Author: Jennifer

While begging for hot dogs might seem like the perfect dog day, what comes after on July 4th isn’t so K9 or Feline friendly. At night the bangs and screeching of fireworks elevate your pets’ fight-or-flight drive. This can cause them to panic, wet the floor, tear up things, try to escape, run, or exhibit other distressed behavior. Be Aware! This is the busiest time of year at shelters Nationwide. Even if your dog or cat has never tried to escape or run, this may be the time. They may seem fine and then suddenly bolt out an open door or gate. Fireworks can start days in advance, so use our tips as soon as needed. You can help your dogs and cats stay cool and safe this day of independence. Here’s how:

1. Check that your pets collars are secure, with up-to-date, readable pet ID tags. Call to verify that their microchips have your current contact information.
2. Keep your pet inside!
3. Turn on the TV or loud music to minimize outside sounds.
4. Don’t coddle dogs when they are scared – that rewards scared behavior. Talk in a normal voice, act indifferent to the sounds.
5. Give your dog a special food-stuffed toy or long-lasting chew treat, to keep their mind focused on that, not the noises.
6. Give your dog his or her normal “big” exercise session every day. Exercise helps relieve stress.
7. If you know your pet gets highly distressed during fireworks, talk to your vet about possible short-term medication.
8. Keep doors closed – and, if possible, keep pets locked out of rooms where a door to the outside might be opened.
9. If at all possible, do not leave your pets alone, especially outside, during these events. If you must leave them alone, leave them inside with a TV or radio playing.

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

This post is from a friend of ours all the way across the Atlantic in Ireland. Gillian lives in rural Ireland and cares for a variety of animals. Recently she wrote a comprehensive blog post about how to raise a newborn kitten. It covers: how to feed a newly born kitten, how to handle and care for a kitten, how to introduce solid foods, how to introduce litter trays, and how to clean the kitten. Her post includes videos and is easy to follow. You can read how to raise a kitten on her blog here.

This week news of a interesting way to raise awareness about pet adoption. The Nevada Humane Society  hosted a marathon Pet Adoptathon at its shelter on Longley Lane, where they stayed open for 36 straight hours.

You can reduce or even eliminate allergies to your family pets, just by following some very simple steps! Cats and dogs are the most common pets that cause human allergic reactions. While it is rare for a human’s allergies to a pet to be so severe (and unresponsive when all these tips are used) that they can no longer live with that pet, that doesn’t mean they are fun. So try our easy tips below, and you won’t have to give away your family dog or cat to solve an allergy problem in yourself or your kids!

To learn why I’m an “expert” on pet allergies, you can read below my tips. DISCLAIMER: these are just my personal tips. They are not a substitute for medical advice from your doctor.

Step 1: Reduce allergens in your life.

The more your body is having to put up a “fight” to allergens, the harder it is for it to win. Do you know everything you might be even slightly allergic to? An allergist can test you for a few dozen allergens, but in the battle against allergies, it may be easier to start out with reducing as much as possible the most common allergens in your life. Pet dander, dust, mold, pollen… they all float in our home’s air and stick to every surface! When you reduce ALL the allergens in your home, you reduce your allergic reaction to your pet. Here are just some ideas how:

• clean your house daily with natural, perfume free cleaning products
• vacuum what you cannot mop, such as couches, your mattress
• get a sealed “allergy” vacuum – that filters & traps dust/allergens inside
• use pet hair rollers daily (or more often!) on fabric surfaces – we like the sticky washable ones
• replace carpet with hard surface flooring, or keep pets out of carpeted rooms
• if you cannot remove carpet, steam clean monthly (or weekly/biweekly)
• if you must have rugs, replace wool with cotton, & wash using 140 degree+ water weekly
• replace curtains with hard surface window coverings that can be wiped down weekly
• invest in high-quality HEPA air purifier – starting with one in the bedroom
• cover mattresses and pillows with specially designed allergy covers
• wash blankets weekly on hot using hypo allergenic laundry soap
• wash your clothes and  yourself in non-perfumed soap and shampoo
• leave your shoes at the door to avoid tracking allergens inside
• try eliminating or drastically reducing dairy (milk, eggs) from your diet
• try eliminating other common food allergens from your diet (wheat, soy, peanuts)
• avoid scented body care products

Step 2: Reduce allergens from your pet

If you are having a reaction to a newly adopted pet, often simply letting another family member or friend (or paid pet cleaner) handle that pet and cleaning as much as possible for you, while you slowly over a few weeks get used to that new pet, can be a huge help. Here are some other tips to try to help as well:

