displaced-dene

2012-01-20T15:39:00.000-08:00

In almost every tattoo shop there are a lots of books available with a lot of great drawings and designs from which you can choose to get your body inked. These drawings en designs are pretty meaningless most of the time and people only choose them because they like them. There is nothing wrong with that, but a tattoo becomes much more beautiful and important when it means something more to you.

A good example is one of my own: When I got engaged, me and my boyfriend both got the chinese sign for the word love tattooed. When we are getting married we are going to get another symbol tattooed in stead of wedding rings! This gives our tattoos an extra meaning, because we will think about our wedding every time we look at it.

A Nightmare of Displaced People

2011-10-31T09:45:00.001-07:00

This strange nightmare is recurring. Many of those moving are hunted by this nightmare, still some others can not perceive this as a bad dream. We can deal with this alarming situation that we have to leave our home knowing that I could never return. No matter if you live in a place for you whole life. It is a real threat to our integrity, the threat of a sense of insecurity and uncertainty. This nightmare is the fear of losing our roots.

As new immigrants or old, it takes a long time to settle, at least psychologically. The common nightmare that recurs is the same scenario, each time with different actors and in different contexts. This is a nightmare that many of us actually experienced it.

A friend of mine shared his fears about a dream she has had many times. This is what he said:

It was me and my family had to leave our house, go somewhere away from the place they knew as family heading to a place that seemed to be warm and friendly. Still, it was our house that I had . hard to be ready when it was a struggle, I do not want to leave, however, there was a situation that had to flee, as expected, since there was no other option, since there was no turning back. It was a necessity for out. I do not want to obey the conditions that made me fell, however, I knew I had to make another move and felt the pain of thinking about it.

I was checking all my belongings, I could not take much with us, I had to single items that were meaningful to me, check every room, there was not much he did not want to leave behind, however, I had to go. I tried to say I could cancel the trip, I wanted to ask for change of plan, to spend the trip. It sounded and felt like the same situation I had experienced in real life before, I knew in the dream, I knew I was having a nightmare, however, the lines were blurred. I could feel the pain of real life events that had made me leave my loved ones before. I could feel the tears running down my cheeks when I was leaving that place I knew as home.

The nightmare was real, I could feel all my senses. However the amount of pain was unbearable. This nightmare was not only a bad dream, but was a reflection of a reality that many of us have been part of, time after time, in our past history, and recent human life. It looked like a pattern, it seemed that had happened to many people I knew.

I can not remember now who was with me, yet my house was in a physical distance. I could see my loved ones, my family and my favorite trees, still did not know it was there. At some point I was afraid to die, never to return, and never see my home again. It felt like a near death experience, a flashback of the difficult times many of us have gone through without thinking about them, without verbalizing them, without acknowledging them.

Once I awoke I was working hard to suppress my feelings. I wanted to keep hope. I wish this nightmare would never have again, as I believe in the possibility of many impossible desires. This is a common nightmare displaced many of us have. "

Three Ways Outplacement Career Centers Help Displaced Workers Find New Jobs Quickly

2011-10-31T09:05:00.000-07:00

It has become common practice for large companies to employ the services of outplacement career centers in times of cutbacks. These services offer career guidance, resume services, interview and practice to help employees find new employment reduced as soon as possible. If you are a manager working for a company that is preparing to lay off workers, can help minimize the trauma of their employees face by hiring an outplacement firm to help them find employment.

There are three methods that are used by the relocation centers used to help displaced employees find jobs:

Resume Services

Resume updates and upgrades are standard outplacement service. Terminated employees will need your current work history to include your last employer at least. However, resuming the services provided by relocation companies usually go beyond that basic level of service to the creation of resumes and cover letters that are intended to help the job seeker get exactly the type of work he or she is seeking. This improves the job seeker land an interview for a position that he or she is qualified.

Practice interviews

Employees probably reduced out of practice when it comes to job interviews, as it could have been a long time since they were in search of work. Outplacement offers help with the preparation to ensure that prospects are ready for even the most difficult interview questions, providing examples of questions that can be used to prepare. Practice Interviews are often included in the services provided to customers.

Vocational guidance

The level of career guidance and advice always is what separates the best centers of re-employment of others. Many companies offer group meetings and training sessions only, while others will only resume and interview with the vocational guidance services at all. The goal of these companies often get displaced employees to put in as many applications as possible with the hope that some will result in the interviews, the more is better approach. While the method can work, there is a better way.

A job coach who works one-on-one with clients can help develop a plan that will lead not only to any job, but one in their talents and skills will be fully utilized, allowing them to make a real difference in the employing organization. Employees who go after your dream job, instead of taking any job they can find, is on his way to a fulfilling and rewarding career.

Three Ways Outplacement Career Centers Help Displaced Workers Find New Jobs Quickly

2011-10-27T09:09:00.000-07:00

It has become common practice for large companies to employ the services of outplacement career centers in times of cutbacks. These services offer career guidance, resume services, interview and practice to help employees find new employment reduced as soon as possible. If you are a manager working for a company that is preparing to lay off workers, can help minimize the trauma of their employees face by hiring an outplacement firm to help them find employment.

There are three methods that are used by the relocation centers used to help displaced employees find jobs:

Resume Services

Resume updates and upgrades are standard outplacement service. Terminated employees will need your current work history to include your last employer at least. However, resuming the services provided by relocation companies usually go beyond that basic level of service to the creation of resumes and cover letters that are intended to help the job seeker get exactly the type of work he or she is seeking. This improves the job seeker land an interview for a position that he or she is qualified.

Practice interviews

Employees probably reduced out of practice when it comes to job interviews, as it could have been a long time since they were in search of work. Outplacement offers help with the preparation to ensure that prospects are ready for even the most difficult interview questions, providing examples of questions that can be used to prepare. Practice Interviews are often included in the services provided to customers.

Vocational guidance

The level of career guidance and advice always is what separates the best centers of re-employment of others. Many companies offer group meetings and training sessions only, while others will only resume and interview with the vocational guidance services at all. The goal of these companies often get displaced employees to put in as many applications as possible with the hope that some will result in the interviews, the more is better approach. While the method can work, there is a better way.

A job coach who works one-on-one with clients can help develop a plan that will lead not only to any job, but one in their talents and skills will be fully utilized, allowing them to make a real difference in the employing organization. Employees who go after your dream job, instead of taking any job they can find, is on his way to a fulfilling and rewarding career.

Canine Hip Dysplasia - A Dog's Displaced Hip

2011-10-27T08:54:00.000-07:00

Canine hip dysplasia or heart disease occurs when the ball joint of the hip of the dogs do not fit well together. Dogs can acquire this genetic disease - like when he was actually born with - or the environment - when developed due to excessive weight, poor diet and lack of exercise or physical activity. Most veterinarians and breeders, however, I think most of it is genetic. It gives them a natural way of walking or running around your house. This may not sound good to you and especially for your dog, as this will prevent the common tasks with ease and comfort. So what can you do once you learn that your dog has this illness?

What are the common symptoms of canine hip dysplasia or heart disease? In some dogs, this disease has little or no external physical manifestation, but in most dogs, symptoms such as: be silent even when they are still puppies, bunny hopping, swaying hips, lying in a small place natural, overdeveloped chests and backs with underdeveloped.

Although we know if our dog has CHD based on visible symptoms above, it is even better to get a professional opinion and diagnosis through X-ray examination Remember that only a professional can accurately say for sure whether our dogs have the disease or not. After X-ray result had been examined by the veterinarian, will be referred to a surgeon who can perform the surgery needed to correct the defect. You may be offered several options on the type of procedure best suited to treat your dog, some of which are: total hip replacement, the dorsal acetabular rim, triple pelvic osteotomy, femoral head osteotomy and neck or pubic symphysiodesis youth.

Some dog owners have preferred to treat coronary artery disease in a totally conservative or traditional method. Some of the treatments used nutritional supplements, acupuncture, exercise, weight control, and even chiropractic care.

If your dog has heart disease then there is no reason to worry or be concerned about this disease. There are many ways you can treat this disease, if not avoided. The methods of treatment available are through surgery or traditional or conservative.

All that is needed then is for you to be observant of your dog to detect the disease early and prevent any further damage that can cost you and your dog.

Displaced Anger

2011-10-27T08:40:00.000-07:00

So what you are upset about today? I am not referring to life-threatening disorders, but these little irritants concern aggravated by which you get to launch their specialized tantrums? What upset, angry, angry, frustrated, or the defense is in place this time? A new line or rope repeating the same old things wrist (which can be repeated word for word by the other)? This is nothing but DRAMA. Just bored of games very worldly!

Get your nose, hands, eyes, ears and minds of people's business. Stop being so damn nosy and impatient! Life is not going to accelerate for you. Nor, it will slow down. Get that fact straight. You are a breath of mortal human life like the rest of us and show that life does not revolve around you. (In his world it does) But there happens to be 9000 million other worlds in orbit.

Would it be possible for you to light in his capacity as trial? Or have some kind of vengeful wants stabbing point to another until he / she bleeds without mercy? Can you stop for an hour relentless opinions about how things are supposed to be? Judge Judy work is already taken!

Let's get real serious for a moment. Consider your own motivations. Why do things they do and say? Is it not for the benefit of your car? Are not you trying to get some kind of beneficial outcome for you? If you say you're not, not only a fool than a liar. Everything they say and do is help you survive and thrive. That's a fact, doll face! Despite this relationship. Yu seeking greater satisfaction of some kind.

That's what I do. That's what we all do. It's the track we are human. And there's nothing wrong with the way of life unless you are trying to fool yourself into believing that what you are doing is for some other reason. (Some benevolent gesture noble spiritual nature of holiness.) Give me a break! And though there was something wrong with that kind of self-created life. We still continue to do so, simply because we are in this self-preservation, self-sustaining, self-motivation, self-elevating earthly body. When you think you're doing something for some other reason, you have approached the kingdom of his own glory. And especially when you think you are sacrificing something of value to the other person. Bull Shit! Excuse me while I vomit.

Stop pretending your motives are innocent. You do not know what means the actual innocence. Me neither, but I do know is that I do not know anything and I'm not expecting a certain outcome favorable or unfavorable. I was very conscious when I am not connected with myself at that level without deceit. I feel the emptiness, I feel the questions in my mind how I feel the urgency to do something more productive. I feel that increasing discomfort and anxiety in me. Doubt has entered into the crack.

Pet Costumes

2011-10-22T08:08:00.000-07:00

Firefighters Give Dog Mouth-to-Mouth Resuscitation After House Blaze Rescue
By Natalie Evans - mirror.co.uk

Wausau firefighters Jared Thompson, left, and Jamie Giese give artificial respiration to a dog that was rescued from a house fire (Pic: AP)

FIREFIGHTERS Jamie Giese and Jared Thompson performed an unusual rescue when they gave mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a dog.

The pair attended a house fire in Wausau, Wisconsin, where the family’s pets were still trapped inside the burning building.

Dwight Borchardt, 17, returned from walking one of his dogs at around 4pm on Tuesday to find smoke billowing from the second floor.

While dad Todd Borchardt and his fiancee Kim Carlson were out of the house, pet cats Lavender and Mocha, and pet dog Coda were stranded inside.

The teenager attempted to search for the missing animals but was overwhelmed by heavy smoke.

Firefighters Jared Thompson (L) and Jamie Giese rush pet dog Coda to safety

The firefighters found seven-year-old Labrador Retriever in shock, sitting in a rocking chair in the room where the fire is believed to have started.

The men carried the stricken pooch to safety where they performed mouth-to-snout resuscitation.

They also poured water over his soot-covered fur and used an oxygen mask to try and revive the animal.

Coda gets a kiss from owner Kim Carlson

Speaking after the rescue, Giese admitted “It was all improvised” while Thompson said he had remembered tips from former reality TV show Rescue 911.

The heroes’ quicking thinking paid off, as Coda was taken to two different pet hospitals, staying overnight at the second to recover.

The lucky mutt had only been with the family for four days after previously living with a family friend.

Speaking to the Wausau Daily Herald, son Dwight said: “He’s just a sweetheart. He’s been following me around for two days straight.”

And the rescue has a happy ending – moggies Lavender and Mocha were found safe and well in the basement.

Police Say Someone Broke a Window and Took Oregon Death Row Dog from His Kennelwashingtonpost.com

ALBANY, Ore. — Blue the dog had spent his days locked up in the Albany Pet Hotel, waiting while his death sentence is appealed. Now police say someone climbed the fence at the hotel, smashed a window and helped Blue the dog escape death row.

Albany police Lt. Casey Dorland said Monday that the only thing reported missing from the kennel is the fugitive canine. Police believe he was taken sometime Sunday night or early Monday morning.

Blue was sentenced to die last fall after he bit a toddler, but his owner appealed. The dog has been housed at the pet hotel waiting for his case to be resolved.

Woodland Woman Says Dog Held for Ransom seattletimes.com

WOODLAND, Wash. — A Woodland woman says her pet bulldog named Jaggar is being held for ransom by thieves demanding money and her prescription drugs.

Jennifer Thomas told KATU she noticed her dog missing more than a week ago after she saw a man and woman in her driveway. Since then she has received text messages from people threatening to torture the dog to death unless she pays the ransom.

Thomas uses a wheelchair, says she doesn't have the money and needs the medication because of an accident.

Despite warnings not to call police, she asked the Cowlitz County sheriff's office for help.

Mountain Lion vs. House Catnbc-2.com

DENVER - Gail Loveman was working at the computer when she turned around to see a very disconcerting staring contest.

A mountain lion was looking through her sliding glass door right at her cat, Zeus.

"I was sitting here working at my computer and as you can see my back was to the glass sliding doors, and I heard some rustling, but I have two Maine Coone cats, so I figured they were messing around in some papers and at some point, she said.

"Maybe it was the noise - I turned around and this mountain lion was at my sliding glass door about 4 feet away from me."

"So luckily my camera was sitting here and I grabbed it and started taking pictures," she said.

Those pictures quickly spread like wildfire over Twitter and Facebook.

Loveman says the mountain lion walked along the deck and then came face-to-face with Zeus.

"I have one very fuzzy [picture] where he is just sort of kissing the mountain lion," she said.

After looking in her yard, she realized there were several more mountain lions. The one at the window was a teenager and the mother stayed farther away.

"My guess is they climbed up these rocks here because this is where the mother was," Loveman said. "One of them was up here on the fence and they say mountain lions can jump 10 feet with 100-pound deer in its mouth, so I knew they would be able to get out, but this lion was poised on the fence with all four feet."

She says the encounter is a lesson for people living near wildlife.

"My number one thing I would say is: don't let your animals out. Don't let your cat go out. There are hawks, there are eagles, there are is foxes - if you care about your animals keep them close. Keep your cats inside and your dogs by your side," she said.

Kangaroo Mauls Woman Walking Dogsyahoo.com

An Australian woman mauled by a kangaroo as she walked her dogs said on Wednesday it was a miracle she survived the attack, in which the native animal clawed her head and body.

Janet Karson told The West Australian newspaper she was walking her three dogs in the bush near Manjimup south of the western city of Perth on Saturday when a kangaroo leapt out in front of her and one of her dogs gave chase.

When she caught up with her dog the kangaroo had hold of it, so she grabbed a stick to lever its claws off the dog.

"And then it reared up in front of me -- it was huge," she told the paper.

"All I can remember is its claws going to work on me and the smell of my own blood when my head fell on to its chest.

"I thought, 'That's it, I'm finished'."

Karson, who suffered cuts to her neck and back and needed more than 20 stitches to her battered ears, is not sure whether the dogs fought off the large marsupial or whether it "just hopped off".

"I honestly believe it's a miracle I'm alive," she added.

Kangaroos are found across Australia but attacks against people are rare.

In July police were forced to pepper-spray a giant red kangaroo after it bounded into an elderly woman's garden in outback Queensland as she was hanging out the washing and attacked her.

The giant red can grow up to two metres (more than six foot six inches) tall.

My Pet Tigerby Alexis Willey - timesunion.com

My cat and I!

She has soft fur, glowing green eyes and the most annoying ‘meow’ in the world. But she’s not a REAL tiger. Her name is Callie and she’s just my pet cat that I hate to love, especially when she wakes me up in the middle of the night looking for food.

Rounding out the whopping three animals my family owns (we also have two Labradoodles who I’m sure I’ll blog about eventually), Callie is an established member of my household and a genuine goddess.

Apparently though, a large and continuously growing number of people are no longer satisfied with keeping domestic animals as pets. Where a ferret used to be an unusual sight, many families are now calling alligators, sugar bears, foxes, tigers and monkeys by familiar names and sticking them in cages. The demand for exotic pets has created a multi-million dollar a year industry for the legal and illegal sale of bizarre house pets.

On Oct. 18, an Ohio man and owner of an ‘exotic-animal park’ released his pets from their cages and committed suicide, creating a panic in the community and endangering the lives of hundreds of people. Police responded immediately and after a night of hunting, nearly 50 exotic, endangered and majestic animals were killed. Murdered. Shot down hopelessly in the attempt to protect community members from the dangerous “pets.”

18 Bengal tigers as well as numerous other animals were among those killed.

Personally, I’m outraged. I understand the threat to the public and sheer confusion the situation must have created, but why couldn’t the guns have been traded for tranquilizers sooner?

A small number of animals were tranquilized and taken to the Columbus Zoo, but why did 49 animals have to die in the crossfire? The public was alerted to the situation and advised to remain indoors and schools were closed to protect residents.

The few extra minutes it may have taken for a plan to be made and precautions to be taken could have saved the lives of the helpless animals. Obviously agitated and out of their natural environment, the animals weren’t friendly, but should the mistreatment and instability of their owner determine their fate, and ultimately, their doom?

A Bengal tiger similar to the 18 that were killed. Photo by Associated Press.

The problem lies not with the individual situation, however, but with the society in which this kind of “collecting” of exotic animals for personal pleasure is accepted. Occurrences like this are becoming more and more frequent yet law enforcement agencies are still at a loss with how to deal with them properly.

The problem lies at the source; the only way to stop this, is to keep wild animals in the wild. Why are these animals allowed to be pets at all? And why aren’t measures being taken to prevent these sort of problems before they occur? Frankly, I think people should be happy with a pet dog or fish. Fish never charge at police officers…

Cat Hit by Car Rescued from Inside Dashboarddispatch.com

A three-hour rescue mission saved a cat that had been hit by a car and became stuck behind the car’s dashboard when the driver tried to take it to an animal shelter.

The driver, Nehal Dhruve, pulled over to see whether the cat was OK after striking it Thursday on Leap Road in Hilliard.

Dhruve said she wanted to take the cat to the Capital Area Humane Society, so she put the cat in her car.

“Instead of staying in the seat, she went under the dashboard,” Dhruve said.

The humane-society staff called in a mechanic to take apart the dashboard and attempt a rescue. However, his hands were too big to get to the cat, so an animal-care staff worker gave it a try.

The worker freed the cat and handed it to veterinarians, who checked it out.

Dhruve said she wants to adopt the cat but wanted to talk it over with her family.

Daryl McKay, the mechanic who suffered some cuts on his hands, donated his services.

Help Your Pet Handle Halloween's ScaresBy Jennie Willis, usatoday.com

The air is getting crisp, the leaves are turning and Halloween is approaching. Children will be putting on costumes, obscuring their faces, and houses will be decked out with lots of strange decorations. Halloween might be fun for us, but it can be downright spooky for our pets.

Halloween night can be particularly scary for pets that don't like doorbells, strangers and people passing the yard. Pets that have not been well socialized can react with fear or aggression towards new experiences and strange people.

To be sensitive of your pet's needs, here are things you can do to make Halloween a good experience for your pet:

• Keep outdoor cats and dogs inside, minimizing their exposure to lots of people. Dogs barking at strangers passing the yard can invite pranksters to throw things at them. Outdoor cats will encounter new situations that may cause them to behave in an unsafe manner.

• If you take your dog with you trick-or-treating, keep them on leash and watch for signs of stress. These can include panting, pacing, drooling or barking reactively at the environment. Trick-or-treating isn't for everyone, so if your dog is stressed, take it home.

• Put candy away in a pet-safe container. Chocolate is toxic for pets, and eating candy with wrappers can cause choking or obstruction of the digestive system.

• Don't have pets come with you to the door when you answer it. There is a risk they could escape in the confusion; also, some children don't have experience with dogs and might be frightened.

If your pet is afraid of knocking or the doorbell, try these steps to change how your pet feels about what the doorbell means. Dogs that bark at the door are often anxious about what these sounds signal.

• Practice ahead of time. Make a small door-knocking sound (even from the inside of the door) and feed your dog a treat. Repeat this until the dog doesn't bark and waits expectantly for the treat. You have now established a predictive relationship between the knock and the treat.

• Increase the knocking sound gradually, repeating a dozen times at each level of intensity, until the pet is non-reactive at each higher level of sound.

• The doorbell usually represents the highest level of reaction. Sometimes cooperating with a family member with the door open is important. Start by feeding the treat exactly at the same time as the doorbell rings and progress to a slight delay (half a second) between the sound and the treat.

If done correctly, you will watch your pet progress from a fear response to anticipating the next sound with pleasure.

If your pet is extremely nervous about the doorbell and you can't make progress with counterconditioning, consider leaving a basket of candy with a sign on your doorstep allowing children to bypass the doorbell ringing all together.

Have a safe and happy Halloween.

--

Dr. Jennie Willis is an instructor of animal behavior at Colorado State University and owns a private pet consulting business. For more information, visit www.Animal BehaviorInsights.com

Ahwatukee Couple Open Pet Resort in New Homeby Allie Seligman - The Arizona Republic

When Tammy Teeter moved to Arizona four years ago, she left behind the dog-boarding kennel she opened and ran for 12 years.

She didn't leave behind her passion for training animals, though. For the past three years Teeter and her husband, Howard Teeter, have run a mobile training business that has served more than 700 customers.

The couple went to customers' homes, but also brought dogs back to their own house in Ahwatukee, sometimes boarding them for owners who were out of town. "Our customers just kept saying, 'we want more,' " Tammy said.

Ahwatukee couple Howard and Tammy Tetter opened their Wiggles and Wags Pet Resort after three years of running a mobile training business in the East Valley. Nick Oza/The Arizona Republic

It came to a head this year, Tammy said, when they were "busting out" of their home. Now the couple have a new venue, Wiggles and Wags Pet Resort, at 1811 E. Baseline Road in Tempe.

The dog boarding, grooming, training and daycare business opened officially on Oct. 1, and Tammy said the response has been great. Several hundred people came to the grand opening, she said, and many of the mobile business customers have transitioned over to the pet resort.

The couple met when Howard was visiting his brother and ran into Tammy at an event. "I got to know her a little bit, and she was giving me advice," he said. In 2007, she and daughter Nina moved from Georgia to be with him.

Between learning about a new state, raising Nina and taking care of her own dogs, Tammy said she wasn't ready to open another business. "I had just run the other one for so long," she said. "Maybe I did just need a little break."

Instead, she wanted to open a small, mobile pet-training business. Howard retired early after 30 years in sales and marketing management in the technology sector, and offered to help Tammy start her new venture.

"I'm the business side, and Tammy brings all the credentials," he said.

After three successful years, though, Tammy said she realized that her passion is in training dogs and running a boarding business. "That's what I'm really good at," she said.

Wiggles and Wags is split between two buildings: one where Tammy teaches obedience classes and grooms dogs, along with two other groomers. Dogs are boarded in the other building and play outside in a shaded play area complete with play pools.

Howard opens the shop at about 6 a.m. each day, and Tammy leaves at 10 p.m. At night, they can watch what's going on with the boarded dogs through cameras that stream to their iPhones.

"When I get a buzz, I can look at the feed and tell you exactly what's happening," Tammy said.

There's not much chance the dogs will be able to leave their rooms, though, Tammy said. She recently locked herself in one by accident.

"I know the dogs can't get out because I couldn't get out, and I have thumbs," she said.

Each room has a large glass door so the dogs can look out and a "shy panel" if they prefer privacy, Teeter said. Owners are encouraged to bring in the dog's bedding and toys to make the animal more comfortable.

"It actually becomes their room and they can just settle down," she said.

Rooms range from 4-by-5 feet to 5-by-7 feet, and prices are from $30 to $40 a night for one dog. Additional dogs can be added to the same room at a reduced price.

It's also easier for the dogs to relax if they get worn out during the day, Teeter said. The dogs go to a large yard area in shifts. Some dogs go alone, and others are grouped by temperament and size.

The dogs go out as often as they need to, Teeter said, without the extra play time fee many kennels charge. "It is unheard of here in Arizona," she said.

Dividing the dogs into groups means play time isn't too chaotic. If all the dogs were free at once, "you just end up with mounting and fighting type behaviors," she said.

Wiggles and Wags also offers pet daycare for $20 a day. Dogs play and rest in air conditioned rooms from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Some customers bring their pet every weekday, and some come two or three times a week, Teeter said.

"It's basically structured around what the owners want," she said.

Tammy's main focus is still on training dogs. She teaches group obedience classes, meets with owners and their dogs individually and trains rescue dogs.

Small changes in behavior can make a big difference, Tammy said. In most cases, her customers just a few gripes that make life with their pet less than ideal, she said.

"I find that most people are pretty happy with their dogs," she said. "They just have one or two things that drive them crazy."

Tammy said she has also seen the impact training can have on rescued dogs, who may come to new owners with unwanted behaviors.

Wiggles and Wags works with dogs taken in Lost Our Home Pet Foundation, a rescue group for pets abandoned because of foreclosures or financial hardship. The return rate has gone down significantly since she started training with them, she said.

Karen and Jim Donker of Scottsdale met the Teeters earlier this year when they needed help training their puppy, Majerle. Karen heard Tammy's name from a friend and gave her a call.

"They were just completely awesome," she said. "They have some sort of a command over dogs that's just wonderful. You look at it and go, 'I want that.'"

Karen said she was impressed right away with the way Tammy could read her dogs.

"She's way more than a trainer," she said. "She just has a really special way with animals that is amazing."

When the pet resort opened, Karen signed Majerle up for obedience classes, something she said has proved to be a good investment.

"They call it dog training, but it's really people training I think," she said. "I am 100 percent convinced that it isn't the dog. It is the owners."

The Donkers returned home from a trip Monday, and Majerle and 14-year-old Picasso spent the time they were away at Wiggles and Wags.

This was the first time either dog has been boarded, Karen said, and though she was nervous to leave them, "I was comfortable."

"Knowing Tammy and Howard as well as I do, I know they're in great hands," she said.

For rates or more information, visit www.wigglesandwagsboarding.com

9 Things You Must Know Before Purchasing a ParrotWritten by Melissa Sutton - petanim.com

If you are considering getting a parrot, here are 9 things you need to know that could change your mind.

Number 1 is that parrots must have daily contact with their owners. The Cockatoo, Lory and Jacob will require special care everyday, while the Amazons, Budgie, Conures and small African parrots don`t require quiet as much daily attention, to stay healthy & happy. Daily attention is extremely important in socializing these birds and the more time spent, the better!

Number 2 is that it is expensive to own a bird, not to mention if you are interested in breeding them. With food, the huge amount of toys you`ll need, vet care, nails, beak and wings care, etc., it will be costly, as bird medicine is a specialized field. Because a bird`s instinct is to hide illness, for fear of the flock protecting itself, thus attacking them, it is often times in the advanced stages before discovered, which will require more intense treatment.

Number 3 is that parrots are VERY loud! In the wild, they live in huge groups and that loud voice is how they contact and communicate with each other. Be aware that they will accept you into their flock, so every morning they call the nock to start the day and every evening they call the nock to get ready for night time & sleeping. You should NOT restrain them or get upset at them for this, it is their natural instinct! as per http://limoeg.articlealley.com

Number 4 is not all parrots will talk. Even though most parrots have the ability to talk, not all of them care or have the desire to speak. A few of the most talkative are the Budgie, Jacob, Yellow-Fore Headed Amazon and Double Yellow-Headed Amazon, but there`s still no guarantee they will talk!

Number 5 is that birds love to make a mess everywhere, because in the wild, the bird`s job is to “afforest” the wood, meaning they take a piece of it`s food and the rest goes on the ground. Be prepared to spend at least 30 to 45 minutes every single day, to clean up your bird`s cage, water/food bowls, floor and all messes.

Number 6 is that parrots must take a bath regularly. Find the method that suits your bird best, whether it`s in the shower, splashing water from a bowl or in the kitchen sink.

Number 7 is that parrots love to destroy things and spend 90% of their time, in the wild, consuming and looking for food. You MUST supply tons of toys and different kinds of foods, such as fruits, nuts and veggies, to keep them from getting bored, or they may direct their attention to your furniture!

Number 8 is that parrots bite! All birds bite! Usually out of fear or anger, and it`s their way of telling you ” I don`t like that!” as they bite each other in nature to communicate, they think it`s perfectly fine to bite you. There are many ways to teach your bird not to bite, it takes time & patience, but SOCIALIZATION is key!

Number 9 is that birds are NOT for children. Because they are so intelligent, live a long time and require daily interaction with their human flock, a child is not the right owner for them as they go through many changes like school, college, moving out of parents home, etc., which makes it virtually impossible to keep such a long time companion. For more info, you can visit: www.BirdCagesBlog.com

Halloween Pets

2011-10-14T15:31:00.000-07:00

PREHISTORIC DOG FOUNDskyvalleychronicle.com

Had mammoth bone in mouth

(NATIONAL) -- How long has man’s best friend been man’s best friend? Answer: a very long time.

The remains of three Paleolithic era domesticated dogs, including one with a mammoth bone in its mouth, have been unearthed at Předmostí in the Czech Republic, according to a discovery.com report here

The Paleolithic (or Palaeolithic) Age, Era or Period, is a prehistoric era distinguished by the development of the most primitive stone tools ever discovered and encompasses roughly 99% of human technological prehistory.

It extends from the earliest known use of stone tools, probably by Hominins such as Australopithecines, 2.6 million years ago, to the end of the Pleistocene around 10,000 BP (before the present era).

During the Paleolithic, humans grouped together in small societies such as bands, and subsisted by gathering plants and hunting or scavenging wild animals.

What is particularly interesting about the case of the dog with the bone is that researchers believe a human inserted the mammoth bone in the dog’s mouth after the death of the animal -- meaning it might have ritual importance.

