Month: March 2012

TargetCW is one of those companies we just love because they totally get it when it comes to pet adoption.  A payrolling and staffing company located in San Diego, they not only advocate for homeless pets, they’ve gone ahead and implemented a company-wide program where $100 is reimbursed to any employee who adopts a pet from a shelter or rescue!  Now that’s putting your money where your heart is. TargetCW also allows their employees to bring their pets to work, helping support pet retention and keeping the work place extra loving and cuddly.   Natalie Dugger is a Senior Account Manager there and here’s what she has to say about adopting her pup, Hank, and how much she appreciates being able to bring him into the office:

“The ability to bring my dog to work has been a huge blessing!  I cannot think of a better employee benefit.  No matter what stress comes my way, my 3 ½ month old Akita/Mastiff puppy, Hank, puts a smile on my face.  I wish all companies were like TargetCW when it comes to pets!  They allow me to bring my puppy to work every day and even paid for my adoption of Hank through their pet adoption reimbursement program.  Hank was rescued through San Diego Animal Rescue and would not be in my life without a pet-friendly workplace.  Plus, I could not give Hank the attention he needs as a puppy without the ability to bring him into the office!  It’s not unusual to have a number of dogs running around the office at TargetCW, and it has been great for our employee morale.  The whole office plays with Hank, takes him for walks and even buys him toys!  He is so spoiled!  Not to mention how great it’s been for the dogs to socialize instead of being locked up all day.  Believe it or not, I’ve even been working longer hours, too!”

Please consider making your company more pet friendly!  Perhaps by participating in Take Your Dog to Work Day, you’ll get a great start for how to make the change.  Furry friends, paperwork and deadlines can mix!

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We can’t imagine a more perfect combination – modern design for cats and a website that supports cat adoption! That’s our friends over at Moderncat who post something new almost every day that has us mentally rearranging the furniture in our foster cat house (and our finances) to see how we could fit one more fabulous cat tree, litter box that looks like sculpture, or pod bed in! Not all their posts are uber-high-end and expensive feline furniture items. There are plenty of adorable and affordable cat toys for example, and this recent post Cats & Guitars: Jackson Galaxy’s Place Gets a Moderncat Makeover. Moderncat helped Cat Daddy Jackson Galaxy (the famous cat behaviorist) “catify” his new bungalow. Not only is it super fun to see what ideas the two came up with to create highways through the space, but we loved reading how the accessorizing took some adjusting as the cats showed them what elements worked, and what (like the window shelves) needed some tweaking to accommodate how the cats used them. You can click the link above to see all the great photos and read the full story. Thanks Moderncat!

(photo of Jackson Galaxy used with permission of Moderncat)

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The wonderful pet-loving folks over at PEOPLEPets.com  celebrity pet website have partnered with Adopt-a-Pet.com to help homeless pets get some publicity in their Adopt Me series! This week it is sweet-natured Nikki from Richmond Virginia who’s looking for a home – even a foster home would be great until she finds her forever home. To learn more about her and see four fun photos including a rolling in the grass and hanging out with her human friends, visit her Adopt-a-Pet.com profile! Nikki is living proof that animals can be disheartened. The Animal Adoption and Rescue Foundation of Richmond, Va., saved her from a kill shelter three years ago when she was pregnant and heartworm positive; she’s been in and out of foster homes and boarding facilities ever since. Her puppies were adopted, but years later, the energetic 3-year-old is still waiting for her chance. “Her previous boarding facility told us she’d been getting depressed,” says AARF’s president Cindy Chiles-Smith. “So we moved her to another boarding facility just to give her a new outlook. Now she’s not as bad as she was. She’s kind of getting out of it.”

You can read more about Nikki on PEOPLEPets.com and if you or one of your friends might know of a great home looking to adopt or foster an only dog in the Richmond, VA area, please share Nikki’s story with them! You can easily share on your Facebook, Twitter and more by using the icons below.

Welcome to my foster cat house & catios! Have you ever dreamed of moving to the country where you could have lots of animals? Or wished you had more room so you could foster more pets? I found out that I didn’t have to wait till I lived on my fantasy 100-acre animal sanctuary to make my wish come true. I just had to re-imagine, reconfigure and renovate the small suburban space I already had available, on the side and back of my home. For a long time I’d saved bookmarks when I saw a really amazing cat enclosure or cat sanctuary online. But when I saw the photos in the New York Times article on catio enclosures in the summer of 2010, I knew it was time to turn my mini cat sanctuary dreams into drawings, plans and reality! Here’s how I did it, along with a photo gallery at the end, including of lots of photos of my foster cats who’ve been enjoying the results until they find loving adoptive homes!

