Pet News

Yes, as you can see, it’s a nonstop party groove here at the Museum for New Year’s Eve. By the way, did you know 2010 is the Chinese Year of the Tiger? See how excited Bac is about that?

Did you make any resolutions? Not me. I never keep them. Elizabeth’s resolution is probably “Bite more face,” so I didn’t even ask. But over at the Hartford (CT) Courant newspaper, columnist Steve Dale has a thoughtful list of top 10 wishes for pets this coming year.

Yes, as you can see, it’s a nonstop party groove here at the Museum for New Year’s Eve. By the way, did you know 2010 is the Chinese Year of the Tiger? See how excited Bac is about that?

Did you make any resolutions? Not me. I never keep them. Elizabeth’s resolution is probably “Bite more face,” so I didn’t even ask. But over at the Hartford (CT) Courant newspaper, columnist Steve Dale has a thoughtful list of top 10 wishes for pets this coming year.

My assignment should I choose to accept it (cue Mission: Impossible music here) – to covertly hide the world’s cutest kitten in my house for two days and then ultimately return her to Santa’s sneaky elf so that the kitten can be given to a lucky, little girl on Christmas morning.

So my friend Jill had been planning this covert operation for some time. And when she came to my craft faire at Beatnik Studios and told me of her plan – and the complications that it involved with the SPCA being closed at Christmas – I wondered how I could help. Jill’s daughter Lily wanted her very own kitty. And what better surprise than to have Santa deliver one on Christmas morning! But the SPCA was closing early on Christmas Eve and wouldn’t be open again until after Christmas. So Jill would have to adopt a kitten and then figure out where to hide it until Christmas. And that’s when she asked me to join the inner lair of Secret Santa Kitten Rescue. Well, truth be told – I think I actually blurted out, “We can hide her at my house!” Yeah, I’m a sucker for a sweet, little fur ball! So that’s what we did.

When Jill dropped off Secret Santa Kitten on day one, the little one was still groggy from her spay surgery earlier that day. So I tucked her into the heated cat bed with her new baby blanket. She slept for there several hours with me petting her every once in a while to see if she would wake up.

When Secret Santa Kitten finally did awake from her long catnap, she was hungry! I put some of her crunchies in a bowl and she chowed down! Here’s a photo of my fat cats Zoey and Izzy supervising to make sure that the kitten does it right!

After eating, the kitten needed another nap. Yeah, I tend to do that after a big meal, too. Here’s the little one sleeping on the couch next to Zoey. Yeah, Zoey is the raddest cat ever!

After the second nap, Secret Santa Kitten ate her dinner. She has impeccable manners and made sure to wipe the crumbs from her mouth afterwards!

That night, I went to bed and woke up with three kitties snuggled down for warmth. It was a little slice of Heaven!

On day two, Secret Santa Kitten actually wore out Zoey and Izzy with all of her frisky playing! She batted this orange mouse around on the wood floors for about four hours.

Then she moved onto one of Izzy’s favorite toys and swatted at this spinning mouse for some time. At one point, she couldn’t see where the mouse was hidden in the toy and started looking around the coffee table for it!

She then joined the already exhausted Zoey and Izzy for a nap on the dining room chairs in front of the heater.

Here, she has discovered an Evie’s Ark, All Things Animal catnip toy! She may have a future as one of my newest spokescats!

She poses in a Santa hat while I explain that she will soon go to her forever home with a happy, little girl who will love her very much.

Secret Santa Kitten has already fallen in love with her big cousin Zoey and has a little temper tantrum about leaving her. Or perhaps she was just yawning. We may need to arrange for play dates in the future!

One Christmas Eve, Jill came over to pick up the Secret Santa Kitten. While I was sad to see the frisky fur ball leave, I know that she will make a very magical memory for a little girl who will always remember this Christmas.

Mission accomplished.

Update: Lily loves her new kitten and named her Cookie.

My assignment should I choose to accept it (cue Mission: Impossible music here) – to covertly hide the world’s cutest kitten in my house for two days and then ultimately return her to Santa’s sneaky elf so that the kitten can be given to a lucky, little girl on Christmas morning.

So my friend Jill had been planning this covert operation for some time. And when she came to my craft faire at Beatnik Studios and told me of her plan – and the complications that it involved with the SPCA being closed at Christmas – I wondered how I could help. Jill’s daughter Lily wanted her very own kitty. And what better surprise than to have Santa deliver one on Christmas morning! But the SPCA was closing early on Christmas Eve and wouldn’t be open again until after Christmas. So Jill would have to adopt a kitten and then figure out where to hide it until Christmas. And that’s when she asked me to join the inner lair of Secret Santa Kitten Rescue. Well, truth be told – I think I actually blurted out, “We can hide her at my house!” Yeah, I’m a sucker for a sweet, little fur ball! So that’s what we did.

When Jill dropped off Secret Santa Kitten on day one, the little one was still groggy from her spay surgery earlier that day. So I tucked her into the heated cat bed with her new baby blanket. She slept for there several hours with me petting her every once in a while to see if she would wake up.