The large bone in the dog's mouth could signify "that the dog was 'fed' to accompany the soul of the dead person, the dog’s master, on its journey into the afterlife.

Rob Losey, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Alberta, told Discovery News that the new study is "very convincing," and shows "quite clearly that the dog domestication process was underway thousands of years earlier than previously thought."

He thinks the “distinctive treatment given some of the remains also is compelling,’ and this indicates to him that a special connection had developed between people and some dogs early on -- long prior to any good evidence for dogs being buried.

The dogs that were unearthed were described as large animals with an estimated body weight of just over 77 pounds and a shoulder height of at least 2 feet.

The shape of their skulls resembles those of a Siberian husky, but these animals were larger and heavier than the modern Husky.

The dogs died when they were between 4 and 8 years old, suffering from numerous broken teeth during their lifetimes.

Based on what is known of the human culture at the site, the researchers believe these dogs were used as beasts of burden for the hauling of meat, bones and tusks from mammoth kill sites and of firewood, and to help with the transport of equipment.

World's Shortest Cat is 6 Inches Tallupi.com

SAN DIEGO -- Guinness World Records says a Munchkin Cat from California measuring only 6 inches tall has been certified as the world's Shortest Living Cat.

The record-keeping organization marked Tuesday's World Animal Day by certifying 3-year-old Fizz Girl, owned by Tiffani Kjeldergaard of Southern California, as the feline with the shortest stature in the world.

Fizz Girl is a Munchkin Cat, a breed known for its unusually short legs.

Kjeldergaard said she has bred Munchkin Cats for years, but Fizz Girl is by far the shortest.

"Fizzgirl knows that she's short, but she has no problems climbing and getting to the highest places in the house," she said.

The previous record holder, a Himalayan/Siamese mix named Itse Bitse, measured 3.75 inches tall, but later went missing.

Pet-Napper Nabbed, Pug Puppy Reported Safe, say Colo. CopsBy Barry Leibowitz - cbsnews.com

Pug puppy stolen from, and returned to, a Lone Tree, Colo. pet store
(Credit: KCNC) (CBS/KCNC)

LONE TREE, Colo. - A puppy pilfered from a pet store - a pug, no less - has been returned to its proper owner, and the perpetrator has been arrested, say Denver area police.

Surveillance video recorded the suspect playing with the $1,200 pug in the store in Lone Tree, Colo. Monday afternoon, reported CBS affiliate KCNC.

The woman spent some time with the dog, then left and returned to Just Pets a few hours later.

"(She) really liked her, said she was in love with her; was going to think about her and come back," store owner Lisa Stone said, according to KCNC.

Stone said the woman said she wanted to buy the dog but needed a few more minutes. Meanwhile, another customer came in to look at kittens. When Stone went to the back of the store the pug-napper dashed out the front door.

"I didn't see anybody anywhere; nobody running, no car, no nothing -- gone," Stone said.

According to the American Kennel Club, pet theft is a growing problem nationwide. Approximately 224 pets have been reported stolen in the first 7 months of this year compared with just 150 in the same period of time last year.

Starving Dog Leaps from Third-Story Windowohmidog.com

Animal control officials in New Bedford, Mass., are seeking the public’s help in finding the owners of two pit bull-type dogs left in a vacant apartment — one of which, apparently starving, jumped out of a third-story window.

The emaciated 1-year-old female jumped from the window on Sept. 30, breaking her hip and hind leg, according to South Coast Today. She’s now being treated at Cape Cod Veterinary Specialties.

The second dog, a four-month-old puppy (pictured above), was found inside the apartment. The two were believed to have been abandoned two months ago when the tenants moved out.

The Animal Rescue League of Boston is asking for the public’s help to offset the costs associated with the dogs’ care and rehabilitation. Those interested in making a donation can call (617) 426-9170, Ext. 615, or visit www.arlboston.org/donate.

Anyone with information about the dogs or their owners is asked to contact New Bedford Animal Control Officer Emmanuel Maciel at (508) 991- 6366.

“This constitutes felony cruelty against an innocent animal,” says Lt. Alan Borgal, director of the Center for Animal Protection at the Animal Rescue League of Boston. “We are counting on the public to step forward with information to help bring the person or persons responsible to justice.”

Kidnapped Cat Back with OwnerWritten by Sharon RoznBk - northwestern.com

TOWN OF CALUMET — A kidnapped cat named Slim is back home with its owners.

The tabby cat was sleeping comfortably at home on Saturday afternoon, said Linda Struye, who owns Little Farmer Orchard on Highway 151 north of Fond du Lac.

"I'm sure he's had a few rough nights. He deserves a rest," Struye said.

Literally hundreds of people contacted Struye with offers to help find her missing cat. She said if it were not for the goodness of strangers, he probably still would be missing.

"It was unbelievable. People called me from as far away as Ohio and Indiana," she said.

The story of Slim was reported Thursday when Struye noticed the friendly feline missing and knew he wasn't the kind of cat to wander away. After posting a lost cat message on the Little Farmer Facebook page, Struye got a call stating a woman with some children was spotted at the Little Farmer around 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 2, carrying the struggling cat to the car.

Like something out a dimestore detective novel, Slim was traced to a residence in Ripon, but nothing could be proven and the woman wasn't talking.

Then one night, almost a week later, a vet technician who lives in Ripon spotted a strange cat in the neighborhood she thought might be Slim. When the cat still was outside Saturday morning, she contacted the Green Lake Animal Shelter.

"When I got the call about the cat, I was reasonably sure it was Slim," said shelter manager Janine Rubeck. "When his owners came to get him, he settled right into her arms and started to purr."

Struye said she doesn't know if Slim was let go by his captors or ran away. He seemed no worse for wear, just happy to be home to cuddle with his cat buddy Crispy.

She said everyone from a pizzeria employee to a retired policeman had been on the lookout for her beloved pet. There were midnight forays to scour the city of Ripon. A woman from Oshkosh offered to come down and search the area.

"The fact that people do care and put all this pressure on the family who took Slim is why I have him back. I am overwhelmed right now by the goodness of people," Struye said.

The Green Lake Shelter microchipped Slim to keep him safe in the future.

"It's great to be part of a happy ending like this. It makes everything we do worthwhile," Rubeck said.

Gooooal! Bo Obama Plays Soccer at the White Housepeople.com

Let's move! Bo Obama knows what to do.

When it comes to the First Dog, he's just a chip off the old First Family block. With mom Michelle Obama spearheading physical fitness and healthy eating in her initiatives as First Lady, Bo has an accessible role model and has been following her lead.

During a youth sports clinic at the White House on Thursday, the Portuguese water dog got onto the field and got in some playtime with a soccer ball.

The energetic pooch took the ball in his mouth at one point and even got the First Lady's trip director, Alan Fitts, to kick it around with him. That's some fancy footwork!

Jennifer Aniston Has Puppy Love Moment Sans Justin Theroux celebuzz.com

Jennifer Aniston was spotted solo Monday morning as she headed to Good Morning America to promote the Lifetime movieFive.

After her appearance on Good Morning America, Jennifer stopped to pet and snap a quick photo of an adorable Dachshund puppy. So cute!

The actress directed one of the five shorts, making it her directorial debut. She said of the project earlier this year:

“Our hope with Project Five is to entertain, inform and inspire dialogue, research and prevention. Otherwise, our goals are small. We want these films to move people and empower those affected by breast cancer to stand tall through this challenge, which impacts ALL of our lives, no matter who we are.”

Meanwhile, Jen’s ex Brad Pitt‘s movie Moneyball didn’t win at the box office as expected. The film was beat out by the likes of Lion King in 3D which grossed $22.1 million, while Moneyball only pulled in $20.6 million.

Jen’s appearance heading into GMA is one of the few we’ve seen without her new beau Justin Theroux by her side. The two were out and about in NYC all last week.

5 Pet Costumes for Halloween By Kevin Letourneau - patch.com

This October, transform man's best friend into the costume contest-winning pooch he's destined to become. Here are a few ideas to get you going.

Put your paws up — October is in full swing and we are at Halloween Ground Zero. Calling all boys, ghouls, critters and creatures. Whether or you love it or leave it, this is our time. Whip out the sewing machine and paint those faces, but please, by all means, don’t leave Sparky behind. It’s his time too.

While you’re sifting through the attic trunks of costume wigs and rags, take a moment and think of what your little pal may be feeling like rocking this season. Charles Barkley? Octokitty? Bunny Madoff?

Here are 5 pet costume ideas to get you going:

•Penelope's Castle — Storm the living room castle in one of Penelope's Pet Boutique's medieval line of costumes ranging from Knight, King, Queen and Dragon. We recently bumped into Wendy sporting the fire-breathing dog breath-look.

•Batpup and Super-Dog — Comic book legends from the Justice Breed come home with these super powered and super cute costumes from Living With Pets. A perfect pair for a doggy play date, this team-up is sure to keep Kitty Wonder Whiskers at attention and on her paws.

•Bat Wings — Go batty with flying rodent wings from Living With Pets. Bat wings make for an easy accessory for the big night. Made by a mother-daughter team in Seattle, all products sold at Living With Pets are made in America.

•The Boo-cage — Okay, so the logistics of taking Polly out to play Halloween night might sound like a nightmare, but why not keep things festive by decorating the birdcage? Take an old bed sheet, cut out a couple holes and put your parakeets to sleep with a ghost costume that'd even Charlie Brown would envy.

•The Red Baron
Speaking of the Peanuts gang, you could always grab your beagle a pair of goggles, drawstring hood and red scarf to pay tribute to the World War I Flying Ace like Snoopy from It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown.' Doggles can be purchased at Penelope's Pet Boutique.

Halloween Pet Safety TipsBy Jasmine Viel - kionrightnow.com

SANTA CRUZ, Calif.- Halloween is a fun time for kids and many adults, but can be a frightening and stressful time for pets.

The Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter is reminding pet owners about safety during the upcoming Halloween holiday. Pets can get very startled by costumes and other unusual activities surrounding the Halloween celebrations. Constant door knocking, bell ringing, and unusual appearing guests can stress pets or spook them. This can contribute to escape or aggression.

Learn what to be aware of to protect your pet and stay safe this year!
Halloween Pet Safety Tips:

•Keep animals confined indoors on Halloween. Seclude them safely in a room away from the door and distractions.

•Walk pets before dark to avoid any altercations with costumed characters.

•House animals indoors just before and during Halloween. This protects pets from pranksters who tease, injure, steal, or harm animals.

•Make sure pets are wearing collars with current identification. Many pets get spooked and escape. Unfortunately they end up in shelters without identification.

•Keep pets away from costumed ghouls and goblins. Halloween bites are not uncommon. Even friendly animals may bite due to stress, fear, or protective aggression.

•Store and dispense candy so that it is not accessible to pets. Many treats are toxic and even lethal to pets. Especially poisonous are "sugar free" sweetener xylitol and chocolate.

•Don't dress up pets unless they love it. If you do dress them up make sure the costume isn't annoying or unsafe. Avoid restriction of movement, vision, hearing or the ability to breathe or vocalize. Costumes should not contain small dangling accessories that could be consumed or cause choking.

•Restrict your pet's access to decorations. Jack o' lanterns with candles are obvious fire hazards, but cats can also get tangled in streamers. Pets can also become ill from eating holiday decor.

Wagging Tails Pet Tips - My Puppy Is A Chewer, What Can I Do To Stop Him?
Written by Tracy Blackmore, WaggingTailsKennel.ca

Many new puppies chew on everything when they start teething. The need hard stuff to chew on to help break the teeth through the gums.

There are many people who figure they can just take a soup bone and toss it to the puppy and it will be ok. BUT, this is not always a good idea. A soup bone in the raw state (before cooking) can cause harmful bacteria to your puppy and can cause food poisoning.

Ok, so what if I boil it to kill the bacteria?

Boiling will kill the bacteria, BUT it also softens the bone so that it can splinter and break apart. The best thing to do with a soup bone for a puppy is to microwave it for about 2 minutes to kill the bacteria, let it cool for 15 or 20 minutes then give it to the puppy, but keep a close eye on it, once the puppy starts making ridges in the bone take it away. When a bone splinters it can get into the puppy's throat and cause bleeding, or it can cause splinters in the stomach lining and all this can cost major amounts for vet bills and possibly even death in some cases.

What about rawhide?

The problem with rawhide is that a puppy can not digest it. It is ok to give them a pressed rawhide for a few minutes, but even that is not recommended for puppies under a year old.

So what can I give my puppy to help stop the chewing?

It is recommended that "natural" treats be given to help with chewing, a good sturdy toy, rope toy, solid toy, etc. To help with the chewing phase. Another treat would be a raw carrot, depending on the size of the puppy a carrot stick or for larger puppies a whole carrot, or even some frozen green beans, the whole type. These are terrific natural treats for puppies.

What if they don't like them?

Well, there are also natural biscuits on the market that are hard and take smaller puppies a long time to get through them, the larger puppies are a little harder to help out. But with perseverance you will be able to find natural treats to help with the chewing.

Mutt-I-Grees ManiaWritten by - Sharon L. Peters | Special for USA TODAY

Dogs help schools lick bullies

Model Beth Ostrosky Stern poses with puppies for the 2011 North Shore Animal Mutt-i-grees Mania in New York. Mutt-i-grees is a program from the Yale University School of the 21st Century and the Pet Savers Foundation of North Shore Animal League America. / ASSOCIATED PRESS

Sweet-natured dogs lolling about classrooms are helping take a bite out of bullying -- and other bad behaviors -- in Kansas City schools.

No More Bullies teaches, with dogs’ help, responsibility, compassion, self-control and integrity. Since its small launch five years ago, teachers and counselors have become so convinced of the positive impact on kids’ behavior that it’s booked into the 80-classroom max it can handle, and there’s a long waiting list of requests for next year.

The curriculum, developed by ex-teacher Jo Dean Hearn, humane education director at animal rescue group Wayside Waifs, is presented an hour a day for five days by trained volunteers -- accompanied by irresistible canines.

“The animals are the glue that helps the children stay focused and understand the message,” Hearn says.

Adds teacher Peggy Everist: “There’s a lot of specific language, like being fair, and using compassion or integrity, that plays out with the students throughout the year.”

A growing number of programs use animals to get kids’ attention while teaching respect and conflict resolution. Most are free; some charge nominal amounts to cover expenses; some help schools apply for grants to cover costs.

Mutt-i-grees, a program from the Yale University School of the 21st Century and the Pet Savers Foundation of North Shore Animal League America, is just barely out of the gate and is already in 900 schools in 28 states. The curriculum consists of at least 25 age-appropriate 30-minute lessons, each aimed at building social and emotional skills.

Real animals aren’t necessarily in the classroom (though some teachers invite therapy dogs, and many visit shelters). Teachers use dog-shaped hand puppets as instructional aides for younger grades; animals are the pivot point of lessons; and there’s information about keeping safe around dogs developed with dog trainer Cesar Millan, whose foundation pledged $1 million.

“It’s a highly scripted, user-friendly … blueprint teachers can adapt to their own styles and needs,” says Matia Finn-Stevenson, an expert on child development, schools and learning and director of Yale’s School of the 21st Century. She and her team have spent two years developing the Mutt-i-grees curricula now used in two grade ranges (pre-K through third grade, and grades 4 to 6). Grades 7 and 8 are in testing.

Why it works is simple, says Finn-Stevenson: “Children have an affinity for animals. When animals are the topic of their writing or reading exercises, they are engaged.”

The long-term effect on civility is indisputable, says Cheri Brown Thompson, founder of the Orangeburg, S.C.-based Healing Species, a decade-old program that uses rescued dogs in a 13-week classroom course. “Even academic scores go up,” she says, citing the group’s studies comparing standardized test scores a year before and after the class. “The teacher is spending less time refereeing, and kids settle down better.”

Thompson aims to interrupt the violence cycle she learned about in law school: Most violent offenders “were abused as children and began abusing animals when they were still children. The missing component is compassion … not receiving it and not understanding what it is. We can teach compassion. What better way than through a rescued dog that returns love even in the face of hate?”

A Cat Lover Learns How to Talk to Dogs
Jennifer Reed - patch.com

A veterinary student finds that, as Martin Buber said, "an animal's eyes have the power to speak a great language."

In my life, I have always had cats. And I have always talked to them. First, it was the playful gibberish of a six-year-old's imagination, then the secrets of teen angst and eventually, a mutual understanding in silence as my pets and I grew older together.

I tell my cats every day that I love them, that their paws smell good, that they are my best friends, the loves of my life and that I am glad, so glad, they happened to me. Never once have they said anything back, and never once have they needed to.

It goes without saying for me that cats are my passion. I am an animal lover through and through, but for cats there is a special place in my heart — a place that jumps to life every time a feline comes through the treatment door.

Dogs are a different story. I have been pining for a pup of my own for the last decade or so and I gush whenever I see random dogs on the street, but truth be told, I'm kind of afraid of them. And during my first month at the Drake Center, I realized I really don't know how to talk to dogs at all.

I spent my introductory week at the practice tip-toeing around the jumpy, slobbering creatures. I had been around dogs before, of course, but not nearly enough to know what they were thinking, or when they might bite. In an effort to look like I knew what I was doing, though, I put my fear away and jumped into the world of dogs with both feet.

I went about handling them as best I could and the only way I knew how — which, apparently, was like cats. I knew that I was a novice by the way I too-gently restrained nervous patients and the lighthearted laughter of a co-worker who told me I was letting the canine beasts boss me around, but I truly realized the error of my ways when I found myself cooing and clucking for a dog's attention.

A gentle voice and some coaxing go a long way for a cat, a creature for whom commands fall on deaf ears. As any cat's human will tell you, it's the kitty who owns you — not the other way around. Dogs, on the other hand, love and need to be told what to do.

I'm still no professional canine wrangler, but over time my timid voice grew louder, my restraining arms stronger and my commands more confident.

I thought I was finally learning how to talk to dogs, but just when I had gotten the hang of it, I found a lump on one of my favorite boarding patients.

She was a beautiful, middle-aged golden retriever with a sunny personality and unbeknownst to me, she had cancer. The lump would not be removed, I was told, because she was already dying. A few weeks, maybe, was all she had.

That day I took her out to the yard, where for the first time, we did not play ball or tug-of-war. Instead, we sat together in the shade and I began to talk. I gave her a hug and told her she was a good dog who didn't deserve her fate. I told her that it would all be okay and that I would remember her. Then I told her I loved her, to which she responded by offering me her paw.

Some may not believe that animals can understand us, but if there was ever a time I knew they did, that was it. And I found in that moment that I knew how to talk to dogs all along, because the language of love and the bond between human and animal is universal.

Jennifer Reed is a writer and animal lover who recently left her position as a Patch editor to pursue a career in the veterinary field.

Dogs Eat More Than Homework: Mishaps Often Behind Dog Illnessessacbee.com

CINCINNATI -- After turning the house upside down in search of her diamond earrings, Deb and Merrell Wreden glanced down at their 2-year-old Jack Russell Terrier and wondered simultaneously the same cringe-inducing thought: "Could Lola have swallowed them?" After all, it wasn't the first time their otherwise lovable pooch had treated various household items as her own personal buffet.

A quick trip to the vet confirmed their suspicions, and the dreaded waiting game was on. Two days later, the earrings were back in place, albeit with a little less luster than before.

The Wredens – and Lola – were lucky. As thousands of pet owners find out each year, left to their own devices, many dogs will eat just about anything.

"Not a week goes by where I don't see at least one dog that has eaten something it shouldn't have," says Dr. Jennifer Coates, a Colorado-based veterinarian and author. "Whether it's from eating people food, gobbling up something disgusting or dangerous on a walk, such as poisonous plants, or chewing on a household item, dogs can get quite sick, and the cost of treatment – sometimes including surgery – can quickly climb."

According to Dr. Coates, some of the more expensive digestive afflictions to treat, which are seen on a regular basis, are:

•Pancreatitis. Dogs can get pancreatitis by eating inappropriate foods from the table – fat drippings from meat, chicken skin or other greasy, high-fat scraps are most commonly to blame. Symptoms can range from a tummy ache to vomiting and diarrhea, and severe cases can even be fatal. Sometimes, pancreatitis develops when there is no identifiable cause. Cost of treatment: averages $535

•Foreign bodies. Puppies, in particular, are apt to consume anything lying around the house – a tennis ball, a child's rubber duck, an empty plastic soda bottle, etc. It can happen to even the most responsible pet parents, and many times surgery is required to remove the item. Cost of treatment: surgery averages $1,800

•Medications. Whether it is a medicine prescribed for Lassie – heartworm pills are tasty, and dogs will polish off the entire package when given the chance – or drugs meant for a human family member where Fido chewed through the bottle, overdoses require fast action and can mean several days of hospitalization. Cost of treatment: averages $610

•Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Some dogs – both young and old – have persistent digestive problems without a history of eating what they shouldn't, and those diagnosed with IBD typically require lifelong treatment, including a special diet and medicines. Cost of treatment: averages $540

Given how common digestive afflictions are in dogs, Dr. Coates recommends that owners consider pet insurance.

Six Ways to Save Money With Your New DogBy Ed Avis - foxbusiness.com

The kids have been begging for a puppy for six months, and you finally decide a dog might just complete your family. Plus, the canine may teach your kids a few things about responsibility and caring for others, right? Those are good reasons to get a dog, but before you bring Spot home, take a few minutes to consider the finances.

With shots, vet care, food, toys, boarding, insurance…that pup's expenses will add up fast. Here are six tips for trimming some of Fido's bills:

Don't buy from a pet store or breeder

There are several good reasons to avoid pet stores and breeders when you're seeking a new dog, perhaps the least of which is that you'll save money. Some commercial pet businesses such as dog breeders have been accused of mistreating their animals, and sometimes pure-bred dogs - which is what pet stores and breeders typically sell - have more medical issues than mixed-breed dogs.

A much better place to get a new dog is a shelter or canine rescue organization. These non-profit organizations take in animals that are abandoned, neglected, or abused, and try to find new homes for them. Many of these animals make great pets. They're not free - you probably will need to pay for the first round of shots and other veterinary care - but they will cost substantially less than the typical pure-bed puppy at Pet Palace.

Your kids will love the animal no matter where it came from, and a mixed-breed canine will provide essentially the same dog experience as any full-breed.

Skip the vet

One of the most shocking expenses new dog owners encounter is the fat bill from the vet. An urban pet owner will be lucky to walk out of a routine visit with a bill smaller than $300. It's highly likely that you'll want your dog spayed or neutered - figure $300-$500 extra for that surgery. Yikes! That's some serious dough. There are, however, some ways around those expenses.

First, have your animal spayed or neutered at the Humane Society or other shelter - these places will do them at-cost, which is more in the range of $50 to $100. Then, get your shots through organizations such as Luv My Pet. These businesses set up mini-clinics at major pet stores and provide all the necessary immunizations for about a third of the cost of your typical vet. Search under “low cost pet immunizations” to find an organization near you.

But there's a catch: Neither the Humane Society nor Luv My Pet provides regular veterinary attention. You may decide you'd like the comfort of having a regular vet check your pet, keep its records, advise you on diet, etc. You can still visit your vet for those things, even if you do the other things at a low-cost clinic. Your vet won't be happy about it, but she'll still welcome your business.

Skip the kennel

Another chunky bill pet owners face is boarding when they take a dog-less vacation. Depending on location and services, boarding can easily run $25-$75 per night. That week at grandma's suddenly got more expensive! Dodge that expense by hiring a neighborhood kid or nearby relative to walk and feed your dog twice a day. Pay that person $10 per day and everyone will be happy.

Nutrition matters, but you can save money on food

Sure, the ads are compelling: XYZ Super Dog Food will make your dog's coat sleek and keep the pep in his step. But less expensive dog food isn't going to poison Barky - buy him the normal-level stuff and pocket the savings. But don't try to compensate by giving your dog human food - it's not good for her and it will make her into a slobbering, jumpy beggar.

Keep your dog “toys” simple

Let's be honest: Does your dog really need the $25 pet toy in his stocking at Christmas? No, he'll be delighted and amazed that everyone is home an extra day. Give him a few old socks tied into knots and his eyes will bug out with joy.

Skip obedience school

How obedient do you need your dog to be? You can easily spend $150 for a group class or $100 per hour for private classes - crazy, right? Teach your dog a few key basics, such has coming when you call her name and not jumping on visitors, and you're good to go.

Any elementary dog training book from the library can help you teach your pet those tricks and dozens more. Yeah, if you have a problem dog that barks all night, you may need to shell out for professional help. But most families are pleased when Fluffy simply sits on command.

The bottom line

Dogs can be amazing companions that improve the lives of you and your children. But they can also be money drains. Apply the above tips and those expenses won't get between you and your enjoyment of Snowball.

Ask The Vet: Dog is Friendly with Others - Until They Get CloseTrish King - San Francisco Chronicle

Q: My 6-year-old chow/retriever mix acts friendly toward other dogs when we are out walking on a leash. She even wags her tail, but as soon as they get close she fiercely growls and lunges at them. How can I stop this annoying behavior?

A: This is often seen as a baffling behavior, and not only by dog owners. Professionals also disagree on why some dogs are friendly until they get too close.

When dogs meet dogs appropriately, they approach the last few feet fairly slowly, arcing their body and wagging their tails in wide sweeping motions to show goodwill. Generally, they sniff the other dog's neck, then hindquarters, and then move back to the neck. After that, both dogs will relax and go on their way.

Sometimes the greeting goes awry. The dogs will meet, and you'll notice one or both of them stiffening - their tails go up, and they rise on their toes. As soon as one moves at all, there could be a fight. It appears that they discover that they don't know each other, but they are too close to retreat.

When flight is not an option, fight can be the result. This is called conflict behavior. There are some dogs that actively challenge others - these dogs trot purposefully up to other dogs and sniff, but do not allow the other dog to sniff back. If the other dog does, they react unfavorably.

If your dog is otherwise friendly, behavior modification usually involves teaching the dog how to greet other dogs quickly and then move on. This process should generally be overseen by a professional who can read canine body language, because the timing can be critical. Sometimes dogs need to meet several times before they feel comfortable enough to actually interact.

Trish King, Marin Humane Society director of behavior and training. www.marinhumanesociety.org.

Lost in Suburbia: Bathroom Etiquette for DogsBy Tracy Beckerman - GateHouse News Service

Just when I got the kids to finally stop following me into the bathroom, the dog started doing it.

I thought, actually, that he might have gotten the idea from the kids. Maybe he thought it was a really fun place to be because whenever I was in there, it suddenly became the most popular room in the house. When your kids are little, you kind of expect this and grudgingly learn how to help someone with their two-times table while you are seated with your pants around your ankles. But once they become teenagers and they are still walking in on you so they can ask for money to go get pizza, it becomes significantly less acceptable.

Because we had moved into the house when the kids were little, we never put locks on the bathroom doors. And because we had a really old house, the doors never quite stayed closed when you shut them. Still, I thought that a knock on the door was more than reasonable to at least give me the opportunity to say, “I’m busy” before someone barged in on me.

The kids accepted this new rule.

The dog … not so much.

The first time it happened, I thought it was kind of cute. The second time, a little less so. But when the dog started following me into the bathroom every time I went to answer nature’s call, I finally had it.

“Out, Out, OUT!” I yelled. He tucked his tail between his legs and sulked out of the room, just far enough to get to the other side of the threshold before sitting down to wait. But wait for what? For me to come out? For me to invite him back in? To protect me in case Mr. Whipple arrived and yelled at me for squeezing the Charmin? I was perplexed. Why was the dog so fascinated with the bathroom?

Then one day when I was in there, he followed me in and I let him stay. As I wrapped up my business, I reached out for some toilet paper and dropped a spare square on the bathroom floor. The dog jumped up, dived on the toilet paper and devoured it instantly. I raised an eyebrow. Then two. I had a thought. To test my theory, I ripped off another square of toilet paper and offered it to the dog, he sucked it down like it was a T-bone steak.

So the mystery was solved. My dog was a TP addict. It wasn’t me that interested him in the bathroom, it was the squeezably soft and evidently quite delicious bathroom tissue.

I went to the TP website and checked to make sure there was nothing toxic in the paper and then phoned the vet to make sure this wasn’t a problem for the dog.

The vet said it should be OK, with three conditions:

- Don’t let the dog eat too much of it.

- Make sure the toilet paper is clean.

- Make sure he changes the empty roll when he is done.

displaced-dene

2011-10-12T06:45:00.001-07:00

displaced-dene

Pet Photos That Make You Go "AWWWWW"

2011-10-08T08:42:00.000-07:00

You Gotta Say "AWWWWWW"....Thanks to Kathy in BHC, AZ

Baby penguin meeting a baby dolphin

A firefighter giving a kitten oxygen

This baby owl......

A turtle the size of a grape

An embarrassed walrus

A cat with a permanent top hat

A pug with pug slippers

A baby hedgehog taking a bubble bath

An otter showing you its baby

The Legend of Rin Tin Tin

2011-09-30T21:02:00.000-07:00

Colorado Woman Who Ran Chihuahua Next to Car Faces Animal Cruelty Chargeswashingtonpost.com

BOULDER, Colo. — A dog-sitter’s shortcut led to criminal charges for a Colorado woman who ran a Chihuahua alongside her car at 10 to 15 mph.

The Daily Camera reports that 29-year-old Joan Renee Zalk of Boulder faces animal cruelty and felony menacing charges after witnesses confronted her Friday morning for running the pup alongside her Toyota Camry.

The newspaper reports that Zalk told officers the dog, named Cooper, “goes ballistic” if it doesn’t walk 3 miles a day.

Witnesses called police after seeing the leashed dog struggling to keep up with the car. Zalk reportedly said the dog was fine.

Zalk is free on bond. Cooper was uninjured and was taken to a local shelter. The dog was expected to be released to its owner, who was out of town at the time of the incident.

Cat Comes Home 5 Months After Vilonia Tornado, Surprising Ownerstherepublic.com

VILONIA, Ark. — A four-legged victim of the Vilonia tornado has unexpectedly survived.

The Log Cabin Democrat reports that a black tomcat called Black Velvet was spotted on a fence in its owners' backyard late last week — five months after the tornado.

Black Velvet had gone missing after the April 25 tornado that killed five people and destroyed dozens of buildings in the town north of Little Rock.

