Talk about serendipity. I had been in contact with journalist, artist, and animal activist Twig Mowatt for quite a while. When I visited her pet portraits site, I was not only impressed by her art but also struck by the section about how to take a photograph that could be used as a basis for…
How Do You Know When “It’s Time”?
I was planning to report on the excellent Nestle-Purina Webinar on pet aging that I participated in on Thursday, but don’t yet have the details fact-checked. In the meantime, there’s a related topic — related not only to pet aging but to the recent rancorous discussions about human health care, especially the bogus “Death Panels”…
Where there’s a will… Assigning pet care, 2
You might consider your pets “fur children,” but if you’re incapacitated or you die, the law will beg to differ. With actual children, the urgency of ensuring a smooth handover to a designated guardian is always recognized. Pets, in contrast, are considered property. But your dog can’t wait in a safety deposit box for a…
In Sickness and…Worse: Assigning Pet Care, I
Sad but true: Our pets usually depart the world before we do. That’s why we spin comforting visions of their afterlife such as the Rainbow Bridge. But sometimes the situation is reversed. And it’s even sadder if a pet is left without provisions for care. We need to plan for that possibility, and we need…
The Rainbow Bridge: What’s in it for shelter dogs?
Don’t worry: Frankie is fine. Yes, the pet sitter from hell got me nervous about his insulin intake, and Frankie was a bit subdued for a few days after I returned from my trip to Portland, but now he’s back to his stroppy terrier self. No, the reason I started thinking about pet afterlife is…
Left behind: Finding a good professional pet sitter
Ever since I read the post at DoggieStylish.com about pet care for the post-Raptured, the phrase “left behind” has taken on a whole new meaning. I couldn’t resist putting it in my title. That said, finding care for Frankie when I go away is serious business, because he’s a shy guy and I need someone…
This & That
I’ve been a bit busy lately, trying to juggle a lot of different plates — which, if you’re a klutz, as I am, can be pretty stressful. The largest bits of crockery flying through the air are: The Blog As some of you were nice enough to notice, my blog has a new look, which…
Pets or Partners? A Valentine’s Day Poll
Inspired by the results of an international poll reported over at Dancing Dog Blog about whether people preferred to spend Valentine’s Day with pets or humans, I thought I’d conduct my own, extremely unscientific poll here. Feel free to elaborate on your answer in the comments section. For example, if you’re spending it with a…
2009: It wasn’t so bad for me. How was it for you?
I know, I’ve been a grouch lately. Bah humbugging Christmas. Accentuating the negative on animal welfare groups. Dissing people who don’t appreciate pets. Discussing diseased dog butts. Grousing about defunct writing markets. But 2009 was far from disastrous for me. And I don’t want to finish the year with a bad taste. Consider this my…
Pet peeve: Second-guessing dog gifts
According to an informal survey on About.com’s Veterinary Medicine blog — sorry if you didn’t vote yet and this is a spoiler — 62% of pet owners said “Of course” they bought their pets presents for the holidays. That doesn’t surprise me. I’ve found, however, that those who don’t share their lives with a pet…