Nauset Kennels

The holiday season is here and while we need to keep our pets safe all year, the winter holidays pose some interesting issues. If anything, we can all use a reminder!

1. Restrain yourself from “treating” your pet to holiday goodies. Instead, show your dog how much you love him by taking him on an extra long walk. Give your cat some extra attention and loving instead of human food treats. Not only is human food too rich for our pets, but so many of us go overboard with our own treats at the holidays, it is easy to lose track of just how many treats your pet is getting.

2. Mistletoe, holly, Christmas cactus, and Christmas trees can be poisonous to pets. When you look at the list of poisonous plants you might think it is a bit overwhelming, since so many of our favorite plants are on it! However, Christmas greens and the others I have listed above, while common at the holidays, are easy to control. Either don’t bring them into the house altogether, or carefully select a location where your pet can’t access it. For a detailed list of poisonous plants, complete with pictures, follow this link and under “Featured Highlights,” click on the “Have a Poison Free Holiday,” which will take you to the Poison Control Center page for the ASPCA. (Due to linking policies, I can’t provide the direct link to the pages I am referencing – sorry!).

3. Remember that some wrapped packages contain food. Sounds simple, but Kirsten and I will never forget one Christmas where, unbeknownst to us, quite a few of our package contained chocolate and other wonderful goodies. No, we truly didn’t know. (While I would like to think I can smell chocolate a mile away, I am not that skilled). We came home to two very full, very naughty, and very lucky dogs, who had spent the evening gleefully unwrapping our food presents and devouring them!

You could go to a lot of trouble trying to sniff out the food presents. You could put a baby gate around the tree to keep the presents out of reach. We’ve found that the easiest thing to do is to just crate the dogs when you leave. And to those of you who have those goody-two-shoe dogs that would never even think of grabbing a present or doing any counter-surfing, I am truly jealous! Luckily, Pecan and Scout are too short to surf, but if they could, they would! I’m sure they will be sniffing the presents under the tree!

4. Avoid the temptation to dress your dog in those adorable costumes for longer than a little while and do not leave them unattended with those costumes on. Bells, elastic materials, and pom-poms, can all easily come off and be ingested. Elastic can dig in and irritate (Do you remember any costumes throughout your life where the elastic dug in and would itch and hurt??? Think of your poor pet!).

5. Make good decisions regarding company. If your pet isn’t great with people around or if your company doesn’t love pets, try to make arrangements accommodating them. Pets can easily get stressed when new people are around or even if there are just too many people. As much as we love our pets, we crate them or bring them to the kennel when we have company. We know they are safe  and not eating things they shouldn’t be and we know that they won’t be underfoot causing our guests to trip over them.

(Note: just because your guests have their own animals, does not mean they will love yours. I once sat through a very uncomfortable gathering with a lovely golden retriever who was just too much for our group that particular night. The hostess kept saying things like, “He doesn’t usually act like this.” Even though most of us have our own dogs, the dog just didn’t need to be there.)

6. Be very cautious with all candles at all times of the year. Wagging tails can easily knock over candles on low tables. Curious noses and whiskers can get burned. An inquisitive or playful animal can accidentally knock over a candle, which, if unattended, will cause a fire. I once forgot and left a candle burning in another room and only realized it when Puck, my cat, came flying into the room and I noticed that her fur had been singed. Scary to think that she could have really been hurt!

7. Be wary of placing any fragile or glass ornaments on lower limbs of your tree. Dogs and cats can easily knock them off. Our cats have always been fascinated by the tree and love batting at ornaments, often sending them flying off the tree and across the room. One of our odd dogs actually practices a dog form of tai-chi and circles the tree slowly over and over. Ornaments usually don’t survive that too well! While we’ve never actually had our entire tree tip over, we have lost ornaments and lights to our pets. The play pen or baby gate encircling the tree is actually a really good idea now that I think about it!

8. Avoid giving puppies for Christmas. Who really wants to house-train a dog in the winter? Who wants to try starting a walking program with your dog in the winter? Puppies need exercise. It’s hard enough getting my own exercise in the winter, much less making sure my dogs are fully exercised. Think long and hard about the timing of your puppy. And even though we don’t like to think this way, most Christmas presents lose their luster after the holiday decorations come down. Unless you bought a puppy for yourself under the guise of a present for the kids, you will be the main caretaker. It may take a few weeks, but you will be either feeding and walking the dog or constantly harping on your children to do so. How much nagging do you want to do?