The cat's owners, Keith and Debra Rorie, were concerned about a family member who lost her home and didn't think anything of Black Velvet's disappearance for almost a week.

Black Velvet appeared to look healthy and well-fed, and Keith Rorie thinks someone might have been looking after the cat.

House Cat With 2 Faces Lives 12 Years, Sets Recordfoxnews.com

WORCESTER, Mass. – Frank and Louie the cat was born with two faces, two mouths, two noses, three eyes — and lots of doubts about his future.

Now, 12 years after Marty Stevens rescued him from being euthanized because of his condition, the exotic blue-eyed rag doll cat is not only thriving, but has also made it into the 2012 edition of Guinness World Records as the longest-surviving member of a group known as Janus cats, named for a Roman god with two faces.

"Every day is kind of a blessing; being 12 and normal life expectancy when they have this condition is one to four days," Stevens said, stroking Frank and Louie's soft fur as he sat on her lap purring. "So, he's ahead of the game; every day I just thank God I still have him."

Frank and Louie's breeder had taken him to the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University, where Stevens was working at the time, to be euthanized when he was just a day old. Stevens offered to take him home, but experts told her not to get her hopes up.

Janus cats almost never survive, and most have congenital defects, including a cleft palate that makes it difficult for them to nurse and often causes them to slowly starve or get milk in their lungs and die of pneumonia. The condition is the result of a genetic defect that triggers excessive production of a certain kind of protein.

But Frank and Louie did not suffer from most of the common Janus problems. Stevens used feeding tubes to nourish him for three months, hoping that would also save him from the danger of choking on food going down two mouths.

It turned out she didn't have to worry about him choking, because Frank and Louie used just one of his mouths to eat.

"The condition itself is very rare, and I think that the fact that this cat became an adult, a healthy adult, is remarkable," said Dr. Armelle deLaforcade, an associate professor at Cummings and head of the emergency services section.

Colleagues at the veterinary hospital told Stevens that trying to raise Frank and Louie might not be good for him — or her.

Still, she "stood firm and stood by the cat, and I'm really glad she did because this cat really has fewer problems than many cats that have very normal anatomies," deLaforcade said.

Frank and Louie's two faces have a complicated relationship. Both noses work, but one mouth does not have a lower jaw and isn't connected to his one esophagus, so he can't eat with it. Stevens discovered that only after the cat got an MRI later in life.

The animal can see out of only two of his three eyes. The middle one can't even blink and makes Frank and Louie appear to be staring even when his other eyes are closed.

Frank and Louie does not seem to be bothered by his condition and has developed a friendly personality. The breed is known for its soft and silky fur, docile temperament and penchant for relaxing in a person's arms like a rag doll.

He is "very, very laid back, not afraid of people, very friendly and he's actually more of a dog than a cat," Stevens said. "He walks on a leash, he goes right in the car; he loves car rides."

People often want to touch Frank and Louie's long, luxurious fur while Stevens is out walking him.

"It's funny because people walk up to him thinking it's a nice, fluffy white cat and they're walking up with a big smile on their face to pat him, like, 'Oh, what a beautiful cat' and I see a look of horror come over their faces when they actually see his face," Stevens said, laughing.

Thirty years ago, a cat like Frank and Louie might not have been given a chance to live.

Said deLaforcade: "You can look at a cat like this as either a very strange and bad omen, or you can look at this cat as a miracle."

Queen Nefer-Kitty: Expert Makes Dead Pets into Mummies, Pyramids Sold Separately BY Katie Nelson - NY DAILY NEWS

Cagliastro said her mummification practice is "art" and "scientific."

Professional mummy-maker Sorceress Cagliastro cradles puppies alive and dead with the same tender care.

An avid animal lover who has four dogs and a bird, the Brooklyn native will mummify pets - cats, bunnies, birds, frogs, whatever - that weigh up to 100 pounds.

Her past projects include racing pigeons, a macaw, a millipede, a peacock, a caiman, guinea pigs and even an armadillo.

Cagliastro knows her services - which cost between $800 and $4,000 - aren't for everyone. But the upstate Kingston resident says a growing number of grieving pet owners are eager to seek her out.

"To me, mummification is the ultimate honor because there is nothing that would keep your loved one around longer," she said.

"When people tell me they want to do this thing, the first thing I am is impressed. You must have really loved that animal," she continued. "I have an enormous amount of respect for the animals entrusted into my care."

Cagliastro grew up in Flatbush and is a married to an exterminator, David, and is mom to 11-year-old Maghdalen. Prior to full-time mummy work, she did forensic reconstruction for the chief medical examiner's office, and served as an embalmer for funeral homes.

"All in all, I have seemed to spend my life in service of the deceased," Cagliastro said. "This seemed like a logical next step for me."

Cagliastro got started studying mummies after she was in a "horrific" out-of-state car accident about 15 years ago. While recovering at her then-home in Park Slope, she started studying Egyptian texts at the Brooklyn Museum. That led to experimenting with salts, and over five or so years, working with three chemists to develop a complex salt formula that she considers a "trade secret."

Cagliastro initially practiced on chicken wings bought at a supermarket, but now mummifies pets brought to her by grieving owners from New York and beyond. Eventually, she also intends to mummify humans.

"People choose all kinds of postmortem processes, and this is just one of them," she said recently, in between doting on her daughter and puppy, Rue.

With help from an assistant and an intern, Cagliastro takes on about 10 projects at a time. When the Daily News visited her laboratory, she had two cats, a sulphur-crested cockatoo, a stillborn puppy, two squirrels and a kitten.

Each mummy can be finished any number of ways, ranging from a "simple linen wrap all the way up to painted with semi-precious metals, decorated with heirloom jewelry or, say, a scrolled up piece of parchment put inside."

For those wanting to learn how it works first-hand, Cagliastro teaches classes - using bullfrogs bought at a wholesale Chinese grocery - at the Observatory in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The next limited-seating session is slated for Oct. 9.

"I'm fascinated by this thing called death," Cagliastro said. "It's sort of the only thing that everyone experiences."

Angry Fish Inhabit Most Home Aquariums Analysis by Jennifer Viegas - discover.com

Home fish tanks and aquariums may at first appear to be tranquil environments, but look closely and you might see a glaring goldfish or a ticked off tetra.

A new study has found that ornamental fish across the U.S. -- all 182.9 million of them -- are at risk of becoming aggressive due to cramped, barren housing.

In other words, fish can turn mean when their home sucks, according to a new study in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science.

"The welfare of aquarium fishes may not seem important, but with that many of them in captivity, they become a big deal," project leader Ronald Oldfield, an instructor of biology at Case Western Reserve University, said in a press release.

Oldfield's paper is the first to scientifically study how the environment of home aquariums affects the aggressive behavior of ornamental fishes. The findings are in keeping with related research, though. For example, earlier this year I reported on how cramped tank conditions are turning sea urchins into cannibals.

For this latest study, Oldfield compared the behavior of Midas cichlid (Amphilophus citrinellus) in a variety of environments: within their native range in a crater lake in Nicaragua, in a large artificial stream in a zoo, and in small tanks of the sizes typically used to by pet owners.

The study looked at just juvenile fish in order to remove the possibility of aggressive behavior related to mating. The experiments were also set up so that the fish weren't competing for food and shelter.

In addition to tank size, he tested the complexity of an environment and the effects of the number of fish within tanks. "Complexity" in this case refers to the addition of obstacles and hiding places, such as rocks, plants, and other objects. Tanks with more complexity, and of a larger size, helped to reduce aggressive behaviors.

Tempers were observed to literally flare, however, in the less desirable aquariums, with perturbed fish flaring their fins. But that was on the low end of the anger spectrum. Very ticked off fish nipped, chased, charged, and even murdered each other. (Similar attacks and killings have been observed before among captive great white sharks.

Oldfield suspects cramped, barren environments for humans may also serve as breeding grounds for comparable negative behaviors.

"This study might help us to better understand how human behavior changes when people are placed in different social environments," he said, suggesting that prisons fall into that extreme "different" category.

From the fish's perspective, life in a too-small and dreary tank might even feel like a jail cell does to us.

So if you do have a fish tank at home, give it the once over to see if a replacement or remodeling job is needed. If you plan to set up a new aquarium, don't select the cheap, stagnant water models that will have you flushing your pet investment down the toilet soon.

Do Birds See in Color?By Margaret A. Wissman, birdchannel.com

A bird's eyes are unique in many ways. A bird can see in color as well as near the ultraviolet range.

A bird that is active during the day has great color vision.

Birds do see in color. Birds that are active during daylight hours have the best color vision and, conversely, birds active at night usually have very good night vision. I find it fascinating that diving birds, such as kingfishers, have eyes adapted to aerial and aquatic vision due to some unique adaptations to the deeper structures of the eye. Water birds and birds that live on open plains have a specialized area in the eye that allows them to fix the horizon accurately as a reference point.

Birds also have brightly colored oil droplets within the eye that are involved with interpretation of color vision. It is thought that the different colored oil droplets enhance contrast by acting as in-the-eye light filters. For example, the yellow oil droplets would remove much of the blue color from the background, which would increase the contrast between an object and the blue sky. The red oil droplet would remove much of the green from the background, which would greatly improve the contrast between an object and trees. The enhanced contrast would considerably increase visual acuity.

Some pet birds seem to have color preferences and aversions. I always try to avoid wearing red when working on pet birds, especially African parrots, including African grey parrots and members of the Poicephalus genus. If anyone walks into a nursery of baby African parrots wearing a bright red shirt, it is almost guaranteed to elicit quite a response from the babies! Adult African greys seem to react badly to red clothing, as well. I find this especially interesting, as the Congo African greys have gorgeous, bright red tail feathers. Red fingernail polish and toenail polish also seem to disconcert some parrots.

Birds are also thought to be able to see light into the near ultraviolet range. This might be why they can identify individual birds that look exactly the same to us, due to the secretions of the uropygial gland that have been spread onto the feathers during preening.

Birds are also known to be able to better detect and follow movement. While a bird and a person might both be able to see a mouse from a height of 250 feet, a person can only do so if his attention was accurately directed to the mouse, but the bird can see it without even directly looking at it. Moreover, the bird is able to see all the mice in a field in a single glance, but we could only do that by scanning the area meticulously. A bird’s vision is truly special and remarkable.

A Man and His Dog Create Enduring LegendRick Kogan - chicagotribune.com

How a puppy named Rin Tin Tin grew up to be a cultural hero

1924: Rin Tin Tin, the Warner dog star, comforting his master, William Collier, in a scene from the film, 'The Lighthouse By The Sea'. (Photo by General Photographic Agency/Getty Images) (General Photographic Agency, Getty Images / September 23, 2011)

Born on a battlefield in France during World War I and rescued by a U.S. soldier named Lee Duncan, a terrified German shepherd puppy would become the most famous dog in the world.

Named Rin Tin Tin, after a popular French doll of the time, the dog would be as big a star as the movies and television have ever known. (Sorry, Lassie.)

In "Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend," Susan Orlean has fashioned a masterpiece of reporting and storytelling, some of it quite personal and all of it compelling. Animal-related books have always peppered best-seller lists — "Seabiscuit" comes quickly to mind — and this one will top such lists. It deserves to, and also to work its way into millions of hearts and minds.

Orlean, a stylish staff writer for The New Yorker magazine since 1992 and the author of seven previous books, including the 2000 best-seller "The Orchid Thief," is well-connected in the literary scene, and many of her writer friends and some reviewers have already plundered the thesaurus for words of praise for her latest book: "hugely entertaining and unforgettable" (Walter Isaacson), "fascinating and big-hearted" (Ann Patchett), "spectacularly compelling" (Donna Seaman).

To those, I will merely add "dazzling."

Orlean writes, "Rin Tin Tin has always been more than a dog. He was an idea and an ideal — a hero who was also a friend, a fighter who was also a caretaker, a mute genius, a companionable loner. He was one dog and many dogs, a real animal and an invented character, a pet as well as an international celebrity. He was born in 1918, and he never died."

Well, he did die, of course, in 1932, but he has carried on through all manner of ups and downs and careful breeding for 11 generations and counting. "I believe that there will always be a Rin Tin Tin because there will always be stories," Orlean writes — and she has written a definitive and spectacular one.

The seed of this book was a small plastic figurine of the dog that sat on the desk of Orlean's grandfather, "maddeningly out of reach … (a) mysterious and eternal figure." This personal connection infuses the book, and Orlean is not at all loath to participate in the narrative.

She does so with admirable sensitivity, skill and energy, even visiting the Meuse Valley battlefield where the dog was born. Later, she delivers a puppy with the Rin Tin Tin pedigree to a family in Boston and imagines that it might remain with her for keeps. Ultimately she hands the dog over: "I had no right to cry about it, but I couldn't help it. For that moment (on the plane), at least, after a lifetime of imagining it, that shy, worried, tender, heroic, brave, loyal, gallant puppy had been mine."

This may seem a bit over the top, but in context it is nothing but refreshingly honest. Almost everyone who has come into contact with Rin Tin Tin has been moved to love bordering on obsession.

Duncan was an orphan, and his love of animals was tied to his lonely childhood. He believed that his puppy's survival was a miracle, and it was a combination of his training skills, the dog's talent and a considerable amount of luck that turned "Rinty" into a star. Duncan and the dog (dogs) would ride that wave and suffer its crash, until TV came calling and fame returned.

It came in the form of Bert Leonard, a child of New York's Hell's Kitchen who grew up "bold and brash, carnal, concrete," and produced "The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin" series that first aired in 1954. When that run ended five years later, Leonard made several stabs at reviving Rin Tin Tin's career and spent his fortune on a series of squabbles and lawsuits that ruined him.

We meet, more pleasantly, Daphne Hereford, the owner of the current Rin Tin Tin at her El Rancho Rin Tin Tin in Texas. We meet, disturbingly, a middle-aged man named Paul Klein who for years visited conventions and other Rin Tin Tin-related gatherings pretending to be former child actor Lee Aaker from the TV series.

The dogs' story is embellished by thoughtful excursions into larger but important related matters such as the growth and oddities of the film and television industries, the rise of American pet culture, dogs and war, and the bond between dogs and people.

There is, I am sorry and shocked to tell you, one glaring error in the book. In writing about the early reactions to Rin Tin Tin's film career, Orlean quotes the first movie critic of the Chicago Daily News, a not-yet-world-famous poet named Carl Sandburg, who gushingly wrote, "A beautiful animal, (Rin Tin Tin) has the power of expression in his every movement that makes him one of the leading pantomimists of the screen." Orlean spells his name Sandberg, but that will certainly be corrected in future editions.

Sandburg called Rin Tin Tin "thrillingly intelligent" and "phenomenal."

The same can be said for this remarkable book.

rkogan@tribune.com

A canine career

Movies:He debuted playing a wolf in "The Man From Hell's River" in 1922, and went on to star in more than 20 films, including:

•"Where the North Begins," 1923

•"Clash of the Wolves," 1925

•"A Dog of the Regiment," 1927

•"Rinty of the Desert," 1929

•"The Million Dollar Collar," 1929

Radio: He had three radio shows:

•"The Wonder Dog," quickly changed to "Rin Tin Rin," a 15-minute program on the NBC Blue Network co-starring Don Ameche, 1930-33

•"Rin Tin Tin," on CBS radio, 1933-34

•"Rin Tin Tin," on the Mutual network, January-December 1955

Television:
"The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin," on ABC, co-starring James Brown as Lt. Ripley "Rip" Masters and Lee Aaker as Rusty, October 1954-May 1959

Books:

"Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend"
By Susan Orlean
Simon & Schuster, 324 pages, $26.99

The World's Richest Pets

2011-09-24T10:06:00.000-07:00

Florida Teen Reels in 800-Pound Alligator
msnbc.com

It was a battle of man versus beast Friday evening on Florida's picturesque St. Lucie River.

The contenders: Tim Stroh, a 6-foot-3, 160-pound 19-year-old against a three-legged alligator, more than 12 feet in length and 800 pounds in weight. Armed with what his dad described as a "puny" fishing rod, the teen triumphed.

Gator-hunting runs in Tim Stroh's blood. His parents, Steve and Rachel Stroh, own a taxidermy shop in their hometown of Hobe Sound, Fla. Steve Stroh told Florida's TCPalm.com that he's hosted guided gator hunts since 1989.

So naturally, the family was excited when they heard rumors of a large alligator in the locks of the St. Lucie River, reported TCPalm.com. The three of them, plus a friend, loaded up a gator-hunting boat Friday, not knowing what they would find — if anything.

Then, within an hour of being out on the boat, TCPalm.com reported, they spotted it.

"I thought it was just a 9-footer," Tim Stroh told TCPalm.com. "Then I saw how big it was."

Others on the boat tried reeling in the alligator first, but couldn't. Then Tim, using a "puny bass rod," tossed his line, Steve said.

The 12-foot, 3-inch reptile chomped down, according to WPTV. It wasn't until he was reeling in the alligator that Tim realized its true size — its tail alone was as thick as his waist, according to TCPalm.com. To guarantee his victory, Tim hit the alligator with a "bang stick," a .44-caliber gun shell on a stick.

"I had adrenaline pumping through me and I was just like, 'Oh my God,'" Stroh said, reported WESH.com. The alligator "came up and he was popping his jaw and stuff."

Once on land, four more friends joined to help carry the alligator, which was missing one of its back legs, into the family's truck.

"We have a big box cooler we normally would put a gator into, but he wouldn't fit. We had to keep him in the truck overnight and throw in ice to keep him cool," Tim said.

Stuffing its head, eating its meat
Up until Friday, the biggest catch the Strohs had ever had was a 400-pound gator, reported WPTV.

The family has special plans for this one.

"I'm gonna mount the head for him so he can put it in his room," Steve told WPTV.

As for the rest of the creature? According to TCPalm.com, Rachel Stroh will be making a lamp from the gator's back leg; the family has plans to make keychains from the gator's bony back; and there are 250 pounds of gator meat in their freezers waiting to be fried or made into gator sausage.

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials say they have had bigger catches. The longest gator ever caught in the state was more than 14 feet long; the heaviest was over 1,000 pounds, according to NBCMiami.com.

Alligator hunting season runs until Nov. 1. The Strohs have permits to legally hunt.

Tim Stroh, who did not return messages from msnbc.com, said the gator put up a good fight.

"He had a lot of character, and I had a lot of fun," he told TCPalm.com.

Pets That Inherited a FortuneBy Laura Moss - mnn.com

The beloved pets of the rich and famous inherit more than just a doghouse — they often get the whole multimillion-dollar house.

Between 12 and 27 percent of pet owners provide provisions for their pets in their wills, according to the Washington University School of Law. In fact, pet trusts have become so popular that 39 U.S. states now have statutes outlining them. In most cases, these trusts are relatively small — typically in the $30,000 range — but some pampered pets inherit millions of dollars, in addition to property, jewelry and a lifetime of prearranged pampering.

Take a look at some of the world's wealthiest animal heirs:

Trouble: Hotel heiress Leona Helmsley, who died in 2007, made her Maltese her biggest heir, leaving a $12 million trust fund for the pooch in a will that disinherited two of her grandchildren. A judge later knocked the pup's inheritance down to $2 million, and Trouble took the money and retired, flying by private jet to the Helmsley Sandcastle hotel in Sarasota, Fla. The hotel's general manager cared for the dog and spent hundreds of thousands on her care annually, including $1,200 on food, $8,000 on grooming and $100,000 for full-time security. (Trouble had received death threats.) The little Maltese passed away in December at the age of 12, and her remains were supposed to rest beside Leona's in the family mausoleum, but the cemetery refused. Instead, Trouble was cremated and her remaining money went to the Helmsley Chairtable Trust.

Nicholas: When British singer Dusty Springfield died in 1999, she instructed that her money be used to care for her 13-year-old ragdoll cat. The will stipulated that Nicholas be fed imported American baby food and live in a 7-foot-high indoor treehouse with amenities that included catnip, scratching posts and a bed lined with one of Springfield’s nightgowns. Nicholas was also to be played Springfield’s recordings each night before bedtime. The singer even arranged for her cat to be “married” to a 5-year-old English blue breed that belonged to her friend, Lee Everett-Alkin, whom she named as and Nicholas’ guardian.

Flossie: In 2002, Drew Barrymore surprised her Labrador mix, Flossie, with a new doghouse — she placed her Beverly Hills home in trust with the pooch. What inspired such an extravagant gift? In 2001, Flossie barked and “literally banged on the bedroom door” to awaken Barrymore and Tom Green, her husband at the time, to alert them of a house fire. Flossie saved their lives and now stands to inherit a $1.3 million house, making her a milionaire mutt.

Bubbles: Michael Jackson left his chimp $1 million to ensure he would have a “secure long-term future,” but so far Bubbles hasn’t seen a penny of his inheritance. The chimp now lives in an animal sanctuary in Florida, and animal trainer Bob Dunne says he’s not sure if Bubbles will ever receive his share of Jackson’s money.

Minter, Juice, and Callum: Before British fashion designer Alexander McQueen hanged himself in 2010, he left a note that read, “Look after my dogs, sorry, I love you, Lee” — as well as $81,000 for the three English bull terriers’ care. The money was put into a trust for the canines and will pay for their care for the rest of their lives. Most of McQueen’s remaining fortune was donated to animal charities.

Tinker: In a true rags-to-riches tale, Tinker the stray black cat began frequenting the London home of Margaret Layne, a wealthy widow, and won the woman over, inheriting her $800,000 home when she passed away in 2003. But she didn't leave him just a house, she also created a $226,000 trust fund for Tinker and gave a hefty sum to her former neighbors so they could look after the cat and his new home. However, the inheritance came with strings attached — if Tinker returns to his straying ways, he relinquishes ownership of the house. But according to reports, Tinker has decided to settle down and has taken up with a single mother cat and her kitten.

Conchita, Lucia and April Marie: Heiress Gail Posner left $3 million to her three Chihuahuas, as well as diamond dog accessories and an $8 million mansion in Miami. The dogs’ live-in caretaker also inherited millions.

Gunther IV: When Carlotta Liebenstein, a German countess, died in 1991, she left her fortune to her dog Gunther III. The canine died a month later, but his wealth was passed on to his son, Gunther IV, whose estimated worth is $372 million, making him the richest pet in the world. Gunther is said to have a personal maid and a chauffer-driven limo, and there are even reports that he owns a home in Miami that once belonged to Madonna.

Blackie: When British antiques dealer Ben Rea died in 1988, he bequeathed his $12.5-million fortune to Blackie, the only surviving cat of the 15 cats he shared his mansion with. The recluse overlooked his family and split the majority of his wealth between three cat charities, with instructions to look after his beloved pet.

Red: Often referred to as the “million-dollar tabby,” Red was the beloved cat of Canada’s reclusive David Harper who died in 2005 with no heirs except his pet. Harper left his $1.3 million estate to the United Church of Canada, but in exchange for the money, he stipulated that the church would have to look after 3-year-old Red. The rich feline was the last in a long line of orange tabby cats named Red that Harper took in over the years.

Kalu: Once thought to be the second wealthiest pet in the world — worth roughly $65 million — Kalu the chimp seems to have lost his inheritance. Patricia O’Neill, the daughter of the Countess of Kenmore and ex-wife of Olympic swimmer Frank O’Neil, found Kalu tied to a tree in war-torn Zaire in 1985 and he quickly became her closest companion. She changed her will so that her estate in Cape Town would go to Kalu, and she set aside money so that he and her other rescued animals — 30 dogs and 11 cats — would be cared for after her death. However, in 2010, O’Neill learned that most of her money had been stolen, leaving her with just $100,000. “I don’t know how much will be left when I die,” she’s said. “I don’t want to spend much money because I am determined that my animals will be cared for."

Jasper: Diana Myburgh, a brewery heiress, rescued Jasper, a Labrador and Doberman mix, from an animal shelter and brought him home to live with her and her Whippet, Jason. She cared for the dogs until she died in 1995, but she left each of them a trust fund of $50,000 — in addition to her 1,236-acre estate that’s worth more than $1 million. When Jason passed away, Jasper inherited his money, and the dog moved in with Myburgh’s former son-in-law, Sir Benjamin Slade, who feeds him tripe, his favorite dish. Slade once considered having Jasper cloned, but this angered trustees who stand to inherit Jasper’s money when he dies.

Tobey Rimes: New York heiress Ella Wendel died in 1931 and willed $30 million to her French poodle, Tobey Rimes, who slept in his own brass bed beside Wendel. According to reports, that fortune has been passed down through the years to the descendants of the original dog — all named Tobey Rimes — and even grown over time. The current Tobey is said to be worth millions.

Oprah’s dogs: The retired talk show host — who’s net worth is $2.7 billion, according to Forbes — plans to take good care of her dogs even after death. She’s reportedly set aside $30 million for her beloved pack of pups.

Betty White's pets: According to newspaper reports, White plans to leave a $5 million trust to her animals.

Trekkie pups: Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry’s widow, Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, who was also an actress in the original series, set up a $4 million trust for her dogs. She even left $1 million to her domestic employee Reinelda Estupinian to take care of the canines. In the trust papers, Majel said that Estupinian "did an excellent job of caring for my animals, giving them comparable or better care than that which I gave them during my lifetime."

Captured Drug Kingpin Pets Strain Mexico's ZoosBy MANUEL VALDES Associated Press

TOLUCA, Mexico—For years, three tiny squirrel monkeys led a life of luxury on a 16-acre ranch surrounded by extravagant gardens and barns built for purebred horses.

More than 200 animals, ranging from mules to peacocks and ostricheslived on the ranch in central Mexico and hundreds more stayed on two related properties, many in opulent enclosures. Also kept on the grounds were less furry fare: AK-47 assault rifles, Berrettas, hundreds of other weapons and cocaine.

The ranch's owner was Jesus "The King" Zambada, a leader of the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel. He had developed a love for exotic species shared with other kingpins. Just two days before Zambada's arrest, police confiscated two tigers and two lions from a drug gang hideout on the forested outskirts of Mexico City.

As federal authorities capture a growing number of gang leaders, many of their pets are being driven from their gilded cages into more modest housing in the country's zoos.

That's proved overwhelming for some institutions, which are struggling to cope with the influx. But it's also giving Mexican animal lovers a bounty of new creatures to admire.

Like Zambada, who was apprehended in October 2008, the squirrel monkeys sit in state custody, chirping away at gawking children at the Zacango Zoo, about an hour outside Mexico City.

Their previous home "was a very big enclosure made of good quality material," said Manlio Nucamendi, the zoo's coordinator. "But they didn't have the right diet and medical attention."

Mexican forces have discovered drug cartel private zoos that housed tigers, panthers and lions among other animals of exotic breeds, though the federal Attorney General's Office, which supervises all seizures from drug gangs, couldn't provide an exact count of the number of animals seized.

Whatever the number, officials have been challenged to house the armies of confiscated drug cartel animals.

"Within the limited resources of the Mexican government, there are a lot of efforts to ensure the welfare of these animals," said Adrian Reuter Cortes of the conservation group the World Wildlife Fund in Mexico. "But even the zoos have limits, and can't welcome all the animals."

The government usually calls zoos for help because they have the expertise, equipment and vehicles to transport large animals, said Frank Carlos Camacho, executive director of the wild animal park Africam Safari in the central Mexico city of Puebla and president of the national association of zoos.

"There's some risk involved in handling animals like big cats, bears and large herbivores," Camacho said.

He said he has heard of drug cartel zoos that included giraffes, buffalos and camels.

As the cinematic gangster film "Scarface" portrayed in 1983, private zoos have long been considered status symbols for drug kingpins eager to show off their wealth.

Descendants of Colombian drug boss Pablo Escobar's hippopotamuses still roam his private zoo in Colombia, which became state property after his killing and is now a tourist attraction. Three of the beasts escaped and lived in the wild for two years.

Some kingpins also use the beasts for more nefarious purposes.

Leaders of the ruthless Mexican Zetas cartel have been rumored to feed victims to lions and tigers kept in their properties, local media have reported.

Animals are also used in the drug trade as smugglers. Over the past couple of years, traffickers have tried to ship drugs inside frozen, cocaine-stuffed sharks, snakes fed with bags of cocaine and bags filled with transparent liquid cocaine inside containers shipping tropical fish, Reuter Cortes said.

As with drugs, Mexico is a main corridor for the illegal trafficking of animals to the United States. The country also has a healthy domestic demand for animals, with big cats found in some urban markets.

In July, Mexican authorities seized more than 5,500 illegal animals and plants during a nationwide three-day operation.

Not all exotic animals, however, are as lucky as Zambada's monkeys. Many animals found in drug cartel captivity or in private homes suffer from malnutrition or have been de-clawed or de-fanged, said Nucamendi.

"It's a symbol of status and power," he said. "It's a bizarre psychology for the people that keep these animals."

As he showed off the zoo's grounds on a recent afternoon, Nucamendi jumped over a barrier and knelt to greet Diego, a 2-year-old jaguar, who responded by pressing his face against the chain-link fence. Diego's former owners in Tijuana used to charge for pictures with him, Nucamendi said.

Elsewhere in the zoo was a 3-decade-old elephant seized from a circus because his owners didn't have the proper permits. Workers joke that the elephant is an illegal immigrant because he was sneaked from the U.S. to Mexico.

An 8-month-old male lion cub, also called Diego, arrived malnourished from private owners. Now fatter, Diego plays with two other lion cubs also on exhibit.

As for the squirrel monkeys, they'll be moved to a bigger exhibit being planned in a remodeling of the zoo.

Although some of the confiscated animals had finer housing before, their new homes offer genuine care from the people watching them.

"It's more important for us to guarantee the welfare of these animals than the criminal investigations," Nucamendi said. "That's our duty. We offer our bodies and souls for the welfare of these animals."

Top 10 Pet-Friendly HotelsBy Jill Rosen - The Baltimore Sun

Vermont's Paw House Inn named one of TripAdvisor's Top 10 Pet-friendly accomodations (Paw House Inn)

The most pet-friendly places to stay in the U.S. with your pet include a boutique hotel in New York City and a Vermont inn with custom dog beds, according to the travel website TripAdvisor.

The site just released it's choices for the top 10 pet-friendly hotel properties in the U.S. TripAdvisor based its results on the opinions of travelers that frequent the site.

