Walking your cat is a great way to get him or her exploring the outdoors and a better alternative to allowing your cat to roam free. Roaming cats can become a nuisance and lead to bad neighbor relations but some cats are just not satisfied being indoor cats. The good news is you can take your cat for a leash walk and it's all the rage lately. Here are some tips for safe kitty walking:

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- Always use a harness. Cats throats are more sensitive than many dogs and don't withstand the pressure exerted by a collar. This can cause gagging and choking. 
-Acclimate your cat to the harness for short periods of time indoors before attempting a walk. Wearing body equipment can be intimidating and upsetting to some cats and they will need time to adjust. Always supervise as entanglement and strangulation are potential hazards.
-Check out various styles of harnesses and leads. There are strap harnesses and vest type harnesses. While vests provide greater security and less likelihood of escape, strap harnesses may feel freer to some kitties simply because it is less material to wear. You can use any lead but bungee style leads provide your kitty with some give for jumping and exploring. Always make sure your harness fits securely.
- When your cat is new to the outdoors, steer clear of areas with lots of traffic, loud noises and other roaming animals as this may spook your kitty.
-Walking a cat is quality over quantity. Long walks and covering lots of ground is not near as important as good old exploration time in an interesting and safe area.
-Don't forget to use a good flea and tick repellent and make sure your cat is up to date on all necessary vaccines. 
-Never tie your cat out on a lead unsupervised. Your cat can't escape if approached by another animal or predator and as always, there is a danger of entanglement and strangulation if kitty panics.

Now go and enjoy the outdoors with your cat. Your cat will thank you.

​In light of recent terror attacks in Paris and at home, it is important to be prepared in emergencies that may require evacuation. Don't forget to include your pets in this planning. If you must evacuate, take your pets with you as you may not be able to return for them later due to human safety reasons. Here are a few things to know when preparing for an emergency with pets:

- Baltimore County's companion animal & human shelter is at Eastern Technical High School but only applies in small scale emergencies. In large scale emergencies, pets cannot be accommodated. They also only take pets under 80 lbs

- make prior arrangements with a friend or relative outside your immediate area to shelter you and your pets in an emergency. If this is not possible, locate hotels or motels outside your area that will accommodate pets in emergencies. Vet hospitals and animal shelters may be an option but it is recommended to keep your pets with you if at all possible.

- have 2 weeks worth of food, water and pet medications as well as medical and vaccination documents in a waterproof cover.

- bring leashes, collars, crates to secure your pets and ID tags in case a pet gets lost

- for cats, bring a portable container with some litter

Have these things in a plastic storage container ready to go and replace expired items as needed and you will always be prepared in an emergency that involves evacuation.

I had a couple people approach me yesterday while walking a client's dogs. The conversation went quickly to behavior problems they were experiencing with their dogs, most notably leash reactivity.
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Does your dog get overexcited or lunge forward in the presence of other dogs while on leash? Sometimes it is fear aggression and sometimes it is an over enthusiastic response by a very social dog who wants to play. Either way, the resulting behavior is unpleasant. Here are a couple quick tips:

-1) Provide a highly valued treat when another dog appears but is still far enough away that you can get your dog's attention. Eventually your dog associates the appearance of another dog with something pleasant. Do not try to give a treat when the dog is already in the ZONE- barking and pulling on the lead. You may not get his attention at this point and if he takes the treat, you inadvertently reward the bad behavior.

2) Enlist a neighbor or friend with a calm nonreactive dog to help. Start with enough distance that your dog notices the other dog but is not reacting yet, then work to get your dog to sit and look at you for a treat. If necessary, put more distance between you until you have success, then gradually try shorter distances. Your goal is a calm, nonreactive dog in the presence of other dogs.

Be patient and consistent with your routine as every dog is different. 

Like many dog owners, I used to board my dogs while on vacation and the boarding facility was a great place. It was in the country, offered camp activities and the price was reasonable. After a few unfortunate experiences though, I now use a pet sitter when I can't take them with me.
Here are a 5 reasons to consider a pet sitter, even when your boarding facility is great:

