pet connection

Poor Harper was stung by a bee this afternoon, somewhere on a hind leg. She was screaming bloody murder and running in circles trying to get it off her. I didn’t know what was wrong until I saw it fall off and then I stomped it and carried her inside, dragging Bella and Twyla behind me. I called the vet, who recommended a quarter tablet of Benadryl and a cold compress.

She’s still freaked out by it. She curled up into as small a ball as possible on the sofa and stared at me with that expression that said “How could you let that happen to me?” She wouldn’t eat dinner, and I haven’t been able to get her to go potty since. I have visions–terrible visions–that this will set back her house training. She acts so grown up most of the time that I forget what a little baby she still is.

I took her out a little while ago and we practiced heeling around the complex, my hope being that it would keep her mind off the scary stinging things that might be lurking outdoors. Still no potty action. We came back in and I opened the garage door, only to see a large black spider (the garden kind, I think, not a black widow). Naturally, Harper ran right toward it and brushed up against its web. I don’t know what I would have done if it had gotten on her since I’m an arachnophobe from way back. I guess we would have both had the heebie jeebies.

Speaking of fun words like heebie jeebies, I saw a new coinage today (new to me, anyway) in the LA Times food section. It was “dogateur,” a reference to vendors of premium hot dogs. I like it as much as my creation of barkoisie.

Well, we’re going to go outside one last time before going to bed. Wish us luck.

A little book came in for review yesterday, and I flipped through it last night. The book is Carol Lea Benjamin’s See Spot Sit (Skyhorse Publishing, $10.95), and it’s subtitled “101 Illustrated Tips for Training the Dog You Love.” It should probably be instead subtitled, “101 really sneaky ways to get people to train their dogs without realizing it.”

“Wow,” I thought as I read, “I bet [name redacted to protect the guilty] wouldn’t even know I was sending her a dog training book if I gave her this, and it might finally make her get why her dogs have so many behavior problems.”

And then it struck me. Everyone should read this little book of dog cartoons, because it slips its sensible, humane, effective message in with such gentle humor that before they know it, they’ll find themselves nodding and smiling and reaching for a dog cookie to see if their dog, too, will do that.

It’s funny, it’s cheerful, it’s neither rooted in outdated training concepts nor so firmly allied with any single school of training that it will get anyone’s resistance up or lead owners astray (no choke chains, no “alpha rolls,” but also, no clickers), just a subtle enticement down the path of teaching you how to communicate with your dog so that the two of you don’t get into trouble.

And all wrapped up in a little stacked-by-the-cash-register paperback package that means anyone you give it to will just think it’s a witty little book of dog doodles. That’s so devious smart!

For more than a quarter-century, pet owners have turned to the “Home Veterinary Handbook” series when faced with questions about pet illnesses and injuries.

While the questions are mostly the same today as when the series debuted, the world of veterinary medicine has changed dramatically. New technologies, advanced diagnostic techniques, newly emerging diseases, and recent research on drugs, vaccines and surgeries have made having current information a necessity.

Fortunately, newly updated and revised editions of both of these classic reference books were released in the last few months, authored by a team of four veterinarians led by Dr. Debra Eldredge.

“The goal was to update the books with the wealth of new veterinary information we have had in recent years,” she said. And the authors succeeded: From cutting-edge diagnostics to alternative therapies, the handbooks cover it all.

The “Dog Owner’s Home Veterinary Handbook” and “Cat Owner’s Home Veterinary Handbook” (Howell Book House, $35 each) are organized by body system, with a comprehensive index in the back and a handy mini-index inside the front covers. Pet owners can read about the causes, symptoms, prevention and treatment of common as well as unusual animal health problems, from allergies to cancer. Sections are also included on first aid and medication, as well as instructions on how to monitor a pet’s vital signs.

There’s more than just practical advice on how to cope with health problems, too.

“The books are meant to make pet owners better health advocates for their pets, more informed and better able to communicate with their veterinarians,” said Dr. Eldredge.

That’s because the authors managed the tricky task of offering pet health information that’s genuinely useful but doesn’t confuse pet owners into skipping veterinary care when it’s needed. Easily followed guidelines tell owners when it’s appropriate or even necessary to give immediate aid to a dog or cat, when symptoms require an immediate trip to the emergency clinic, and when the pet can wait until regular office hours to be seen.

Also on the cutting edge are two new books on pet first aid from the American Red Cross. While there’s nothing new about pet health emergencies, some recent hurricanes, floods and fires have underscored the need for resources to cope with them. And these two spiral-bound books — one for dogs and one for cats — are great resources. Each book comes with a companion DVD that gives step-by-step instructions on how to give first aid to pets. The sections on animal poisoning are particularly impressive, as is the information on what to do in an emergency until veterinary care can be obtained. They cost $17 each and are available online at RedCross.org (click on “Store” and then “Reference Guides”), or by calling 1-866-782-3347.

One more book to round out the pet owner’s health library is Eldredge’s “Pills For Pets: The A to Z Guide to Drugs and Medications for Your Animal Companion” (Citadel, $15). It lists drugs by brand and generic names, covers issues including online pharmacies and compounded medications, and gives tips on how to get medicine into the pets — yes, even those uncooperative cats.

And don’t forget the Merck/Merial manual!

Most pet health books are lucky to have one veterinarian listed as an author. “The Merck/Merial Manual for Pet Health: The complete pet health resource for your dog, cat, horse or other pets - in everyday language” (Merck, $23) offers more than 100 veterinarians, most with advanced degrees and certification, as contributors.

Within each section of this hefty paperback is an encyclopedic listing of disorders and body systems, as well as an overview on routine care and preventive medicine. If it’s about animal health, it’s almost certainly in this book, often in surprising detail.

Your turn: In this Internet age, what pet-care books do you still value enough to keep on the shelf?

Every morning after breakfast, Clara immediately heads out into Clara’s Secret Garden, which is also the home of Velocity The Rabbit (VTR). A few days ago, I noticed her grooming him, but every time I try to get a picture, they stop. I’m starting to feel like a private detective trying to catch someone having an affair!

This morning was typical. I raised the lens (on the other side of the kitchen window!) and VTR immediately had an itch to chase, while Clara took on a posture that clearly says: “Huh? No, I never met this guy before. I’m just waiting for a bus.”

An executive of the slaughterhouse nailed in an HSUS investigation — the videos of cruelty to “downer” cows shocked the nation and prompted the biggest beef recall ever — defends what happened. The cows, he said, did not go into the food supply (well, the human food supply, anyway). From the AP:

[Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. President Steve] Mendell contended that the cows shown unable to walk in the Humane Society of the United States video were not being sent to slaughter in violation of federal rules barring most “downer” cows from the food supply because they carry a higher risk of infection.

He said that the cows shown in the video being shocked and pushed with a forklift wouldn’t have been able to make it up the chute to where the slaughter process begins. Instead they appear to be among the 10 to 15 cows that were euthanized at the slaughterhouse each day because they were non-ambulatory, he said.

Here’s the rest. Also interesting, HSUS top dog Wayne Pacelle’s response to industry critics of the investigation.

Update: The LA. Times reported that after being shown more of the HSUS video, Mendell admitted to Congress that the downed cows were indeed forced into the slaughter chutes and so into the human food chain: (more…)