Nothing in Baltimore, alas. But there one of the Hotel Monaco properties made the list -- and Baltimore has one of those, just as pet friendly, downtown. And one hotel not too far down the road in D.C. made the cut.

Here's the list, in order:

Affinia Dumont, New York City, New York. The hotel in midtown boasts dog beds, trats and a pet psychic on call. Average rates $192 to $614.

Hotel Monaco Portland, Portland, Oregon. Ammenities include complimentary dog bowls and a personal greeting on the "pet welcome board." Rats from $126 to $325.

Ocean Park Resort, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. If there are posh offerings for the pup, the hotel isn't bragging about them. But the pet fee is $15 per night. Rates from $57 to $150.

Palomar Washington DC, Washington D.C., District of Columbia. The hotel's got pet peds, poop bags on hand and an evening happy hour where dogs can enjoy a pet lounge called "The Dish." Rates from $182 to $557.

A Laughing Horse Lodge, Port Aransas, Texas. These beach cottages offer treats and dog collars that say, "Return me to Laughing Horse Lodge." Rates from $59 to $239.

The Paw House Inn, West Rutland, Vermont. Custom pet beds, an off-leash dog park for a backyard, nearby hiking trails and homemade treats. Rates from $135 to $255.

Carmel Country Inn, Carmel, California. A bed and breakfast that claims "an unlimited supply" of biscuits for pups. Dogs also get their pictures taken for display in the lobby. Rates from $195 to $395.

Hotel Marlowe, Cambridge, Massachusetts. With no size or weight restrictsions, the Boston hotel welcomes all pets. Their "pampered pet package" includes a fuzzy blanket and gourmet treats -- even a scratching post if you bring the kitty. Rates from $204 to $489.

La Quinta Inn & Suites, Valdosta, Georgia. The hotel offers a sizeable pet walk, and there's no surcharge for animal guests. Rates from $89 to $128.

Cypress Inn, Carmel, California. Dogs can order from a "doggie menu" and mix it up at nightly "yappy hours." Rates from $150 to $575.

Tehachapi Dog Gets National Honor for Search-and-Rescue WorkBakersfieldNow.com

Tehachapi border collie Hunter and his owner, fire Capt. Billy Monahan, are seen in a photo provided by the American Kennel Club. Hunter's being honored by the AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence as the top search-and-rescue dog.

NEW YORK — Add another award to Hunter's impressive resume.

In 2010, the Tehachapi border collie became the first-ever nonhuman to be named Los Angeles County's Firefighter of the Year.

Now, Hunter is being honored by the AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence as the top search-and-rescue dog.

The awards, announced Wednesday, honor five loyal, hard-working dogs that have made significant contributions in each of the following categories: exemplary companion dog, law enforcement, search-and-rescue, service and therapy.

Hunter, who is owned by fire Capt. Billy Monahan, is being honored for his work in earthquake-stricken Haiti and earthquake- and tsunami-devastated Japan. He helped rescue three Haitian girls from a collapsed four-story building and worked through aftershocks and freezing temperatures in Japan.

"The AKC Humane Fund Awards for Canine Excellence celebrate what dogs contribute to our lives, and these five exceptional recipients exemplify the selfless service canines perform for us everyday," said AKC spokeswoman Lisa Peterson in a news release. "The dogs we're honoring with the ACE award show the impact a single dog can make in a community."

Hunter and his fellow honorees will receive $1,000 and an engraved sterling-silver medallion Dec. 17 at the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship in Orlando, Fla.

Rabid Cat Exposes Three Cats, 10 Horses, Three Peoplethe-dispatch.com

A rabid cat found in the Ledford community Sept. 9 possibly exposed three other cats, 10 horses, two people and a veterinarian to the disease, according to a press release from the Davidson County Health Department.

The cat is the 13th case of rabies for the year in Davidson County. The three other cats and 10 horses all received rabies vaccinations booster shots, as did the veterinarian. The two people were referred to their physician for medical follow-up.

Do not handle an animal with bare hands after it has had contact with a wild animal. Saliva from the wild animal may still be present on the domestic animal's fur, and by handling the animal, you may expose yourself to the rabies virus.

Hutchinson Prisoners Have Begun Making Dog BedsBy DARCY GRAY - kansas.com

HUTCHINSON, Kan. - Some recycling efforts at the Hutchinson Correctional Facility have really gone to the dogs.

For more than a year, inmates at the local prison have been dismantling mattresses that would have otherwise ended up in area landfills.

The steel from the springs and the cotton batting in the mattresses are recycled, generating money for prison operations. Wood from the mattresses has been fashioned into flower boxes and benches. Through recycling, the metal and cotton from old mattresses has made more than $49,000 for the prison's general fee fund, said Steve Schneider, spokesman at the Hutchinson Correctional Facility.

And now, inmates are using the foam and material from the mattresses to make dog beds.

The beds are being donated to animal shelters and sold in a Topeka veterinary clinic to sustain the Hutchinson Correctional Facility's dog training programs, according to Beth Mechler, a program consultant for the Kansas Department of Corrections.

"It helps subsidize the programs and helps the community," Mechler said of the dog beds. "Every part of the mattresses is being recycled, which is awesome."

The dog beds made from recycled mattress materials are already being used by the Lucky Dog program, where inmates train dogs and prepare them for adoption, and by the prison's Canine Assistance Rehabilitation, Education and Services program, where dogs are trained to be service dogs, said Chandy Wylie, activities specialist who coordinates the two dog programs at Hutchinson Correctional Facility.

So far, only a few inmates at the Hutchinson prison have been working to make the beds, which they started doing about three months ago.

Using a donated sewing machine, inmate Steven Chritzer was busy Wednesday making water-resistant covers for the foam beds. He also makes a thinner dog bed made of the old mattress material and said two inmates help him measure and cut the material.

According to Wylie, Chritzer is the only one who has been charged with the sewing. In the past three months, nearly 150 beds have been made, she said. It takes at least six hours to make the larger dog bed and about 30 minutes for a smaller, thinner one, Wylie said.

About 30 beds were shipped to a Department of Corrections dog program in Topeka that involves female inmates, she said.

"All of the funds from these beds will go to take care of the dogs," Wylie said, noting the program might buy treats and leashes for the dog training.

Topeka Veterinarian Mike Esau, an Inman native, watched inmates working Wednesday in the C.A.R.E.S. program at the Hutchinson prison. Esau, a veterinarian for Mechler's dog, said Mechler contacted him and he agreed to display and sell the dog beds at his clinic to aid the prison's dog programs.

On Wednesday, the C.A.R.E.S. building at HCF was filled with inmates guiding and training dogs - from terriers to Labradors and Great Danes.

Chritzer said he prefers his new job making dog beds over the job he once had in the prison's print shop. He said he previously sewed leather clothing at the prison in El Dorado and worked in a garment factory in a Florida state prison.

Warden Sam Cline, who watched as the inmates worked with the dogs, said he was pleased to see mattresses that would have otherwise been thrown away being used for recycling efforts and "something positive" for inmates and the community.

"We hope to use any resources we have efficiently, especially since it offsets costs required of taxpayers," he said.

Cline said the prison's dog training programs helps the inmates "feel a sense of responsibility, similar to a family setting, since they're the caretaker of the dog."

"It brings out a humanness in some that they were unable to experience before," he said.

Beach Going to the Dogs?By Kevin Herrera - smdp.com

Local group renews effort to create dog beach in Santa Monica

WALK THIS WAY: People walk their dogs along Santa Monica Beach during the Best Friends Animal Society ‘Strut Your Mutt’ fundraising walk last year. These dogs were allowed on the beach for a special event, but there is a movement afoot to create a dog park on the beach. photo by Brandon Wise.

Click here to read story.

Daily Home & Garden Tip: Gardening with DogsBy The Oregonian

Let's not forget the sheer decorative quality of dogs in the garden -- as with basset hound Beamer and the planter that West Linn artist Ann Munson modeled after him.

Think you have to choose between having a beautiful garden or an outdoor playground for your dog? Not so. Once you understand your dog's natural preferences, you can train it to be garden-friendly --and design your garden to be dog-friendly at the same time.

Designers Sarah Smith of The Gardensmith and Amy Whitworth of Plan-It Earth Design, along with the Eastside Study Group of the Association of Northwest Landscape Designers, offered these tips a few years back for dog-friendly gardening.

• Some dogs may never stop digging completely. In that case, consider training your dogs to dig only in specified areas: bury their favorite bone or toy there. Always redirect them to their assigned "digging spot" if they try to "help" you garden in other areas.

• Insert short, thick stakes in the ground, 6 inches apart, to keep dogs from trampling new plants or from digging in new mulch. (Make sure the stakes aren't sharp enough to injure the pet.) Installing hardware cloth or bird netting just under the soil or mulch also works.

• Does your dog like to patrol the perimeter, perch on a high spot to survey the area or nap under a shady shrub? Whenever possible, accommodate its natural tendencies -- by building circular paths, for example, or by strategically placing leafy shrubs in its nap zone.

• Large or extremely active dogs might need a dog run or agility/fitness area in addition to daily walks. A decorative fence can separate the special dog area without segmenting the garden too severely.

Sharing your turf

• You probably won't have a golf-course-quality lawn if you have a dog, but you can keep it presentable. Give your dog plenty of drinking water; it dilutes urine, which makes it less damaging to lawns. When possible, rinse fresh urine spots off your lawn promptly.

• Plant a low-growing orchard-grass mixture that includes wildflowers to help hide urine spots.

• Aerate your lawn every year to keep it from getting compacted by running dogs (and kids).

Take care with fertilizer

Organic fertilizers are supposed to be safe if animals accidentally ingest them. However, some pets -- probably drawn by the bone meal in the mix -- think the organic stuff is yummy. Keep pets out of your garden for several hours after spreading and watering in your fertilizer. Also, use the techniques already discussed to prevent digging. Don't leave rhododendron leaves (they're poisonous to dogs) or other debris on the ground with fertilizer sprinkled on it. Fido might nibble the leaves to get the fertilizer and could get sick.

Pet Photography — Four Simple Tips For Amazing Pet Photographsadvancedphotography.net

Author’s Intro: This is a guest post from Roxy. Roxy is a writer who loves to share ideas on photography, art and printing. Whether it is for personal or business needs, she can provide useful tips especially on creating postcard printing.

Photography is one of the most exciting and fun-filled activities or hobbies that anyone could like. You can easily fall in love with photography especially if you like capturing every great moments that pass by.

This art takes various forms and styles which can involve nature, people and even animals. Yes, your dearest pet can be the heart of what is known as the pet photography.

Pet photography is and can be done by anyone. You do not have to be a professional artist to get the right shots. You just need to be creative and enjoy the task with your huggable pets.

Before you start the session, here is a quick guide that can help you capture your buddy’s amazing moments.

1. Find The Right Location
The best of the bunch of tips and advice you get for pet photography is to select the ideal place for your pet’s photo shoot. A good location is a must for impressive pet shots.

Shooting in the places with abundance of natural light gives you an opportunity to effectively photograph the fine details like skin textures, feathery furs, sharp eyes and shiny hairs while keeping the problems like red eye effect at the bay. If it is not possible to shoot in such a place, you can always use a room with a big window or hold the photo shoot outdoors. This contributes in creating the mood while adding vibrancy to your pet’s color.

Dog Portrait

2. Capture the sleeping or lazy moments
One of the most fascinating moments for pet photography is when your furry friend is asleep or just acting plain lazy. Just strike the right position (the pose when your subject looks adorable) and take the shot to capture the charming qualities of your pets.

Sleepy Time For Baby Kitten

3. Create mood with your pet’s eyes
Capturing your pet’s eyes on photographic frame can be enchanting. You can portray a lot of emotions and mood in just one photo. So try to take the close-up photos of your pets — dog or cat. Be sure that you have the right amount of light to avoid over or under exposure. Try playing with your digital camera’s Macro setting which would be perfect for shots like these. Also, be smart enough to turn off the flash before the shoot.

Focus on the eyes

4. Take a shot of the playful times
Nothing beats the laughter or smile that your pets show. Carry your camera with you and be ready to take the shot when they are out there playing. You never know when they would pose for that perfect pose — those goofy and lively faces.

Playful pets

With these simple to follow tips, you will definitely get your desired photos. Hang on a sec! One more important thing — order the prints and share them with your friends and family. These pictures will definitely brighten their day! You can even turn these into custom postcards for using them for personal mailing. You can also investing on the postcard printing so that the quality stays the same.

So, enjoy capturing your shared moments with your pets and don’t forget to share the joy!

About Author: Roxy is a writer who loves to share ideas on photography, art and printing. Whether it is for personal or business needs, she can provide useful tips especially on creating postcard printing.

Turtles Use the Earth’s Magnetic Field as a Global GPSdiscovermagazine.com

In 1996, a loggerhead turtle called Adelita swam across 9,000 miles from Mexico to Japan, crossing the entire Pacific on her way. Wallace J. Nichols tracked this epic journey with a satellite tag. But Adelita herself had no such technology at her disposal. How did she steer a route across two oceans to find her destination?

Nathan Putman has the answer. By testing hatchling turtles in a special tank, he has found that they can use the Earth’s magnetic field as their own Global Positioning System (GPS). By sensing the field, they can work out both their latitude and longitude and head in the right direction.
Click here to read article.

Five Tips for Proper Pet Dental Hygienemarketwatch.com

September is Pet Smile Month, a time to remember the importance of proper pet dental hygiene. Studies reveal that 80% of dogs and 70% of cats show signs of oral disease by age three(1). In fact, oral disease is the number one health problem diagnosed in both dogs and cats. Dental health is about proper maintenance, yet few pet parents follow their veterinarian's instructions. NationalPetPharmacy.com has pulled together the following recommendations for keeping pets' teeth healthy and clean.

1. Give Them a Yearly Checkup

Unfortunately, dental checkups are something most people don't think about as part of the yearly trip to the veterinarian. But, just like people, pets suffer from dental issues that if left unchecked can lead to serious health problems.

2. Grab a Toothbrush

Believe it or not, you can brush your pet's teeth. However, according to a recent petMD poll, fewer than 4 in 10 pet parents ever pick up a toothbrush. Fortunately, it's not too late. There are a variety of toothbrushes and toothpastes specially made for pets. Dog toothpaste and cat toothpaste even come in flavors they'll enjoy. Do NOT, however, try to brush their teeth with "people" toothpaste; they could ingest it and become ill.

3. Stimulate Their Gums

Don't forget to massage their gums regularly. Not only will this promote healing should your pet have an oral malady, it will strengthen their gums and make them less susceptible to problems like gingivitis and tooth decay.

4. To Treat or Not to Treat?

Dental treats for dogs and cats are okay in moderation, but they're not sufficient to effectively clean your pet's teeth. If, however, you regularly clean their teeth, special pet supplements and treats are a good addition. Try giving your dog or cat a chew or treat as a reward for good behavior while getting them used to having their teeth cleaned.

5. Don't Wait Until It's Too Late

Tooth decay and gum disease have been linked to heart, kidney, and other serious chronic illnesses. Don't wait until your dog or cat shows signs of distress to have their teeth checked out; your pet won't show signs of discomfort until they're in considerable pain. Preventative care, annual checkups and a well-balanced diet can ensure your pet stays happy and healthy.

Gary Bogue: New Cat Toy is Called 'Da Bird'By Gary Bogue - Contra Costa Times

There are no ordinary cats.

-- Colette

Dear Gary:

Some time back, you wrote about a cat toy. You didn't know the name but you described it. It is called "Da Bird." The toy is a cluster of feathers at the end of an elastic cord, on the end of a 4-foot plastic rod.

My cats and I have had so much fun with this toy. (I don't know who has more fun, me or the cats.) I play with two of them at the same time. I whip it from side to side and each cat leaps into the air. It is like a circus show!

This toy cost me about $10. Don't get a cheap one; they fall apart too fast.

When I am not playing with them, I shove the stick down between the couch cushions, alongside the arm.

It is a great stress reliever, too (for the human).

Toni Mathues,

cyberspace

Dear Toni:

I still call mine "The Thing" and it's basically like yours, with some little modifications. No feathers, just a 6-foot piece of inch-wide colored flannel cloth that I can lash around on the end of a plastic rod like a whip.

The cats love it! Jasmine grabs the cloth out of the air with her claws and we have a tug-of-war.

You're right, it's a stress reliever for all of us ... and GREAT exercise for indoor cats (and their couch potato humans), like my Newman, who spends way too much time snoozing on the couch.

Jasmine sits and glares at me every night while I'm drying the dinner dishes, waiting for me to finish and go get The Thing. She's very impatient.

Dear Gary:

My calico kitty, Callie, is very agile and loves to catch bugs. If a fly gets her attention buzzing on the deck doors, it's history! She will catch it, play with it and ultimately dispatch it by -- yes -- eating it. She seems quite pleased with herself and really seems to enjoy the "hunt"!

Is her health at risk from eating these unpleasant creatures?

Rod from Berkeley

Dear Rod:

Those creatures may be unpleasant to you, but to Callie, and I suspect every other predatory house cat in the country, they're fun and games.

My Jasmine likes the occasional fly, but spiders are her thing. She'll leap two feet into the air when she finds one. And when she gets tired of chasing, they're gone in a munch.

No, I don't think eating bugs will hurt Callie (unless she swallows a bee!).

Pets & hot cars

Even when it's just warm, your car will still be too hot inside for your pet to stay there, even for "just a minute while I run into the store." So please leave your dog at home when you go shopping. It's also against the law to leave pets in hot cars. Thanks for caring.

Tiny dog, tiny mouth

I am one of many volunteers at Contra Costa Animal Services, in Martinez. I walk and play with dogs.

It is nice to have some kind of toy for the dogs when we take them out, like a ball. We have tennis balls, but nearly 70 percent of our dogs are Chihuahuas and tennis balls are too big. If any of your readers has smaller balls to spare, we could really use them. About the SIZE of a ping-pong ball. Not ping-pong balls themselves, because the dogs would destroy them.

Please drop them off at our shelter, 4800 Imhoff Place, Martinez. Office hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday (open until 7 p.m. Wednesday); closed Sunday and Monday. Thanks! (Beverly the Volunteer)

A final note

Gary: It's about time someone stuck up for Wile E. Coyote. He, like the wolf, has been given a bad rap, and we know what happened to the wolf. Thanks. (Carole from Livermore)

Sara Pauff: A Birthday Goes to the Dogsledger-enquirer.com

Last month, my youngest sister invited me and my parents to a birthday celebration for a close friend of hers, Dunkin.

Plans were simple and included a dinner at an outdoor restaurant and a trip to the park with all his friends. The celebration was canceled due to work schedules, but Dunkin still got a “Happy Birthday!” greeting from my dad on Facebook and I’m pretty sure there’s a box of treats in the mail with his name on it.

In case you haven’t figured this out already, Dunkin is a dog. He’s a well-behaved, loyal and slightly clingy two-year-old yellow lab who follows my sister almost everywhere. There are so many Facebook pictures of him, I’m surprised he doesn’t have his own profile yet. If dogs (instead of Dawgs) were allowed in Sanford Stadium, he would have an invitation to her college graduation in May.

I often roll my eyes at people talk about their pets like their human beings, but secretly I’m jealous. I’m one of the few people in my small circle of friends and co-workers who doesn’t have a pet to talk about.

When you live in a small apartment by yourself and spend most of your day at work, it’s hard to find the right kind of animal. Dogs need attention and exercise, and depending on their breed and temperament, can be rather high maintenance. I’d feel bad leaving it at home alone all day without a yard to run around in. Cats aren’t an option either, since I’m mildly allergic. Also -- hairballs? Ew.

When I was growing up, I had rabbits, three of them in succession -- Snowball, PJ, and Tibbar (which is ‘rabbit’ spelled backwards). I like rabbits. They’re quiet, relatively clean and I know how to care for one, so that could be the pet for me, right? But I don’t really know where I’d keep a rabbit hutch and if let loose inside unsupervised, rabbits will gnaw on anything. I can just imagine turning my back for a second to find that Fluffy had scampered off and chewed through my computer cord.

Maybe I should start small and just get a fish. No one ever brags about their cute and awesome pet fish, but a fish is a relatively low maintenance animal. You don’t have to pay a pet fee or vet bills, just remember to feed it...you remembered to feed it, right? You forgot again? Poor Flounder gets a burial at sea.

And therein lies my problem: I don’t know if I’m ready for the costs and responsibility of a pet. When I was a kid, my parents and sisters were always around to feed it, walk it and clean up after it if I forgot. I’ve never had to take care of an animal by myself before, so I second guess my desires for something cute and fluffy every time I pass a pet store. Instead, I dog-sit for my parents when they go out of town and of course, play with Dunkin when my sister visits. He’s an entertaining dog. Too bad I missed his birthday -- I’ll bet it was a blast.

Crazy Pet Insurance Claims

2011-09-17T06:37:00.000-07:00

Dog's Disobedience Saved His Lifeby Barbara Leader - thenewsstar.com

Active duty Marines Crystal and Andy Stephenson, a young married couple were both working on Sept. 11, 2001 — one in New York and one in South Carolina — when time stopped and the world changed.

Andy, a military bomb dog handler from Rayville, and Crystal, who is from Pennsylvania, were stationed in South Carolina but Andy was on loan to the United States Secret Service. He was working in New York City on an advance team for the United Nations General Assembly.

His base of operations was the World Trade Center, towers 7 and 2 somewhere around the 85th floor. Tower 2 was the second tower hit by a hijacked aircraft shortly after 9 a.m. Sept. 11.

Andy was to be at work at 9 a.m., but something that he says still defies explanation delayed his arrival.

"It was 8:15 or 8:20, and I decided to take Sheila (his bomb detecting dog) down to Central Park, the only patch of grass we could find in New York City," he said.

Sheila was a highly trained bomb detection dog who easily responded to hand and voice commands. But, when Andy decided to go back to the hotel, Sheila refused to come.

"She was chasing pigeons, she wouldn't come when I called her," he said. "She would lay down, and when I would try to get close to her, she would take off running. Here I was, someone who was supposed to be able to control his dog and I couldn't. I felt like a fool. Thank goodness I wasn't in uniform."

For 15 minutes, Andy chased and coerced Sheila before gaining control and returning to the hotel.

"I don't know what happened," he said. "She's never acted that way before, and she never acted that way again."

At the hotel, he met up with three other Marines and left to catch the E train to the subway stop at the World Trade Mart. They missed the train and had to wait another seven minutes for the next.

Meanwhile, Crystal heard about a plane crashing into the first tower of the World Trade Center through a phone call from Andy's sister who didn't know Andy was in New York. "I said, 'Andy's there' and I hung up," Crystal said. "Right then, Andy called."

Andy had emerged from the subway to find one of the towers burning. Like many others, it took him a few seconds to realize the magnitude of what had happened. When he did, he immediately called Crystal to let her know he was not in the building and that he was OK.

Crystal was six months pregnant with their daughter.

"You could hear the fear in her voice," Andy said.

The whole scenario unfolded as Andy watched. He saw children being led from a day care center hand in hand away from the World Trade Center area.
He was watching what he thought was paper falling out of the tower when he realized it was much worse.

"It was actually people jumping out, hand in hand," he said.

While the couple was on the phone, another plane hit the second tower and they lost their phone connection.

"I actually fell down, and somebody caught me," Crystal said. "My knees got weak."

Crystal went to her office to watch television with her co-workers. She feared that Andy had gone into the tower to help with the rescue effort.
"I remember everybody turned around and looked at me," she said. "I must have been crying hysterically, someone said: 'Get her out of here.'"

Crystal said she asked to go home where she could be near her home phone and her cell phone.

"I watched the towers fall," she said. "I watched one fall and then I watched the other fall. All I could think about was how I was going to have to be able to explain to our daughter who her father was."

Hours passed before she reconnected with Andy.

In New York City, Andy offered his assistance but was moved away from the scene with others in the effort to evacuate the area.

As he left the area, he stopped to buy a disposable camera to capture the scene. He posed with his fellow Marine, Sgt. Christian Blue, as the towers burned in the background. During the days that followed, Andy was called to work with Sheila to secure areas for visits by former President Bill Clinton and President George W. Bush.

"What I'll always remember about that day is that after a city was humbled and brought to its knees, there was this huge sense of togetherness and patriotism," Andy said.

Less than a month later, Andy and Crystal, impacted by the events of Sept. 11, re-enlisted in the Marines for another four years.

Crystal is a member of the National Guard and has served a tour of duty in Iraq. Andy is a Louisiana State Police trooper on patrol with his narcotic detecting dog, Senda.

"I believe some people are meant for the military and some aren't," Crystal said. "Some can bear the weight and some can't. Those of us that can, should ... and we did."

Cat Survives Month Sealed in B.C. School RoofBy James Weldon, vancouversun.com

Lana Simon of the Pacific Animal Foundation holds Carson the cat at North Vancouver’s Mosquito Creek Veterinary Hospital Thursday. Photo by Cindy Goodman

VANCOUVER — A seven-year-old cat, rake-thin and filthy, is doing well after surviving for as long as a month inside the roof of a North Vancouver secondary school.

The trapped feline was rescued by builders last week after a crew working on a new wing of the building heard mewing from an adjoining structure.

They found the cat stuck inside a drainage, unable or unwilling to extract itself. After firefighters tried unsuccessfully to get it out, the workers tore off flashing until they exposed it.

The lost pet, initially dubbed Carson, was taken to a veterinary hospital where staff have been nursing it carefully back to health in the days since.

"She was certainly starving," said veterinarian Janice Crook, "and she was completely covered in dirt, but she was purring."

The cat, renamed Fiona by the clinic's staff, was suffering from liver failure, a condition that sets in in felines after they haven't eaten for five days or more. It appears the cat must have had access to a source of water despite dry weather, however, or it would not have survived as long as it did, said Crook.

Initially, the vet gave Fiona a 50-50 chance of survival. But over the weekend, a staff member took the animal home, feeding it every half hour and watching it closely, and within a few days had brought it back from the brink.

"(The cat) couldn't hold her head up; my tech didn't think she'd live," said Crook. "Now . . . she's eating on her own, and she's coming in to talk to us."

The liver condition has also started to reverse, she said.

It's not clear how long the cat had been trapped, but Crook pegged its ordeal at a month.

Now, the veterinarian is hoping to return Fiona to its owners.

The cat has a tattoo in one ear, suggesting it had had a proper home before it got trapped in the school. The number is only partially legible, however, so the clinic has not been able to determine who the animal is registered to.

"I'm sure there is a family out there wondering what happened to this cat," said Crook.

The veterinarian is asking anyone who recognizes Fiona to contact her office. Anyone claiming to be the owner will be asked to provide information relating to the ear tattoo, she said.

The vet can be reached at mcvhosp@gmail.com

jweldon@nsnews.com

Odd Couple: Cats and Dogs Can Live Together PeacefullyBy Ann Tatko-Peterson - Contra Costa Times

A dachshund named Corky, left, plays with Puff Dad the cat in Antioch.

Bianca had lived peacefully with her English setter sister for years. So, Toni Mayer of El Cerrito assumed her cat would do fine with another dog, 11-month-old Genie.

Wrong. Within two weeks, Bianca defected to the neighbor's house and never returned home. Genie was forlorn without the cat, and mice quickly overran the Mayer home. Back to the shelter Mayer went. This time she returned with a kitten she named Harry.

Mayer rubbed Genie with a towel and then held it out to Harry to introduce him to the dog's scent, but the first actual meeting was an anxious one. Genie approached with curiosity; Harry charged. And yet, a few days later, "they were playfully chasing each other through the house," Mayer recalls, "and Harry was attacking and ambushing Genie's plumy tail. They've been close for almost 12 years. They nuzzle each other in greeting, and when I take them to the groomer, they keep each other company in the same cage."

As with humans, individual personalities make it hard to predict compatibility in a blended family of dogs and cats. Sometimes the adage "fighting like cats and dogs" comes to pass, while other times, the different animals learn to live harmoniously, even lovingly, under the same roof.

In the United States, 17.8 million households have at least one dog and one cat living together, according to an American Pet Product Manufacturers Association survey. Clearly, cohabitation works -- if owners properly introduce their pets, provide a safe environment for everyone and respect their pets' ability, or inability, to tolerate a member of the opposite species.

Even the most docile dogs and cats need time to adjust to a new family member, especially if they are unaccustomed to living with a different species. Experts agree that owners first must assess the animals they hope to bring together.

At the Peninsula Humane Society and Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in San Mateo, staff members check an animal's background before putting it up for adoption; sometimes a pet is surrendered because it fails to get along with another animal.

Staff also ask owners to evaluate pets living at home: Shy or skittish cats will not fare well with dogs, while aggressive dogs with a history of chasing small animals such as squirrels may have issues bunking with cats, explains Maria Eguren, behavior training manager at the Peninsula Humane Society and SPCA.

When bringing the animals together, gradual introductions work best, often starting with familiarizing them through scent and working up to face-to-face meetings in a very controlled setting (see sidebar for full details).

Marilyn Krieger, world renowned Cat Coach, says success depends on having a well-trained dog, because of the harm it can do physically to a cat; providing cats with a sanctuary and plenty of vertical space, so they can escape if frightened; and always supervising the interactions.

"People need to remember that cats and dogs speak different languages," says Krieger, a certified cat behavior consultant and author based in Redwood City. "For example, a wagging tail for cats means they are upset or agitated, whereas dogs wagging their tails are happy. The two have to learn each other's language. That's why they need time to get to know each other."

Building relationships

After the introduction period, once the animals are comfortable with each other, most owners prefer to let their pets dictate whether theirs is a relationship of sibling rivalry or revelry.

Mary Steele of Antioch used baby gates initially to separate her long-haired dachshund Doxie from her two 5-week-old kittens, Patchy and Bunny. Doxie would watch from the other side of the gate as Steele petted the kittens. But even as the young cats ventured beyond the gate, Steele says, Doxie still viewed them as something with which to play.

"Patchy would run and let Doxie chase her," Steele says. "Bunny wanted no part of that, and Doxie never tried to chase her. It was as if they knew among themselves what was acceptable."

In the Burgdorf household — which at one time had three dogs, two cats and eight chickens -- a 17-year-old, 11-pound orange tiger-striped cat nicknamed Punky decides what is acceptable. He clearly rules the roost, says Cindy Burgdorf of San Mateo.