• You find yourself traveling out of the way before hitting the road. Our facility was in a country setting, about 45 minutes north of us and we were usually heading south for vacation. The facility offered a shuttle option which we tried, but I prefer to see my dogs off at the facility and the journey on a shuttle bus with other confused and stressed out pooches is another stressor for my dogs and one more thing I have to worry about. Did my dogs arrive safely or was the shuttle involved in an accident?
• If Your dog often comes home sick. The best and cleanest facility cannot ensure your dog won't come home with kennel cough or dog flu. You can vaccinate and every dog in the facility can be vaccinated, but there are many causes of kennel cough. The vaccine offers protection against the bacterium, Bordatella bronchiseptica, but a couple of viruses also cause the same symptoms. A recovered dog can remain contagious for months by shedding the Bordatella organism (if that is the culprit). When my dogs were pups, they came home from a boarding facility with kennel cough after being vaccinated two weeks prior to boarding. In the young, old and immune compromised, kennel cough can lead to pneumonia and be fatal. Dog flu is another concern for boarding facilities and dog parks. In states with confirmed cases, it is recommended to skip trips to dog parks and other places where dogs congregate.
• Your dog comes home hoarse. Your dog has a hoarseness to his bark or no bark at all. This is typically a sign that your dog has been barking his head off in a run and that means his stay was stressful for him.
• Your dog gets diarrhea during his stay. This happened to one of my dogs and the facility contacted me promptly and had him treated at no charge. That was wonderful but the fact remains that my boy was still stressed. Since I always pack his food to go with him, I know it wasn't a diet change that caused the diarrhea.
• You have to cut your last day of vacation short to get home in time for pick up at the kennel. On our last vacation, we made an impromptu decision to squeeze in another day on the beach instead of leaving in the morning as planned. Had my dogs been in a boarding facility, they would've had to stay another night and not been able to greet us when we arrived home. I would've also incurred another night's worth of charges. Instead we knew our sitter was coming through the dinner hour and that we would be home late but by bedtime. We did not need to schedule another visit or pay extra.

We now use the services of a pet sitter exclusively and my dogs stay in their own comfortable environment, get one on one attention and plenty of exercise at visits. Considering travel time to and from a kennel and vet expenses for potential illnesses contracted, paying a professional pet sitter is well worth it to us and I am happy to provide that same peace of mind to other pet parents.

Have you ever considered making your own dog treats? News headlines and numerous recalls in recent years have made us ever wary of store bought treats. From salmonella contamination to unknown harmful ingredients from China, store bought dog treats have had their share of problems and have sometimes resulted in pet illness and death. I admit, I avoid store bought jerky treats at all costs since the recalls and illness reports. Knowing that your dogs are consuming treats that are made from ingredients fit for human consumption offers a certain peace of mind. 

I have recently experimented with making my own dog cookie treats. I have come across two recipes so far that my dogs love (not that they are picky!). Blogs that deal in the topics of pets and baking can be a great resource to find yummy dog treat recipes. The first was Pumpkin Peanut Butter Dog Treats and they made great stocking stuffers at Christmas. The second is Peanut Butter Bacon Dog Treats which I just spent some time whipping up on this very rainy day. Both recipes have natural, healthy human grade ingredients and little to no added refined sugar which can always be tweaked to your liking or replaced with a more natural sweetener such as honey.

Give them a try. I think you will love them and your dog will love you even more for them. Just remember to check with your vet if your dog is prone to allergies and always give treats in moderation.

Puppies are adorable and their behaviors entertaining. But some puppy
behaviors can be difficult to live with like puppy mouthing or playful biting.
This can be even more concerning if you have young children. Puppies play fight
with their littermates, boxing with their paws, wrestling and pinning each other
down, and play biting.  Wild dogs and cats do it too. This ritual prepares the
young animal for the real world of defending territory and hunting and also
works to forge a bond with littermates. Given this scenario, a puppy may not
realize how rough he's being. So what can you do to eliminate this behavior in
your interactions with your pet?
 
1) Redirect the chewing/biting behavior to an acceptable chew toy.
 
2) When a puppy play bites too hard, tell him "ouch" or "no" loudly enough
to get his attention and stop playing momentarily. Walk away. Do this
consistently every time the behavior repeats.
 
3) Lastly, if the puppy is engaged in rough play biting of you or your
child, place your hand over the top of his snout and use your thumb and fingers
on either side of his mouth to curl his lips under his own teeth while he is
biting. You do not need to squeeze. His own bite pressure will do the work. He
should immediately feel the pain of his own bite and decrease pressure. Tell him
"no" or "no biting" while doing this.
 
Any method takes patience and work. Be consistent in your correction and
you will have a gentle, well behaved pup.

The free consultation (a.k.a. meeting your pets) is an important part of arranging pet sitting services. Imagine how frightened your pet might feel being left alone and seeing a stranger enter the home and approach them. They were not privy to your phone conversations with the pet
sitter. This fear could lead to unexpected aggression or behavior issues like accidents or not eating.
 
Cats are no exception. While some of them may hide from the pet sitter during the consultation, they will come out and sniff around after that person leaves. They will "remember" these scents when your pet sitter visits to care for them. This familiarity will reduce their fear when the pet sitter arrives and they may eventually come out of hiding during visits.