Pet Monologues

This Dachshund is fostering this little pink pig for his mom who couldn’t take care of him.
His eyes were closed and but now they’re open and he’s just a bit bigger than her pups.
She loves this little guy as much as her puppies and she is nursing him back to health.

He is the cleanest pig-uppy ever because she licks him all the time.

HIS NAME IS PINK…

September 21 — Mark the following Puruvian holiday on your calendar.

by john kass
Americans are busy hissing and scratching each other’s eyes out over presidential politics. But there is one thing we can agree on—sending a few thousand U.S. troops into Peru to occupy the nation and stop Peruvians from eating all their cats.

This villainous cat-munching takes place in the fall, when otherwise gentle and kindly Peruvians gather in the village of La Quebrada, just south of Lima, to gorge on felines. They eat fried cat and stewed cat and poached cat. Also, cats prepared with various savory local spices, such as Grilled Cat with Huacatay, the pungent and tasty Peruvian black mint.

Americans have proved we’ll accept almost anything if packaged and marketed properly. We’ve recently accepted socialism just to make Wall Street happy before an election. But if there’s one thing we won’t abide, it’s a nation of cat-eaters.

The terrible Peruvian cat-eating spree has a name: La Festival Gastronomico del Gato. Or for those of you who don’t speak Spanish—the Gastronomic Festival of the Cat. Read the rest of this entry »

Dog eat dog.
It’s dog eat dog–I’m just waking up
The dove is in the dungeon
And the white-washed hawks pedal hate and call it love
Dog eat Dog
Holy hope in the hands of
Snakebite evangelists and racketeers
And big wig financiers

Dog eat Dog
On prime time crime the victim begs
Money is the road to justice
And power walks it on crooked legs
Prime–Time–Crime
Holy hope in the hands of
Snakebite evangelists and racketeers
And big wig financiers

Where the wealth’s displayed
Thieves and sycophants parade
And where it’s made–
the slaves will be taken
Some are treated well
In these games of buy and sell
And some like poor beast
Are burdened down to breaking

Dog eat dog
It’s dog eat dog, ain’t it Flim Flam man
Dog eat dog, you can lie, cheat, skim, scam
Beat’em any way you can
Dog eat Dog
You’ll do well in this land of
Snakebite evangelists and racketeers
You could get to be
A big wig financier Read the rest of this entry »

We have often heard, and probably experienced, that a human bite can be more infectious than an animal’s bite. Well, what about your pet hamster as a deadly-germ machine? What’s a parent to do?

chicago tribune

The American Academy of Pediatrics, just published that pets pose serious health threats to young children.

Here’s the lineup of no-no pets:
• Reptiles. Small turtles were banished from pet stores decades ago because they harbor salmonella, which causes intestinal problems that can be deadly in children. But other reptiles, including iguanas, lizards, and snakes, also carry salmonella that doesn’t sicken them but could land your kid in the hospital.

• Hamsters. These small, furry rodents are not just cute. They’re carriers of salmonella and have sparked outbreaks of lymphocytic choriomeningitis, a virus that causes brain inflammation and can lead to permanent nerve damage.

• Hedgehogs. These adorable nocturnal critters are increasingly popular in the United States, despite the fact that they can spread salmonella, yersinia pseudotuberculosis (which causes appendicitis-like abdominal pain), and rabies. Hedgehogs’ prickly spines also make it more likely that they will transmit fungal skin infection.

• Monkeys and other primates. Macaques spread herpes B virus, which can cause fatal meningitis in humans, and primates spread a host of other nasty germs, including tuberculosis. A more likely risk is injury, since even “tame” primates have seriously injured trained handlers. Read the rest of this entry »

havakuk levison / Reuters 2002

Altering genetics brings killer karma into play

by John Kass, Chicago Tribune

Before I explain how the Chicken Kama Sutra got me fired from my dad’s butcher shop when I was a 6th grader—I foolishly posed the cold fryers in X-rated combos on the butcher blocks—you need to know how this memory was hatched:

With a horrifying news photo of a live, smooth-skinned rooster without feathers, part of a genetic experiment to develop chickens that will stay cool in their hot coops. Now, I can’t grill a chicken without retching.

“For Dinner: Genetically Altered ‘Superchicken’ ” said the headline of the wire story.

“We hope to provide a rigorous, risk-based regulatory path for [genetic] developers to follow, to help the public health and the health of animals,” said a pin-head bureaucrat from the Food and Drug Administration, thinking he could save the world from a “12 Monkeys” scenario if a superchicken escapes from the lab, along with the spider-goats and the salmon-pigs. Read the rest of this entry »

1) Lacerations/bite wounds: By are the most common wounds—about three times the incidence of any other injury - come mostly from cats and dogs mixing it up with other cats and dogs or wild animals.

Lacerations also occur when pet are involved in car crashes. So drive carefully.

2) Torn nail: It’s all about romping and stomping and fun until little Spanky snags a nail. The the howling and bleeding begin.

