The reason I start today’s post in such a fashion is that Jean and I have been mulling over how we might consider doing some traveling once we are down to six dogs. Indeed, to that end, just last week we met Jana Stewart, a local woman who came highly recommended and who has been in the pet industry for over 30 years.
The serendipitous aspect is that quite recently I received an email from a Sloan McKinney. This is part of what she wrote:
My name is Sloan McKinney and I am freelance writer and journalist and pet enthusiast. I just wanted to say that Learning from Dogs offers great information and advice about pet care issues.
I did happen to notice that you don’t have much information about pets and sitters, which I believe your readers would love to know more about, especially with many people having to leave their pets at home for travel or work.
Since your website contains relevant issues, I was wondering if you would be interested in sharing an infographic about choosing the right sitter for your pet.
More research quickly found Sloan’s background details:
Sloan McKinney is a journalist based in Southern California. After writing about pop culture for a number of years, she has recently begun writing for a new audience. Inspired by DeAnthony, her cat, as well as her dog Max, Sloan now hopes to help other pet owners guarantee their animal companions happy and healthy lives.
I replied that I would be delighted to receive Sloan’s guest post and her accompanying infographic. Here it is:
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How to Choose A Professional Pet Sitter and Why It’s Important
by Sloan McKinney. 1st June, 2017.
If you live with a four-legged friend, you sure understand how nervous and stressful it can be to leave it at home alone for a couple of days.
However, so wags the world that we sometimes have to travel, and oftentimes it is impossible to bring our pets with us. When such a situation occurs, you find yourself in an ethical dilemma. You have to choose between an expensive pet hotel or a friend who’ll be coming to your place once per day to feed your ball of fluff. While the first option is not cost-efficient, the second one might put you into uncomfortable situation when you have to ask your friend or relative to spend time on something that is your responsibility. What a hard choice to make, huh?
But the good news is that there is a great alternative in between the two options described above. This option won’t make you drain your purse, not it will make you feel shy and uncomfortable. Wonder what is it? Pet sitter is the answer. Yes, you will have to pay some money, but the price will be reasonable. No, you won’t have to put pressure on your friends or family members. And the best part is that professional pet sitters know how to make friends with virtually any pet. After all, it’s their job, right?
If you need more reasons to get convinced that pet sitters are the best solution, here is the list of benefits. To begin with, professional pet sitters guarantee regular visits and care. Apart from it, they can get on the right side of even the most demanding pet (of course, it might be still hard even for professional pet sitters to tame a squirrel or raccoon living in your attic). What’s more, they will assure an easier separation for both you and your four-legged friend.
Still not sure it’s a good idea to hire a pet sitter for your favorite ball of fluff? Then you absolutely need to see this beautiful infographic:
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Don’t know about you but Jean and I found that a very useful aide-memoir.
How did you find Sloan’s guest article? I would love to have your feedback.
Going to round off today’s picture parade with a photograph of our growing Canadian geese goslings. The photograph was taken at 7:30pm two evenings ago. I would imagine that we aren’t that far off them all taking to the wing!
And the final photograph for this week’s Picture Parade is of Socks being cuddled by a member of his new family home. Socks has been adopted!! (Full story about this wonderful happening on Tuesday.)
It takes so little good news to uplift one’s heart!
For reasons I can’t readily put my finger on it’s been feeling like a bit of a struggle recently. But that’s enough of that! For our gorgeous dogs have yet another lesson for me: How little it takes for a dog to wag it’s tail!
I so frequently share stuff that I read over on the Care 2 site and why not because as the home page declares:
40,107,687 members: the world’s largest community for good
Just three days ago there was a wonderful article shared on the Care 2 site about some dogs being rescued from a so-called backyard breeder. Better than that, it highlighted the wonderful consequence of a donation from George and Amal Clooney.
Here’s the story.
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9 Dogs Successfully Rescued From Backyard Breeder Thanks to George and Amal Clooney
Nine lucky dogs have just had their world turned upside down in the best way possible.
Camp Cocker Rescue, based in California, just took in the “Mojave 9″ who were being kept by a backyard breeder. They’ll be getting all the love and veterinary care they desperately need thanks to a generous donation made by George and Amal Clooney.
The nine dogs have had little human contact, and are all in need of extensive veterinary treatment for health issues ranging from mammary tumors and dental disease to skin and ear infections to ingrown toenails. The organization relies on donations, and expenses for this rescue operation were quickly rising.
