Bird Watching for You Debuts Blog to Captivate and Educate Birding Enthusiasts

Ever since Jack Kidd was just a boy, he’s held a distinct fascination for birds; observing them in their natural habitat, drawing them into his yard for feeding, bath time, and studying the various species and the regions they descend from.

“Purple Martins are my favorite; as a child my grandpa built me a six-compartment birdhouse, designed specifically for this breed, which sat atop a 20-foot pole in my backyard. Around March 1 they’d flock to the house and stay through August,” Kidd recalls.

Today, Kidd has called upon his personal experience, in-depth knowledge and admiration of birds to develop a blog, www.BirdWatchingForYouBlog.com. This interactive tool was designed to provide expertise and guidance about the many facets of birding; from what’s required to become an adequate bird watcher, what to wear, when to go, and where to look, to tips on how to attract birds into a backyard and what types of birdhouses draw-in what types of birds.

The blog, however, is only half of Kidd’s online presence. Launched in November 2009, www.BirdWatchingForYou.com is a Web-store counterpart that presents a haven for birding enthusiasts (avid and beginner) as it distributes the necessary information and supplies to get started. After all, birding is the second most popular hobby in the United States (just behind gardening), he insists.

“My dad, an avid bird watcher, was my greatest inspiration in developing my own passion for birding. He used to take me to the beaches, often with his good friend and renowned author, Roy Bedichek, to observe the birds,” Kidd said.

Shoppers are invited to visit Kidd’s Web site to browse through a vast collection of bird-watching supplies; from binoculars and apparel to bird books and guides, the essentials, and more, are available. Additionally, shoppers will find birdbaths, birdhouses, and birdfeeders of traditional and artisan varieties.

Swoop in today to take a look around; customer feedback and questions are welcome.

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Dog-e-Minder Electronic Dog ID Tag & Dog Care Reminder System

The Dog-e-Minder is a revolutionary new pet product that organizes and gives reminders for your dog’s schedule and also serves as a comprehensive personalized dog collar and Dog ID tag. The Dog-e-Minder keeps track of such information as feeding times, dog-walking schedule, and medications, and stores the most current information about your dog to help ensure easy pet identification and pet safety in the event of an accident or a lost dog.

The Dog-e-Minder is a personalized dog collar, dog id tag, and dog care manager all rolled into one. Not only is the product easy to program and use, it’s also compact, lightweight, waterproof, and features back lighting for optimum visibility, even at night. It comes with its own dog collar attachment and battery and features an easy-to-read digital display. The product is so compact and lightweight, your dog won’t even know he or she is wearing it.

Designed with families and children in mind, the Dog-e-Minder is very easy to program and use. Simply press a corresponding button and the collar will display the last time your dog had a walk, a meal, or a dose of medication. Holding the button down for an additional three seconds allows you to program in the next scheduled time for one of these events.

This kind of electronic dog collar helps busy dog owners keep track of their best friend even amidst a packed schedule. Professional dog sitters and dog walkers can easily manage a whole clientele just by pressing a few buttons. Homes with multiple dogs can eliminate confusion and keep each of their dog’s care personalized. House breaking your new puppy? The Dog-e-Minder makes sure your pup gets outside on a regular basis. The Dog-e-Minder is also a helpful aid for dog training.

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Your Pet and Hot Weather Safety

Timely safety tips from Chance’s Spot

Your Pet and Hot Weather Safety

by Gail Heller

With most of North America suffering with dangerously high temperatures, I think it would be a good idea to remind everyone about pet safety and hot weather. Dogs and cats can suffer from the same problems that humans do, such as overheating, dehydration and even sunburn. By taking some simple precautions, you can keep your pets happy and healthy.

• During high temperatures and humidity, bring your outside dog or cat inside the house. You can set up a crate if necessary. Snub-nosed dogs, as well as those with heart or lung diseases, should be kept cool in air-conditioned rooms as much as possible.
• Try to keep outdoor activities minimal, either in the early morning or late evening. Be especially sensitive to older and overweight animals and always take along plenty of water.
• Never leave your pet alone in a vehicle as hyperthermia can be fatal. Even with the windows open, a parked automobile can quickly become a furnace in no time.
• Shaving your long-hair pet’s coat to a one-inch length helps prevent overheating. Hairless dogs may need sunscreen, however, do not apply a product to your pet that is not labeled specifically for use on animals.
• Most importantly, stay alert for signs of overheating in pets, which include excessive panting and drooling and mild weakness, along with an elevated body temperature. Contact your veterinarian immediately if these symptoms occur.

