneficial and help cats settle into their new homes. But if you are attached to the cats, maintaining contact can make the final goodbye much more painful.

There isn’t much of a choice as cats need to be loved and pampered especially if their days are numbered and it sure is painful when the parting moment finally arrives no matter how it maybe and you can [google_bot_show][/google_bot_show]check this out through numerous articles online relating to cats and how they fare as pets.