Persnickety-Pets Mar Newsletter

Persnickety-Pets Pet Sitting and Boutique

We provide "purr-sonable" quality pet care!

MARCH NEWSLETTER

Check out the recipe of the month, pet of the month, deals of the month, pet tips, and more!!

THE BODY LANGUAGE OF DOGS

Yes, Fido is "speaking" to you. Are you savvy enough to figure out his meaning? Here are some tips to help you decipher his best (and maybe not so best) intentions:

1. If his ears are neutral, eyes soft, body possibly reclining, tail relaxed, mouth open or closed, slight grin, with normal, restful panting, the dog is relaxed and friendly, showing no signs of stress.

2. If his ears are up, erect, pointing forward, makes direct eye contact, seems aloof, chest outward and confident, teeth may be slightly bared, hackles may be up or down, with tail stiff or tip wagging slightly. nose wrinkled, possibly growling low, this dog is showing dominance and should be respected. Do not approach, cast your eyes downward, back off.

3. If his ears are flat against his head, eyes wide open with whites showing, pupils may be dilated, teeth bared, nose wrinkled, tail lowered and tucked, hackles up, possibly growling, this dog is showing dominance and fear at the same time. Fear biters are common in the canine world and should not be approached. This dog may panic and urinate, but it may also bite.

4. If his ears are back, flattened, eyes wide open with whites showing, avoiding eye contact, slinking posture, mouth tightly shut, nose wrinkled, teeth may be bared and growling and snapping, this dog is a passive fear biter. He may panic and urinate, he may bite.

5. If the ears are back, flattened, avoids eye contact, grovels or lowers its body, rolls over to expose genitalia, corner of mouth is pulled back in submissive grin, tail is between legs, or flat against abdomen, licks lips or nose, this dog is being submissive and okay to approach.

6. If his ears are up (could be down), makes direct eye contact, prances, paws forward, mouth open, tail up and wagging, may bark to solicit play and may "mouth" you, this dog is being playful and would like nothing more than a rousing game of fetch or wrestling around on the floor.

7. If his ears are up and forward, makes direct eye contact, stands tall and erect, leans forward, has a closed but relaxed mouth, tail up or neutral, hackles up or down, attentive, focused and poised, this dog is on the alert. Something has caught his attention and he is determining if it is friend or foe. This stance commonly occurs if he is near his possessions (you or his bone), and is "on guard". He is not being aggressive, just assessing the situation.

NEW PET SITTING CLIENT COUPON: RECEIVE $10 OFF YOUR FIRST PET SITTING VISIT (click here for details)

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

Even the dog likes a little variety now and then. Try this healthy, flavorful recipe on your favorite pooch!

Peanut Butter Cookies for Mutts

1/2 stick butter or margarine

1/2 cup peanut butter

Pinch of salt

2 eggs

2 tbsp honey

2-3 "handfuls" of whole wheat flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in saucepan, add 2 eggs and stir briskly until it is a glutinous mass. Remove from heat. Add peanut butter, honey, salt, flour, stir until mixed. Transfer to 8 x 8 pan and bake for 15 minutes. Cool and serve in small quantities.

FUN FACTS:

Greyhounds can run up to 45 mph for very short periods.

Louis Doberman, a German Tax Collector, created the Doberman breed in the late 1860's to protect him while he worked.

If two dogs are headed for a fight and appear evenly matched, the dog on its own home turf will win easily.

People who hate cats will come back as mice in their next lives. (Source unknown :)

Whiskers tell a cat whether the space they are entering is big enough for it to pass.

In relation to their body size, cats have the largest eyes of any mammal.

J.D. AND THE SEA GULL.......by Kathy Graham Warren

A while ago I was walking one of my fur-clients, an 8-month old Golden Retriever named J.D. (yep, stands for Jefferson Davis, we ARE in the south, ya know). Anyway, this adorable furry-face wants to pick up everything he sees as we walk along the beach causeway. That includes dead crabs, clams, slimy, stringy, smelly seaweed, seagull poop, just about anything he can sink his growing puppy teeth into!! And he’s slicker than snot on a polished doorknob, able to snatch and grab a crab faster than I can shout Holy Mackerel!

The day was warm and balmy, definitely not winter as it should be, but a wonderful day in the neighborhood, nonetheless. J.D. and I were precariously walking along the crumbling seawall, glancing over the low tide swirls and checking out the barnacle creatures and elusive Sheephead. The latter were lurking in the shadows, making me wish I had a cane pole, a piece of liver, some sunblock, and a few hours to kill. But pet-sitting does have its advantages. What other job pays you to stroll down the causeway, soaking up rays and salt-water, getting exercise at the same time, in the company of an ever-loving Golden? It’s wonderful, but it has its ups and downs too, and because I am not full of rhythm and grace, I always have to watch where I am treading or I will find myself down on the ground, more often than up. Klutz is a better word for it. So with ever-vigilant eyes, I not only scoped the area for rocks and roots to fall over, but also for crunchy forbidden edibles that J.D. might decide to munch on. Life was pretty good!

