puppy and kitten

It always happens. Every time you see the picture of a cute little pup or furry little kitten, you ‘awww’ and ‘oooh’ and you just want one! You can’t help but pet each dog that comes your way while walking on the street and you bring tasty treats for your friend’s pets when you go visiting. Every time a pup licks you or a cat rubs against your leg, you think it’s a sign telling you to get your own. But hold your horses! (or doggies, or kitties, as you might prefer). Adopting a pet is about a lot more than signs or gut feelings or even desires.

We’re not discounting desire as a factor in bringing home a pet – it is important – but there are other factors that are much more important. Many owners have fallen prey to the misconception that the ‘I-just-saw-him-and-fell-head-over-heels-in-love’ feeling will see them through the 15 odd years they will spend with their pets. Adopting a pet is quite a happy thought. However, it needs to be turned into reality. You need to give owning a pet a lot of thought.

The following points make it easier for you to judge if your decision is really sound, read it through and answer each point honestly to reach a conclusion.

What’s your reason for adopting a pet?

Adopt a pet for a reason that will last, since that will determine how healthy and enjoyable your relationship will be. Reasons like momentary loneliness, boredom, or curiosity might not be ideal, since these conditions will pass. You need a reason that will keep for many, many years to come.

Do you have time?

Having a pet in your house requires a good investment of time, and it can’t be put on a schedule of maybe one hour a day. When your pup is young, you will have to spend a lot of time with him, training him and getting him used to your home. When he falls sick, you’ll have to be by his side. And, you should give them this time gladly, not just out of obligation.

Can you afford it?

Adopting a pet doesn’t just involve the cost of adoption fees. Taking care of a pet comes along with a series of expenses – good food, grooming, hygiene, toys, changes to your house, regular vet visits, medication, and what not.

What is you lifestyle?

Do you live in a place where you can share space comfortably with a pet? If you live in a condo you might feel cramped and your neighbors or landlord might object. Also, if you work late nights, have a baby, travel a lot or have an erratic schedule, a pet might not fit well into your scheme of things.

What happens if something goes wrong?

What if you get sick or you have to leave the pet alone? Do you have someone you can count on to help you out? Becoming solely responsible for another life is a big decision. You will need some kind of help (friends, relatives, friendly neighbors) or at least the financial means to hire such help.

Will you commit?

The most important question: Do you think you can love, cherish and take care of your pet for as long as he lives? I repeat – as long as he lives. This is quite a responsibility. If you’re going to adopt a pet, you will need to promise yourself that you will take care of him to the best of your ability. And taking care of a pet is quite a task.

If most of these questions make you reconsider your decision, don’t lose heart. It’s all for the best. Visit any animal shelter and you will notice that most of the animals are there because their owners didn’t think of all these questions, got carried away by their feelings and took the animal home, only to realize a year later that they couldn’t handle it. It is a highly insensitive act – to willingly welcome someone into your home and then turn them out – especially someone as helpless and innocent as a poor little dog or cat.

All these factors are just as important if not more as what ‘kind’ of a pet you want to have. For instance, dogs require exercise, some, at least an hour every day. If you live in an apartment in the city and you don’t like to walk, this becomes unfeasible. Even a tiny and active little terrier is more suited with owners who have the time to give it exercise and play with it. But don’t think a cat is any easier… well it is, since you don’t have to walk them, but they do need play time, and attention, and although they have this reputation of being independent, they crave company and they need it to be healthy and happy.

Welcoming a pet into your house and your life can be one of the most enriching experiences you ever have. However, thinking it through is very important. When you bring a pet home, it’s just as having a baby – every decision you make thereon affects you and your pet in equal measure. It’s a living being who you will share a good part of your life with… but oh, what a fulfilling life it will be.

If you want to read more stories and find very useful information about your cats and dogs, please visit me at http://www.yourpetsuniverse.com

Rebeca has been interested in animals and Feng Shui for many years and now she wants to share her knowledge of these subjects with people in a very light and personal way. Feng Shui has improved her life in many ways, and her cats and dogs, and the fish that came as a part of her passion for Feng Shui, are now a very important part of her, and she’s very happy to share her experiences with everybody.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/are-you-really-ready-to-adopt-a-pet-905952.html

Cats and Funny Videos

For thousands of years going back to the Ancient Egyptians, cats have been put on public display. But the first cat shows in the United States, held in Maine, didn’t appear until between 1860 and 1870. Finally, in 1895, a show clawed its way into New York City, hosted in Madison Square Garden.

Badoop-badoop! Fast-forward to the present: Cat clubs and cat fancy organizations are everywhere, holding local, state and national shows in every part of the country. And no wonder: If you search YouTube, either online or on your TV with your TiVo HD DVR, it’s very clear that you don’t have to be a cat breeder to be easily amused and entertained by the very funny videos featuring endless breeds of cats–from hilarious cat bloopers to just cute cat behaviour. But what’s missing from most of these viral videos are a the cat fanciers themselves, who regularly travel across the country attending cat shows. Talk about a special breed of PEOPLE! Perhaps you’re familiar with the crazy cat lady on some of The Simpsons episodes? I guess they’re not all THAT crazy–are they?

