Day #4 of Helpful Tips For You And Your Pet

Day #4 of Helpful Tips For You And Your Pet

Yesterday we discussed the steps you should take when bringing home a new pet.  If you have existing pets already, there are some additional steps to be taken to make sure everyone gets along together when they meet.

Day #4: Introducing New Pets To Existing Pets

Your pets’ personalities will determine whether or not the new pet will get along with the older one.  When a new pet is brought home, sometimes the older pet views him/her as a threat and this is only natural.  Expect a few scuffles at first to let them determine who is the boss and determine their place in the pack.  Of course you will want to supervise these initial meetings but do not interrupt them if there is no danger of injury.

-Keep your pets separated until you are absolutely sure they will get along.  Only allow them to interact with your supervision.  Depending on their reactions to each other, it may take hours, days, weeks or even months for your pets to finally adjust to each other.

-Keep the introductions indoors and controlled.  Especially if you are introducing a dog and cat, make sure the dog is on a leash to avoid chasing or cornering the cat.  This could be incredibly terrifying for the cat and you will prolong your process of eventually being able to tolerate each other.

-Like above, keep cat and dog introductions controlled.  However you do not want to hold a cat in your arms when introducing him/her to a new pet.  A frightened and nervous cat is likely to scratch you and cause more stressful commotion.

-Make sure you allow your pet to familiarize itself with his/her new home.  Allow him to explore and sniff out different areas of your home.

-Always provide separate water and feeding bowls.  This allows your pet to calmly eat and drink without feeling the need to fight for their food.  Also, make sure cats have separate litter boxes as well.

-Dogs and cats are able to live in harmony with caged animals but precautions must be taken when initially introducing them.  Cats are agile and placing a cage high up on a shelf doesn’t guaranteed your caged pet will stay safe.

-Pets need to meet each other on their own time.  Don’t force them together, they will adjust at their own pace.

Check back for more helpful pet tips to come!

Day #3 of Helpful Tips For You And Your Pet

We are happy to announce Day #3 of our Helpful Pet Owning Tips.  Each day we will have a new helpful tip for you and your pet to keep in mind.

Day #3: Preparing for a New Pet

Before you bring you new furry friend home, you need to prepare your home to prevent any confusion and stress that may arise from your pet being in its new environment.

Supplies – You need to make sure you have For example, if you are bringing a new cat home, make sure the litter box is all set up.  Make sure to have food, food and water bowls, leash, harness/collar, brushes and so on.

Delegate Tasks – Make sure it is decided who will be in charge of what for your new pet.  This is important to establish before you start looking for your new pet.  Who will do the grooming, feeding, exercising, cleaning, playtime, etc.

Pet-Proof – Make sure you make your home safe for your new friend.  There are many household items that people are not aware of that can make your pet extremely sick or cause death.  Check out our Day #1 Tip for a list of these items.

Handling – Everyone in the family needs to know how to safely pick up your pet.  There are certain times, such as during feeding, that your pet should be left alone.  Make sure everyone in the family is knowledgeable on how to handle your new family pet.

Other Pets – Not only will your new pet be nervous at first in his/her new home, if you have any existing pets, they will probably at first be ticked off that there is another animal being brought into the house.  At first, it will be helpful to keep them separated and gradually introduce them for short amounts of time.

Of course if your new pet has an accident in the house, please use Clear The Air’s Odor Remover to completely eliminate any foul odors.  Good luck with your new pet!

Day #2 of Helpful Tips For You And Your Pet

We are happy to announce Day #2 of our helpful pet owning tips.  Each day we will have a new helpful tip for you and your pet to keep in mind.

Day #2: Spay Or Neuter Your Pet – Various Health Benefits

Question, would you kill a happy, healthy, loving pet?  If you answered “no”, they spaying or neutering your pet is unquestionably essential.

Spaying and Neutering surgeries are safe when done by a qualified veterinarian.  Believe it or not, when your pet is spayed or neutered, there are various health benefits as well.  Below are some of the benefits a spayed or neutered animal will experience.

Benefits of Spaying Female Pets:

– Reduce or eliminate possibility of disease in the reproductive system.

– Eliminate sexual discomfort, distress or distraction making your pet happier and more content.

– Prevents pregnancy and the many complications arising from pregnancy and delivery.

– No more heat cycle.  You will no longer have to listen to the sounds of your female cat in heat while she is trying to get out and find a mate.

– Prevents unwelcome males from trying to seek out your female pet in heat.

– Reduces the urge to roam.  It is much less likely you will lose your pet, less likely to contract a disease, get in a fight, get injured or become a victim to cruelty, poison or traffic.

