A blog for dog lovers and pet lovers of India l Friends of Lana Blog

Today is Father's Day and if you think it's a day reserved just for dads of humans, we're here to remind you that dads of dogs deserve every bit of love, celebration and adoration too!

In this article dedicated to all the dog dads out there, we've rounded up three of the best super dog-dads we know - very much heroes in their own right. So along with celebrating the dog dads in our own lives, we'd like you to say hello to these doggie heroes and share their inspiring stories!

For most of us, the Indian summer is symbolised by flush yellow Amaltas trees, plump, juicy mangoes and iced glasses of roohafza. But for us pet parents, summer is also synonymous with something else – dog hair just about everywhere!

Many of us face the frustrating problem of dog shedding every year. We run from pillar to post trying to figure out at what point we’re supposed to intervene because honestly, THIS huge a furball every single day just can’t be normal right?!

We spoke to three canine experts – Gurugram-based senior veterinarian Dr Shelly Mattoo, canine nutritionist and founder of  Doggiliciouus,  Manssi SK Saha, and President – Professional Pet Groomer’s association, India and Business Owner - Petsburgh, Mumbai, Andrea Cyrill Khurana, to get the lowdown on whether summer dog shedding is normal, how to manage all this shedding, when to seek expert care and diet tips for excessive shedding in dogs.

Holistic healing and alternative therapies have seen a meteoric rise in popularity in the last few years, as more and more people discover the healing power of nature. Rightly so, this openness towards natural medicine has seeped into the life of dogs and pet parents too. Bach Flower Remedies is one such holistic, safe and gentle system of natural healing, derived from wildflowers.

To understand what this system of healing is all about, we caught up with Nisha Jaggi, miracle-worker Bowen therapist and Level 2 certified Bach Flower Remedy expert.

What a strange time this is for the world. Most of us are adjusting to working from home while juggling the work at home. Some of us have kids too – be it a human, a dog or both! No longer being able to enjoy their routine walks outdoors and having to deal with noisy humans in the house all the time, dogs have been having a rough time too.

We caught up with canine behaviour expert Sindhoor Pangal, Principal and Director of BHARCS, to understand how these new changes in the social dynamics of the world are affecting our pets, and what to do to help dogs lead better lives during quarantine and isolation.

How much you feed your dog would normally depend on multiple factors such as, if you are feeding your dog dry food like pedigree? In which case it is calorie-dense food as it is dehydrated and the quantity to be fed will be much lower as it is devoid of moisture. Canned food is wet and has an appropriate amount of moisture in it and the quantity will be considerably more than dry food. And with Freshly cooked or Raw diets, the quantity is based on your dog's current body condition score, age and current body weight. 

This is a frequently asked question and perhaps correctly so. There aren't any clear answers available anywhere that helps you determine how much to feed your dog depending on the type of food you are feeding. Let's look at all of them one by one and learn how to calculate the quantity of food and how to make adjustments.

With Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19 being dubbed a global pandemic by the WHO, there has been panic and misinformation all around. Pet parents have been wondering if their dogs and cats can be infected with (and transmit) COVID-19. 

It may come as a surprise to you, but the word “Superfood" is not an official term for any kind of food. It's a marketing term coined to express the idea that some foods are more superior in nature than others. All foods offer nutrition and benefits to the body. However, the reason behind the term “super”  is that these particular foods are deemed to have extraordinary nutrient density. This means that these foods will offer more nutrients packed gram to gram compared with other foods.

Foods that offer maximum health impact in the minimum amount of calories or quantity required naturally tend to be a bang for your buck, so to speak! You share a lot of the superfoods with your dog, that could be included in the diet on a regular basis that are nutritionally dense and pack in health benefits immediately and in the long run. These foods help you fight disease, build immunity and provide good energy. Like you, your dog has a daily requirement of a variety of nutrients for the complex job of keeping their body functioning at a healthy optimal level. 

Valentine’s Day has officially gone to the dogs this year. After all, how can we have V-day celebrations without our true loves? And apparently, we’re not alone in thinking this way either! Lana Paws caught up with three fabulous ladies and their even more fabulous doggos. These three have given a new meaning to the term “mixed family”. At a time when people abandon their pets left, right and centre, these 3 didn’t use their marriage or partner as an excuse to let go of their fur baby. They also have some pretty great partners to raise their floofballs with.

To celebrate the Day of Love, we feature their stories – from Gauri G who is a mum to Shifu and Scrappy, Shreya who is Blackie’s momma and Vidha, proud mum of Aladdin & Lily! These ladies tell us all about how they made it work with their doggos and partners, and how they forged life together as a newly mixed-species family. Let’s see how Buddy and Bae got along in these modern-day furrytales! 

For all of us, Republic Day is a cause to celebrate our country. Indeed, a day of pride, we rejoice in the freedom and glory of our nation. Here at Lana Paws, we thought we’d transition this feeling of pride into the world of dogs - what better day than today to talk about our very own Indian, purebred dogs (a few of which are even deployed in the Indian Army at the borders, and inducted into the police forces!).

Let’s begin by busting some myths. When we see the term “Indian dog”, many of us think about the dogs on our streets. While that’s not entirely wrong, stray (or community) dogs are mixed breeds. There are numerous Indian purebred dogs that have either already gone extinct or are fast in the process.

Whether or not we believe in destiny, sometimes some things are just meant to be. One of those things is the precious, irreplaceable love between a dog and her human parent.

When was that special moment you just knew that your dog was meant to be yours? Was it the first, magical gaze into one another’s eyes, a tender pupper boop on your unsuspecting leg or an unexpected middle-of-the-night cuddle (you know, when you’d decided that there have to be boundaries and the doggo can’t get on the bed with you, but he finds a way into your bed anyway and breaks down all your resolve)?