Ask a Pets Blogger: Mucus in Stool

First off, I’m sorry that this is such a gross question! I’ve noticed lately that there seems to be a lot of mucus in my dog’s stool. He doesn’t seem sick otherwise. Should I be worried? No need to apologize — owning pets often means you deal with a lot of gross things. (So says the woman with the dog who eats cat poop and barfs green grass in the living room.) Your problem is one that I’m actually familiar with. Moose (he who eats “kitty roca”) has experienced this in the past. Mucus in the stool can be a … Continue reading

The Top Pets Blogs of 2007: June – December

We started out with a list of the Top Blogs from January through May. To conclude the Year in Review of the Top Pets Blogs, here’s the last six months of the year. June 2007 Top Blogs Adopt-a-Shelter Cat Month Starts Today: How to Participate Moose’s Special New Trick The Trouble With Walking Two Dogs Life Without a Fence Moose’s Bad Luck Continues Murphy, Kitty, and Tabby’s Dilemma: What to Get Wayne for Father’s Day? Fitting a Harness Moose Update: He’s Healing and We’re All Adjusting Animal Movies = Torture: How I Fared Through Evan Almighty July 2007 Top Blogs … Continue reading

The Pets Blog Week in Review for Aug 20-26

This week Aimee and I were joined by guest blogger Valorie Delp here in the Pets Blog. Here’s what we covered on: Monday, August 20 Aimee noticed something amiss with Lally’s neck so she referred to her pet first aid training in neck sores to tend to the trouble. Tuesday, August 21 Not to be one upped by his sister, Moose had to have a blog about him too. Aimee described his newest bad habit, which is a mighty yucky one indeed. Wednesday, August 22 In a three-part series, Valorie shared her Turtles in the ‘Hood experience, starting with how … Continue reading

Moose’s Newest Bad Habit

Oh… my special boy dog. We’ve been through a lot since we left New Jersey: his late night escape from the hotel room as we drove cross country, an attack at the dog park, learning to slip out of his collar, and getting hit by a car and losing his tail. Now Moose has developed a new bad habit: snacking on animal droppings. Yes, my special boy has started eating poop. MUCH to my dismay and disgust. So why do dogs eat animal droppings? A dog’s taste buds aren’t as sensitive as human taste buds. The smell and the texture … Continue reading

Pet Parenting Means Constant Vigilance!

Owning a pet is — in some ways — like having a child. I don’t intend any insult to parents here; I know parenting is incredibly hard work. But there are times when living with a pet is like living with a toddler. You know how parents go through and baby-proof the house when the baby is ready to start crawling? Pet parenting is like that sometimes. You have to constantly keep an eye out for potential hazards — from a cup or plate left on a low table (easy access for scavenging pets) to a lamp in danger of … Continue reading

What is it about Moose and Summer?

Oh yes, it’s time for another thrilling installment of How My Dog Moose Tried to Scare Me to Death. A quick recap: in June of 2007, Moose slipped his collar and got hit by a car. He broke his tail very close to the base of his spine, and had to have the whole thing removed. In July of last year, he started throwing up blood clots thanks to a giardia infestation. Once again, the warm weather brings out the worst in Moose. My poor boy has always had a sensitive stomach, so I’m pretty familiar with how to handle … Continue reading

Do Working Dogs Get Bored When They Retire?

I wish I could remember which book it was I read where a lady adopts a retired police dog (I think a German Shepherd), but then worries thinking it might be sick because it grows listless and seems so unhappy. Eventually she figures out that the dog misses working and sets about creating jobs to keep it busy. I want to say it was a book I read by Elizabeth Dearl, Twice Dead, but I’m not positive. (I know that book had a ferret. I just can’t remember if it was her book or someone else’s that had the retired … Continue reading

Moose Gives Me Another Heart Attack

My dog Moose is what you might call “accident prone”. When we first moved to Oregon, he got attacked at the dog park and ended up needing stitches inside his ear. About a week after he got his stitches out, he slipped his collar and chased a cat into the street and got hit by a car. It’s been a while since we had an adventure — but he saved up a good one. On Sunday afternoon, I came home from work to find that one of the dogs had thrown up bile and blood clots in the living room. … Continue reading

No Bones about It

I have an ongoing beef with residents of this apartment complex who don’t treat it like a home. The people who don’t pick up after their dogs are a big part of my irritation; people who are irresponsible with garbage are another. I’ve lost count of how many time Moose has found some kind of vaguely edible treat on the ground — bread, fast food wrappers, bones, and more. I hope the litter is accidental, but when I think of how often Moose has crunched down on a chicken bone in the parking lot, I fear that it’s not. I’ll … Continue reading

The Poop Problem I Never Expected

Warning: I’m going to talk about poop. Okay, this is nothing new. Courtney and I talk about poop all the time in the Pets Blog. It’s just part of being a pet owner. Now that you’ve been fairly warned… on to the poop! My dog Moose is usually quite the pooper. That dog can squat a good four times per day, if not more. (He’s not quite the level of pooper that my dog Miko used to be — that dog had an uncanny ability to poop one more time than I had bags with me. If I had one, … Continue reading