With biting wit that’s hard to come by naturally, and seriously goofy stories, I promise you ,valued readers, that you will be thoroughly entertained by Flea Biters. It’s a great take  on the lives of a young twenty-something and his rescue Shepherd, as well as his newer nephew, a young Husky rescue.

Flea Biters combines fantastic photography with the funny, zany antics of these two pups. Written by William Fueglein, a dear friend of mine, the love, dedication, loyalty and admiration to each by the other thoroughly shines through in his “tails” and is something that we all will be able to feel by reading this blog.

And as you all know, we have to start somewhere, so I am asking my loyal readers to please go over and say Hello  or Woof-Woof or give a howl to Billy, Mack (Shepherd) and Hustle (Husky). We in this close knit family of pet bloggers all support each other — so I’m asking you to please go by and say hi. I promise you will end up laughing, interacting, and hopefully subscribing to Flea Biters!

My fave posts: “Police Dog Takes Down Bad Guy” and “English Bulldog Vs Pug”

Here are two pics of the main stars of Flea Biters, in order, Mack and Hustle:

Mack

Hustle

So please go on over to Flea Biters and tell them that ThoughtsFurPaws sent you! And if you know of a new pet blog in town, please let me know so I can review it! Thanks everyone

I recently “Liked” on Facebook the group Pets Add Life (PAL); they’re a national non-profit foundation “dedicated to promoting the positive role pets play in the health and well being of people, families and communities.” How perfect!

I mean, I know there are tons of us pet bloggers who talk every day or week about animals, post photos, silly stories, etc. But it’s something to ponder when you really sit downand try

Max Asleep Sitting Up!

to put a value on your pet or your pets. You can’t do it, right? They’re invaluable. I mean, I can’t even decide between preferring a dog or cat, and many have asked me that. (Probably because many pet blogs are either cat blogs or dog blogs – fewer of us are “pet” or “animal” blogs.)

Being a pet owner to me is like being a parent. I am single and I do not have children. I have nieces but they live far away. So Maxwell (1.5 yr old Orange Tabby rescue), Tater (1.5 yr old half-Abyssinian rescue), Sasha (10 yr old half Persian rescue) and Benson (10 yr old Golden Retriever) are like my children. And I must say that being the parent to MORE than one pet is a joy that everyone should try (as long as they have the time and financial means to provide for the animals). Jeez, I would have a cat co-op if I could afford it, and one of my           life goals IS to open a cat shelter at some point or to start my own 501(c)3 for animals, but right now it’s not in the cards.

Anyways, I’m getting off-track. My point is: there is so much that I get out of being a “multi-pet household.” The interactions between the animals, the silly, stupid stuff they do (okay not stupid, but senseless I guess), the great photo ops they provide me with, and, of course, the love I get in return (and loyalty) is worth more to me than all my possessions. These children of mine are simply irreplaceable, imperfections and all.

Maxwell (aka Mad Max because he has an alternate personality that we call “The Terrorist” et al), for example, who we’ve had for about 10 months (with Tater) has various hysterical

habits that he’s created for himself, including breaking into my closet upstairs, where I keep my “swag” from the many pet conferences I attend,

and breaking into the DOG food bag samples and eating away until his belly is as round as a basketball. Yes, DOG food. He ripped right through a nylon bag to get to the food so now I keep my closet closed. Just this week actually, I came home with his new favorite dry food, IAMS Healthy Naturals, and was in the laundry room for 30 seconds when I came back out into the kitchen, he had torn through both the grocery bag and the IAMS bag and had cat food all over the counter and was helping himself. Max also decides, usually around 9 or 10 pm, that he wants to get the “zoooms;” he arches his back up and sticks his tail in the air, puts his ears flat back on his head and goes running like a track star all around the downstairs and is SO loud, that he sounds like an elephant. So when Tater sees this, he decides to join in. So now there’s TWO track stars going MACH-10 around the downstairs slamming into walls, ruffling up the rugs on the hardwood floor, running into each other and running into other stuff because they cant stop! It’s something you truly have to witness; I sometimes am brought to tears from laughter.

Max and Tate Racing

Max and Tate were not adopted together. My Mother rescued Max from a dingy, dirty, disgusting downtown Cleveland parking garage when he sat right in front of her moving car one day. I rescued Tate from an owner who was neglectful, and who had a big bully cat that was beating the shit out of Tate. But it was SO obvious when these two met, it was fate. I call them “brothers in love,” because when they aren’t racing around, playing, play-biting each other, or monging on their catnip toys together at the cat post, they are cleaning each others’ ears and heads, sharing a plate of milk or creme, or lying together, back-to-back or on the same arm-chair. It’s like the Gods brought them to us at different times but totally on purpose. (And I DO believe it wasn’t the Gods, it was Theodore, my last cat who passed in Feb. 2010 and I never got over it (still not)).

