Please vote for Shalybon Cockers

I'm trying something out for Lynda McLean - I now have a banner prepared for Shalybon Cockers & have a voting button on her index page - I wonder if you all would click on this Vote For Us button to give Lynda votes and/or go to her web site home page at: www.shalyboncockers.com and at the bottom of the page click on the Vote For Us bottom. I truly want to see if votes are really tallied and how many she gets. Would like to see Lynda keep up there on the first page of the American Cockers Top Sites page for awhile and she can only stay there as long as folks visit her web site at least once a month and click on the vote button each time. :0) Would you all do that please. Thanks and happy holidays!

CAT Rules

To be posted VERY LOW on the refrigerator door.

Dear Cats, The dishes with the paw prints are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Please note, placing a paw print in the middle of my plate of food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.

The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack. Beating me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.

I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort. Cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.

For the last time, there is not a secret exit from the bathroom. If by some miracle I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge and try to pull the door open. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years -- feline attendance is not mandatory.

The proper order is kiss me, then go smell the other cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough!

To pacify you, my dear pets, I have posted the following message on our front door:

To All Non-Pet Owners Who Visit & Like to Complain About Our Pets

1. They live here. You don't.
2. If you don't want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture.
(That's why they call it "fur"niture.)
3. I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.
4. To you, it's an animal. To me, he/she is an adopted son/daughter who is short, hairy, walks on all fours and doesn't speak clearly.

Free Holiday E-Book

I have a nice ebook about holiday traditions that I would like to give to you absolutely FREE of charge. Please email me dottye789@earthlink.net to get your copy.

Spoiled kitkat

MOUNT WASHINGTON, Pa. (UPI) -- The apricot scones a Pennsylvania couple gives their cat for afternoon tea got them only second place in Cat Fancy magazine's annual Spoiled Cat contest.

The first place went to the owners of KitKat, a thoroughly spoiled animal in DeMotte, Ind., the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said.

If KitKat is curled up on the lap of someone watching television, that person will knock on the wall to summon help changing the channel rather than disturb the cat. Family members also get up at night to guide KitKat to its feeding dish with a flashlight.

"Cat Fancy likes to see people spoil their cats, but it seemed like these went beyond spoiled," the editor, Susan Logan, told the Post-Gazette.

Emelie, an 8-year-old 17-pound Maine Coon cat in Mount Washington, Pa., certainly has a life many humans would envy. She gets thin-sliced salmon several times a week, turkey and pumpkin puree in a crystal dish at Thanksgiving and a fish loaf cake every year on her birthday with a statue of Bastet, the Egyptian cat goddess on top, the newspaper said.

Merrie Beth Samways, who owns Emelie with her husband, Ian, says she prefers the term "creatively pampered" to "spoiled."

Ferrets

I've never had a ferret, but my husband has. He describes a ferret as "a kitten who never grows up!". He used to raise several at a time, building outdoor cages for them, but also allowing them to come inside.

I rented an apartment years ago from a lady who was on the board of directors of the Pasco County Humane Society. She was also a vet tech. She permitted renters to have cats and dogs, but not ferrets (by this time, my husband's ferrets were out of the picture anyway), because they were so hard to train, and had an odor that was impossible to get out of carpet, etc.

I was surprised when I heard that- Jim's animals had been easy to live with, playful little rascals who had given him lots of love and devotion. There had to be a way to train a ferret to make it a good pet, and manage its behavior in the house.

Click Here to Find Out how to Train your Ferret!

Cat Sociology- Cat Pecking Orders

Just like in the cat litter and cat food commmercials, cats in "multiple cat households" develop a pecking order. It's usually based on who was there first, but physical size differences may enter into play.

In February 2003, our household consisted of my husband and myself, and our dog and cat, Stardust. I had lost my beloved cat Raven, whom I'd had since her birth and continuing for the nine years of her life, a few months before. Her premature demise, from suspected poisoning, left a hole in my heart that Stardust couldn't fill. Stardust was, and still is, a "Daddy's girl". I was ready for a kitten, black like my Raven was, who would love me and sit on my lap, etc.

So, down we went to the Humane Society. A beautiful black cat caught my husband's eye, but she didn't give me the time of day. Then, I saw a little black male kitten, who had been abandoned at three weeks of age. We ended up taking him home, re-naming him "Frey" after the Norse god of prosperity, and within 24 hours, he had the run of the household, relentlessly chasing poor Stardust, who had settled into a nice sedentary routine.

A year passed, Frey grew up and got neutered, and settled into a nice sedentary routine himself. A friend of ours called us in distress, as they were having a pet explosion- their female cat had become pregnant again, and one kitten remained - a special little gray tiger-striped guy who slept with them, seemed to know their moods, but couldn't stay. So, my husband picked him up. He had another stop to make. A small frog had gotten into the back of his truck, and when my husband returned from his errand, he found the frog freshly killed on the front seat, as a gift. Hence, the name bestowed upon this cat-Gravedigger!

Frey immediately took the little fellow under his wing,licking and grooming him. He soon became Frey's sidekick. Stardust kind of tolerated him, not exactly happy about his presence, but certainly not hissing, spitting and clawing at him, as she did with Frey, and does to this day.