About Chance’s Spot

Chance’s Spot provides a pet loss and bereavement support group, helpful reading about pet loss, hotline numbers, and an online tributes page where pet caregivers can create a memorial to their departed pets who have crossed the Rainbow Bridge. Locally, Chance’s Spot provides educational presentations about pet loss to pet caregivers, pet care professionals, and rescue and shelter workers. Area shelters, veterinarians, and rescue groups also receive support and information about compassion fatigue: the stress resulting from caring for and helping traumatized animals on a daily basis.

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Watch for Babies in Your Yard

It’s natural this time of year to get the itch to clean up your yard and start fresh. But before you prune trees, cut back bushes, or clear brush piles, wait! They could be harboring a nest of newborns.

Fledgling Golden-crowned Kinglets

Most wild animal parents are in full-swing raising the newest generation of their species, so consider these points before you get busy cleaning:

• Wait until fall, when the young ones have left their nests, to trim trees and clear brush piles.
• If you can’t wait, thoroughly inspect for nests. Look carefully, as some nests are so small and well-camouflaged they are easy to miss (hummingbird nests, for example).
• If you knock down a nest, check the babies for injuries. If they’re okay, and the nest is intact, you can put it back on a secure branch. Make sure it’s well-covered from the sun and rain, and out of reach of pets. (It’s a myth that parents will abandon their babies if a human touches them.)
• If the babies are hurt, follow PAWS’ guide on helping injured or orphaned wildlife. You can also find tips on creating a surrogate nest if the original one is destroyed.
• If it’s safe, consider leaving the dead tree on your property. Dead trees are perfect habitat for many animals, such as woodpeckers and Flying Squirrels, and they’re getting harder to come by for wildlife who need them.

For questions about wildlife, call PAWS at 425.412.4040.

A champion for animals, the Progressive Animal Welfare Society (Lynwood, Washington 98087) is a nationally recognized leader in rehabilitating injured and orphaned wildlife, sheltering and adopting homeless pets, and educating people to make a better world for animals and humans.

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Pillow Pets™ Plush Folding Stuffed Animals Seeking Summer Adventures

All Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals love an adventure! This summer, show CJ Products the fun you and your favorite Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals are having on vacation, at camp, in your backyard – wherever! All you need to do is post a video on the video-sharing web site of your choice, send CJ Products the link, and watch to see if you are randomly selected to win the Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animal of your choice, plus one each for up to ten friends! Videos will be accepted between May 24 and July 31, 2010. One winner will be chosen at random every three weeks between May 31 and August 22, 2010, and will be notified via e-mail. CJ Products, LLC, the official creator and marketer of Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals, is the contest’s sponsor. Full list of program guidelines.

Made of ultra-soft chenille, Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals are much more than snuggly toys. With a strap that closes underneath to transform the pillow into a friendly pet, they are ideal travel pals, naptime buddies, and all-around cuddly friends. Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals are available in 20 different animals including jungle animals, farm critters, and sea creatures.

Top three reasons Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals are ready to go where you go this summer:

1. They are a piece of “home” that take up less space than a pillow AND a stuffed animal.

2. Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals welcome tired heads anytime, anywhere.

3. They are great travelers – they’re always ready for adventure, don’t eat anything, can stay up late, comfort children sleeping in a strange bed, and they travel free!

Where will you take your Pillow Pets™ plush folding stuffed animals this summer? Or, where will they take you? CJ Products can’t wait to find out!

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Revolutionary Wireless Electric Dog Fence Technology

After more than 8 years of research and development and numerous patents, Havahart® Wireless and its partners successfully developed the latest generation in wireless dog fencing technology. “Havahart Wireless is a quantum leap over existing wireless pet fencing technology,” stated Rian Sweeney, the Category Development Associate at Woodstream Corporation. “The Havahart® Radial-Shape Wireless Electric Dog Fence is the world’s first wireless dog containment system that provides a roaming area up to 11.5 acres – This is close to 20 times more coverage than that of current models on the market.”

Consumers can visit the site’s “How it Works” section to learn about the science behind the product. The “Keys to Success” section includes an interactive tool to guide consumers through every step of the process from installing and setting their wireless fences to successfully completing the training of their dogs, all of which is directed to ensuring a positive experience. Site visitors can also find supplemental tips to optimize the performance of their dog fences, planning guides, and answers to frequently asked questions.

HavahartWireless.com features a section on 360° Customer Support. This convenient, dedicated resource is available online, through email, or on the phone to answer all questions. Tools such as instructional and troubleshooting guides, warranties, and videos are available for customers to provide a successful experience.

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Connecticut Humane Society Kindness Club

Are you looking to enroll your child in a summer program that is both fun AND educational? Does your child love animals? Look no further…the program you’re looking for is available at the Connecticut Humane Society.

