The Pet Blogger Challenge 2018
From the comic, When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Vet
“I am sorry to say,” the report started.
"This is our family dog, and she is only three years old. Please tell me I am wrong."
Luna is three years old.
The little boy was going into the mall with his Mom and stopped to pet Joy.
Happy New Year!
Rover.com is a pet sitting service that allows you to choose from a list of local pet sitters to watch your pets.
Even though Rover.com paid our pet sitting fee in exchange for a review of their services, I thought their prices were very reasonable.
We went on an “Omaha vacation” for three days over Christmastime.
We stayed at the Embassy Suites downtown. It was beautiful!
We spent an entire day at The Zoo. This bird came right up to Abby in the jungle!
Our sitter charged $25 per dog per night (a bit more than she usually would have because it was a holiday) and fed the fishes for freebies!
The sitters set their own prices and seem to raise them as they gather more experience.
Our pet sitter’s name was Kelsey, and she was wonderful. She came over a few days early to meet the dogs (and fish). Joy loved her and Luna warmed up to her over her stay, both huge compliments from trustworthy sources.
Kelsey fed and medicated and walked both dogs and most importantly kept them company. She sent us text updates and left us a Christmas card.
Rover.com and especially Kelsey of Rover.com: 10/10, would hire again. We were very pleased and knew our pets were in capable and loving hands.
New comic every Friday!
My Aunt Penny has a nephew Matt. Though we have not met, I decided that since we have the same aunt, we are cousins.
Matt and his family recently rescued this adorable puppy, Zeus. I've not met Zeus either, but I love him so much!
From Matt...
Name: Zeus Meatball Wallace
Age: 6 months
Weight: 45 lbs.
Breed: Mastiff mixed with American Staffordshire Terrier
Adopted: Nebraska Humane Society. He was fostered because he was underweight. We think there was abuse before Nebraska Humane Society because he was very shy around certain men, but he has gained a lot of confidence since then.
Training: We were definitely worried about his past and shyness catching up to him because of his big breed. We wanted him to be well socialized and confident, so we went with positive reinforcement training with a clicker right away. I learned from YouTube. He is very good at sit, lay, shake, kennel, stay and heel and knows the word "no" very well so he stays out of trouble.
Favorites: Staring out the window...
naps in the sun...
naps in the bed, naps in your lap...
playing outside with his 6 year old bestie...
and cuddles with his Momma.
Sarah and I comment all the time about how we lucked out with this man Zeus. He is obviously a handsome boy, but his relaxed temperament, his sometimes playful but very lazy personality, trainability and love for sleep and the fact that he has to be touching or near you at all times fits our team perfectly.
Thank you for sharing Zeus with us, Wallace family! He is amazing!
ONE YEAR AGO
TWO YEARS AGO
I have started a fun project with Chewy.com. They send me a list of fun pet-related things. I choose two to review and they send me those two products at no cost.
The first product I reviewed was a Chicken Soup for the Soul book (10/10, would read again).
The second product I am reviewing is Honest Kitchen's Bone Broth - 10/10, would order again.
Joy has chicken allergies. Luna is super picky. This broth is beef based with no chicken and, according to Joy and Luna, very tasty. So it works well for both of them, which is rare in both treats and dog food.
Joy says this is unlike anything she's ever smelled...
Luna is so picky that she often skips meals, which, like it does for every Chihuahua client I have ever had, causes endless amounts of worry to our family. Luna has had some pretty serious liver and gastrointestinal issues, so when she does not eat, we are extra concerned. This bone broth may put an end to that, the worry I mean.
Luna does not just want to smell the powder. She wants a taste!
Both dogs like the warm broth as a soup and as a gravy to their plain old boring food.
It is super easy to reconstitute (like regular chicken and beef broth) and easy to serve. We avoid canned food because, although it can be nutritious, and as a vet I am very grateful it exists, it is gross. This broth is not gross.
For natural diets of whole food and high quality ingredients, Honest Kitchen is among the best. This is the first product of theirs that I have tried, and I am very impressed.