To have a happy multiple cat household, each cat needs a space that they can call their own. Our cats seem to stake their claims in separate rooms- Stardust rules the dining room; Frey steals my seat in my office, and Gravedigger likes to hang out in the TV room. Frey and Gravedigger are indoor/outdoor cats, and spend much of their time outside, while Stardust stays in the house 99 percent of the time.

The Hidden Life of Dogs

The Hidden Life Of Dogs was written by Elizabeth Thomas who is currently well known and highly respected for her books. Elizabeth Thomas was born in America and currently lives in New Hampshire. This is a book that is unlike any book ever written as it takes the perspective from a different angle. It was first published in the United States in 1993 by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Elizabeth has written five books, all bestsellers. It is evident that her success is due to her intense research as she has travelled the world while writing her books. With international success, Elizabeth plans to continue her career that currently seems to be skyrocketing.

"The Hidden Life Of Dogs" was not just any book. Clearly there was much more effort involved. Beginning with an introductory character, Misha who was a Husky, began the book well. This book tried to get the idea across that humans knew only very little about dogs and their patterns. After intense observations on Misha, some ideas were brought up. How did the dog know how to cross a highway on its own? How did its navigational skills work? How was it that this dog knew exactly where it was and could travel through different cities without becoming lost and other dogs couldn't? Continuing on to bringing in other dogs Elizabeth was studying, she pointed out that some had skills that others did not. Misha was clearly able to navigate himself but when with another dog, he would become lost. After careful observation it was seen that the other dog could easily loose track of where she was and mislead Misha. Another interesting topic covered is how dogs behave with each other. How they achieve their social status, why some dogs don't become accepted and how they react to each other. By comparing the dogs with the wolves and dingoes some of the dogs' actions become clearer, but there is one thing a dog really wants and that is to be with others, and to love their owner.

It was explained how a dog defended a bird and mouse in a cage from another excited dog in the same house. Likely explanations for this could be because the older dog felt that the peace was not being maintained or perhaps he knew that the mouse and bird were his master's belongings and he should protect them. The book goes on to explaining what occurs between the dogs when they mate, why some dogs kill their litter and many other topics. The conclusion is quite brief, Elizabeth explains what happens to her dogs, how a dog feels when her best mate dies and the relationship her dogs had with the wolves and coyotes and their interactions.

Each single chapter of this book brings up a new issue and investigates it. The interest is maintained throughout the book purely because of the fascinating information given about this species, information that had not been studied before. The author also wrote in a clear cut way, giving a solid and adequate description of everything and then moving on to new parts, not making it boring.

Very few illustrations are used in the book, only one in the beginning of each chapter. Illustrations in this book would have little use as there is no way of really describing every action made by the dogs. Instead of illustrating, the book kept the text clear, not making it confusing but easy to understand and illustrate in the mind.

In general, the book was at an excellent standard, very easy to read, not too long and no major confusions. These small details made the book enjoyable to read as well as being useful information. The book's purpose, to give humans better knowledge about our close friend, did just that. It achieved to show that the dog can be misunderstood for being stupid when really it knows much more than we think it does. Clearly many tiring and endless hours have been put in to make this book a success and how it was done is really amazing. Elizabeth looked after more than twenty dogs, spent all her spare time observing them, walking with them until she saw why they did what they did.

What type of dog fence is best for you?

With the vast variety of dog fences available on the market today, it can be confusing as to which one is the best for you. Here are a few tips to help you decide which dog fence is right for you.

Regular Fence- This is obviously the most common dog fence there is and can come in many different styles and colors. For example, you can buy a chain-link fence, or a white picket fence, while others prefer wrought iron or stone. This type of dog fence keeps the dog safe inside and keeps many problems out of the yard that could upset your dog.

Invisible fence- This is the more modern approach to dog fences that many like since it allows a view of the house without the solid dog fence and thereby keeping a sense of aesthetics to the yard and house.

This sort of dog fence is set up to either make noises as your dog gets closer to the invisible dog fence, or will use a mild shock to deter them from getting to close to the perimeter. For some, however, they consider this is mean to the dog. You should read the manufacturers specs on the voltage of the dog fence collar, or speak to your veterinarian about what invisible dog fence they recommend.

With all types of dog fences, you should first decide what the main purpose of the dog fence is. Maybe it is meant to keep your dog in. Or possibly it is to keep other animals or children out the might pester your favorite pooch.

Taking these things into consideration while picking out your dog fence will help in assuring that you get the right dog fence with the right needs.

Welcome to Paw's Pets!

Hi friends!

I'm Paw, father of a few and grandfather of a few more! I am an animal lover and enjoy working with pets. I decided to put together a web site where I could assemble all of the pet information I can find in one place. I am not a veteranarian, so please seek professional advice in your area. I am only doing this so I can study and learn more about animals.

All my life I have had pets, dogs, cats, tropical fish, birds, rabbits, gerbils and even snakes. SO be prepared for a lot of information on all of your favorite animals!

See you soon,
Paw