Pet Monologues

Though summer is upon us and there are many good summer tips to keep your pet out of harms way, here is year-round advice that can save a life.

An emergency situations calls for staying calm and making quick decisions. What should you do? Knowledge is power, so take the steps right now to learn how to handle an emergency. In addition to the first aid kit you have for home, camping, have a fully stocked pet first-aid kit (see below) know where the nearest 24-hour emergency pet clinic is. It could mean the difference between life and death. And act cautiously—animals in severe pain or fear may bite.

CAR ACCIDENTS
A pet that has been hit by a car needs to see a vet immediately. Internal bleeding is common, and outward signs of distress may not show for several hours. Also, puncture wounds that close rapidly can cause life-threatening infections later on. Enlist someone’s help in moving the animal by sliding a heavy towel beneath it. To avoid being bitten, tie a strip of cloth over your dog’s nose, or cover your cat’s face with a coat.

BLEEDING
Using direct pressure, apply a clean, dry cloth to the wound. If blood soaks through the first layer of fabric, add more so you don’t disrupt any clots that may be forming. Use a tourniquet only as a last resort, and make it just tight enough to significantly reduce the flow of blood. Loosen it every five minutes, and don’t keep it on for longer than 20 minutes. Transport your pet to the vet as soon as possible. Read the rest of this entry »

On average, caring for a cat costs $1500 annually and a dog $2000.

With the U.S. economy currently on very shaky ground the falloff is tighter family budgets or worse, completely new business models for family households. In an effort to help keep households together, including family pets, let’s talk about possibly surrendering your pet to a shelter, how to pinch pennies on pet-care, and, a philosophic POV on saving animals.

Downsizing the family to make ends meet.

If you feel that you really can no longer afford your pet please consider finding another family for your pet first. If you can’t find a foster home then take the animal to a shelter, don’t abandon your animal. Here’s a story that was in the Chicago Tribune several weeks ago…

More strays linked to once-happy homes.
The sad stories have been all over the news. Pet owners who have fallen on hard times are coming into shelters and reluctantly, sometimes tearfully, surrendering their animals. Read the rest of this entry »

To put a face to the name of the person you are blogging with, here is my screenshot of a post I am developing about, yep you guessed it, piggies.

These piggie images are 800px wide, about the average “source” image size. They will be displayed at 400px. If this blog was a two-column layout, the images might have been displayed at 600px. To put the screenshot in perspective I am using a 24 inch Cinema Display and all those icons along the right side are SOME of the applications I use. One dreads upgrades.

I have several analytical helpers to tell me who visits PM. Info includes, pages visited, referrers, search key words, country, computer software, size of screen, incoming links, outgoing links, with many many options I don’t use yet. You get the idea.

It comes as a surprise, from my traffic at least, the Internet Explorer browser is used less than 10% with Firefox in the 80% range. If you are developing ( coding ) sites, that is good news if you know what I mean. 1/2 of my visitors are unique. 60% from the USA, I am in Chicago. 15% from direct links, 45% from other sites, 40% from searches. Stumbleupon visitors are my biggest repeat referrers.

Oh, and if you have anything on piggies, please let PM know.

Well, that’s enough about me. Put a face to your name and let’s hear a little more about you. To do that here are easy to follow instructions to contact the same folks plus new friends. Read the rest of this entry »

What’s it mean? It means revealing a secret. Where did that
expression come from?

Image: Hans Neleman

Graham’s Random Ramblings. says, “Would appear as though in days of past one would trot off and buy a pig from your local butcher at the market. The pig would be placed in a bag for convenience. (The bag was called a “poke”). A dishonest butcher would replace the pig with a big cat. Now, if you opened the bag later, to find out that you had been taken for a ride, the cat was “let out of the bag”, the Butchers secret was exposed.

Back to the poke. If you buy a pig in a poke you have bought something worthless. From the same origin.

A number of sources say this is not true, the cat referred to is the cat ‘o nine tails, used to flog sailors in the Royal Navy. The whip was kept in a bag, and when taken out, it meant that the flogging was a certainty.”

Now Wikipedia didn’t know that!

What about “Horse Feathers”? Read the rest of this entry »

Pet Monologues launched just as the pet-food recalls were front-page headlines one year ago. The events propelled us into the blogosphere to be sure. A year later it seems fitting to revisit pet-food and diet.

We (PM household) have not yet gone organic but feel fortunate living in a large metro area where there are many choices. However we also find ourselves having to decide daily whether to pay the premium for eating organic. You can find a more in-depth viewpoint on pet diet in our pet-food recipe section.

