Saturday, October 29, 2011

Caturday Cat Fight Fun!

I, Maxwell Richman, do hereby CLAIM this shoebox as my Territory 
and shall heretofore defend it with my dying breath!









Wednesday, October 26, 2011

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Kitty Yoga

Sun Salutation

 and a little Tai Chi...


 Think I'll end with a Shell Stretch...


Saturday, October 22, 2011

How to Properly Enjoy a CATurday

Bird-watching with Dad! 

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Wordless Wednesday

 Mowzers! I can see up your nose, Mommy!

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Puppy Mills: how one Missouri shelter is fighting back, part 2

Yesterday, we participated in the national Blog the Change for Animals event focused on puppy mills in America. Specifically, the goal is to bring enough pressure to bear on PetLand USA that they agree to stop selling puppy mill animals in their stores.

A petition, hosted by Change.org, is available for you to sign, and all bloggers participating in the event were given media coverage in Change.org's media announcement promoting the event.

To date, response to puppy mills has been lackluster - in part, we think because of a lack of education on the horrors surrounding the issue.

So we decided to profile one agency that has partnered with the ASPCA and state government offices to be a rescue resource when puppy mills are raided or breeders are cited with regulation infractions.

Yesterday, we talked with Sarah Little, Manager of Admissions and Animal Healthcare at Wayside Waifs in Kansas City. She spoke about the medical issues often seen in puppy mill animals.

Today, we feature an interview with Kathy Basset, Wayside Waif's Canine Advocate. Kathy talks about the emotional trauma inflicted by puppy mills. The interview is  four and a half minutes long - and we hope you find it as educational as we did:

 




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Tell PetLand you don't want them to sell Puppy Mill dogs! SIGN the petition!
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Saturday, October 15, 2011

Puppy Mills: how one Missouri shelter is fighting back



When I found out that the topic for the next national Blog the Change for Animals Day was puppy mills, I knew I had to speak with Sarah Little, Manager of Admissions and Animal Healthcare at Wayside Waifs in Kansas City. I asked her about the role animal shelters and rescue resources like Wayside Waifs can play in our fight to eradicate puppy mills in America. Here's what she told me:

"There are so many reasons to become involved with the puppy mill problem. You're helping the animal community but you're also helping the human community.

The truth is that some animals are living in horrid conditions because some - not all - breeders either do not have or choose not to use the financial resources necessary to maintain a basic quality of life for these animals.

In Missouri, there are some decent, licensed breeders but there are also many unlicensed breeders who keep their animals living in terrible conditions.

Our goal is to help get the dogs out of there so they can be given the proper nutrition and medical care they need, they can be rehabilitated and given a chance to live a normal life.

We've seen some serious issues with the dogs we rescue from puppy mills. The biggest issue by far is dental. The animals are fed such a poor diet that young dogs only a few years old are losing teeth. In some cases the teeth have rotted away and the decay has gone into the jaw bone. In one particular case, the decay was so pronounced, portions of the jaw were eroded completely and the jaw was, in fact, broken in places.

They have found frequent cases of mammary tumors in dogs who had whelped too many litters, some benign, others tragically malignant.

Then there are skin conditions that are easily treated but ignored as extraneous expenses: cherry eye, a common congenital eye defect in various dog breeds easily corrected by surgery, is just one example.

All I can say is that to be able to give these dogs the medical help they need is more rewarding than words can express."

Many thanks to Sarah for letting us interview her for today's national Blog The Change Day, and giving us just a brief glimpse into how rewarding it can be for a local shelter to help carry the torch as we all seek to bring an end to puppy mills in the U.S.

Please...encourage your local shelter to consider implementing a similar program, and Join The Change for Animals, too.
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The above interview touched on some of the more common physical and medical situations associated with puppy mills. But there are the socialization issues, too. In most cases these dogs have had such little human contact that they're painfully shy and uncomfortable. To learn more about the emotional and psychological condition of these animals and what shelters can do to help them, please come back tomorrow to read part 2 of this Blog the Change post.
____________________
Tell PetLand you don't want them to sell Puppy Mill dogs! SIGN the petition!
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Saturday, October 8, 2011

Saturday Shoe Shopping

(breathless Marilyn Monroe voice: )
Oh Mother! New shoes? *SQUEE!*

 
 Ooooh, and they're Lauren too, I just adore designer shoes!
 I...I think they just might be my size...
Tell me honestly, do these shoes make me look fat?
*dreamy sigh* And they match my toenails too...
 No they don't. 

Yes they do! They do too! Just LOOK! 
They were made for me!
I think I'm gonna hurl. I'm not kidding...

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Wordless Wednesday

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Gramma's Visit

We got to meet our Gramma an' Grampa over Labor Day!
(HIGHPAW! They give GOOD scritches!)
Anyway, I decided it was my turn to blog, so I grabbed Momma's camera and did a little Investigate Reporting while they were here. (Unca Ryker'd be proud)

This is what I saw:

Gramma decided we all needed to learn to use toothbrushes, and she even tried convincing Allie that a PINK toothbrush was stylish and would complement her collar and toenails nicely.

Momma called that a FAIL. Especially when Allie refused to open her mouth. No matter how hard Gramma tried.

Of course Faraday saw the Whole Thing, and so when Gramma picked HIM up next...


But by then, she'd already given up on toothbrushes (what a relief, since I was third in line!).
Check out that smarmy smirk on my brofur's face. Hmpf. Mebbe I need to put the bitey on him more often....

yeahhhhhh, Gramma Scritches! Now THAT's what I'm talking about!