Halloween - A fun but potentially dangerous holiday

I think pretty much everyone is up to speed on the obvious dangers of Halloween.

Lots of doors opening and closing. Lots of excitement and kids hyped up on sugar. So keep all pets either confined to a room away from the action or keep the dogs on leashes.

And yes, even your dog that has never run out the front door before. I worked emergency shifts for years and can't tell you the number of animals that came in for various wounds and injuries on Halloween that had 'never run out the front door before.' So play it safe!

I am also pretty sure everyone knows about the problem with chocolate in dogs (and cats but for some reason most cats simply don't dig the taste of candy bars). So again, play it safe and keep ALL candy away from the pets.

Most cat owners are also aware of the dark side of the holiday and keep all "Halloween" kitties (black, torti, orange and white) locked up tight the week before and during Halloween. You don't want your kitty targeted by some mis-guided people.

What a lot of dog owners (esp tea cup size) don't realize is that ANY sugar or fatty food can create a condition called pancreatitis. This is a condition of the pancreas that inflames especially after high caloric foods are ingested.

The rash of pancreatitis after a holiday (any of them really since most holidays involve ingesting large amounts of rich food #duh) is staggering.

Don't be one of those people in my waiting room Nov 1st!

I know we all have an instinct to want to share with our dogs, especially the little ones with their pitiful eyes and mind powers, but remember they don't have the same pancreas as we do!

So have a GREAT Halloween. Just if we want to give treats to our dogs this year, how about we give LOVE instead :-)

Oh. There you are.

God love these foster kittens but they are the most gentle little souls in the world.

They aren't that loving though either. They are just... well... very proper. We think someone might have swapped out our kittens with some British kittens.

How gentle and proper? Well I broke my pinkie toe last week. It was swollen and bruised and sore. Little Gretchen came over and started to play with my foot. I, of course, tensed up expecting pain.

Nope. She just gently patted my foot with her paw, no claws, then 'gnawed' at my toe with her lips. That's it. That's how she plays. It wasn't like she knew it was sore or I asked her to be gentle. She just was.

For more proof we just have to talk about the kittens favorite game, "Oh. There you are."

And yes, it is about as exciting as it sounds. Basically the a kitten will 'find' either their sibling, another cat, or one of us humans.

When I say 'find' I mean 'find.' There is no pounce. There is no 'Boo!' Or even a 'OH! Holy Cow I found you!!!!' Instead it is just a slight cock to the side of their head. "Oh. I found you." Then maybe a little bat of their paw, but nothing like a tag, you are it. Just a little acknowledgment that they did in fact 'found' you and then they are off doing something else.

Then about 5-10 minutes later they come back. "Oh. I found you."

Like I said, we are surprised they don't break out the afternoon tea!

How have you been surprised by little ones (canine or feline)? Let us know!

Chi-Chi the... Shih Tzu?

Yes, that was my reaction too when I first met Chi-Chi.

I expected a cute little short-coated Chihuahua when I walked into the room. I mean I didn't even check the chart first to see what breed she was.

What I found was a black and white mop. Matted but oh so friendly. Even though she had eaten a paper clip.

It was lodged in her intestine and the owners decided not to treat.

What???

Well, as you can imagine, we couldn't let that happen so Chi-Chi was turned over to the clinic and we of course took care of the problem.

Now that could have been the end of the story. A poor mis-named Shih Tzu rescued from a bad home, but that was just the beginning.

Just when we were starting to look for a new home for Chi-Chi, one of my staff come in with her elderly grandmother. Grams was 87 years old and did not understand why everyone was fussing over her and not wanting to let her drive.

Her license had been suspended but that didn't stop Grams. They had hid her keys and Gram just hired a locksmith to come out and make new keys.

But when Grams walked in and saw Chi-Chi. It was love at first sight! Once Chi-Chi was out of the cage, she ran right over, jumped in Grams' lap and curled up.

Luckily I knew of the situation so when the notion of Grams adopting Chi-Chi came up, I approved it, but only on 1 condition. Chi-Chi had to go where ever Grams went... and had to sit in Grams' lap.

Of course, of course. I looked at my receptionist and winked. Problem solved. How could Grams drive if she had to take care of Chi-Chi.

Now if Grams needs groceries, she just calls one of her kids or grand kids and they come and pick Grams and Chi Chi up and drive them to the store, because after all Chi Chi had come from a bad environment and needed that 'extra' care. ;-)

Littleness, once again, comes to the rescue!

Share your story of "Littleness" below in a comment!

Chief does NOT like change

No, seriously, he HATES it.

I think this is a characteristic of "Littleness." It seems the smaller they are the more they want their routine to be EXACTLY the same.

The only change they want in there life is for YOU to give up more of your life to be with them more.

Case in point? As I announced last week we have two new kittens. They were sick so required care. Which of course took time.

I think you can see where that is going! I mean, not only did I spend less time with Chief, but then I spent 'his' time with some stupid kittens?

Why that is the most insulting thing he has ever heard!

So the first night we had them, he REFUSED to get under the covers with me. Oh not just refused to sleep with me, but went to the other side of the bed and laid with his BACK to me!

Finally after a half an hour I coaxed him back under the covers. Somewhere during the night obviously while he was groggy, he crawled up and curled up in my arms.

I awakened with 2 pounds of Chihuahua snuggled under my chin with my arm wrapped around him.

But that's how Littleness is, right? They pout and strut and punish but at the end of the day, or first thing in the morning, they simply melt into you.

I love the kittens. Who couldn't? But Chief? Ah, whether he knows it or not, change just makes me love him all the more!

