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Life at Home

Gone-Away Blues: Help Pets Adjust to Family Absences

Article

Reading Time: 3 minutes No one sent an email to pets explaining, “Everything is about to change; there’s a pandemic and your people with be home 24/7.” Some pets took a while to adjust to their new normal, while dogs who may have been walked more often and cats who could sit in laps more often relished this new […]

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Cats Dogs Life at Home Veterinary Care

Taking Veterinary Care on the Road

Article

Reading Time: 5 minutes Daphne Tanouye, VMD, had a successful house call practice in Maryland. Then the pandemic came. “Over the summer we started seeing patients outside. For dogs, it worked out fine, they did well, but for cats it didn’t really work,” she says. “We did that for a few months, and I realized that the pandemic probably […]

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Cats Life at Home

Are Cats Picky Eaters? Here’s the Scoop

Article

Reading Time: 3 minutes Nature is pretty smart. To survive, creatures are designed to crave the food and behavior that they need to be healthy. For example, humans are a social species, and we are omnivores. We evolved to eat a variety of foods served three times a day with the company of others. Humans sometimes have a hard […]

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Dogs Life at Home Training & Grooming

Home Grooming Can Be a Bonding Experience

Article

Reading Time: 3 minutes Whenever I comb my 9-pound Poodle, Peach, she cranes her neck, coos with pleasure, and wiggles her way into my lap to be as close as possible. She doesn’t approve when I try to comb her legs and feet, but having her neck combed when she’s not wearing a collar sends her into rapture. My […]

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Life at Home

Opening the Door to More Pet-Friendly Housing

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Reading Time: 7 minutes News flash! A recent survey shows that pet owners make excellent, responsible tenants. They stay longer, get along well with their neighbors, and take the responsibility of their pets seriously, resulting in far less property damage than is purported to occur. Plus, most pet parents pay for such damage out of their own pockets! So […]

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Cats Life at Home

While You Were Sleeping

Article

Reading Time: 3 minutes Three years ago, I bought a Foxelli trail cam so I could view what types of wildlife were on our property. I was surprised. I had no idea of the variety of animals in our backyard. When I needed to bring the camera in to change batteries, I wanted to test it to ensure I […]

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Cats Dogs Life at Home Travel & Safety

Is It Okay for Pets to Eat Cicadas? Mostly, the Bugs are Harmless

Article

Reading Time: 2 minutes Depending on where you happen to live, your neighborhood may seem like a horror movie come to life. Millions of cicadas from Brood X, or the 17-year cicadas, will swarm and create a cacophony louder than several jackhammers. They are annoying to us but otherwise harmless, although some dogs consider them an opportunity for a […]

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Cats Dogs Life at Home New Pets

Before You Get Your New Pet: Plan for Success

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Reading Time: 4 minutes Successful pre-pet planning begins with a little foresight and preparation for the first few days together. Set yourself and your new pet up for success from the get-go and begin to foster a strong relationship built on trust and empathy. Before you get your pet, take the following steps: Puppy- or Kitten-Proof the Home Before […]

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Life at Home

Is New Flooring in Your Future? 5 Non-Slip Options

Article

Reading Time: 3 minutes The fear of falling is a deep-seated fear within the minds of most animals. Choosing the best and safest non-slip floors for your home will help your pets feel more relaxed and secure, especially as they age and become less sure-footed. In this article, we will focus on great solutions for creating a non-slip surface […]

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Cats Dogs Life at Home

Why Pets Matter: How Cats and Dogs Affect Our Lives

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Reading Time: 3 minutes National Pet Month celebrates all things pets. For those who adore cats and dogs or other critters, our animal companions impact us in so many ways we can’t imagine living in a world without them. That begs the questions, how (and why) are pets so important to us? The Love Connection As social creatures, humans […]