“We literally didn’t know how we were even going to begin to start paying for all of these new dogs that we took in on the same day,” Camp Cocker’s founder Cathy Stanley told PEOPLE.
Now, the organization is celebrating a generous and unexpected donation of $10,000 made by George and Amal Clooney, who are parents to two adopted cocker spaniels from Camp Cocker — Einstein and Louie.
Their donation is going to help cover the cost of care for these dogs, who have never been to a vet. The Clooney’s will also be matching donations up to $10,000 for the rest of May.
“After we all did happy dances and cried with happiness for this unbelievable matching donation offer – we then asked the donors if (and only if they gave us their permission) . . . if we could reveal their names to our supporters in order to help us reach our big goal this month. They were so very gracious to give us permission to reveal their names,” Camp Cocker wrote in an update.
While this was a huge boost for them, Camp Cocker is quick to point out that no donation is too small to help.
“We have a philosophy where we want to be very inclusive of all of our supporters and it’s important to us that no matter how small of a donation, every person feels like their donation is meaningful and that we appreciate them,” Stanley added.
Hopefully news about the Mojave 9 and the attention it’s getting will help raise awareness about rescue and inspire more people to get involved … and will help find each of these precious dogs their perfect forever home.
For more on how to help, and info on how to adopt one of these dogs, check out Camp Cocker Rescue and follow updates on Facebook.
It concerns possible contamination of food with Salmonella so please read and share as widely as you can.
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Smallbatch Dog and Cat Food Recall of May 2017
May 5, 2017 — Smallbatch Pets Inc. of Portland, OR, is voluntarily recalling two lots of its Smallbatch frozen chicken blend for dogs and cats due to the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.
About Salmonella
Salmonella can affect animals eating the products and there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.
Symptoms of infection in people include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever.
Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms.
Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.
Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting.
Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain.
Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans.
If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.
No pet or consumer illnesses from this product have been reported to date. However, because of their commitment to safety and quality, Smallbatch Pets is conducting a voluntary recall of this product.
Consumers should also follow the Simple Handling Tips published on the Smallbatch Pets package when disposing of the affected product.
What’s Recalled?
The affected lots of 2 pound bags of Smallbatch Chicken Blend were distributed to retail pet food stores in the following states:
California
Colorado
Oregon
Washington
Two hundred eighty-two cases of this product were sold between the dates of 2/1/17 and 5/5/17.
The affected products are sold frozen in 2 pound bags.
The products affected by this recall are identified with the following manufacturing codes and “Best By” dates, located on the back of the package.
Lot: D032
UPC: 705105970974
Best By: 2/1/2018
Lot: E058
UPC: 705105970974
Best By: 2/27/2018
What Caused the Recall?
The recall was initiated after routine testing by the Food and Drug Administration of a 2 pound bag of Smallbatch Chicken Blend that was collected at a distributor revealed the presence of Salmonella.
This recall is being made with the knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
What to Do?
Consumers who have purchased the above lots of Smallbatch Chicken Blend are urged to stop feeding the product to their dogs or cats and to return product to place of purchase for a full refund.
Or dispose of them immediately.
Consumers with questions are asked to call the company at 888-507-2712, Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM PST.
Or via email at info@smallbatchpets.com.
U.S. citizens can report complaints about FDA-regulated pet food products by calling the consumer complaint coordinator in your area.
That quote was one uttered by Harold Macmillan, the British Conservative politician and publisher, who served six years as Prime Minister from 1957 to 1963. It was in response to a question regarding what sort of thing was most likely to blow a government off course.
Why did that quotation come to my mind? Simply because all my grand plans for writing a post for you good people were stymied by our internet connection being down for much of the weekend.
So rather than get cut off half-way through a new post, I decided to re-post what I published on this blog five years ago to the day: on April 24th. 2012. Here it is.
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How lady luck brought joy for a ‘down-and-out’ Londoner and a cat called Bob!
I was chatting with my son yesterday and he happened to mention that perhaps I should write about a cat for a change! Alex mentioned a book recently published in the UK called A Street Cat Named Bob: How One Man and His Cat Found Hope on the Streets.