At times, Benson is a cuddle-board for Tate, which is just the cutest thing ever to see a 95-lb Golden letting a 8-lb mini-kitty (one of Tate’s many nicknames) cuddle up next to him. Benny will put his ears awry and be careful not to move – he looks like a statue because he doesn’t want to disturb or scare the cat! It’s too cute! Again, this has to be one of my favorite multi-pet interactions…especially because Benny has become such a gentle giant in his old age whereas he used to be a totally rambunctious crazy-typical-Golden boy!

I’ll be back with more cute stories soon, but in the mean time, you guys should really check out the Pets Add Life campaign. As it says in their description, PAL is “dedicated to pets – from spreading the joys & benefits they give us to increasing adoptions to responsible ownership.” They’re a genuine, good-hearted non-profit that wants people to share the joys of having multiple pets and of pet ownership in general. This way, we can save more pets’ lives. Check them out on Facebook and take a look at all the others’ stories and photos and funny stuff. You guys know I wouldn’t point you awry – so get on over to PAL and post YOUR funny story or pic on their wall!

Before I move on to the second part of the IAMS/Eukanuba tour, I wanted to show you the following pictures that IAMS let us use from their Catteries, which show the open-air space and how happy the pets are… there’s also one of some food-testing Labrador Retrievers: now they look real bloody and miserable don’t they PETA????

Dogs With a Trainer...How Happy are They??

*** Okay, so now we go on to the visit to the Leipsic Manufacturing Plant. Remember the video I showed you all of the people who work there on my previous post? Well their care, passion and pride for their jobs and the animals shows in how they talk to you, in their actions, and in how they carry out their day-to-day tasks.

We had a lecture from Dr. Amy Dickey, who is a Chief Nutritionist for the company. She explained how IAMS has been around since 1951. The company works around the cornerstones of the dietary matrix:

Protein

Fiber (for GI tract health)

Custom Carbs

Fat – Omega-3 fatty acids for balance; benefits skin and coat and reduces inflammation

These are the nutritional pillars that lead the the IAMS and Eukanuba creations like weight-loss diets, high-fiber, etc. Each brand is made with chicken muscle and skin, meal – which means cooked skin and bone, and by-product meal, which is cooked internal organs. So there’s technically no real “by-products” in IAMS and Eukanuba like you have in other pet food brands, which just use the whole entirety of the chicken – even the gross parts – to make their “by-products.”

It was explained to us at Leipsic that it’s actual human food-grade material that’s used. The World-class Microbial programs at Leipsic have been benchmarked; the site is now swabbed in 30 different places a day in the testing phase to ensure health, cleanliness, and a spic and span micro-lab.

The manager of the plant actually put it like this: “We want a food plant, not a feed plant.” He also said that everyone who works here is in a “leader, student, owner, teacher, role model” position.

Leipsic is the largest food plant in terms of volume; and its generally the place where IAMS new food initiatives start and roll out. Here the company receives 8 various frozen meats, and 82 raw materials to create 86 different formulas.

The Leipsic Plant makes, packs, and ships to 28 countries!! IAMS also makes a point to check its product in random stores to ensure there was no tearing of the bags, cross-contamination from shelf-side products, etc.

Obviously, the lab at Leipsic is quality and food-safety driven. Just a handful of tests are performed before a batch is made – a handful of nearly 200 Q/A tests!! This in-process testing is done to look at things like the Ash and Crude Moisture content, as well as protein and fat. Materials come into the plant every single day – some are high-risk – so IAMS tests every single material that arrives into Leipsic. They also test for toxins, of course.

The Leipsic warehouse where the food is stored and put onto trucks is 350,000-sq-ft!

Our visit to the Corporate Headquarters of the Proctor and Gamble’s Pet Health Brands was equally stimulating. Unfortunately, I have no pictures to offer up of that event as my camera was malfunctioning. I did borrow one photo from Amy at Hearts Into Home. She also provided me with the final list of we bloggers who went to the Influencer Summit:

• Dr. Jessica Vogelsang, Pawcurious
  

  Pet Bloggers and P&G Pet Care Employees

• Susi Szeremy, Knobnotes
• Jaime Lynn Smith, Thoughts Fur Paws
• Paris Permenter and John Bigley, Dogtipper and Cattipper
• Joanne McGonagle, The Tiniest Tiger
• Jennifer Costello, My Brown Newfies
• Jennifer Phelps, Preston Speaks
• Pam Hoerauf, The Daily Oskar and Pet Blogs United
• Lynette Robinson (Canadian!), My Wee View
• Jackie Lindsay (Canadian!), Dogs, Dogs, Dogs
• Amy Urquhurt (Canadian), Hearts into Home

The visit we took to the Corporate office was, to me, a crucial part of our trip at Behind the Paw. Why? Because there was a representative from nearly every division of Pet Care there, and they put us on the spot! After we had our turn asking them questions about the company, they turned to us for information on the state of the blogosphere, the image of IAMS and Eukanuba, and more.

It was dually entertaining and informative.

