Don't forget...this Wednesday is our big ONE DAY SALE and the launch of our NEW WEBSITE!!!
The New Website is LIVE!
Our new website is up and live! I would highly recommend that you check it out. There is so much more to see and learn!
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What is that Smell!?
Cat urine...not many things smell worse that this substance, especially from an un-neutered male cat. If you have never had the pleasure of smelling this substance, consider yourself lucky. For those that have, you understand.
Today there are many products out in the market to counter this smell. Everything from odor trapping litter to sprays to cleaners. Most work pretty well and the smell is tolerable to completely taken care of. And all cats use the litter box so problem solved, right? Unfortunately there are many cats that won't use their litter box and are sent away because of it. If your cat is one of these offenders, don't lose hope just yet!
There are many reasons why a cat won't use a litter box. Most are for the same reason humans shy away from that nasty little roadside restroom that hasn't seen a cleaning in ages! Cats are finicky, we all know this so keep these things in mind when dealing with a cat that won't use its box.
1. The more cats you have, the more litter boxes you will need - many times cats don't like to go into a litter box that its housemate is using. Try using a litter box or two per cat and place them in different parts of the home away from each other.
2. Cats want their litter box clean - sometimes a weekly cleaning is all that is necessary but many cats want their box cleaned out daily. You may need to experiment to see how often your cat prefers a litter cleaning.
3. Size does matter for some cats - the size of the litter box, the amount of litter in that litter box, does it have a top, is it open for the world to see, does it have a funny little sounding automatic cleaning system, etc. All of these can have an effect on whether your cat will use its litter box. My cat is only 14lbs and yet I needed to custom make a litter box from a large outdoor container box. Remember to think of your cat's needs not what you like to see.
4. The type of litter - this can be a huge decision maker for the cat. There are several hundred types of litter on the market. Pine, recycled newspaper, crystals, clumping, non-clumping, perfumed, non-perfumed, and many more. Cats are particular here, experiment and see what your cat likes best. Some have allergies to certain litters as well so keep this in mind.
5. Placement of the litter box - you wouldn't want your toilet next to your dinning table would you? Then why place your cat's litter box next to it's food bowl? Why place the litter box on the second floor when your cat doesn't like walking upstairs? If your cat isn't using the litter box where it currently is...MOVE IT! (but be sure you let your cat know where you put it!)
6. Arthritis - what does this have to do with using the litter box? A lot. If your cat can't get into or out of the litter box, they won't use it. Be aware of any special needs your cat may have.
7. Un-altered cats - spaying and neutering your cat can make a huge difference. There is no more need to "mark" territory and there is less smell. This is true for dogs too!!!
8. Medical concerns - there are many health conditions that could account for your cat not using its litter box. If there is an extremely strong smell to the urine, a bright yellow color or brownish/red color, this can be a sign of serious health problems. If your cat starts to urinate in the wrong areas of the home, check with your vet that there isn't an underlying health concern before trying any of the suggestions above.
Don't give up on your cat. They want to go where you want them to go, sometimes they just need a little guidance, a little understanding and a bit of compromise on our parts.
Spring Time Dangers
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Spring has finally arrived and with it comes a whole new host of dangers for your pet. You and you pets have been cooped up all winter and are just itching to get outside and now you have to worry about things hurting your pets out there too? Don't worry, it isn't that bad when you know what to look out for.
Here is a run down of a few of the items to avoid while enjoying the sun with your pet!
Fertilizers and Lawn Treatments -
With the new grass growing, more and more people are turning to chemical methods to keep their lawns beautiful. A perfect lawn can mean an unhealthy pet though. Pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers can be poisonous to animals and humans. Many lawn companies claim that their process is safer because they dilute their chemicals. Not true. Even in small doses, these harmful chemicals that are designed to kill weeds and unwanted pests, will do damage to your pet as well.
Try an all natural way to fertilize your lawn...worm castings! Its true! Earth worms are highly beneficial to the soil and the plants that grow there. A healthier lawn means less weeds. Less weeds mean less harmful pests. No chemicals mean that you and your pets can roll around in the grass and enjoy the sun without worrying that your lawn is going to kill you.
Internal and External Parasites -
Their baaack! Fleas, ticks, mosquitoes, roundworms, hookworms, tapeworms, the list goes on and on. The moist ground, the warmer days, all make for a perfect environment for these little pest to bred, multiply and make their way to you and your pets. If you live in the south, you should already be protecting your pet throughout the year but if you live in the northern states where it gets cold enough to kill these pests, now is the time to get your pet back onto flea and tick medication, get their immune system built up to fight the parasites and visit your veterinarian for deworming.
Keeping you pet clean and healthy will help decrease the chance that these "bugs" with become a problem with your pet.