9. At all times of the year, know what to do in case of an emergency and know some basic health signs to look for. Have the poison control number on hand: 800-213-6680. Go to their website to learn more: http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/

I realize that this is not a comprehensive list so I encourage you to send me your thoughts. What have I missed? What are some of your holiday stories? Have you actually used the baby gate or had to call the poison control center for your pet?

In the meantime, have a wonderful holiday season. And instead of splurging on presents for your pet, I urge you to consider a donation of pet supplies to your local food pantry. You know how important your pet is to you. Help others feed theirs. This has been a tough year for many people and I’m sure their pets have helped them cope. Happy Holidays!

Jo’s take on cat ownership

I consider myself to be more of a dog person, but we’ve always had at least one, sometimes a half a dozen cats around the house. My son is very much a cat person, so for his 13th birthday I got him a kitten. She was just a tiny tabby cat with white paws and very long whiskers. He named her Fudge. She was impossible not to fall in love with.

Ben and Fudge

So with this new kitten he marched into parenthood. He took on all the responsibilities of being a pet owner: feeding and caring for her, and of course, changing the litter box. They grew quite close. She’d much rather curl up on his lap and snuggle with him versus anyone else in the house.

Now he is 15 and loves his little Fudge dearly. So the other day when I came home for lunch I had to think, “Who really owns who here?” I walked into the kitchen to find a small mouse lying on the floor. I called to my son and said, “Did you see the dead mouse out here?” (It is not unusual for the “less than pleasant” clean-up jobs to be left for mom). He said, “Yeah, Fudge caught it. I was letting her play with it.” I mentioned that it was kind of gross sitting out here and he very sincerely commented that she was having so much fun with it he didn’t want to take it away from her. He seemed quite proud actually. Now that she seemed to be done with her “toy” I asked him to please clean it up, which he did right away.

Later that night Fudge came up in the conversation and he began explaining her evening routine, where she sits on his lap by the computer and then at bedtime is carried to bed and promptly tucked in. It began to occur to me that she really has him wrapped around her little paw. Though she is an indoor cat he will often carry her around outside and let her nibble on grass. A meow or a nudge and he’s up to get her a snack. And she never goes without when it comes to toys, most of which he buys with his own money. I think she got more stuff for Christmas than anyone else!

Now we all love our animals very much. They bring us companionship and unconditional love. And cats most certainly have their own sophisticated way they show it. They are endearing and very clever. There seems to be a fine line that cats and their owners waver on as to who is in charge. It would seem in our house little Fudgy reigns supreme. So I have to ask you to think about your house – do you own your cat? Or does your cat own you?

Oprah recently had a show where moms confessed to all sorts of things that, I think, were supposed to shock all of us. I actually had the opportunity to watch thanks to my second case of strep throat in two weeks. While I wasn’t thrilled about the show because I kept thinking, “Yeah, I’ve thought that before,” or “Yeah, I haven’t done that, but something similar certainly,” it did give me inspiration to write a new blog! Today’s entry, in homage to Oprah, is aptly titled, Confessions of a Dog Owner.

1. I like one of my dogs more than the other. Sad, isn’t it? It’s kind of that nasty secret that isn’t talked about. Pecan is just easier. He comes when I call him, he is super at the kennel and loves playing with the other dogs, he snuggles like a pro, the list goes on.

2. Sometimes I forget to feed my dogs. Trust me, my dogs used to start the pre-dinner sit-in around 2 p.m. just to be sure that I remembered.  Now that we are down to two dogs, there just doesn’t seem to be that kitchen sit-in. In fact, I usually have to call them for dinner, so perhaps I can have a pass on this one since they aren’t in the kitchen to remind me?

3. I can’t stand sleeping with my dogs. It is always the same thing every night. I go into my room and find one or two of them on my pillows. They look super cute and snuggly so I figure why not? Within a few minutes, Scout is huffing and puffing under the covers because she is so darn hot, but won’t actually move to get air. At that point the bed is shaking from her heavy breathing and it feels like the quarter beds at cheap motels!! I have to give her the boot. Pecan is small, so how much trouble can he really be, right? Well, he snores like a champ and starts right as I am drifting off to sleep. He has positioned himself on my pillow like a human being, and will even nuzzle the back of my head trying to get comfy. (This all sounds sort-of pornographic, doesn’t it?!). And to top it all off, he stays comfortable for about ten minutes and then needs to re-position, tapping at my shoulder to go under the covers and then, ten minutes later, he’s back on my pillow snoring away. Arghhhhh!