Once when Pepper, a black standard poodle, was a puppy, he walked past the kitchen chair where Punky sat.

"Punky reached out and swatted him on the head," Burgdorf recalls. "Pepper has been afraid of him ever since. Never mind that he is nine times the cat's size and is aggressive to other dogs."

Just because a relationship starts off rocky doesn't mean a dog and cat always will be at odds.

When Jeanie Surges of Martinez first brought home 9-week-old golden retriever Phoebe, her tuxedo cat, Billings, refused to acknowledge her. Ambivalence eventually turned to spitting, growling and showing his claws. Then, as Phoebe grew in age and size, Billings began to thaw.

"At first they would lie on the floor across the room from each other," Surges says. "Gradually, they got closer and finally would be touching each other. ... Over the years I would often find them lying together giving each other baths."

Close bonds

Even experts cannot pinpoint exactly why some dogs and cats become bosom housemates.

Sometimes when a family with a dog wants to adopt a cat, the Peninsula Humane Society will gauge the dog's reaction by introducing it to one of the society's resident cats.

"Our cats get along with anyone," Eguren says, "maybe because they are constantly around other animals. Or maybe because that's just how they are naturally."

Are certain dogs and cats predisposed to bond with one another? Owners don't need research to answer that question or validate what they see firsthand.

No fur flies in the Alamo home of Dennis and Kathleen Lassle, where 13-year-old Doberman mix Fawn is the lone dog in a family that includes three cats. Fawn is especially close to 4-year-old Maine coon Pixie, who cleans her canine sister's face, sleeps with her and "herds" her, as age has made Fawn unsteady on her feet.

"I really don't know why (all four) are best friends," Kathleen Lassle says. "My only guess is that as each came into the household over the years, they saw that everyone got along and there was no reason to be afraid. I think they just learned from each other."

Betty Enoch of Castro Valley credits nature for the way her mixed breed dog, Candi, has taken to kittens. At one time, Enoch had five kittens, but she wisely never left much larger Candi alone with them.

Eventually, only one kitten, Frankie, remained. Enoch's two female cats ignored him when Enoch uncaged him; Candi, however, immediately started taking care of him.

"She has a maternal instinct," Enoch says. "She saw this helpless little baby and had to take care of him. I've heard stories of different species taking care of different species when they're babies. I think Candi would mother anything."

In the end, there is really only one factor in explaining cohabitation success stories such as these.

"Whether or not it works" Krieger says, "really depends on the animals."

--72.9 million U.S. households own at least one pet (62 percent of U.S. homes)

--38.9 percent of U.S. households own a cat

--46.3 percent of U.S. households own a dog

--17.8 million U.S. households own both a cat and a dog (15.1 percent of U.S. homes)

Boo! Black Cat Makes Appearance at Mets-Marlins GameBy 'Duk - yahoo.com

Holy 1969! Was that a black cat that ran onto the field during Tuesday's game between the New York Mets and Florida Marlins at Sun Life Stadium?

Indeed it was, though the terrified look on that woman's face suggests it was a gigantic mountain panther rather than a common baseball-loving stray. (Also, is it just me or does her seatmate bear a slight resemblance to Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria?)

Anyway, it's a bit strange that the black cat showed up at another Mets game, given that one of his or her famous descendants helped the Amazins' chase down the Chicago Cubs by crossing Ron Santo's path at Shea Stadium. These 2011 Mets aren't above benefitting from feline-inspired fortune, either: They won Tuesday's game 7-4 in 12 innings.

Man, Service Dog Thrown Out of Clearfield RestaurantBy Jasen Asay - Standard-Examiner

CLINTON -- Don Smith says he cannot function in society without his dog.

His psychologist agrees, he said, which is why Smith registered his dog as a service dog in Davis County.

But when Smith recently was told he had to leave one of his favorite restaurants because of his dog, Smith felt humiliated.

"I rescued him when he was a puppy, and now he rewards me the rest of his life by helping me function in society," Smith said, holding back tears. "He's given back to me more than I could ever give to him."

Smith has an anxiety disorder. When his psychologist at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City encouraged him to think about something that makes him happy whenever his anxiety attacks occur, Smith said he would think about his dog, Junior P. Smith.

The doctor thought that was such a good idea, Smith said, she helped him register Junior as a service animal so he could bring the dog with him everywhere he goes.

So Smith takes Junior, who wears a badge identifying him as a service animal, to the grocery store and to restaurants. Whenever he starts to feel anxious, he just reaches down and pets Junior, and that anxiety goes away.

"My wife, Tempie, always jokes that we have to take the dog everywhere," Smith said.

Smith and the Chihuahua/Jack Russell mix went to the Star Cafe in Clearfield to meet Smith's friend for breakfast Tuesday morning. Smith said he had been in the cafe several times before with his dog, but on Tuesday, it was different.

When Smith entered, the owner quickly approached him and told him he could not bring his dog inside the restaurant.

"I was upset, so I told him I'm allowed to have him with me under the Americans With Disabilities Act," Smith said. "He didn't care. He said, 'I want you and your dog to leave.' "

Smith said Junior was always on a leash and stayed under a table while in the restaurant.

The Americans With Disabilities Act classifies a service animal as "any animal individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability."

A disability, defined by the ADA, is "a mental or physical condition which substantially limits a major life activity such as caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning and working."

Litung Liu, the owner of Star Cafe, said he did not know if he was breaking the law by asking Smith to leave with his dog. The cafe owner just said allowing a dog in his restaurant does not make sense, especially when the dog annoys other customers.

"The first time he comes in, the dog just runs around and goes anywhere, even when I tell (Smith) not to allow it," Liu said.

"We are a restaurant, and people are eating here. If the dog is quiet, it's OK. If the dog goes around and plays around with other people, that is not OK."

Not wanting to leave, Smith called the police. When the Clearfield officer arrived, the officer told Smith that he had to leave.

Clearfield Police Assistant Chief Mike Stenquist confirmed that, according to the officer's report, the officer asked Smith to leave at the request of the owner.

"We'll have to review on our end (to see) if that was appropriate," Stenquist said.

Smith said, in the future, he will have to go to the places that accept Junior.

"I can't go back to a place where I've been humiliated," Smith said. "It was a good place, but the owner humiliated me so much in front of my friend."

10 Tips for Creating a Dog-Friendly Tailgate Partymarketwatch.com

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa.-- With the NFL regular season kicking off and college football rivalries heating up around the country, PetFoodDirect.com would like to encourage football fans to create fun and safe tailgate parties for their dogs. Here are ten tips to make your dog-friendly tailgate the best on your block.

Verify that the area is dog-friendly - Not all college campuses or NFL stadium parking lots will allow dogs. It's best to confirm this beforehand so that your furry fanatic can partake of the fun too. If not, your backyard is a great place to host a pet-friendly game day BBQ. Also, if you plan on attending the game after the tailgate, arrange for your dog to stay with family or friends. Under no circumstances should you leave your dog in a car.

Pre-approve the guest list - No, we don't mean the annoying friend who brings all those tortilla chips but "forgets" to bring the salsa or guacamole. We're talking about vetting the dogs. Some dogs are able to become fast pals, while others can't seem to even look at each other for more than a minute. You want the rivalries to take place on the gridiron, not at the tailgate.

Keep dogs leashed - This is for their own safety. There are just too many moving cars and people around to take such a chance, and you never know when something might accidentally spook a dog.

Have a first aid kit easily accessible - Some basic supplies can help save a life if something should go wrong. A kit should include items such as gauze, nonstick bandages, towels, clean cloth, adhesive tape, hydrogen peroxide, milk of magnesia, activated charcoal, digital thermometer, eye dropper and muzzle. Also, keep the phone number for your veterinarian or the nearest animal emergency hospital and copies of your dog's identification and vaccination papers in the kit.

Bring the best dog food and dog treats you can find - There are plenty of organic dog treats and healthy "human" foods you can offer the dogs at your tailgate. Extra lean meats, strawberries, bananas, carrots and unsalted, unbuttered popcorn are all on the "okay" list for dogs. Foods dogs should not eat include grapes, raisins, onions, garlic, avocado, nuts and fruits with pits, which can present a choking hazard. It's also important that any foods given to dogs be properly cooked and cut up into smaller pieces.

Scoop the poop - That's right, you must be ready and willing to go on pooper scooper duty and dispose of the excrement properly. Not only is it unsanitary to leave doggy "business" lying around, it is a party foul of the highest order. And you don't want people thinking you can't throw great tailgate parties, do you?

Clean up the trash - Dogs are notorious for scarfing up just about anything off the floor. Avoid a bad case of indigestion in dogs or worse by making sure that all your guests properly dispose of all trash and scraps in garbage bags. These bags should be placed in areas that are inaccessible to dogs.

Toys and games make everything better - Can't stand to watch your team go down by another touchdown? How about you play some fetch with the dogs. Balls, sticks and flying discs are some of the best dog toys to have around. You can even get your friends involved and make a game of it.

Provide plenty of shade and water - Dogs are great at running around and having a good time, but they aren't always keen on letting you know when they're just doggone tired. And unlike humans, dogs eliminate heat by panting. When panting isn't enough, their body temperature rises. This can be fatal if not corrected quickly. To prevent such a dog emergency, make sure all your four-legged partygoers are provided with sufficient water and an area to cool off or hide away when their favorite team is losing.

Dress up your dog in team colors - You and your friends will be dressing up in team colors, so why shouldn't your dog. If your dog isn't much for wearing doggy jerseys or t-shirts, then try a bandana. Remember, it's game day. It's time for you and your furry pal to show some team spirit!

Are These the World's Dumbest Animals? Contenders for Craziest Pet Insurance ClaimDaily Mail.co.uk

From the pug ate 100 rocks to the Chihuahua who survived being kidnapped by a hungry owl, to Moose the mastiff, who was kicked in the head by an angry mule - these pet insurance claims are in a league all their own.

Meet the nominees for the Hambone Award - for the most ridiculous claim filed at Veterinary Pet Insurance.

Bosses at VPI narrowed down the list to 12 after reviewing tens of thousands of quirky claims that come in each month over the course of a year.

For Chico the Chihuahua, being nominated came at the cost of almost becoming dinner.

The three-year-old pooch's owner Dana Kalomiris describes on the contest website how her husband took the dog out for a walk on a snowy January morning near their home in Crystal Lake, Illinois, when suddenly Chico began to whimper.

Out of the darkness, a Great Horned Owl silently swooped down and snatched Chico in its talons, dragging him through the snow.

Fortunately, George Kalomiris kept a firm hold on the leash, and spooked the menacing bird away.

The owl’s talons caused a small puncture wound just behind Chico's right foreleg; luckily, he made a full recovery.

Then there is Harley, a pug from Manville, Rhode Island who has an interest in eating things he shouldn't, according to the website.

His owner, Lori Lavediere, describes how during a boarding stay at his veterinarian's office, Harley ate 100 rocks in less than ten minutes.

'When we got home, I took him for a walk and he started pooping out rocks. Nothing else, just rocks,' she said.

Harley was taken to an emergency animal hospital where doctors took X-rays of his stomach, which showed his intestines were packed with pebbles. Fortunately, they were small enough for Harley to pass without surgery.

Cathy Timmons thought that pet insurance would be a good idea when her Labrador Stella ate a rock and needed surgery at six months old. It turned out be a good decision when Stella got her lower jaw stuck in a can of green beans in April.

'I was more panicked than she was,' Ms Timmons said. 'I was worried that she wouldn’t be able to breathe, but she was staring back at me like nothing was wrong. I tried to take the can off, but I was worried that the lid would dig into her skin, so we went to the veterinarian.'

But the Hambone Award isn't all for the dogs.

Sherri Johnson of Belmont, Massachusetts had concerns about how her cats would handle the wood stove in her New Hampshire vacation home, according to VPI. Her husband assured her that Eddy and Bella would sense the heat from the stove and stay away, and he was right - until the flies came.

Her husband caught their cats Eddy and Bella chasing a fly around the house, and worried one of them might fall over the railing so he shooed the bug into the livingroom. Eddy followed the fly, jumped in the air and came down with all four paws right on top of the hot wood stove, burning at a scalding 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

The next day, Eddy’s paws were covered in blisters; he received bandages on all four paws and antibiotics to prevent infection of any broken blisters.

'He was walking like a mummy for about a week, but he’s doing better now,' Mrs Johnson said.

Then there is Harley the dachshund, who was attacked by a seagull in Ventura California; Gus, the two-year-old Labrador who downed one-eighth of his weight - a total of five pounds - of chocolate and cookies while his owners were away; and Sadie, a three-year-old Golden retriever was bitten on her nose by a 20lb otter in Saint Petersburg, Florida.

Balboa the three-year-old pug was nearly blinded after he was sprayed with venom from a Southern Walking Stick after sneaking into a bush in Metarie, Louisiana; Tobey, a seven year-old Labrador retriever, accidentally swallowed a sprinkler head after a botched attempt to slurp a mouthful of water; Keryn Anderson's Jack Russell terrier, 15-year-old Teuer, landed at his veterinarian's office after his attempt to dodge under a closing garage door ended with the pooch pinned to the ground; Lindsay and Anna King's five -year-old English mastiff Moose was kicked in the head when he got too close to a mule.

Howie the toy poodle is a regular at his veterinarian’s office, according to VPI. His latest visit came courtesy of an acorn in his owner's backyard - after he scooped it up, tilted his head back, and let the acorn slide down his throat, it obstructed his airway. Heather Skinner of Monroe, New York remembered: 'My husband is a police officer and knows the Heimlich maneuver. He tried it on Howie, but it didn’t work.'
All nominees considered for the award are pets that have made full recoveries and received insurance reimbursements for eligible expenses.

But the 12 contenders have quite the legend to live up to.

The Hambone Award is named in honour of a VPI-insured dog that got stuck in a refrigerator and ate an entire Thanksgiving ham while waiting for someone to find him, according to the company website.

The dog was eventually found, with a licked-clean ham bone and a mild case of hypothermia. He also recovered.

The top pick will receive VPI’s Hambone Award and designation as the most unusual claim of the year.

Boo: The Life of the World's Cutest Dogabcnews.com

Empty Nest Syndrome Affects Pets, TooChristina Capatides - abcnews.com

As kids across the country head back to school and away to college this week, most Americans are sensitive to the fact that some parents may experience a form of “empty nest syndrome”: a range of symptoms and behaviorisms associated with separation anxiety. So, that explains the scratches on the back door and the shredded throw pillows in the living room, right?

Well, not exactly.

That damage is a product of someone in your household experiencing empty nest syndrome, but it’s definitely not your mom.

What people may not initially realize is that household pets are also extremely susceptible to separation anxiety.

“Your dog probably knows the difference between the shoes you wear to work and the shoes you wear to take him for a walk,” says Dr. Debra Horwitz, a board certified veterinary behaviorist. “They’re very observant and they use those kinds of cues to determine what’s going to happen in their day. So, when everyone is home all summer and then, boom, they’re not anymore, that change in routine can be anxiety provoking for certain individuals and trigger a distress response, when the dog is home alone and separated from the ones that he or she is most attached to.”

In fact, animals may even be more shaken by a child’s sudden departure than parents because they have no way of being explicitly notified.

“Just because you know there’s going to be a change and you’re ready for it, doesn’t mean your pet does,” explains Dr. Horwitz. “The end of summer vacation often means that we can no longer sleep in or take leisurely morning walks with our pets. We have to get up, get ready and go straight to work instead. We don’t like those changes either, but we know they’re coming and we’re prepared for them.”

Pets, for their part, will exhibit this anxiety through a range of behavioral signs, including panting, pacing, whining, barking and destruction. In severe cases, Horwitz says, pets may experience a loss of appetite, even when their people are home.

However, the severity of the distress response really depends on the flexibility of the individual pet.

“Some people are really flexible,” says Horwitz. “Things will happen to them at work and they will simply say, ‘O.K.,’ and adapt to them. Other people will see that their pencil box has been moved and scream, ‘Who was at my desk?!’ Animals are like that too. It is a part of the normal variation.”

Roseanna Salonia, a New Jersey native, says that her four-year-old Chihuahua Lulu always displays signs of distress when her son leaves for college.

“Lulu definitely notices all the packing and ‘getting ready’ when he goes off to college,” Salonia says. “Then, once he’s gone, she sleeps outside his bedroom door every night. And when I let her into his room, she runs under his bed or likes to sleep on one of his pillows … she mopes around for a while every time he leaves, but it is most severe when he goes back to school after the summer.”

Depending on the flexibility of the pet, veterinary behaviorists recommend several behavioral and pharmaceutical interventions that can help him or her cope with the situation.

It is best to take preventative measures, before the actual change occurs. So, if you can, professionals recommend starting to wake up a bit earlier, packing a back pack or scheduling brief departures of about an hour, in the closing weeks of summer. These changes can help ease your pet into the upcoming transition.

Otherwise, it often helps to wake up a little early and either conduct a play session or take your dog for a morning walk, before you leave for work. This way, the dog is mentally stimulated and will spend more time resting when you are gone. Additionally, it is important to make departures low-key and matter of fact, rather than prolonging the act of actually walking out the door.

“Sometimes it also helps to leave a food-enhanced toy,” suggests Horwitz.

For dogs, this can take the form of a toy with a bit of peanut butter smeared on it. For cats, it is often helpful to hide treats throughout the house with varying degrees of discovery difficulty.

And for severe cases, there are two approved medications – Reconcile and Clomicalm – proven to be effective for the treatment of animals with separation anxiety, when combined with other behavioral modifications.

“These animals are not being spiteful or mad,” explains Horwitz. “They are anxious and they are really worried. And all the destructive things they might do are based on this stress and anxiety. It is our job to address that as quickly and humanely as we can.”

Gary Bogue: Is It Normal for a Squirrel to Eat a Dead Goldfinch?By Gary Bogue - Contra Costa Times

August breeze

spider webs bend into domes

marked with dust

-- haiku by Jerry Ball, Walnut Creek

Dear Gary:

This week I noticed a dead goldfinch on my deck and before I could remove it, a squirrel came along and ate part of it before running off with the remains.

Is this normal behavior?

Never knew a squirrel would eat a bird.

Marilyn, cyberspace

Dear Marilyn:

Squirrels and other rodents periodically need to add some animal protein to their diets.

Squirrels usually get their protein from eating insects, bird eggs, the occasional baby bird found in a nest (that's why parent birds sometimes can be seen screaming at and "attacking" squirrels), and cat kibble when someone leaves a dish on the patio.

But if they come across a dead goldfinch on your deck, or the carcass of a roadkill as they cross a street, they'll probably take advantage of it. I get a lot of email from shocked drivers wondering why a live squirrel was eating a dead squirrel on the road.

Dear Gary:

Read your column this morning and walked out front here on Château Way in Livermore to be greeted by a turkey on my neighbor's roof. She sat up there for about a half-hour until a second turkey strolled by ... she then flew down, joined the second turkey and they sauntered down the street!

Yes, Virginia, turkeys can fly!

Mickey & Melanie

Miller, Livermore

Dear Mickey & Melanie:

It's kind of creepy listening to wild turkeys walking around on your roof!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

My indoor cats didn't know which way to run.

Dear Gary:

I have recently noticed a number of bluebirds in our neighborhood. These are not blue jays but smaller birds with blue on their backs and wings, and an orange-colored chest.

Are these types of birds normally found in this area?

Lynda Sanchas,

Pleasanton

Dear Lynda:

The bird you describe is a Western bluebird.

Yes, they are normally found throughout the Bay Area, and all around California. They nest in tree hollows, abandoned woodpecker holes and bird houses designed for bluebirds.

Google "Western bluebird bird houses" and find out everything you wanted to know about bluebirds, including how to make a bluebird house for your backyard. Go for it!

Dear Gary:

We had the same problem as Going Batty (Sept. 6 column, "Bats: How do we get them to relocate?") several years ago.

We solved the problem by placing netting under the eaves which the bats were using for their evening rest stops. As bats use echolocation for landing purposes, the netting discourages visitation.

I don't think a bat house will be as effective, as the bats are looking for a short term resting stop only while foraging at night.

Serious sleep takes place during the daytime for bats.

Martha Mahuron,

cyberspace

Dear Martha:

The netting is an excellent idea! It's a gentle way of "asking" the bats to relocate their nap spot.

Pet Talk: Your Pet Will Eat AnythingBy Anne Divine - Leavenworth Times

Leavenworth, Kan. — Dogs and cats commonly eat things they shouldn’t. It is one thing if they devour a steak or loaf of bread off the kitchen table. You can take the family out to eat. Other animal’s feces and dead “mystery” carcasses are disgusting but relatively harmless in most cases.

Within my own family circle, we have experienced a dog who ate 26 rubber knobs off a toy ball on one occasion and another time consumed corn cobs. She was assisted by her companion who specialized in toppling trash cans…he was smart enough not to eat the trash.

Both incidents resulted in expensive emergency surgery. My son had a dog who ate a large stick and in spite of immediate vet care, sadly, he perished from peritonitis. Remote controls, pens and hearing aids have also been family pet favorites. In the case of hearing aids and pens, it is another instance of pet teamwork making it happen. The cat knocks these items off the table, plays hockey with them for a while and then the dog gets her turn at the prize.

The problem is that many of these illicitly ingested items cannot be digested or passed through the intestine and result in an obstruction. This is a serious emergency and often requires immediate surgery in order to save the pet’s life. If you suspect that your dog or cat might be obstructed from swallowing a foreign object, seek help from a veterinarian without delay. Significant symptoms of obstruction are: lethargy, vomiting and loss of appetite.

There was a cat who ate 42 (count them!) hair bands. They accumulated in her stomach over a period of time and caused vomiting.
Surgery and removal of the obstruction relieved her problem and relieved her owners of $1400. Many cats cannot be trusted with string, ribbon or similar items.

A Basset hound named Barney was seen by his vet for a foot laceration and was otherwise asymptomatic. During his exam the vet became concerned after palpating his stomach and suggested an X-Ray. It revealed the presence of 7 tennis balls in his stomach. The owners commented that his tennis balls did seem to disappear a lot! Surgery was done to remove the items and Barney went on to live a long healthy life with no further access to tennis balls.

We wonder why our pets seem to have the desire to eat almost anything. Some conjecture that they use their mouths to explore their world…similar to the way an infant will put everything in their mouth. Another speculation is that they are inquisitive and since they don’t wear socks or underwear, they are curious about them! It is clear that bright and sensible as our pets are, they have no sense about controlling these urges no matter how noxious or unattractive the thing may be.

The top ten surgically removed items from pets stomachs are socks, underwear, panty hose, rocks, balls, chew toys, corn cobs, bones, hair ties/ribbons and sticks. The average cost varies from practice to practice but $1200 to $2200 is the usual range.

Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI) is a large pet insurance company. Their data from 2010 shows that they provided coverage for around 2000 foreign body ingestions cases.

More than three million dollars was spent on these surgeries.
The consequences of foreign object ingestion can be expensive and devastating.

Pets, especially puppies, get into all kinds of things. It is important to monitor their activities and be alert to the possibility of intestinal obstruction.

Anne Divine is a long time member of LAWS and has volunteered at Animal Control for 18 years. She can be reached at: adivine@kc.rr.com.

3 Ways Your Pet Can Help You HealAmy D. Shojai - huffingtonpost.com

Studies prove that pets provide physical health benefits, offer stress relief and detect or predict health challenges. Some pets now are used prior to health tests like MRIs to reduce patient fear. How can that be? Pets help keep us emotionally healthy.

They keep us connected to the world and other pet lovers, and offer a purpose to get out of bed in the morning. People who wouldn't go to the store for themselves will make the effort to get dog food or kitty litter.

Sure, walking the dog means people exercise, but studies also show that walking a dog offers more benefits than walking alone. There's a social and emotional benefit that has no equal.

Emotional Benefits Of Service Dogs
Service dogs have offered people assistance for many years as guides for the blind, ears for the deaf or even an extra pair of hands -- fetching everything from the phone and clothing, to turning lights on and off. While we mostly think of dogs, other critters including parrots, cats, lizards and even horses do this work. But service animals also boost emotional health in surprising ways.

Researcher Karen Allen conducted a two-year study looking at individuals with a variety of challenges who had used wheelchairs for a year or longer. She compared the group who received dogs to those who didn't. After a year, those with dogs showed dramatic improvement in areas such as self-esteem, psychological well-being and generally getting back into life. People were going out and having relationships, they made friends and a couple of people even got married.

This effect was also documented by researchers at the University of California Davis. They found people with pets were approached more often for conversation than when they were alone. Blind and wheelchair-bound kids with their dogs in public places were approached for social contact 10 times more frequently than without their dogs. Beside the day-to-day help service animals provide, they act as a social lubricant that emotionally heals.

When animals are present, Alzheimer patients are more responsive and more positive. But even healthy senior adults benefit emotionally from spending time with pets.

Pets Don't Judge
Healing includes the mending of broken hearts, lost dreams and painfully poisonous ideas and beliefs. Pets make things safe for emotions. You can express anything to your pet -- anger, sadness, joy, despair -- without being judged.

Humans suffering from trauma or illness, grief or depression, often withdraw from the world to find a safe and healing place. Kids who are lonely, dealing with death or illness in the family or other trauma have better coping skills when they have access to a pet. Families going through divorce also benefit from this pet effect. People caring for a pet are less likely to suffer from depression.

Psychiatric service dogs alert people when they need to take medication, eat on time or assure them the house and environment is safe and relieve their fears. And pets won't take no for an answer.

The Human-Animal Bond
The bond refers to feelings of love we have for pets -- and they for us -- and this biochemical process can actually be measured with blood tests. A study by South African professor Johannes Odendaal proved that the human-animal bond makes us feel good from the inside out. Pets feel it, too!

Our feelings, thoughts and attitudes are influenced by changes in brain chemistry. Odendaal measured blood levels and found that positive biochemicals phenylethalamine, dopamine, beta-endorphin, prolactin and oxytocin increased significantly for both the pets and people when bonding takes place.

People who interact with their own pets have even higher elevations. These chemicals stimulate feelings of elation, safety, tranquility, happiness, satisfaction and love -- it's more than simple contact, it's the individual animal and the bond we share.

Pets insist on being noticed, yet their presence is safe. They listen without judgment, and are silent without offering unasked advice. Animals know how to just sit and be with someone for as long as necessary. And pets don't turn away from tears and grief the way humans tend to do. Sometimes our beloved animal companions are the only bridge able to receive and return affection and show us the way home to emotional health.

Amy D. Shojai, CABC, is a certified animal behavior consultant and the award-winning author of 23 pet care books. She also writes for puppies.about.com and cats.about.com and appears on Animal Planet's CATS-101 and DOGS-101. Check out Amy's latest book, "Pet Care in the New Century: Cutting-Edge Medicine for Dogs & Cats" and on Red Room, where you can read her blog.

Follow Amy D. Shojai, CABC on Twitter: www.twitter.com/@amyshojai

5 Tips For Protecting Your Pets From Wildlifedogchannel.com

As communities grow and expand, wild animals are losing their natural habitat and are becoming acclimated to urban and suburban surroundings.

This encroachment of wild animals can be a problem for domesticated pets including cats and dogs. Wild animals can easily hurt, maim or even kill household pets that do not have the survival skills or temperament to defend themselves.

To help pet owners, Southeast Area Animal Control Authority has released a list of tips to help pet owners keep their pets safe from wild animals.

1. Don’t leave food outside
Wild animals can be expert foragers. Leaving food outside (leftovers, pet food, trash or anything else) can be an invitation to wild creatures

2. Get your pet vaccinated
Wild animals can be a mode of rabies transmittal. Ensure your pet is vaccinated just in case he or she is attacked and infected.

3. Notify the authorities
If you notice a wild animal or animal tracks near your home, immediately contact your local animal control or wildlife service agency. They have the resources and skills to handle these situations and make your environment safer for your pet.

4. Protect your home/ Clear your surroundings
Make sure wild animals cannot get into your home through open doors or windows, including dog doors. Many wild animals roam in the nighttime, when you and your pets are sleeping. Lock and secure your doors and windows before you go to bed.

Excessive debris, vegetation, fallen trees and hillside brush and shrubs can be enticing hiding places for snakes and other wild animals. Clear the areas around your home to avoid un-welcomed surprises for you and your pets.

5. Keep your pet on a leash/ Don’t let your pet roam outdoors alone
It is best to keep an eye on your pet when outdoors so that they do not become targets for wildlife. When hiking or walking trails with pets it is best to keep them on a leash. Excessively long leashes or no leashes at all, can allow your pet to explore hidden areas where they could possibly uncover snakes or other wild animals.

“As our population continues to grow and we encroach upon wildlife, we need to be extra vigilant about pet safety,” notes SEAACA Executive Director, Dan Morrison. “With a few smart precautions, we can protect our much-loved pets from dangerous encounters with wild animals.”

What is Your Pet Thinking?

2011-09-10T06:35:00.000-07:00

California Man Arrested for Biting Pet Python Twicebbc.co.uk

The injured party was not who the police expected

A man in the Californian city of Sacramento has been accused of biting a pet snake, leaving the python seriously hurt, police say.

Police were called to the northern part of the city on Thursday evening expecting to respond to an assault.

While officers were speaking to David Senk, 54, found lying at the scene, a witness accused him of taking two bites out of the snake.

The python is recovering after being given emergency surgery.

It was turned over to the city's Animal Care Services after losing a few ribs.

"She's doing well," Gina Knepp, acting animal care services manager, told the Sacramento Bee. "We did surgery on her last night and I think we saved her life."

Mr Senk was arrested on suspicion of unlawfully maiming or mutilating a reptile.

While in jail, Mr Senk told local media that he had no memory of the incident and that he had a drinking problem.

"I did what?" Mr Senk said. "If you find the owner, tell him I'm real sorry. ... I'm willing to help pay for medical expenses."

No owner has come forward to claim the python from Sacramento's Animal Care Services.

Ms Knepp said before the surgery that the bites on the three-foot snake were large enough to expose the animal's liver.

Woman Punches Black Bear in the Nose to Save Her DogYereth Rosen - thestar.com

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA—A 22-year-old Alaska woman says she punched a black bear in the face to save her small dog from being carried off and possibly eaten.