The experience I had at the Behind the Paw Influencer Summit was one-of-a-kind; I met some of the most intelligent and some of the most passionate (overused word, we all agreed on that!) pet folks in the industry. I can guarantee you this: each and every IAMS/Eukanuba worker that we came across LOVES and CHERISHES their pets EXACTLY how you and I do. They have silly nicknames and pet voices, they have little intricacies and hobbies, they have all this and more. But mostly, they have LOVE. They have unsurpassed LOVE for animals that drives their passion to be and do better for them every day.

This passion-machine drives the development of new products and is the same one that comes to the rescue like IAMS did in Joplin, Missouri this past week. They have such a big heart for the animals; P&G has donated nearly 8 tons (33,125 bowls) of dog and cat food to help the animals in Joplin that were displaced by the F5 tornadoes. The food was distributed to several locations throughout the region to help save the lives of the many dogs and cats that were affected. Also last month they sent nearly 12 tons of food to Arkansas and Alabama.

So I feel it necessary to send a big fat warm thank you (and an equally big fat warm HUG!!!) to the folks at P&G Pet Care, and those workers from IAMS and Eukanuba who kindly hosted us. Thank you Beverly, Jason, Vicki, Eric, Jen, Dr. Dickey, Amy (our Leipsic guide – she was the BEST worker in that place! She’s on the video, and forgive me please if that’s not your name), and all the folks at IAMS and P & G. I do apologize if I’ve left anyone out.  Also, thank you to Chad Darwin, a whiz from the PR company that reps IAMS who caters to every whim I have when needed, even at BlogPaws:)

I am now better educated about not only pet nutrition, but also pet foods and how the science behind IAMS pet food really makes sense. These foods REALLY do what they say on the bag – REALLY. I SAW it. I learned it. I know it.

I have become a total IAMS ambassador. 100% all the way. I will be forever loyal to this brand for all they do to care for, feed, love and adopt out animals.

IAMS and Eukanuba are much more than pet foods…trust me.

You have no idea what goes into creating these formulas; you have no idea how much love and respect these people have for all pets. I can’t wait to tell you about it. Check out this video-its from the Leipsic Manufacturing Plant that we visited and it really displays how these people feel about pets.

Today and tomorrow/Monday I will share with you the wonderful and amazing experiences I had while at the Proctor & Gamble and IAMS-sponsored Behind the Paw Influencer Summit.

For all intensive purposes, every time I say IAMS in this post, I am referring to both IAMS AND Eukanuba – it’s just easier to type IAMS.

IAMS believes in backing up their nutritional claims with real science. They use actual scientific data  to prove that their products do what they say, i.e., weight-loss, skin and coat help, etc. In fact, they have 25 sites worldwide doing studies on food, nutrition and other areas of the pet food arena. They fund worldwide experts and partner with them; most of these experts are at universities.

So let’s first cover the issue that everyone wants to know about: the PETA video. I refuse to put a link to the video on this blog (or ANY link to PETA), but you can find it on YouTube. If you haven’t seen it – DON’T watch it, it’s all bullshit. (Forgive my French  but you all know how passionate and outspoken I am.).

IAMS opened the Sinclair Research Center sometime in the early part of the 21st century; I do not know the exact date but it was around the year 2000. They already had Pet Health and Nutrition Centers at other sites that were efficient and functional, providing great information for the company about the palletability of the food, ie does is taste good? So they hired a worker to be an animal advocate for the Sinclair location. This person was supposed to watch over the animals in the Nutrition Center and take care of them (you’ll here more about the Nutrition Center and its testing practices later).

So the woman who was hired ended up being an undercover worker for PETA. After working there about 3-4 months, she secretly and ILLEGALLY took a video of some Beagles; these Beagles were being prepared for spay/neuter procedure so they were lined up on a table next to each other. Two of them had muscle tissue tests taken, which means they had less than a 1-inch suture on their legs. The PETA worker sprayed them with Iodine, which, when dried, looks like dried blood (ask your vet if you don’t believe me).

Someone from PETA took that and doctored the video up to make it look like there was raw muscle hanging out of their legs. In reality, these Beagles were just getting a normal veterinary procedure done. And they whine and cry because, according to veterinarian Dr. Jessica V from PawCurious, when animals come out of anesthesia, they are totally freaked out and scared, so they often whine, scream, bark, or cry while the medicine wears off. Dr. V said this is totally normal.

*** We all know PETA’s record of killing animals. (Well maybe not ALL of us…)  And we’ve heard rumors that they are secretly aligned with the domestic terrorist organization, ALF. And we all know about their smear campaign tactics and flat-out personal attacks on people and organizations. And we all know how they spew venom at their adversaries instead of acting in a respectful manner. So I beg of you, if you don’t believe what I’m telling you about PETA, please check out the links below to really measure the validity of what this organization says not only about IAMS, but about everyone else too. They have a record of lies, betrayal and misinformation. So if they can do all off that, can you really rely on what they are showing and telling you??? Please, I also beg of you, check out the IAMS Truth website. And read about the Animal Welfare Advisory Board they created. IAMS is, simply an innocent victim of a PETA smear campaign.  The links below will tell you more about PETA and the head of the organization.

