by Vicki on February 6, 2010
If you were unhappy with the consequences Michael Vick paid for his dog fighting ring, wait until you see the sentencing for the peope responsible for the melamine-tainted pet food that killed thousands of pets. Therese Kopiwoda in her PetsitUSA blog wrote about it yesterday, and I couldn’t put it any better, so have copied most of her post here. Be sure to see her blog for the full post, www.petsitusa.com/blog.
Sally and Stephen Miller, owners of ChemNutra, Inc., the company that imported the melamine-tainted product that killed thousands of pets in the 2007 pet food recall, are to be sentenced today. Christie Keith writes about it over on Pet Connection this morning, and sadly it looks like they’re going to get off with just a slap on the wrist. A memorandum from the government recommends giving them a light sentence:
Sentencing is scheduled for Friday, February 5, 2010, at 10:00 a.m. before United States Magistrate Judge John T. Maughmer. As more fully explained below, the Government recommends that the Court adopt the agreement of the parties and impose a sentence of three years probation on each defendant….
There’s more, so go read Christie’s post. Just be ready – it won’t put a smile on your face.
I just don’t get it. You kill pets – whether it’s by poisoning them with melamine or pitting them against each other in the dog-fighting ring and all you get is a slap on the wrist. There’s something terribly wrong when life is disregarded so easily. But, since the recommendation letters from the Miller’s Pastor and fellow church members say they’re good people, I suppose we should give them a break and overlook the fact that they were responsible for so much death.
Technorati Tags: tainted pet food, Chem Nutra, pet poisoning
by Vicki on January 29, 2010
February is just around the corner. Have you scheduled your pet’s dental yet? Each February I dust off my credit card and book all three animals for their dentals. It’s a big hit financially, but it’s one of those expenses that may be saving me a lot more in the future. I think of it something like an insurance policy. Hopefully my house will never catch fire — and my cat will never suffer heart disease from infected teeth — but I can rest easier knowing I’ve taken precautions.
This morning I received the following reminder from my wonderful vet’s office, the North Seattle Veterinary Clinic:
- More than 8 out of 10 dogs and 7 out of 10 cats show signs of poor dental health by the age of three.
- Dental problems in pets – as in people – can lead to pain, tooth loss, periodontal disease, and increased bacteria in the bloodstream.
- Pets’ oral disease invariably progresses with time, as does people’s, and can result in damage to internal organs, including the heart, liver and kidneys.
Even if you brush your pets’ teeth regularly, a dental check up could save your pet serious illness in the future.
by Vicki on January 28, 2010
I don't feel like going to the gym today.
If the cat's not moving, neither am I.
Holding weight gain in check has been a life-long project for me, so is it any wonder that I would attract rescue dogs and cats who have spent a little too much time at the all-you-can-eat buffet? Who better than me, the master dieter, to help them reclaim the sleek lines of their youth.
Rico, The Boss Cat, did just fine as a feral cat lunching on roof rats and squirrels. It wasn’t until the hunt ended, and his life as an indoor cat began, with a steady supply of premium kibbles, that he began to beef up. He likes to call it buffed up, but most people would put him on the cusp of beefed and buffed. Then there was Scooty who came to me morbidly obese, a 35 pound dog in a 68 pound body. Over our four years together and many pounds of Brussel’s sprout treats, she recovered her girlish figure. Now comes little Shaktipaw, carrying just two extra pounds, but on his tiny frame he’s 15% overweight.
Judging from the statistics at the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention website, overweight in our pets is a significant problem. Here are just a few facts from their website:
An estimated 14% of pets in the U.S. are obese, compared to 20% of adult humans. Add in the pets who are either overweight or obese, and the numbers jump to 50% of all pets. Just as in humans, obesity in pets leads to a variety of health conditions that compromise either quality of life or length of life — high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and osteoarthritis.
Almost twice as many cats are obese as dogs. Hmmm, we keep our cats indoors partly to keep them safe from the threats of wildlife, toxins, and traffic. But this obesity ratio between cats and dogs suggests that we are putting our cats at considerable risk indoors by either over-feeding or under-exercising them.
Here’s a link to some ideal weight ranges for cats and dogs. See if your furry friend needs to cut back on the chow or step up the play time. http://petobesityprevention.com/weight_ranges.htm
Technorati Tags: health risks of pet obesity, overweight in dogs and cats
by Vicki on January 27, 2010
“I guess it’s my love of animals that always makes me think of them first whenever a natural disaster takes place. So when I heard about the earthquake in Haiti last week my heart plummeted into my stomach. It’s not that I don’t care about the people of Haiti, because I do. It’s simply that I know the animals are not the priority for most people and they are also suffering great injury and loss.” These words that express my own sentiments so well were written by Hope Schultz on WebVet.com’s blog.
I’ve been watching various organizations to see who is mobilizing to help the animals in Haiti. According to Ms. Schultz, the Animal Humane Association has joined an international coalition of animal welfare agencies in preparing to aid the animals. As soon as they can gain access to Haiti, they will send a mobile clinic, staff, food, water and supplies to vaccinate against rabies.
Here is a link to the full article: http://blogs.webvet.com/main/2010/01/pets-in-haiti-whos-helping-them-.html. You will also find a link there to the Animal Humane Association’s donation site to help the animals in Haiti.
Technorati Tags: Animal Welfare, helping animals in Haiti earthquake
by Vicki on January 21, 2010
Shakti as a young man
The house has been quiet for the past month since Scooty left for the Rainbow Bridge. The competitive eating Ernie and Scooty used to enjoy– the Dinner Olympics — came to an abrupt end. In fact, Ernie has outright boycotted the premium kibble he used to race to eat, unless it is laced with a spoonful of cat food. Rico, The Boss Cat, lies around with his chin on his paws sleeping away his sadness. I wasn’t planning to get another dog yet, but fate doesn’t always work on our schedule.
Two weeks ago I learned a woman named Theresa Marie Gandhi, former wife of the great-nephew of Mahatma Gandhi, was near death. The word that she would be leaving behind a 16 year old, slightly pudgy and arthritic, deaf miniature Poodle trickeled down to me through a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend. I have hip replacement surgery coming up in a couple of months, and this is not an ideal time for me to add a new dog who is going through his own grief at losing his life-long companion.
Never one to let reason stand in the way of compassion, I drove to Whidbey Island today and met Shakti Paw. His human had died, and the tear stains around his eyes spoke of his loss. He is a little old man with a shaggy haircut, lumps and bumps, no hearing, bad breath, and as sweet a temperament as Scooty’s. To add to the mystique, his human mom was a woman who would probably have been a good friend if I had known her. She was an activist for environmental responsibility, she was a spiritual leader, and a writer. She rubbed elbows with world leaders, she met with Mother Theresa, she walked across the United States for peace. She was a woman of both global and local presence, and from all I can tell, she left the world a better place than she found it. And she left behind a sweet little zen dog called Shakti Paw Love Monkey who has now joined my family. We are blessed.
Technorati Tags: adopting a senior pet, healing from pet loss, pet grief