Juneau resident Brooke Collins said she hit the bear Sunday night to save the life of her dachshund, Fudge. She said she discovered the bear crouched down, clutching Fudge in its paws and biting the back of the dog's neck.

“It had her kind of like when they eat salmon,” Collins said Wednesday. “I was freaking out. I was screaming at it. My dog was screaming. I ran up to it . . . I just punched it right in the snout and it let go.”

Collins said her boyfriend then scared the bear away. “I think it was more startled than anything,” she said.

Collins, a hairdresser who has lived in Juneau most of her life, said she is accustomed to bears and knows how to take precautions around them.

She also knew about this particular bear before Sunday's attack because it has been hanging around the neighborhood.

In this case, however, Fudge darted out the door before anyone checked the vicinity, she said.

The dog, an older female, was not seriously hurt in the attack, but Collins said she is tending to the animal's wounds and keeping her inside for now. Collins said she is also taking other precautions with her second dog.

Black bears frequently roam the downtown section of Alaska's capital city, which rests against a steep mountain slope and is surrounded by a dense rain forest.

Bear encounters are on the rise this year, despite efforts by local residents to lock away garbage and remove items that might attract the animals, said Neil Barten, a Juneau-based biologist for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

“This year, I think, is a lot worse than last year. I would attribute that to lack of a berry crop,” Barten said.

Production of berries around Juneau has been poor this summer, removing a key food source from the bears' diets.

“If they are not available, the bears look for other sources of food,” he said.

Bears and dogs sometimes snarl at each other, but actual attacks on dogs are unusual, he said.

Collins said her dog Fudge has chased bears but never been attacked before.

The black bear she punched returned Tuesday, she said, because it was a trash pick-up day.

Possible Sighting of Jack the Cat at JFKabcnews.com

The elusive Jack the cat—missing at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport for the past eight days—may have been sighted today for the first time.

A woman named Deborah Burke Andre posted the following on the “Jack the Cat is Lost in AA Baggage at JFK” Facebook page: “I am an employee at JFK. Today I was driving by the long term parking lot when I spotted a cat that could have been this one. When I got out of my car to try and get a closer look, it ran towards the water edge.”

Jack’s network of over 12,000 Facebook supporters pounced on the tip and alerted American Airlines, which responded by saying they had expanded the search and would have an update soon.

The airline flew Karen Pascoe, Jack’s owner, back to New York from California this week to join the search for her pet. On Thursday, American Airlines acted on Pascoe’s suggestion and added a pet detective to the search.

Pascoe’s sister has been updating the Facebook page regularly and most recently wrote, “We’re all excited…please be patient, though. I’ll update as I find out ANY details at all…it’s frustrating for all of us, but Karen can’t talk to me and call for Jack at the same time.”

Jack has been missing since Pascoe was traveling from New York to California last Thursday. She dropped her two cats off in their kennels at baggage services and soon received a call from an American Airlines agent telling her that one of her cats was missing and they believed he was in the inbound baggage claim area.

The search came up empty and Jack has been missing ever since. Passionate supporters have vowed to renounce American Airlines unless the feline is found. The worried airline has been posting frequent updates on its Facebook.

“We understand that a cat is a beloved family member for so many, including many of our own employees, and we are doing our utmost to find Jack,” American Airlines wrote on its Facebook page Thursday night.

Toy Poodle Credited with West Jordan Fire Rescue By bob mims - sltrib.com

A dog is being credited with helping rescue a 19-year-old man during a house fire early Friday morning.

West Jordan Fire Battalion Chief Reed Sharman said the fire was reported at 3:10 a.m. when a passer-by saw flames coming from the side of a home at 3172 W. 8565 South.

A mother and two children made it out of the house before firefighters arrived, but her 19-year-old son was still inside. Sharman said it was the family’s dog, a toy poodle named Ted, who led emergency responders to the man.

“Two of our paramedics, Don Chase and Erik Andersen, had gone inside to search the structure, and when they opened the door, there was the dog. When they went to grab the dog, though, he ran downstairs,” Sharman said.

“He stopped on a landing, looked back at our guys, waited for them to catch up and then ran down to the next landing,” Sharman said.

The dog waited again for the paramedics to approach, then ran over to a basement couch where the man was found asleep. By that time, smoke had begun to fill the house.

Chase and Anderson woke the man and took him and the dog outside. The man was treated at the scene for minor smoke inhalation and released. The dog was uninjured — though “grumpy,” Sharman said.

Sharman said firefighters knocked down the flames within 10 minutes, but flames had gotten into the home’s ceiling and walls, causing an estimated $30,000 to $40,000 in damage.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation, but Sharman said a leaking gas meter on the side of the home may have been a factor.

Harbor, Black And Tan Coonhound, Named Living Dog With World's Longest Ears huffingtonpost.com

Harbor, a black and tan coonhound, has earned recognition from Guinness World Records as the living dog with the world's longest ears.

The 8-year-old pooch has a left ear that measures 12.25 inches and a right ear that measures 13.5 inches, according to the 2012 edition of the record book, which will be released Sept. 15.

Harbor's enormous ears have earned him plenty of fans, according to his owner Jennifer Wert, of Boulder, Colo.

But they can also be a burden. When the purebred was a pup, he used to trip over them and tumble down the stairs, a Guinness press release notes.

Today, passersby often take pictures of Harbor's droopy ears or give them a friendly tug when he's out for a walk.

"Most days I forget how oddly long his ears are," said Wert. "He's a phenomenon in the world and he creates smiles wherever we go."

Stolen Dogs, Gunshots Raise Suspicion of Dog-Fighting Ring in Western MaineBy Tony Reaves, Sun Journal

Avy, the dog stolen from Kyle Kilgore of West Paris.

WEST PARIS, Maine — Last month, Kyle Kilgore returned to his West Paris home after a few hours away to find one of his two dogs missing.

Avy, a 2½-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier, had been tied up in the front yard of his West Paris home. Her lead appeared to have been severed with bolt cutters.

Avy sometimes got loose and ran to the neighbors’ house, but the neighbors hadn’t seen her. A week later, a woman in Hartford found Avy’s body dumped on her lawn, wrapped in a tarp.

“They put her in a bag, wrapped her in a tarp, zipped the tarp shut and wrapped the cable around her,” Kilgore said. Avy was still wearing her collar.

Eight dogs have been reported missing or stolen this year in Woodstock, Sumner, West Paris and Hartford, Animal Control Officer Ozzie Hart said Thursday. Hart said he believes it’s related to a dog-fighting ring.

Most of the missing dogs have been pit bulls, Hart said, although one was a yellow Lab.

Hart said Kilgore’s dog appeared to have been shot through the head and had suffered tearing on her ears, but the body was too decomposed to tell how she died.

In addition to the dog thefts, Hart said he had heard reports of dogs barking and gunshots at night off Old County Road in Woodstock. He said those sounds are consistent with dog-fighting activities.

On Thursday, two people in the area called Hart and said they had seen trucks driving by the power lines and had heard gunshots and dogs at night. The reports have increased lately, and residents are reporting noise as often as three nights a week.

Hart said he believed the stolen dogs were being used as “bait dogs,” nonaggressive dogs used to train fighting dogs. Bait dogs are used to teach aggression in fighting dogs and are often mauled or killed in the process.

Kilgore said he still hadn’t told his youngest son that Avy’s body was found. Kilgore said when he picks up his 3-year-old from day care, he wants to go out looking for his dog.

“He tells me, ‘We have to go look for Avy,’” Kilgore said. “She was basically one of the kids.”

Kilgore said he got her at eight weeks and raised her himself. She was well-socialized and got along well with his children. “If there were any problems, she was right there with them.”

As far as his son knows, Avy ran off. “It really sucks to try to explain something like this to your kid,” Kilgore said.

“It’s not anything I would want anyone else to go through, that’s for sure,” he said.

Hart said he had heard reports of missing dogs since January, but until finding Avy, he hadn’t seen a connection. In January, a man lost his dog when a small, dark-colored truck stopped and a man threw the dog into the truck and took off.

Months later in Canton, a couple left their dog in the car when going into The Big Apple store. When they left the store, the dog was gone. In another case, a dog was missing but the dog’s collar was left in the yard.

Robert Larrabee, animal control officer for Oxford Hills towns, including Paris and Oxford, said he hadn’t received any reports of stolen dogs in the area. He said the thefts seem to be occurring in West Paris, Woodstock, Sumner and Hartford.

“I’m still shocked,” Kilgore said. “I just don’t see how someone could do that. I couldn’t imagine just riding around and looking for other people’s dogs.”

“I hope they catch them before I catch them,” he said.

At this point, dog-fighting is a suspicion, Hart said.

He said anyone who has seen strange activity or knows of people involved in dog-fighting in the area can call him at 357-2818. He said people involved in dog-fighting are armed and could be dangerous.

Watch Those Whiskers: They May Just Tell You What Your Pet is Thinkingprojo.com

You can’t read your pet’s mind, but you can watch for the signals he uses to show he’s happy, upset or just plain bored. AP / Jacquelyn Martin

Do you ever wonder what your pet is thinking? Dogs and cats communicate in a very specific way, and body language is part of it. Paying attention to how your pet is standing, the way his ears are, and how he’s looking at you, among other things, can help you understand how your dog or cat is feeling at that moment.

To help you better understand your pet’s communication, animal behaviorist Mary Burch of the American Kennel Club offers tips to decode your pet’s body language. Among them:

DOGS

Ears. When your dog is relaxed and not stressed, his ears will be in the natural position. When he becomes alert and starts watching something closely, his ears will be raised and turned toward whatever is holding his attention. If your dog’s ears are pulled back so far they are plastered to the sides of his head, he is submissive or afraid.

Eyes. Relaxed dogs have relaxed eyes — they will stay their normal size and shape. When your dog becomes stressed or scared, his eyes appear smaller and are not as wide open. If a dog gives you a direct stare, this could be a threat.

Mouth. Dogs that are relaxed usually have their mouths closed or open just a bit. If your dog is afraid, his mouth will be closed with his lips pulled back at the corners. Aggressive dogs will often pull back their lips to show their teeth.

CATS

Ears. If your cat’s ears are pointed forward, this shows friendly interest and that the cat is attentive. Ears that are standing up and turned slightly back mean that the cat is not happy.

Eyes. Cats’ eyes can tell you what they are thinking. When their eyes are wide open and looking at you, it means the cat is listening to what you are saying — this is not to be confused with a cat that is giving you a hard stare, which means leave him alone. A happy cat may blink a lot or have eyes that look like slits.

Whiskers. The way a cat holds its whiskers can reveal a lot. Shy cats will have their whiskers flattened out to the side of their faces. A cat that is tense, excited, or ready to attack will have whiskers that are forward and stretched out. A content, comfortable cat will have its whiskers forward, but they seem relaxed and are not fanned out.

American Kennel Club

Is Your Dog-Walker Cheating You?By Jill Rosen - The Baltimore Sun

With new device, people can check up on their dog-walker (VIKTOR DRACHEV/AFP/Getty Images)

I've heard horror stories about dog-walkers. People who hired a dog walker to come in every day to walk their pup, only to find out that the person took the money daily, but never touched the dog. Or the one about the woman who returned home from work once to find that the pup waiting there for her belonged to someone else.

People who hire dog-walkers trust that they will actually show up, actually take their dogs out -- and keep them out and moving for the amount of time paid for.

But that doesn't always happen.

A company has invented a device that effectively allows people to check-up on their dog-walkers.

Pet Check Technology claims to be the first software designed to do this.

It's supposed to work like this. Dog walkers scan a bar-code when they arrive, with a mobile phone. Customers get an alert with the scan. GPS then tracks where the walker goes with the dog. A departure scan lets the customer know when the walk ends.

It's not clear how someone would know that a dog-walker is actually walking the dog, though, and not just arriving at a house, scanning the device, and then walking aroung the block themselves. I suppose you have to trust if they make the effort to get to your home for a scan, they'll actually take the dog out. But who knows....

The company is marking the technology dog walking companies, as something to offer clients.

"As a long-time owner of a successful dog walking company, I saw first-hand how much my clients love their dogs, so I wanted to ensure that they could be fully-confident in the dog walking that they were paying for," Pet Check Technology founder Doug Simon said in a statement.

The technology is only available in California right now.

Djokovic Brings Poodle to U.S.petfinder.com

Superstition! It's a big part of sports. Athletes of all stripes are superstitious. Maybe you're a pitcher who doesn't talk about a no-hitter during a no-hitter. Maybe you're a goalie who doesn't shave his beard or change his socks during the playoffs. Maybe you're Wade Boggs, and had so many superstitions that you seemed mentally ill. Or maybe you're Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic, and you just want your best friend around when you play in the top tennis tournaments in the world.

Djokovic suffered a major bummer last month at Wimbledon when his poodle, Pierre, was denied entry to the UK by those dog-hating Brits. The tennis star had to play without his pooch by his side. Outrage! Luckily, now it's US Open time, and if there's one thing that's true about America, it's that we love our pets. That's probably why Djokovic was seen with Pierre last week in New Jersey, according to the New York Post. This is America, Jack. We're not about to tell the world's No. 1 tennis pro that he can't bring his companion animal with him across our borders. All dogs are welcome here! USA! USA!

Make Sure Your Pets are Vaccinated Against RabiesBy Chris J. Minnick - Lcsun-news.com

Getting your pet vaccinated against rabies is one of the easiest things you can do to protect your pets and your family from this serious and potentially deadly disease. A rabies vaccination is recommended for your pet every three years and in many cities and counties is required by law to have your pets vaccinated.

Last month, the Department of Health confirmed a cases of rabies in Portales when an unvaccinated pet dog from near Portales was attacked by an aggressive-acting skunk in early July, started showing signs of rabies last week and died at a veterinary hospital two days later.

A veterinarian suspected rabies and sent in diagnostic specimens that tested positive for rabies at the New Mexico Department of Health's Scientific Laboratory Division in Albuquerque. Family members, including several children, were exposed to the rabid dog's infectious saliva. Nine people have been identified who will need to receive rabies vaccine to prevent them from developing rabies. Another unvaccinated pet dog that was also bitten by the skunk will need to be destroyed.

Dr. Paul Ettestad, the Department of Health's public health veterinarian, said a skunk positive for rabies means that there are other skunks and potentially other wildlife in the area that also have rabies.

"Pet and horse owners need to protect their animals by having them up-to-date on their rabies vaccines. This will also help to protect their children and other family members from rabies if their horse, dog or cat tangles with a rabid animal," Ettestad said.

The following guidelines can help protect you and your family from rabies:

Keep pets on a leash at all times. Pets should be up-to-date on rabies vaccinations and wearing current license tags on their collar. If your cat or dog has been bitten or scratched, call your pet's veterinarian, even if the wound is superficial. Horses and other valuable livestock should be considered for rabies vaccination also, to protect them from wild rabid animals that may attack them.

Stay away from wild or unfamiliar animals. Do not attempt to feed, approach, or touch wild animals (alive or dead). Teach this important message to your children, and keep a close eye on your kids at all times.

If you see a sick or dead wild animal, or a wild animal acting abnormally in this area, report it to your local animal control authorities. Rabid animals may show no fear of people and may even seem friendly or become aggressive.

If you are bitten or scratched by a wild animal or a pet, The Department of Health recommends the following guidelines: Wash all wounds and contact areas thoroughly with soap and water; contact your physician immediately for evaluation (the Department of Health is available to physicians for consultation about rabies at (505) 827-0006); call the local animal control department to report the incident; provide them with an accurate description of the animal; try to keep the animal confined, but don't risk further injury if the animal is dangerous; keep children away from all animals involved in the incident

For more information about rabies visit the Department of Health website at http://nmhealth.org/ERD/HealthData/rabies.shtml.

Chris J. Minnick writes for the New Mexico Department of Health. Minnick can be reached at christopher.minnick@state.nm.us.

5 Rabbit Illnesses to KnowBy Samantha Johnson - hobbyfarms.com

Ensure your farm’s pet rabbits lead healthy lives by recognizing the signs of these common diseases.

To keep your pet rabbits healthy, learn the signs and symptoms of common rabbit illnesses. Courtesy iStockphoto/Thinkstock

Thankfully, rabbits are generally happy, hardy and healthy animals. But even if all of your rabbits are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at the moment, take some time to acquaint yourself with five illnesses that can affect your farm’s pet rabbits. Remember to always seek the advice of a qualified veterinarian with regard to medical ailments in rabbits; Rabbits USA magazine maintains a state-by-state list of rabbit-savvy veterinarians, or you can ask for recommendations from other rabbit owners in your area.

1. Pasteurella (Snuffles)
More commonly known as snuffles, pasteurella is generally characterized by the presence of nasal discharge, watery eyes, matted paws and sneezing. Caused by Pasturella multocida bacteria, this illness tends to manifest itself during or after stressful situations, so in addition to feeding rabbits a healthy diet and maintaining a clean rabbitry, prevention can include minimizing stress for your rabbits.

For affected individuals, treatment with antibiotics is sometimes recommended, though the efficacy is not guaranteed, as is often the case with chronic infections, where the bacteria have become entrenched in the rabbit’s bodily systems. More advanced forms of the disease might be treated with other medications or surgery. Snuffles can be easily transmitted from one rabbit to another; therefore, isolation of the infected rabbits is imperative to stop the spread of the illness.

2. Sore Hocks
Although most commonly seen in large or giant rabbit breeds, sore hocks can be problematic for any rabbit breed housed in less-than-sanitary conditions or kept in a hutch with a wire floor. Sore hocks is an infected ulceration of the foot pad, often caused by prolonged pressure of the rabbit’s feet against the cage floor. The problem can be prevented by providing floor mats, resting boards or nest boxes so that your rabbits have a comfortable place to rest. Additionally, toenails should be clipped short and hutches should be kept clean. Treatment for sore hocks can include antibiotics or anti-inflammatory medications, but you can consult a veterinarian about the possible use of foot wraps, calamine lotion or ointments, such as Neosporin or Preparation H.

3. Ear Mites
If you find a crusty, scabby substance on the inside of your rabbit’s ears, this is ear canker and is caused by ear mites. Other symptoms can include head shaking and intense scratching; hair loss is also occasionally seen. Ivermectin is a common treatment option, so ask your veterinarian for advice regarding dosage and frequency of treatment. Mineral oil—a drop or two in each ear, once a month—is an option for preventing an infestation of ear mites. An underlying infection may often accompany ear-mite symptoms, so always consult your rabbit-savvy veterinarian about treatment.

4. Heat Stroke
Heat stroke is a dangerous problem for rabbits, particularly those housed outdoors. Rabbits are extremely sensitive to elevated temperatures, and your outdoor rabbits will need ample protection in order to stay sufficiently cool during periods of hot weather. Protection from the sun, of course, is paramount, but so is continual access to fresh air and water . You can provide frozen water bottles for rabbits to lay next to and absorb the cold on hot days and a fan blowing near (but not directly on) your rabbits to help circulate cool, fresh air. By keeping your rabbits cool and comfortable, you’ll help prevent heat-induced illnesses. For a rabbit suffering from heat stroke, an immediate reduction in body temperature is necessary. Spray the rabbit with tepid water and immediately transport it to a veterinarian, who may need to treat the rabbit with IV fluids.

5. G.I. Stasis
Essentially a slowdown or stoppage of the digestive tract, gastrointestinal stasis is a dangerous and often fatal illness. Signs can include the failure to produce fecal droppings, a lack of appetite, failure to drink, a bloated abdomen and general listlessness. If your rabbit exhibits these symptoms, it should be immediately evaluated by a veterinarian. A range of treatment options for G.I. stasis includes surgery, oral fluids, free-choice hay, abdominal massage, and simethicone drops or tablets. The course of treatment will depend on whether an intestinal blockage is involved.

Prevention of G.I. stasis in your rabbits is ideal. Providing a diet high in fiber—including plenty of hay and a high-fiber pelleted feed—along with an unlimited supply of fresh water will go a log way to prevent this illness. Fresh greens can also be a beneficial addition to your rabbit’s diet, but introduce these slowly in order to avoid enteritis, an intestinal inflammation that causes diarrhea.

There are, of course, many other illnesses that can affect rabbits—mastitis, hutch burn, wry neck and coccidiosis, among others. It’s wise to acquaint yourself with the symptoms of a wide range of rabbit illnesses. By learning to recognize the symptoms of an unhealthy rabbit (lack of appetite, dull fur or fur loss, lethargy, increased respiration, teeth grinding, diarrhea, et cetera), you’ll be able to detect problems quickly and begin treatment immediately, giving your rabbits the best chance for recovery and a healthy, happy future.

About the Author: Samantha Johnson is the author of The Field Guide to Rabbits (Voyageur Press, 2008) and How to Raise Rabbits (Voyageur Press, 2009). She has been a rabbit enthusiast for nearly 20 years and resides in northern Wisconsin.

The Best Day Of Fishing Ever!Thanks to Bob in BHC, AZ

I've heard of salmon jumping into boats but DEER?

Four were pulled from the icy waters of Stephens Passage, Alaska , by a group of locals on Tom Satre's 62-foot charter vessel. Four juvenile Sitka black-tailed deer swam directly toward the boat.

Once the deer reached the boat, the four began to circle the boat, looking
directly at the humans on board. Clearly, the bucks were distressed. With
help, the typically skittish and absolutely wild animals came willingly onto
the boat. Once onboard, they collapsed with exhaustion, shivering.

Here the rescued bucks rest on the back of Tom Satre's boat, the Alaska
Quest. All four deer were transported to Taku Harbour . Once the group
reached the dock, the first buck that had been pulled from the water hopped
onto the dock, looked back, then leapt into the harbour, swam to shore, and
disappeared into the forest. After a bit of prodding and assistance from the
humans, two others followed suit, but one deer needed more help.

Here he is being transported by Tom Satre.

Tom, Anna and Tim Satre help the last of the "button" bucks to its feet.
They did not know how long the deer had been in the icy waters or if there had been others who did not survive. The good Samaritans (humans) describe their experience as "one of those defining moments in life." I'm sure it was for the deer, as well.

Kids N' Pets Part 2 (Photos)

2011-09-02T05:21:00.000-07:00

Dog Mourns at Casket of Fallen Navy SEAL firstcoastnews.com

Navy SEAL Jon Tumilson lay in a coffin, draped in an American flag, in front of a tearful audience mourning his death in Afghanistan. Soon an old friend appeared, and like a fellow soldier on a battlefield, his loyal dog refused to leave him behind.

Tumilson's Labrador retriever, Hawkeye, was photographed lying by Tumilson's casket in a heart-wrenching image taken at the funeral service in Tumilson's hometown of Rockford, Iowa, earlier this week. Hawkeye walked up to the casket at the beginning of the service and then dropped down with a heaving sigh as about 1,500 mourners witnessed a dog accompanying his master until the end.

The photo was snapped by Tumilson's cousin, Lisa Pembleton, and posted on her Facebook page in memory of the San Diego resident. Tumilson, 35, was one of 30 American troops, including 22 Navy Seals, who was killed when a Taliban insurgent shot down a Chinook helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade on Aug. 6.

"I felt compelled to take one photo to share with family members that couldn't make it or couldn't see what I could from the aisle," Pembleton wrote on her Facebook page. "To say that he was an amazing man doesn't do him justice. The loss of Jon to his family, military family and friends is immeasurable.''

Hawkeye was such a huge part of Tumilson's life that Tumilson's family followed the dog down the aisle as they entered the service in front of a capacity crowd in the gymnasium at the Rudd-Rockford-Marble Rock Community School. Hawkeye then followed Tumilson's good friend, Scott Nichols, as Nichols approached the stage to give a speech. As Nichols prepared to memorialize his friend, Hawkeye dutifully laid down near the casket.

The youngest of three children, Tumilson had wanted to be a Navy SEAL since he was a teenager. Friends and his two older sisters remembered a fearless soldier, and a Power Point presentation was shown that illustrated Tumilson's active life outside of the military, which included scuba diving, martial arts, and triathlons.

"If J.T. had known he was going to be shot down when going to the aid of others, he would have went anyway," friend Boe Nankivel said at the service.

"Your dreams were big and seemed impossible to nearly everyone on the outside," his sister, Kristie Pohlman, said at the service. "I always knew you'd somehow do what you wanted."

As for Hawkeye, the loyal Labrador will now be owned by Nichols, Tumilson's friend.

Dog Devours $10,000 Worth Of Diamondsklxy.com

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Worker theft is a big deal, especially in the jewelry business. So when $10,000 worth of diamonds went missing from a Georgia jewelry store, it caused a real stink.

Owners at John Ross Jewelers said a pack of loose diamonds went missing about two weeks ago, reported WALB-TV. They said they searched high and low, but eventually found the culprit in their midst.

It turned out Honey Bun, the store's pint-sized puppy greeter, gulped down the pricey treats. One of the store's co-owners, Chuck Roberts, said he took the pooch across the street for an X-ray and spotted the diamonds.

He said that when he went to meet a customer, he left a chair near his desk, allowing Honey Bun to hop up and chow down.

Roberts said he never scolded Honey Bun, since she was just doing what dogs do.

"It was my fault, leaving the chair there," said Roberts.

All of the diamonds were recovered from the lawn a day later.

Arizona Man Stuffs Snakes in His Pants, Flees StoreBy Alex Ferri, The Arizona Republic/usatoday.com

MESA, Ariz. – A man was arrested on theft charges after police said he was caught on video trying to steal an albino boa constrictor and other exotic reptiles by stuffing them down his pants.

Eric Fiegel, 22, was arrested at 3:40 p.m. Tuesday after police reviewed surveillance footage from a pet shop that shows a man stealing baby albino boa constrictors July 30 from Predator's Reptile Center in Mesa by placing them in his pants and exiting the store, according to police.

Police said he reportedly entered the store, removed several baby snakes from their cage, and exited without paying. He allegedly returned later in the evening and left with several more snakes hidden in his pants, police reported.

According to police, Fiegel then traveled to another pet store and traded several of the snakes for $175 and a large reptile tank valued at $175.

A witness obtained a license plate number which police used to locate Fiegel.

Fiegel was later positively identified from a police lineup by two witnesses and also from the surveillance footage that showed him placing the snakes in his pants, according to a police report.

A Tradition Ends as Bars Shut Their Doors to DogsBy MATT FLEGENHEIMER - nytimes.com

Christian Hansen for The New York Times / Miles, a 9-year-old boxer-pug mix, looks into Ace Bar in the East Village. Miles is very popular at Ace Bar and has been a regular there for many years. Mike Israely, Miles’s owner, said every time he walks Miles past the bar he goes up to the door, hoping to be let in.

His face has grayed there. Friends have come and gone. He never paid for a drink, but rarely walked out of the East Village bar with an empty stomach. He may have purged his dinner on the floor a time or two, his fellow bar patrons said, but who among them hadn’t done the same?

Over the past year, though, Miles has become the latest subject of what may be the city’s least funny running joke: A dog walks into a bar — and the health department threatens to issue a violation for allowing live animals in a food establishment.

“He’s a dog, but I swear he looks sad,” Mike Israely, 33, said of Miles, his 9-year-old boxer-pug mix, as the dog peered through Ace Bar’s glass doors Thursday night. “Coming here was part of our evening walk.”

Of course, it has always been a violation of the city’s health code to allow a dog anywhere near a beer tap. But for years, this has been one of the most widely — and gleefully — violated rules in the city.

Not any more.

Since the health department adopted a letter grade system for bars and restaurants last year, bar owners say, health inspectors are allowing no wiggle room for four-legged patrons.

The stricter enforcement is apparently bringing to an end a rich tradition of dog-friendly bars in New York.

“Bars are built around characters,” said Andrew Templar, an owner of Floyd NY in Brooklyn Heights, which received a violation notice after health inspectors twice observed dogs on the premises this summer. “Now it’s just people and their people problems.”

The health department issued 469 violations for live animals in food-service sites from July 1, 2010, to June 30, 2011, though the agency did not provide a breakdown of the different kinds of offending animals.

During inspections, many owners said they were surprised to learn that dogs were not allowed even in outdoor seating areas. Neither does a bar’s dearth of actual food products provide any cover. “Beer, wine and spirits have always been classified as food,” a department spokeswoman wrote in an e-mail. Only service dogs are permitted in spaces that serve food or drink of any kind.

Some bars evaded formal reprimand from the city with the help of fellow pubs. In the East Village, where many watering holes are known to be dog-friendly, word spread quickly when inspectors began to crack down.

“Everybody keeps asking when we can have dogs again,” said Justin Saunders, manager of Ace Bar on Fifth Street, which displays no fewer than six Snoopy-themed lunch boxes in its front room. “And every time Miles walks by, he tries to come in.”

The city’s history of dog-friendly establishments predates most of its bars. In the 19th century, saloons often housed dogs as security. Occasionally, the animals attracted crowds of gamblers, who wagered on how many penned rats a dog could kill in five minutes. (The record was 60, which New York’s champion terrier failed to break when he was dispatched to New Orleans in 1879 as the headliner of an event at Bison Williams’s Buffalo Bill House, said Christine Sismondo, the author of “America Walks Into a Bar.”)

Since Prohibition, some of the city’s oldest institutions have counted animals among their regulars. Dogs became signposts for “a proper neighborhood bar,” Ms. Sismondo said. “It proves you’re not one of those corporate B.Y.O.F. bars: bring your own friends.”

Chumley’s, which was once a speakeasy at 86 Bedford Street, retained its “old beer and wet dog” scent, Ms. Sismondo recalled, until a structural collapse forced its closing in 2007. Workers at McSorley’s Old Ale House said the storied bar rarely hosted dogs, but did keep a cat on the grounds from when it opened about 150 years ago until earlier this month, when the health department informed staff that Minie, a fixture for the last two years, would have to go.

And at P.J. Clarke’s in Midtown, a collie named Skippy, with an auburn coat and blackened tail, has held court for nearly a half-century. After the dog’s death in 1963, bar-goers pitched in to have him stuffed. Today, he sits, hind legs tucked in, eyes pulled wide, atop a ledge above the entrance to the handicapped bathroom. He shares the post with metal busts memorializing police officers and firefighters killed on 9/11, beside a placard that reads, “P.J. Clarke’s Remembers.”

