So no snow for this holiday in Cincinnati! Nothing but blue skies...
13 years ago
Monday, December 28, 2009
Can this be no snow for the Christmas/New Years holiday?
So no snow for this holiday in Cincinnati! Nothing but blue skies...Sunday, December 27, 2009
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Still accepting donations for homeless animals in the tri-state
Best Friends Petcare is still accepting donations for their angel tree in their lobby. This years tree will benefit the Harlequin Haven Rescue and Warren County Humane. We are asking the public to donate any amount of money, new toys, or to goto these rescues and rescue an angel for the holidays! The angel tree will continue to accept donations throughout the holiday into the New Years. So please any amount will go along way for these angels!A warm Merry Christmas to all.....
http://ak.imgag.com/imgag/product/preview/flash/pdShell.swf?ihost=http://ak.imgag.com/imgag&brandldrPath=/product/full/el/&cardNum=/product/full/ap/3173936/graphic1
Merry Christmas to all and Happy New Years! May all your wishes come true this holiday!
Merry Christmas to all and Happy New Years! May all your wishes come true this holiday!
Dog helps sniff out bedbugs in OHIO
By JC REINDL, The Associated Press
Updated 1:51 PM Sunday, December 20, 2009
TOLEDO, Ohio — He's friendly and obedient, his fur is the color of chocolate, and he earns his keep sniffing out those dreaded and elusive bloodsuckers known to lurk in mattresses.
Toledo, meet Hershey: He's a nationally certified bedbug detection dog who's visiting from Cincinnati to help rid Vistula Manor and other residential properties of infestations.
Hershey's job precedes remediation. Exterminators, after all, must know where to spray.
"He's a bedbug-sniffing dog," said the Labrador retriever's owner and handler, John Montgomery, who with his wife, LeAnne, operates Canine Bedbug Finder from their home outside Cincinnati. "We're going apartment by apartment ... he'll sniff beds, he'll sniff sofas and chairs and piles of clothes."
The small, reddish-brown insects known as bedbugs are about the size of an apple seed. The bugs lie in wait during the day and emerge at night to feast on the blood of a host.
Their hapless victims never see what bit them, and wake up the next morning to red itchy marks on their arms and legs. Tiny blood smears on bed sheets are another sign of their visit.
After decades of absence, bedbugs started to reappear in Ohio and throughout of the country earlier this decade.
New York City is considered the nation's leading bedbug battleground.
They can take up residence anywhere, but tend to thrive in well-trafficked places like hotels, housing complexes, and dormitories.
Montgomery and Hershey, who was rescued from a pound in Florida, came to Toledo at the request of the Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority. Linnie Willis, LMHA executive director, said the agency recently received reports of bedbugs in several properties, including Vistula Manor on Cherry Street downtown.
The duo recently visited LMHA's Parqwood Apartments on Nebraska Avenue. They are scheduled to check out the agency's Durrell Manor, Flory Gardens, and John Holland Estates in coming weeks. Bedbugs have been said to dwell in all those properties except Durrell.
"We wanted to try this to see if we could sniff them out and find out where they are," said Willis, whose agency pays Montgomery $12 per apartment unit inspected. "We have got to do what we've got to do to get rid of this problem."
Hershey and his owner began room-to-room rounds in the 164-unit Vistula Manor recently and planned a four-day inspection.
The bug hunters were accompanied by building janitor Richard Cole, who took note of each infested unit and room furnishing.
Cole admitted that he was initially skeptical of the dog's abilities until he saw him nearly make a beeline to a vial of live bedbugs that Montgomery hid in a room as a test.
"Now I'm a believer," he said.
The inspection began on the third floor of the residential complex, which houses handicapped, elderly, and disabled residents who meet lower-income requirements.
Montgomery, 61, held Hershey's leash as he guided him through each apartment, pointing fingers to potential trouble areas such as beds and sofas. The dog is trained to sit down if he detects live bedbugs. Each time he does so, Montgomery gives him a treat.
"He only alerts to the scent of live bedbugs. So he passes by the scent of any other bugs or even dead bedbugs — he's just interested in the live ones," said Montgomery, who also carries a small magnifying glass to verify "the live ones from the lint."
Margaret Higgs wasn't expecting a dog at her door when she opened her apartment for Montgomery and Hershey. And a dog that smells bedbugs? You've got to be kidding.
"He can really tell?" asked Higgs, 74, who watched in disbelief as Hershey sniffed around her boudoir. "Are you serious? This is fascinating!"
While her apartment received a clean bill of health, a neighbor across the hall wasn't so lucky.
