Archive for the ‘Pets’ Category

Raw Deal

Sunday, June 27th, 2010

Hecate on feeding your carnivorous pets:

It’s no different than pet food companies pouring money into vet schools so that vets will tell their clients to feed their pets kibble instead of fresh raw diets. The low state of health created by commercial foods is then considered “normal.” I feed my dogs a raw, natural diet, and when I sent my mortality figures in to a worldwide Greyhound age and cause of death survey, I skewed the figures: “One of the replies was from a lady who had had greyhounds for more than ten years, and her reply mentioned more than twenty dogs. When these figures were entered, the average age of death went up by a year!” When I brought my morbidity and mortality stats to a national Greyhound adoption conference and showed them to Greyhound vets from all over the country, they agreed my dogs had less than a third of the cancer they saw in the overall pet population and less than a fourth of what they saw in retired racing Greyhounds.

“Doggy breath” and “doggy odor” are not normal. They are indications of preventable disease. My raw fed dogs smell pleasant, and their breath smells fresh and clean. Their teeth stay free of tartar, they have no gum disease. I have a 14 year old dog right now who still runs around like a puppy, and she’s been fed raw nearly all her life.

That sounds eminently reasonable to me. I’m going to have to look into this for my cat.

Borrowed Souls

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

Of all the things I see on blogs, some of the best are the stories people tell when their pets die.

First, get this going:

then open Instapunk in another tab and read:

When new children came to visit, he was always there with a wagging tail and that big friendly nose. What few people saw were those ancient eyes, buried in the Scottish way, under brows that had seen absolutely everything ever. It looks like kindness when you’re a child. When you’re an adult, you know it’s the wisdom of the ages: I’ve seen every kind of slaughter, murder, and torture a human can commit, and I’ve come back this time only because I don’t have to participate. That’s how I fell in love with the breed. From a picture of a deerhound. It was my wife who made the dream come true. You get to borrow such souls for a time, and when they are withdrawn you feel as if you have been tossed farther from the seat of God.

Crazy

Saturday, June 20th, 2009

I was standing in the grocery story checkout line when I smelled…cat box. For some reason, I thought it was me, for a moment, then noticed the woman behind me had two bags of cat food on the conveyor belt.

Her faded denim dress had heavy yellow stains on it.

She was, apparently, the first crazy cat lady I’ve ever met personally.

She caught my eye for a moment, and I think she knew I’d noticed the stains, and that “crazy cat lady” was in my mind. She looked resigned, maybe pleading, just a little: “But… I’m not really that bad. Please don’t write me off as a non-person.”

I’m trying not to, but I can’t help myself. I’m no neat freak, ask anybody who knows me; but I can’t remember ever once wearing clothing with multiple cat urine stains on it.

Still: there, but for the grace of the guy asleep at the switch….

On Welfare

Wednesday, April 1st, 2009

funny pictures of cats with captions
see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Cat Food

Saturday, March 14th, 2009

My cat Squeaks likes oatmeal with maple syrup, brown sugar, and a dab of butter.

That is all.

Nuance Overload

Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

Japanese Guide Dogs trained in English:

This is because there’s quite a lot of difference between the way men and women speak in Japanese, with men tending to use the rougher command form of a word like “sit!” (suware! soo-wah-reh) while women would use the softer-sounding request form of the same verb (suwatte! su-wa-tte), potentially confusing the animal. It’s an interesting example of Japan’s language being too multi-layered and nuance-filled for its own good.

Via Chizumatic; Den Beste’s commenters are very informative as well. One noted that “Seeing Eye Dog” is a trade mark of a particular school; hence my reference to “guide dogs”.

Tex: The White Road

Wednesday, February 18th, 2009


From Andre Norton’s SF/Fantasy novel The Moon of the Three Rings. [The speaker here is Maelen, an alien humanoid witch-woman, a "Thassa", who uses her psychic powers to lead a troop of small animals in a very sophisticated "beast show". She and her familiars are attacked, and they join in her defense.]:

[Simmle] still lived, which I had not thought possible. I tended her wound again, but looking upon it I knew that life such as would be left to her would not be enough.

Then I took her head between my two hands as we had often sat. And I asked her the Question. For a long moment we sat so, and then she gave me the Answer. Around us the rest of the company whimpered and cried a little. For the little ones are not Thassa, and it takes great courage for them to make such an Answer, their belief not being ours.

Now I made memories for Simmle, all the best ones, and let her wander in them, while all the pain of her body was gone. And she was happy and content. When she was most happy and content I gave release according to the Answer. But in me a sword was thrust, for memory is sour as well as sweet, and this one added more to my burden.

I wrapped the husk of Simmle, the part which was no longer of any matter to us, certainly not to her who was free. And I put it among the rocks.

Tex’s passing was…not so nice. A long illness (rather than Simmle’s valiantly fought battle), ending with a long car ride stuffed in a carrier, to a place filled with dogs, bad smells, dogs, other cats, dogs, and strangers who always hurt him; never understanding why someone he thought he could trust (as much as a suspicious grumpy old cat can ever trust anybody) was doing that to him.

I’ve done this too many times, not always with my own. The hardest thing, the very hardest thing, is that they don’t know why.


One left, Razor Girl, aka Squeeks. She’s young and vigorous and I hope I won’t have to do anything like this with her for a long time.


The quote is from the Baen ebooks edition of Moonsinger, which combines both Rings and a sequel, Exiles of the Stars. I first read Rings back in Junior High, and it is my favorite of Ms. Norton’s novels.

The link to the Baen edition was very kindly provided by James Nicoll of More Words, Deeper Hole, who, if he knows me at all, knows me as a very occasional commenter with very contrary political views. Nevertheless, he answered my query promptly. Baen owes him a commission.

Hovercat

Thursday, October 30th, 2008

The power of Ceiling Cat compels me to post this image:

Palin

Friday, October 3rd, 2008

Debate? Who cares?

I’m voting for Teh Cute!

"Wiggles dog wigs by Ruth Regina" -- Mandatory Credit, via AP

Via Insty.

Everybody Say Awww…

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008

Via Instapundit, Wag Reflex’s Amazon Blog brings us this little cutie:Cute white puppy with wheels instead of front legs

“Hope” was born without front legs; an orthotist built her these using model airplane wheels. She apparently gets around quite well with them, although I’d be interested to see how she handles lying down and getting back up again.