Cats And Coupons

By now most of you have probably heard about the salmonella found in peanut butter made by the Peanut Corporation Of america. Many companies have recalled products containing peanut butter made at this company’s Blakely, Georgia plant. The recalls have expanded to include some dog treats, so check the salmonella page on the FDA website to be sure you haven’t got dog treats from that plant.

When winter arrives, as it has here in the Northeast, the outdoors can be a dangerous place for pets. Whenever possible allow your pets indoors during the cold. If you have an outdoor pet that absolutely cannot be allowed indoors, consider these five tips.

• If you have a pet that cannot come inside make sure it has access to a safe, sturdy, dry shelter.
• Rather than sleep on the ground, provide either a raised bed or straw to lay on.
• Remember the television show where the little boy stuck his tongue on a lamp post in the winter and it got stuck? The same thing could happen with your pet’s bowls if they’re made of metal. Use a bowl that can withstand the cold and elements.
• Remember not to leave winter chemicals out where pets can get into them, such as antifreeze and ice melting products. Don’t walk your pet where you’ve used ice melting products.
• If your pets are in the garage do not run the car while they are inside in order to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.

You are responsible for providing the best care possible to your pet, even if it is an outdoor one. After all, they can’t just plug in an electric blanket like a person inside can.

I love this! The Petcentric site is offering visitors the opportunity to send an ecard. Not just any ecard, mind you. This ecard is of cats or dogs performing Christmas carols. They’re called Critter Carols. Before sending your ecard you can customize the way your pet looks or even upload a photo of your own real pet. You can also choose which holiday song will be sung. You can either email your card or embed it with the supplied code. Give it a try, it’s a real hoot!

I found out about another Purina program today. This program helps both you and an animal organization of your choice. Purina Give A Bowl offers coupons for their pet food products, tips and adoption stories. If you download a $4 coupon from the site Purina will donate $1 worth of Purina pet food coupons to the participating animal welfare organization of your choice. The great thing for the animals is that if I’ve read it correctly registered organizations may receive an unlimited amount of donations. The great thing for people like you and I is that we can save a lot of money by using that coupon, that’s almost a free bag. Times are tough right now and I personally will find this coupon very useful, far more so than the one I got in the mail for diet pills. Go get yours now!

If you haven’t seen the Shiba Inu puppy cam on ustream then you’re almost out of time. The live web cam features six Shiba Inu puppies. The puppies are now six weeks old and all have homes waiting for them. I’m definitely far more of a cat person than a dog person but who can resist watching little fur balls wrestle. I lost more than twenty minutes watching these cute little pudge balls. Check them out, before they’ve gone to their new homes.

I’ve mentioned once or twice before that pet clothing amuses me. I don’t dress my cats now, but as a child I could frequently be found putting baby doll clothes onto my cat and then pushing the cat around in the baby doll carriage. I came across formalwear for pets on a site called CozyPetClothes that made me giggle. Yes that’s right, formalwear! I’m not talking about Oscar de la Renta or anything, but I am talking about gowns and tuxes. I thought the little outfits were pretty amusing until I saw the prices. I can’t imagine ever spending $50 or more dollars on a pet outfit. Can you?

Did you know that the ASPCA has an assessment that strives to make the perfect person/pet pairing? I’m talking about the ASPCA Meet Your Match program. There’s one assessment program for dogs and another for cats. Dogs are assessed based on their friendliness, playfulness, energy level, motivation and drive. Cats are assessed based on level of interest in play, exploring, talking, and being the center of attention. After completing their evaluations the pets are assigned to colors. When a person goes in they give information about their ideal pet and are directed to one of the color categories. Shelters using this system have reported increased adoption rates and decreased return rates. I think this sounds like a terrific idea. What do you think?

Sites just for pet owners are becoming quite popular. I recently learned about another community just for pet lovers called Animal Attraction. It’s free to sign up for membership. Once you’ve joined you can create a profile for you and your pets. There’s a search enging to help members find new friends with common interests. Members can communicate with each other using chat rooms, message boards and instant messaging.  On the site you can share photos and stories, as well as look for and offer advice. Every day that a member logs in Animal Attraction makes a small donation to an animal charity. If someone joins as a new member on your recommendation Animal Attraction will donate $1. The site is a terrific way to meet others with the same interests while helping animals.

Thanksgiving is less than a month away. It’s the beginning of the holiday season. People visit each other more, increasing traffic in the home. Here are some tips for pet owners.

• Don’t give your pets bones such as turkey bones. They splinter and can harm your pet.
• Some people might not notice a small pet near their feet when they’re entering or leaving your house. Be sure your pet is put safely away somewhere in the house if your door is going to be open for a long period of time or frequently.
• Do not allow your pet to get in the habit of drinking from glasses, particularly alcohol.
• If you’re going to be out for a long day make sure your dog has someone to exercise him while you’re out.
• Do not allow your pet to eat candy, especially chocolate. Candy, especially chocolate, is dangerous to pets and potentially fatal. Make sure it is stored out of reach from your pets, as you would be sure to store ephedra diet pills away from children.

Dogs love to play with toys. Not all toyson the market are created equally, so be careful what you buy. Here are some tips on safe dog toys.

• When buying a new toy consider what it’s made of. Some toys contain materials or small pieces that should not be ingested.
• Choose the right size toy for your dog. Large dogs could swallow toys made for a much smaller dog.
• Don’t give your dog people toys, they’re made of different materials and have more parts and would be dangerous for the dog.
• Throw out toys that become worn or broken, before they fall apart and your dog swallows pieces.
• Speak to your vet about the difference between rawhide and other edible treats. Some vets feel rawhide isn’t safe when swallowed.