First I did lots of research. I printed out dozens of photos from online (many from Catio Showcase), and made notes on them about what I liked, and put them all into an idea book. Gradually it became clear what design would work well for the space I had, and the style of my 1930’s home.

Several years prior, I constructed my original catio by enclosing one side of my house, like you’d do for a porch. It was 5′ wide and 25′ long.  I covered the porch wood framing with chicken wire, boarded up one end, and made a cat ‘air-lock’ style double-door entry on the other end. My foster cats had access to an interior bedroom through a window, where I kept their litter, food and it was warm & dry. But it turned out not to be such a great setup. Because of my house’s layout, the bedroom door could not easily be made into a “cat air-lock” style of entry, so getting in and out without cats escaping into the dog zone was a bit too much of a challenge!

I needed another warm & dry space where the cats could sleep and eat, and I could spend time with them even if it was cold or raining. So I bought a pre-made barn-style shed from Lowes (inspired by the Cat Cottage Senior Sanctuary), and had it installed in the back of my house. Then I hired a contractor to extend the porch catio enclosure, connecting it to a new hallway and catio/porch in front of the shed. They also ran electricity into the shed for a light and an outlet. I debated about trying to do it myself, but I was worried I didn’t have enough knowledge to build a strong enough structure to provide a safe sanctuary for many years.

I used hardware cloth on the “walls” of the new catio, to keep the cats safe from the dogs in the yard, and vice versa. I buried it 6″ in to the ground, to keep cats from digging out. The catio is inside of my 6′ 6″ walled-in backyard, so I didn’t have to worry to much about critters digging in, or I might have gone deeper or used a “skirt” style. I used chicken wire on the roof, stapled down ever 3 inches, to keep the kitties safe from hawks as well as keeping them in should they happen to turn into kitty houdinis and climb the walls.

I also installed a hardware-cloth screen door between the old catio & new catio & shed. With a deluxe wood insulated kitty cabin (a converted dog house) with a heated cat bed inside as a temporary sleeping spot, as long as it’s not raining, the old catio can be used as the “introduction” room when bringing in new fosters too.

Inside the shed, I lined the ceiling with reflective insulation, and setup a twin bed. The cats love all the shelves inside the shed that are filled with beds and hiding spots all the way up to the roof line. With a thermostat controlled electric heater, it stays the perfect temperature at all times.

Lastly I installed a cat door into the shed, so the cats could come and go into the catios as they pleased. Unfortunately the style I bought was so wind proof, even with the magnet removed, the cats have had difficultly pushing it open. So its been propped open, but on my list of improvements to come are a larger vinyl-flap style door, and some ramps and platforms so the cats can have even more places to run, perch and play.

So far the “cat house” has been a huge hit. The first foster resident was adopted in less than a week! The space gives my foster kittens and cats to have plenty of room (and litter boxes!) to live peacefully and happily until they find their new forever homes.

Learn more about Jennifer, our blog author at Google+
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We love Franny’s the Cats Guide over at About.com Cats, and she recently posted a great in-depth review of an incredible book called “Making Rounds With Oscar – The Extraordinary Gift of an Ordinary Cat” on her site. You can read her full review here, but here’s the beginning of it and you can already see why we say this is an incredible book with an incredible story! “On the surface, Oscar does appear to be an ordinary cat, perhaps one you’d see sitting in a neighbor’s window, or even in a cage in an animal shelter, waiting for adoption. His dark eyes, although clear and bright, don’t show any evidence of what almost appears to be Oscar’s supernatural ability of sniffing out the impending death of one or another of the patients in the third floor dementia ward of Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Providence, Rhode Island.” Yes, Oscar is that famous cat wh’s self-appointed job is attending to patients right before they die, giving families and loved ones a chance to gather around for a final goodbye. Incredible! Thanks Franny for the review and letting us know about this book!

