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World Spay Day is February 28

February 25, 2023 by Jennifer Houghton Leave a Comment

cats

The last day of February is World Spay Day. As the world moves away from winter and outdoors into spring, consider the benefits of making sure your pet is spayed or neutered. 

Spaying your pet is just one way to help keep homeless pet populations down. Without enough homes for pets they often enter into the shelter system where millions are euthanizes each year.

While there are medical and behavioral benefits to neutering pets, let’s consider a few myths that still exist. According to the ASPCA, two common myths that simply aren’t accurate are:

  • Spaying or neutering will not cause your pet to become overweight.
  • Neutering is not a quick fix for all behavior problems. 

What is true is that you can oftentimes enjoy medical benefits from spaying your pet. For example, your female pet will be less likely to experience breast tumors or uterine infections resulting in a healthier, longer life. Your male pets will be less likely to experience testicular cancer or prostate problems. 

There are behavior benefits as well. Your male dogs are less likely to roam as far away from home when mating season rolls around. This will limit attempts to escape to find a lady friend and potentially incur injury from traffic or other hazards. Your female cat won’t go into heat which can sometimes include a great deal of yowling and urination, sometimes all over your house. 

Contact your veterinarian or seek out a low-cost clinic to find out how to spay or neuter your pet. Do what is best for your pet’s health and research what makes the most sense for your pet. 

Filed Under: Pet Care Tagged With: ASPCA, behavior, cats, clinic, dogs, February, hazards, homeless pet population, injury, mating season, myths, neutering, overweight, pet health, shelter, traffic, veterinarian, world spay day

I Wanna Be A Pirate For Halloween!

October 27, 2022 by Jennifer Houghton Leave a Comment

Halloween is a time of candy and fall weather. It’s also the time when we get to dress our pets up in costumes they may (or may not) want to be in.
 
Who doesn’t love all of the videos and pictures of pets in hilarious and adorable costumes? And while your pet may be into it, there’s some reporting from NPR that outlines things you might want to consider before dressing your pet up.
 
If your pet is one that is used to being handled and dressed in clothes, Halloween costumes are probably not going to be pushing the limits of their comfort. But, if your pet isn’t really one to tolerate being clothed, adding a costume to the mix may create discomfort, or under certain circumstances, injury.
 
According to a survey NPR cited, “more than three-quarters of owners plan to put their pet in a costume this year, and more than half plan to take their dog out trick-or-treating.” That’s a high proportion of pets wearing costumes and being exposed to human candies, like chocolate, that might be fatal.

What To Look For

Not sure about how your pet feels about that adorable costume? Check their mannerisms and body language.
Rena Carlson, president-elect of the American Veterinary Medical Association, recommends that you look for specific signs. For example, “Are they panting, pacing or restless? Do they have a soft face? Are their lips nice [and] soft, or are they grimacing a little bit? What are their ears doing? Are their ears back? Can you see the whites of their eyes when you normally cannot? All of those are signs of stress.”
Consider less restrictive costumes like using a tag to match Scooby Doo or other small adjustments that the dog won’t mind. And remember that for some dogs, the extra attention because of the costume is a completely worthwhile trade-off.
 
Whatever you opt to do, keep in mind how your pet responds and react accordingly. For those of you with costume friendly pets, please share your photos.

Filed Under: Pet Safety Tagged With: adorable, American Veterinary Medical Association, body language, candy, chocolate, clothes, costumes, dress up, ears, eyes, fall weather, fatal, Halloween, hilarious, injury, lips, mannerisms, NPR, panting, pictures, pirate, Rena Carlson, restless, Scooby doo, stress, trick or treating, videos

Fireworks and Frightened Floofins

June 30, 2021 by Jennifer Houghton Leave a Comment

As most of us prepare to return to a more familiar version of the 4th of July holiday, it is always good to emphasize the potential issues some pets may face from fireworks.

Even the most chill pets may be undone by the loud sounds of explosions. July 5th is one of the busiest days at animal shelters, according to American Humane Association.

The last thing pet parents want is to lose a pet during a fireworks display and risk injury, death, or separation from their home due to a panicked escape. Let’s cover some suggestions on how to approach the holiday with your pet in mind.

  • Indoor time is good. Keep your pet indoors during the display. And if you plan to head out to watch the fireworks outside your home, leave your pet at home. Some pet parents find that thunder shirts or similar products provide relief. But, not all pets will find relief that way.
  • Make sure your pet is properly ID’ed. Microchipping is great, but it never hurts to have additional ID tags on your pet just in case they slip out a door. If you have guests over make sure they are aware of your pet so they don’t inadvertently let them outside.
  • Barbecues are good for people, not pets. There are lots of opportunities for pets to get into products or foods that might cause them harm. Watch out for alcohol, table scraps that might upset tummies or cause more severe damage (we see you ribs and chicken wings), and any insect repellent product not specifically made for pets.

You can check out other ideas for safety from PetMD by clicking on the following link: https://www.petmd.com/dog/seasonal/evr_multi_top_ten_fourth_of_july_pet_safety_tips

Stay safe, have fun, and if possible, hang out with your floofin and make them as comfortable as possible.

Filed Under: Pet Safety Tagged With: 4th of July, alcohol, American Humane Assocation, animal shelters, barbeques, chicken wings, death, door, explosions, fireworks, guests, holiday, ID, injury, insect repellant, microchipping, pet, PetMD, relief, ribs, separation, table scraps, thunder shirts, tummies

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