Allergies -
For those of you with seasonal allergies, this time of the year can be a nightmare. It can be the same way with your pet. The great thing is, is that what works for humans, can work for your pet as well. Keeping your pet in tip top health will boost that immune system and allow them to fight allergens much better than those that lack in nutrition. Benedryl is wonderful for pets as well. Ask you veterinarian if this over the counter drug is right for your pet.
Poisonous Plants -
This is the biggest concern of all. It is not common knowledge what plants are poisonous to pets.The ASPCA has compiled a list of poisonous plants. Click their logo below to view their comprehensive listing.
Noise phobias - thunderstorms and your pet
A storm is on the horizon, damaging winds are blowing, lighting is causing havoc and all you can think about is how much damage your pet will do to himself or your house. You are not alone. Many dogs are euthanized every year because of their fear of thunderstorms. It doesn't have to be this way. Now there are several routes to take to get your dog's fear under control. From desensitazation to herbal remedies, there is hope!
Let's start with the easiest method -
Natural Remedies -
Actually the easiest is through pharmaceuticals but who wants to put that type of thing into their pet anyway! There are natural methods that work just as well and so we will focus on those.
Bach flower remedies - "Bach flower remedies are dilutions of flower material developed by Edward Bach, an English physician and homeopath, in the 1930s. The remedies are intended primarily for emotional and spiritual conditions, including but not limited to depression, anxiety, insomnia and stress."
The most popular of these Bach flower remedies is Rescue Remedy . This wonderful combination helps your pet become less stressed during those anxiety moments like thunderstorms.
Homeopathic remedies - "Homeopathy (also spelled homoeopathy or homœopathy) is a form of alternative medicine, first proposed by German physician Samuel Hahnemann in 1796, that attempts to treat patients with heavily diluted preparations which are claimed to cause effects similar to the symptoms presented."
A proven formula that is all natural and works very well for anxiety and fear is Homeopet Anxiety TFLN.
Melatonin - It has been recently found that melatonin works as a stress reliever for dogs. Humans tend to use this product to help them sleep. Dogs however do not seem to be effected the same way. They will normally stay awake but in a calmer state. The usage of this product should be discussed with your veterinarian as dosage requirements are different than those for humans.
Behavior Modification -
There are a few things in this category that can help out. It's nice with dogs, many are food oriented and easily trained. Using some of these techniques along with the above remedies, may be needed for those hard cases.
Music therapy - We've all heard the saying "Music soothes the savage beast." Well, it's true! If you're searching for a way to calm an overly anxious dog, harp music may be the answer. Harp music has been successfully tested the effects of the vibrations and blended tones on wolves, dogs, cats, monkeys, goats, sheep, donkeys and gorillas.
How does it work? It is believed that the vibrations of the strings send out overtones -- some of which are inaudible to the human ear. The harmonic overtones work at a cellular level and reduce stress levels.
Scientific studies indicate the benefits of music therapy for humans: slowing the heart rate, lowering blood pressure, speeding post-surgery recovery, elevating endorphin levels, bolstering immune function, decreasing stress related hormones.
Hug therapy - You should be hugging your pet regularly but now it has been shown that those hugs can do much more. Hugging seems to calm and focus some anxious and stressed dogs. Neurobiologists believe that any type of trauma can damage nerve receptors, leading to exaggerated responses to stimuli. By applying constantly maintained pressure, the wrap provides an unchanging, quieting stimulus that causes the receptors to adapt and modify their thresholds in a cumulative manner.
Desensitization and Counter Conditioning - Desensitization is the process by which an anxiety producing stimulus, in this case thunder, is presented so subtly as to not produce a fearful response. Very gradually the intensity of the stimulus, or volume of the thunder, is increased, always keeping it below the fear producing threshold. Counter conditioning is the conditioning of an individual to respond to the feared stimulus with a reaction incompatible with the undesirable response. For example, the dog is encouraged to enjoy delicious food treats, as the thunder volume increases.
There are many "storm" cd's available today. You can use these to slowly build a tolerance within your pet.
Don't give up! This can be a long process but well worth the effort. Take your time, be easy on your pet and the two of you will be enjoying a good summer storm in no time!
What is with this "natural" medicine craze?
My grandmother will be celebrating her 85th birthday in 4 days. That is a lot of years behind her. She comes from a time of mustard plasters, liniments and a good sip of brandy would cure just about anything. Natural solutions to every day ailments. What ever happened to those days? Money, convenience, and life happened.
In these days many people are starting to think about their lives again. It's time to reevaluate one's priorities. We here about how we need to save the planet, recycle, eat healthier, get back to nature, make family come first, etc and yet fast food restaurants, over worked soils, large gas guzzling cars, deforestation and war still exist.
