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What You Should Know Before Adopting a German Shepherd

German Shepherds are one of the most popular dogs you can own. Known for their loyalty, intelligence and ability to protect, they make an excellent pet. If you've never owned a German Shepherd and are interested in making one part of the family, here are four facts you should know before adopting. 


American and German Breeds Differ

One of the most notable differences between the European German Shepherd and the American, is appearance. German Shepherd puppies imported from Germany grow into adults with a straight body, whereas Americans have a more sloped line. Bred as work dogs, shepherds from Germany are often better guard dogs than their American counterparts. However, both are highly protective of their family.

Training Is a Must

In order for a German Shepherd to successfully integrate into your family, he needs to be trained. German Shepherds are very easy to teach, but unless you've got lots of time to spare, they'll benefit from going to obedience school. Proper discipline ensures your dog will coexist with other pets and understand how to act around different people.

"Jobs" Make Them Happy

Even after they've been trained, German Shepherds can become bored if they're not mentally stimulated. They enjoy having "jobs" and the more tricks you can teach them, the happier they'll be. They also love hide-and-seek type games.

They Shed Like Crazy

German Shepherds shed a lot, sometimes more during different seasons. Be prepared to brush your dog every day to get rid of excess hair. Most shepherds love being brushed as they're susceptible to itchy, dry skin and brushing helps stimulate oil glands. Be sure to have a vacuum cleaner on hand to pick up accumulating fluff.

Endearing Quirks Are the Norm

German Shepherds often have interesting "quirks" depending on the dog. Many love gazing out the window to know exactly what's happening outside. This endearing quality makes you feel even more protected. When you take your shepherd for a walk, don't be surprised if she tries to herd you into place. This is normal behavior and is another way your dog shows you she loves you!


They'll Steal Your Heart

Adopting a German Shepherd dog is a wonderful choice for many reasons. When you take the time to train your dog and keep him active, he'll be the best pet you've ever owned. You won't know what it's like to own a German Shepherd until you adopt, but once you do, he'll steal your heart. 

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Trampoline Exercises for Weight Loss

Wasn’t it great fun to jump on the trampoline as a child? Just because you are all grown up now doesn’t mean you can’t do it anymore. The great news is that trampoline jumping is one of the best exercises out there, particularly if you are trying to lose weight. Add jumping on the trampoline to your list of things to do each day and you are likely to enjoy it so much that you will wear out your trampoline springs in no time. Here are four trampoline exercises you can do for weight loss. 


1. Max Jumps

The goal of max jumps is to jump as high as you possibly can. When you land on your feet, avoid springing up. Instead, allow your feet to sink into the trampoline. Simultaneously lower your body into a squatting position. Doing so will help you jump higher when the trampoline thrusts you upward. To achieve the best results, perform around 10-12 sets. Resting for 15-30 seconds between each set is recommended.

2. Side to Side and Front to Back Hops

To perform this exercise, all you need to do is keep your feet together. Jump to the right and to the left. Jump to the front and to the back. The key is to hold your feet together at all times. Although it sounds easy, it can be a bit challenging to make sure you don’t accidentally jump off of the trampoline. Try hopping as fast as you can for about a minute.

3. Jumping Jacks

If you are ready to engage your upper body, then it is time to do jumping jacks on the trampoline. You already know how to do them, so give it a go! Jumping jacks will help you burn calories and melt away belly fat. For best results, finish about 2-4 sets of 1 minute each.

4. Jump Twist

Similar to jumping jacks, doing jump twists on the trampoline works your upper body and is great for burning calories. Begin by stretching out your arms, making them parallel to the ground. When you jump, twist your hips to the left and to the right. To achieve ideal results, perform around 2-4 sets of 1 minute each.

What could be more fun than jumping on the trampoline every day to lose weight? Dropping those pounds will no longer feel like a chore when you follow these simple exercises.

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Top Tips To Encourage Higher Education: Guiding Creative Minds

Raising a child with a mind bent on creativity can be challenging, although it can also enrich parents' experience. As a parent, there's absolutely no doubt that you want only the best for your child. Ensuring they can reach their full creative and intellectual capacity will have you on a slightly different journey than parents of right-brained kids. 

Before you start searching for educational institutions for your young adult, it is critical to understand that creativity is more of a unique skill than an inborn trait. The following tips will help you guide your creative child on a path that will ensure they can develop and strengthen their skills over time to reach success. 