Benefits of Neutering Male Pets:

– Eliminate sexual discomfort, distress or distraction making your pet happier and more content.

– Helps prevent the distracting destructive behavior associated with a male’s efforts to get out and find a mate.

– Reduces the urge to roam.  It is much less likely you will lose your pet, less likely to contract a disease, get in a fight, get injured or become a victim to cruelty, poison or traffic.

– Eliminates testicular tumors and reduces prostate gland problems.

– In cats, neutering stops or reduces marking behavior, also known as territorial spraying of urine.

– Reduces the urge to fight.

Of course overall, the main reason to spay or neuter is to reduce the amount of animals that are euthanized due to overpopulation.  Please, spay and neuter your pets!

Day #1 of Helpful Tips For You And Your Pet

This week and next, we are going to be sharing some Helpful Tips for you and your pet.  Each day we will have a new helpful tip for you and your pet to keep in mind.

Day #1: Protect Your Pet From Everyday Household Dangers

Just like you’d baby proof your house, keeping common household items out of reach from your pets will help protect them from danger.  Rodent poisons and insecticides are the most common sources of domesticated animal poisoning.  The following is a list of potentially toxic poisons that should at least be kept out of reach of your pets, it not completely avoided at all:

• Fertilizer and Plant Food – These are easily accessible and fatal to a pet allowed in the yard unsupervised.
• Cedar and soft wood shavings – Keep small animals such as hamsters and gerbils away from these as they emit toxic and potentially fatal fumes.
• Antifreeze – One teaspoon can kill a seven pound cat.  With its sweet taste, animals are naturally attracted to antifreeze even when consumed in small quantities.  Antifreeze with propylene glycol is available and is safe for animals if ingested in small amounts.
• Chocolate – This is poisonous to dogs, cats and ferrets even when a small amount is consumed.
• De-icing salts – These salts used to melt snow and ice can irritate your pet’s paws and are especially poisonous if licked off.  Ensure your pet’s paws are washed and dried as soon as your pet comes in from the snow.
• Nonstick cooking fumes – Fumes from self-cleaning ovens and nonstick cooking surfaces can be deadly to birds.  Make sure birds are kept away from the kitchen and use caution when using any pump or aerosol spray around birds.
• Painkillers – Aspirin, Acetaminophen, Ibuprofen and many other types of pills can be toxic to animals.  Ensure you keep medication containers and tubes out of reach of pets so they can not be chewed through and ingested.  Also make sure to find and dispose of any dropped pills.
• Chicken Bones – These can easily shatter and choke a cat or dog.  We also have a list of other plants and food items to keep away from your pets listed here.
• Rawhide Chews – While these are made especially for dogs, make sure to supervise your dog while he/she chews the rawhide treat as they can pose a serious choking hazard.

Of course, if you feel your pet has been poisoned, bring him in to your Veterinarian as soon as possible or call the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center’s 24 hour hotline at 888-426-4435.

Stay tuned this week to learn about more helpful pet tips!

Clear The Air Donating $1 For Each New Facebook Fan To The San Diego Humane Society

Please remember to share with others on Facebook that we are donating $1 for each new Facebook Fan that “likes” our page (Clear the Air) to the San Diego Humane Society for the month of January. It is such an easy way to raise money for animals looking for a Forever Home!!

Do you love animals but for one reason or another cannot have one for yourself?

Do you love animals but for one reason or another cannot have one for yourself?  There are many options to consider that will be able to bring you closer to furry friends and satisfy that basic need to connect with animals.

You may not be permitted to have animals at your apartment or house you rent, health issues may stop an animals from living with you or you may have such a demanding work schedule that having an animal would not be feasible.  Whatever the issue may be, there are solutions.

Volunteering at your local Humane Society is a great way to spend time with animals, especially those in need that are waiting for their forever home.  Check with your neighboring Humane Society to see if you can start volunteering; they usually have various programs for a wide array of animals with a temporary home.  This also helps the animals connect with people more often and prepare them for human contact with their forever home.

Help your neighbor or friend.  If you know that one person that certain someone that doesn’t have time for their pet, make an effort to walk their dog every day or visit their cat and play with him or her.  This will not only make the pet owner feel less guilty, but will also bring enormous joy to their pets, instead of being stuck at home alone.  Walking your neighbor’s dog will not only provide a break in the day for the dog alone at home, but will help you get exercise as well.

Volunteer to pet sit for someone when they go on vacation.  You can have your animal fix for a couple weeks and then when their owners come home, you are back to only worrying about just yourself.  The pet owners will feel comfortable knowing you are taking care of their pets and the pets will have someone to occupy them and help avoid missing their owners.