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What kind of Easter Bunny makes a great gift to give and receive? Chocolate bunnies! Sadly every year, baby bunnies and adult rabbits are purchased as Easter gifts, and then when the rabbits get older, the excitement of Easter wears off, and the reality of owning a pet that requires daily cleaning, feeding, exercise and socialization sets in… the poor bunnies are dropped off at animal shelters where few make it out alive. Or worse, let loose in a field, where they become hawk or coyote food. So thank goodness for Rescue Chocolate’s Make Mine Chocolate Bunnies! Yummy adorable chocolate bunnies wrapped up with a pretty ribbon, ready for delivery and devouring! Rescu Chocolate’s website says: “To break the cycle of purchase and abandonment, Rescue Chocolate has partnered with House Rabbit Society  to promote “Make Mine Chocolate,” a campaign that encourages the purchase of chocolate bunnies for Easter rather than live rabbits. For more information about rabbits and how you can help, visit the House Rabbit Society website and the Make Mine Chocolate campaign. Ingredients: cacao beans, sugar, cacao butter, soy lecithin, vanilla.” Yum! You can click to buy yours online here.

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Our friends over at Bark Busters have put together these great tips for dog owners in multi-user residences! “We all know what joy having a canine companion can bring, no matter where we call home. However, for those who live in multi-unit dwellings, a misbehaved dog whose barking and bad manners disturbs others can easily cause ill-will among the most rational of tenants.  Bark Busters, the world’s largest dog training company, offers these tips below for dog-owners who share living space in apartments, condos, townhomes and the like.

• Before moving into your new residence, thoroughly check the unit and complex surroundings for potential dog hazards to ensure your dog’s safety.
• Socializing your dog is essential in a busy, high-traffic environment. As soon as you move in, introduce yourself and your dog to your immediate neighbors. This lets your dog become familiar with the people—and dogs—he may encounter every day. Get to know other canine-owning neighbors so you can care for each another’s dogs in the event of delays in getting home.
• Be respectful of others. Before getting on an elevator, ask if everyone is comfortable with your dog riding along. If there is already another dog inside, wait for the next one or take the stairs.  A small confined area can become a threatening environment for the dogs.
• Always position yourself between your dog and passersby in hallways and other public areas.
• Take extra care when walking on staircases. Small dogs may fall between the stairs or through the railings. In addition, you could trip on your dog as you both maneuver the steps. Train your dog to walk slowly by your side when on stairs, and to wait to give other residents the right of way.
• Consider taking an obedience class or having one-on-one training with your dog—you’ll both learn a lot and be better neighbors. In addition, making your dog think expends as much energy as physical activity. Provide 10 to 15 minutes of training daily on basics such as sit, stay, come, and walking on leash. Doing this twice a day is even better.
• If the weather is bad, practice obedience with your dog in the building’s hallways and lobbies (if safe), as well as at home.
• Keep your dog busy when indoors by providing high-quality, treat-rewarding food-puzzle or food-stuffed toys. Switch out his toys every few days so he has new and fun things to hold his interest.
• Don’t let your dog become a nuisance barker. If he barks when you are at home, learn ways to manage his noisy behavior to help you and your neighbors enjoy a quieter living environment. If he barks when you are away from home, consult with a qualified dog behavioral therapist to learn how to stop the barking and keep the peace.
• Consider crate-training your dog. Because dogs are descended from den-dwelling animals, a crate or pet carrier makes a natural shelter. Provide soft bedding and keep the crate in an area of your home where he feels most comfortable. Crating your dog when you’re not home ensures a safe environment for him, minimizes chances of his barking, and helps prevent him from causing damage. Avoid leaving your dog unattended or locked on an apartment balcony.
• Get training that will help you understand your dog. Knowing your dog’s unique temperament and tendencies will help you to better control how he behaves. A well-behaved dog is less likely to upset people and other pets in public places, will be more welcome at gatherings, and will enjoy a better relationship with everyone he meets. Plus, his good manners will reflect positively on you, his responsible owner.

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Earlier this week if you were tuned in to the Martha Stewart TV show, you may have seen a wonderful show dedicated to “Do Something.” The show opened with none other than Adopt-a-Pet.com’s own spokesperson, Dr. Pia Salk! For 9 minutes she and Martha talked about wonderful shelter and rescue pets available for adoption, from purebred Beagle puppies, to adorable kittens, unique photogenic mixed breeds from lap size to family size, and (one of Pia’s favorites) a super sweet Pit Bull named Sasha. Pia also talked about how people can “do something” to help homeless pets, even if they can’t adopt – like volunteer, share adoptable pets on social networking sites, or put an Adopt-a-Pet.com search widget (like Pia did) on their own website! Or if you have a special skill, like you are a professional or amateur photographer, you can volunteer to take photos of pets for adoption, like celeb photographer Richard Phibbs does. You can understand the life-changing difference a good photo , or social networking to get a pet seen and saved, can make in the life of a shelter or rescue pet. Did you miss the show on TV? You can watch the segment online here on MarthaStewart.com right now!  Also on Pia’s blog on MarthaStewart.com  you won’t want to miss the 33 photos Pia posted from behind the scenes. It takes a LOT of people, animals, and hard work to put together “just” a 9-minute segment! We just thrilled that Martha Stewart uses her show to promote wonderful causes, like helping homeless pets. Thank you Martha and thank you Pia for such a great show!