Make Decisions Together
Attempting to box up a creative youngster is never a great approach, especially when making important decisions. Instead of keeping your child in a restricting box and making decisions for them, you should make an effort to make decisions together. Such choices to include your child in are decisions such as which best middle schools in Utah they will attend will instill excitement and motivation as they can feel apart of the decision. Unfortunately, making these critical decisions on your own means that you will be risking a potentially adverse reaction.

When selecting an educational institute together, you should focus on candidate options that encourage creative minds and help them grow. All schools are not created equal, so a school that will bring out the best for an intellectual mind will not be able to foster the same results for creative minds. Therefore, it is vital to discuss school offerings and evaluate school sites to make the best decision. 

Encourage Creativity As Education And Recreation
Countless parents of creatives make the fundamental mistake of encouraging creativity only as a recreational activity, which can discourage your teen. It is a great idea to instill a love for learning creatively early on. Limiting screen time and providing art and other creative supplies for your youngster is a suitable way to ensure they can reach their full potential. Your child should feel that creativity can be utilized to learn and grow rather than restricting such activities as a mere hobby they enjoy. 

Offer Suitable Career Path Options
Creative careers are not restricted to creating art, as there are near countless opportunities for creative minds. The best way to encourage and motivate your youngster towards a successful career path is to educate them regarding their options. Therefore, making an effort to evaluate your take on your child's potential career skills and interests and applying them to various career fields can help your youngster determine a suitable path. 

You may find that your child showcases strong writing skills, or perhaps they are interested in the world of marketing. You can find career paths by researching the highest paying careers for creative minds and evaluating the options alongside your child. As mentioned above, it is essential to make these decisions together. Various fields offer creatives opportunities, and some of the higher paying paths include the tech industry, which means software development, user design, and even site design are all options for your creative young adult. 


Stress The Importance Of Discipline
Intellectual youngsters are generally inclined to note the importance of discipline, structured routine, and ongoing educational development. However, creative minds are significantly different. You may find that your youngsters' creative inclinations seem to forge many character elements that initially appear to be challenging. Young creative often battles to find direction and stick to their planned path. General discipline and following of routine are other general challenges that creative minds face. 

Instead of shunning such challenges and discouraging your child as a direct result, it is best to instill and stress just how important discipline is. You should also make efforts to assist your youngster in forging a structured routine that will help them outline details of their daily schedule when they are pursuing their career. Helping your child develop and strengthen essential career skills is undeniably vital.

Help Your Child Understand Failure
Navigating the professional world as a creative can often be frustrating as creatives face ongoing failure and rejection for several reasons. Instead of building your child's enthusiasm in a way that makes them genuinely believe they will not fail, you should educate your child to understand failure. Your youngster must be prepared to face both failure and potential rejection in a way that will have them using their experience to their advantage instead of giving up. 

Understanding failure is critical to being prepared for a career as a creative mind. Ensuring your child grasps that failure can be beneficial and useful will serve as an exceedingly valuable life skill rather than just a career skill. You can educate your child on failure with the help of autobiographies and real-life stories of successful individuals who have faced and overcome failure and rejection in their earlier years.

Provide And Nurture Creative Freedom
Your creative youngster needs an environment that hosts no or little restricting boundaries. Encouraging higher education also means giving your child the tools they need to succeed. One of which is a creatively freeing environment that will help them develop their strengths and realize their capabilities.

You can make a few environmental changes include a space to be creative, relevant, and suitable supplies to help nurture their skills and room to create without limits or corrections. Instead of correcting your child immediately, you should give them time to evaluate their creations and identify their mistakes. Judging creativity is a reasonably challenging situation, which is why it can be demotivating for parents to offer critique instead of constructive criticism. Giving your child the tools to succeed is not restricted to physical tools, as you will need to foster a sense of self-critique, self-awareness, and other traits that will serve them well along their career path. Because every child learns and grows differently, you should also account for your youngsters' individual needs and preferences when creating a suitably freeing environment for them.
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Dental Crowns: Purpose, Types, and Procedure

Our teeth can get damaged over time. It happens due to various reasons such as an injury, tooth decay, or over time. This results in our teeth losing their size or shape. One of the ways to restore your teeth to their former glory is by getting dental crowns. They are teeth-shaped caps which are placed over your teeth as the name suggests.


