Tag Archives: tree

Rat Terrier Saves Mini-Schnauzer

I’m going to be honest here: I’m not a huge fan of tiny dog breeds. The smallest I like are beagles. I just have had mostly bad experiences with the high energy and constant yipping that tend to hallmark many miniature breeds. Yet I believe that the true nature of a dog comes with its personality, so I try not to let myself judge an individual dog until I learn more about it. Recent news from CNN has only strengthened that opinion. Rowdy, a dog from Rancho Cordova, California, recently made headlines for saving his neighbor. Despite some similarities the … Continue reading →

Those Dreaded Allergies

After a year of having severe allergy problems, including a persistent cough, that followed my seasonal allergies and never went away, I finally went to the allergist. There I heard the news that every pet owner dreads: I’m allergic to one of my animals. My exchange with the doctor went something like this: he told me I was allergic to cats. I said that was strange, because although I’d been having problems I currently own a cat and have lived with one at several points in my life. I’d been told I had other severe allergies, so I guessed my … Continue reading →

“Psychic” Pets

A recent poll reported by Newser.com and conducted by The Associated Press and Petside.com concluded that many American pet owners believe that their pets are psychic or have a sixth sense on some level. The actual details vary depending on what questions people were asked. According to the poll, 2/3 of American pet owners believe that animals have a sixth sense about bad weather, and 43% of the people polled say their pets can predict bad news. Owners of both cats and dogs claimed that their feline or canine pets warned them either about poor weather or upcoming bad news. … Continue reading →

Adopting When Renting

As I’ve stated many times before, I’ve been an animal lover for as long as I can remember. I began the process for adopting a dog and then a cat as soon as I knew I would be able to take good care of them. I knew that my husband and I wouldn’t have the easiest time adopting a dog because we were renting an apartment. I thought it might help that our apartment was part of an actual house; our landlords were fine with most breeds of dogs and had their own cat. Many rescues in our area, however, … Continue reading →

The Big Move

Cole did enjoy all of the stacked boxes during the move. Between Christmas and New Year’s my husband and I moved from our apartment into our first house. The move was only across town so we didn’t have far to go, but we knew that the distance wouldn’t make much difference to our pets. We especially anticipated Cole needing at least several days to adjust to our new home, as he’d loathed an afternoon trip to a friend’s house during a flea bombing. However, this time Cole was feeling so off-balance that he wanted even more reassurance that he did … Continue reading →

Caring for Pets in Cold Weather

In June I posted about the dangers of heatstroke for animals. Now that we’ve entered the opposite extreme of seasonal weather, I’d like to take a look at ways to keep our pets safe when it’s cold outside. The ASPCA has a list of several things to remember when looking after pets in the winter. Just as leaving a dog in the car is dangerous in the heat the same is true in the cold. Especially when it isn’t sunny outside, cars trap the cold and can drop to dangerous freezing temperatures. If you must leave your pet in the … Continue reading →

Pressure Treatment

The Thundershirt from my last pet blog made me start to wonder about pressure as a treatment for dog anxiety. As I said, I’d never heard of the practice before, so I’m curious as to whether or not it’s a legitimate calming method or something made up by Thundershirt salespeople. After spending a while researching the topic, I’m more inclined to believe the latter. Multiple searches using varied forms of the phrase “pet anxiety pressure treatment” resulted in page after page only talking about the subject specifically in relation to selling the Thundershirt. I’m ready to consider the “pressure as … Continue reading →

New Pet Products for 2011

Before Christmas pet website Zootoo published a list of new holiday pet products. None of the items are explicitly Christmas-themed, however, so I thought I’d share them now; maybe you might even be able to find some of these at post-holiday discount prices. The Walking My Dog Kid-Sized Leash is the latest product meant to make those dog walks easier. My little 20-pound shepherd/beagle mix gives the leash such a hefty pull that I use a Gentle Leader with her on walks, so I can imagine how difficult it might be for children to hold a lead for many dogs. … Continue reading →

A Merry Christmas for Pets

For Chihiro and Cole, seeing a rabbit this close is like Christmas My extended family used to have a unique Christmas tradition. As we circled around the living room to exchange gifts, pet-owning relatives handed out special presents to other family members with pets: presents to dog and cat cousins from each other. That’s right: my aunt’s dog Chessie might receive a wrapped bone from my other aunt’s cat Patches. I have no idea how the tradition started; it’s one I remember always being there as I grew up. When my family finally got a cat we were then included … Continue reading →

The Greatest Game

When my husband and I got married, we received what would seem to others like an unusual gift from his older sister. Next to the beautiful hand-painted serving bowl she gave us, she included a book: “50 Games to Play with Your Dog,” by Suellen Dainty. Jon and I didn’t own a dog, plus that’s not exactly the sort of gift one expects to receive for a wedding. However, my sister-in-law and I are close, and she knew me well enough to know that I’d wanted a dog all my life, and that I was eager to get one as … Continue reading →