Hip and joint pain affect many pets, especially older dogs. Pets with creaky, achy hips have trouble getting up after they’ve rested for a while. Many dog lovers want to learn how to help a dog with arthritis at home. WagWorthy Naturals Hip+Joint supplements can help...
Once upon a time, over 20 years ago now, I traveled to England on a pet food press tour. In between lectures, we visited many historic sites, and I fell in love with English garden designs and especially the roses. After seeing pictures, my husband wanted to recreate...
Birthdays, anniversaries, various holiday seasons--any occasion is the perfect excuse to let your little furry friend indulge. Or, well, sometimes the human parents get to indulge, too! Let’s just pretend that you’re buying these items for that cute face erupting into...
With the holidays on the horizon and the possibility of new pets joining your family, I've revisited several "new pet" topics over the past several weeks. But have you thought about pet names? You're in luck because guest blog writer Maya Kinsley has all the tips you...
This time of year, we take trips to visit family over the holidays. Our cats are not the happiest travelers, so what's a loving pet parent to do? Is it safe to leave your cat alone at home? That's a topic I've meant to cover for some time, and now guest blog writer...
Several weeks ago I was contacted by HempMy Pet about their hemp pet treats and CBD oil for dogs. Now, I’ve heard about hemp oil for dogs, and the Internet has a wide variety of hemp products and organic pet treats available. Since a veterinarian endorsed the products...
Are you a Canine Coddler? Y'all know that I very rarely (as in, almost NEVER) post guest blogs. But when Matt Hamilton from Canine Coddler reached out to me, I was intrigued. After searching for ways to help Lulu, their rescued English Mastiff, Matt and his family...
Is your cat fluffy or a fat cat? Kitty obesity is defined as exceeding ideal body weight by 20 percent. According to the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention’s annual study, 55.8% of dogs and 59.5% of cats are overweight or obese. Fat cats tend to carry a “pouch” of...
This post is sponsored by Nestle Purina. I am being compensated for helping spread the word about the Purina Better With Pets Summit, but BLING, BITCHES & BLOOD only shares information I feel is relevant to my readers. Purina is not responsible for the content of...
Hot weather pet safety around here is a matter of life and death for cats and dogs. I live in N. Texas where it’s not unusual for weather to have everyone hot under the collar. Just imagine how pets feel with a fur coat. Older dogs have more sense and aren’t as prone to overdo. But our rescue pup Shadow acts clueless, and we have to physically confine him or he’d never stop playing even in 100-degree weather.
Cats and dogs risk sunburn, pad burns, and life-threatening heatstroke without proper precautions. Never leave your pet unattended in a hot car. These tips can help you prevent problems, or even save your pet’s life.
For 30 years, the Herald Democrat editors and readers have been part of my extended family. I only rarely missed a deadline, those times of illness or holidays. So, it surprised me to learn that the column hadn’t published in several weeks despite my having sent one each week for Tuesday publication.
Blame technology, and nothing else. But I owe y’all, my extended family, an explanation of why the column disappeared…
May 19 is “Rescue Dog Day” and how better to celebrate than to learn about Pet Rescue Breathing and pet CPR? You can save your dog or cat’s life by knowing how to do pet CPR and how to perform rescue breathing. Pets suffer brain injury and death if oxygen is cut off for only a few minutes. When minutes count, rescue breathing can save your pet’s life.
What to Know About Feline Estrus
Recently, a friend contacted me about her cat in heat. She wanted to know about a cat in heat behavior, how long are cats in heat, if cats in heat feel pain, and what to do to relieve the cat’s discomfort until spay surgery. Cats in heat signs include several distinctive behaviors common to feline estrus (the technical term). In fact, her newly adopted girl, although she looked too young, had already had kittens (they didn’t survive), and now loudly proclaimed Kitty’s determination to repeat the process.
I planned to refer my friend to one of my blogs—and instead realized I hadn’t specifically addressed cats in heat behavior, feline reproduction, and what to know about cat estrus. Yes, I write about this in my Complete Kitten Care and Cat Facts books in more detail, and now you get the kitty Cliff’s notes here.
Pets shed in both the spring and fall. Shadow-Pup leaves mini-drifts of fuzz I sweep up daily, all summer long. Karma-Kat’s URK-factor (hairballs) increases with pet shedding season. Yuck! The fur flies about the same time as allergy season begins. If you suffer from allergic reactions to your cat or dog, check out these pet allergy tips.
Dog Shedding Time!
