Pet Health

Dear Porky and Buddy,

Maybe you can help me. I know you usually give advice about dogs and cats, but my question is about horses. I have been driving by a small pasture where several horses seem to be living and, I can’t see that they have any shelter at all.

Dear Porky and Buddy,

Maybe I’m just confused but I sometimes rescue cats and dogs that I find that appear to be lost or abandoned and if I can’t find the owner, I then try to find them new homes on my own. A friend of mine told me I could be charged with larceny because they are really not my animals. Is that true?

Dear Porky & Buddy,

I know that you mostly answer cat and dog questions, but maybe you can point me in the right direction about choosing another kind of pet—a bird. I would love to have a parrot in my house. They are so interesting. Do you think that is a good idea? What should I do to go about finding one and caring for it?

Dear Porky and Buddy,

A “friend” of mine just harangued me for about an hour about how pets are bad for the environment—they aren’t necessary; they cause a lot of waste (poop); they use up a lot of resources, dragging them to the vet, getting them groomed, buying them stuff, cleaning up after them etc., etc.

Dear Porky & Buddy,

Sally, my ten month old lab mix is driving me crazy. She is always on the couch, especially when I am sitting on it, and no matter how much I yell at her, the minute I turn my back she is right back up there. What am I doing wrong? I just don’t want my beautiful leather couch to be ruined.

Dear Porky & Buddy,

Help!  I am so upset.  Harry, my good old fat lazy black lab just nipped at my neighbor’s four year old when he walked up to him and started to pat him on his muzzle.

My dog Sammy loves loves loves rawhide chews. But I keep hearing horror stories about them not being safe. What is the truth? Should I look for something else?

Joe

Dear Porky & Buddy,

My dog Sam and I love to go for rides in our very cool Mustang convertible, but the other day a friend of mine got all huffy and tried to convince me that it wasn’t safe to do that. I think she is jealous of my car and my dog and she should mind her own business. What do you think?

Dear Porky and Buddy,

I have two cats, Matilda, age three, and Margo, age seven, and I just took in a nine year old cat whose family was being foreclosed and they had nowhere to go with a pet. Buddy, the new guy, is the oldest cat I have ever had living with me and I am wondering if there are different things should be doing with him because he is a little older.