BUNNY TRAIL!
Remember on the Riley and James website when I would get off on a tangent or two and label it a bunny trail? This is similar. Is it better because I planned it? I don't know, but it is still fun!
The broth is said to be best for Pitta dosha types. "What in the world?" I thought. On the label of the Honest Kitchen Bone Broth is this statement, "To learn more about Ayurvedic and take a fun quiz to learn which dosha your pet belongs to, visit honestkitchen.com/ayurveda."
So I did.
Ayurveda is an ancient system of medicine originating in India. Anything I can learn about that can help my patients I am open to. The information on the page is fascinating.
AND Joy is a rare mixture of all three types of dosha, and Luna is a very strong (and strong willed) Pitta. Fun! If you take the quiz and find out what type your dog is or dogs are, let me know!
So this broth is supposed to be good for Joy and Luna, in Ayurveda thinking AND western medicine thinking. It has become a staple in our nutritious treats and supplements collection.
ONE YEAR AGO
MY PIT BULL - SHARPEI PATIENT, WELL, EVERY PATIENT REALLY
TWO YEARS AGO
Good night Daisy. Good night Lucy. Did you have a nice Christmas?
ONE YEAR AGO
TWO YEARS AGO
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to You and Yours
"Have you been good Lucy?"
"Who among us can say who is truly good?"
Lucy decided she should have just said, "yes."
Spoiler! Santa included Lucy on the nice list!
Maya is the Boston of my sister and brother-I-love, Jodi and Shane and my niece Madi. Maya is not sure what to think of the Christmas Pig!
Who will blink first??
New comic every Friday!
Mike Wazowski is one of the sweet dogs of my friend Kathi Ortmeier of Basset and Beagle Rescue of the Heartland. Mike, you are so photogenic!
Chicken Soup for the Soul - My Cat's Life - 101 Stories about all the Ages and Stages of Our Feline Family Members
Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen and Jennifer Quasha
"Another cat? Perhaps. For love there is also a season; its seeds must be resown. But a family cat is not replaceable like a worn out coat or a set of tires. Each new kitten becomes its own cat, and none is repeated. I am four cats old, measuring out my life in friends that have succeeded but not replaced one another. -Irving Townsend. page 319.
What's that in the upper left hand corner? Another product to review next week perhaps?
When I was choosing products to receive and review from Chewy.com for the first time, my very first choice was a Chicken Soup book. I love these!
Chewy.com is letting me choose two items to review free of charge every month. If there is a product you would like me to review, please let me know!
Of the Chicken Soup books, I chose a cat book because I still miss our Max the Cat and I miss all of my feline patients I can no longer see because of my allergies.
My Cat's Life - 10/10 - would read again.
I loved these stories you guys. I took off my judgy pants (there were quite a few outdoor cats and cats giving birth and delayed veterinary care and rehomed cats) and put on my jammie pants and settled in for what turned out to be a very enjoyable time.
I love the individuality and nuances and beauty of cats. All of these traits are here in abundance. I love very old cats the most. They were here too. My favorite story is #79 - The Ingredients of Happiness, by Saralee Perel, because it explores living in the moment with your pet. I also likes that it takes place in a veterinary hospital.
It was intriguing to hear how families interpreted information from their veterinary teams as relayed in the stories. It was heartening to realize most families absorb and interpret medical information accurately, even in stressful times.
This book is calming, like the presence of a cat is calming.
If you would like to read this book, please let me know. I will write a list of names inside the front cover, and we can pass it around. When I get it back, I plan to read it again!
ONE YEAR AGO
TWO YEARS AGO
Christmas for the Nebraska Humane Society pets <3
Aunt Penny and Uncle Scotty were looking for a puppy.
Whitney showed me these puppies at Nebraska Humane Society.
Scott said, "That's the one! The brown puppy, I know it!"
And so he was.
Meet Steve! Isn't he adorable?
I will get to meet him this afternoon! I can't wait! Do you want to see more pictures and hear more about Steve?