http://www.petconnection.com/blog/2011/03/16/hey-peta-i-dont-think-ethical-means-what-you-think-it-does/

http://www.nathanwinograd.com/?p=5374

http://thoughtsfurpaws.com/dogs/peta-kills-pets/

Okay, on to the real good stuff now! Unfortunately, I cannot display any pictures of the actual visit as we were not permitted to photograph what we saw for obvious proprietary reasons. I can, however, attach some videos that show how amazing and pet-passionate the IAMS team is. (And some photos from the bowling night we had, and some photos permitted for use.) The WHOLE team. Every single person in the IAMS organization is just as much of a pet-lover as you and I. Some of them are even Animaniacs like me! I was happy to hear the passion, emotion, love and good intent in all of their voices – “their” being EVERY SINGLE PERSON we met in the IAMS/Eukanuba brand, and that’s A LOT of people – hundreds. Don’t forget to check out the Leipsic Plant Video I linked to earlier.

So today I’m going to tell you about the Pet Health and Nutrition Center, which was our first stop and my favorite part of the tour. This is where the food testing is done with the animals. I’m not quite sure how many pets are there, but the ones that are there live the good life. There are cats and dogs here; the dogs come from family breeders. I was impressed to hear that, in their first year, each animal is cared for and trained, and IAMS spends $10,000 per pet in the first year alone; this is spent solely on their care and training. They do this so to improve adoptability, because once the food testing phase is done on the pets,they are adopted out. This is usually when the pets are five or six.

The Animal Welfare Board I mentioned earlier is a big part of IAMS and the Pet Health and Nutrition Center (PHNC).  Angela Morris runs the IAMS office and she’s a beautiful person with a serious passion and love of all four-legged creatures.Dr. Jessica Lockhart is the Staff Animal Behaviorist and she shares the same love, respect and adoration of all the pets. And yes. IAMS pays to have a professional behaviorist for the animals. Overall, the animal welfare group seeks to:

- increase successful adoptions

- enhance animal socialization

- educate others about current and future programs

- provide effective training to make pets adoptable and adaptable to a kennel

The Animal Welfare Board also employs Animal Welfare Specialists (AWS). It’s their job to see that certain things are done, like grooming, socializing, exercising, improving “adoptability, ” health monitoring, and reinforcing skills that are already taught.

There’s a large Home Environment Room (HER) for the animals the PHNC, which is where the AWS, the behaviorist and several other pet-welfare and care employees are. The Home Environment was made to teach the animals what it’s really like to be in a home. And it is amazing. There are sounds, smells, sights, surfaces, people and manners that the pets learn and experience in the HER. This place looks like a real family room in a house or condo.

The PHNC has a dog-walking program so that the dogs get exercise and socialized every single day. This exposes them to strangers and helps the employees with handling training and environmental orientation. So, its not like the dogs sit in kennels all day long and wait to do a split-plate food test. They get taken out to play with the other dogs, they get walked a few times a day, they go into the HER for a while, and all of this equals a healthy and happy dog.

Oh yeah, the dogs are NEVER de-barked and there is no ear- or tail-cropping done.

One of the happy, healthy IAMS dogs at the PHNC

IAMS even has created goals for the socialization program for the cats and dogs, the end goal being to produce well-adjusted adoptable animals. The successful “research candidates” demonstrate typical species behavior in the end. I can’t say that the dogs are kept in kennels because it’s like, ten steps up from a kennel. It’s a climate controlled room; each dog has bar-style doggie doors if he wants to go outside; each dog has a privacy area where he can go and no other dog can see him. It’s truly impressive.

And believe you me… I SAW and played with these well-trained and well-behaved dogs (we saw a group of about 12 black labs). Not one of them barked or jumped up or acted in an unacceptable manner. They were friendly, they gave kisses on your hands, they wagged their tails, and they were happy. HAPPY food-testing Black Labs. Black labs that will be adopted soon and go to a home. It was AWESOME.

There’s an adoption program in place at the PHNC called the Companion Connections Adoption Program. Before adoption there’s behavior moderation. And because of in-home testing, which IAMS also does, there are many controls and comparisons in place.

And as for the cats, they all live in a cageless habitat, all together in huge rooms filled with stimuli, in groups of 10 or so (don’t quote me on that – I didn’t count!). The cats are also trained and cared for in the first year (with the same figure as mentioned above) so as to acclimate them to the “catteries”  that are in place at the PHNC. They are never de-clawed; they are kept as natural as possible. They are also micro-chipped. Here they also have employees whose sole job is to play with and socialize the cats at the PHNC.The cats are all bred on-site to avoid because its a pathogen-free colony environment.

A healthy happy IAMS food tester...sweet kitty!

The IAMS group believes in early adaptation. They have a “Kitten Kindergarten” in place for this reason. At two to seven weeks, any cat is in its inherent “sensitive period.” The PHNC provides a safe place where they can explore and interact during this time. There are also Designated Training Teams in place for the kitten and the puppies. They also have what’s called “Modified Exposure,” where puppies arrive at eight weeks of age and then spend 4-6 weeks off-site getting exposure to outside environs.

