Do you remember us singing the praises of our 3-IN-1 Multifunctional Vest in blogs and posts over the last couple of months?! Well Summer is coming!! And with Summer comes swimming, playing and all that fun stuff with our pooches so we thought why not do a special deal that gives you not only the awesomeness of the 3-IN-1 but also our Aqua Food Dummy to play with!! Just zip up some treats and your pooch will be happy to swim to fetch this all day long.

Pssst... the Aqua Dummy is also handy for putting your keys in when you're out on the boat... it floats! 

Available online here and instore at Pet Central - Moorhouse, Hornby, Shirley and Timaru, and Nose to Tail Dog Wash in Auckland.

Dogs are men’s best friend – however, is it a good idea to let your best friend snuggle up in a private place like your bed? Where should you draw the line?

“A place beside you!”
It is indisputable that your four-legged friend is a great help for you in your life. And not just by putting a smile on your face day by day, but also by having a positive impact on your health: having a dog does not only strengthen your immune system but may cause significant improvement to people suffering from mental illnesses.

So, it is no wonder that we all would like to ensure the best possible life for our beloved one. One of the most frequent questions is whether we should let them sleep beside us in our bed. Well, this is a really delicate issue for this is a line that should not be crossed without careful consideration. If you let your dog sleep in your bed, then your relationship with him will certainly become stronger. Moreover, you can have a more relaxing sleep, possible sleeping problems can be eased and your blood pressure and stress level can also be reduced. It is a common problem experienced mostly with dogs adopted from shelters that the little friend is basically anxious and shy. Sleeping in the same bed however, can be a great help in such cases!

This solution can be ideal also in the case of puppies, since they (hopefully) have got used to the proximity of their mother and siblings, which means that not only bonds and trust are formed more quickly, but this can also ensure that the dog behaves in a more relaxed way as early as the very first day. However, it is very important that he should have his own place as well and have the freedom of choice.

My bed, my place!
You must draw the line – and not only in the dog’s best interest but also in yours. Authority plays an extremely important role in the human-dog bond. If your dog does not consider you to be the pack leader any longer, then he will not respect you and listen to you that much. Just like with children, keeping rules is important with dogs as well, for this is the way they learn what their boundaries are.

There is also the issue of hygiene as another con. For example, even if you wipe your dog’s paws with a wet towel after each walk, it is far from giving him a thorough washing. This will provide good opportunities not only for bacteria but also for parasites hiding in the fur of your dog, for it is not a real challenge for a tick to get to a human from a dog (ticks are especially dangerous because the Lyme disease they spread is a serious threat not only to pets but also to humans).

There is usually very little talk about how much your romantic relationship is affected by the fact that your dog sleeps in your bed. Although the conflicts arising from situations may seem funny in comedies, it can easily happen that your furry friend will push one of you out of your bed or, if the dog was not adopted and raised by the two of you, then jealousy may also appear and might escalate to violence.
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Each human-dog relationship is different: just as there are no two identical human beings, there are no two identical dogs. Before making a decision on whether to share your bed with your little friend or not, take your relationship with your dog into consideration, keeping the potential risks and all the pros and cons in mind.

* Originally written for julius-k9.com by Afrodite Szeleczky

But what about your dog? Traditionally, dogs have been termed “cargo” when transported in cars, placed in the same category as inanimate objects like suitcases and luggage. I don't know about you but our pooches are anything but inanimate... unless they've just been for a nice long walk/run/sniff/hide and seek down at the beach! These days, dogs are well-recognised as “companion animals”, and they’re seen as part of the our family. For this reason, it makes more sense to classify them as “fellow passengers”, and to pay attention to their health and safety with this in mind.

Just like you, your dog needs to be securely restrained any time he’s in the car. If you are in an accident, having your dog safely restrained will help protect you and your passengers from harm. Not to mention good restraints can actually keep both you and your beloved pooch calmer by lessening distractions.

All dogs can be a distraction for the driver, which could cause an accident, and regardless of size or whether they are easy going and don't jump around, they can be a danger to passengers and your car’s interior.

Keeping your dog safely restrained in the car means that:

• There will be less distractions
• You can put all of your focus on the road in front of you
• Your passengers are safer
• You, the driver, is safer
• Dog is safer
• And your car is safer

But how do we safely restrain our "fellow passengers" of the four legged variety? Easy! A high quality special harness and seatbelt tethers. The right harness should be comfortable so that our dogs won’t mind wearing it, and be made of materials that won’t irritate your dog’s skin or pull his hair. However, they should also be strong, not only able to withstand the pulling and torque of a dog who wants to break free but be able to withstand tremendous crash forces also.

Take a look at the IDC® Powerharness with Side Rings, designed to work with the easy to use Mobility Control Car Tethers. Just connect one end to the side ring of the harness and the other end to the buckle of the safety belt and repeat on other side. Purchase them separately or grab our great value CAR SAFETY COMBO and voilà! One safely secured pooch! 

