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videos of our four legged friends!

Bennett: working hard, or hardly working?

June 25^th, 2010 marks the 12^th anniversary of take your dog to work day. Take your dog to work day is a wonderful time to show pet-less co-workers and customers what a positive difference pets could make in their lives.  Pet Sitters International began TYDTWD in 2009 as a way to promote adoptions from animal shelters and humane societies, and twelve years later invites all business to GO FURRY in an effort to help homeless animals. You can visit their website to register your support of this event and download the 2010 action pack and a coupon book with great deals for you and your pet.

Is your business closed on June 25^th or unable to accommodate your pup? Not a problem! June 21^st-25^th is also Take your PET to work week, and if you can’t bring your pet you can always bring a picture of them or organize an event or ask coworkers for a donation to raise money for your local shelter.

Please visit www.takeyourdog.com for more information- you can even enter a picture of your dog working hard in their photo contest and get the chance to win some great prizes!

Summer is a wonderful time to enjoy the outdoors with our four legged friends. Walks through the woods, romps in the yard, and swimming on the beach are great ways to spend time with your pet and give them the exercise required to keep them happy and healthy.

One of the biggest concerns for pet owners this time of year is flea and tick prevention. Fleas and ticks are not only an irritating and uncomfortable problem for pets and their owners, but they can harbor and transmit a variety of diseases. There are many options out there to help combat these pests, and not every product is right for every pet. Most people are familiar with the chemical flea & tick preventative treatments available, but these are not right for everyone. Many pet parents are concerned with the effect of chemicals applied to their animals, and there are certain breeds that are more prone to issues with the ingredients in these medications. It’s always important to research any product thoroughly before beginning to use it, and discuss it with your vet.
Aside from staples like Advantix & Frontline, you may want to check out Flea Treats, the Shoo Tag, Diatomaceous Earth or even essential oil blends. If you have been looking for a more green choice in preventative treatments, these more natural (or all natural) options may work for you.

Ticks are a big issue on Cape Cod this time of year and even if you are vigilant with your prevention, you may still end up finding a few on your pet this summer. It’s worth it to give them a once over after walks and outdoor play times to be sure they are tick-free. Removing these pests can be intimidating at first, but there are ways to make it easier on you as well as your dog or cat. If your pet is unfortunate enough to be bitten by a tick, use tweezers (or a tick key) to grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible and pull it straight out. Twisting or squeezing the ticks body could potentially force more bacteria into the wound. After removal, swab the bite site with alcohol and keep the tick in a small film canister or jar to bring to your vet for testing. Always keep an eye on your pet to be sure the bite area does not get infected.

Keeping your pets safe this summer doesn’t mean you can’t have fun- so get out there and enjoy the weather!

Meet Pache!

Pache is an amazing lab/rottie mix that we were lucky to be able to spend some time with this summer, along with his sister Maggie, a beautiful little yellow lab.

Recently, Pache & Maggie’s ‘mom’ had to take a quick trip out of state and decided to put them in a kennel for three nights. Unfortunately she had a less than positive experience with another kennel she had tried, so asked around for recommendations for this trip. After hearing some positive reviews of a local kennel, she booked her pups for a visit there and asked us to drop them off for her. Both dogs were in perfect health and happy when we dropped them off, although of course a little hesitant about being left in a strange place!

When Pache & Maggie’s owner picked them up, she expected to be greeted by happy, healthy dogs who couldn’t wait to see her. Sadly, she was in for quite an unpleasant surprise. Pache was brought out with a large fluid filled lump on his face and neck, with a red infected looking center.

The staff at the kennel had not noticed anything wrong with him while he was there, and had no explanation as to how long it had been that way. With an injury the size of this, I am not sure how it could have gone unnoticed even with the most basic care over 3 days.

Poor Pache! His ‘mom’ declined using the kennels in-house vet and brought him to her own vet, who drained the fluid and shaved the area around the wound and cleaned it up.

As you can imagine, this was not fun for Pache. He came home a little out of it from the pain medication, and with a elizabethan collar (also known as ‘the lampshade hat’!) to wear so he couldn’t scratch at his wound.

The kennel did agree to pay Pache’s vet bill, but did not have any explanation as to how this happened, or why it went unnoticed. They suggested that it was ‘just a hot spot’, that Maggie licked his fur off through the cage, or that he was laying on his side the entire visit, and thats why no one noticed.

To us, that throws up a few red flags. If a dog is laying on its side for three days straight, shouldn’t the staff be aware? As all of us dog owners know, that is far from normal behavior even for the most laid back pups. Luckily, Pache has received nothing but loving care since he returned home and is healing just fine, and will be back to his normal happy self in no time flat. But I think we can all agree that he was most definitely a victim of neglect from the kennel he stayed at, and that we can all be thankful that this was all that happened.

There are plenty of reasons to choose in-home pet sitting over a kennel, and we’d like to remind you of some of those now.

• Your pet will be much happier and safer in their own familiar home environment
• At home, there is no chance of exposure to illnesses other pets may have
• No stressful travel to and from the kennel, especially for those pets who don’t enjoy car rides
• Your pets diet will remain the same- many kennels have an ‘in house’ food that they feed to visiting pets and this switch from your pets regular food could cause gastrointestinal upset
• You will have the peace of mind knowing that your pet is being cared for by someone used to their habits and routines, as well as knowing your home will be watched over.

Now this is not to say that all kennels are bad, or that every dog who stays at one will come home injured. Doggie Pawpins is fortunate enough to be able to offer overnight services for those clients who need to be away for longer than just the day, and we love providing your animals with the same care and love you would if you were home.