Overall, Dr. Lockhart and the IAMS testing team believe in early neurological stimulation, early being 8-10 weeks. This period is the animals’ “fear period.” The systematic early exposure to a variety of environments BEFORE the fear period limits the development of fear in adulthood. The exposure during the sensitive period is vital for forming lifelong behaviors.

Plus, this entire building is quarantined to avoid any type of infection or disease.

There’s also a “Puppy Pre-School,” which is similar to the Kitten Kindergarten. It provides a safe place for the puppies to interact and explore. They also get exposure to the adult dogs and different breeds.

Flat Maxwell and Co.

These Continued Socialization programs were put in place to help the dogs and cats develop to be perfectly trained, well-socialized and further trainable. And it works. This team has no problem adopting cats and dogs out when it’s time. They want to produce “good family citizens.” I mean, it seems that this place and its people are really is more concerned with the well-being and adoptability of the animals then it is the actual food testing!!!  The Split-Plate Tests that they do simply offer IAMS on one side, and something else on the other. The other two types of food testing include metabolism testing (ie, urine and feces testing for metabolism), and Bio Assay, which I’m a bit confused about and will ask Beverly - the social media rep for the brands.

Check her out at PetCareBev on Twitter; she always has interesting things to say and is responsible for the many Flat Pets now floating around the blogosphere! This includes my new Flat Maxwell, seen to the left with Flat Tyler and Flat Eli.

But it seems to me that that the actual testing is one teeny tiny part of the lives of these precious pets!!  They are ALL so loving and gentle — it’s amazing.

IAMS has really outdone themselves with the PHNC and the programs they’ve instilled there. And the people who care for these pets are just like you and me – they LOVE animals, and they give them the best care possible.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a dog and cat food company that cares for animals and loves them as much as the IAMS/Eukanuba folks…

So stay tuned if you want to learn more about IAMS and Eukanuba. Tomorrow and Monday we’ll discuss the Leipsic Manufacturing Plant – which is one of the places the awesome IAMS and Eukanuba foods are actually made. This place is AMAZING and you have to tune in to hear why….

*I’ll also tell you who else was at the Influencer Summit with me! New friends…yay!!!

On May 15-17, 2011, I’ll be attending the IAMS and Eukanuba “Behind the Paw” Online Influencer/Blogger Summit in Ohio.

Here I’ll get an up-close and behind-the-scenes tour of the P&G (Proctor and Gamble) Pet Care – Pet Health & Nutrition Center in Lewisburg, and one of its nearby manufacturing plants in Leipsic, Ohio!

I can’t wait to learn about all the research and development that goes into making these brands’ nutritious and delicious pet foods. I’ve always wondered about how this is done and how the proper nutrition and taste factors are accomplished; this is my chance!

I’ll also spend some time at the P&G Pet Care Headquarters in Mason, OH so I can learn more about them directly from their executive leadership.

So while I’m spending time with some other key bloggers over at IAMS and Eukanuba, do you guys have any questinos you want me to ask? Any issues you’d like to see covered? Please answer in the comments if there are any questions you would like me to ask; I’m making a list myself.

You’ll hear all about the trip after I get back!

Its time to announce them finally – the Spring Pet Photo Contest winners!

First Place: winner of the $75 Furminator and a prize package is SWEET PRALINE!

Second Place: winner of a large prize package with multiple goodies is LUNA and ZULU!

Third Place: winner of toys, treats and pet tools is SHILOH AND SHASTA!

Honorable Mention goes to Boris the Kitty; he will get a small prize package.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WINNERS!!

You guys got A TON of votes in the Comments and through emails to me personally.

*** Please email me your full name and mailing address: thoughtsfurpaws@gmail.com.

I hope to mail all the prize boxes out next week.

Renowned Animal Communicator & Energy Therapist at The Healing Journey, Barb Borkowski wrote the following post. We met through Linked In and I was so excited to feature a guest post from her; I’ve never met an animal communicator before.

Barb Borkowski

Barb has a gift that allows her to speak for animals. Working with animals has been very beneficial. Barb has assisted with behavioral problems caused by anxiety, fear, grief, loneliness, separation anxiety and stress. Sessions include communicated information and energy balancing. Energy therapy helps to decrease stress & promote relaxation. Barb assists owners of horses and dogs to have a better understanding of their pets.

One of the first questions I asked Barb was, “how ever did you become an animal communicator?” And lucky for me, she has a post on that very subject. It’s contents are posted here below:

Many of my clients have asked me how I became an animal communicator. Did I take classes? How am I able to do it? The answer to that is simple. I was born with the ability to know what animals need and what they would like people to know.

As a toddler  my best friend was my great-grandfather’s Collie, Long John. There are pictures of me standing beside him, my hand touching the top of his head. As I got older, I spent a majority of my time outdoors with my dad’s Beagles. I felt such a connection to those dogs. They knew my thoughts and feelings and I knew theirs. Animals are so in tune with human emotions.

