Obesity or overweight pets are a common problem that we are seeing a lot these days. It is basically an excessive accumulation of body fat on the pet’s frame and it is estimated that nearly 40% of dogs are cats are overweight or obese.

Some of the causes of obesity include:

• Overfeeding – too many calories

• Excessive treats

• Decrease of lack of exercise

• Metabolic conditions (such as hypothyroidism)

• Change in lifestyle

Giardia is a protozoan infection that causes gastroenteritis. It is an extremely common infection. Giardia is the most common intestinal protozoan organism in people, wildlife and pets. Pets are infected with giardia when they swallow giardia cysts.

There are two ways the pets can come into contact with giardia cysts. Firstly, they can contact another pet that is infected with giardia and become infected during social greeting. The other way the pets will become infected with giardia cysts is from the environment. Sources of environmental giardia cysts include:

Ticks can be found throughout the US. It is important to understand that not all ticks are the same. There are actually hundreds of species of ticks. Many people are aware that lime disease is transmitted by a tick; however this is one of the many diseases that can infect wild animals as well as dog, cats and people.

Fleas are a parasitic insect that can create a variety of health issues for our pets. Due to the lifecycle of a flea, we may never see the adult stage on our pet. However, that does not stop them from causing problems such as severe allergic dermatitis or even transmitting tapeworms.

Through proper flea control, you can minimize your pet’s flea problem. The four stages of the flea life cycle include the egg, the larvae, the pupae stage which is the juvenile stage and the biting adults.

I think every kid wants a pet when they are young. I went through the stage myself of wanting a hamster after seeing a friend, who had got two, never went with fish but I know that is a popular choice too, which many parents don’t mind since they are low maintenance. I did get more ambitious wanting a dog for a while and briefly a horse. What can I say kids’ imaginations go wild and despite my nagging I never got my pet. So if you want a pet yourself or are trying to deal with your own kids nagging you for a pet then here is a summary of the cheap pets for sale that you can get for your kids when on a budget.

As mentioned fish are a very cheap option if you go for the classic gold fish. They are cheap to feed and cheap to maintain however they have got a higher death rate so consider the emotional impact on a child. Birds are probably the next option up. Canaries and parakeets eat very little so once the cage is bought, also inexpensive, the upkeep is low. There won’t be many trips to the pet store if you buy in bulk. There are also many rabbits for sale and they do not each much so they can be a low-cost solution to your pet needs.
Hamsters are also a cheap pet to have, after the initial investment of the container and toys their cost is low. Although hamsters may cost a little more they tend to prove a thrill for children.