Dental crowns help restore the appearance, strength, size, and shape of your teeth. They are cemented into place and cover a visible portion of your teeth. According to My Dentist San Francisco’s website, a crown may be necessary if you have a broken tooth, a very large filling with additional decay, a worn down tooth, a root canal treated tooth, or a cracked tooth

Dental Crowns Purposes

Dental crowns are required for various reasons as mentioned below.

  • To cover teeth which are treated with a root canal

  • To cover dental implants

  • To cover severely discolored or misshaped teeth

  • To hold dental bridges in place

  • To cover and support teeth with a large filling and which do not have much tooth remaining

  • To restore broken teeth or severely worn out teeth

  • To protect weak teeth from breaking or keeping them together

Dental Crowns Types

Now that you know about the reasons why people get dental crowns, let’s take a look at the different types of dental crowns that are commonly available.

1. Metal Crowns

When it comes to making dental crowns, several metals can be used such as chromium, nickel, palladium, and gold. Metal crowns have a much harder time breaking or chipping. This makes them long-lasting. Besides, only a small amount of the tooth needs to be removed when opting for metal crowns. They also withstand constant chewing and biting. However, their metallic colour is a drawback. 

2. Porcelain-Fused-Metal Crowns

If you are looking for dental crowns that match the colour of your teeth, porcelain-fused-metal crowns are as good as things get. They boast a more natural look. But, it is important to keep in mind that the metal under the porcelain cap can show sometimes. There is also a possibility of the porcelain portion breaking or chipping off. These crowns are suitable for back or front teeth.

3. Resin Crowns

For those of you who are looking for a more affordable option, resin crowns might be the perfect option. They tend to be more affordable. However, these crowns are more likely to break and wear down over time as compared to other dental crown types.

4. All-Porcelain or All-Ceramic

When it comes to the best natural look, all-porcelain and all-ceramic dental crowns do not disappoint in the very least. They are the perfect option for those of you who have experienced metal allergies. However, you should not expect them to be as strong as porcelain-fused-metal crowns. Hence, more care is required.

5. Pressed Ceramic

Pressed ceramic crowns have a hard inner core. The metal liner is replaced by pressed ceramic dental crowns which are commonly used in all-ceramic crowns. Porcelain is used to cap pressed ceramic crowns. These crowns are more long-lasting and offer the best natural color match.

Dental Crowns Procedure

When getting dental crowns, you normally need to visit the dentist twice. However, it is possible to get a dental crown made during the first visit. Let’s take a look at the procedure.

The First Visit

The tooth which requires a crown is examined and prepared during the initial visit. X-rays of the tooth also need to be taken as well as of the bone around it. A root canal treatment might also be required before starting the dental crown procedure due to the following reasons.

  • Injury to the pulp

  • Risk of infection

  • Tooth decay

The tooth that will receive the crown has to be filed down from the sides and top. It will help leave some space for the crown to be fitted. The amount of tooth which would get filed depends on the type of crown one select. For instance, if you opt for metal dental crowns, not much tooth would be removed as they are thinner. A paste or putty would be used after the tooth has been reshaped to make an impression of the tooth that will get a crown. Then, the impressions would be sent to the dental laboratory where the crown would be made and delivered to the dentist within two to three weeks. A temporary crown would be made during the first visit to cover and protect the tooth that will get a crown.

The Second Visit

The permanent crown would be placed on your tooth during the second visit. To do so, the temporary crown will be first removed and a new crown will be permanently cemented after using a local anesthetic to numb the tooth.

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The Interesting World of Skirting Boards In The UK

Skirting boards are typically overlooked when planning interior, renovating, or even when buying a home. The truth of the matter is, that they actually provide not only protection to walls but that they also add an additional design flair to any room. 

These wooden or vinyl features are actually much more interesting than you might think. In this article, we will look at the interesting world of skirting boards in the United Kingdom. 


What is a Skirting Board? 

Also known as a mopboard, baseboard, skirting, base molding, or floor molding, the skirting board is a vinyl or wooden feature that covers the part of the wall closest to the floor. It can be cut into different lengths to fit the room’s layout and are typically screwed, nailed, or glued to the wall. 

