Adopt a Less-Adoptable Pet Day: August 12

Petfinder.com has declared August 12th “Adopt a Less-Adoptable Pet Day”. For all the overlooked pets in shelters, this day’s for you! What constitutes a “less-adoptable” pet? Petfinder asked their member shelters which pets were the hardest to place. 30% of responders had the hardest time finding homes for senior pets 15% of shelters had a difficult time adopting out pets with health issues 13% of Petfinder shelters had problems with breed prejudices (and many shelters mentioned pit bulls specifically as being hard to adopt because of breed prejudice) 10% of responders had difficulty placing pets who need to be the … Continue reading

Miko’s Job: Security Guard

Courtney wrote recently about all the different types of jobs that dogs can have. It got me thinking about my dogs, and the work they do for me. Moose is Chief Executive in Charge of Cuddling and Lally is my Morale Officer with her squeaky ball antics. The dog I had before I adopted Moose and Lally was the one who had a real job. Miko was my security guard. When I got my first full-time radio job and moved to Vermont, there was no question that he was moving with me. One of my tasks at the new job … Continue reading

My Mother’s Day

Some very good friends of mine did a VERY cute thing for me yesterday in honor of Mother’s Day. They went shopping on behalf of my fur-babies, Moose and Lally. My dogs (and my friends) know me well. I got two types of chocolate candy and some cocoa powder for when I make smoothies. (Cocoa powder plus mixed berries equals delicious smoothie!) But my favorite part was the card. The envelope reads “For Momma, From Moose.” Underneath that, it says “It’s really from ME! Lally.” The card inside features a brown dog (like my shepherd mix Moose) and a yellow … Continue reading

The Pets Blog Week in Review for April 21-27

Aimee and I went on a writing rampage last week bringing you more articles than usual. Because we wrote so much, you might have missed one or two. Thank goodness we provide this handy Week in Review cheat sheet! Monday, April 21 In The Cat and the Binder Clip, Aimee researched the effects of “clipnosis.” Tuesday, April 22 In Velvet Ears, Golden Paws, Angel Butt, I talked about one of my favorite nicknames for Murph. Aimee wondered if you spend more on your pets than on yourself. Wednesday, April 23 In a very useful article, Aimee shared some tips for … Continue reading

The Day Miko Picked Me

April 25th, 2000 is the day that I went to Jersey Shore Animal Center in Brick, New Jersey to pick out a dog. My dog. The first dog that wasn’t a family dog — he or she would be mine and mine alone. For weeks before I went to the shelter, I had been dreaming about dogs. Big dogs, mostly. Some looked like Irish wolfhounds, with long legs and kind eyes. Some looked like malamutes or huskies. Some were fierce protectors. All were loyal friends. I was sure I was going to find one of the dogs from my dreams … Continue reading

The Joke’s on Me!

Fellow pet owners, you’ve probably run into this one before: the moment when your pet makes you look like a fool. I had mine on New Year’s Eve. I had to work on New Year’s Day, so I wasn’t planning to go out on New Year’s Eve. But I did invite a few friends over to help me ring in 2008. We had a good time laughing and talking, playing with the dogs, and feasting on snacks. I was telling the story of how my dogs joined the family. Lally was a stray; I adopted her from a Vermont shelter … Continue reading

Miko’s Personality Flaw

Four years ago today, my dog Miko passed away peacefully in his sleep. I’ve mentioned him here before — his adventures at the dog park, how he picked me out at the shelter, and our last days together. He was a great dog, full of personality and so very smart. He dazzled the family with tricks from the first night he was home. But if he had one flaw, it was in his digestive tract. When Miko was nervous… man that dog could pass gas! We first noticed it in his first few months with us. Miko could clear a … Continue reading

Aimee’s Cast of Characters, part one

I’m one of your new pets bloggers… but you’re not here to read about me, are you? NO! You’re here to read about my mutts! We’ve had lots of dogs in the family over the years — and you’ll get to meet all of them soon enough — but there have been three dogs who have been Mine. Miko… joined the family 4/25/2000 After graduating college in 1999, I lived in an apartment for a year. After that, I moved home to live with my grandmother. As soon as my stuff was home, I went to Jersey Shore Animal Center … Continue reading

Five Years of Moose!

I’m not always good at remembering birthdays and anniversaries, so I have a few online calendars to give me hints about the date. Today in my email was a happy birthday wish for my dog Moose from Dogster.com. I don’t know what his actual birthday is — I don’t know Lally’s birthday either — so we celebrate anniversaries. Some people call them Gotcha Days, as in “this is the day I gotcha.” Five years ago today, I drove to Ticonderoga, NY to pick up a foster dog named Coyote. I had picked him out from a series of shelter dog … Continue reading

I’ll Never Own a Puppy

I get all mushy over puppies — in person, on television, on the internet, or in books and magazines. I can’t help it! They’re just so tiny and sweet and cuddly and cute. But I’ll probably never own one. My reason why is relatively simple. There are just too many adult dogs (and cats) in shelters in need of forever homes! Puppies seem to have an easier time of getting adopted. They attract attention quickly and easily; with a puppy you get a fresh start, a dog you can train to your own standards. Baby animals in general are pretty … Continue reading