Let’s think about diet, fitness, and spirit. We are the messenger at this point in time.

The top five benefits of natural organic pet food for your dog:

Whether or not you’ve “gone organic,” you probably know how crucial a role diet plays in your overall health. People who switch to organic foods report a boost in their energy levels. Their complexions improve and rashes clear up. They catch fewer colds, suffer fewer allergies, and recover quicker from illnesses. The health benefits of eating organic seem to last long-term. Read the rest of this entry »

Spay day USA. 2/26.

Per the Humane Society (HSUS) there are many activities happening Tuesday, Feb. 26—the 14th annual Spay Day USA! Read the rest of this entry »

Can this be done? Anyone?

citikitty

Are you sick of cleaning out litter boxes or wanting to show off fluffy’s party manners? Anyone feel this is a little too much information for the cat?

We are reminded that Robert DeNiro trained Jinxey. Until we know more, we are just the messenger here.

The above information assumes a new product and the following is the old fashioned way which may assume a therapist. Read the rest of this entry »

And the envelope please…

Best in show! first beagle in 132 dog shows!

uno

How it works…
The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is among the world’s most prestigious ”conformation” shows, meaning dogs are judged by how closely they conform to breed standards of build and appearance.

To qualify, dogs must have won an American Kennel Club title.

To do that, they compete in dozens of local, regional and national AKC-sanctioned shows a year, earning points.

Dogs compete in seven groups—herding, working, sporting, non-sporting, toy, hound and terrier—all of which encompass many breeds.

That’s the first level of competition.

Best of Breed winners then compete against each other for Best of Group. The seven Best of Group winners go on to compete for the coveted Best in Show title.

Best of Opposite Sex is awarded only at the Best of Breed level, and that dog does not advance. For example, if the best Labrador Retriever is a male, the most outstanding Labrador female would win Best of Opposite Sex.

Judges are also free to give Awards of Merit to worthy dogs at the Best of Breed level.

Winner information
Ch K-Run’s Park Me In First (aka “Uno”)
Breed: Beagle, 15 In.
Sex: Dog
AKC: HP 16966001
Date of Birth: May 05, 2005
Breeder: Kathy Weichert & Leah Bertagnolli
Sire: Ch Windkist A Walk In The Park
Dam: Ch Legacy’s Lil Secret At K-Run
Owner: Caroline Dowell & Eddie Dziuk & Jon Woodring & Kathy Weichert
Photos: Breed judging / Group judging Read the rest of this entry »

vine snake - Ahaetulla nasuta

inland taipan - careful! most venomous snake in the world

can anyone identify this snake?

Snakes, like other reptiles, have a skin covered in scales. Snakes are entirely covered with scales or scutes of various shapes and sizes. Scales protect the body of the snake, aid it in locomotion, allow moisture to be retained within, alter the surface characteristics such as roughness to aid in camouflage, and in some cases even aid in prey capture (such as Acrochordus). The simple or complex colouration patterns (which help in camouflage and anti-predator display) are a property of the underlyingskin, but the folded nature of scaled skin allows bright skin to be concealed between scales then revealed in order to startle predators.

Scales have been modified over time to serve other functions such as ‘eyelash’ fringes, and protective covers for the eyes[2] with the most distinctive modification being the rattle of the North American rattlesnakes. Read the rest of this entry »

This is PM’s first off topic post of 2008. PM is not big on TV. My best summer-autumn was two year’s ago when we went without TV for six months. There were those evening strolls in the neighborhood. Good nighttime reading. Romance. My father-in-law, when he found out we were without a tv offered to buy one: he asked if I was out of work.

So it should come as no surprise that I never heard of Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs, and who Mike Rowe is. I recognize his face, not his name, though I don’t know from where. What will be posted here is his Seven Dirty Habits of Highly Effluent People. Rowe admits ripping off Steven Covey. Rowe seems smart, sounds entertaining, and impresses me when he says he gleaned each habit from a worker he met on the show, each bolstered by true stories of personal enlightenment and lingering humiliation (Rowe).

1. Never follow your passions, but by all means bring it with you.

2. Beware of teamwork.

3. Vomit proudly and whenever necessary.

4. Be careful, but don’t be fooled—safety is never first.

5. Think about what you are doing—never how.

6. Ignore advice such as “Work smart, not hard.” It’s dangerous—
and moronic.

7. Consider quitting.

via FastCompany magazine, issue FC122