This is how the book is described on Amazon (UK site),
When James Bowen found an injured, ginger street cat curled up in the hallway of his sheltered accommodation, he had no idea just how much his life was about to change. James was living hand to mouth on the streets of London and the last thing he needed was a pet. Yet James couldn’t resist helping the strikingly intelligent tom cat, whom he quickly christened Bob. He slowly nursed Bob back to health and then sent the cat on his way, imagining he would never see him again. But Bob had other ideas. Soon the two were inseparable and their diverse, comic and occasionally dangerous adventures would transform both their lives, slowly healing the scars of each other’s troubled pasts. A Street Cat Named Bob is a moving and uplifting story that will touch the heart of anyone who reads it.
A quick web search found volumes of material.
As in the local London newspaper the Islington Tribune wrote this back in 2010,
Two cool cats… the Big Issue seller and a stray called Bob
Inseparable: musician James Bowen with Bob
Down-on-his-luck musician teams up with ‘wonderful loyal friend’ he rescued from streets
Published: 24 September, 2010
by PETER GRUNER
NOT since the legendary Dick Whittington has a man and his cat become such unlikely celebrities on the streets of Islington.
Big Issue seller James Bowen and his docile ginger cat Bob, who go everywhere together, have been attracting comments since they first appeared outside Angel Tube station.
The story of how they met – widely reported in blogs on the internet – is one of such extraordinary pathos that it seems only a matter of time before we get a Hollywood film.
James, 31, who lives off Seven Sisters Road, Holloway, is a musician who has fallen on hard times.
He ekes out a basic living selling the homeless people’s magazine Big Issue at Angel and Covent Garden.
Bob was a stray discovered by James outside his accommodation one day.
The cat was limping after apparently being attacked by another animal, possibly a fox.
After failing to discover the cat’s owner, James took him to the RSPCA hospital at Finsbury Park, which prescribed a course of antibiotics.
“I kept him for two weeks until he was well enough to go on his way,” said James. “But when I opened the front door to let him out Bob wouldn’t move. He seemed to me to be saying: ‘I want to stay with you.’
“Now we go everywhere together. I even have a cat harness when we go out and Bob gets really excited when I show it to him.”
Read the rest of the article here and if you want more information, a web search on Bob the Cat will finds loads more.
It’s a fabulous story with a great message of hope for not just for James and Bob but for all of us that find ourselves ‘up a creek without a paddle’ at points in our lives.
Here’s how the newspaper The Daily Mail wrote about it on their website,
[last half of the story]
But then Bob started following him and it became increasingly difficult to shoo him away, especially as there were dangerous roads to be crossed. One day there was nothing for it but to put Bob on a makeshift lead and take him along. Bob travelled sitting on James’s shoulders.
The trouble was, so many cat-mad passers-by stopped him to stroke the animal that James arrived late at his pitch, secretly cursing Bob for thereby costing him some of his usual £25-a-day takings. He couldn’t have been more wrong.
Within minutes, people who would normally have walked by without giving James a second glance were lingering to make a fuss of the cat sitting sedately in his guitar case, and most made a donation. By the end of the day, he’d racked up more than £60.
It was the beginning of a phenomenon as tourists and commuters befriended Bob and James, many bringing titbits for the cat. People were amazed at how placidly Bob would sit all day, quite happily watching the world go by while James earned a living. Not that it was always without a hitch; on a couple of occasions Bob bolted when startled, leading to a frantic chase through the crowded streets.
Bob’s popularity continued when James switched from busking to selling the Big Issue, the magazine produced and sold by homeless people. This change in direction was part of James’s growing sense of a need to get his life in order, which he puts down to the responsibility of looking after Bob, and the example the cat offered of the possibility of a second chance.
It enabled James to make the final push to end his drug dependency, going through the necessary cold turkey to get off heroin substitutes, and to mend broken contacts with his family. The final result of Bob’s influence came when a literary agent who passed the duo every day and had seen them on YouTube suggested James tell their story in a book. The result is this heart-warming tale with a message of hope that will appeal especially to the many cat obsessives out there.
According to the ASPCA, animal shelters take in 7.6 million dogs and cats each year. Unfortunately, only 2.7 million animals are adopted each year. I’d love to see that number increase.
I’ve been a pet owner for decades. I know the seemingly infinite joy and love that comes from having a pet. But I also remember how nervous I was when I adopted my first dog.
To ease first-time and potential pet owners’ anxiety about caring for a pet, I would love to offer advice on how to be a great pet parent. Tips will be culled from my own experience and the experience of my blog’s (OurBestFriends.pet) contributors.