Our last suggestion is to visit a dog park.  If you are allergic to animals, this is a good solution.  You can simply sit on a bench in the dog park and watch the dogs playing with each other.  A lot of dog parks are operated and managed by volunteers.  Volunteering at your dog park can help give you your animal fix.

Keeping Your Cat’s Litter Box Odor Free

If you can smell your cat’s litter box, it is very overdue for a cleaning and has already been noticeable to your cat for some time.

Just like you wouldn’t like to use a bathroom where a toilet hasn’t been flushed for days, your cat does not enjoy doing his business somewhere the smell is overpowering.  This can lead to the problem of your cat going to the bathroom outside his litter box because the odor in his litter box is overpowering.

A cat’s sense of smell is much more sensitive than ours.  They can sense 200 million odors so you can imagine how critical it is to keep their litter box odor free.  Get in the habit of scooping your cat box at least once a day – it will hardly take any time to do and you wont ever have to face a really dirty box.  Each day it is a good idea to sprinkle Earth Care’s Cat Urine Odor Eliminator after every scooping as well.

Completely emptying your cat box and cleaning it out with soap and water is a good idea to do every two weeks.  It is impossible to get every bit of soiled litter out of the box by simply scooping so ensuring the litter is completely dumped on a regular basis will keep your cat and his nose – along with yours – happy.  Before you fill the clean litter box with litter, sprinkle Earth Care’s Cat Urine Odor Eliminator at the bottom of the box.  This will help to provide an extra layer of odor elimination.

Have You Considered Putting Your Pet On A New Year’s Weight Resolution?

Pets, just like humans, need to watch their weight as well.  While we as the humans are the ones who provide our pets’ feed and lifestyle, we need to be attentive to the health benefits that are involved.

Pet obesity is a growing problem not often taken seriously even though it contributes to life-threatening and life-shortening conditions such as cancer, heart disease, joint problems and more.  In order to see if your pet has a weight problem, you should be able to feel the ribs without a layer of fat as well as notice a waist on him.  If your pet is very furry, run your hands through the fur to see if you can easily feel his ribs.

If you have any questions or concerns, always ask your vet.  Should your pet be overweight, you can go to your local pet store or feed store and ask what foods they recommend for heavier pets.  Also, making sure your pet gets lots of exercise is key!  Just like humans, pets require exercise.

If you feed your pet commercial treats, try to limit it to very few per day or week. They are usually high in fats, sugars and calories.  Try providing treats like small ice cubes or carrot pieces.

Making sure your pet is at his or her ideal weight will ensure a happier and healthier life, reducing vet visits and chronic diseases.

PETCO SALE!!!

PETCO SALE!  Get the Pet Odor Eliminator and Pet Odor Eliminator for Carpet and Furniture for $3 OFF either canister!!! Sale goes through 12/24.  Perfect for that last minute moment you need to freshen up your house!

The benefits of owning a Cat or Dog

There are many benefits of having a pet.  Not only are they entertaining and provide unconditional love, but you your health can also be benefited by having a pet.

Pets can help decrease stress. In a 2002 study at State University of New York at Buffalo, researchers found that when conducting a stressful task, people experienced less stress when their pets were with them than when a spouse, family member or close friend was nearby.

Lower Blood Pressure.  While some studies have found a stronger connection than others, having a pet has the potential to lower blood pressure, especially in hypertensive or high-risk patients, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Eases pain. Believe it or not, pets can be the best medicine, especially when a person is dealing with chronic pain such as migraines or arthritis.  One study from Loyola University found that people who use pet therapy while recovering from surgery may need significantly less pain medication than those who do not.

Improves mood. A lot of the health benefits of owning a pet may stem from the mental and emotional benefits.  They give you a sense of belonging and feeling of being needed, while stroking and handling animals can be incredibly therapeutic for those who are stressed.

Pets help children develop.  Children who grow up in a household with pets benefit in countless ways, especially in their emotional development.  Pets are also hugely beneficial to children suffering from autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). For children with ADHD, taking care of a pet can encourage them to focus on responsibilities through a predictable routine.

Monitors Blood Sugar Levels for Diabetics.  According to the American Diabetes Association’s Diabetes Forecast magazine, a 1992 study found that one-third of the pets living with diabetics (mostly dogs, but other pets included cats, birds and rabbits) would change their behavior when their owner’s blood sugar level dropped.

Prevents Strokes. Although dogs are often touted for their health benefits, cat owners can see gains, too. Felines are just as beneficial to your health as dogs.  If you have a cat,  you are less likely to have a heart attack and even increasingly less likely to have a cardiovascular incident like a stroke.