​Nope, negative, no and definitely not! At least that's how it is in our household.

I can't resist the tug (pun intended) of a newly discovered toy and neither can our dogs. Usually the latest one is the most exciting, but there are some old favourites, especially with my Mastiff cross Giraffe. She really appreciates Petunia, her plush pink pig, playing with her, throwing her in the air and even using her as a pillow. Well, she used to, until another rescue pooch came into our lives like a tornado, wanting to steal everything from her, leaving an unattended Petunia, Petunia MII and Petunia MIII in pieces on the floor. Needless to say tougher toys are now in residence at our house.

So what toys to use at what age?

For puppies it is advisable to start with soft toys, such as longish plush toys, or a sock with a knot tied on it, so we can start tugging with the puppy without damaging his milk teeth. During teething we should pay special attention not to yank the dog too hard when playing, but he might even refuse to play during this stage.

Avoid soft squeaky toys made of rubber, because pups can easily pierce these with their needle-sharp teeth. Generally, they don’t stop at that point, but go on to chew on it, ending up swallowing pieces, in which cases you will have to keep checking if all pieces have passed through their system... not a fun job!

Toys that keep the dog occupied for a longer period of time can be especially useful for puppies when you are getting them used to being left alone. These are usually made from more hardy rubber, and can be covered in something like liver paste, or filled with treats. The puppy will try to lick every last piece of food out of it, giving them something else to focus on rather than you not being there.


Be careful what balls you buy

Probably every dog owner has bought some kind of a ball for their puppy at least once. There are some puppies who are crazy about anything round in shape, whereas others need a little more time to understand how fun these toys can be. Be careful though, because too much playing with a ball could make a dog practically addicted to it, especially some of those wee terriers.

When choosing the suitable ball you should consider its material, rather than a tennis ball which erodes the teeth too much, you can try natural rubber ball. The size of the ball is also important, as, if it is too small, the dog might accidentally swallow it, in which case it can only be removed surgically. If it is too big, it is not comfortable for him to pick it up.

For young adult and adult dogs you can use toys that are made of a harder material and must be held more tightly, such as tools used in protection training, so called tugs or bite pads with a handle. You can tug these without having to worry about them ripping, unlike the good old plush toys.


How to Play with Your Dog?

Never force the dog to hold a toy in his mouth! Instead, try acting like you have something very interesting with you and play with it in front of the dog to make it look like a prey to raise his interest.

If your dog is being cautious, don’t lean over him to touch him. Instead, kneel down to his level, slowly moving the toy around in front of him to call his attention. If your dog likes it and gets it, do not run after him, stay where you are, because he might fetch it. If so, don’t take the toy away from him immediately, praise him.

You might also want to try tugging, and let him win. Playing with you should always be a positive experience for your dog. If he really hangs on to the toy and does not want to fetch it, then just prepare two of the same toys, he will probably exchange the first one for the second one.

If your dog is a little bit more pushy and likes fighting for the toy, putting all his energy into getting it, don’t be afraid to play more intensely with him (you might want to try protection training). If he likes not only getting but also holding on to the toy, you can also try exchanging it for another toy.

At times, try playing with your dog without toys. Playing together creates a better bond and can also be very useful. For example, if you get into a situation when your dog gets tense, you might be able to relax him by playing a little.


Don’t be afraid to use a toy during training

If you have different kinds of toys you will notice after a while that there are some favourites that your dog likes better than others. He might even be motivated more effectively with a toy than with treats, or a combination of both such as a treat tube or dummy where you can put the treats inside the toy. Therefore, keep these most beloved toys for training situations and only give them to your dog when he has done something extremely well. This will make learning much more exciting for him, and the toy will also become more valuable.

However, it is important not to leave toys out for the dog all the time, because they will be really valuable for him if he can only play with the toys on special occasions and only with us. This way you can also avoid the case of “exploding toys” when your dog or dogs are bored.


Tip for training, building confidence and having some plain old fun!

‘Treasure hunt’ is an excellent game to build confidence and have some fun. Most dogs like finding their hidden toys and this is a complex exercise: it provides challenge, ensures a sense of achievement and builds confidence. First, you need to make your dog stay where he is and wait for you to hide the toy. This is an excellent obedience exercise: the command ‘Stay!’ works perfectly with your dog in this case (and can be quite useful in other situations as well). The dog will be excited searching for the hidden toy with the ‘Find it!’ or other short commands. Since we use this exercise to build confidence, the toy, naturally, should not be too difficult to be found.
You can make the exercise easier by letting the dog see where you hide the toy – this will not spoil the experience or his sense of achievement and will still build confidence while having that good old fun!