When Secret Santa Kitten finally did awake from her long catnap, she was hungry! I put some of her crunchies in a bowl and she chowed down! Here’s a photo of my fat cats Zoey and Izzy supervising to make sure that the kitten does it right!

After eating, the kitten needed another nap. Yeah, I tend to do that after a big meal, too. Here’s the little one sleeping on the couch next to Zoey. Yeah, Zoey is the raddest cat ever!

After the second nap, Secret Santa Kitten ate her dinner. She has impeccable manners and made sure to wipe the crumbs from her mouth afterwards!

That night, I went to bed and woke up with three kitties snuggled down for warmth. It was a little slice of Heaven!

On day two, Secret Santa Kitten actually wore out Zoey and Izzy with all of her frisky playing! She batted this orange mouse around on the wood floors for about four hours.

Then she moved onto one of Izzy’s favorite toys and swatted at this spinning mouse for some time. At one point, she couldn’t see where the mouse was hidden in the toy and started looking around the coffee table for it!

She then joined the already exhausted Zoey and Izzy for a nap on the dining room chairs in front of the heater.

Here, she has discovered an Evie’s Ark, All Things Animal catnip toy! She may have a future as one of my newest spokescats!

She poses in a Santa hat while I explain that she will soon go to her forever home with a happy, little girl who will love her very much.

Secret Santa Kitten has already fallen in love with her big cousin Zoey and has a little temper tantrum about leaving her. Or perhaps she was just yawning. We may need to arrange for play dates in the future!

One Christmas Eve, Jill came over to pick up the Secret Santa Kitten. While I was sad to see the frisky fur ball leave, I know that she will make a very magical memory for a little girl who will always remember this Christmas.

Mission accomplished.

Update: Lily loves her new kitten and named her Cookie.

I decided to take advantage of the quiet in the house this afternoon to knock out a good chunk on a client project. While working away, it suddenly occurred to me that the house was a little too quiet. And no noise equals no good. And no good equals my cats. A quick check to the bedroom produced a sleepy Zoey napping. That only left one option – Izzy!

As I walked into the kitchen, I immediately stopped in my tracks. And then I yelled, “What the Hell!” Actually I used another curse word, but I’m trying to keep it somewhat PG here. And then instantly I knew what had to be done – grab the camera!

No, this photo was not staged. Yes, she’s cute, but not that bright. No, no cats were harmed in the making of this photo. And yes, she’s lucky that I’m vegetarian!

I decided to take advantage of the quiet in the house this afternoon to knock out a good chunk on a client project. While working away, it suddenly occurred to me that the house was a little too quiet. And no noise equals no good. And no good equals my cats. A quick check to the bedroom produced a sleepy Zoey napping. That only left one option – Izzy!

As I walked into the kitchen, I immediately stopped in my tracks. And then I yelled, “What the Hell!” Actually I used another curse word, but I’m trying to keep it somewhat PG here. And then instantly I knew what had to be done – grab the camera!

No, this photo was not staged. Yes, she’s cute, but not that bright. No, no cats were harmed in the making of this photo. And yes, she’s lucky that I’m vegetarian!

Wishing You Joy and a Wonderful 2010! With Love, Liz

Wishing You The Gift of Joy ~ oil on linen panel, 5 x 7″ ~ Liz Holm

If you are reading this blog, you are probably like me and Liz and all the other folks here in our community who love animals with a passion that is all consuming. Liz Holm has been a contributor to the “Art For The Animals” project from the beginning. When I got this ecard from Liz this holiday season, I inquired about the subject of her heart warming painting. Liz got back to me with this wonderful story about Taz.
She writes;
Taz arrived at the Prince George’s County SPCA in the spring of 2007, and his exuberance and outgoing nature quickly won over his foster family and their three dogs. Unfortunately, little Taz’s enthusiasm led to injury when he jumped on another sleeping dog in the middle of the night, and he was bitten by the much larger, startled male. Taz’s upper jaw was broken, and he spent 2 months of repeated visits to the dental surgeon, and wore the dreaded Elizabethan/cone collar while his upper jaw mended. Once bitten, twice shy? Not Taz. Undaunted, he continued to romp with his cone collar on, and showed affection to everyone he met. Once his jaw was completely healed, he joined his adoptive family and new brother, Jack, on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The last picture is of Taz in his new back yard, smiling with sheer joy. It’s that picture that inspired me to do the Christmas painting. Such a joyous, forgiving, unstoppable spirit seems right for the season.

Taz recovering

Taz visiting Licorice and Coconut

Taz happy at his forever home….
Photos courtesy of Pam Townsend. The sale of the original art and reproductions to benefit the PGSPCA.

