Welcome to Best Friends!

Friday, April 30, 2010

Introducing Rumba

Kelly at Best Friends Pet Care lost her dalmation Chance in June 2009 to prostate cancer.  Chance was 15 ears old and still had a lot of spunk in his old age. Kelly was not ready for a new dog but she knew one day she would have another dog. She has always had animals in her life from cats, dogs, chinchillas, birds to even a stepdog at work named Harley a golden Retriever that sits at the desk with her everyday! Well, around March one of her employees was driving down the road and found a sweet black and tan hound/lab mix in the road. He decided to bring it to work to see if we could find the owner but nobody claimed this great dog.
Rumba is about 1 year old and is potty trained and has manners.(not your typical dump or lost dog) Since then Kelly had agreed to foster Rumba and now she has a permanent bed in Kelly's house. Kelly and her boyfriend fell in love with Rumba and decided to keep her. Now the cat wasn't to sure about a dog moving in though....lol

Moral of the story is if you are blessed with the opportunity to rescue a homeless pet, please do.  So many dogs need homes right now that many are being euthanized everyday for overcrowding in the shelters and many rescues are so full, they can not take in anymore homeless pets.


If you are looking to adopt an animal got petfinder.com and you can search by breed,size,age,sex

Meet Darius : Worlds largest rabbit





According to Guinness world records it has been comfirmed that Darius a s 50 pound, 4 feet 3 inches long, and insured for $1.6M dollar rabbit has set a new record. Darius is the fourth world-record rabbit owned by model and grandmother Annette Edwards. Being a star has its benefits for the large lagomorph. Darius is insured for $1.6 million dollars, has an agent and travels with a bodyguard who reportedly makes about $100,000 a year just to wrangle a rabbit.




Read more: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/36845356/ns/today-today_pets_and_animals?GT1=43001#ixzz0mbJAgC8e

Tiny horse maybe the new record

How would you like this little baby for a pet?






TinThis miniature horse is just one week old and is already in the running to be the world's smallest horse. Einstein was born April 22, weighing only six pounds and standing at just 14 inches, reports Tonic. That's seven inches and 12 pounds smaller than the average, according to the Concord Monitor.


The wee little foal was born in New Hampshire, at Tiz A Miniature Horse Farm and while breeder Judy Smith knew Einstein was tiny, she was surprised to learn that he has a shot at a Guinness World Record. (The current record holder is a chestnut mare named Thumbelina, who was 11 inches tall and 8.5 pounds when she was born in 2001.)
Despite his eensy-weensy stature, Einstein appears perfectly normal and healthy. He was born three days after his due date, and, according to the Concord Monitor, is perfectly proportioned.
The folks who bought and named Einstein -- Rachel Wagner and Charles Cantrell -- did so in part to keep the petite pinto out of "some kind of circus thing," reports the Concord Monitor. They're focused on the animal's quality of life, and hope that by naming him Einstein, they can put a spotlight on the wisdom of supporting farms, such as Tiz, where the goal is a healthy horse and not on breeding the tiniest pet possible.

Pawnation.com

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Todays contest: Lets see who can play dead the longest

Question of the day?

What did one goose say to the other goose at Best Friends Petcare?

Springtime Dangers for pets

According to pawnation spring can have some dangers for your animals!

April showers bring flowers for sniffing, long walks in the neighborhood and afternoon naps on the lawns. But before you let your pet leap into spring, make sure you're keeping your dogs and cats safe from these seasonal health hazards:

1. Watch Out for Poisonous Flowers
Tulip, hyacinth and daffodil bulbs can damage a dog's mouth and esophagus, causing drooling, vomiting, severe diarrhea or even abnormal heart rhythms, depending on the amount consumed. So be sure to keep bulbs out of reach before planting says Justine Lee, an emergency critical care veterinary specialist and Associate Director of Veterinary Services at the Minneapolis-based Pet Poison Helpline.
When planting, place the bulbs in deeply, surround them with plenty of mulch and then supervise your dog when it's outside to make sure it's not digging them up, Lee advises. Once the flowers are out and have bloomed, they generally don't pose a threat, as it's the bulb that's the most poisonous.

Also be very careful with lilies. Just a couple of leaves from certain lilies, like the day, Asiatic and Japanese varieties, can cause severe kidney failure in cats, according to Lee who said she dug up all the lilies in her yard in case her cat ever gets outside. "My own sister's cat died from it," Lee tells Paw Nation "Cats will always chew on plants. They're just curious and want to try something different. But one or two leaves will kill them."

2. Be Careful With Common Fertilizers
How you treat your yard is very important, as even organic supplements can be toxic to your pet.
Blood and bone meal are popular organic fertilizers, and dogs love the taste of these meat-based products. But ingesting blood meal can cause vomiting, diarrhea and severe pancreatic inflammation, while bone meal can create a cement-like ball in the dog's stomach, potentially forming an obstruction in the gastrointestinal tract and requiring surgery to remove.