So… I went to Pleasanton, California with a very clear mission: to find out just how crazy people can get about cats–and, while I was there, to learn out how well they know their famous felines of Film and Television with our very first Badoop-Badoop Cat Quiz!

What better place to get a close-up perspective of the cat fancier lifestyle than the Crow Canyon Cat Show! I couldn’t believe all the cats I saw: Siamese cats, known for their legendary voice and captivating blue eyes; Persian cats, with their long flowing coats and open pansy-like faces; Himalayan cats, actually a Persian cat with the color pattern of a Siamese cat (who knew?!); the Egyptian Mau, which were worshiped as deities in ancient Egypt; the remarkably dense and muscular Tonkinese; Burmese cats, often described as “bricks wrapped in silk”; Exotic cats that look like a Persian but have short hair; Siberian cats, which history shows have been around for at least one thousand years; Sphynx cats, which are the most famous of the hairless cats, and probably made most popular in recent years by Doctor Evil from the Austin Powers movies; and Abyssinian cats, one of the oldest known breeds on this planet. One of my favorites was a plump Russian Blue Cat with a plush double coat similar to a beaver–gorgeous!

What a spectacle, these fancy cat shows! Cat toys are everywhere, grooming stations and supplies to style and fluff abound, and the large crates where the cats are displayed are decorated with animal prints, feather boas and more! In preparation for the show, cats are bathed, nails clipped, and ears cleaned. And some cats are more “high-maintenance” than others. A longhaired cat requires much more effort than a shorthaired cat and, if shown on a regular basis, must be bathed weekly and combed twice daily! What divas!

Here are a few grooming tricks I learned while I was there: By fluffing up the hair on top of a cat’s head, you can modify the appearance of large ears; to make a cat’s tail appear shorter, trim the excess hair at the end of the tail; to give the kitty a rounded look, clip the hair around the face; and to make their eyes look rounder, cut the hair over the eyes; finally, to make the cat’s neck look thicker or shorter, just comb out its ruff so that it stands out to frame its face. Do you think our favorite Hollywood stars heed any of this advice?

Even though our breeders didn’t get every answer correct in our Cat Quiz, it’s clear that these folks clearly know and love their cats. I got a particular kick out of the fact that while that the show manager assured me that cat people are not crazy, the club’s treasurer told me that the difference between cat owners and dog owners is that Dogs have “Masters,” and Cats have “Staff.”

Good thing we documented all of the cattiness on video so you can see for yourself: Watch the cat show, learn about famous felines on film & TV, and laugh at some of the funniest cats we found on YouTube.

HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8WNy71L0KM

by Shanan Carney, sometimes known as The TiVo Diva

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/why-do-cats-star-in-so-many-funny-home-videos-921383.html

Save Space with a Portable Dog Kennel

If you like to travel with your dog or kennel train him then you know what a pain it is to have them as a permanent part of your car or house. They are big and bulky and moving them is not a lot of fun, not to mention the amount of space they take up in you car or house. And storing a kennel is almost more trouble then it’s worth, but where do you put the monstrosity. Well there is an answer to this problem, a portable dog kennel.

You can get a portable dog kennel is any number of shapes, sizes, and price ranges. For the most part they do not cost to much. And the best part is that most portable kennels are collapsible meaning that when you are not using it you just fold it up and store it in an out of the way place. It usually just takes a few quick turns of the wrist to put up or take down a portable kennel. This comes in handy when kennel training a dog when you don’t need the kennel set up all the time.

A portable dog kennel may sound like it’s kind of flimsy and won’t hold a dog very well. Some people even worry that their dog may chew through it or tear down around themselves but most portable dog kennels have been designed with this in mind. They are well built for the purpose they serve.

These portable kennels are made out of different materials depending on the manufacturer. Some are collapsible wire cages while others are more nylon mesh type construction. The size and breed of dog you have will determine which type will work best for you. They all collapse or fold up and can be easily stored in a closet, under a bed or in a shed. You can also buy a kennel pad to place in the bottom of your portable dog kennel. This will give your dog a nice cushion to lie on while in the kennel.

You can find a portable dog kennel either at your local pet shop or do a search online. If you find one online it will be shipped right to your front door and all you’ll have to do is set it up.

To get more information about a portable dog kennel for you four legged friend visit the website Dog Kennels.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/save-space-with-a-portable-dog-kennel-928360.html

Is Your Cat Telepathic?

Can cats communicate? We know they meow and use body language. Those who really get to know their cats realise that there are much deeper communications factors present and some of us realise that telepathy is the cats main method of talking to, not only other cats, but to their human owners.