• Big News for 2020: Purina’s “LiveClear” cat food has been shown to reduce allergens in cat hair and dander by an average of 47%. For sale at most pet supply stores like at Chewy.com here.
• wash your hands immediately after handling your new pet
• brush your pet daily – dogs outside your home, cats in a bathroom with a closed door, surfaces wiped off  afterward (ideally done by a nonallergic family member)
• after brushing, using a towel dampened with water, wipe off their fur, then wash towel (do not reuse)
• bathe dogs weekly – use a gentle moisturizing unscented pet shampoo, or alternate one week with just an unscented conditioner
• once a week, wipe down pet using a pet allergen reducing liquid like Allerpet for Cats or Dogs (about $7) available in pet supply stores or online.
• use a damp towel to wipe down pets that go outside, before they come inside, to wipe off outside allergens
• clean litterboxes daily, outside, and wash out completely weekly
• use unscented dust-free cat litter
• wash pet beds weekly in unscented laundry soap & hot water
• wash your pet’s toys weekly
• feed your pets premium food (helps keep skin healthy)
• if your pet has dry or flaking skin, with your vet’s approval, feed a skin & coat supplement
• keep pets out of your bedroom… or at least off the bed!

Then, slowly, one by one… You may need to start out using ALL the tips above to reduce your allergies enough to be comfortable. But then, try not using one, for a few weeks, and see how you do! For example, let’s say you’d prefer to have your pets sleep in your bedroom. However, at first, you may do best with no pets in you bedroom, keeping the door closed. Then in a few weeks (or months), try the door open with a baby gate or screen keeping pets out. Then allowed them in the room but not while you are in there sleeping. Then try your pets sleeping on the floor… and then, if you want, a pet on the bed! If at any point your allergies become uncomfortable, take one step back.

How I got to be an “expert” on pet allergies… I suffered from allergies my entire childhood. I had asthma and hay fever and was allergic to pretty much anything that bloomed or walked on four legs! I spent the latter half of my childhood living in the lush countryside with all sorts of animals, so I have decades of experience dealing with allergies to pets. I still have to follow many of the steps below to keep it that way, and new pets and certain times of the year or environments (a field of goldenrod) will make my nose and eyes tingle, but that mild reaction is just a faint reminder of the full-blown inability to breath, itchy eyes, and runny nose symptoms I used to suffer from on a daily basis.

I now live in a home with many dogs and cats and am almost totally allergy (and medication) free!

Photo credit: evah

Abbie Moore, executive director of Adopt-a-Pet.com, released the following statement regarding the death of actress Rue McClanahan, whose image appears on the non-profit’s web site: “Everyone at Adopt-a-Pet.com is extremely saddened to hear of Rue McClanahan’s passing.  Ms. McClanahan, a noted animal lover, generously donated her time, energy, and likeness in support of pet adoption by appearing in an episode of our web series, The Save-a-Pet Show.  She also appears on the Adopt-a-Pet.com web site, fittingly, on the page where visitors can search for a shelter cat to adopt (http://www.adoptapet.com/cat-adoption).  We’ve always thought of her as our ‘Cat Ambassador’, greeting and encouraging all who come to Adopt-a-Pet.com with the intention of saving a cat’s life.

“In the episode of the Save-a-Pet Show in which she appears, Ms. McClanahan revealed the bottomless compassion she felt for all animals, dogs and cats alike.  In fact, she said, during the filming of The Golden Girls, she had eight cats and six dogs, all adopted from shelters or rescued as strays from the streets.  We thank you, Rue, for everything you’ve done to spread the word about pet adoption and the great example you’ve set as a wonderful human being.”

Adds Dr. Pia Salk, who interviewed Ms. McClanahan in the episode of The Save-a-Pet Show: “Rue graciously invited us into her home to shoot the episode and we surprised her by bringing some shelter kittens with us. There was a very sweet ‘little girl’ quality to her that comes out in the episode as she cuddles each shelter kitten and helps me name them! She was really lovely and so genuinely concerned for these kittens specifically, as well as the overall plight of shelter animals. She will be sorely missed by 2 –and-4 -leggers alike.”

The Save-a-Pet Show can be viewed here:  http://www.adoptapet.com/save-a-pet-show/index.html , or on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_lTujC5bBw

Happy Tails Books, publisher of books that support animal rescue and advocacy, is inviting children ages 8-16 to submit short stories, essays, poems, and artwork depicting all of the wonderful reasons they love their adopted pets. This is a great opportunity for children to participate in animal advocacy, win great prizes, and get their work published (the best entries will be published in a book). Visit http://happytailsbooks.com/contest.htm for more details. Deadline: June 15th.

About Happy Tails Books:
Happy Tails Books™ publishes compilations of stories about rescued dogs. These thought-provoking books are meant to entertain pet lovers and raise awareness about pet adoption. They provide a venue for proud owners to showcase their adopted pets and generate funding for rescue groups through the donation of a significant portion of each sale.

