SERVING PETS AND THEIR PEOPLE SINCE 1994

 HARRISON ARKANSAS AND THE SURROUNDING AREA

What’s new

Hi everybody and welcome to my Winter Newsletter there are some new things going on first of all if you haven’t been to my website lately you need to check it out it is totally new for those of you who can’t find the address it’s www.maryspetsitting.com there is now a live chat and an e-mail list you can sign up for to keep in touch with new changes, ask questions or just tell stories and get to know other pet owners.  So let me know what you think so far since I am still making changes and adding new things I am also still adding in new
pictures so if you don’t see your kids just be patient it has taken longer than I thought to get this done and I have had to redo some pages because they didn’t work right. 
Another new thing I have added is a calendar page and I will be adding times when I might not be fully available or am going to take a vacation or just things I think you might be interested in.   I am going to be adding some new policies and I will be working with each one of you to make a disaster plan for your pets I will be talking about that more later.  I learned some new things at the Pet  Sitters International  Convention and I want to use them to help you make  your pets healthier and  happier.   I also learned new first aid and cpr techniques if you have any questions I will be glad to answer them. 

On a lighter note don’t forget to get you pets pictures with Santa Paws this year the North Arkansas  Kennel Club will again be doing Santa paws at Ozark Veterinary Hospital  on December 1 and 15 from 9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. we are again doing the digital pictures which turned out great last year.  We will be printing them on site.  We will have 2 printers going so it should make things easier

Here is a picture of Suede with Santa from last year's shoot

HOLIDAYS ARE Here

The start of the Holidays is  upon us with only a few days till Thanksgiving and then Christmas.  Don’t
forget to plan for your pets during this busy time of year even if you aren’t
traveling for the Holidays   there are some things you need to remember to keep your pets safe and happy such as if you host parties and they aren’t used to all the noise and confusion you need to confine them in a quiet place and with people going in and out of the house it might be too
tempting to escape if they are scared or if they just see an opportunity to get out for more tips you can check the web site  I have  links to
articles with all kinds of tips.

DISASTER PLANNING

As you know a disaster can
happen at any time and it can be from a tornado to an ice or snow storm to fires and floods.      Everybody needs some kind of a  disaster plan in place.  Some of the things we talked about were things that were learned from hurricanes and a lot of things were learned from hurricane Katrina one of the many lessons was about pets being separated from  
owners  and how to re-unite them and one of the ways we discussed was
simply having pictures of you and your pets together I know it may be difficult for those with multiple pets but it is
doable.  Also identification is an        important thing having a collar and tags is essential but another good way is having your pets micro chipped and registered with a national registry so if your pet is ever lost they can be
identified and returned very
easily.  The other big thing is if an evacuation is necessary you need to have a way to transport your pets and have a place to go.  If you happen to be gone when something happens then I need to know what to do with your pets and where your emergency supplies are located so I can make sure they are taken care of.  I have actually had to bring home pets during an ice and snow storm when I knew I
wouldn’t be able to get there for a few days and also when the roads were flooded.  These are all things we all need to think about and make plans for I will be sending a brochure out with the newsletters to help you
figure out your plan.

Here is a list of Emergency supplies you need to have on hand:

·           A week’s worth of food for each pet

·          Can opener

·          1 gallon of fresh water per pet

·          Cleaning supplies

·          Favorite toys or treats

·          Spare collar with ID tags

·          Grooming items

·          Secure chain and leash

·          Crate or carrier

·          Flashlights

·          Transistor radio

·          Fresh batteries

·          Pet first aid kit

·          Keep a current photo of the pet with your emergency supplies in case the pet is lost.

·          Have all medical records for your pets as you will need these if you need to board them.

PET FIRST AID

Pet first aid is something
everybody needs to know at one time or another if you have pets for any length of time just like for people you can make a
difference by having these skills  which is why I think it is
important that I keep up my
certification and the main reason I went to the Pet Sitters
Convention in St Louis this year.  Just like with human first aid there are always new
techniques and new technologies
being developed of course if you have an emergency you want to be able to stabilize the pet and get them to the vet as soon as possible it is more important for us in this area since there are no emergency vet clinics in the area and even though we have
wonderful vets here they are not on duty 24 hours a day 7 days a week and things invariably happen after hours and on weekends so knowing some
basic things can help until you can actually get your pet to their vet.  It would be impossible to go into a lot of details in a newsletter but if you would like to have a handout or would like for me to show you some of the things I learned please feel free to ask and if enough people are interested maybe I could give a mini class or seminar for some of you.   I am also going to put some articles on the web site in the near future so stay tuned.

Here are some suggestions of things to put in your pet first aid kit:

·          Sterile gauze pads and bandages

·          Adhesive tape

·          Bandage scissors and tweezers

·          Triangular bandage (muzzle or sling)

·          Alcohol wipes

·          Hydrogen peroxide

·          Antibiotic ointment

·          Sterile saline solution

·          Cotton swabs

·          Activated charcoal tabs and Maalox

·          Thermometer

·          Plastic gloves

·          Penlight with fresh batteries

·          Large towel or blanket

·          Shampoo and antibacterial soap

·         Name, address, phone
number and hours of your Veterinarian and the nearest Emergency Veterinary Clinic

Another thing that is important is checking your pet’s vital signs it is important to know what is normal and what is not :

·          Checking pulse:  The easiest and least invasive place to do this is the femoral pulse.  The femoral pulse is located on the inside of the thigh of either back leg.  Slide your fingers inside the upper thigh, feeling for the slight depression.  Once you’ve located the pulse, use a watch and count the beats  for six seconds and add a zero to that number or count the beats for 15 seconds and multiply by 4    (this is very similar to taking a human’s pulse) the pulse rate for adult dogs will vary between 70-160 beats per minute.  Toy breeds or small dogs can be higher and range from 180-220 beats per minute.  A cat’s pulse rate can vary from 110-240 beats per
minute.

Checking breathing:  You can visually or manually check a pet’s
breathing.  Place your hand on the side of the chest or watch for the rise and fall of the chest; count the rises and falls for 30
seconds and double to get breaths per
minute.  The quality and character of the pet’s
breathing should be smooth, rhythmic and easy while at rest.  The breath rate for dogs is 10-30 breaths per minute.  Cats can breathe at 20-30 breaths per minute.  It is best to determine the normal
rate for the pet at rest.

·          Gum and mucus membrane color:  Gum and mucous membrane tissue color and assist you in determining the immediate underlying health of the pet.  As a general rule:  pale/white can mean anemia; yellow can indicate jaundice; and blue/gray can indicate lack of oxygen in the cells.

 These are just a few things to look at if you think your pet is not acting right and it is
recommended  that you practice these skills and know what is normal so if your pets do show signs of illness you can better inform the vet about what you have observed  and you might just save your pet’s life.  Like I said if you would like more information about these topics or others please let me know.
 

Christmas Reservations

If you are making plans to go away for Christmas don’t wait to get your reservations make them as early as you can if you wait till the last minute I may be booked up although I always try to accommodate everyone I can there are only so many hours in the day and I only have so much room here at the house for boarding.  Don’t forget you can use the reservation form on the web site to make your reservations it is quick and easy.