A few bars continue to allow dogs, albeit discreetly. Nick Simons, 39, and his black Labrador, Biff, walked past bouncers without incident at an East Village bar last week.

At Fulton Grand in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn, many workers bring their animals, said Luke McDermott, co-owner of the bar. Patrons said they welcomed the guests, save for one hound with a howling habit.

“It’s the equivalent of a crying baby,” said Melissa Le, 36, from Prospect Heights. “The owner should know when a dog is fitting in with the environment.”

Workers at Urge Lounge, on First Street and Second Avenue, take care to ensure that new dogs are assimilated on arrival.

“We never turn any dogs away,” said Frankie Delessio, 30, a bartender. “Humans, yes.”

He pulled out his iPhone, with which he shot a video recently: a Jack Russell terrier, paws on the bar counter, head bobbing to the music, with a vodka tonic in a glass in front of him.

“It’s O.K.; he’s 3,” Mr. Delessio said. “That’s 21 in dog years.”

Whoopi Goldberg Adopts Kitten Thrown from Car in N.Y.C.By Amy Jamieson - peoplepets.com

Whoopi Goldberg and Vinny/Lou Rocco / Getty

A resilient kitten who survived being thrown from a moving car on New York City's Verrazano Bridge in July has found a permanent home with Whoopi Goldberg.

The View cohost announced on her Facebook page Monday that she adopted the Russian blue cat named Verrazano, whose survival story tugged at heartstrings when he visited the talk show in July.

"For all of you who remember me on The View meeting Verrazano," she wrote, "I adopted him and I was finally able to take him home."

When the kitten was just 5 weeks old, an unidentified person tossed the cat from the window of a moving car on the bridge. Luckily, animal control officer Brendon Ocasio saw it happen and rescued the cat from the busy roadway.

Now nicknamed Vinny, the feline is settling well into his new digs but has one more challenge to overcome: Goldberg's other cat, Oliver.

"Oliver's not too happy but, Vinny is having the time of his life," she said. "I think he'll get Oliver to come around sooner than later."

7 Secrets Of A Happy Cat by Michelle Mawson - patch.com

Solitary or inquisitive, whatever your cats purrsonality, he has needs that must be met to be a truly happy cat.

Litter box: A clean litter box equals a happy cat. Twice a day scooping is ideal. A cat's sense of smell is infinitely more sensitive than a human’s is. A large, roomy litter box placed in a quiet area will allow even the most reluctant cats a place to do their business.

Scratching post or pad: Keep your cat’s claws happy with a few scratching post or pads located strategically around your home. Rub with catnip and place in front of furniture your cat likes to scratch. Most cats like to exercise their claws after eating or napping.

Declawing: A happy cat has claws. Claws are necessary for protection, balance, and to stretch the muscles in a cats legs, shoulders, back and paws. Declawing can cause back pain due to the altered conformation of the cat's feet and the way it strikes the ground at an unnatural angle. The claw is not like a human fingernail; it is part of the last bone (distal phalanx) in a cat's toe.

Mental stimulation: Cats often sleep up to 20 hours a day, and when they're awake, they have excess energy to burn. Toys help by providing an item to stalk or pounce on. A window is an excellent place to watch birds and dream.

Flea control: Cats cannot tell you if they have a health problem, but their behavior can. If your cat is scratching incessantly, you most likely have a flea problem in your home. A flea control product can stop a flea infiltration before it even starts. Advantage and Frontline are two excellent products that control fleas with a monthly application.

Food: By choosing a well-balanced brand of cat food and following the manufacturer's instructions on portion size, you can keep your cat at a healthy weight. An occasional treat is OK and definitely appreciated by your kitty. A healthy weight will help your cat to avoid medical problems.

Love and attention: The most important of all, your cat craves this the most. Cats don't experience human emotion but can show their "cat" love to you in a variety of ways. Head butting, also called bunting, is a cats way of saying, "Pet me." By petting your cat frequently each day, you can make him or her very happy and also detect physical changes. For shy cats, gentle handing goes a long way toward building a loving bond.

Picture Perfect Pet: WillieBy Joe Noga, cleveland.com

Willie

Owner: The Garvey family

Breed: Cavachon

Dines on: Blue Buffalo dog food

Favorite treat: “Pupperoni and anything someone else is eating.”

Best trick: “Baby monkey — he puts his front legs on your arm and looks under it, giving the appearance of a baby monkey hanging from a limb.”

Favorite activities: “Overzealous greeting of family, going for walks and looking out the window.”

What would you change about your pet: “Nothing, we think he is perfect.”

Kids N' Pets Part 2Thanks to Bob in BHC, AZ

Give me a sense of humor, Lord,
Give me the grace to see a joke,
To get some humor out of life,

and pass it on to other folks.

The Best Way for Your Dog to be Social ~ Dogbookby Lori Thomas - allpetnews.com

With almost one million monthly users to date, Dogbook has become one of the most popular ways for dogs and their owners to interact with other dog owners and their furry friends. The application, available through Facebook, is sort of like a virtual dog park, without the barking and necessary clean up! Dogbook allows you to create a profile for your dog, tag your dog in photos, find dogs in your area, ask questions about dog ownership, and so much more.

A father-son duo originally came up with the idea for Dogbook, with a purpose of having the ability to keep all of the happy memories they create in our lives in one place. Its companion application, Catbook, offers the same benefits and fun, only its an entire world of cats and cat owners! Father, Geoffrey Roche, of Toronto and son Alexandre wanted to create a place where pet owners could join a community of other people who truly love their dog or cat. “I had noticed on my son’s Facebook that friends of ours had posted pictures of a dog as if it was a person, and I thought that was kind of interesting,” said Roche.

Any Facebook user can use the Catbook and Dogbook applications to make a profile for a pet. Profiles can include a primary photo with room for additional photos, as well as including the breed, sex, age, hometown, activities and favorite treats, much like a human’s Facebook profile. Pets can ask other pets to be “friends”, with the request needing to be approved like Facebook friend requests.

Geoffrey and Alexandre never expected the applications to become so popular, but its really no surprise with the number of pet lovers in the world. To have a place to post photos of your pet where other pet lovers will appreciate them, comment on them, and show love to your pet, the applications are sure to continue growing and adding features, just like human Facebook profiles do.

Does your pet already have a profile on Dogbook or Catbook?

Hints From Heloise: Pets Break Out of Saturday SlotBy Heloise, washingtonpost.com

Dear Readers: You have spoken! Recently, when asked about a possible update to the Heloise Saturday pet column that has been running a long time, you responded! I wanted to know if you would like to keep the column all animal- and pet-related, or a mixture of hints, with pet hints spread throughout the week. Read on for a very small sample of your feedback:

* My feelings about having the “pet day” on Saturday is -- don’t change a thing. For my wife and me, Saturday usually is a laid-back, restful day. It’s an opportunity to better appreciate our pets and other animals in our lives. -- Walter in Spearfish, S.D.

Heloise, I love your column and especially look forward to your pet column. I can’t think of anything that will make it better than it already is. Please keep it going. You do an excellent job! (Jenna, my dog, loves it, too!) -- Pam, via e-mail

* I say to keep the pet column. I get it on Saturdays in the Little Rock, Ark., paper, and I look forward to it because I am an animal lover and have three dogs and two cats. But if you do go scattering pet hints throughout your columns, fine. -- M.J. in Arkansas

* I would love to see everyday household hints in the pet column! I don’t have pets, and while I read you anyway, it would be terrific if you spread things around so we all get something we’re interested in. Thanks for asking; I never thought of writing you with my thoughts! -- Bonnie in New Hampshire

* I love pets as much as the next person, but I really don’t like an entire column devoted to pet hints. Thanks for the opportunity to speak out. -- Judy in Pennsylvania

* Spread the pet hints around -- we don’t just love our pets on Saturdays. GREAT idea! -- Betty in Benton, Ark.

Betty, I think you said it perfectly! We do love our pets all week long. So, next week you will see the new Saturday column. You’ll find your pet hints, and hints from the Heloise files, spread out through the week. However, the very popular Pet Pal (see below) will remain here, and as always the Pet of the Week photo is on my Web site at www.Heloise.com.

Please know that this is your column, too. I welcome your thoughts and input. Keep sending your pet hints to share with my millions of readers who, like me, think of our animal friends as part of the family! Cabbie, our mini schnauzer, concurs and says, “Woof, woof, send in those hints to help keep us happy, safe and secure.” -- Heloise

PET PAL

Dear Readers: Connie in Stoutsville, Ohio, sent a picture of her cat, Princess, INSIDE her purse. Connie says Princess really “gets into” watching over it. A guard dog, yes, but a guard cat? To see Princess, go to www.Heloise.com. -- Heloise

Send a hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Tex. 78279-5000, fax it to 210-HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com. Please include your city and state.

Will My Cat Be Territorial Around a New Cat?By Marilyn Krieger, catchannel.com

Q: I have a 1- to 2-year-old indoor male cat whom we’ve had since he was a kitten, and I’d like to adopt a 2- to 3-year-old female cat. Do you think my cat will be able to adjust? My husband is afraid my cat will start spraying to be territorial I really would like to adopt a cat.

A: Some cats do very well with new cat companions — other cats enjoy being the king of their households. If your resident cat has enjoyed the company of other cats, then it will be easier to introduce him to a new, friendly cat companion. When searching for a new cat to adopt, look for one who has a history of successfully living with at least one other male cat.

Before introducing the cats to each other, bring the newcomer to your cat veterinarian for a medical evaluation. Also, make sure that both cats are spayed/neutered and current on their vaccinations.

Gradual and stress-free introductions will encourage the cats to tolerate each other and possibly become friends. It may take a few weeks or a few months to introduce cats to each other. First, give the new cat her own sanctuary room, where no other resident animals are allowed. Confining the new cat to one room will help her feel secure and encourage her to bond with you. Keeping the cats separated for about 10 days helps keep them both healthy, just in case one of the cats has an upper respiratory infection or another contagious disease.

Equip the new cat’s room with a litterbox, food, water and a comfortable place to sleep. A secure window to look out, interactive toys and a cat tree or window perch will help your new cat adjust faster to her new home.

Start introducing the cats to each other about 7-10 days after you bring the new cat home. There are four phases to cat introductions. The phases encourage the cats to get to know each other one scent and one activity at a time, without their physically meeting each other. Each phase can last a few days or a week or longer, depending on how the cats are relating to each other through the specific activities.

In addition to the gradual introductions, place horizontal scratchers, scratching posts and vertical territory, such as cat trees, throughout the house. One way cats mark territory is by scratching. There are scent glands located on the bottom of their paws that broadcast information about them when they scratch. The vertical territory will also help keep the peace since the cats will use the different heights to demonstrate their places in their flexible hierarchy.

One of the most difficult parts of introducing cats to each other is the cat’s people resisting the urge to hurry the introductions. Be patient and do not rush through the introductions stages. Cat introductions done too quickly can have disastrous results.

Robo-Rover? California Bill Would Require Microchips Implanted in Petsby Daniel B Wood - csmonitor.com

The grain-of-rice size microchips, implanted between the shoulders, hold an owner's name and address. Animal-rights activists hail the bill as a way to reunite lost pets with their families.

Jacob Miller scans a cat for a microchip at the East Valley Animal Shelter in the Van Nuys section of Los Angeles on July 20. California is considering a bill to make pet microchipping mandatory for pets collected or purchased from shelters. Richard Vogel/AP

In a move backers say will greatly reduce the $300-million-per-year California taxpayers pay for housing and euthanizing stray animals, the state Assembly has passed the nation’s first mandatory microchipping-of-pets bill.

If signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown, Senate Bill 702 would take effect Jan. 1, 2012, and require dogs and cats to have an identifying microchip about the size of a grain of rice implanted beneath the skin between their shoulders when they are adopted from a shelter or when lost animals are claimed by their families.

Animal-rights groups applaud the move as a way to save lost pets that otherwise might be destroyed.

“Every year, shelters in California impound more than 1 million dogs and cats – and then euthanize more than half of these animals because they could not be reunited with their owners,” says the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Ted Lieu.

“Nationwide, this costs local taxpayer-funded shelters and humane societies $1 billion. This has to stop,” says Senator Lieu.

He emphasized that the bill, if signed, doesn’t mean that every dog and cat owner has to immediately go out and have this done, but rather only when picking up a lost pet at a shelter or adopting one from there. Microchipping can cost from $5 to $50, but this fee is often donated or waived.

An American Veterinary Medical Association study found that 73 percent of microchipped pets are likely to find their way home from a shelter. In California, only 11 percent are making their way home now, data suggest.

“The reason this needs to be a state function rather than a local one is that people pick up strays and take them home and drop them off at the local shelter, whereas the owners are looking for the pet in their own community,” says Judie Mancuso, president of Social Compassion in Legislation, which targets pet overpopulation.

Once the chip is implanted in the animal, an electronic wand can be passed over the area, giving a readout of the owner’s name, phone number, and address. This is superior to a collared name tag, the bill's advocates say, because both tag and collar can come off and be lost.

An important next step will be to create data banks where people who move can send their new contact information, says Ms. Mancuso. “If we keep the databases updated, there is no reason why the return rate can’t reach 100 percent,” she says.

Some animal activists say all microchips are not created equal – one reader may not be able to read the microchip of another reader. So if all dogs have implants from the same manufacturer, then the system works perfectly. But if an owner moves from California to a state that is using another manufacturer, the dog might have to go through the process again.

Some of these concerns are being addressed. Jennifer Fearing, California senior state director for the Humane Society of the United States, says many chip companies will register pets with any brand of chip, and the American Microchip Advisory Council is working to develop a network of the registry databases to streamline the return of pets to their families.

Overall, the idea has been well received.

Craig Wheeland, a professor of public administration at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, says the issue has broad relevance. In Delaware County near Philadelphia, he notes, the county Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals announced that its shelter will be a “no-kill” facility and that it would no longer accept stray animals from the county’s 49 municipalities.

“Although the municipalities had one year’s notice, they are still struggling to find an affordable solution," he says. "California may be one of the states to lead in mandating the use of microchip technology to manage humanely animal populations."

Four Tips to Fight Cat ScratchingBy Kristina Lotz - catchannel.com

Point your cat's paws in the right direction (away from your furniture) and teach him to use the scratching post.

Cats like cat posts with more height than horizontal space, although you wouldn't know that from the way they enjoy scratching your sofa.

You love your cat, but he has decided your Italian leather couch, Persian rug or designer drapes are the perfect place to scratch and stretch his paws. You finally broke down and bought one of those ugly cat trees, only to find the cat still prefers the Italian leather (you can’t blame him for having good taste). But before you take your cat to the cat shelter or get your cat declawed, try these simple tips to redirect your cat’s behavior to what we humans deem is a more appropriate place.

In an episode of dog training series "It’s Me or The Dog," Victoria Stilwell helped a woman who contemplated declawing her cat because it wouldn’t use her cat scratcher. I decided Stillwell might be a good source for information, and I caught up with her over the phone. She is in New York City filming the eighth season of "It’s Me or The Dog," premiering sometime early 2012. Humble and sweet, she says she’s a dog expert, but pet behavior follows some universal rules and she did have some great tips for cats.

Tip 1: Manage the Environment
Stilwell explained that it’s not bad behavior, it’s behavior that we want directed toward something we feel is appropriate, i.e. the cat scratcher, instead of the couch, carpet or molding. “Humans need to think about what the cat needs and then give him an appropriate outlet for that need,” she said. “In the beginning, it may be necessary to close off certain parts of the house until the cat has learned to scratch on the appropriate item. Covering items with tinfoil, though not my favorite, also works because cats won’t like the feel of it on their claws.”

Tip 2: Choices
Just like all finicky felines, your cat will have one type of material that it feels is the fillet mignon of materials. For some posh cats, this might be your leather sofa, while others may savor your soft cashmere blanket or have carpet cravings. Stilwell’s cat, Angelica, liked the feel of plain wood but not carpet. Nowadays, you can get very modern looking cat furniture that will fit in with your décor and comes with a variety of scratching materials including wood, grass, cardboard, carpet, sisal etc.

The size and shape may also come into play. Carob Hibner, owner of Primo Petcare in Auburn, Wash., told me, “A cat post with height is more appealing than one that is horizontal or less than twice the height of your cat's length.” Keep in mind that if you have more than one cat, they may have different tastes in scratchers. A good tip would be to pay attention to what they are scratching in your home. For example, if she is clawing the carpet, buy a carpeted tree. If you are unsure, you may have to buy several scratchers of varying materials, shapes and heights, to determine which one your cat gravitates toward.

I found more modern cat trees and scratchers online and at some boutique pet stores, as opposed to the big box stores. Also, some stores will take back an unused cat tree, so ask about return polices prior to purchasing. Otherwise, donate your unused tree(s) to a local cat shelter. It is tax deductible and you will improve the life of a homeless cat.

Tip 3: Placement
Just like with your cat’s litterbox, placement of the cat scratcher is very important. “If you place it in an area with a lot of traffic, human or animal, the cat won’t want to use it,” Stilwell explained. “Place it somewhere the cat can have some privacy and they will be more likely to use it.” After all, cats have to keep their dignity, and that would be totally gone if you saw them going crazy like a kitten over something as silly as a piece of cardboard attached to some wood!

Tip 4: Attract the Cat
Cats, like dogs, respond to positive reinforcement. Stilwell recommends using positive reinforcement such as treats and praise, as soon as your cat scratches the cat tree. She also mentioned placing treats, catnip or thyme around the cat tree to encourage your cat to go over to it. You can also try engaging your cat with a feather dangling over the cat scratcher. When the cat stretches his claws to get the feather and gets the scratcher instead, reward him with praise and treats.

My local pet store’s aid include sticky mats to put over whatever your cat is scratching and claw caps, rubber covers for your kitty’s claws. I have used these in the past and found they are very affective. If you are not sure about putting these on yourself, your local groomer or vet will most likely do it for you. You want your kitty to be happy and to be happy a cat needs to stretch and sharpen those claws. Hopefully these tips will allow your kitty to do just that, without shredding your décor.

Gary Bogue: How Do You Lose a Cat INSIDE Your House?By Gary Bogue - Contra Costa Times

cool evening

the snail takes a shortcut

across the sidewalk

-- haiku by Jerry Ball, Walnut Creek

Lost in space

I thought you'd get a kick out of this.

My friend Dodie has a little kitty named Pixel visiting her house in Pleasanton. Dodie also has a couple of resident indoor cats, which of course freaked out Pixel ... who decided the best way to deal with these new beasts was to find a place to hide.

And so the fun begins.

Pixel disappeared.

I will share with you, now, a few excerpts from e-mails I've received from Dodie over the last few days:

Poor little Pixel looked for places to hide. After dinner, I decided Bill and I should try to locate her.

We have spent close to two hours hunting. I had most of the house closed off.

We had opened and checked inside every kitchen cabinet and appliance. Upended all the upholstered furniture to make sure there wasn't a hole in that bottom fabric that might let her get up inside.

We even went into the living room, even though it is blocked off from cat access, and upended the sleeper sofa, having once had a cat hide up inside. I even pulled out the washer and dryer to make sure she couldn't get in underneath them from the back.

I may or may not have mentioned checking all the kitchen cabinets, repeatedly, the freezer drawer on the fridge, moving the massive television
(yes, we still have a big honking tube) so we could see under the stand from the back.

As we're sitting here trying to calm down, we hear a strange noise, so Bill has me go look.

The bottom drawer in the bathroom vanity was pulled out. As I went to push the drawer shut, I spotted a paw. Turns out with the bottom drawer pulled out some, a cat can squeeze behind the drawer and into a space under the entire vanity cabinet.

We have now left the drawer pulled completely out so she can come and go as she pleases.

Well, until we spot her out and about and then that drawer will be put back into place and taped shut, along with all the other drawers in the stack.

Thanks for the use of your e-mails, Dodie. Very helpful.

Ah, yes ... memories of the time my dear old Maine coon cat Newman, all 18 pounds of him, somehow squeezed his bulky, long-haired frame into the 3-inch space under the couch and up into the small space inside the couch arm.

Missing for two days, after I first brought him home from ARF, we searched high and low, just like Dodie, pulling out every drawer, tipping over things, etc., etc., etc.

I put food and water bowls in every room, figuring he'd come out from where he was hiding sooner or later to eat and drink.

Then, on the second day while watching TV, I heard a funny, faint "Merrow" nearby. Finally, although I couldn't believe it possible, Karl and I decided to tip over the couch. We found a TINY hole at the bottom of the couch arm with a tuft of black hair sticking out!

We pulled off all the padding on the bottom of the couch arm ... and there was Newman ... wide eyes like twin yellow moons ... jammed (somehow) up into the arm of the couch ... peering out to see who had come a-calling.

I figured if anybody out there has a similar situation in the future, the above information might give you some ideas of where to hunt should your cat go missing inside your house.

I recommend clipping out today's column and sticking it on your refrigerator door, just in case.

As Dodie sighed in relief, I suspect, after finally finding Pixel, she remarked: "Never underestimate a motivated cat."

Another “Dog-Friendliest” List Falls Flatohmidog.com

About four months ago, I gave Petside.com a hard time for choosing Dallas as the second-most dog friendly city in America — this just after the Big D bestowed the key to the city on Michael Vick.

My point — and I did have one — was that a city’s dog friendliness is, or should be, based on more than mathematical formulas that tally how many groomers, pet boutiques, veterinarians, etc., it has per capita.

Now, along comes Dog Fancy magazine with its picks — based on similar criteria — for the five dog-friendliest cities in 2011.

Among them: Santa Cruz, Calif., which for 33 years has banned dogs from part of its downtown area.

True, the ban — finally — has been lifted, conditionally, effective this week. And true, there are other very dog-friendly parts of Santa Cruz, including some beaches, and plenty of fine services as well. But a city that has banned dogs from its main drag for three decades being chosen as among the dog-friendliest in the nation?

Were I one of the other cities vying for the honor, I’d have a bone to pick with that.

The world’s most widely read dog magazine, as Dog Fancy calls itself, named Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, the winner of the 2011 DogTown USA competition, saluting it as America’s most dog-friendly city.

While we couldn’t agree more with Dog Fancy’s top choice last year — Provincetown, Mass., as we showed you during our travels, is indeed highly dog friendly — we have some trouble with this year’s selections.

The other three cities in the top five were Bend, Oregon; Knoxville, Tenn.; and Doylestown, Pa., where, earlier this month, a dog was found to have been given poisoned hot dogs and shot 32 times — allegedly by his owner, the golf course superintendent — while tied to fence of the Doylestown Country Club.

The acts of one deranged person shouldn’t blow a city’s chance at being proclaimed “dog-friendliest,” but we do think the number of animal cruelty cases that surface in a city should be a small part of any formula assessing dog friendliness.

The criteria used to select winners in the Dog Fancy contest — sponsored by Natural Balance Pet Foods and Wahl Clipper – include the amount of dog-friendly open spaces and dog parks, veterinarians, pet supply stores and other services, events celebrating dogs and their owners, and municipal laws that support and protect pets.

“Journalist Barbara Walters has saluted Coeur d’Alene as one of her favorite cities, calling it a little slice of heaven,” Dog Fancy Editor Ernie Slone said in announcing the results — though, Barbara being human, what the heck that has to do with anything I don’t know.

“What we discovered is that whether a dog likes a place to run and hike, loves to mingle downtown, or needs a new home, dogs and their owners have it made in Coeur d’Alene, a little slice of dog heaven.”

Slone traveled to Coeur d’Alene to present $5,000 to the Kootenai County Dog Park Association. Additionally, Natural Balance Pet Foods will donate 1,000 pet food meals to Kootenai Humane Society on behalf of Coeur d’Alene, and 500 pet food meals to each of the regional winners.

Given all that, I don’t want to totally disrespect these lists and the organizations that put them together, but I will suggest that they are not as much about truth or reality as they are about politics, public relations and sales.

Kids N' Pets Part 1 (Photos)

2011-08-27T03:54:00.000-07:00

The Amazing Bionic DogBy Tyrus Cukavac - scholastic.com

Meet the world’s first dog with four artificial paws

Naki’o uses his mechanical paws to jump and play like other dogs. (Christie Tomlinson / IncredibleFeatures.com)

Check out Naki’o—he can run, jump, and play catch! Since Naki’o is a dog, that may not seem remarkable. But Naki’o lost all four paws as a puppy. Now, with four artificial limbs created by a veterinary company in Colorado, he can move and play like any other dog. He is the first dog ever to have four artificial paws.

Naki’o’s first human family abandoned him as a puppy when they left their home. During the winter, his paws froze in a puddle of water. Frostbite, or damage to the skin from extreme cold, left only stubs at the end of his legs.

A veterinary surgeon named Christie Tomlinson found Naki’o in a Colorado animal shelter and adopted him. As a puppy, he was able to play and walk around. But as he grew bigger and heavier, his damaged feet could not support his weight. He had to slide around on his belly to move.

Then Tomlinson learned about OrthoPets. OrthoPets is a company that creates prosthetics, or artificial limbs, for animals. Martin Kaufmann, one of the founders, used to make prosthetics for humans.

Nakio’s new paws are designed to “replicate [copy] the muscle and bone structure of the dog’s natural limbs, and so allow him to do everything a normal dog would be able to do,” OrthoPets said in a statement.

Tomlinson raised money to give Naki’o two new back paws. OrthoPets was so impressed by Naki’o’s adjustment to his new limbs that they built his front paws for free. “An animal is a much better patient than a human,” says Kaufmann. “They have drive, determination, and they just won't quit.”

Now, Naki’o runs and jumps with all the other dogs. Tomlinson is happy to see him on his paws again. “Naki’o can now not only chase after a ball with other dogs, but he can beat them to the catch!” she says.

Utah Pet Found 750 Miles From Home Eight Months After Disappearingfoxnews.com

SALT LAKE CITY – Eight months after disappearing from her Salt Lake City home, two-year-old Miniature Pinscher Fadidle was Saturday reunited with her owner, after being found 750 miles (1,200km) away.

The beloved pet was found in San Diego, the Deseret News reported, but thanks to a microchip the dog's owner, Sharalyn Cooper, was tracked down and they were reunited.

Cooper said Fadidle vanished last October, and after months of scouring the neighborhood, posting fliers and diligently checking animal shelters, she had given up hope of seeing the small brown dog again.

Athena Davis, an employee at the San Diego Humane Society, said the dog was brought to them by a Good Samaritan and was at first believed to be a stray.

Davis said that the microchip made all the difference and recommended that everyone with a pet get one. In this case, it led to the "happy ending."

Given the distance involved Cooper believes Fadidle was probably stolen.

"I would love to hear what she has to say about this whole thing," Cooper said.

Dog Thefts on the Rise Across the Nationabcnews.com

Dognappings have risen 49 percent in the country in the past year, Lisa Peterson, communications director for the American Kennel Club, told "Good Morning America."

Dogs have been stolen from pet stores, from breeders and from right under their owners' noses at home. Some of the brazen thefts have even been caught on tape.

John Husky and Dina Martinez of Venice, Calif., felt the effects of this growing trend firsthand.

The couple were devastated when their 4-month-old dog, Mr. James Brown, went missing.

"We were really concerned this wasn't going to end well," Husky said.

The pair decided to hire a detective – Annalisa Berns of the California-based pet search company Pet Search and Rescue – to recover their beloved pet. Berns brought in a search dog, which followed Mr. James Brown's scent to the fence, after which the trail vanished.

This story had a happy ending. A reward was offered and the dog was returned, but not every case ends so well.

"Most people, over 80, 90 percent, they can get their pets back on their own if they know what to do, they don't need the search dogs," Berns said. "The biggest prevention tip is a collar and tags, hands down it's the easiest, simplest, most inexpensive thing that you can do and really have that increase your chances of getting your dog back safe."

Protect Your Pet
The American Kennel Club also recommends that dog owners have their pets fitted with microchip. It's a simple procedure in which a tiny chip programmed with an ID number is embedded just below the animal's skin. The ID number corresponds to a database containing pet owners' contact information.

Most vets and shelters have equipment to scan a dog for microchips.

China's 'Cat Army' Fights RatsVOA News

A cat plays on a discarded sofa in a dump in Shenyang in northern China's Liaoning province (file photo).

A remote west China city is rounding up stray cats and putting them to work catching rats that infest pasture lands.

China's official Xinhua news agency says around 150 strays, dubbed by the media as the "cat army," were turned loose on the range lands outside the city of Bole in May to fight what the local government called a plague of rats.

The local government said in late June that rat holes had decreased by more than half.

Rodents and other pests have grown more numerous as a result of overgrazing and killing off natural predators like foxes.

What Can I Do About Someone Publicly Abusing Their Pet?animalleague.org

Q: Hello,
I want to know if I see somebody abusing their pet, like beating or pushing the animal by force, somewhere like in the subway, street, what can I do for the poor animal? Even if I know somebody that is abusing their pet what can I do?!? It is very bad to see and have no right to do anything.

A: Cruelty to animals is against the law. Contact the Ontario SPCA if you are aware of cruelty to an animal. You can also contact your local police department. People who observe an animal (or person for that matter) being injured in their presence, often get involved to stop the abuse.

Submitted by Sanaz, Ontario, Canada
Answered by Elinor Molbegott

London Riots: Police Dog Suffered Fractured Skullbbc.co.uk

A Metropolitan Police dog is recovering after suffering a fractured skull when rioters pelted officers with missiles in north London.

Obi, a three-year-old German shepherd, was on frontline duties in Tottenham on 6 August when he was injured.

His handler, PC Phil Wells, said they came under "heavy bombardment" with bottles, bricks and petrol bombs being thrown, and a brick hit Obi.

PC Wells said Obi had been signed off until he fully recovers.

Riot officers were called to Tottenham High Road when trouble flared following a peaceful march in protest at the fatal shooting by police of Mark Duggan.

Bleeding nostril

PC Wells said: "We were on a stationary point when we came under heavy bombardment.

"There were lots of missiles coming at us, bottles, bricks, petrol bombs, street furniture, too many to count and one hit Obi on the top of the head."

PC Wells checked the dog over, who he said seemed fine, and they stayed on duty for several hours.

But afterwards it became clear he needed veterinary treatment.

"He was lethargic and was bleeding from the left nostril which could be a sign of head trauma so he was taken to the vets and assessed," said PC Wells.