Maybe you’re pregnant and worried about how your puppy will react when the baby comes.  Maybe you already have a baby and want to adopt a puppy.  Or maybe you just want to teach your new dog to interact safely with any young child, or you want to teach your child to interact safely with any young dog.  There are many reasons pets are good for kids, as well as breeds that may do better with young children (click those links to read our other blog articles for more information on those two topics). But no matter the what your particular dog and infant or child setup, there are tips you can use to help make your puppy’s and child’s introduction and life together a safe and happy one!

Can you safely bring a young puppy into a house with small children? Many times that answer is YES, but it does take a lot of supervision, separation, training and time. NOTE: Since every baby and puppy is different, please consult a professional dog  trainer before following any of our tips.

What age if best?
First, consider the age of the puppy: you can’t expect a 2, 3, or even 5-month-old puppy to be able to be trained enough to be baby- or toddler-safe off-leash. Only an older puppy – one 6 months or older, who has finished teething – can have had enough training to behave safely with babies and young children. Also, consider the age of your children: are they old enough to understand and obey your rules about the dog or puppy? Many parents think “I want the puppy to grow up with my children,” not realizing that this can still happen with an older puppy, or even an adult dog (they will still be growing up together), and can be a much easier and safer experience for everyone!

Supervision
It takes a lot more time and effort to overcome a bad experience, than to create a safe setup for ongoing positive ones!

Puppies and babies have unsophisticated communication skills with their own species, and non-existent skills with another species. BOTH need constant supervision. Both need environments protected from their innocence and impulses. You cannot blame a puppy for biting a baby; it simply does not know any better yet. When awake, both young children and puppies require an adult’s undivided attention. To do both at once is nearly impossible, and is an accident waiting to happen.

While you are training your new dog or puppy, keep them safely separated using baby gates, playpens, and/or a crate. That way they can get safely used to seeing, smelling and hearing each other. The two should be introduced to each other for periods of time, and very gradually. NEVER them alone together until you are sure that the ground rules established by you will be followed. This is only after your both your new puppy and your child are old enough to understand, remember and follow the rules.

Many dog experts recommend following a “6-6” rule: only when the puppy has been trained and socialized with your children for 6 months, and the children are at least 6 years old, would unsupervised time together be safe.

Training, Behavior & Play
Teach your children not to pull tails, ears, or poke at the dog by having them watch you, and if your child is old enough to listen when you say no, to mimic you. Demonstrate how to pet the dog gently by taking the child’s hand, running it softly along the dog’s body, and saying, “Niiiice” in a soothing tone of voice.

Many puppies are afraid and will retreat if approached quickly. Toddlers seem to love to run after animals, which often frightens them, and if cornered, a normally gentle pet may resort to nipping to protect himself. Teach your child that the puppy likes to be approached slowly, and that when puppy is sleeping, not to wake him or her.

Here are just a few kid-friendly puppy ideas:

• Teach your children how to throw a ball for the puppy, and teach your puppy to bring the ball back and drop it for the child.
• Go on walks together where you attach two leashes to the puppy’s collar, so you each can hold one.
• Play hide and “seek” with puppy’s toys or a treat. Hold the puppy back while your child “hides” the toy and then let puppy go find it, encouraging your child to tell the puppy if he’s getting “hotter” or “colder” as he moves towards or away from the hiding spot.
• Spend quiet time reading together. Puppies and dogs make especially wonderful, non-judgmental listeners to new readers!

Nipping & Rough play
Puppies will try to play with babies and toddlers by jumping on them and grabbing hold with their teeth. After all, this is how canine babies play with their canine brothers and sisters. Puppies be taught that human children are not their littermates. If this isn’t taught, a growing puppy’s behavior will become increasingly rough, and the odds increase that a small child will be seriously hurt during play. Never allow your child OR ANY ADULT to use their hands, fingers, feet, or clothing (like pant legs, or shirt sleeves) for play, and do not play tug-of-war games. This kind of play will lead to aggressive behavior. It’s tempting because its cute and fun when puppies are little, but will it be fun when your 70 pound dog comes running at you and grabs on to your pant leg with his teeth and pulls? If you allow your puppy to treat children and adults like any a toy or puppy, and your child could end up seriously scratched or bitten.

Teething
Puppy teething usually lasts until 4-5 months of age. As with babies, teething is painful to puppies. Chewing is natural and helps to relieve the pain, and puppies will chew on anything they can get their mouth on, including small hands, fingers – especially as those things often smell like the delicious food they were just holding! Puppies have baby teeth, which are like sharp, large needles, until around 4 months of age, and they can do serious damage to baby soft skin. You will need to very closely supervise and restrain (on leash) a young puppy to prevent them from teething on or play-biting a young child.

