“Winter health tips for pets - Kansas City Star” plus 1 more

Winter health tips for pets - Kansas City Star

Posted: 10 Jan 2011 06:59 AM PST

By JENN SAVEDGE

Mother Nature Network (mnn.com)

As the temperatures plunge, I do a bunch of things around the house to help my family adjust to the cooler temps - dig out sweaters and mittens, close the attic vents, and bulk up on soups and hot chocolate for snow days. It's a heck of a lot easier to ride out the cold when you have warm clothes, a warm house, and a warm belly.

But what about my pets? My 11-year-old black lab/mastiff mix puppy gets special care in the winter months, too. For starters, we keep him inside a lot more (he graces the outdoors to pee and bark at the mail lady) and we bring his water dish indoors to make sure it doesn't freeze.

Here are some more tips for keeping pets safe and healthy all winter long:

- Watch the temp. It is easy to think that their fur coats will keep pets warm in the winter, but in reality, pets get cold outside just as easily as we do. If your pet is sensitive to cold, keep him inside. The Sacramento SPCA recommends that short-haired dogs, cats and puppies be kept indoors when the temperature dips below 40 degrees Fahrenheit; all other pets should come in when temps fall below 20 degrees Fahrenheit.

- Slap the hood. Cats and other critters seek refuge from winter winds wherever they can, sometimes snuggling up to your car's engine to soak up a little warmth. Make it a practice to slap the hood of your car before starting it to give them a chance to wake up and escape.

- Keep 'em leashed. Animals can easily lose their scent in winter months, especially when snow covers the ground. So keep your dog on a leash when you're in an unfamiliar area. Also, make sure his ID tags are up to date as more pets are lost during the winter than during any other season.

- Change your antifreeze. Cats and dogs are attracted to the sweet smell and taste of antifreeze, and will often sample it if they find a puddle on the sidewalk or garage floor. Unfortunately, regular antifreeze, or ethylene glycol, is highly toxic to pets. Be sure to thoroughly clean up any spills from your vehicle, and consider using a brand made from propylene glycol instead.

- Wipe 'em down. Ice-melting chemicals can irritate and burn the pads of your pet's feet and can cause serious illness if swallowed (or licked). Be sure wipe down her belly, legs, and paws to remove these chemicals if she's spent any time outdoors.

- Break the ice. Sure you may have filled up your pet's water bowl in the morning, but did it turn in to a block of ice by lunch? Check your pet's water bowl frequently and break the ice if necessary to make sure he has access to clean, fresh water.

- Make sure your pet has a warm place to rest, whether she stays indoors or out, as well as plenty of fresh water. That will go a long way towards keeping her safe, healthy and happy all winter long.

Jenn Savedge has written three books on eco-friendly living. Read more on her green parenting blog: www.mnn.com/featured-blogs/greenparenting.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured site: So, Why is Wikileaks a Good Thing Again?.

Rest assured, pets can retire - Houston Chronicle

Posted: 10 Jan 2011 04:00 AM PST

COLLEGE STATION — Cats perch in sunny windows and sleepy-eyed dogs melt onto beds. Feline castles — their carpet cladding hanging in tatters — line the wall. Tantalizing bowls of dog chow clang the canine dinner bell.

The scene at Texas A&M University's Stevenson Companion Animal Life-Care Center could come straight from a 19th-century painter's vision of the "peaceable kingdom" — lions, lambs, babes and bulls all lolling in blissful communion.

For 17 years, the center, adjacent to the university's college of veterinary medicine, has been a cushy retirement home for pets whose owners have died or are no longer able to care for them.

Home to 21 cats, 16 dogs and one llama, the center now is poised for its second expansion in seven years. With construction set to begin in June, the addition will provide quarters for cockatoos, parrots and other large birds, and screened porches and added rooms for four-legged guests.

The 2,600-square-foot addition, which would bring the total to about 11,000 square feet, is needed to keep up with the center's growing enrollment. Today, said director Dr. Henry Presnal, 359 animals from 20 states are registered to become future residents. One-fourth of the center's occupants come from the Houston area.

Presnal, a one-time farm boy who practiced veterinary medicine for 27 years, marvels at the intensity of the bond between humans and their pets.

"It's been an evolution," he said. "Growing up on the farm, dogs would be outside and cats lived in the barn. To go from that as a kid, to a practicing veterinarian ... I'd see big, grown, tough men cry when you'd give them a poor prognosis for their pet. To me, it was just unbelievable how things had changed. Animals have become children substitutes."

Up-front payment

People desiring to place pets at the center can do so through an endowment - either by bequest or up-front payment. The fee is contingent on the owner's age; for a 30- to 39-year-old client wishing to place a small animal, a minimum $100,000 bequest or $10,000 up-front payment is required. The fee doubles for large animals.

For that money, the lucky animals are pampered for life and, after life, kept as cremated remains in a tasteful hallway shrine to the departed.

On a typical day, the center - one of only a few such facilities in the nation - is a-bark with activity.

Chester, a big black dog whose leg was amputated for cancer, lopes around a dayroom as if nothing were amiss. A one-eyed cat surveys his domain with imperial disdain, and a punchy puss from Virginia is warned about bullying the pups.

In a blur, a vortex of energy whirls from Presnal's office, then materializes as a black and white terrier dancing at the director's heels.

"That's Cricket," he says with unabashed affection. "She's my guard dog."

A&M's animal house was the "burning concept" of the late Dr. Ned Ellett, head of the veterinary school's small animal clinic, and named for La Porte's Madlin Stevenson, an early benefactress.

Ellett, a veterinary ophthalmologist, was a "very warm, genuine guy," who shared the concern of his elderly clients about the future fates of their pets, Presnal said. Ellett, who died the year the center opened, viewed the program as a way to ensure quality care for masterless pets and as a tool to further medical research on aging animals.

The latter goal, Presnal said, is achieved through the four veterinary students who live at the center and through the attention the animals receive at the adjacent vet school clinics.

Kindred spirits

Stevenson, an inveterate rescuer of strays, responded enthusiastically to the idea, providing an initial $250,000 donation to get the project rolling. The center's endowment now tops $10 million.

"Madlin and Dr. Ellett were just kindred spirits," said Stevenson's niece, Mattie Stevenson. "She became involved and never had to worry about what would happen to her beloved pets. They have more than exceeded our expectations. The facility is beautiful. They have continued to grow, and every promise they made on Day One was kept."

When Stevenson died 10 years ago, her dogs, cats, horse and llama all moved to College Station.

"Aunt Madlin had so many animals," her niece said. "They all came with different backgrounds, different ages and stages of needing help. But it all worked. They all knew that they were at home."

allan.turner@chron.com

Pets Zone

Monday, January 10, 2011