Can I write a guest article for your readers? My hope is that the piece will encourage folks to adopt a loving animal. The content will be completely original and free of charge. Please let me know if you’d like to take part.
What a wonderful email and, of course, I was only too pleased to receive Jessica’s article.
Here it is:
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Survival Guide for First-Time Pet Owners: How to Be a Great Pet Parent
By Jessica Brody, 6th April, 2017
If you’re considering adopting a four-legged friend for the first time, you’re about to embark on an amazing journey. From learning your new pet’s unique personality traits to navigating the demands of providing the best care for your new family member, adopting a pet is a learning experience, but an enriching one. Here are a few essential tips to help you transition your new furry friend seamlessly into your family.
Make Arrangements for Regular Exercise
Dogs, in particular, require regular exercise. They say that a tired dog is a well-behaved dog. If you work long hours, consider hiring a dog walker who can take your pup out for a mid-day potty break and walk. Make sure your new pet – dog or cat – has plenty of toys to keep them occupied while you’re working or otherwise unable to devote your full attention to them while you’re at home.
From bones and dental chews to balls, bells, and feathers, there’s no shortage of unique and intriguing toys on the market to keep your pet entertained and healthy.
If you own your own home, you might also consider installing a fence around a section of your yard. That way your new pet will have a place to run and play without having to be on a leash. You can also use the space for training.
Choose a Veterinarian You Trust
First and foremost, your new pet will need to see a veterinarian. If you’re adopting from a shelter or rescue organization, your pet may come with veterinary records and may already be spayed or neutered. If you’re adopting a new pet from a pet store or breeder, however, you’ll most likely need to take care of initial vetting on your own.
Ask friends and family members for vet recommendations and call around to inquire about office policies and prices to make an informed decision. It’s important that you find a veterinarian that you trust to provide top-notch care for your beloved pet.
Choose a Quality Pet Food
All pet food is not created equal. If you want your pet to live a long, healthy life, you should choose a top-quality pet food that contains healthy ingredients and has a solid track record. There have been many pet food recalls in recent years, with some causing serious illness and even death in pets.
Do your research to determine what foods are the best and safest for your dog’s stage of life and health history. Puppies require different food than older dogs, for instance, and dogs with certain health conditions have special dietary requirements. Talk to your vet if you’re uncertain.
Establish Rules and Routines
Adopting a new pet for the first time requires a bit of playing by ear, as you don’t know exactly what your pet’s quirks will be. However, it’s a good idea to establish some general ground rules from the start. For example, what will you do to keep your pet out of storage areas where dangerous substances, such as yard care chemicals,anti-freeze, or pool chemicals are kept? Will you allow your dog on the furniture? Will your dog or cat sleep in your bed with you? Will you crate your dog while you’re at work?
Your pet will surely have a mind of her own, but knowing what general boundaries you want to set before introducing her to your home will help you be consistent with training.
Give Your Pet Plenty of Affection
While all of these tips are essential steps for being the best pet parent you can be, perhaps the most important is to give your pet plenty of love and affection. Dogs thrive on attention, while cats tend to be quite varied in their preferences. Some are lap cats, hopping on the nearest warm lap they can find; others are loners and generally prefer to be left to their own devices. Get to know your pet’s personality and make sure to shower him with as much love and affection as he wants.
Being a great pet parent isn’t hard, but these important tips will help you integrate your new furry friend into your family with ease. Setting boundaries and rules from the beginning with consistent reinforcement, making sure your pet gets plenty of exercise and has enough toys and activities to keep her engaged, and choosing top-quality pet food and a veterinarian you can trust will ensure that you and your pet can enjoy many joyful years together.
Naturally, I asked Jessica to write a few words about herself. This is what she sent me.
Jessica is the creator of OurBestFriends.pet. Jessica lives in Dallas, Texas with her loving family (which includes 2 dachshunds and a black lab). She is a certified dog lover, and believes dogs are just about the greatest creatures on earth. She loves collecting and sharing photos of them.
I know many will agree with me when I say that it would be good to receive some more articles from Jessica.
Sloan McKinney is a journalist based in Southern California. After writing about pop culture for a number of years, she has recently begun writing for a new audience. Inspired by DeAnthony, her cat, as well as her dog Max, Sloan now hopes to help other pet owners guarantee their animal companions happy and healthy lives.
Learning from Dogs 