Growing up, my intuition was very keen. I did not like knowing things about people, animals or future events. That frightened me and I did not want to be considered strange. I decided to tune out all intuitive thoughts.

Years passed and my journey brought me back to my roots. After establishing my massage therapy business, The Healing Journey, I started to receive requests from clients to help their pets. Reluctant at first, I accepted. Word spread of how I was able to help animals who had behavioral problems. After several years of giving free advice, I included animal communication as a part of my business.

What once was considered a curse by me is now the greatest blessing. Relaying to pet owners what their 4 legged friends need and would like them to know is such an honor. Through my work, people have a better understanding of their pet. That leads to a closer relationship. You see – I was born to be an animal communicator.

And a final post that I will share with you is an excellent poem — I happen to love animal poetry; many of you know I often post dog poems and cat poems or pet loss poems. They help heal and comfort. Here is Barb’s poem, entitled “4-Legged Friend.” (You might need a Kleenex, FYI…)

The love held in your heart
Captivates me from the start

Barb's Dog

Holding you in my arms

You lick my face with all your charm

Watching you as days go by
You quickly grow, I wonder why
That you are given so little time
To live on earth and be all mine

Years pass by, you run and play
I know one day you cannot stay
For time takes a lasting toll
One day you’ll have a new role

To leave the world and be set free
I know you will be watching me
With a saddened heart I will go on
Because of you I can sing a song

The day has come to say goodbye
Holding you, I start to cry
Memories come rushing in
Of  how you’ve been my best friend

Losing you, I will go on
You worry that I’m not that strong
Because of you my life was blessed
And filled with so much happiness

Thank you, my 4 legged friend
In due time my heart will mend
A part of me, you’ll always be
My friend for all eternity

You can follow Barb’s daily journeys at her blog, The Healing Journey.

We all know her as Bev; well, some of us know her as Tyler’s Mom, or Flat Tyler’s Mom, and even more of us know her as “the awesome IAMS lady.” Regardless, Bev is good people. In fact, she’s GREAT people. And she’s doing am equally great thing.

Bev has taken it upon herself to raise money for Small Paws Rescue for the entire month of March.

Small Paws Rescue (www.SmallPawsRescue.org) is who brought Bev’s beloved dog Tyler to her, and, in turn, she is forever grateful, as most of us are for our fur-babies. But even before the days of Tyler the Bichon Frise, Small Paws was important to Bev.

Why?

Bev and Tyler

Because they are a courageous group of about 800 volunteers and 6,000 supporting global members. In the past 12 years, they’ve single-handedly assisted in the rescue, placement, release, and/or adoption of over 8,000 Bichons, Bichon blends, and dogs that have a passing affiliation with a Bichon. They’ve essentially sent nearly 10,000 of these oft-passed little mill dogs to loving, kind, caring forever homes like Bev’s.

And now Bev wants to give back. Wouldn’t you?

Similar to most breed rescues you may’ve come across, Small Paws follows the Holy Grail mantra in the animal welfare world: the “no-kill” philosophy. This, unfortunately, means that costs literally sky-rocket. Because this means that each and every dog has to be taken care of in a foster home until he finds his own forever home. And that means that every dog has to see a vet before he can be placed in a home.

Do you know how much it costs to fix, feed, vet, provide shelter for, give medicine to, and buy toys for just one dog? Well imagine that costs times 1,000, which is a bit over the number of dogs that Small Paws will probably save this year. And that’s not even counting the dogs who require extra veterinary assistance for injuries, diseases and more costly fixes.

This is what Small Paws is up against right now.

Flat Tyler

They need our help. Everyone’s help. Even if it’s just a dollar. Even if it’s a bag of food. I go to the APL all the time and drop off bags of food and cat litter and they are eternally grateful.

Bev tells me that nearly all the donation money Small Paws gets goes to pay vet bills. Why? Because the little sweet, fluffy dogs that Small Paws rescues generally come from deplorable situations. Hoarders. Mills. Auctions. Death Row. So the amount of money that’s necessary to nurse them back to mental and physical health is sometimes exorbitant. But it’s worth every penny to Bev. And to me.

Bev is my good friend and I am going to support her in any way that I can. I am asking you all to please please do the same.

Bev is focusing on Small Paws on her blog, www.PetCareBev.com. But what she’d really like your help with is the giveaway she’s doing at www.MyFlatPet.com. My Flat Pet is her hobby site. She has a famous Flat Tyler cut-out; a life-sized photo of her dog Tyler that she takes to different places to photograph. Some of you might have met Flat Tyler at Blog Paws in Denver. The photos end up on My Flat Pet.

During the month of March, to encourage people to donate (and to increase the flat pet population), Bev is going to give away FOUR flat pets.

Also, Karen Nichols, the Catster blogger and the owner of Flat Skeezix, has also offered to create one of her amazing, personalized mixed media pet portraits to use as a give-away during the Flat Tyler Small Paws Fundraiser!

This is an incredible prize worth $100.00! You can see some examples here. She will give away the pet portrait at the end of March.

