Pet Health

Last week we answered a question about coyotes and then this week we received an email from a kind-hearted man who had rescued a wounded cedar wax wing and wondered whether the Oswego County Humane Society could take it in. That got us thinking about wild animals in general. OCHS is not licensed as a wildlife rehabilitation agency to take in wildlife, but we do care about them and we know many of you do as well.

I live out in the country and the past few nights I have been hearing coyotes howling. It sounds like they are just outside my windows sometimes. I have never actually seen one. I just hear them at night and my pets are all in at night. But should I be concerned about one of my pets (I have two cats and a dog) running into one during the day?

Stella is a sweet, friendly, pretty long-haired youngster who raised her own kittens. They all have homes of their own now. So, it’s time for her to have a home and a good life, too. She is getting used to the dogs in her foster home and she is great with people.

We’ve featured Simba before. But, she is still in foster care and she so much wants a home of her own. She is about two years old and was rescued from the mean streets of Oswego. But, she doesn’t have a mean bone in her body. Instead she is a friendly and pretty young lady who loves belly rubs and lounging around nice and safe in her foster home.

Our friends at Black Cat Dog Designs (check out their website www.blackcatdogdesigns.com for very cool handcrafted pet furniture) sent out an email a couple of weeks ago with a wonderful tip for dog lovers, a homemade solution to deal with skunk odor. Way better than the old tomato juice trick, which we all know absolutely does not work.

Yesterday I was mowing my lawn and ran over a nest of ground hornet. Needless to say, the hornets were not happy with me and boy did that hurt! So I was thinking about my dog, Jumper, who hangs out in the yard all the time. Are dogs vulnerable to bee stings?

Miles is very lovable. A true lap cat. He was raised from a kitten inside with other cats, so he is used to cats and kids and he fits right in. He does hiss at Marshall, a big old dominant adult male in his foster home, but who can blame him really?

Malone is a very friendly boy who doesn’t mind car rides and loves kids. He’s not a big fan of other cats, so we think he would do better in a single-kitty home. But, with as many kids as you can crowd in. He’s a big handsome boy who looks more or less like a Maine Coon cat and if you want to tell your friends that we won’t squeal on you.

Last week, we talked mostly about the money aspects of providing for your pets when you are unable to and we promised that in this column we would talk about all the other decisions you need to make and steps you need to take to be ready for that grim but inevitable time. First, money to spare or not, do the easy things so that whoever comes in to help your animals won’t have to start from scratch.