Fear Free Happy Homes
Reading Time: 3 minutes My 10-year-old daughter Reagan has experienced a lot of pet loss in the past year. Our 12-year-old black Pug, Willy, died suddenly and unexpectedly while my husband and I were out of the country, leaving Reagan and my mother Teresa to face his loss together. Then my parents’ 16-year-old canine cocktail Quixote passed away. At […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes My dog Rio, a friendly Lab mix and former therapy dog, has been attacked numerous times over the years by other dogs – both leashed and unleashed. Once, we even had a dog jump out a car window to try to bite Rio. Panicked, I screamed while Rio defended himself before the owner came running […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes Is getting—and staying—in shape one of your New Year’s resolutions? Include your dogs, too; it’s good for their physical and mental health. But before you haul them out on a five-mile run, talk to your veterinarian about their current condition and the best ways to make sure they don’t suffer from weekend warrior syndrome—the aches […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes When Karma-Kat showed up on our back patio, the 8-month-old kitten had been on his own for some time. Starved for attention, and for food, he ate anything and everything. Karma chewed through the dog food bag to munch kibble and practiced snatch-and-grab attacks to gobble food from our dinner plates. Our last dog, Magic […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes Going to the dentist usually ranks low in popularity for most people. The sound of the drill and the anticipation of pain are two main reasons. But people are flocking to the Dr. Carole Ann Boyd dental office in Dallas from as far away as Palm Springs, California, and New York City. Two reasons: Dr. […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes One of the first articles I ever wrote was called “A Pet for Your Parents.” I’m sure I wrote about all the right things, but now the shoe is on the other foot. Now I am the old person. Now I can tell the story in a much more personal way. Some people feel it’s […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes My pets are part of my family, so I’m extremely grateful to the veterinary teams that help us through sickness and health. Typically, I’ll drop off a holiday card with bottles of wine before their party or a giant popcorn tin, though once I brought a box of chocolates without realizing it could accidentally poison […]
Reading Time: 3 minutes In the article “Walk or Sniff? How You and Your Dog Can Have a Meeting of the Minds” I explained how enrichment walks are important for dogs. Dogs live the world through their noses. Giving them a chance to sniff and enjoy some “shenanigans” is healthy for them. It’s not going to be fun for […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes There are a lot of stressful and uncomfortable things about fecal tests in veterinary medicine. It doesn’t have to be that way. Many pet owners dread being asked to bring a stool sample to the vet, especially if their dog or cat isn’t sick. It’s a hassle to get the sample, and it’s hard to […]
Reading Time: 4 minutes When the worst thing you can think of happens, when there’s a death in the family, some of the most important help you and your dog can get is from each other. Not surprisingly, it might be the dog’s issues that alert you to the depth of your own, because you might be too frantic, […]