Hershey could smell trouble festering in a bed of double-stacked mattresses covered in piles of clothes. The room's occupant, Joetta McElya, 60, stretched out an arm showing old bedbug bites.
"It was all up on my arms, all over my legs," she said.
Montgomery estimated that about 40 percent of the units he inspected in Vistula Manor are infested with bedbugs. He said the building presents several common factors in the insects' spread: close living quarters and widespread use of secondhand furniture.
College dorms make good breeding grounds for similar reasons. Montgomery said he sees a spike in business in January from parents whose children unknowingly brought bedbugs home from college for the holidays.
A former hearing aid salesman, Montgomery said he thought little about bedbugs until last year after he rented a lift chair from a medical supply company while recovering from hip surgery. The chair had bedbugs, which soon spread throughout the house.
The Montgomerys spent months and hundreds of dollars trying to eradicate the problem. But the bugs, which lay eggs and can hibernate for months, kept coming back. Montgomery said that they found Hershey with a bedbug dog trainer at the Florida Canine Academy. The Montgomerys brought the dog back to Ohio to help with their own recurring bedbug problems and those of others as a part-time hobby.
But Montgomery said he found bedbugs so widespread around Cincinnati that he and Hershey went into business full time.
He said that by necessity, bedbug sniffing is very much a lifestyle for a dog. Montgomery said he keeps Hershey's nose sharp by hiding vials of bedbugs around the house. To eat, the dog must first locate the bugs. "He's first a working dog and second a family pet," Montgomery said.
Montgomery said his clients generally choose between two forms of extermination. They can go the pesticide route, which can involve various chemicals.
And because bedbugs can't stand high heat, exterminators can try to cook them to death using special heaters.
Willis said LMHA will wait to review Hershey's findings before choosing an extermination method.
The Toledo-Lucas County Health Department this year has received two complaints about bed bugs at Vistula, as well as more than a dozen reports at apartment buildings, hotels, and other residences.
Ohio's problem with bed bugs began a few years ago in Cincinnati, followed by Columbus, said Alan Ruffell, director of environmental health for the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department.
"They're kind of making their way up to us, but at this point in time, I wouldn't say they're a huge problem," he said.
Updated 1:51 PM Sunday, December 20, 2009
TOLEDO, Ohio — He's friendly and obedient, his fur is the color of chocolate, and he earns his keep sniffing out those dreaded and elusive bloodsuckers known to lurk in mattresses.
Toledo, meet Hershey: He's a nationally certified bedbug detection dog who's visiting from Cincinnati to help rid Vistula Manor and other residential properties of infestations.
Hershey's job precedes remediation. Exterminators, after all, must know where to spray.
"He's a bedbug-sniffing dog," said the Labrador retriever's owner and handler, John Montgomery, who with his wife, LeAnne, operates Canine Bedbug Finder from their home outside Cincinnati. "We're going apartment by apartment ... he'll sniff beds, he'll sniff sofas and chairs and piles of clothes."
The small, reddish-brown insects known as bedbugs are about the size of an apple seed. The bugs lie in wait during the day and emerge at night to feast on the blood of a host.
Their hapless victims never see what bit them, and wake up the next morning to red itchy marks on their arms and legs. Tiny blood smears on bed sheets are another sign of their visit.
After decades of absence, bedbugs started to reappear in Ohio and throughout of the country earlier this decade.
New York City is considered the nation's leading bedbug battleground.
They can take up residence anywhere, but tend to thrive in well-trafficked places like hotels, housing complexes, and dormitories.
Montgomery and Hershey, who was rescued from a pound in Florida, came to Toledo at the request of the Lucas Metropolitan Housing Authority. Linnie Willis, LMHA executive director, said the agency recently received reports of bedbugs in several properties, including Vistula Manor on Cherry Street downtown.
The duo recently visited LMHA's Parqwood Apartments on Nebraska Avenue. They are scheduled to check out the agency's Durrell Manor, Flory Gardens, and John Holland Estates in coming weeks. Bedbugs have been said to dwell in all those properties except Durrell.
"We wanted to try this to see if we could sniff them out and find out where they are," said Willis, whose agency pays Montgomery $12 per apartment unit inspected. "We have got to do what we've got to do to get rid of this problem."
Hershey and his owner began room-to-room rounds in the 164-unit Vistula Manor recently and planned a four-day inspection.
The bug hunters were accompanied by building janitor Richard Cole, who took note of each infested unit and room furnishing.
Cole admitted that he was initially skeptical of the dog's abilities until he saw him nearly make a beeline to a vial of live bedbugs that Montgomery hid in a room as a test.
"Now I'm a believer," he said.
The inspection began on the third floor of the residential complex, which houses handicapped, elderly, and disabled residents who meet lower-income requirements.