More details are here,  and also here.

So please, do what you can to help my good friend Bev and her cause this month. Its definitely worthy, and just think of the little fluffy lives your dollars will be saving. And who knows – you may even get your own Flat Pet out of it!

First, some background for those of you who may not know.

WHAT IS A PUPPY MILL?

While many people may be familiar with the term “puppy mill,” the industry and government regulators dismiss the horrors associated with them. Puppy mills are facilities which are licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture that mass-produce puppies for pet stores throughout the country and to emerging foreign markets. At present a USDA license is required for anyone with four or more “intact bitches” although federal officials are considering raising the number of animals held to as many as 60 without a USDA license. Puppies are subjected to horrific conditions from birth and during transport from breeder, to broker, to pet stores hundreds of miles from where their life began. The breeding “stock” suffers a constant misery living in small cramped cages often soiled with their own excrement.

A few Midwestern states are home to the largest concentration of puppy mills in the country, and Missouri is by far the worst offender. Many of the operators of these puppy mills hold other jobs and utilize mass-production methods to produce what they and government regulators consider an agricultural commodity. In a typical puppy mill, the dogs are fed in the morning and again in the evening. Cleaning, sanitation and general maintenance are addressed as time permits, usually during the weekend, if at all. Most of these facilities are in rural areas and are family operated to supplement a modest family income. In previous years USDA inspectors conducted at least one unannounced inspection per year at these facilities, however, federal authorities have recently adopted a risk based inspection program. Operators are given the opportunity to correct non-compliant items (technically violations of federal law) that are disclosed during the inspection. If upon re-inspection the violation or “non-compliant item” is not corrected, enforcement action should be taken in an effort to improve conditions at the facility. Inspection policies have deteriorated to such an extent that operators of these facilities can operate indefinitely with repeated disclosure of “non-compliant items.” The emphasis has dramatically shifted from the “welfare” of the animals to commerce. A factor that no doubt has contributed to this phenomenon is the decline in small family farms.

Humane organizations, animal advocacy groups and consumers are outraged at USDA’s lax enforcement of federal regulations as they have prompted substantial growth in the number of puppy mills over the past several years. To avoid the stigma of being called puppy mill facilities, many breeders invested thousands of dollars in facilities that surpassed USDA’s minimum standards. Unfortunately lax enforcement policies have allowed sub- or minimum-standard operators to compete and ultimately diminish profit margins for the better facility operators, forcing many of them out of business.

Today the average puppy mill will house between 75 and 150 breeding animals, most housed in hutch-style cages with wire floors. The fecal matter drops to the ground below and waste accumulates beneath the cage, providing a haven for flies and other vermin. Even with fairly prompt removal of waste, the ground becomes permeated with stench as the urine cannot be raked away. Dogs housed in indoor facilities endure an equally deplorable existence with ammonia vapors and odors permeating poorly ventilated buildings. Rodents, flies and other pests plague the animals almost constantly. Solid surfaces are supposed to protect the legs of puppies; however, as they mature and scout out their surroundings, feet and legs often fall through wire floors. The resulting injuries compound their misery. Their soft coats of fur become soiled with the fecal matter that didn’t drop through the cage, adding insult to injury.

At 8 weeks of age puppies are “harvested” and cleaned up for the trip to the broker. They are bathed to clean up feces and odors they have endured during their brief lives in the puppy mill. Pus is wiped from their sad and scared eyes just before they are shoved into whatever is convenient – with any luck an approved shipping container. Some will perish, and others will be rejected by the broker only to be held back for breeding stock. Many others will be killed for their lack of monetary value and some may even be sold for research. The survivors can be seen at your local pet store, but the emotional scars and irresponsible animal husbandry can bring misery into your home instead of anticipated joy.

If you have any compassion at all for the animals bred and raised under these miserable conditions, stay out of pet stores. Each puppy purchased from a pet store serves an industry with no conscience and virtually no enforcement by USDA. Thousands of unwanted animals of all ages and breeds are euthanized at shelters every day. Adopt and spay or neuter a shelter animal or rescued companion animal, and do your part to help end the plight of unseen thousands housed in puppy mills throughout the country.

Pet stores acquire their puppies from “puppy mills,” literal factories where breeding dogs live their entire lives cramped in filthy cages. While millions of forgotten dogs (and other animals) are killed in our nation’s shelters, the unfortunate dogs in puppy mills are forced to produce litter after litter until they die. Even though our nation’s shelters are overflowing with unwanted animals – an amazing twenty-five percent of which are purebred dogs – puppy mills continue to generate millions of dollars for the unscrupulous pet industry.

In an effort to break this tide of misery and death, IDA is targeting Petland, the nation’s largest pet store chain, and a major retailer of puppies, kittens, and other small animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs.

IDA has documented shipments of puppies to Petland stores – they operate an amazing 123 stores in the U.S. and 57 more foreign outlets – from large Midwestern puppy mill breeders and dealers. One Petland supplier, Do-Bo-Tri Kennels, recently surrendered over 140 puppies to authorities in Nashville, TN after the puppies had been left unattended overnight inside a vehicle with no air-conditioning. Charges against the driver were eventually dropped after the dealer agreed to relinquish custody of the puppies.