Cats consider themselves to be a higher life form than that of the humans they know. This is simply because they communicate telepathically and they cannot understand that we humans do not have this method of speech.

They can teach us how to pull the head off a tin of dinner. They insist we know how to serve them dinner when asked and how to open doors on demand. At this point, apart from supplying a knee to cuddle on, they consider us well broken in and schooled.

I am owned by Tigger who treats me as her pet human. Unfortunately I suffered from a stroke. Upon my return from hospital and with bits of my body not working properly I was forced to spend most of my day sitting down and just relaxing. It was then that Tigger started to stare deeply into my eyes and I realised that she was actually talking to me.

Luckily I could still use my computer. Tigger started jumping on my computer desk and dictating her thoughts. You don’t need to have had a stroke to telepathically communicate with a cat. You just need to sit and relax. Let your cat come to you and then let yourself start to drop off to sleep. Notice I said ‘start’ to drop off to sleep. It is in this totally relaxed state that your cat’s first telepathic thoughts will start to enter your head.

This may take several ‘goes’ as your cat may have given up on talking to you telepathically, but once he or she does so you will not be mistaken.

Once a link has been established you can send thoughts the other way. Keep these thoughts as simple as possible because cats do not have a complicated language.

Cats communicate in ‘ideas’ and in ‘memories’. As time goes by you will start to become better able at this telepathy business and be able to interpret their thoughts more accurately.

For instance, Tigger and her sister Smudge were having a minor altercation the other day and I clearly heard Tigger say “If you do that again I’ll scratch you eyes out”. Smudge immediately backed down.

You cannot explain complicated thoughts or facts to a cat. Tigger had just stopped dictating to me, the other day, and I said “I suppose you want this as a PDF file”. What a mistake. Don’t ever try to explain exactly what a PDF file is to a cat. After about ten minutes of getting absolutely nowhere we settled on PDF stands for Paws Don’t Fit the keyboard so that’s why I have to tap the keys for you.

Tigger writes a diary. To learn more about my owner, Tigger, go to

http://www.thetiggercat.co.uk

She wants more affilisomethings to sell her Diary for her and gives them lots of Dinnertins when they do. You could be one

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/is-your-cat-telepathic-927985.html

Bark Contain : Aiding You Get Some Peacefulness and Silence

It is part of your duty as a dog owner to make sure that your domestic dog does not interrupt your neighbours with his barking. If your dog has an narking use of barking always, then you must make use of some appraises to cease this. This is very necessary if you want to defend the good human relationship that you have with your neighbours and if you want to get some Peace Of Mind and Repose in your home and in your neighborhood. Now, while there are many paths that you can try to terminate your Canis familiaris from barking too much like perturbing him or coaching him to solvent to the “quiet” command, different way is the use of bark Ascertain Gimmicks.

Various Bark Contain Devices

One of the bark Ascertain Devices is the bark Command taking collars. developing collars can help curb your domestic dog’s spare barking. This is particularly when he is left all by himself when you go to the agency or when you go patronizing. There are three kinds of these bark Check Off collars.

1. Corrective Sitting Bark Ascertain Collars. These send out a Sitting to the struggle of your Canis familiaris once he barks. Because your domestic dog will link his barking with the Sitting that he can flavor on his neck, he will take care in barking too much.

2. Citronella training Collars. Citronella oil is sprayed near your dog’s nose once he starts barking. Because Canis familiaris don’t like to be sprayed upon, he will cease barking to nullify this.

3. unheard Bark Command Collar. This emits an inaudible sound to your Canis familiaris’s ear, which you can’t even hear. Because this sound is awful to your dog’s ears, then he would finish his barking to be able to obviate hearing this.

If you don’t want to subject your domestic dog to the Disciplinary quantities of bark Hold collars, then there are other bark Control Devices that you can use and one of these is the outdoor bark Ascendency device. This device is the one that you need if you also stand for to curb the loud barking of your neighbor’s domestic dog as well. Controlling at a range of 50 feet, this twist works the same as the unhearable bark Ascertain collar. As soon as a barking domestic dog gets within the range of this device, it will give out a beep and then an ultrasonic sound is emitted. Because a dog will connect this sound with his barking, then he will terminate from barking unnecessarily.

So if maintaining Peacefulness and Silent in your home and your neighbourhood is supreme to you, then you should get one of these bark Restraint Twists. You will not only be Helping Oneself your neighbors and yourself get some continual sleep, you will also be teaching your dog some manners by doing this.

There are a number of models of bark Command Devices available at Pet Depot Online. find free to visit their site if you are projecting to buy one, as they could provide you with what you need at a small price.

Use bark control for peaceful household. available at http://www.petdepotonline.com/Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/maintain-peacefulness-and-silence-in-your-home-902000.html