Another known hazard are rose fertilizers containing disulfoton or other types of organophosphates which can be deadly to a dog. While most dogs wouldn't eat the granules just for fun, gardeners often mix the fertilizer with bone or blood meal, creating a tasty invitation. "The pet will ingest a larger amount of that chemical because it tastes so good, resulting in the ingestion of potentially two toxicities," Lee says. Consider fencing off roses with plastic or chicken wire so dogs can't get into them, says Lee. It might not be pretty, but "it helps protect your pets," she says.



3. Assess Pest Control Around the House and on Your Pet
Spring means ants. What you may not know is that many ant baits use peanut butter, practically luring dogs to nibble on them. In fact, the chemicals inside the baits are relatively innocuous, due to the low concentration of insecticide and small size of the bait, experts say. The biggest risk is a gastrointestinal obstruction from swallowing the plastic. To be safe, keep traps off the floor, placing them instead in areas such as on the counter or in a window sill.

NEW MOCHA MULCH JUST PUT ON THE LIST AS TOXIC!!!

Another big risk for your animals is misuse of flea and tick products. "Dog flea and tick medications can never be used on a cat because they have a different metabolism," Lee says. "They should never apply it without consulting a vet."
You should also learn more about the kind of flea and tick prevention you are using as recently there has been a lot of concerns about the toxicity of certain products. Depending on where you live and what your risks are you may consider some of the natural options for flea and tick control. (The National Resources Defense Council gives suggestions on chemical-free ways to keep pet pest free.) Discuss your concerns with your vet so that you can come to the best solution together.

Spring is a great time to let your animals roam and if you take the right steps to keep them safe, everyone will be happy.

Best Friends Caption Contest Winners!

A big thank you goes out to all that stopped by our table & entered our caption contest at the Everything Pets Expo a few weeks ago! Below are more of the finalists from our contest.



Written by Tara N.

Written by Karen B. 


Written by Patty A. 

Monday, April 26, 2010

Hero of the day: Dog shows police where fire is

Hero German Shepherd Leads Help to Fire


by Kristen Seymour (Subscribe to Kristen Seymour's posts)

Apr 23rd 2010 @ 12:30PM Filed Under: Pets News, Hero Pets

Just like in an episode of "Lassie," this hero dog led police to the scene of a fire and helped save his family.



Buddy, a German shepherd, was with his owner, Ben Heinrichs, when his family's workshop caught fire. Once he and Buddy were safely outside, Heinrichs turned to the dog and said, "We need to get help." He didn't expect Buddy to actually do anything about it, of course. However, help is exactly what the shy dog brought -- in the form of an Alaska State Trooper, reports the Anchorage Daily News. The dog's heroic act was caught on the trooper's dashboard camera.



http://www.pawnation.com/2010/04/23/hero-german-shepherd-leads-help-to-a-fire/?sms_ss=blogger
Buddy had gone off into the woods, and Heinrich assumed the pooch was hiding. In fact, Buddy had run out to the road, where he caught the attention of Alaska State Trooper Terrence Shanigan, who had been alerted by concerned neighbors when they saw a fireball erupting in the distance. Shanigan was having difficulty finding the fire due to the winding country roads. That's when Buddy suddenly appeared. On a hunch, Shanigan followed the dog and arrived on the scene just in time. He was able to talk the fire department through the difficult directions, and they put out the flames just before the fire spread to the family's home.

Buddy is being presented with an award from the Alaska State Troopers today, including a silver plated, engraved dog bowl, reports "Today" via the Associated Press. We're willing to bet he's getting more than a few extra cuddles and dog biscuits.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Small dog meetup group April 10th

Pet expo pictures


Thank you all for who stopped by our booth and supported us at the Pet Expo downtown this weekend. We had a blast. Following pictures are some of the other vendors that were there:


Monday, April 12, 2010

UPDATE: Adams county dogs all have homes!!!

http://www.tristatecart.com/

Click on the link above to see the success stories of the hoarding situation in Adams County. All dogs have either gotten forever homes or rescues have taken them in. Thank you everyone for the efforts of helping out with this situation.

If you would like to volunteer to help animals in need please feel free to check out Tri-State county's website.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Vets Needed To Examine Rescued Dogs (Adams County)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Adams County Animal Response Team is looking for veterinarians to volunteer their time to help give health exams to 60+ dogs taken from two homes this week. Vets who want to volunteer can call 513-702-8373.
Background info here: http://www.wlwt.com/news/22989339/detail.html
Location: Adams County


Also they are needing people to donate the following items: cleaning supplies, cages (all sizes),grooming tools, muzzles, rubber gloves. They DON'T neeed food please.  Donations may be brought to Adams County Sheriff(Paul Huley) or here at Best Friends Petcare and we will deliver them personally!