Posted: 24 Oct 2010 06:11 AM PDT

It's Sunday morning and my 16 year old cat, Spooky, awakened me wanting food in his bowl. No matter that there was still some food left in the bowl from last night. My dear Spooky is a creature of habit, and his internal clock told him I was supposed to be up and putting food in his bowl. So...I obliged.

I came downstairs to make coffee, and there in the picture window in the kitchen was Miss Callie, the self-proclaimed princess of the outside cats. She, too, wanted food in her bowl. So...I obliged.

I couldn't neglect little K.C. who is a kitten currently splitting her time between the garage and house until her other cat mates get accustomed to her presence. She was found in a ditch w/a broken leg....very skinny and very young. After six weeks of TLC, she is a little terror and has no fear. She is the most feisty little kitten I have ever seen. Her name is K.C., named after my beloved KC Chiefs football team that never seems to win the big ones but never gives up, either.

Finally, I made the coffee for the rest of my family...my husband, my 83 year old dad who lives with us, and myself. I had to smile. My pets and my family keep me going. I may be stiff in the morning, but I love my pets so I get up and do what needs to be done to meet their needs. There is food, fresh water, and brushing to be done.

Then I take care of my family. Make the coffee, scrub the pan I left soaking from the night before because it was too tough to clean at the time. I put charcoal in the grill, so may dad can light the briquets while my husband and I are on our way back from church.

My church family keeps me going, too. There are things to schedule, pies to be cut at the fund raising dinners, people to visit in the nursing home.

So...while some days I would rather stay curled up in bed, my love for life keeps me going. It is good to be able to help other people and creatures who depend on me. I am so thankful for these furry little creatures who expect their needs to be met, but give so much love and good PT in return. And, I am thankful for my family. They pitch in when I can't do the "normal" things, and they don't make a big deal about it. It is just our life. We are in it together.

I apologize if this is boring. I just felt the need to put my gratitude for the good things in my life into words.

Wishing you all a blessed Sunday morning. V

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Retired racing greyhounds make gentle, beautiful pets - Daily Oklahoman

Posted: 24 Oct 2010 05:14 AM PDT

Heather Warlick-Moore, Of Interest

BY HEATHER WARLICK-MOORE Oklahoman Comment on this article

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For more information about Hounds of the Heartland, go to www.greyhound petsok.org.

I stepped up, a little hesitantly, to pet one of the tall, lanky yet graceful beauties. The dog was so lovely and elegant, I wanted to take him home, but he was not up for adoption. He was there with his owner, along with about 10 other greyhounds and owners, promoting the organization.

I was amazed at the gentle, relaxed nature of the greyhounds.

Emily Hummel, the vice president of Hounds of the Heartland, said that Oklahoma is the third-largest breeding state for racing greyhounds, so we have a responsibility to care for the dogs after their career has ended.

Hounds of the Heartland has monthly adoption "Show & Tell" events at PetSmart locations, the farmers market, Live on the Plaza and Paws Around Town and is always looking for other places to promote adoption.

"We take a neutral stance on the racing industry," she said. "We must remain completely neutral to keep good relationships with the farms and tracks so they will continue to give us their dogs."

Hounds of the Heartland's top priorities are saving dogs and helping fight overpopulation of these animals. It's one of three greyhound adoption groups in the state, she said. The others are Halfway Home Greyhounds in Tulsa and FastHound in Seminole.

If you're thinking you couldn't provide a home to a greyhound because they're too hyper or aggressive, you're wrong, Hummel said. "Try lazy, gentle and relaxed."

The retired racing greyhound is one of the most misunderstood dogs there is, she said. They don't thrive on long jogs; they prefer short sprints. They're calm by nature, rarely bark and shed little.

Hounds of the Heartland will hold an adoption event from 8 to 10 a.m. Saturday at OSU-OKC Farmers Market, 400 N Portland.

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Disabilities no longer death sentences for pets - The Ledger

Posted: 24 Oct 2010 05:57 AM PDT

Published: Sunday, October 24, 2010 at 4:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, October 24, 2010 at 2:01 a.m.

