With the new year starting, and the kiddos heading back to school soon, that conjures up a mixed bag of memories. Have you ever reinvented yourself? Or staged a do-over? What does that “door” mean–a lost opportunity, or does it open into new possibilities? I’m revisiting an older post with some new thoughty-thoughts.
Here’s your musical Merry Christmas wish! Yes, that’s me singing…may all your holidays be bright!
This year, Amazon has delayed nearly every book order I’ve made. That’s incredibly frustrating when “gifting” for the holidays. I see books ordered TODAY not expected to arrive before December 24 at the earliest, eeeek! Order PAW-tographed copies NOW to get ’em in time for the holidays.
When the phone rings, does your cat come running? At our house, until recently we still have a land line with a long cord, in addition to our cell phones. My Karma-Kat tried to bite through the long red spiral cord whenever I’m in a conversation. Some cat lovers report that their kitties become aggressive around the telephone. Here’s what’s going on…
Watch this Ask Amy Youtube video to answer this question!
Mark your calendars for Saturday Feb 8 from 10-2:00. The Denison (Texas) Public Library is hosting the first ever Denison LitCon on February 8th from 10am-2pm. There will be costume contests, voice actors, authors, VR gaming (for ages 13+), caricature art, trading card games, and more. You won’t want to miss it!
After the morning publishing panel, Amy (and others) will have books available to sign. Come on out and ask questions, hang out, learn about publishing, and maybe “adopt” a paw-tographed book!
I’m taking the rest of the week off…and hope you can, too. May you have a marvelous holiday season, no matter how you celebrate. Click the picture (above) or this link for a quick and fun animated holiday greeting — I’m so glad you’re part of my world! Click the link (inside) for a fun dog and cat holiday card.
Now available, large print editions of the September & Shadow Thrillers. You can get these in paperback or hardcover, at a deep discount, from Amy’s store. Or… learn how to get them into your library! Read on…
The American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) has changed its name to Feline Veterinary Medical Association. Learn more about the change here.
How do your pets drink? Do your pets drink from toilets? I found these videos and they were just too good not to share! I’ve written before about why they choose to slurp from that “porcelain thrown” but not the “how” it’s done. Read on for details about how pets drink.
Some of y’all remember last October when my husband had an unexpected back “issue.” That meant a change of plans, canceling the trip to celebrate my dad’s 98th birthday, among other things. What happened? Read on…
I see so many kitten pictures on social media these days. Every June, we celebrate National Adopt A Cat Month (sponsored by American Humane Association) and also National Adopt A Shelter Cat Month (sponsored by the ASPCA. Two holidays wrapped up in one, and how appropriate, since June is kitten season.
But cats can be adopted year around. Both of our cats came to us as “dumped” kitties, showing up on the back porch. When you adopt from a shelter, though, you have the advantage of planning for the new kitty’s arrival. Any time is a good time to bring a new furry wonder into your life. Whether you adopt a shelter cat, foster a kitten, or adopt a cat that shows up on the doorstep, they’re all worthy of love. Right? Here’s my tips guide for cat adoption…
These hot summer days, Shadow loves to run and play outside, but the hot weather can lead to heatstroke dangers in dogs as well as people. …
Do you know how do you find pet behavior help? As a certified animal behavior consultant for cats and dogs, I receive many requests for pet behavior help. Solving cat behavior problems and bad dog behavior can be a challenge. Some of these I address with articles explaining cat behavior (how to stop meowing, for example, or dealing with cat aggression), as well as puppy and dog behavior issues like noise phobias and separation behaviors.
Some pet behavior challenges have solutions through reading books and articles, others via phone call advice, and more serious issues (dog aggression, for example) need one-on-one help. But how do the behavior experts receive training?
Do you know how to trim a pet’s nails? Pet nail trims can cause angst for pets and people alike. Here’s what you need to know.
Dog hot spots often happen during both the spring and fall shedding season and are the bane of many dogs’ existence. Some develop hot spots all year long, especially those with very thick, wooly coats. Have your dogs ever suffered from hot spots?
Fortunately, hot spots are not a problem for cats. Kitties, though, do have their own issues with shedding and hairballs. Bathing cats can help with that.
When dog hot spots are a chronic problem, it can be aggravating and frustrating for pet owners. And painful for the dog! While severe problems need veterinary attention, home remedies for dog hot spots often help enormously. Here’s what you need to know.
Memorial Day honors the American men and women who have lost their lives while serving in the military. It originally honored those who died in the Civil War, and now honors those who died in any war. It is also known as Decoration Day. This holiday differs from Veterans’ Day which honors all those who served in the military.
There is no Memorial Day for the brave military K9s who served and lost their lives, often heroically saving their human partners. I can’t imagine the bond that must exist between the soldier and his or her war dog—they share things and stand against danger to protect the rest of us against horrors we don’t want to think about. And because of them, we don’t have to worry about such things. Thank you.
I’m eternally grateful to those who sacrifice for our freedom. Losing a beloved animal companion anytime cuts deep. It must be horrific to lose a comrade-in-arms, including those with four feet and fur.
And since I focus on pet issues, I want to shine a light on the dogs of the military. There is a National K9s Veteran’s Day on March 13, too. But here’s an excerpt from my book DOG LIFE to shine a light on military dogs through the ages.
Have your pets ever choked on something they chew? Shadow-Pup loves to chew up inedible objects, no matter how much we supervise. Learn how to administer the pet Heimlich to save a life!
When Karma-Kat came to live with us, that put lots of cat toys within Magical-Dawg’s reach. Seren had never been too keen on such things and she was already nine years old when Magic came as a puppy. He loved to swipe Seren’s “sparkle-balls” and ended up with sparkly poop. Once Karma’s toys added to the kitty quotient, the big ol’ dog had a field day seeing how many cat toys he could stuff into his jaws.
Bravo played with rocks. And the new puppy Shadow loves to chew sticks. He’s already got one caught in the roof of his mouth. That’s the perfect opportunity for choking, and a need for the pet Heimlich. I hope that we’ll never need it, though. In case you do, read on!
Do you have a dog fence? Magical-Dawg used to take off after “critters” every so often, racing around the 13-acre spread (or beyond). We eventually trained him to stay with us, even when off-leash. It would have devastated me if Magic disappeared. He was microchipped, but folks would need to catch him first.
Bravo was a very different dog. He was so good off-leash during most morning rambles and didn’t want to go too far away from us. He’d chase and play with his “big-ball” in the field, and baptize every tree and grass tussock. And once he lost his leg, he couldn’t get out the back fenced area even if he’d wanted to.
Shadow-Pup, though, takes after Magical-Dawg. He’s so small, not even the fenced back area keeps him contained. He also likes to dig, so we needed to address possible escapes. A fence is a dog’s best friend!
Amy Shojai CACB is an award winning author. You can find all her publications and book her to speak via her website.
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