Montgomery, 61, held Hershey's leash as he guided him through each apartment, pointing fingers to potential trouble areas such as beds and sofas. The dog is trained to sit down if he detects live bedbugs. Each time he does so, Montgomery gives him a treat.
"He only alerts to the scent of live bedbugs. So he passes by the scent of any other bugs or even dead bedbugs — he's just interested in the live ones," said Montgomery, who also carries a small magnifying glass to verify "the live ones from the lint."
Margaret Higgs wasn't expecting a dog at her door when she opened her apartment for Montgomery and Hershey. And a dog that smells bedbugs? You've got to be kidding.
"He can really tell?" asked Higgs, 74, who watched in disbelief as Hershey sniffed around her boudoir. "Are you serious? This is fascinating!"
While her apartment received a clean bill of health, a neighbor across the hall wasn't so lucky.
Hershey could smell trouble festering in a bed of double-stacked mattresses covered in piles of clothes. The room's occupant, Joetta McElya, 60, stretched out an arm showing old bedbug bites.
"It was all up on my arms, all over my legs," she said.
Montgomery estimated that about 40 percent of the units he inspected in Vistula Manor are infested with bedbugs. He said the building presents several common factors in the insects' spread: close living quarters and widespread use of secondhand furniture.
College dorms make good breeding grounds for similar reasons. Montgomery said he sees a spike in business in January from parents whose children unknowingly brought bedbugs home from college for the holidays.
A former hearing aid salesman, Montgomery said he thought little about bedbugs until last year after he rented a lift chair from a medical supply company while recovering from hip surgery. The chair had bedbugs, which soon spread throughout the house.
The Montgomerys spent months and hundreds of dollars trying to eradicate the problem. But the bugs, which lay eggs and can hibernate for months, kept coming back. Montgomery said that they found Hershey with a bedbug dog trainer at the Florida Canine Academy. The Montgomerys brought the dog back to Ohio to help with their own recurring bedbug problems and those of others as a part-time hobby.
But Montgomery said he found bedbugs so widespread around Cincinnati that he and Hershey went into business full time.
He said that by necessity, bedbug sniffing is very much a lifestyle for a dog. Montgomery said he keeps Hershey's nose sharp by hiding vials of bedbugs around the house. To eat, the dog must first locate the bugs. "He's first a working dog and second a family pet," Montgomery said.
Montgomery said his clients generally choose between two forms of extermination. They can go the pesticide route, which can involve various chemicals.
And because bedbugs can't stand high heat, exterminators can try to cook them to death using special heaters.
Willis said LMHA will wait to review Hershey's findings before choosing an extermination method.
The Toledo-Lucas County Health Department this year has received two complaints about bed bugs at Vistula, as well as more than a dozen reports at apartment buildings, hotels, and other residences.
Ohio's problem with bed bugs began a few years ago in Cincinnati, followed by Columbus, said Alan Ruffell, director of environmental health for the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department.
"They're kind of making their way up to us, but at this point in time, I wouldn't say they're a huge problem," he said.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Best Friends Christmas Boarding Special!!
Check Out Our Awesome Christmas Boarding Special:
Call to make your reservations at 513-489-6300. Or for exisiting clients book online! Visit https://reservations.bestfriendspetcare.com/Login.aspx and book today!
Call to make your reservations at 513-489-6300. Or for exisiting clients book online! Visit https://reservations.bestfriendspetcare.com/Login.aspx and book today!
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Not only do dogs and cats need love and a great home....
Guinea Pigs Find Love, Save Each Other
by Monica Monzingo (Subscribe to Monica Monzingo's posts)
Dec 8th 2009 @ 1:00PM Filed Under: Small Pets, Pet Adoption
Sue DeHamel, Cavy House
Best friends always show up when you least expect them -- and when you need them most.
Big Boy, a guinea pig so named for his hefty 3-pound frame, was scheduled to be euthanized at a shelter before being taken in by the Cavy House, a guinea-pig rescue shelter in La Honda, Calif., reports Mercury News.
There, Big Boy met Rosie, another guinea pig who had stopped eating after a previous friend had died, and was rapidly losing weight. Their friendship blossomed as they began nuzzling between their cages, and with Big Boy around, Rosie was inspired to begin eating again.
Mercury News reports that things took another turn when Big Boy was diagnosed with lymphoma, which typically claims the life of a guinea pig in a matter of days. But with chemotherapy treatments and Rosie's support, Big Boy made a swift recovery and is now completely cured and active over half a year later. Big Boy and Rosie also fostered two young orphans, helping wean them until they could be adopted into happy homes. The two guinea pigs continue to help others as much as they help each other.
