Tag Archives: cats

Are You Filling Your Frame?

Tis the season to be snapping photos you want to feature on your holiday greeting. But how do you capture the money shot when your family refuses to cooperate? After all, crying kids and disinterested dogs don’t make for a joyous photo presentation. You are on your own getting your kids to sit for a family portrait; however, I have tips on making the most of the photo op once you are able to wrangle your pint-sized subjects in front of the Christmas tree. For starters, when you are photographing a young child it pays to get as close as … Continue reading →

How to Feed Pills to Pets

Let’s continue with the recent theme I’ve had of posting, in between stories about my new cat Chrestomanci, articles about pet health and how to manage it. I’ll start today’s topic with a story. One summer when I was a teenager my cat Boots contracted food poisoning. We took him to the vet, who gave us some pills for him. We had problems feeding him the pills. None of us had any experience doing so, and though we got those capsules into his mouth all right, he was a master at making us think he’d ingested them and then spitting … Continue reading →

Grooming Doom Resumed

As close to the outdoors as he wants to get Recently we introduced Chrestomanci to outdoor grooming sessions. He was tense in my arms as I carried him into the front yard, but no worse than Cole usually is so I didn’t think anything of it. I should have. As soon as I placed him on the grass for my husband to brush, he bolted. Chihiro immediately took off after him. My husband ran after Chrestomanci, while I grabbed the dog and put her inside. While I doubt she was the sole or even a main reason why Chrestomanci ran, … Continue reading →

Signs Your Pet Might Be Unwell

I’m a bit of a worrywart when it comes to my pets. I fretted when both of my cats entered our house for the first time and didn’t seem to eat for a few days. One thing I’m always concerned about is how to tell if my pets are feeling ill. Humans can complain of their symptoms and ask for help, but our pets don’t have that option. Veterinary doctor Eric Kane published some advice on patch.com about how to tell if your pet might be feeling unwell. The main tool to employ is common sense: keep an eye on … Continue reading →

Introducing Chrestomanci

Knowing how lonely Cole is when we leave him alone, I decided it was time to get another cat. After putting a lot of thought into it, I picked one I’d met through my experiences volunteering at the local rescue. He’s around Cole’s age and gets along with other cats. He’s a love bug; when faced with the possibility of affection he goes for it with gusto, emitting a loud rusty chain purr and mashing himself within the arms of whomever’s holding him. He’s perfect, both for Cole and for the whole family. He’s called Chrestomanci, after a character in … Continue reading →

Pet First Aid: Safe Household Treatments

At various vet trips we’ve received advice to treat our pets with doses of Benadryl, Zyrtec, and Neosporin. That’s right: medicines we think are for people can also be for pets. There are actually a number of household items or medications we can employ if our animals are having problems. The trick is knowing exactly what medicines, and how much of them, are safe for our pets. For example: most dogs should only have one Benadryl a day. If giving the pet Zyrtec, it should only receive the normal kind – make sure it doesn’t have any decongestants or other … Continue reading →

Cats: To Potty Train or Not to Potty Train

We can potty train our kids, but what about our cats? Do any of the products offering feline toilet training actually work? I don’t know anyone who has a toilet-trained cat. But that doesn’t mean I think they can’t work. Enough testimonials exist for me to believe that potty training kitties is possible, but with one major caveat: it takes a lot of time and a lot of mess. MSNBC Health published an article detailing the feline toilet-training process, complete with interviews with animal behaviorists, cat trainers, and real-life people who successfully taught their cats to use the toilet. Before … Continue reading →

For Green-Thumbed Pet Lovers

As I write this I’m sitting on my porch. Though many days recently have been so grossly hot and humid that I’ve never wanted to venture outdoors, some have been pleasant, especially in the mornings. These days I’ve taken to bringing my laptop out to the porch and completing my work here. I let the dog wander around the yard as I do so. Just a moment ago I had to do something that’s become common during these work outdoors mornings: chase my dog away from my garden. The majority of my garden items – herbs and berries – are … Continue reading →

Fido Finder and Tabby Tracker

I’ve been writing a lot of articles lately that relate to what it’s like to be a pet lover in the internet age. The internet has changed how shelters can communicate and how potential pet owners might find their future animals. Today I will examine how we can use the Internet as a tool to locate missing pets. People probably began posting messages about lost pets online almost as soon as the internet was introduced. Now that sites like Craig’s List and similar local-based online classifieds have put the concept on the computer, we can find pets, supplies for them, … Continue reading →

Pet Diabetes on the Rise

Diabetes runs in my family. Even though I’m only in my mid-20s, I’ve tried to start being conscious about what I eat so I can hopefully prevent the onset of the disease, or at least have an easier transition into a diabetes-friendly diet should I need to do so. While I’m prepared for the fact that one day I might learn I have diabetes, it never occurred to me that one of our pets might come down with it as well. That’s right: dogs and cats can get diabetes, and it’s on the rise in canines. MSNBC Health has a … Continue reading →