pet food poisonings

The rash of pet food poisonings has been linked to some sick individual at the factory putting a rat poison not normally sold in the United States into the food. Lucky for my pets, I had been thinking of treating them to some canned food, but got busy with work and forgot.

Maybe the best solution is to make your own pet food. It's easy to do. Just get giblets, hearts, gizzards, and other organ meats, cook them, and grind them up. I knew a lady who cooked for her pets every day, and then hand-fed them at dinner time. She has recently passed away, but she was a kind and gentle soul, who left dry food out for the neighborhood strays.

Pet Rabbits - Great info

When I decided to purchase not only one but two mini lops, I searched days for information on how to care for these creatures. One place had how to care for them, another had a site on what to feed them and so on and so forth.

Then a friend of mine told me of a site that has a great book on everything from ancestry, caring, even how to teach them tricks. I was amazed that you can even teach rabbits tricks. She sent me to the site and when I saw everything it had I just had to have it. Finally everything in one ebook.

I purchased it and was very pleased. Its packed full of information and the best part it is easy to read. If your a rabbit owner I highly suggest you click on the link and check it out for yourself. http://petloverss.marc888.hop.clickbank.net/. It helped me tremendously.

Really useful Tips on how to Name Your Pets

Here our some useful tips in choosing a name for your dog or cat. Please remember that the pet-name you choose will used dozens of times a day to call, praise and perhaps scold.

• Pick a name that the pet can easily recognize. Animals respond better to one or two syllable names.

• Choose a name that’s both easy to call out and one that you are happy calling out. Calling out "Jack" or "Zoe" in the park may be far less embarrassing than calling out than "Death Breath".

• For dogs avoid names that sound like the standard commands of No, Stay, Sit, Come, Down or Fetch. For example "Joe" is probably too close to "No". It can be difficult for dogs to tell the difference between similar sounding words.

• If choosing a long name keep in mind the shortened version. A long name will inevitably be shortened, but it may ruin the effect that you were originally looking for.

• The pet’s breed heritage can provide some useful inspiration. For example Orientals ( Siamese and Burmese) , German (Shepherds, Dachshunds and Schnauzers), French (Poodle), Scottish (Terriers), or Irish (Wolfhounds and Setters). The Human Name and Foreign Name categories may assist here.

• Waiting a few days to study your pets behavior can help pick the right name. The Personality, Affectionate and Appearance categories may assist here.

• Pick a name that will grow with the pet. For example "Kitten" may be less appropriate for a full grown cat.

Other than this, be adventurous!

Naming pets has far more leeway than naming children, where thought has to be given to peer group acceptance, blending first and last names and how the initials may appear.

Finding and Picking a Pet Bird - Breeder vs pet Store, Hand-Raised Birds, Weaning, Bands, Purchase Contract

Issues to Consider When Picking a Parrot or Other Pet Bird

Breeder/Aviary or Pet Store
Generally speaking, getting a pet bird from a reputable breeder is the best option. It may be harder to find a bird this way, and potentially more expensive, but generally a bird from a good breeder will be well worth it. However, you need to also beware of careless or unethical breeders. Personally visiting a breeder is best, since it gives you a chance to see the conditions in which their birds are raised, and you can also get a sense of how the breeder handles their birds. If the birds are crowded and kept in unclean conditions, look elsewhere! The volume of birds moving through pet stores increases the chance of being exposed to infectious disease, and many pet stores do not interact much with their birds so the birds may be skittish.

If you are looking for a parrot, try to find a breeder that hand-raises babies and continues handling the babies after weaning.

However, some pet stores do raise and sell hand-raised babies, and as long as the baby birds are raised in good conditions (with proper infection control procedures), and regularly handled, a really good pet store can be a good alternative if you cannot find a good breeder.

Advantages of Hand-Raised Birds
If you are interested in a parrot, the try to find a hand-raised bird. Hand-raised birds are taken from their parents and hand-fed by humans, which helps produce tame, human-oriented pet birds. A hand-raised bird is most likely to be a cuddly, tame, and easy to handle bird. Hand-raised birds should be weaned before you take them home, but make sure the bird was still handled regularly after weaning. Some breeders invest lots of time in hand-feeding the babies but then don't handle the birds much once they are weaned. As a result, the bird may become skittish and hard to tame again.