4. There are those rare moments that I wish I didn’t have dogs. (Actually, that was on Oprah too, where one mom said something about actually having just a moment or two where she wished she could go back to a simpler life without kids and I was nodding along knowing that I have had that same thought once or twice). So, there it is. I’ve said it. Most of you are gasping in horror, falling to the floor, mouth agape, eyes bulging type of reaction. Some of you are actually nodding your heads, just oh so slightly. Admit it. We love them tremendously, but every rare once in awhile you think how easy it would be…

5. I’m so glad we don’t have any cats anymore. For those of you who actually knew Puck, my little black kitty, you will be totally surprised by this comment. She was one of a kind, true, but with all cats come litter boxes, wet cat food that stinks up the whole house, hair balls, etc. My daughter keeps asking when we can get another cat and my voice tells her, “Someday, honey,” but in my head I am saying, “Never!!” But we all know how persistent children can be.

6. Sometimes I like my pets more than my children.  No back talk, no cajoling, no strings attached. Pets are just there to love you back. Period. They don’t need to find their own ways, figure things out, stuff like that.

7. Even after all I’ve said, my last confession is that I really can’t imagine our house without at least one dog. I always wanted a dog as a child, even bringing one home from the mall where someone was giving away free puppies. My mom had other ideas though, so we had more years without dogs than with dogs. Even without the kennel, we are animal people. At one point we had so many animals we called our house “The Zoo.” Two snakes, five dogs, and three cats kept us busy and smiling. Like I said before, we are now down to two dogs. They provide constant joy, they teach my children responsibility and compassion, they provide lots of cuddles, and who can resist a dog who snores right in your ear?

My parents are here visiting and helping out with the kids so Kirsten and I can work (still trying to get into the new building while operating out of the old building). We love having them around and are so happy to have the help. They are not, however, animal people.

Scout is continually underfoot, waiting for my mom to drop her a tidbit now and then. I am shocked that mom hasn’t tripped over her and suffered a bad fall.

Pecan is still suffering from whatever is wrong with his stomach and esophagus and regurgitates for hours at a time. It really is a pain (both for him and us) and gets old quickly. In an effort to stop the regurgitation, we are experimenting with feeding him three meals a day. And did I mention that he is still skittish and barks at people in the house even though he just saw them two minutes prior?!

Needless to say, my parents will not miss our dogs when they head home next week. If anything, I am sure they will be scratching their heads wondering why we even have animals.

You have all known people who are just not that into dogs or cats, or even the less popular animals like ferrets and birds. There is probably even a hierarchy amongst animal lovers as to what level of commitment they are willing to make. Some people are just into dogs, some are into rabbits, while others have the whole menagerie.

Back to my folks though. They cannot fathom the amount of money we have forked over for our pets (sometimes I can’t either though!!). Nor can they understand the nature of our business and why anyone would go on vacation with their pets. My dad guffawed last night over a conversation abut CPR for animals. Over the laughter I think I heard him say, “Don’t expect me to ever perform CPR on your animals.” If Pecan comes over seeking affection from my mother she sort of looks around to see if we are close by and then quietly tries to shoo him away. This is too good – I can actually hear her right now telling him to go away as I am sitting here typing!

Non-animal people just don’t get it. I suppose we could create a window sticker for our cars proclaiming our feelings like Jeep owners with their “It’s a Jeep thing,” but ours would say, “It’s a dog thing,” or “It’s an animal thing.”

For the moment we are all coexisting in the house with animals, using a lot more of the industrial size lint roller sheets than usual and vacuuming a ton. And thank goodness for the kennel – Scout and Pecan have been spending a lot more time than usual with us at work! Mom and Dad pretend they like the animals to a point (kudos to them for even trying) and do make it a point to remember to feed them and let them out as needed. To animal lovers this probably sounds cruel on their part, that they “make it a point to remember to feed them.” But when it comes to non-animal people, we should remember our new motto. It really is an animal thing. Isn’t it?