Search Results for: tag adopting pets

Teething Pets

If you’re thinking of getting or currently own a puppy or kitten three-months-old or younger, then you’re soon in for a somewhat bizarre experience: teething. Puppies begin losing their baby teeth around four or five months old, and kittens also do so around the same time. Though sometimes later; my cat didn’t start teething until six months or so. I said bizarre experience because although it makes perfect sense that pets would lose their baby teeth and grow adult ones just like humans, I didn’t quite anticipate it when first adopting a puppy. I prepared for all the things I … Continue reading →

How to Adopt a Pet without Adopting the Responsibility

Some people want to adopt a pet or help animals but they don’t want to adopt the responsibility that comes with it. Or maybe it’s not so much they don’t want the responsibility as it is circumstances prevent them from taking it on. (Such as they work too much, don’t have the room to keep a pet, or live in a place where pets aren’t allowed.) Yet, they’re still able to adopt a pet. How? Through pet adoption programs like the ones I’ve listed below. If you want to adopt a pet, but can’t, or, if you’re like me and … Continue reading →

The Pets Blog Week in Review for January 14-20

Aimee and I once again strove to bring you a slew of interesting, thought provoking, and otherwise entertaining articles last week. In case you missed any days, here’s the recap of what we wrote on: Monday, January 14 Would You Make a Good Parent for a Deaf Pet? It’s hard enough being a stray in a shelter, but imagine being a deaf one. The chances for adoption go even lower. My plea was to consider adopting such a pet to give them a fair chance too. Tuesday, January 15 Shelters are Bad Enough, Deplorable in Tennessee For some reason the … Continue reading →

The Dog Park: Take Two

When Chihiro was a puppy I took her to the dog park to socialize her. But my experiences there were disheartening; my little puppy was rushed by several much larger dogs upon her entrance each time, and their owners did nothing to hold their dogs back until she adjusted. Add this on top of the fact that my hound dog would rather wander and sniff than bound and play in the fenced-in dog park, and the trip just didn’t seem worth the effort. Two years later things are different. Over the summer Chihiro learned some negative behaviors from a friend’s … Continue reading →

Managing Smart Dogs

Smart is often a selling point for dogs. There are certain breeds, especially those known for herding, that are generally considered the cream of the clever canine crop. Thus if you want an intelligent dog it might not be too hard to seek one out, but there are some things you need to know before adopting a brainy companion. Pet site ZooToo has some tips. The most important thing to consider first is that smart doesn’t necessarily mean easy. We think that it will; we think how nice it will be to have a dog that can fetch slippers and … Continue reading →

Sea World Cares

If you live in Central Florida and are considering adopting a pet, then I have a great deal for you. If you adopt from one of three specific shelters, then you can earn two free single-day tickets to Sea World. The program, dubbed Happy Tails, is a part of the amusement park’s initiative called Sea World Cares. Sea World Cares is the branch of the park that helps rehabilitate and conserve wild animals. Happy Tails, then, focuses on the local land animals in the Central Florida community. Happy Tails isn’t complicated. If you adopt a pet from one of the … Continue reading →

iPhone App for Pet Adoption

I blogged recently about pet adoption. I truly believe that adopting a pet from a shelter is the best way to take home an animal companion. There are so many animals to choose form right now too. With the economy hurting, many families and individuals are finding that they can no longer afford to keep their pets. It’s sad, but true. Shelters are overwhelmed with animals. One of the local news networks here ran a story about an area shelter that suspended its adoption fees to help families adopt pets. I called the shelter to find out how well it … Continue reading →

Book Review: Weaving a Family Untangling Race and Adoption

Barbara Katz Rothman is a sociologist. Much of her work has focused on the meaning of motherhood—ranging from studies of the modern midwifery movement, to the consumer pressure to buy for one’s offspring, to the Human Genome Project and the impact of genetics on identity and culture. These two interests– what it means to be a mother and what genes have to do with identity–merged when Rothman and her husband adopted an African-American infant. Rothman’s book Weaving a Family: Untangling Race and Adoption shares her insights, both professional and personal, on transracial adoption. Rothman’s title is inspired by the experience … Continue reading →

What’s This about the Obamas Getting a Puppy?

Barack Obama’s win was, naturally, the talk of all the news yesterday. But of course the thing that caught my ear was the focus on how the Obamas were considering getting a puppy. The Puppy Speech I’d tried to stay awake for Obama’s victory speech Tuesday night, but instead I ended up falling asleep. I guess if I would have watched it I would have heard for myself the part where he said he was going to reward his daughters’ support and patience during the campaign with a puppy. I was surprised to hear they were considering a puppy. I … Continue reading →

Helping Animal Shelters During a Recession

Some say the worsening economy is not quite a recession yet, others are convinced we’re already there. Whether we are or not, one thing is clear: with gas and food going up like they are, people have less to spend. Not only less discretionary income, but also less charitable giving monies to distribute. Some charities are going to feel the pinch more than others. Especially because historically this time of year (from now until fall) is when people tend not to give. (Come the holidays, from Thanksgiving through New Year, people tend to be more generous.) That’s why I say … Continue reading →