First designed in the Victorian era as the elite’s decorative pieces for their homes. Because the area where the floor and the wall met would usually have bad painting jobs and uneven brick textures, the area would be covered with moldings to create a more luxurious and appealing look. Watch this video to discover more about the history of these underrated pieces: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75sQvwZ_PIA&feature=emb_logo

They are not only made from different materials, but they can also be found in many different designs and molds. Depending on the design you are going for, baseboards can measure up to a height of 1.5 meters high. These higher skirting boards are named wainscots and covers between 1-1.5 meters of the lower part of the wall. 

Characteristically, baseboards cover only up to ankle height (less than 20 centimeters) of the wall.  


Skirting Material 

Materials used for baseboards vary between price, durability, texture, and color. Here is a list of the most typically used materials when manufacturing them: 

  • PVC: The most commonly used plastic when manufacturing baseboards is PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride). It is used because it is hard, flexible, and durable.  These designs are typically found in white or other shades of white. Owners do have the option to paint and repaint vinyl models too. They are a popular choice because they can fit any kind of wall, no matter the uneven texture, compared to wood which isn’t as flexible.

    Because they are glued to the wall with strong adhesive, they can be difficult to replace and remove. Regardless, Vinyl is durable and can last for a very long time without any maintenance. Furthermore, they are much more affordable than expensive timber types.

  • Wood: Traditionally, wood was used to create different molds in Victorian homes. Today, it’s still a material of choice for many builders and home owners. The type of wood used to create these baseboards are usually softwoods like Pine, Spruce, Cedar, Cypress, and Yew. Hardwoods like Birch, African Blackwood, Maple, Oak, Teak, and Walnut can be bought raw to be stained or lacquered.

    Boards made from wood are either sold as one single piece or are finger jointed to create a longer unit. Recently, more home owners have

  • Engineered Wood: Different woods that are engineered and combined like plywood, wood-plastic composite, glue laminated, hardboard, MDF (Medium-density fiberboard), cross-laminated, and OSB are also popular material choices.

Function

Its main function is to provide protection to the area of the floor where the wall and the floor meets. This area can easily get damaged because of walking, furniture being pushed against it, abrasion, and accidental kicks against it. When left unprotected, the area can easily look unpleasant. Floorboards, carpet, or tiles can lift up and will need to be replaced much more often if there isn’t any skirting protecting that area. 

Furthermore, it can also be used for decorative purposes. Either casing the door or windows, crowning the area between the ceiling and the wall, as well as placed running through the middle of the wall as a chair rail. Check out this illustration for an example of its different decorative molding purposes. 

Different Treatments

To treat the skirting boards in order for them to fit a specific design aesthetic, manufacturers use different treatments. The treatment of the skirting will have an effect on the overall price. Different treatments can include: 

  • Oil

  • Paint striped

  • Thermal 

  • Varnish

  • Waxing

  • Adhesive

  • Heat bending

  • Wood stain

  • Wood preservation, finishing, and drying

  • Steam bending

  • French polish

Design 

The United Kingdom is known for different design and architectural eras. Derived from these different eras, skirting is usually named according to the era in which it was designed. Periods like the Edwardian and Victorian eras are popularly used in modern designs today. 

There are loads of different wooden and plastic designs available for home owners, interior designers, and builders to choose from. Here is a list of the most popular designs available:

  • Chamfered: This design features a subtle rounded middle that is sleek and polished. It remains a go-to design because of its simplicity and clean shape. They are popularly used in the UK.

  • Bullnose: Another very popular design is the bullnose. It features a thick top and a gradual decline to the floor. It’s popular in many modern homes because of its simplicity and adaptability to any design aesthetic.

  • Torus: The Torus is an ornate skirting board that features a half circle design at its top and an angular downward cut to the floor. This design looks great in MDF material, like the ones found at Metres Direct skirting boards.

  • Ogee: Perfect for all classically styled dining rooms, living rooms, and bedrooms, the ogee is an extremely ornate design that can be made from hardwoods, softwoods, and engineered woods. 

Additionally, designers and builders can choose different architrave designs to add an extra touch of design to door and window frames. Just like skirting boards, architraves are made from all kinds of materials and can be customized to fit the shape and size of any room. 

When you are planning to renovate an old room or design a new room’s interior, be sure to add skirting boards to the plan. 

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