The pair remain in the care of the small, non-profit Cavy House rescue shelter. If you are interested in donating equipment (or just looking at cute pictures of their adoptable "piggies," as they call them), visit their Web site.
Dec 8th 2009 @ 1:00PM Filed Under: Small Pets, Pet Adoption
Sue DeHamel, Cavy House
Best friends always show up when you least expect them -- and when you need them most.
Big Boy, a guinea pig so named for his hefty 3-pound frame, was scheduled to be euthanized at a shelter before being taken in by the Cavy House, a guinea-pig rescue shelter in La Honda, Calif., reports Mercury News.
There, Big Boy met Rosie, another guinea pig who had stopped eating after a previous friend had died, and was rapidly losing weight. Their friendship blossomed as they began nuzzling between their cages, and with Big Boy around, Rosie was inspired to begin eating again.
Mercury News reports that things took another turn when Big Boy was diagnosed with lymphoma, which typically claims the life of a guinea pig in a matter of days. But with chemotherapy treatments and Rosie's support, Big Boy made a swift recovery and is now completely cured and active over half a year later. Big Boy and Rosie also fostered two young orphans, helping wean them until they could be adopted into happy homes. The two guinea pigs continue to help others as much as they help each other.
The pair remain in the care of the small, non-profit Cavy House rescue shelter. If you are interested in donating equipment (or just looking at cute pictures of their adoptable "piggies," as they call them), visit their Web site.
OHIO barn fire kills 2 people and 43 Horses
Ohio Barn Fire Kills 2 People, 43 Horses
by Kirsten Taylor (Subscribe to Kirsten Taylor's posts)
Dec 9th 2009 @ 11:00AM Filed Under: Pets News
Flickr/Wolfgang Staudt
Two men and 43 horses were killed early Saturday when a barn fire broke out at a harness-racing track at the Warren County Fairgrounds in Lebanon, Ohio, according to the Dayton Daily News.
The state fire marshal has ruled out criminal intent, but hasn't yet released details explaining how the deadly fire began. The call came in at 4:50 a.m., and dozens of firefighters from surrounding communities rushed to the scene.
The firefighters kept the blaze from spreading to the other barns on the property, but the fire raged for hours. Initially, reports said 65 horses had been killed, but that number was later revised to 43, according to CNN.com.
The identities of the men killed in the fire have not been confirmed, but employees of the stables told the Associated Press that the individuals were believed to be veteran horse groomers. It was not clear whether they were working at the stables in the early morning hours, or if they may have slept there.
Determining what caused the deadly blaze could take weeks, Shane Cartmill, a spokesperson for the Ohio State Fire Marshal, told the Dayton Daily News. "We are very early on in the investigation," he said.
Horse owners and regulars at the adjacent Lebanon Raceway track were stunned by the loss. One of the horses that perished was Hoosier Flash, a six-year-old mare who had finished first at the Lebanon Raceway just hours earlier.
Horse owner Nancy Curtner lost her yearling filly Rosie in the tragic fire. "It still seems like it's not true," Curtner told the Associated Press. "We have a lot of memories in that barn."
by Kirsten Taylor (Subscribe to Kirsten Taylor's posts)
Dec 9th 2009 @ 11:00AM Filed Under: Pets News
Flickr/Wolfgang Staudt
Two men and 43 horses were killed early Saturday when a barn fire broke out at a harness-racing track at the Warren County Fairgrounds in Lebanon, Ohio, according to the Dayton Daily News.
The state fire marshal has ruled out criminal intent, but hasn't yet released details explaining how the deadly fire began. The call came in at 4:50 a.m., and dozens of firefighters from surrounding communities rushed to the scene.
The firefighters kept the blaze from spreading to the other barns on the property, but the fire raged for hours. Initially, reports said 65 horses had been killed, but that number was later revised to 43, according to CNN.com.
The identities of the men killed in the fire have not been confirmed, but employees of the stables told the Associated Press that the individuals were believed to be veteran horse groomers. It was not clear whether they were working at the stables in the early morning hours, or if they may have slept there.
Determining what caused the deadly blaze could take weeks, Shane Cartmill, a spokesperson for the Ohio State Fire Marshal, told the Dayton Daily News. "We are very early on in the investigation," he said.
Horse owners and regulars at the adjacent Lebanon Raceway track were stunned by the loss. One of the horses that perished was Hoosier Flash, a six-year-old mare who had finished first at the Lebanon Raceway just hours earlier.
Horse owner Nancy Curtner lost her yearling filly Rosie in the tragic fire. "It still seems like it's not true," Curtner told the Associated Press. "We have a lot of memories in that barn."
Sunday, December 6, 2009
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