This is also a great game for fearful or easily distracted dogs. Whether it is the traffic, children, noises or other dogs, if you can catch your dog’s attention and direct him consistently with the help of dedicated games or toys, you will succeed in helping change your pooch's behaviour.

If your pooch is crazy about going for a swim or spends balmy days on a boat with you, then the prize-winning IDC® MULTIFUNCTIONAL DOG VEST 3IN1 will be perfect for them.

Or if your pooch isn't so crazy about swimming, is learning to swim and/or spends balmy days on a boat with you (see the safety tip below), then the above is true for them also.

And If your pooch has an injury, is recovering from surgery or is getting a little less mobile with old age, guess what? Yip, the 3in1 is perfect for them too.

But wait there's more!! If your pooch loves going for walks and dips no matter what the weather is doing or spends time in the snow with you... do I need to say it again? You guessed it, the IDC® MULTIFUNCTIONAL DOG VEST 3IN1 is a must have!

Why is it good for all of the above?

Well the detachable swimming pads help your dog to stay on the surface of the water, making it useful during swim training, doing water sports and boating . The pads also serve as pressure distributors, which will be a great help if the dog has recently been operated on or just simply has run out of breath, and combined with the strong handle, makes it easier to assist them whether you're in the water with them or you need to lift them into your boat or onto a jetty.

The pads are easily be removed giving you a warm neoprene dog coat that will protect your dog from the rain, wind and cold.

And of course, the vest wouldn't be complete without the customisable labels! The vest comes with a pair of small size Julius-K9® labels that can be replaced with labels customised for your pooch!
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SAFETY TIP:
For some reason, we all have this idea that dogs should be natural swimmers and love the water. However, this is not true. Not only are dogs not natural swimmers, but some breeds are not physically built for water. So please make sure you follow water safety guidelines for your dogs, just as you would yourself and family. This includes keeping them in shallow water at first; wearing a life vest; and watching for signs of distress. 

This is a long one but an important one. Have you ever found an amazing "to good to be true" deal on a designer product online and eagerly awaited it's arrival, only to find what you ended up with was a cheap knock off that didn't last the distance? I think we've all been there... so here's how to recognise the real deal from the copycats, why the real deal is worth it and what you can do if you suspect you have been sold fake JULIUS-K9®  gear.

The REAL IDC® Powerharnesses have been manufactured with the highest quality materials and are thoroughly tested to ensure your dog receives a perfectly fitting harness ideal for all activities.

The FAKE harnesses are made of cheap materials that have not been tested. These harnesses are increasing in the market and are found on online auction/trading websites such as Ebay, Amazon and Trade Me. It's important to understand that even though these products may display the JULIUS-K9® brand name, they are NOT manufactured by the original company in Europe.

So we've just GOT to show you our IDC® Neoprene Dog Jacket! 

Now just because our pets have fur, doesn't mean that they too don't feel the cold, or worse their health be effected by the cold temperatures, frost, ice and snow that comes with Winter... especially since some of our beloved dogs still like to, not only play in those extremes, but swim as well!!

Our jacket offers effective protection against the cold for those crazy winter activities. The waterproof, soft and elastic material of the jacket fits the body  tightly, making it a comfortable wear for our dogs. While its excellent thermal insulation capability is guaranteed by thousands of tiny air bubbles that are embedded in the neoprene material.

But not only does it protect our dogs from the cold, with its phosphorescent and reflective elements, it ensures high visibility for an extra serving of protection while looking super styley for those fashion forward pets of ours. And of course the changeable custom labels can not be missed from this product either, the small patches fit the Neoprene Jacket from size B1-XL.

Click here if you'd like to take a closer look!

Sometimes a yellow ribbon or other signs just won't do it.  Not everyone is familiar with the different signs that make others aware of a dog's behavior, condition or status.  The best way is to "write it out".  It is easy to read and people will know how to approach your pet.   

People just love petting dogs but some may mistakenly assume that just because a dog is larger or of a certain breed they are automatically dangerous, or that a smaller breed is always going to be approachable and want to be petted by anyone, which we all know could not be any further from the truth!

With these labels, you can let people know instantly if your dog is "FRIENDLY" or whether you would prefer that they "DO NOT PET" or exercise "CAUTION" with your beloved pooch because he or she might be "NERVOUS" or can't say "I'M DEAF" or  "IN TRAINING"... let the labels do the talking.

These labels are also great for service dogs and letting people know if you have  a "GUIDE DOG", "SNIFFER DOG" or "RESCUE DOG". But of course along with the serious uses with these labels, there's also a lot of fun to be had by customising your harness with your pooches name, nickname or anything else you can come up with that shows your dog's truly unique personality. For inspiration, check out the gallery below.

And NOW the options grow three-fold! You can choose to have white, pink or glow in the dark text on the black background. The labels come as a pair and easily fix onto the harness. So whether it's alerting public to your dog being deaf, nervous, friendly, their name or nature, these labels can say it all for you!