Cat and dog shedding may be a big hairy deal—but it is normal. Magical-Dawg used to leave drifts of black fur everywhere. Although Shadow-Pup’s medium-coarse fur, and Karma-Kat’s short light fur isn’t nearly as noticeable, they also shed.
Year-round floating fur increases the challenge of keeping dry cleaned apparel in a Fido-free zone. You can’t stop pet shedding. Unless you’re a passionate pet lover who considers pet hair to be a condiment, understanding how to tame the hairy mess will keep your pet’s coat and skin healthy and simplify housecleaning…
With the latest awful weather and more on the way, it’s time to revisit your pet disaster plan. You do have one, right? Everyone should understand the importance of disaster preparation.
I posted this in June for National Pet Preparedness Month. September is Disaster Preparation Month. And today is National Animal Disaster Preparedness Day. Hurricane Ian drives home the importance of having a disaster plan not only for yourself when Mother Nature throws a tantrum but also to keep your pets safe. Whether you must deal with tornadoes, floods, landslides, typhoons, wildfires, or other emergencies, there’s a rule that we must always PLAN FOR THE WORST.
And then pray it doesn’t happen. Learn more in the post…
May 7-13 is Dog anxiety Awareness Week, and June is Pet Anxiety Awareness Month. Do you have a fearful Fido? Do you need help with the fireworks and loud thunderstorms happening this time of year that makes dogs scared? It seems silly, but some dogs feel stress when their human wears a hat! I wanted to share some resources for recognizing and understanding signs of canine fear, anxiety, and stress.
While it’s normal for dogs to be cautious and not run head on into traffic, too much stress and anxiety isn’t healthy. Fear, anxiety, and stress (FAS) also affect the immune system, impacting both physical and emotional health.
Up to 20 percent of dogs will be born prone to introversion and fear. Proper socialization improves puppy confidence, but abuse or poor socialization can result in anxiety-ridden adults. Pain or illness also can cause anxiety so these dogs associate certain kinds of handling with discomfort. Ongoing anxiety, stress or fear may lead to fear aggression.
Extreme fear interferes with learning, making it even more difficult to help dogs overcome the angst. Fearful dogs quickly recognize that escape behaviors or fear aggression makes the scary situation go away, so they learn to repeat these behaviors…
Do you love audio books — and thrillers? Yep, I also self publish audio books, including my nonfiction and my thrillers. And since my latest thriller DARE OR DIE released yesterday on all Ebook platforms, plus paperback and hardcover, I’m now planning the audiobook version.
And, that’s MY voice reading the story. How (and why) am I the one reading the book? And for authors out there, how can you do it? What mic do you need, what software…and if you want to hire someone, where do you find the perfect person to “voice” your book?
Read on! Here are the highlights. And if you want or need more step-by-step details, you can check out my on-demand webinar on the subject.
Will you adopt a new furry friend soon? There are many things to consider when adopting a pet. With Adopt A Shelter Pet Day on April 30th, I wanted to share some sobering adoption facts. In the ASPCA alone, 6.3 million dogs and cats enter their shelters each year, and only about 52% get adopted. I wrote about my pets’ adoption days here, and they chose me more than I chose them. But you don’t need to wait for happy accidents to get your pet, and can adopt shelter pets anytime all year long.
DARE OR DIE RELEASES
It’s a book baby birthday today–DARE OR DIE releases, thriller #7 in my THRILLERS WITH BITE series featuring September and Shadow. Get your copy from any of the Ebook platforms.
Or if you prefer physical copies, I gotcha covered with trade paperback and also hardcover versions, available on Amazon, Barnes and Nobel, or (maybe) if you ask your librarian nicely to order a copy. For all the audiobook lovers out there–yes, in the works, so stay tuned. I hope to have the recording finished and sent to the editor for a late May release on all audiobook platforms.
ADVANCE PRAISE FOR DARE OR DIE!
“Wow—what a ride! I cannot express how much I loved DARE OR DIE. I enjoy thrillers, but you gave new meaning to the genre with this one. Now I have to go back and read the entire series!” ~Mary H.
“Such a great page turner. Twisty.” ~Carol S.
“This might be the best one yet! As always, you are the queen of the (chapter ending) cliffhanger…” ~Kristi B.
“Another great addition to the Thrillers with Bite series.” ~Nicola A.
Get your copy now…Ebook, paperback, or hardcover. Ya know ya want to…
Amy Shojai CACB is an award winning author. You can find all her publications and book her to speak via her website.
AmyShojai.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com http://amazon.com/.
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