Pet Health

Martin is a big lug of a handsome boy, about two years old, almost 11 pounds of lap cat. He likes to snuggle and purr in your lap and if you put some catnip on the rug or his toys he will roll around in it. He is used to small kids, we don’t know about dogs, but he is a friendly happy boy and needs a home.

Last week we talked about the problem of animals dying in hot cars every summer, and the law in New York that makes this a crime. Although our statute, Agriculture & Markets Law 353-d, is not perfect, in our opinion, it is certainly better than nothing! We have discovered that only 21 states out of 50 have any legislation criminalizing the act of leaving animals in danger in unattended cars.

Snow is a gorgeous “snowy white” teenage girl with blue eyes! She is good with her foster mom’s other cats and the small children in the home. She may take a little while to warm up to a new person as she was born on the streets, along with her brother, Charming, and sister, Snickers.

It’s getting into the dog days of summer, even earlier than usual this year. We usually start warning about this in June, but here it is Memorial Day weekend with temperatures in the 90s! We know our readers would never leave their dog(s) in a car because they are aware of the dangers of overheating and death.

Do dogs and cats get a poison ivy rash? My property in the country has poison ivy everywhere and I have the rash most of the summer, no matter how careful I am. I have noticed that my little pug, Suki, seems to be very itchy and miserable. Could it be poison ivy?

We have featured Cassidy before, but maybe you didn’t realize how pretty she is, on top of all her other great attributes. She is a super friendly teenager, good with her foster mom’s little yippy dogs and her other cats.

Last week, you talked about the dangers of cocoa bark mulch. But, what about other garden products? I am an avid gardener, but also a pet lover and I worry all the time that the “stuff” I use in my garden, even though I try to use mostly organic products and controls, might harm them. But they are always outside with me and roaming around and investigating every new smell and I just worry.

Simba 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. She is getting used to the other cats and dogs in her foster home, but she wants a nice safe home of her own.

Someone just told me that the cocoa bark mulch, that I love in my garden, can be poisonous to dogs? Is that true? And even if it’s true, why would a dog eat it?