Easily Entertained

I recently changed my newest cat's name from Charlie to "Sparky". It suits him much better now that I have gotten to know him.

Sparky has been entertaining himself with a "toy" for the last hour as I've been catching up on computer work. What is interesting is that, although I have lots of little mice & bird like toys lying around, Sparky decided that an old left over, green stubbed carrot top is the best invention since sliced turkey.

He has been batting it around and anticipating its fight or flight as Miso watches the drama unfold. I sometimes wonder if he isn't imagining small, voluntary movements coming from it.

Miso is a creative warrior, as well. All it takes is the sound of a crumpling sticky note to illicit her killer instict. She is often seen abrubtly flying across the room in the middle of a good snooze as soon as the paper crumpling concludes in an escaping wad, springing overhead.

Once the crumpled transgressor is caught,  I've seen Miso staring over it daring it to move. If I didn't know better, I'd testify that it moves on its own for her pure pleasure. After staring at it for a few seconds, she bats at it, seemingly to keep it in line and force it to do something, anything, so she can respond in that cute cat way.

My cats are spending me out of house and home with their feeding habits of prepared raw food. So far this year, I've spent more on their care than on my own groceries. I guess that is fair since there are two of them. I'm thankful that, they are at least low maintenance in regard to "toys".

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Dogs & Emotions - Cesar Millan

Puppy Love: Do Dogs Have Emotions?


There's no doubt in my mind that dogs have emotions. They feel joy after a job well done. They feel sad when a pack member passes away. And they feel love for their family members – their pack.

However, it's important to remember that those emotions are different from our own. The feelings that dogs experience aren't connected to complex thoughts. They don't have ulterior motives or doubt. Their emotions are pure and honest. Your dog isn't lying to you when he communicates that he loves you.

The more you fulfill your dog's needs, the more this connection will develop between you. There's nothing better than coming home from a bad day and having your dog there to support you. No judgment. No questions. Just love!

But remember, how we feel affects our dogs. If you are upset after a long day of work, your dog won't understand why, but he will pick up on your energy and body language. He will interpret this as unbalanced energy, and if you don't have your leadership down pat, it can lead to behavior issues. Make sure you are fulfilling your dog's needs first.

Our dogs give us so much and ask so little. If we provide them with exercise, discipline, then affection, we can really appreciate man (or woman's) best friend and the love they have to offer.

Stay calm and assertive,

Cesar Millan
Dogs & Emotions - Cesar Millan

Raising the Bar

I've reprinted PSI's pet sitting standards below. I'm happy to be associated with other local animal services who also adhere to these principles.

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The mission of Pet Sitters International is to serve as the educational and support organization for professional pet sitters. That is what our Recommended Quality Standards for Excellence in Pet Sitting are all about. This inventory of values and principles sets the benchmark for professional pet sitters and serves as a set of guidelines for every PSI member to use in making decisions that will lead to improved business practices, increased professionalism, a high standard of ethics and, ultimately, to loyal clients who will contribute to a successful pet-sitting business.

* The sitter exhibits courtesy and professionalism in all dealings with customers, staff and industry colleagues to positively represent the pet sitter and the pet-sitting industry.

* The sitter is bonded and insured.

* The sitter provides references.

* The sitter visits the client’s home before the first pet-sitting assignment to meet the pets and get detailed information about their care.

* The sitter displays a positive attitude during the initial meeting and is comfortable and competent in dealing with the animals.

* The sitter is courteous, interested and well informed.

* The sitter provides literature to describe services and communicate fees.

* The sitter provides a service contract that specifies services, fees and time allocated per visit.

* The sitter wants to learn as much as possible about the animals in his or her care.

* The sitter has adequate knowledge and experience in caring for pets and is clearly mindful of their safety and well-being.

* The sitter takes precautions to make sure a client’s absence from home is not detectable because of any careless actions or disclosures by the sitter.

* The sitter phones to confirm or has the client phone to confirm that the client has returned home.

* The sitter provides a service rating form for clients.

* The sitter conducts business with honesty and integrity and observes all federal, state and local laws pertaining to business operations and animal care.

* The sitter keeps regular office hours and responds to client inquiries and complaints promptly.

* The sitter has a veterinarian on call for emergency service.

* The sitter has a contingency plan for pet care in case of inclement weather or personal illness.

* The sitter refrains from criticizing competitors.

* The sitting service screens applicants for employment carefully.

* The sitting service provides initial and ongoing training for its sitters.
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How Fortunate Am I

Back in 1993, an acquaintance of mine invited me to her home to discuss a Community Television Network project we were working on as a community service, getting the word out about our Toastmasters meetings. I was more interested in playing with her animals than the business at hand but we did manage to eventually get a nice peice to CTN which was called "Community Cable Access" at the time.

Nancy was impressed with how well her 3 cats and little dog took to me. She later asked if I would be willing to stay at her home while she travelled to care for Bandit and friends until she returned.

At the time I shared housing with 5 other vegans and I was happy about the prospect of having a little privacy for a change.  Nancy wouldn't have needed to, but she compensated me financially for my work.

At the time I did not know this but my calling had found me. It took awhile to sink in, and it would be over 10 years later that I was to start my own full time service.

There has been and continues to be a large demand for dependable, skilled pet sitters in the Ann Arbor area. I naturally bumped into pet owners along the way as I went about my life. Many needed  my service and were more than willing to pay me for it. I continually built up clients without ever having to advertise.

It wasn't until 2003 that I placed my 1st advertisement in the Ann Arbor Observer. I only placed one ad for one month, but that yeilded me 2 repeat customers. By the time I started my full time service in 2008, I already had about 15 clients who called me regularly when they left for vacations.

