Pet Health

Here’s a question that has been “bugging” me, if you know what I mean. Is it OK to kiss your pets? Really. I do sometimes, not a big slobbery kiss, but a little smooch on the snout of my adorable black lab, Miranda, and sometimes she gives me a little lick that I would consider a kiss. Is there any harm in it? My girlfriend is totally grossed out by it and insists that I should not be doing it at all.

We featured Merle back in April, but he is still stuck being just an “office” cat. He is very good at that. He is totally in charge of all business operations, goes from lap to lap and computer to computer making sure that his directions are followed and that he gets the respect and attention (and kisses) he deserves.

We first told you about Indy back in January. This little mare, 15.2 hands, born in 1999, had little to no training for 12 years and basically had to start again from the beginning with groundwork before any saddle time. We are proud to report that she has come a long way in six months and is now ridden by an advanced beginner (a teenager) and groomed by kids.

This is still another column about something to worry about. We have talked about the dangers of some commercial pet treats before, but the problem has not gone away. The Food and Drug Administration has been studying reported illnesses in pets associated with the consumption of jerky pet treats since 2007. In a recent report, the FDA announced that, as of December 31, 2015, they have received 5,200 complaints of illnesses associated with the consumption of chicken, duck or sweet potato jerky treats.

Pete and Teddy are sweet and playful brothers looking for forever homes, or maybe one together? What could be better than an orange tabby kitten? Two of course! When we say playful, we aren’t kidding – not one bit.

I am planning to move to a new house a little later this summer and I have been thinking about how it might affect my pets, Bowzer, my black lab and Virginia, my elderly cat. Do you have any advice about how to make this move a little easier on them?

Sometimes you have to adopt a kitten just because they are so overwhelmingly cute! No other reason. Like Owen. He’s just a baby, curious, friendly and never sits still. He likes to play and play and play and is into everything.

Is it true? Sugarless gum can kill my dog? Don’t we have enough things to feel guilty about without having to feel guilty about sugarless gum? No seriously, what do you know about this or is it just another internet rumor?