Fear Free Happy Homes
Reading Time: 2 minutesWhen cats aren’t scratching where their people would like, it may mean the cat lands at a shelter or is dumped outdoors. It may also mean that the cat is punished by being declawed, which is nothing short of an amputation. To be clear, the last portion of each digit is removed (akin to cutting […]
Reading Time: < 1 minuteUpon the first application of Feliscratch to attract our 15-year-old Devon Rex cat, Roxy, to the post, she rubbed her cheek glands, depositing comfort pheromones on the scratching post. Feliscratch contains a blue dye to help mark the post with a visual cue. Cats actually do that when they scratch (please never apply Feliscratch on […]
Reading Time: < 1 minuteWho says you can’t teach an old cat new tricks? This is Roxy, who is nearly 15. She never before saw the Friskies Pull ‘n Play toy – but she managed (with a bit of help) to figure it out. With cheese string for mouse ears and a place inside the mouse “belly” to stash […]
Reading Time: 3 minutesTo some dogs, and most people, the weather outside is frightful. Other dogs delight in romping and playing on snow and ice. Alaskan Malamutes, Siberian Huskies and other heavily furred dogs, not to mention their feline counterparts such as Maine Coons and Norwegian Forest Cats, were built for snow and cold. But Toy Poodles and […]
Reading Time: < 1 minuteUp to 69 percent of the feline pet population now live indoors only, and because of this, being run over by a car or run down by a coyote is not too likely. However, despite an indoor-only existence, cats are born with a hard-wired prey drive, and they continue to have the need to chase, […]
Reading Time: 3 minutesChristmas without a tree would be like Flag Day without a flag. The tree is an important tradition for many families. And it’s typically pretty simple—purchase the tree, and if it’s a real tree do your best to keep it thriving as long as possible. That’s until a pet is involved. Any pet. For a […]
Reading Time: 4 minutesEnriching the environment means providing suitable outlets to meet the needs of a species. One example: Cats have a hard-wired need to hunt and pounce. It’s great that cats are increasingly being kept indoors (they do live longer when indoors only), but we rarely meet their innate needs. Many zoos have a full-time employee whose […]
Reading Time: 3 minutesMore people than ever are maintaining their cats indoors only, and that’s great; life for cats is far safer inside, with no coyotes or cars to put them at risk. But cats require an enriched environment for their physical, mental and emotional health. When is an environment enriched? It’s a fine line. Change a cat’s […]
Reading Time: 3 minutesThe mantra for so much is “plan ahead.” And this is especially true when the stork is expected. We all want for there to be a Lassie/Timmy connection between kids and pets, but that doesn’t always happen. It is more likely to occur, though, with a little help. And the way that families can prepare […]
Reading Time: < 1 minuteDogs and cats aren’t capable of multitasking; they live in the moment. So if pets are busily and happily eating, it’s impossible for them to worry about anything else. In this case, I am certain Ethel had no idea that she was pricked with a syringe containing a vaccine. She never saw the needle. She […]