HOT WEATHER and Pets

I have two new clients - boxers - who don't particularly care for the hot weather. Actually, dogs with shorter, "pushed in" snouts (such as bulldogs, pugs, Boston terriers, boxers, Lhasa apsos and shih tzus) can have a more difficult time getting enough air to cool down when it's hot and humid out. I did a little research on how the weather affects all pets and came up with a few tips:

• Never leave your pet alone in a parked car even for a few minutes. If you leave the window open, it's still not enough. Most of the newer cars have key FOBs that allow you to leave your car running and still lock the door. If you must leave your pet in the car (which is not advised, but sometimes you just HAVE to do it) for a short period of time, leave the car running with the air conditioner on and lock the car. If you feel that this is too risky in regards to having your car stolen, you shouldn't have your dog with you for the trip then.
• Always travel with water. Hours without water is not good when you're traveling. I always bring either a bottle of water and a container or I fill up a lidded plastic container with water and make sure the dogs have access to it often. If you're thirsty, your dog is thirsty. That's how I gauge it.
  
• Don't play outside during peak sun/heat hours or if it's exceptionally humid. Morning and evening are the best times. And for the love of God, don't play on asphalt when it's sunny! If you're not sure why, stand on it in your bare feet and you'll require no further explanation.
  
• Definitely don't play with your dog outside if it's very warm or humid right after a he/she has eaten. The explanation will bore you. Just don't. Trust me on this one.
• Never take your dog to the beach unless you can provide shade and fresh (not SALT) water. You should be able to provide both. If you can't, it's a potentially hazardous situation.
• Make sure your have screens on your windows and that they are secure. When it's warm, cats love to get in windows where they can be close to the outdoors. You don't want them to fall through. The same goes for "jumpy dogs" who love to leap at windows to get at things on the other side.
  
• Don't apply your sunscreen or insect repellent on your pet. Check with your veterinarian or a pet store and get sunscreen that can be used animals. Otherwise you're risking diarrhea, vomiting and possible neurological damage.
• The flip side of that is to check and see if your dog needs sunscreen. My border collie has a lot of pink skin showing on her snout, so if she was going to be in the sun for a long period of time, she would need it.
  
• You should never let your dog stick his/her head out the window when driving, but I know many people do (I'm often guilty of that!) If nothing else, at least don't permit it when you're driving on the highway, recently paved roads or gravel/dirt surfaces. It's too risky in regards to things flying in their eyes.
  
• Supervise your dog if you plan on letting him swim. Believe it or not, YOUR DOG COULD DROWN! Your dog isn't Michael Phelps.
• Last but not least, for all of the people who are like me and take their dog with them whenever they can, if you are going on a boat, put a flotation device on your dog. Seriously. Your dog isn't Mark Spitz either.

Justin and I love taking Sadie and Daisy with us whenever we can. On many Fridays he takes Sadie to work with him and I take Daisy to work with me. We both spend most of the day in the car, so our dogs do too. When we go camping, our dogs are camping with us. Since I started my business, I've become so much more informed in regards to pet safety. For every guideline listed above, there is a horror story that can be told about someone who didn't follow them and their pet suffered. Just keep that in mind.

Leona's Trustees Worse Than Queen of Mean!

I've actually been stewing over the recent news about Leona Helmsley's Estate being butchered by the Trustees for a few weeks now, but had to wait to to comment on it because I wasn't sure I could control my temper. If you don't know what happened, let me quote the New York Times April 22nd edition for you. A few short sentences will sum it up.

• In February, a Manhattan judge ruled that the trustees had sole discretion in disbursing her assets ($5 Billion) and that the entire estate did not have to go to the dogs.
• The disclosure that Trouble was the largest named beneficiary in the will prompted death threats against the dog. Another judge reduced Trouble’s trust fund to $2 million; the dog’s security costs the estate $100,000 a year. (WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE WHEN A DOG NEEDS A BODY GUARD???!!!)
• The judge also negotiated a $6 million settlement with two of Mrs. Helmsley’s grandchildren who were explicitly left out of her will.
• The $1 million for animal rights and welfare was divided equally among 10 charities, including the A.S.P.C.A. and Guide Dogs for the Blind.
• The first $136 million from the hotelier Leona Helmsley’s disputed multibillion-dollar estate has been distributed, trustees announced on Tuesday, but the bulk went to medical centers instead of dogs.

Now, I can already hear the shouting of legions of people who think that there is nothing wrong with ruling. And perhaps there are even animal lovers who feel that giving the entire $5 Billion to a dog is insane when there are needy people and organizations that are desperate for money all in the name of human rights and whatnot. We all are entitled to our opinion for sure. Moments like this are precisely why I've been a blogger for almost five years now.....so I can give my big, fat opinion to anyone who will read it. :-)

I agree that it's entirely bizarre to give $5 BILLION to a dog. BILLION, people. That's the number five followed by 9 zeros. I try to envision how much dog food you could by with $5B and I'm at a loss. However, it was Ms. Helmsley's legal will that determined that this should occur. When any judge is able to overturn a legal document set forth to determine where one's material and monetary assets should go after a person has passed, it makes me question what the point of the will was to begin with? To shut up Leona for the time being I suppose! And the importance of the people who witnessed it? Zero! The credibility of the individual who drafted it? Crap! It's true! The JUDGE said so.

My main concern is that if she wanted the money to go to a dog and this judge, fueled by the dispute of her family attesting the will, thinks that one dog shouldn't have $5B, why not give it to ALL of the dogs?? Can you imagine what $5B would do for animals just in the US? Stop for a moment and think about that.

If you didn't have time to stop and think, let me provide you with some ideas.... medical treatments for people's beloved pets would improve or become unnecessary because the illnesses may be cured. Shelters wouldn't have to put innocent animals to sleep because they couldn't afford to keep them under their roofs anymore. Animals would be spayed and neutered without worry of cost and the problem with the animal population would be reduced drastically. Perhaps we could hire some bigwigs to create some really groovy laws to scare the crap out of potential animal abusers, thus reducing occurrences of abuse. Michael Vick.....well, he's a whole other conversation for another time, but let's just say he'd be ruined and there wouldn't be talk about ANY NFL team taking him.... EVER. And maybe there would be a huge team of people beyond Cesar Milan and PETA and the ASPCA shutting down puppy mills and stopping the horrible cruelty that goes on in even our country!

Now, before I wrap this up (because I could really rant for awhile), I want to address all of the people who say, "Why should it go to ANIMALS when there are HUMANS in need???" To you, I say please consider that humans are not THE most important life form on this planet. If you want to know why I believe this, drop me a line and I'll share.

Next, I want you to know that this was the first time in charitable history that such an enormous amount of money was donated to an animal or animal related cause. First time EVER. And while Ms. Helmsley really went gangbusters with this and shot right to the top of the annual top 60 charity list, right behind her was Revlon's Ron Perelman, who donated $63.5 million to the Weill Medical Center for cancer research, education and patient care, in memory of his ex-wife.

And behind him? Not one other animal related cause made that list. Maybe there was another at Number 61? I doubt it.