RALEIGH - When Beverly Tucker's dog Tobi ruptured a disc in his back, the veterinarian gave her a stark choice: expensive surgery with little chance of success, or euthanasia.

Click to enlarge

In this Thursday, Sept. 30, 2010 photo, Mary Dow, a volunteer with Independent Animal Rescue in Durham, holds a rescued cat named Sage in Chapel Hill, N.C. Sage is missing a rear leg due to an amputation.

Gerry Broome / The Associated Press

Like a growing number of pet owners, Tucker opted for a third choice thanks to medical advances and shifting attitudes about animal care. She bought a wheeled cart specially fitted for Tobi's hind legs, restoring mobility to her paralyzed pooch.

"I would never have my dog put down," Tucker said. "Our option was the wheels, and we're going strong ever since."

Pets with disabilities ranging from spinal injuries to deafness still struggle more than healthy counterparts, but their futures are no longer as grim as before. An industry catering to owners of disabled pets has sprung up, offering everything from carts to chiropractors specializing in canine spines.

Even in an economic slump, people are willing to pamper their pets.

Total spending on pets has grown each year since the recession began, rising from $41.2 billion in 2007 to an estimated $47.7 billion this year, according to the American Pet Products Association.

"The pet business has evolved greatly, especially over the last five years," said Leslie May, founder of industry consultant Pawsible Marketing. "When people think of pets as family members, they look for resources to meet their pets' needs."

Animal health specialists, rescue volunteers and medical supply makers all say they've seen a growing willingness in the American public to adopt or care for pets with ailments that once would have met with certain euthanization.

Dianne Dunning, director of the Animal Welfare, Ethics and Public Policy Program at N.C. State University, said that shift has shadowed breakthroughs in veterinary medicine.

"You're seeing in many cases now that pets are equivalent in status to children within a family," she said.

It was much different 21 years ago, when Buddha, a Doberman owned by Ed and Leslie Grinnell, awoke one morning unable to use her hind legs.

There were no online support groups, no doggy physical therapists. The only options offered by the vet were $5,000 back surgery with a 50-50 shot at recovery - or immediate euthanasia.

Instead, Ed Grinnell put his skills to work as a mechanical engineer and designed a wheeled cart for Buddha, who lived three more years. Ten years later, vets were referring so many people to the Grinnells that they went into canine cart manufacturing full-time.

Since 1999, Eddie's Wheels has expanded to 14 workers at their facility in Shelburne Falls, Mass., and now ships its carts worldwide for dogs, cats, bunnies, goats, sheep - even alpacas.

"I don't think people felt any differently about their animals 20 or 30 years ago," Leslie Grinnell said. "It's just the culture didn't support the view that this is an important member of the family."

That isolation the Grinnells felt was similar to what Joyce Darrell and her husband, Mike Dickerson, experienced when their dog Duke severed his spinal cord in an accident in 1999. Instead of euthanizing Duke, the Grinnells got him a wheeled cart.

They've since adopted another dog with paralyzed legs.

Those adoptions have since grown into a full-time rescue operation called Pets With Disabilities, which Darrell runs from his home in Prince Frederick, Md. The program rescues between 50 and 70 dogs a year, finding permanent homes for most.

He said disabled dogs often bond tighter with people than able-bodied dogs "because they need humans for more things." Still, there are more challenges in caring for disabled animals, including higher medical costs.

"Folks typically shy away from animals that are going to require medical care and cost is usually the No. 1 issue," said Gail Buchwald at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Adoptions Center in New York.

Mary Dow, a volunteer with Independent Animal Rescue in Durham, rescued a cat named Daisy and paid $2,300 for surgery on its broken leg. She raised more than $1,800 to offset the tab.

"It's not necessarily a foregone conclusion that all people shy away from disabled animals," she said, however. "We've found homes for quite a few who would have been euthanized."

That second chance isn't just for the animals, Leslie Grinnell said, but for humans who stand to learn a lot from their disabled pets.

"These animals don't feel sorry for themselves one little bit," she said. "They really have a lot to teach us."

Pets Zone

Sunday, October 24, 2010

“Pets As PT's.....Sunday Morning Musings - HealthCentral.com” plus 2 more