That Poor Shih
Tzu! What Was Her Groomer Thinking?
02/15/07
click on image for more fabulous
shih tzu pictures!
Whatever
happened to common sense? Super glue? It's a
living animal, not a Ming vase! Bad enough for the
groomer to accidentally shave off the little Shih
Tzu's ear but then to super glue it back on? How
about something a little more surgical, which
brings to mind an article I wrote with my mom many
years ago for the Washington State Dairy Goat
Council Newsletter. It was about Nu-Skin, that
stuff works wonders! I thought I would bring it up
again. We had a goat who ripped her udder on some
sticky underbrush and it was a horrible gash. My
mom ran into the house and grabbed a little bottle
of Nu-Skin. She brushed it on the wound, and what
would you know, within a few days it had
completely healed with no scarring! I knew a
fellow goat breeder years ago who was trimming one
of her baby goats for a show and accidentally
shaved it's tiny teat off, she was horrified, and
had happened to read the article we wrote. She had
some on hand and gave it a try, and the baby
healed with no problems, she grew up to lead a
normal life of a dairy goat. When she freshened,
her udder looked great with no scarring. So
please! This is a far more humane treatment. If
you need to quickly take action this liquid
bandage is great! It stops the bleeding and seals
the wound almost instantly. Now I am not a vet, so
you should probably contact your vet too
especially for follow-up. Maybe if the groomer had
tried this and been honest with the owners, things
would have turned out differently.
click on image for fabulous dairy
goat pictures!
- Kimberly
|
Is Your Dog
Spoiled?
Huddled under my umbrella
the other day, I was dodging raindrops and puddles
as I walked the three blocks from the parking
garage to my office. As I was passing an apartment
building, I saw an elderly woman standing near the
entrance holding an umbrella over her little white
poodle dog. Unfortunately, the umbrella wasn't
large enough to cover both her and the dog, so she
was getting soaked. Unable to withhold comment, I
said, "Do you think he'll melt if he gets
wet?" She responded, "Well, he's sweet
enough to melt, but the truth is that if I don't
hold the umbrella for him he gets angry and pouts
and won't eat his lunch." And, by dinner time
he's an absolute bear! Welcome to the world of the
pampered pet.
Although man's best
friend has always been his dog, the degree to
which man has rewarded that friendship has quite
possibly gotten out of hand. Evidence to support
that statement can be found in the food we give
our pets,
the "attire" we put on their backs, the
jewelry with which we adorn them, the amenities we
provide in their surroundings and the provisions
we make for their temporary care when we
absolutely have to leave them behind. If
necessary, we send "Rover" to counseling
sessions with dog psychologists,
provide outrageously expensive dental care,
clip/wash/curl their hair and make sure their nails
are done so as not to embarrass them in front of
their friends.
How many of us have spent
a restless night because "Missy", our pug
faced Pekinese, can't seem to get comfortable in
our bed or "Bull", our six ounce Chihuahua,
growls and snaps at us when we roll over on him.
Yes, for those of you that are disbelievers, many
people do share their beds
with their doggies. In fact, I've heard of many
cases where couples sleep apart rather than crowd
the dog. Have you ever tried to argue with a
sleepy Doberman Pincher? Forget about it!
A thriving and lucrative industry has grown up
around the pampered pet. Pet owners spend
multi-millions each year on their little
four-legged friends. Occasionally the news media
will offer a blurb about the pet owner who spent
hundreds, even thousands of dollars on a diamond
studded dog
collar for "Fluffy."
However, this phenomenon is actually rather
commonplace. Pick up the "Yellow Pages"
in any city and you'll find scads of pet salons
that offer expensive pet jewelry and accessories.
And just because you've gone to the expense of
buying that ruby red sweater,
with matching rubies, for "Fifi", don't
think your obligation have been fulfilled. If
"Fifi" can't have a gold
rimmed feeding bowl, like her friends have, she'll
no doubt have to double up on her counseling
sessions. The expense of this could easily exceed
the cost of the bowl.
No let's get down to
diet - what can we feed "Prince", the
proud Rottweiler? To be honest, Prince isn't all
that fond of dry
dog food. He'll eat some of it, but
only if mixed with some of that delicious lamb
gravy he likes. And, just like most of us, he
prefers light fare in the mornings; perhaps a few
scrambled eggs and just a slice or two of bacon.
Careful not to overfeed though; he likes his lunch
of broiled liver at precisely 12 noon. No need to
make a big fuss about dinner though, he'll usually
eat some (or most) of whatever it is that you're
having.
This scenario might
involve a slight stretch, but it is certainly not
too far fetched. We worry more about what our pets
will eat, or if they're "off their
feed", than we worry about what our kids eat.
I wonder how it is we know that our kids will eat
when they get hungry, but we can't accept that
this truism might apply to our dogs too. We feel
compelled to continue to offer our dogs a full
menu from which to select and if all else fails,
it's time to schedule a trip to the Vet.
Speaking of Veterinarians
- most of them now offer direct deposit so your
entire paycheck can be directed right into their
accounts. Veterinary expenses have gone through
the roof and there's no end to the elaborate
medical procedures now being provided routinely. A
friend who bellyached for months about the cost of
dental appliances (braces) for his kid willingly
shelled out $2500 to fix his dog's overbite
because "Tiger" appeared to be in
discomfort when chewing on his rawhide bone.
Now that we've clearly
established that we spoil our dogs, let's offer a
word or two in our own defense. Dogs love us
without reservation. Scold them, treat then
meanly, tease them, leave them for long periods of
time or forget to feed them and they'll still love
you and want nothing more than to be near you.
Throughout history, dogs have given their lives
for their masters. "Police" dogs will
face an armed attacker to protect their handler
and "Seeing Eye" dogs will risk death or
injury to steer their Charge away from a speeding
car. A dog's love for its master is pure and
unquestioning. In my opinion, they deserve all the
pampering they can get.
Pets make us feel good.
They comfort us, allow us to be ourselves and give
those of us that need it, a reason for living.
|
Stage
Dragon
Welcome
friends (including four-footed ones!) to the official site of Artist Kimberly
Helgeson Sams 