The one thing that has started to change is the way people care for themselves. They are becoming more aware that maybe our grandmothers didn't haven't wrong at all! We have begun to eat healthier by buying fresh foods over canned or frozen. We've taken to going organic and free ranged from smaller local farms instead of large mass producing farms. We now know that the food that we do buy, no matter how organic it is, lacks in nutrition compared to the foods of our grandmothers. We know that whole foods are better than synthetic. We've decided to revisit what so many cultures before knew...herbal medicine, acupuncture, holistic methods, homeopaths, etc.
Today, we have taken this new look at health care to a whole new level by including our pets into the mix. My grandmother had dogs. Did she ever use a supplement for her dog? Did she ever do preventative medicine for her dog? Doubtful. Pets were pets. Meant for companionship or work....nothing more. Today is different. Pets are one of the family and thus are being treated the same. The pet food industry knows what they like to call "the trend" is. They know what consumers are looking for. They also know how to cut corners and still make every pet owner out there think that they are getting the best of the best for their pet.
You've seen the commercials...a plethora of vegetables, fresh meat and fish, all wrapped up in a palate pleasing shaped dry dog food. There is the happy go lucky dog and it's owner who is just so darn happy to be feeding his pet the natural foods found in the dog food. All bull.
Have you ever read the ingredients on some of these so called foods or supplements? Here's one to consider:
Ground yellow corn, chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, whole wheat flour, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), rice flour, beef, soy flour, sugar, propylene glycol, meat and bone meal, tricalcium phosphate, phosphoric acid, salt, water, animal digest, sorbic acid (a preservative), potassium chloride, dried carrots, dried peas, calcium propionate (a preservative), L-Lysine monohydrochloride, choline chloride, added color (Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 2), DL-Methionine, Vitamin E supplement, zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, manganese sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, calcium carbonate, copper sulfate, Vitamin B-12 supplement, calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate, garlic oil, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin D-3 supplement, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), calcium iodate, folic acid, biotin, sodium selenite.
All those vegetables and fresh meat are not even in here! Marketers know what sells, manufactures know where they can cut corners and consumers don't question either. Granted there are some out there that do try to offer the best they can but they are usually small companies that need to charge a bit more due to the quality of their ingredients. So I guess it is time to ask yourself....quality products at a higher price or do you "settle" for something that is well, not as advertised?
This is where I get to brag a little on Casey Pets. We are one of the smaller ones. We aren't in most of the larger pet stores, we rely on word of mouth to do the speaking for us, and we aren't on the tip of everyone's tongue....yet! What we are is a company that refuses to skimp on any of our 31 ingredients, we use only the best of the best ingredients, and we don't just add ingredients to fill in the gap. We are quality.
So I think it is time to take another look at how our grandmothers lived and maybe this time, let's use our head and don't expect the commercials to be telling all the truth. If we don't question big companies advertising, we'll end up right back where we are. Oh yeah, and Grandma...Happy Birthday!
Stem Cell Research goes to the Dogs
Stem cell research, it's a touchy subject but why? True that stem cell research and cloning seem to be a sure path to reproductive cloning but in researching all that this science advancement can do, it seems a risk we should be taking. Now with new treatments for dogs using stem cells, I think that it may be a great cure for many things.
Many people argue that stem cell research is, well, "not acceptable", but do you know what stem cells really are?
'Stem cells are cells found in most, if not all, multi-cellular organisms. They are characterized by the ability to renew themselves through mitotic cell division and differentiating into a diverse range of specialized cell types.The two broad types of mammalian stem cells are: embryonic stem cells that are isolated from the inner cell mass of blastocysts, and adult stem cells that are found in adult tissues. In a developing embryo, stem cells can differentiate into all of the specialized embryonic tissues. In adult organisms, stem cells and progenitor cells act as a repair system for the body, replenishing specialized cells, but also maintain the normal turnover of regenerative organs, such as blood, skin, or intestinal tissues." Wikipedia
What does all that medical jargon mean? It means that these cells already exist within us, they can change into whatever type of cell the body needs, and they are here to help us!
They don't sound so frightening now do they? They great thing is, stem cells are being used today to treat one of the most common conditions in dogs...arthritis!
A company in San Diego, CA called Vet-Stem, are using stem cells taken from dogs to treat arthritis, tendon or ligament injuries. In a somewhat 'easy' procedure, fat cells are taken from the afflicted dog. Usually from fat pockets around the abdomen or shoulder blade area. These cells are then taken to the lab where the stem and regenerative cells are isolated. These cells are then reinjected into the dog! That's it!
They have seen these injections provide relief for several months to over a year!
"The treatment works because stem cells do more than just morph into the required body tissue - they provide growth factors and chemicals that help the injury heal by, amongst other things, reducing inflammation and preventing scar tissue from forming." Robert Harmen DVM and founder of Vet-Stem
Unfortunately since this is a new proceedure, long term effects are yet to be known and it is a costly proceedure ($2000 - $3000) but imagine the diseases and ailments that may be helped by just using what the body already has!
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