"LJ" is in the house!

"L.J" stands for Lance Junior. So okay, this blog post may be about "Littleness," just not the doggie kind.

If you have been reading this blog you know that we lost our most beloved flame-point Siamese a few months back. We then went into a strange altered state of not finding/yet finding a replacement for him.

Well, not him, but you know some kitten energy into the household to take our minds off of how lonely we were without him (even with 5 dogs and 3 other cats).

We had truly given up (at least for now) when the call came. A 4 week old flame-point Siamese kitten in trouble!

You can only imagine how fast we were out the door. Even if it wasn't LJ, we could not in all good conscious in Lance's name a flame point kitten to go untreated.

So we were driving to the not so great part of town and our GPS took us down a dirt alley. Um... Should we go down there? It was getting dark and my Roomie and I are not the bravest of the bunch.

But then out of the shadows stepped a huge flame point Tom cat. He was dirty and scrappy and thin. But oh so beautiful. Since we were within 3 houses, we knew that was Daddy kitty. He disappeared back through a broken down car, but we knew we had just had our first sign that LJ was right around the corner.

When we got there the foster mom totally had her heart in the right place, but did not have the knowledge necessary to care for such sick kittens. There were 5. Honestly LJ was so thin, malnourished, and dehydrated we weren't even sure if he was the kitten for us. But how could we leave him there?

Then there was his runt sister. She was half the size of the other kittens who weren't really all that big to begin with. The foster mother and I spoke for over an hour giving care instructions and general tips.

But at some point both LJ and his little runt sister ended up inside my sweatshirt. I looked at my Roomie. We both knew what that meant!

Of course I rationalized it that with only 3 kittens on her hands the foster mom could give better care to the remaining litter, but the truth was I knew that little runt wouldn't make it another 24 hours without aggressive care.

We spent 3 days getting the kittens back on the bottle. Giving fluids and medications. Grooming. Loving. Biting our nails. Would they make it?

Well, we are happy to say they have! With flying colors. Our little runt is named Gretchen while of course the newest addition to the family is LJ, who happens to be a 'snow ninja,' but that's a whole other blog.

And we are having the time of our life. To see two kittens on death's door bloom back to life (mainly so they can chew on our toes it appears) has brought love and light into the house.

We shall always miss Lance, there is no doubt, but I think our period of deep, sorrowful grieving is over.

After all Lance clearly sent LJ to us. We HAVE to enjoy him!

#thankyouLance #evenknowwefeelyourlove

The Magic Dog Cookie Dispenser

My Bichon "Molly" believes that any object in your hand is a magic dog cookie dispenser.

ANYTHING.

Now let's be clear, Molly has chronic pancreatitis so in the 14+ yrs I have had her she has NEVER gotten a treat. Chewable medicine, maybe. Treat? Never.

Yet a Bichon can always dream, right?

Recently one of her little warts on her back leg (she is a Bichon so basically since birth we knew she would have fourteen million warts as she grew older, destined by her genes) got infected.

No big deal. Gave her an injection of abs and started using a topical spray. Now she doesn't mind the spray. It doesn't sting. It doesn't bug her at all.

Yet every time you get the little spray bottle out, Molly jumps up and starts wagging her tail.

Because you see the bottle could be a magic dog cookie dispenser.

Me: "No, Molly. I need your rear end."

Molly: "Nope. I'll take the cookie right here in my mouth."

Me: "There are no cookies, Molly, just medicine."

Molly: "Um, that there is a magic dog cookie dispenser."

#oy

So what should take about 2 1/2 seconds takes about a minute in a half. 87 1/2 of those seconds convincing her that the tiny vial does not have cookies in it and the other 2 1/2 to spray it on her.

Don't even get me started about putting on flea control!

#tryanddoitinhersleep

#lesstrauma.... #forme :-)

"Ali" - The Boxer #thebreed #nottheprofession

Ok, yes, I know this blog is called "Pups in Tea Cups," and I am in theory supposed to talk about "Littleness" 24/7, however sometimes a true underdog comes into my life and I just have to share their inspiring story about "Bigness."

When I first met "Ali," it was a difficult time for him. He had been dumped at the shelter (at 10 years old) then adopted, but he kept 'fainting.'

Anyone that knows Boxers, knows this isn't a good sign.

Each time he got excited (especially at a niece's birthday party), he would fall over.

Between my testing and the cardiologist's verdict, it looked like Ali may have only had a few weeks left. After talking to his new parents about my 'honored to have been a part of this animal's life' motto, they decided to give him the best few weeks he could have.

Then a month later they called me. His fainting spells had stopped. They brought him in. Sure enough he still had the heart problem but had somehow medically stabilized.

We thought that was the only miracle 'Ali' had up his sleeve. Boy were we wrong.

Months later they were at the dog park and two unleashed Pit Bulls jumped the fence and headed straight for my client's young daughter. 'Ali' didn't hesitate, he ran between them and got attacked for it.

My client's were distraught. They loved him for protecting their daughter but knew this had to be the end for 'Ali.' Either the fight or the stress would take him.

But no!

Not only did he not faint, he survived the attack! They rushed him into me.

After washing the blood off of him... it turned out NOT to be his! There wasn't a single scratch on him. He was busy wagging his tail and looking for treats!

Even with his fragile heart, he won the fight! Now, that's our 'Ali.'

We have no idea how much longer he will be with us, but he proved beyond a shadow of a doubt why he was meant to enter our lives. He quite possibly saved their daughter.

So here's to a Ali!

He just showed us that even with a damaged ticker, you can still show heart! #lovehim #bignesstotherescue