Be Ready for Higher Medical Bills with These Dog Breeds
Being a dog guardian costs money, and some breeds cost more than others. Knowing what breeds are more expensive can help you budget accordingly to keep your new dog healthy and happy. When it comes to vet bills, certain breeds tend to have higher medical costs than others. Forbes Advisor recently put together a list of dog breeds with the highest average medical costs, so if you’re looking at a specific breed, then you can use these numbers to help budget for being a dog guardian. It’s also important to remember that some breeds...
This Shelter Pays Pet Deposits and Pet Rent for Anyone Who Needs It
Across the country, pets are being given up to animal shelters by people who love them—but who are facing housing challenges that leave them making the choice between having a place to live, and keeping their pet. Lawrence Humane Society, a nonprofit, open-admission shelter in Lawrence, Kansas, reports that over the last year, over half of pets were surrendered due to housing issues—a full 51 percent. In the fall of 2020, LHS developed a comprehensive pet retention program—they call it their Crisis Pet Retention...
Watch the Behavior Track from the 2022 Shelter Medicine Conference
The 2022 ASPCA® Cornell Maddie’s® Shelter Medicine Conference features lectures on a variety of critical and engaging topics. The Behavior Track, specifically, is now available on Maddie’s® University! You’ll learn about what the science says about behavior assessments in shelters, a trauma-informed approach to behavioral care, review case studies, the effects of short-term foster care and more! The courses are a unique educational opportunity for veterinarians and other animal well-being professionals to...
Understanding Sudden Vision Loss in Dogs
Sudden acquired retinal degeneration syndrome, aka SARDS, is a medical condition wherein a dog suddenly loses its vision over a period of several days to a matter of weeks. More commonly seen in older canines between the ages of 8 and 10 that are mixed breeds, it also tends to afflict spayed females for some reason. Unfortunately, the condition cannot be reversed. SARDS in Dogs While all canines regardless of breed can be struck by SARDS, some — such as dachshunds, beagles, and pugs — are reportedly predisposed to it. At the same...
2022’s Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide for Pets
Believe it or not, the year is coming to an end which means one thing: It’s time for our 2022 pet gift guide! We’ve put together the ultimate holiday gift guide for pets, with gifts divided into three unique categories so there’s something for everyone. Budget-friendly The first category in our 2022 pet gift guide is budget-friendly gifts. These gifts may be easy on your wallet, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t be memorable! Plan a special day together: Put together an itinerary for a day full of your...
Top 5 ways to properly care for your senior pet
A senior cat or dog needs a different level of care than when they were young. The older your pet gets the more they’ll show signs of aging like arthritis, muscle loss, loss of hearing and eyesight, weight gain or loss, lethargy and more. Luckily, there are five things you can do regularly to help your beloved senior pet age comfortably and with ease. The first step is to stay on top of your senior pets’: 1) Veterinary Care No matter your pet’s age, you should be taking them for regular veterinary check-ups to ensure...
On Giving Tuesday Find an Animal in Need and Donate to their Wishlist
Giving Tuesday celebrates generously giving back after spending like crazy on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Marking its 10-year anniversary, the annual day of giving began in 2012 as a way to honor the value of generosity, Asha Curran told USA TODAY. Curran, who is the CEO of Giving Tuesday, went on to say, “There’s not a person or community in the entire world where generosity is not important.” And she’s right. Since its inception, the movement is officially celebrated or observed in countries all across the globe....
New webcast: Gabapentin and behavior modification for shelter cats
Cats entering shelters often experience fear, anxiety, and stress while in care. Mitigating negative states in cats is critical to their health and well-being, especially in populations of fearful cats that are already at risk for poor outcomes. One particularly at-risk population are fearful cats rescued from animal hoarding environments. In the next Maddie’s® Insights webcast, Gabapentin and Behavior Modification for Shelter Cats, on December 1 at 12PM Pacific/3PM Eastern, results will be shared from a new study assessing...
Installing a Dog-Washing Station and Other Options for Giving Fido a Bath
If you’re the owner of a toy breed, you can just put them in the sink with a mesh net over the drain and use your spray wand to quickly and efficiently bathe them. But medium to large-breed dogs present a whole other problem for most pet parents. You are either used to sudsing them down in the backyard during summer months or getting down on your knees to soap them up next to your bathtub in the winter. The latter of the two options stinks because your knees are killing you unless you perch on the edge of the tub with your feet in it,...
The Best Advent Calendars for Dogs and Cats in 2022
Are you one of those people that buy their tree and start putting up Christmas decorations the day after Thanksgiving? You might even put your tree up on Thanksgiving and start hanging exterior lights the following day. If so, you’re in good company, with 43-55 percent (depending on the source) queried admitting to jumping the gun and getting into the Christmas season early. Including Pets in Christmas Sound like you? If that’s how you roll and you’re a pet parent, then there’s also a good chance you’re of the...