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We love the wisdom that senior pets bring to our lives. Senior cats in particular, since they can live such long lives, seem to possess a worldly knowledge that surpasses many other species. The Daily Mail seems to have more and more stories about incredible ancient domestic felines, such as Lucy from South Wales, who is age 39 or Cream Puff, age 28 in Texas — yes that is in human years! It’s not just the press that is recording cats living longer lives: According the Cornell Feline Health Center at Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, “Just as people are living longer than they did in the past, cats are living longer too. In fact, the percentage of cats over six years of age has nearly doubled in just over a decade, and there is every reason to expect that the “graying” cat population will continue to grow.” The CFHC has even put out a brochure called “The Special Needs of the Senior Cat” (click here to view it online). Read on to find out what it reveals…

The CFHC brochure points out an interesting  way to more accurately calculate your cat’s age in human years: “The commonly held belief that every “cat year” is worth seven “human years” is not entirely accurate. In reality, a one-year-old cat is physiologically similar to a 16-year-old human, and a two-year-old cat is like a person of 21. For every year thereafter, each cat year is worth about four human years. Using this formula, a ten-year-old cat is similar age wise to a 53-year-old person, a 12-year-old cat to a 61-year-old person, and a 15-year-old cat to a person of 73.”

This age calculating is based on averaging cat data, which includes both indoor-only and cats that spend time or live outdoors. So obviously, an indoor-only pet would have a MUCH longer average lifespan than 15 years.

Ironically, many people still look at an 8 year old cat as a senior pet, but given the information above, you may want to consider adjusting that age bracket up a number of years! We see many cats living into their 20’s nowadays. That is an important piece of information when you are looking at adopting a pet, especially if you are in your upper years as well.

Another good article about growing old with your cat (which you can read in full here) has some helpful tips on feeding your pet a lower calorie diet if they begin to gain weight as they age, and touches on the common illnesses that senior cats can face — and hide very well!

Some tips we like for when you own or adopt a senior cat:

– Watch for any changes in appearance or behavior, even ones that seem “normal” or “insignificant” for an aging cat (such as slowing down, changes in appetite, coat appearance, litter box use or volume) can be signs of a disease that is developing, that could be stopped or greatly diminished with early vet care intervention.

– Checkups: If you have a newly adopted senior cat, you won’t have known them long enough to notice any “changes” in their appearance or behavior. Plan on vet visits every 6 months for a checkup for the first  year, or even two – then yearly. Since stress is not good for any pet, especially a senior cat, ask if your vet makes housecalls. Many offer this service for a very minimal fee.

– Brush & kitty massage weekly – or daily! Not only does this help a senior cat keep their coat sleek, reduce hairballs, increase circulation, but the massage part is a mini-exam and you will notice any lumps right away.

– Exercise. Just like with people, daily low-impact exercise is critically important for keeping your senior cat healthy. Make time each day for a short play session with a feather toy or laser toy, or any game that gets kitty moving!

So now you’re ready to adopt a “senior” cat or two! You can select “senior” as the age in the Adopt-a-Pet.com Cat Search tool to find loving senior cats for adoption near you.

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We are avid fans of Adopt-a-Pet.com’s spokesperson Dr. Pia Salk’s blog posts over on the MarthaStewart.com “The Daily Wag” blog, and her last post on her judging the “Go Dog Go’ fundraiser show for HeARTs Speak, an organization that offers a unique and creative way for artists of all ages to help homeless animals, um… forgive the play on words… “illustrates” exactly why! Pia writes: “The first annual “The Go Dog Go Show” was the brainchild of Rhinebeck New York’s Pause Boutique owner, Laura Betti. Laura’s motto for the event that showcased dogs of all ages, breeds, and talents was, “Barking allowed. Big personalities rewarded.” When asked what motivated her to create this annual event, Laura said, ” I place high value on organizing events that bring together families in support of positive animal causes. These types of events serve as a venue for the much needed education of responsible pet ownership, advocacy for animal rescue and awareness overall about the role we play in protecting animals. Collaboration is key.”

You can read the full blog article with all the super fun photos right here.

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