In  2005, one of my overnight clients talked me into walking her dogs 3 times a week.  I reluctantly took this on but committing to this work was one of the best decisions I have ever made. The regular income made it possible for me to eventually leave my part time administrative job and work soley for myself.

Having and depending on my own business is a lot of work (another subject for a good blog entry). But I wouldn't trade my work with animals for anything. It is amazing to be appreciated for what I love to do.
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Kitty Kat Update

Here is a photo of Charlie who is almost as big as Miso. He is not yet 5 months old but is as big as many small breed full grown cats. It is the Maine Coone mix, I think. He is also very mellow which is typical of the breed.

They both have full run of the house now, even at night when I am away on overnights. I do think they enjoy each others' company, although Miso does hiss and whack now and again as Charlie wants to play with  her. Miso hasn't learned to play with him yet. I get them playing with the feather flyer frequently to facilitate this in hopes that it will lead to more organically induced play.

TRAINING TO CUDDLE
I am also hoping they will be cuddle buddies at some point. To this end I have been feeding them a small amount of daily "treats". I put the kibble in one dish so they have to get very close to one another while enjoying it. Hopefully, this will lead to them enjoying closeness at other times during the day. One day I intend to display a photo of them cuddling each other.

FOOD & WATER
I use "Before BG grain" brand Salmon kibble as reinforcements but not much of it.  It is good stuff. They go CRAZY over it but I prefer they eat a raw diet which I purchase exclusively from Mantis on Michigan Ave in Ypsi. Miso likes to drink from a glass so I keep it full for Charlie and her. 

WEIGHT
I have been struggling with Miso's weight since day one. She has now finally trimmed up to the perfect weight in my opinion.  When you pick her up she feels spungy, not hard, in the stomache. I've accomplished her weight loss by keeping her on a raw food diet. Mantis sells me frozen patties that her and Charlie share daily. They are able to self monitor, as the food has no addictive properties and they only eat when they are hungry. And, of course, when I  offer them a small amount of kibble to reinforce their closeness.

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Charlie & Miso in Harmony

Less than one month ago, I brought Charlie home to live with Miso and I. Miso is about 5  years old and  Charlie was born mid July of this year.

There were some concerns due to the reason I had Miso in the first place. Miso had come to live with me 2 years ago after having attacked the other cat in her household three times. These attacks were vicious enough to send him to the hospital for stitches to his back each time.

As their pet care giver, it was not nearly as pleasant visiting them due to the new arrangement that was called for. I had to split my time into two sessions; one with Miso in the basement and the other session with her "brother" upstairs.

Curiously, the attacks were brought on after several years of living together. The first attack occured just after they brought the other kitty back from the hospital with bandaged paws from having been declawed. Miso has always been declawed back and front, so this must have upset the balance of power between the two somehow.

I hadn't considered getting another kitty until now because of Miso's rough history. But for the past year, I've felt bad about leaving Miso at home so much of the time, especially when I am away for vacation  overnight stays. She has seemed to calm down quite a bit and I sometimes imagine a nurturing instict in her.

Since I've always wanted a Maine Coone cat, I went onto Petfinder.com and put in the information. I asked for a male kitten and it turned out that Charlie fit the description. He was also less than an hour away from my home.

I let a few friends know that I was going to be introducing a new kitten to my household and the best advice I received was to let the kitties get acquainted from under a door first. This way they aren't as overwhelmed. They can get accustommed to new smells before having to negotiate space and territory.

Of course there was lots of hissing at first, especially from my Miso. I tried to stay away from their encounters as much as possible and to let nature take its course, all the while watching for signs of true aggression on Miso's part. Gradually I opened my full home to both of them whenever I am at home.

It was also suggested by my Petfinder.com mom, that I keep Miso's routine intact as much as possible. That has proven to be the best advice I could have received.

The most drama that occurred was when Miso would hiss and growl and wack her paw very loudly in front of Charlie which created a startlingly loud popping noise. Very quickly and to my amazement, Miso seems to have taken a shine to little Charlie and I recently caught her butting her head up to him affectionately.

We are now to the point where Charlie and Miso can be on the bed together and co-exist contentedly. I am still careful not to leave them alone in the house for too long together but I am optimistic about the future. I look forward to the day when I can pack up for an overnight knowing that the two of them will keep each other company until I return the next day.

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Finding a New Home for Your Pet

I recently received an email containing a photo and plea for help from a woman who was moving to Europe and could not take her two beautiful, well behaved labs with her. These sweet babies were very attached to each other and it was awful to think they might have to be separated to find them good homes. She was desperate to find them a good home where they could continue to live together.

I received the message from a friend and assumed this friend knew the woman who sent the original plea for help and thereby forwarded the message to a couple of other freinds. Unfortunately, the person who sent it to me arrived at the same conclusion when he received the message, and no one checked snopes.com to determine the message's validity. The animals had already found a new home YEARS ago. 

Although these kinds of "hoaxes" are not malicious, they get started, in part, because the original author doesn't think to include an easy way for people to check back to see if a home had already been found for their beloved pets. It is very easy to send a message to friends who inadvertantly proliferate the message in an attempt to help.

Unfortunately, there is no easy way, via email, to let others' know when the search is no longer necessary, the message gathers momentum and continues on its merry way. Now, anytime I get an email and don't know the original sender, I check snopes.com to see if the email is still legitimate. If I had such a pressing need as finding a new home for Miso, I'd include a website or blog for people to check in and get updates before they pass on the email.

This strategy might keep me from having to change my email address as the message makes its way across the world, illiciting help from hundreds of animal lovers. Besides helping me keep my life simple, providing a check back link is just a considerate thing to do.

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