Glen Allen Day

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Making friends. When winter comes along, you may be tempted to skip the flea and tick medication for your dogs, thinking that the tiny bugs couldn't possibly survive the freezing cold. Well, this is a myth and it needs to be debunked!

You'll be surprised to know just how tough and resilient ticks and fleas are - while fleas can survive outdoors in a temperature as low as 30 degrees Fahrenheit, ticks kickstart their activity in temperatures over 40 degrees.

Since temperature fluctuations are common even in the winters, vets recommend that you keep your dogs on flea, tick, and heartworm medication all through the year. After all, prevention is always better than cure!

10. Before Spaying, Female Dogs Should Have A Litter

Another potentially harmful myth that is widely believed is that female dogs should ideally have at least one litter of puppies before she is spayed. There is no medical basis for this claim - there have been no studies so far that demonstrate any long-term health benefits of such a practice.

In reality, spaying your dog BEFORE she has her first heat cycle has been shown to have positive health benefits instead! This has been shown to reduce health risks for conditions such as uterine infections and mammary tumors.

When it comes to such serious decisions about your dog's health, we strongly recommend consulting a vet and not getting swayed by myths, no matter how widely believed they may be!

11. Some Dog Breeds Are Hypoallergenic

let's get straight to the point - there is no such thing as a hypoallergenic dog, per se. This is a widely misunderstood point and needs to be cleared up. Many people think that certain dog breeds are hypoallergenic, and they think the allergies come from the dog's fur.

A little correction here: these allergies don't come from a dog's fur but from a particular protein found in their urine saliva that gets stuck to their fur when they lick themselves. So when their fur is shed, it can give some people allergies.

Instead, dogs that have hair instead of fur (such as poodles) don't shed their hair as much as dogs with fur do. So, in that sense, these breeds are a better choice for people with allergies. But as we said, no dog breed is hypoallergenic.

Dog Myths

12. Dogs Feel Guilty When They Mess Up

We're sure that almost all you reading this blog is 'guilty' of watching 'guilty dog' videos on YouTube! We've done it too - videos in which dogs literally tear up the whole room and look incredibly sorry for their behaviour when confronted by their owners.

On the surface, it does look like the dogs know what they did wrong, isn't it? But the truth is a little more complex than that. Sure, dogs feel many emotions like happiness, sadness, jealousy - but they don't really have a sense of right or wrong in the same way that humans do.

So, in those videos, what we're really seeing is the dogs reacting to the tone, voice and behaviour of their humans. Clearly, in these videos, the humans appear to be upset at their dog's behaviour - o that's what the dog feels bad about - not the fact that they shredded up your pillow.

13. Dogs With Dry And Warm Noses Are Sick

Most folks tend to believe that a healthy dog's nose is always cold and wet and that a dry, warm nose means something is

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