Suddenly, looking out at the glittering water, I saw the fins of a large fish! Surely not a shark because the water was too shallow, but probably a large manta ray, flicking his 'wings' into the air. I was so intent on watching the ray, that I didn’t see the dead seagull on the side of the seawall. J.D., however, did! He immediately pounced on it with that huge retriever mouth of his, gathering his prized possession with all 42 teeth. Forgetting the ray, I jumped into action and grabbed J.D.'s jaws, intending to make him drop the dead bird. He fought back because he really wanted this treasure. We wrestled around, heaving dead bird feathers everywhere, me muttering big, bad words, and J.D. intermittently growling and tugging. Suddenly, without warning, he gave up and let go!! I was right in the middle of one of my best heave-ho's, there was a gasp, dead silence, and then I was holding only air and a dead bird!! Without so much as a howdy-do, I pitched backwards, arms flailing, dead seagull flying, and fell right off the seawall!! Dang!! That hurt!! Fortunately it was low tide and it was at the end where the seawall is not very high and the barnacles scarce. But I did make a big splash, not to mention, I scared off most of the Flounder and Sheephead population in that area!! I can just see the headlines now:

Newspaper Headlines: Florida fish prices soar as an unexpected fish shortage erupts. Scientists are wondering where all the fish went?

Sandi's boy

McGuyver

WHEN GOOD DOGS CROSSBREED:

Pointer + Setter =

Poinsetter, a traditional Christmas pet

Pekingnese + Lhasa Apso =

Peekasso, an abstract dog

Terrier + Bulldog =

Terribull, a dog prone to awful mistakes

Bloodhound + Labrador =

Blabador, a dog that barks incessantly

Malamute + Pointer =

Moot Point, owned by....oh, well, it doesn't matter anyway

Collie + Malamute =

Commute, a dog that travels to work

Deerhound + Terrier =

Derriere, a dog that's true to the end

Bull Terrier + Shitzu =

Bullshitz, a gregarious but unreliable breed

Great Pyrenees + Dachshund =

Great Pyradachs, a puzzling breed

Kerry Blue Terrier + Skye Terrier

Blue Skye, a dog for visionaries

PET OF THE MONTH:

MISS SALLY

"I am Daddy's girl and love playing with my toys and being rubbed under my chin. Hanging out with my humans is fun and relaxing!"

To submit your pet as Pet of the Month click here. Please send Jpeg photo and brief bio with address. Pets will be chosen at random. Pet of the Month will receive a free toy, from Persnickety Pets Boutique

Golden Retrievers:

Goldens are extremly affectionate with excellent dispositions, and wonderful attitudes toward children. They are intelligent and easy to train. Their loyalty to their owners have made them one of the world's favorite dogs. Their colors actually run from light, almost white, to dark golden, and from puppyhood darken as they mature. They are alert, eager, well-balanced, with a kindly expression. Originally bred as hunting companions and bird retrievers, Goldens now are popular family pets, therapy dogs for hospitals, companion dogs for the elderly and handicapped, seeing eye dogs for the blind, and popular search and rescue dogs.

THE HUMOR CORNER:

THE BOUTIQUE SPECIALS:

I STILL HAVE HUNDREDS OF NEW ITEMS TO POST - CHECK BACK OFTEN - NEW STUFF POSTED EACH DAY!!

Sandi's Boy, Scooter

a.k.a. The Devil Dog

P.O. Box 71, Pinellas Park, FL 33780

IS YOUR CAT THINKING "OUTSIDE THE BOX"?

Has Fluffy decided she likes the laundry basket to do her business in, rather than the litter box? Has Tiger been leaving you 'tootsie rolls' under the piano? There are many reasons why cats may suddenly stop using their litter boxes. But one of the reasons is not spite. They are not being vindictive or spiteful and it is up to you to get to the scoop of the matter.

One of the most common reasons is a medical condition. Urinary tract infections cause pain and once the cat associates the litter box with pain, it may go elsewhere. Diabetes causes excessive urination and leads to "wet feet". Cats have an aversion to going potty in a box that is wet and soiled, preferring clean, dry litter. If your cat suddenly starts going to the bathroom in your potted petunias, be sure to check with your vet to rule out any medical problems right away.

Other common reasons for "outside the box" thinking is: 1.) The box is not clean enough; 2.) The cat has been startled by a loud noise close to the box (ie: if the litter box is close to the washer, the washer may have changed cycles at the precise moment that the cat was voiding, thereby scaring the cat); 3.) The cat has been "ambushed" by another cat, child, person, etc, while leaving the box and is afraid to go back; 4.) The cat associates the box with "punishment" (ie: someone has punished the cat for eliminating outside the box and then placed them back in the box); 5.) The cat cannot tolerate the litter type (ie: too sandy, too coarse, too fragrant, etc.).

What you can do: Keep the box fastidiously clean, scoop every day (more if possible), experiment with different litters until you find one your cat likes, keep more than one box in different areas of the house, never punish your cat, they do not understand the punishment concept. Praise them when they do use the box and gently work with them to overcome their litter box aversions.