Are your pets on your list of New Year's resolutions? They should be, along with plans for making the world a little bit better not only for your animals, but also for others in need.... more
This is the time of year when many people get new cameras, new pets or both. With the holidays being one of the prime times for getting family pictures, you'll want to include your pets in the images ... more
Keeping cats inside offers so many advantages. Protected from the hazards of cars, predators and infectious disease, a cat is likely to live longer when not allowed to roam. It's more neighborly, too,... more
During the holiday season, people travel to be with family and friends. Despite all the best and warmest of intentions, the potential for friction is always there, and one area of possible conflict co... more
It used to be that carrying a tiny dog in an expensive handbag was the nearly exclusive behavior of aging society matrons. In recent years, the age of high society has drifted downward at least half a... more
Some people seem to have bad luck over the holidays, and I have traditionally been one of them. I've filled the house with smoke from a poorly laid fire in the fireplace just before guests arrived for... more
When it comes to rules and laws, I'm not much of a risk taker. I'm not a speeder or a tax cheat, and when young, I never was tempted to get a fake ID.... more
Holidays are anything but fun for many pets. While we humans love the change in routine, the parties, the guests and the decorations, our furred and feathered family members too often find the disrupt... more
Beauty is more than skin-deep when it comes to your dog. Keeping your pet well-groomed not only gives you a clean-smelling companion, it also helps keep your dog more comfortable and allows you to spo... more
Every year in the fall, I devote space to one of my highest priorities as a pet-care columnist: preventing dog bites, especially attacks on children.... more
Call them the Finger Crossers, if you will -- those folks who know if their dogs get loose they'll get them back only when conditions are absolutely right (if there isn't another dog to play with, a s... more
No matter how sweet, no matter how lovely and no matter how well-mannered they may be, for homeless cats, this time of year is not their friend.... more
The idea that seeds are the perfect diet for birds is so common that you could ask most any group of children what pet birds should eat, and they'll quickly squawk: "Seeds!"... more
You don't need an address to pick the home of Bob Walker and Frances Mooney from the modest ranches that surround it. Deep purple in color, with a driveway drizzled in multicolored paint, the San Dieg... more
For most authors the joy of getting that first book published is short-lived, soon replaced by the pressure of coming up with a second book. But not for Kate Eldredge.... more
Emergencies always seem to happen on holiday weekends, don't they? You're having a great time and suddenly your pet seems ill. Is he sick enough for a trip to the emergency clinic?... more
Any pet expert will tell you that the No. 1 behavior problem that cat lovers complain about is "inappropriate elimination," which has nothing to do with being an error-prone hit man and everything to ... more
Cats love plants. A cat with free access to the outdoors will spend a large part of his time rolling in the grass, rubbing his cheeks up against trees and nibbling fresh shoots of anything that strike... more
The easiest way to stop a dog from begging is never to let the habit start. But we all know how difficult those mournful eyes can be to turn down.... more
If you have a dog who urinates when you scold him or greet him, chances are you are not dealing with a house-training problem. Rather, your dog is exhibiting a behavior the experts call "submissive ur... more
Screech. Scrape. Crunch. Three sounds you never want to hear, especially in an aging minivan in the middle of a dusty field on the far outskirts of the San Francisco Bay area.... more
More households have dogs than cats, but cats far outnumber dogs as pets. How is this possible? Because many cat lovers believe that when it comes to feline friends, one is simply not enough. Single-d... more
Holidays and pets don't go together well under any circumstances. Animals are creatures of habit, and holidays are big breaks from routine. From a pet's point of view, the Fourth of July may be the wo... more
The first time I wrote about disaster preparation for pets, some 20 years ago, there wasn't much to write about. I called a disaster-response official and he seemed rather puzzled at the questions I w... more
Do you pause when a black cat crosses your path? I sometimes do, and then I laugh at myself for being influenced by such a silly old myth, even for a second. But that's the funny thing about cats -- m... more
Ever curious and quick to pounce, cats are the perfect small predator. They're even equipped with the amazing ability to right themselves in midair if they fall while hunting, rotating their bodies fr... more