3) Insect bites/stings: The bites can be virtually harmless - you don’t even know your pet is bitten - or they can be extremely serious because of an animal’s hypersensitivity.

“Most of the time dogs are nosing around someplace, they’ll get bit and they’ll look like a Shar-pei,” said veterinarian Tony Kremer, from Hinsdale Animal Hospital.

4) Abrasions: The dog version of a skinned knee, said Kathleen Heneghan, past president of the Chicago Veterinary Medical Association and a veterinarian practicing in River Grove. Read the rest of this entry »

Oldest of cats

Life-span is determined by several factors: good genetics, good general care, good health care, good diet and a relatively safe environment. Cats reach maturity quickly, but as they grow older, their rate of ageing
slows down.

In the wild, cats fall victim to accidents, illnesses, food shortages and predators and may live 6-8 years. The average life-span of a neutered domestic cat (barring accidents) is considered to be 14 years old although there are signs that this may be increasing. More and more cats are reaching their late teens or early twenties.

It’s commonly believed that indoor cats are longer-lived than indoor-outdoor cats. This does not always hold true since many indoor cats, while they are protected from traffic and other animals, may have their lives shortened through obesity (sometimes leading to diabetes or heart disease), lack of exercise and stress. Though cats generally slow down with age, not all elderly cats lose their vigour. Some remain active hunters until their late teens or beyond. On 21 December 1975, a 19 year old tabby female owned by Mrs F Arnot of St Neots, Huntingdonshire, killed a stoat (a small mink-like British carnivore able to kill rabbits) in a fierce fight. Queenie, a one-eyed tabby from Chelmsford, England, was still stalking pigeons (unsuccessfully) at the age of 19. Read the rest of this entry »

AB 1634 is a controversial bill (authored by Democrat Lloyd Levine) in the California State Legislature which would require that dogs and cats in California be spayed or neutered by 6 months of age. Read the rest of this entry »

BLACKWOOD, N.J. - A southern New Jersey family will get the 44-pound “Prince Chunk” next week, according to the Camden County Animal Shelter. The shelter won’t disclose the family’s identity to protect it from media attention.

About 500 people applied to adopt the 10-year-old cat who once was called “Powder.” He was found lumbering around Voorhees after his owner lost her home to foreclosure.

Catherine Harr, president of the shelter’s board, said the cat now belongs to a couple with a teenage child. She said they are building a castle to go over Prince Chunk’s litter box.

The adoption comes after a vet gave the cat a clean bill of health - other than his large weight.

EARLIER STORY
BLACKWOOD, N.J. (AP) — A 44-pound cat found lumbering around New Jersey was abandoned by a woman who said her home was foreclosed, an animal shelter official said Thursday.

The porky white cat found Saturday became a local media sensation and was dubbed “Princess Chunk”. But the animal is really a male whose name is Powder.

Jennifer Anderch, director of the Camden County Animal Shelter, said Thursday that the cat’s owner came forward to describe the animal’s background.

Anderch said she’s received hundreds of calls from people seeking to adopt Powder.

The cat appeared Thursday on “Live With Regis and Kelly.” A veterinarian on the show examined it and determine he was indeed a male.
FIND MORE STORIES IN: New Jersey | Australia | Kelly | Guinness World Records | Powder | Camden County Animal Shelter | Chunk | Deborah Wright

“She’s built like a quarterback,” said Deborah Wright, a shelter volunteer and current foster owner of the kitty, before Powder’s gender was determined.

The largest tabby on record weighed 46 pounds, 15 ounces. That cat, who lived in Australia, died in the 1980s. The Guinness World Records has since dropped the category, fearing cat owners might harm their animals in an attempt to break the record.

Wright plans to speak with a veterinarian to put Chunk on a diet. For now, Chunk’s diet consists of dry and wet cat food.

“I’m about to put a leash on her and walk her,” said Wright. “She could pass for a dog!”

via associated press (AP)

After many years of having a variety of pets—mammals, birds, reptiles, fish—we realize that a remedy is determined by your particular need at the time. Right now we have a 19-year-old blind cat who howls. We realize that we can bring in no new mammal playmate for our kitty.

For us, vet costs are higher as our cat has been on meds for his thyroid for three years. Let’s talk about the vet bills and how to keep them as low as possible.

We just read that in 1973 a vet opened a rural Kansas office and charged $6 for a visit. Things change: last year Americans spent more than $10 billion on veterinary care, according to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association.

A single visit to a vet cost an average of $135 for a dog owner as of 2006, the last time the veterinary group took a survey of those costs. That’s up 83 percent from 10 years earlier. Inflation played a major role—the costs of office space, staff salaries, equipment and supplies have all shot up.

Pet owners also are demanding a higher level of care. “Years ago, if an animal had a serious cancer,” Gregory Hammer, president of the American Veterinary Medical Association, said, “someone would say to put him to sleep. Now they want to be referred to an oncologist.” Read the rest of this entry »