Wishing You Joy and a Wonderful 2010! With Love, Liz

Wishing You The Gift of Joy ~ oil on linen panel, 5 x 7″ ~ Liz Holm

If you are reading this blog, you are probably like me and Liz and all the other folks here in our community who love animals with a passion that is all consuming. Liz Holm has been a contributor to the “Art For The Animals” project from the beginning. When I got this ecard from Liz this holiday season, I inquired about the subject of her heart warming painting. Liz got back to me with this wonderful story about Taz.
She writes;
Taz arrived at the Prince George’s County SPCA in the spring of 2007, and his exuberance and outgoing nature quickly won over his foster family and their three dogs. Unfortunately, little Taz’s enthusiasm led to injury when he jumped on another sleeping dog in the middle of the night, and he was bitten by the much larger, startled male. Taz’s upper jaw was broken, and he spent 2 months of repeated visits to the dental surgeon, and wore the dreaded Elizabethan/cone collar while his upper jaw mended. Once bitten, twice shy? Not Taz. Undaunted, he continued to romp with his cone collar on, and showed affection to everyone he met. Once his jaw was completely healed, he joined his adoptive family and new brother, Jack, on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The last picture is of Taz in his new back yard, smiling with sheer joy. It’s that picture that inspired me to do the Christmas painting. Such a joyous, forgiving, unstoppable spirit seems right for the season.

Taz recovering

Taz visiting Licorice and Coconut

Taz happy at his forever home….
Photos courtesy of Pam Townsend. The sale of the original art and reproductions to benefit the PGSPCA.

Here’s another self-interested reason to not eat meat: Drug-resistant bacteria are routinely found in beef, chicken, and pork sold in supermarkets. Drug-resistant infections are by no means rare. Twenty percent of people who get salmonella have a drug-resistant strain. To find out more of what the meat industry and pharmaceutical companies don’t want you to know, read this Associated Press column by Margie Mason and Martha Mendoza.

Here are just a few facts drawn from the column:

• Drug-resistant infections killed more than 65,000 people in the U.S. last year—more than prostate and breast cancer combined.
• 70% of the antibiotics used in the U.S. last year—28 million pounds—went to pigs, chickens, and cows, which in turn creates a perfect breeding ground for antibiotic-resistant super germs.
• Many of these antibiotics are routinely added to the feed of healthy animals to promote rapid weight gain.
• The FDA, the CDC, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have all declared drug-resistant diseases stemming from antibiotic use in animals a “serious emerging concern.”
• The problem is not new. In the 1970s, the FDA proposed a ban on penicillin and tetracycline in animal feed, but the proposal was defeated after criticism from interest groups.
• In 2008, the FDA issued its second limit on the use of cephalosporins in cows, pigs, and chickens, citing the importance of cephalosporin drugs for treating disease in humans. But the Bush Administration reversed that decision five days before it was going to take effect after receiving several hundred letters from drug companies and farm animal trade groups.

The Bottom Line: If history is any guide, you can’t count on the federal government to do the right thing and ban the routine nontherapeutic use of antibiotics in farm-animal feed, but here are two things that you can do: First, nudge Congress in that direction. Contact your U.S. Representative and urge her/him to support Representative Louise M. Slaughter’s bill banning the routine use of antibiotics in animal feed. Second, and most importantly, refuse to support the meat industry’s unsafe practice of adding antibiotics to animal feed by refusing to purchase their products. Make a conscious choice to not eat meat. Protect your own health and the future effectiveness of antibiotics: Go vegetarian in 2010!

Here’s another self-interested reason to not eat meat: Drug-resistant bacteria are routinely found in beef, chicken, and pork sold in supermarkets. Drug-resistant infections are by no means rare. Twenty percent of people who get salmonella have a drug-resistant strain. To find out more of what the meat industry and pharmaceutical companies don’t want you to know, read this Associated Press column by Margie Mason and Martha Mendoza.

Here are just a few facts drawn from the column:

• Drug-resistant infections killed more than 65,000 people in the U.S. last year—more than prostate and breast cancer combined.
• 70% of the antibiotics used in the U.S. last year—28 million pounds—went to pigs, chickens, and cows, which in turn creates a perfect breeding ground for antibiotic-resistant super germs.
• Many of these antibiotics are routinely added to the feed of healthy animals to promote rapid weight gain.
• The FDA, the CDC, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have all declared drug-resistant diseases stemming from antibiotic use in animals a “serious emerging concern.”
• The problem is not new. In the 1970s, the FDA proposed a ban on penicillin and tetracycline in animal feed, but the proposal was defeated after criticism from interest groups.
• In 2008, the FDA issued its second limit on the use of cephalosporins in cows, pigs, and chickens, citing the importance of cephalosporin drugs for treating disease in humans. But the Bush Administration reversed that decision five days before it was going to take effect after receiving several hundred letters from drug companies and farm animal trade groups.

The Bottom Line: If history is any guide, you can’t count on the federal government to do the right thing and ban the routine nontherapeutic use of antibiotics in farm-animal feed, but here are two things that you can do: First, nudge Congress in that direction. Contact your U.S. Representative and urge her/him to support Representative Louise M. Slaughter’s bill banning the routine use of antibiotics in animal feed. Second, and most importantly, refuse to support the meat industry’s unsafe practice of adding antibiotics to animal feed by refusing to purchase their products. Make a conscious choice to not eat meat. Protect your own health and the future effectiveness of antibiotics: Go vegetarian in 2010!