Fear Free Happy HomesReading Time: 5 minutes I get about three similar calls a week. Sometimes, callers are a bit coy. “My groomer said my dog was … er, um … well, we could use some help training him to behave.” Other times, they’re up front, “My groomer gave me your number. She said my dog tried to bite her when she […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes Growing up, we had the cutest little black-and-white Shih Tzu named Caterpillar. He was good-natured and playful, pulling toilet paper from the roll until it unraveled and climbing on top of our board games so he could become the center of attention. As he aged, Caterpillar gradually began to lose his hearing. It was difficult […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes Go to a boarding stable with a variety of housing options for horses and you’ll see that box stalls are the most expensive choice. Many horse owners think a 12×12 walled enclosure is the best way to keep their equine companions, putting box stalls in high demand. They believe box stalls are the best home […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes Whenever cat foster Carolyn Mitchell used to turn on her bathroom faucet to wash her hands, an orange and white cat named Spike would rush to her side. “He would come screaming in,” she recalls. “He wanted to drink out of the sink.” Spike refused to drink or eat out of small bowls because he […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes My first night of dog training classes is just for the human end of the leash. I want to make sure the people are on board and ready before we introduce dogs into the equation. After a successful registration night, I was going over paperwork when I spotted something out of the ordinary. “This dog […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes Lake City Animal Health & Wellness Center in Warsaw, Indiana, opened their new clinic in 2018 after transitioning from a small building to a large practice where they could separate the dogs from the cats because they were looking into become certified as a cat-friendly practice. However, when they began looking, they discovered the Fear […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes One of the best things about equine family members is that they often live well into their twenties. That means we need to be very aware of senior horse health problems and care. Gerontology is a “hot” science for dogs and cats. Horses lag a tad behind, but they are catching up. When is a […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes When my Lab mix, Rio, was younger, we volunteered as a therapy dog team at a hospital. One evening, a 2-year-old girl with a huge bandage covering one side of her face ran up to Rio and started patting him on the head and trying to hug him. Rio licked the unbandaged side of her […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes April 10 is National Hug Your Dog Day, but hugging dogs isn’t always a good idea, or even an expression of love, at least not from the dog’s perspective. All primates, from chimpanzees to Japanese macaques (snow monkeys) to humans, are hard-wired to console others and communicate affection by hugging. Dogs are not primates. Perhaps […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes The doorbell rang. “Rosie, Place!” I called out. Four pounds of Yorkshire Terrier energy bolted across the home office, dashed into my open bedroom door, then pivoted around to face me. Her little nubby tail wagged furiously. “Yes!” I marked, tossing a treat into the bedroom. Rosie ran to inhale it, then dashed back to […]