Food
Be sure your children do not try to take food away from the dog or put their hands in the pet’s food bowl. Some animals perceive this as a threat to their food and react aggressively. You should be training your new puppy in food bowl socialization, but it is never a good idea to feed the puppy when children are present, best to do so in a separate room or crate. Teach your puppy to sit and stay when your child is holding food, and that YOU are the only one that ever gives the puppy food. (They will see something in the child’s hand and then look to you for the reward, instead of trying to grab it out of their hand.)

Raising children and dogs requires skill if it’s to be done well. We do not come magically prepared for raising children, we have to learn and be prepared, and it’s the same for raising a puppy to be safe around children.
Learn more about Jennifer, our blog author at Google+

Earlier this week Adopt-a-Pet.com featured a rescue dog on Peoplepets.com — Molly, the Shepherd-Lab mix. Molly marked the kick off our “Adopt Me” partnership, where Adopt-a-Pet.com will be showcasing a new wonderful animal for adoption each month. Thanks for starting us off right, Molly! You can learn more about sweet Molly, as well as see celebrity pets, create your pet’s profile and share photos with pet lovers like you, all on Peoplepets.com. Adopt-a-Pet.com is thrilled for the opportunity to promote pet adoption and encourage more people to consider a shelter or rescue pet when they’re looking for their next furry family member. We’ve got thousands of great animals to choose from… we hope many of our pets will become Peoplepets soon. Molly sure is enjoying being a glamorous and famous pooch!

Here’s our favorite photo of Molly from her Adopt-a-Pet.com listing:

Don’t you just love an inspiring rescue story? Even more so when it includes a video showing the amazing before and after… like with adorable little Sol! This is a happy video – no tissues required. Sol y Sombra an adorable little blind Maltese, was turned in by his owner to the Downey Shelter in LA County. A rescuer walked by… and saw the note on his cage: BLIND. Fortunately, he had bi-lateral cataracts that were deemed operable! The rescuer rescued him, and raised the donations needed for his surgery. It was a 100% success and his eyesight was restored!

Before his surgery, he had been afraid to venture outside, frozen when put down anywhere he didn’t know, a little lost boy… but then… Sol woke up woke up one morning with a hallelujah moment! For the first time in years, Sol could see! Now, nit only can he see… he’s learning to do AGILITY! He’s become quite the ladie’s man and jet setter! Thanks to all the wonderful caring people who aided in his rescue, rehabilitation, and total recovery, Sol went from shelter’s kill list… to Maltese A-list!

You can see the amazing and happy transformation in this wonderful video created by his rescuer, Bronwyne Mirkovich:

Keeping your kittens and cats indoors all the time is unquestionably the safest choice you can make for their well-being. They avoid being hit by cars, injuries from other animals, parasites, and life-threatening illnesses… the list is almost endless to the hazards indoor pets avoid. Keeping an indoor pet happy is just as important as keeping them safe! A pet’s happiness is an integral part of their staying healthy, just like with people. There are many wonderful ways you can enrich their environment and their lives. Here are a few of our favorite fun ideas for helping keep your feline friends happy, while living safely inside your home.

• Adopt a kitty friend – most cats are so much happier with a cat friend! We’re not just saying that because we’re a pet adoption website either, ask anyone that’s owned two or more cats.  Even if you think your cat doesn’t like other cats, you might try fostering a few different (slightly smaller and opposite sex) cats. Often it’s just a matter of a slow introduction and finding the right personality match. Find a cat or kitten to adopt near your zip code.
• Daily exercise – Cats need to run, jump and chase every day. Wild cats have birds, bugs, and other small animals to chase around, but indoor kitties need you (or a kitty friend) to provide that kind of mental and physical exercise by playing with them EVERY DAY. You may need to try lots of different toys till you find one that gets your cat going.
• Variety is the spice of life – Wild cats wouldn’t be chasing an identical bird day after day either. You can make inexpensive cat toys by attaching almost anything to the end of a fishing line. Try crumpled up paper balls, tin foil, plastic wrap, knots of yarn – of course, never leave these homemade toys out with them unsupervised. My cats are huge fans of the feather on a string and laser toys.
• Climbing & hideouts – Even in a tiny apartment you can get super creative with arranging your furniture like couches and bookshelves to create create climbing steps and high up “hideouts” for your cat! They do not have to be carpet cat trees, check out some great stylish ideas on the moderncat blog here. Also don’t forget window perches, like a bookshelf or chair back infront of a window – cats love to look out even if they can’t go out.

You may ask, why not just build or purchase an outdoor cat enclosure? That’s a great idea too! If you have a balcony, patio or yard, there are endless ways you can create a cat-proof enclosure for your cat to enjoy being outoors safely. But before you invest a lot of time or money in one, you may want to try a less expensive outdoor cat tunnel first…. and if you follow the other tips above, you may find your cat is perfectly happy being an indoor-only cat without ever going outside.

For a comprehensive list of veterinary technician programs in the US, and more information on becoming a vet tech visit Vet Tech