Puppies are routinely shipped overland by truck or by air as cargo, often traveling hundreds of miles to pet shops across the country. Injuries and fatalities en route to pet stores are common and deplorable, yet they pale in comparison to the conditions their parents endure until their death at the mills. The euthanasia of millions of animals at shelters due to a lack of adoptive families compounds the tragedy of mill animals enduring a miserable existence to satiate the demand for their offspring.

While the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is responsible for inspection and enforcement of regulations pursuant to the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), conditions for animals at these federally licensed facilities range from bad to worse.

Do-Bo-Tri Kennels, a major supplier of Petland puppies, has been repeatedly charged with violations of the Animal Welfare Act.

IDA is looking for former or current employees and customers of Petland

Successful Petland Protest

who have information to share about the poor conditions in which their animals are kept.

Please write to IDA with information.

After 75 weeks of continuous Saturday protests, the Petland in St. Louis (located in Heritage plaza at Olive and Ross), closed on March 31, 2004. We hope this victory will inspire and motivate everyone to keep the Petland protests Campaign going nationwide.

While millions of forgotten animals are killed in our nation’s shelters, the unfortunate dogs in puppy mills are forced to produce litter after litter until they die. Stores that sell puppies acquire them from “puppy mills,” factories where breeding dogs live their entire lives cramped in filthy cages. Even though our nation’s shelters are overflowing with animals–an amazing twenty-five percent of whom are purebred–puppy mills continue to generate millions of dollars for the unscrupulous “pet” industry.

In an effort to break this tide of misery and death, IDA will continue targeting Petland, the nation’s largest pet store chain, and a major retailer of puppies, kittens, and other small animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs. IDA is seeking dedicated activists to organize campaigns against Petland in various cities.
If you are interested in joining this campaign, contact:

In Defense of Animals
Director of Investigations
In Defense of Animals
phone: (415) 388-9641
idainfo@idausa.org

Click here for Petland locations and campaign contacts.

The consequences of pet overpopulation are much too tragic to be simplified. The number of victims – unwanted homeless dogs and cats – is of such magnitude that it is time that society be made aware of the reality of this tragedy. The statistics tell the story.

Three to four million dogs and cats are killed in shelters across the United States every year. These staggering numbers don’t include the animals that die on our roads or from unreported animal abuse. Also not included are the animals that die after being sold to research laboratories from our shelters. During 1999, animal shelters in Ohio killed 196,831 dogs and cats. Only a small fraction of these animals are vicious because of owner mistreatment or illegal intentions.

Only a small fraction are terminally ill or too sick to be treated. The majority of these dogs and cats are healthy. Many can be treated and behavior problems eliminated. We are killing adoptable dogs and cats capable of giving and receiving love for many more years.

WHAT IS THE ROOT CAUSE?

1. People acquire cats and dogs from sources that perpetuate overpopulation. They buy from breeders and pet stores. 5,000 puppy mills breed more than 1/2 million dogs in deplorable conditions, most of which are shipped to pet stores. By buying from these sources we perpetuate the market. 25% of the animals in shelters are purebred. When a pet is purchased, a shelter animal dies.

2. Many pet owners who fail to spay and neuter their animals. Whether by intent or neglect, these dogs and cats reproduce. For every litter born, that many will die in a shelter. Many of these people are hobby and professional breeders, others are backyard breeders wanting their children to see the miracle of birth. Perhaps these people need to visit the killing room of a shelter to watch the tragedy of death.

3. People treat pets as disposable commodities. People simply surrender or abandon their animals instead of taking responsibility for them for their lifetime. Every day people walk into shelters and surrender animals for reasons as frivolous as the animal not matching their furniture anymore or we’re going on vacation and can’t afford to board – we’ll just get another dog when we come home. The number one excuse is moving – the owner doesn’t consider the animal important enough to find animal friendly housing. More excuses include – behavior problems, not enough time, can’t afford, and allergies.

A Dog in OSPCA's Current Care

In summary, failure to spay and neuter is the major cause, but how we acquire our dogs and cats and how long we keep them is also a contributing cause. For every animal killed – be it a dog, cat, pig, rabbit, or bird – there is a human outside the walls of the shelter responsible.

Ohio SPCA’s Position

• Don’t Breed or Buy – Adopt

• Keep Your Pets Safe at Home

• Spay and Neuter

And remember – pets are living creatures, capable of fear, love, pain, loneliness, and joy. They should never be considered disposable property, for they should be considered members of the family. Every companion animal must be loved and protected.

Ohio SPCA believes that no person should be breeding while dogs and cats are dying every single day. To find out more about puppy mills, pet stores, and how you can stop pet overpopulation, visit the web sites below.

This OSPCA Dog Has Hope!

In Defense of Animals
What is a Puppy Mill?
Prisoners for Profit

Pet Overpopulation Statistics