Best friend

He was transferred to The Queen's Veterinary School Hospital in Cambridge for a CT scan which showed he had a fractured skull above the left eye socket.

Obi has lived in Surrey with PC Wells, his wife Laura and two children since he was a puppy.

The officer said it was very emotional to see him lying injured at the vets.

"Although he is not a pet - he is a working dog - when he is at home it is family time and he is part of our family.

"To see your best friend and work colleague get injured while at work is difficult but he is getting a lot support from everyone and he will be back fighting fit."

He said all eight dogs in his unit on duty in Tottenham High Road that night suffered cut paw pads from broken glass and debris and some suffered cuts and broken teeth.

Back to School: 10 Worst Classroom Pets by Anissa Ford - huliq.com

It's back to school time and teachers looking for creative ways to keep kids entertained and educated on the circle of life should avoid these classroom pets.

For back to school tips, PetMD compiled a list of the top ten pets that should be kept out of any classroom.

10. Snakes
They don't shed, aren't noisy and, if you keep their habitat clean, don't emit a strong odor either. So, why don't snakes make good classroom pets? Their unpredictable temperament (especially when molting) can result in aggressive behavior towards inquisitive children. Most importantly, being reptiles, snakes have been known to transmit salmonella.

9. Ferrets
These carnivorous members of the weasel family fall under the category of exotic (read: more expensive to care for) pets. Plus, they have a strong odor even after their musk glands have been removed. Generally, ferrets have excitable and aggressive dispositions. Even well-trained, they have a tendency to nip when they feel threatened. Overall, ferrets and small children are not a good combination.

8. Birds
If children in your classroom suffer from allergies, you might think a bird would be a good fit -- but birds shed dander. They're also messy and noisy. Birds bite if handled too much, especially if they're not being handled gently. Also, all that classroom noise and activity isn't very peaceful; a nerve-wracked bird will pluck out its feathers. Finally, they can transmit bird diseases like parrot fever and salmonella.

7. Rabbits
It is a myth that children and rabbits go well together. Rabbits don't like kids. Thinking pet rabbits are safe for young children is one of the biggest mistakes teachers make when picking a classroom pet. Rabbits don't like to be handled and retaliate by biting or scratching with their strong hind legs. The House Rabbit Society has a downloadable PDF listing the criteria for keeping a rabbit as a classroom pet. Unfortunately, many don't meet the standard, especially in providing a peaceful environment.

6. Frogs
Raising a frog to adulthood from the tadpole stage, or keeping an adult frog in a class full of young children is appealing but misguided. Why don't frogs make good classroom pets? Younger children will want to handle and pet the amphibian and that poses a considerable risk for transmission of salmonella.

5. Hamsters
They're low maintenance and take up virtually no room, which makes this "starter pet" a top choice for teachers in the pet store. But hamsters are nocturnal rodents. This means disappointed children won't get to observe or interact with it at all and it's hard for children to resist the temptation to wake the animal during play and observation time. Also, the end result of a rattling the cage to wake up and play with "Harry the Hamster" is usually a bite.

4. Hedgehogs
It's probably better to get a poster of Sonic the Hedgehog and his friends rather than bring a real hedgehog to class. Hedgehogs are nocturnal, which means they won't be in a good mood if they're woken up and will likely bite as a result. Falling under the "exotic" category, hedgehogs have very specific environmental needs, and their quills can be very irritating to young children.

3. Chinchillas
Like hedgehogs and ferrets, chinchillas are nocturnal, excitable, and don't like to be handled. This pet needs to stay in constantly cool temperatures (under 85 degrees Fahrenheit) and to be set free daily so they can roam. Even considering taking a pet chinchilla to class for one day is considered a bad idea.

2. Turtles
Their patience, hard shell and ease of care make turtles a seemingly perfect fit for the classroom. But like frogs and snakes, turtles commonly carry the disease salmonella, which is highly infectious and transmittable to humans. In addition, turtles are not as docile as people think.

1. Iguanas
Iguanas are, in many ways, the least ideal pet to keep in a classroom. Like most reptiles, iguanas don't like to be handled. And because iguanas can grow to over six feet in length, a tail "lashing" can be quite dangerous to young children. Iguanas also have unique dietary needs and cannot subsist on greens alone.

Teachers are exemplary models of compassion, nurture and care in terms of caring for pets in the classroom. Interactions between a teacher and a classroom pet are learning examples that children imitate. The teacher must always provide care (food, water, clean environment) for the classroom pet. And teachers must establish boundaries between the students and the pet or pets. Teachers must teach children how to gently care for and handle the chosen pet, if the pet is an animal that can be picked up and removed from its cage or living habitat.

Teachers should also explain that although the pet is the classroom pet, it's also the teacher's pet. This prevents the awkward moment when students want to take the pet home for the summer or home during holiday breaks.

PetMD referred to the Humane Society's list of "social creatures" "best bets for the classroom." Healthy pet rodents, such as rats, gerbils, and guinea pigs present less disease risk and the animals are fairly social. The Humane Society recommends however, that these animals be given a companion of the same species to prevent boredom and stress that accompanies captivity.

Although birds don't make good classroom pets, it's a good idea to help students set up birdhouses, feeding stations and birdbaths around their schoolyard. Then arrange schedules for students to observe the animals.

The Humane Society noted that Goldfish are also an excellent choice for students who may suffer from allergies. They are relatively low-maintenance to care for and feed, and most importantly, they aren't disruptive to a healthy learning environment.

Kids N' Pets Part 1Thanks to Bob in BHC, AZ

Parker Woman: Insurance Co. 'Totaled' My DogBy Lance Hernandez, 7NEWS Reporter

Black Lab Mix Covered As 'Property' In Insurance Terms

PARKER, Colo. -- Marcia Pinkstaff said she couldn’t believe it when her dog was hit by a minivan last week and the driver’s insurance company told her they’d pay for one or two trips to the vet and would then “total out” her dog.

“I don’t see how you could total out a family pet,” she said.

Pinkstaff was walking west in the crosswalk at Canterberry Parkway and East Idyllwilde Drive, in Parker, when an eastbound minivan made a left turn striking Sasha, a 9-year-old Lab mix.

“She didn’t see us and she hit Sasha very, very hard,” Pinkstaff said. “Sasha has tears in her lungs, a tear in her diaphragm and liver damage.”

Farmers’ Insurance sent Pinkstaff a letter stating it would reimburse her for the initial trip to the vet and would consider paying for a follow up exam, but nothing more.

“I was horrified,” Pinkstaff told 7NEWS. “They said they were totaling out my dog. It broke my heart because she is like a child to me.”

“I’d never heard of anybody totaling out a dog before,” she added. “I think it’s horrible.”

An insurance industry source told 7NEWS that dogs are not covered the same way humans are.

“If a human is injured, they can be reimbursed for pain and suffering, lost wages and medical care,” the source said.

“A dog is considered property and is covered by the property damage part of a policy,” the source added.

In Pinkstaff’s case, the adjuster told her they were limiting how much they’d pay for property damage.

A spokesman for Farmers’ said the phrase “totaling out” is industry jargon and refers to the property damage part of a policy.

“I’m very sorry about the circumstances,” said Farmers’ Vice President of Media, Jerry Davies. “I have a dog, too.”

He said, “We have issued reimbursement of payment for the initial expenses and will continue to work with her on payment of those bills.”

Pinkstaff said she’s grateful that she wasn’t hit and is grateful that Sasha survived.

She told 7NEWS that Sasha has another appointment with the vet on Aug. 16.

“She has to have more blood tests and more x-rays,” Pinkstaff said. “The vet will determine whether her injuries are healing or if she needs surgery.”

Pinkstaff said some of her friends have delayed paying their mortgage to help her with her vet bills.

“I would like to see the driver’s insurance company take care of the bills,” she said. “And if the insurance won’t, I would like the driver to take care of it.”

Pet Rail: Answering Readers' Questions
pressofatlanticcity.com

Question: My 3-month-old chocolate Labradoodle has some nails that are clear and some that are black. The breeder told me to cut her nails every week so that she grows up just thinking that having her nails trimmed is not an issue. However, I cannot see the blood line in the black nails like I can in the clear nails. How do I know where the bloodline is with those dark-colored nails?

Answer: Some dogs have all clear nails, some have all dark nails and some have both depending on their skin pigmentation. The blood line - or quick - in the dark nails is the same length as it is in the clear nails, so just use the clear nails as a guide. Use a sharp pair of trimmers and just clip the absolute tip of the nail on a diagonal going away from the toe itself - sort of the way that you cut the stem of a flower. If you do hit the quick in one of the dark nails by accident, do not panic - it is not good for the dog. No dog ever died from blood loss by clipping the nail a bit too far and a pinch of Kwik Stop powder squeezed onto the bleeding end will stop it before the dog can track it all over the house.

___

Q: I've had parakeets for as long as I can remember. Eventually all go to parakeet heaven from one cause or another. My last one was fine and happy in the morning and when I came home she was on the bottom of the cage, so she obviously had passed on earlier in the day. Since she had not been ill at all, I was wondering if birds had heart attacks? She was 6 years old. I am wondering how long parakeets can live.

A: Only a vet's post-mortem could determine exactly why your bird died, so at this point it is only speculation. But birds can, indeed, suffer heart attacks and strokes just as humans can. I have seen some birds suffer a stroke, become paralyzed and yet regain their movement over the course of time under veterinary care.

Parakeets are sexually mature at 6 months of age. Any creature that grows that quickly cannot live for a very long time. But I was told by an experienced bird vet in Germany who studied longevity in parakeets in a controlled laboratory situation for a major European bird food company that if a parakeet lives past 3 years of age, it will usually make it to 6 or 7. If it lives past 6 or 7, then it can live to a very old age - even 15 or better. I've had a few live to be 13 and I know a few bird keepers who have 16-year-old birds.

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Q: I noticed fleas on my 6-month-old ferret yesterday. How he got them I do not know as he never goes outside. I washed out his cage and threw away the bedding and gave him a flea bath with a flea shampoo that I bought from the pet store. I was wondering how he got them and if I can put the Frontline on him like I do with my cats?

A: Ferrets are right next to the ground all the time, and if fleas hitchhiked into your house, then the ferret is a prime target for fleas looking for a new home. Many ferret keepers use Advantage and Frontline on their ferrets for flea control and thus far there does not seem to be any issues with the situation.

However, neither of the companies that make the products advertises that they can be used for ferrets, so I am a bit reluctant to use them on mine. . Marshall Pet Products manufactures flea sprays and shampoos specifically for ferrets, so I play it safe and use those products.

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ONE FOR THE CAGES

The other day I saw a birdcage from the '60s at a garage sale. I bought it for old times' sake. It is amazing that pet birds survived in those cages. If you needed a cage for a larger parrot, you were out of luck unless you were handy and could jury-rig something together.

I remember I kept my first large parrot in a refurbished shopping cart. Now there are all sorts of nice birdcages available. When choosing one, look for the following features to be sure that your bird will have a happy and healthy life in it.

1. Many cages are manufactured in countries with no quality control. Be sure the manufacturer guarantees that there is no zinc in the metal used to build the cage. Zinc can be toxic to birds.

2. Be sure that the cage has an easily removed grate on the bottom to separate the bird from its droppings. The easier it is to remove, the easier it is to keep clean.

3. Look for cups that can be taken out of the cage from the outside. Some birds get possessive about hands going into their cages. If the cups can be removed from the outside, then when you go on holiday and ask a family member to care for your bird, it can be done without anybody getting bitten.

A New Addition to the Family by Trish Feldt - patch.com

My kids want a pet. Let me clarify that one wants a dog and the other wants fish. My husband and I are just not “pet” people. I enjoy other people’s animals, but when it comes to the responsibility of having a pet of my own, I’m just not ready for all that entails.

My youngest son, Andrew, has been asking for a goldfish for months. Both my husband and I thought this would be a fleeting thought, but much to our surprise Andrew’s desire for a fish kept getting stronger. We finally agreed that if he wanted, Andrew could get a goldfish for his birthday.

Well, after months of anticipation, it was “goldfish day.” With great excitement, we headed to Petco as soon as the store opened. Unbeknownst to me, goldfish require slightly more care than a bowl full of water. As it turns out, goldfish are best suited for an aquarium with a water pump and filter to keep the environment suitable. Also, goldfish can grow to be up to a foot long and 5-6” in diameter. In order for the fish to be healthy and happy, it is best for them to live in a 10 gallon tank. That is for only ONE fish. If you want more than one fish, you need an even larger tank.

I attempted to talk Andrew out of getting a goldfish and get something smaller that could live in a nice little fish bowl. He wanted nothing to do with my suggestion, so the next thing I knew; I was leaving Petco with a 10 gallon starter aquarium.

Unfortunately, we weren’t able to take our new pet home just yet. Our awesome salesman, Brendon, recommended we wait about 24 hours before bringing our fish home, but Andrew would have nothing to do with that recommendation. Brendon could see the disappointment in Andrew’s face, so he suggested that we get our tank set up and let the water pump run for a few hours. We could bring Goldy home later in the day, as goldfish are pretty hardy fish and adapt to new conditions easily.

After doing as Brendon suggested and bringing a sample of our water to be tested, it was deemed safe for Goldy to come home with us. Andrew was over the moon! After Goldy got situated in his new tank, Andrew sat in front of the tank for hours watching him swim. I even caught him talking to him which was so cute!

Later that night we headed out to the Cardinal’s game. During the entire game Andrew talked about Goldy non-stop. He was anxious to get home to his new pet. Unfortunately, our arrival home came with some tragedy. Goldy was dead. Andrew was devastated. The whole situation was just awful. As a parent, it was so hard to witness. Watching a child’s heart break is just gut wrenching. I quickly promised Andrew we would return first thing in the morning to Petco and get a new Goldy.

Upon our return to Petco, we found out that we probably didn’t do anything wrong with Goldy, but rather he was probably in shock or maybe even injured. Goldy had arrived into the store earlier in the day that we brought him home and getting used to two new tanks in one day just might have been too much for him.

After some browsing the tanks, Andrew decided he didn’t want a goldfish this time. “No one can replace Goldy,” he told me. So we ended up with three new, much smaller fish. I was quite nervous to get three fish at once as I don’t think I could handle any more heartbreak and fish funerals.

Well, I’m happy to report it has been a week and all three fish are still alive! Andrew enjoys sitting in front of the tank and watching his fish swim around. If all goes well, we plan to add a couple more fish to our tank in a few months. Until then, we are just going to focus on keeping these three alive.

Life Can Be a Beach for Some Dogsseattletimes.com

What you need to know before heading to a beach with your dog.

Dog-friendly beaches and resorts that cater to canines have grown in popularity in the past few years and can be found around the country. Here's few tips to help ensure a fun outing.

If you planning to visit a public beach, check with state or local governments to make sure dogs are welcome. For example, dogs are prohibited on public beaches in Seattle. Look for signs posted at area parks such a Green Lake. Fido's little dip in the water can cost you a hefty fine.

If you're headed to a dog-friendly hotel or resort, find out in advance what the rules are so you and the pooch don't get kicked out or hit with extra costs.

For beaches that allow dogs, remember to bring a leash, poop pick-up bags, fresh drinking water and a bowl.

Be aware that the biggest risk for a dog at the beach is salt poisoning from the water, said Dr. Tina Wismer, medical director for the Animal Poison Control Center run by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Urbana, Ill.

"Dogs who like to retrieve balls and other objects out of the water can ingest enough water to make them sick," she said. In fresh water, the games are the same but the problem can be drinking too much water, or water intoxication.

"The most common treatment of salt poisoning or water intoxication is intravenous fluid therapy," the veterinarian said.

Other things dog-owners should watch for:

"Dogs can get sick from eating dead fish, crabs, or even bird feces," Wismer said. "If a dog ingests dead animals, or feces found on the beach, they may need fluids and antibiotics, depending on what and how much was ingested."

In some areas, jellyfish can show up in the water. Their stings can be very painful for both dogs and humans. "If a dog is stung by a jellyfish, pain medication could be necessary," Wismer said. Some sea stars are also poisonous and can cause severe vomiting and drooling in a dog.

Don't assume your dog can swim or even likes the idea of swimming. Some dogs are happy to just wade at the water's edge.

Make sure there is shade near by so you and the pooch can take break out of the sun.

Check the paws, prolonged exposure to hot asphalt or sand can cause burns.

Also avoid overexertion in hot weather. Try walking or playing early in the morning or late in the evening when it's usually cooler.

Pet Business Tips from a ProBy Alissa Wolf, About.com

The 'Pet Industry Guru' Offers Priceless Advice

While I have frequently offered what I believe to be sound pet business tips, it’s always a good idea to get “second opinions” from other pros.

To that end, I spoke with Howard London, a sales and marketing pro who’s a veteran of the pet business, who provided some excellent business tips for those who are in, or want to get into the critter business.

The self-styled "Pet Industry Guru,” who is now the national sales and marketing director for Pet Kings Brand, Inc. and columnist for Pet Business Magazine, has been in the pet business in one form or another for more than 25 years.

Without further ado, here’s are some of his top pet business tips.

Pet Business Tip # One: Do Your Homework

“Even if you have a lot of money, don’t just jump into it (the pet business),” he said. “If you’re able to work for a company for six months to a year to get your feet wet, it’s not a bad thing. See what works and what doesn’t. It’s a little investment of time, but in the end, it’s not going to hurt. If it’s a perfectly run store, it’s a good model; if it’s horrible, it’s a good model. You will learn something either way.”

Pet Business Tip # Two: Research the Competition

“Like the saying goes, ‘Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.’ PetSmart and Petco are not going away. But figure out how to compete. Talk to them; go visit them."

Pet Business Tip # 3: Offer Something the Big Box Stores Don’t

London and I are very much on the same page when it comes to this crucial pet business tip…

Above and beyond customer service is worth its weight in gold!

“Offer something the big guys don’t or can’t,” he said. “You can’t compete with their prices. They, however, cannot beat the independents in customer service. Their employees are like little robots. It’s hard to find a person on the floor because they’re doing stock.”

Pet Business Tip # 4: Avoid Bad Business Pitfalls

This is something that drives me crazy, which I weighed in on before.

“When someone goes into a pet store, there’s no one to be found, or they’re ignoring you, or two employees are talking to each other and ignoring you. Or they don’t know where the product you are looking for is, or they’re out of it. I get if it’s a hard to find item that they sell one of every three months. But if it’s a bag of pet treats I use every week, then I won’t go there again.”

Pet Business Tip # 5: Take Full Advantage of Social Media

Here’s where the independent pet shops may actually have an advantage over the big guys.

“Petco and PetSmart have Facebook pages that are national. They (the independents) should have a Facebook page, as well as a presence on Twitter and foursquare, where they can offer specials. These sites really are built for the local businesses. The big guys are so big that they can only speak nationally, not locally. The smaller businesses need to engage the local community.”

Some Other Important Pet Business Tips

There are some other crucial skills and traits one must possess to successfully run and operate a pet business, or any business, for that matter:

•Being good at sales, or hiring someone who is

•Knowing how to effectively market your business

•The ability to manage finances and profit and loss statements

•Enthusiasm

The latter is extremely important. As I always say, if you really believe in the products and services you offer, and have a passion for this pursuit, you already have a “paw up” on the competition.

A Parting Pet Business Tip

Don’t let fear hold you back.

“I just think that, even though we are in this recession, it’s the best time to start or run a successful business,” London advised.

“The standards for products and services have increased 10-fold in this recession. This has actually opened the door for great products and services. If you can deliver it, you can be successful. Don’t believe what the government tells you, that you have to cut back. So many successful businesses were started during a recession or the Depression. Personally, people might be hurting. But for business, it’s a great time.”

Hints From Heloise: The Joys of Pet ToysBy Heloise, washingtonpost.com

Dear Readers: Pet toys are wonderful and provide bonding time with your pet. Plus, playing with toys can help keep dogs from destructive chewing on furniture, shoes, drywall (!), etc.

It is better to have toys specifically designed for dogs, since toys for children usually are not “chewproof” and may have small parts that can break off and be ingested.

Does your dog like squeaky toys? Lots of them do! Supervise play so the dog won’t eat the squeaker.

Keeping toys clean is important. Rinse rubber chew toys in a mild chlorine-bleach solution (1 tablespoon of bleach in 1 quart of water). Mix just enough to use in one or two days. Or wash the toys with mild dishwashing soap. Would you like some more simple, time-tested cleaning hints? I have compiled a pamphlet of my favorite, easy-to-use homemade cleaning solutions. If you would like to receive one, send $5 and a business-size, stamped (64 cents), self-addressed envelope to: Heloise/Cleaning Solutions, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 78279-5001. Every little dog and cat deserves the cleanest toys. Take extra care with your pet’s favorite toy. How many toys is too many? Cabbie, our mini schnauzer, has at least 20 -- not counting ones hidden out of sight! -- Heloise

PET PAL

Dear Readers: Speaking of pet toys, Sharon in San Antonio e-mailed a picture of her rescued Chihuahua, Daisy, taking a snooze with her favorite toy, her Pink Pig, which is a rather dingy shade of pink from being played with so much! To see Daisy and her Pink Pig, as well as our other Pet Pals, go to www.Heloise.com and click on “Pets.” Do you have a picture of your pet playing with a favorite toy? Send it to us: Heloise/Pets, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000. -- Heloise

WRAP IT UP

Dear Heloise: We have a bay window with two chairs and a table with a lamp on it. When our two Jack Russell terriers see a squirrel in the back yard, they run excitedly between the chairs and the windows. On several occasions, they have pulled over the lamp when they got tangled in the cord. I tried wrapping the cord around a leg of the table, leaving just enough cord to reach the socket, and there hasn’t been a lamp accident since! -- Betty Peterson, Keller, Tex.

GIVING YOUR PUP A PILL

Dear Heloise: Need to give your pup a pill? You can wrap the pill in lunchmeat. The trick is to keep the dog looking upward at you while he swallows the pill. Hold a second piece in your other hand high above your dog’s head as you are giving him the pill-laced meat. Your dog will focus on what is in the air, and the pill will slide effortlessly down his throat! Then reward him with the second treat. -- Sharon from West Virginia

Check with your vet to see if it’s okay for your dog to eat lunchmeat. -- Heloise

Send a hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Tex. 78279-5000, fax it to 210-HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com. Please include your city and state.

Pet Vet: Odd Behaviors
wndu.com

Dogs and cats are popular pets, not only because of how social they are, but how smart they are, too. You may wonder then why pets often behave in ways that do not make any sense.

Pet Vet, Dr. David Visser, explains some of these odd behaviors and how to understand them a little more.

There are several behaviors that pet owners can find unusual.

Eating Rabbit Droppings
For example, some people notice their dogs eating rabbit droppings. Believe it or not, there is actually a flavor to the pellets that some dogs like; maybe because the protein or B-vitamin is very high.

Sporting dog breeds may do this as part of tracking or hunting behavior, too.

So is it bad for dogs to do? There’s no doubt it can upset their digestive tract if a large amount is eaten. Additionally, pets can get certain parasites from these droppings.

The best advice is to keep the yard clean with a rake, water-in the droppings or at least try to keep your dog away from these unfortunate rabbit gifts.

Scooting
Sometimes, dog owners will see their pets drag their rear end on the floor. This behavior is called scooting.

When they do this, dogs are basically scratching an itch. You may notice that it’s the more portly dogs that do this, and that’s probably because they can’t reach to scratch the itch by chewing.

The most common cause of this itching is a pair of fluid-filled glands that are similar to skunk glands. These glands get distended and it itches like crazy. So to try to get them to drain, they do this little itchy dance.

Allergies can also cause itchiness of the backside, but contrary to popular opinion, “worms” are not a common cause of scooting.

Reverse Sneezes
Another common, yet sometimes alarming, behavior is a reverse sneeze.

Dogs will clear their respiratory passage in three different ways:

•When there is irritation in the front or nasal part of the upper airway, an out-through-the-nose sneeze occurs.

•When the irritation is in the windpipe, the result is an out-through-the-mouth cough.

•But irritation in the area in between, like the post-nasal-drip area, creates this inward snort, which is actually a way to slap the soft palate at the itchy back of the throat.

Now, as serious as this sounds, and many people think their dog is struggling to breathe, it is often just a little irritation or mild allergy response. But there are cases where pets have growths or polyps in the back of the throat that cause those signs, too.

Odd Behaviors
It’s interesting to see how pets have become part of our families, almost like our children, and yet they retain many of their natural tendencies.

The important take-home message is that if there doesn’t seem to be a logical explanation, and the behavior doesn’t stop on its own, you should seek the advice of your veterinarian.

If you want to contact the Pet Vet, Dr. David Visser, you can reach him at the Roseland Animal Hospital by calling 574-272-6100 or at the Center for Animal Health by calling 888-PETS-VETS.

You can also shoot him an email at MichianaPetVet@comcast.net.

Q&A: Cats and Cat Allergies on a PlaneBy Harriet Baskas, msnbc.com

Some airlines allow pets in the cabin, but Christopher Ambler wants to know what the options are for a traveler who has allergies. David Mcnew / Getty Images file

Overhead Bin recently answered a reader’s question about taking pets on planes, but Christopher Ambler of Seattle sent in a flip-side question: What if you’re allergic to cats?

“If I have an allergy attack, it manifests as asthma that could not only cause a trip to the hospital, at best, but also typically means I will be recovering for days after receiving treatment,” wrote Ambler.

He tries to call ahead to see if there might be cats in the cabin, but “I’m often told that I have no recourse. They have said that I should ask for a seat change, but with re-circulated air, no seat is safe. Travel insurance also doesn’t cover this, as it’s a foreseeable circumstance.”

Rebooking on another flight sometimes solves the conflict, but then he’s often hit with an airline’s change fee, Ambler said.

Ambler is not alone. According to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI), about 10 percent of people with allergies are allergic to pets.

“It can be tough,” said Todd Rambasek, an AAAI fellow and a doctor with E.N.T. & Allergy Health Services in Cleveland, Ohio. “You can try avoidance measures and ask to be moved to another part of the plane. But even if there’s no pet in the cabin or near where you’re seated, remember that a lot of people carry pet dander on their clothes.”

Rambasek said asthma sufferers on airplanes might consider pre-medicating or wearing a face mask, such as those worn by some travelers during flu season.

Ambler has his own suggestion: During the booking process, he’d like airlines to alert a passenger if a pet is already booked on the flight. “If so, I would gladly say, ‘Hey, they booked first, I’ll take a different flight.’ But if someone with a pet allergy books first, pets should be disallowed on that flight. First to book should win,” said Ambler.

Overhead Bin ran that idea past a few airlines. American Airlines told us such a plan would be too complex, too time-consuming and too unreliable to administer.

“Just as with our policy for peanut allergies, we simply cannot assure customers that our aircraft are free of allergens, even if there is no pet onboard,” said American Airlines spokesperson Andrea Huguely. “We cannot guarantee our flights to be allergy-free, and customers should consult their physician as to the best way to medically deal with that issue.” (American does not serve peanuts, but allows up to seven booked pets per flight.)

But here’s another strategy that may help. Many pet-friendly organizations list airline pet-policies on their websites. Studying those will tell you how much each airline charges for an in-cabin pet (some airline pet fares can top $100 each way) and how many pets each airline allows in the cabin. Frontier Airlines, for example, allows up to 10 pets aboard each flight.

Travelers seeking to avoid flying with other people’s pets might choose an airline that either limits the number of pets in the cabin or charges a high fee for passengers to bring their pets along.

Ask Dog Lady: Be Careful About Giving Dog as a Gift
The Eagle Tribune

I am 11-years-old. I have a Basset hound named Scooby and I have some questions about getting a new dog. My mom's birthday is coming in two weeks and my grandma is going to get her a small dog or puppy but she had questions. I believe that you can help us. We want to know what small breeds are good with children. I have two other sisters, age 5 and 14, and what breeds do not shed or are hypoallergenic. Grandma and I greatly appreciate your answers.

Your grandma should think it over and do more research before she gives your mom a dog. First of all, does your mom really want a dog? To give a dog as a gift is not such a great idea because sometimes the person who receives the dog as a present might feel trapped into accepting the living creature. This can lead to resentment, which is no way for a new dog owner to feel. Maybe your grandma can give your mom a funny birthday card with a made-up certificate good for a one dog. She and your mom can look for the dog together. They should go visit an animal shelter to find out about small dogs that are hypoallergenic (you spelled this word correctly, congratulations!). Basically all dogs shed a little, but those that shed least are any poodle or poodle mix. These mutts are generally adorable. You know them because they have a "poo" or "doodle" in their breed titles, such as shih-poo or Malti-poo or Labradoodle. These mixes are also generally good with kids but grandma and mom should ask their own questions.

My 12-year-old "Boomer" has recently decided he was an outdoor dog. For the last 12 years he has been king of the house, master of his little kingdom. But about a month ago, he started refusing to come in the house, at all. I have to bribe him with cheese, late in the evening, to get him to come in.

About a month ago, we had a ton of thunder/lightening storms. He was so afraid. We held him as he shook with fear from the storm. One day, during a storm, he started to hit the door to go out and ran around the house. I finally let him out. Ever since, he won't come in the house. He'll stay on the porch if it rains, crying, but won't come in. It's so sad. I comfort and pet him at night.

Boomer could be having a senior moment. Or the storms spooked him into a new outdoor lifestyle. First of all, you should always remain calm around your dog. Don't be overemotional about holding too tight or comforting too much. Also, the latest thinking about dogs and thunderstorms is that static electricity in the air causes hyper-sentient dogs to become frenzied. One solution untested by Dog Lady but recommended by others is to rub down your dog with a dryer sheet when a thunderstorm approaches. This quells the static clinginess. Because conventional dryer sheets contain toxic ingredients, organic dryer sheets are recommended. Mrs. Meyers Lemon Verbena is one brand but there are others. Be advised these are more expensive than regular dryer sheets but they don't contain harmful chemicals.

Also unproven by Dog Lady but highly touted by others is Thundershirt, a garment that, supposedly, holds in a dog's anxiety — literally. Go to www.thundershirt.com to read all about this. Such a remedy might be just the trick to lull Boomer inside.

But here's the most important proviso: Whenever your dog exhibits a marked change in behavior, there could be a medical cause even if you don't think your pet seems ill. It's always wise to have a veterinarian rule out any health problems.

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