Note: a recent study showed that daily handling sessions with parent-reared amazon babies produced birds that appeared to be quite tame. Some experts believe that this method might produce better-adjusted birds in the long term. Hopefully more studies will be carried out to determine the long term effects of parent-raised vs. hand-raised birds.

Get a Weaned Bird
Very important! Some breeders believe that unweaned baby birds will bond closer to their new owners (and unethical breeders are probably glad to pass on the demanding work of hand-feeding!). However, weaned birds still bond very readily to people, and a young bird that was handled frequently after weaning should still be tame and easy to handle. Hand feeding is very demanding and inapporpriately prepared forumula can cause a number of health problems. As well, weaning can be very stressful for baby birds, and predispose them to illness. Moving a baby to a new home around this time just adds to the stress. It is also difficult to accurately assess the health of an unweaned bird, which not only makes choosing a bird more difficult, but also means that medical problems may go undetected for longer than if the baby is with an experienced breeder.

The Older Bird
Older bird adoptions can certainly be successful, but there is lot of pontential for problems. An older bird that is not tame will be very difficult to tame and turn into a social, cuddly pet. A tame older parrot may be very bonded to its previous owner and many not be as tame with a new owner; at the very least it may take time and patience to get such a bird to fully trust and start to bond with you. Also, when adopting an older bird you might be inheriting serious behaviour problems which may be difficult or impossible to fix. If adopting an older bird, make sure you know what you are getting, and be prepared to accept the bird as is.

Leg Bands
Your bird may have a metal band around one leg. These are a form of identification and are marked with a code that identifies the origins of the bird. Domestically bred birds have a closed band (there is no split in the band) that is slipped over the leg when the bird is small. Open bands are found on imported birds, and have a split since they are applied by closing an open band around the bird's leg.

What to Get in Writing: The Purchase Contract
Although a purchase document/contract might be quite informal, you should be sure to get certain things in writing:

• Make the purchase conditional to a vet check. Arrange to have your avian vet examine the bird, with the condition that you can return the bird if health problems are apparent.
• Hatch date, band number, scientific name, and sex of the bird if known.
• Amount paid and method of payment.
• Conditions of sale and under what circumstances the bird can be returned.
• If your bird is imported, make sure you get all the documentation. If you ever need to move your bird, you may need these papers.

Picking A Pet - how to choose a pet that's right for you veterinary medicine advice info from pet veterinarian

Well, here it is. THE most frequently asked question I get: "What is the right dog for me and my family? What would be the perfect breed?"

And the answer is, there is no such thing. There is no perfect breed and there is no perfect animal for you and/or your family. Here is what I tell people as they begin their search for the perfect dog:

1. Remember that no matter where you get your dog from, a shelter, a breeder, a pet store, there is always a risk. You are never guaranteed how that pet will turn out. So be prepared for the work and the risk. This is a lifetime commitment.
2. That being said, go adopt your pet from a shelter or rescue organization. Unless you really have your heart set on a particular purebred, save your money and check your local humane society. My apologies to the breeders.
3. Sit down with your family and make a list of the characteristics you would prefer in a dog. Then see if your list matches any particular breed, or take the list to your local shelter and try to match up what you want with what they have. I have done this with my own family and it really works. See the next page for a partial list of things to think about. It is impossible to make a complete list. I will leave that task to you and your family.
4. I will talk about the pros and cons of shelters, breeders, pet stores, etc., in another section. Read that part carefully.

List of things to think about before you adopt your new dog (in no particular order):

• How big do you want the dog to be when full-grown?
• Do you want to house train a puppy, or adopt a dog a bit older?
• Do we want a male or a female? In most cases, since you are going to hopefully have the pet altered, it does not matter. The big difference is boys lift their legs and girls don’t!
• Do you want a short haired or long haired dog?
• How do you feel about shedding?
• If they are going to shed, what color hair would you like them to have?
• Do you want a dog that needs frequent grooming, or none? And this means brushing and grooming at home, as well as professionally.
• How much time will we have to exercise the dog, and how big is our house or yard?
• Floppy ears, or ears that stand up?
• A dog that will live 8-10 years or one that may live to 15 years?
• A lap dog, or a larger dog that can live more outdoors.

Again, this is a partial list. Add your specific questions to it. Write down the answers. Then, either go to your local shelter and see what fits the bill, or check with me to see if I can help you find the breed that would suit you best.

Good luck,

DR. LARRY