The Kindness Club is a summer humane education program offered by the Connecticut Humane Society at its Newington headquarters. The goal of Kindness Club is to help the next generation learn what they can do to make their homes, communities, and the world a better place for companion animals.

 This program is designed for children 7-12 years old. In addition to the standard basic responsible cat and dog ownership lessons, children will also learn about:

• What It Means To Be Humane
• Grooming Care, Dog Training, Veterinary Care, Pet Wellness
• Infant Pet Care and Small Animal Care
• Pet Facilitated Therapy
• Environmental Education (This year’s program includes lessons on marine life and the life cycle of the Praying Mantis.)

Spaces are filling fast…don’t miss out.

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Bone Marrow Transplant Now Offered as a Cure for Canine Lymphoma at the Veterinary Specialty Center of the Hudson Valley

The Veterinary Specialty Center of the Hudson Valley (VSCHV) offers Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) as treatment for Canine Lymphosarcoma (Lymphoma). VSCHV is one of only 5 centers in the world, and the only facility in the northeastern region of the United States, where Bone Marrow Transplants are offered for your pet.

Lymphoma is a type of cancer of the white blood cells. The Bone Marrow Transplant procedure requires that the patient be put into molecular remission. At that time, cancer-free stem cells are removed from the patient. Radiation therapy is then used to eradicate any remaining cancer cells anywhere else in the body. The patient is supported in a state-of-the-art ICU facility during which the stem cells are placed back into the patient to re-grow the bone marrow and the immune system– without the cancer cells. A successful treatment allows the patient to live a cancer-free life.

“Our dog was just too important to us; we had to try everything,” said Bob Akmens owner of Flopsy, an 11-year-old German Short-Haired Pointer, suffering from lymphoma. “He is part of our family and the BMT procedure gave us hope that otherwise would be impossible. I am so happy we found Dr. Impellizeri so we could give Flopsy a real chance at being cured.”

“Lymphoma is one of the most common cancers we see. A bone marrow transplant can be an actual ‘cure for cancer’ in 50-75% of the cases,” announced Dr. Joseph Impellizeri, DVM, Diplomate ACVIM (Oncology)-Medical Director. “As a veterinary oncologist, the chance to offer a cure for an otherwise fatal cancer is a dream come true.”

About the Veterinary Specialty Center of the Hudson Valley

The Veterinary Specialty Center of the Hudson Valley is a comprehensive multi-specialty practice with 24-7 emergency and critical care and services from board-certified specialists in Internal Medicine, Surgery, Oncology, Cardiology, and Radiology. VSCHV has the most advanced imaging center in the Hudson Valley region with a 1.5T MRI, Computed Tomography, Digital Radiography, Ultrasound, Arthroscopy and Endoscopy. VSCHV is a leader in cancer therapies and offers a host of progressive treatments and minimally invasive procedures that give pet owners peace, comfort and hope.

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Summer Travels No Longer Mean Leaving Your Pet Behind

According to a survey released by AAA and Best Western International, more than 75% of owners want to take their pet on vacation. With pet-friendly hotels, restaurants, beaches, and other summer attractions, it’s easier than ever to bring along your furry family member. When you’re packing up the car, don’t leave these pet necessities off your checklist!

Keep Fido Sitting Safe and Tight

Road trips are safer, and easier, than ever before thanks to The Company of Animal’s CLIX CarSafe duel purpose lead and harness. No more wrestling to get Fido out of the leash and into the car, simply detach your leash and buckle the harness right into the seat belt. Better yet, your pet will be in optimal comfort with the CLIX’s unique ‘X-Cross’ design made from double-sided adjustable buckles and soft neoprene padding. Get ready for the most spontaneous trip yet.

Follow the Lead

When walking your dog while vacationing, or during breaks on the road, it’s important to keep your pet under control. This can become difficult because a dog can act up or be frightened by unfamiliar surroundings. The HALTI® is the world’s number one training aid and is recognized as the industry standard for dog obedience training. The HALTI actually pulls the dog’s head toward the owner as soon as the dog pulls the leash, maximizing steering efficiency for dog walkers. Its innovative design instantly stops the dog from pulling. In addition, the HALTI is lightweight, easy to fit and comfortable.

Protective Pet Bandages

Summer fun can lead to skin allergies, hot spots, scrapes and insect bites for both dogs and cats. To prevent your pet from licking, biting and chewing these problem spots, you’ll want to be prepared. That’s why Nurtured Pets®, a company focused on health and wellness products for pets, has introduced Anti-Lick Strip Prevent®.  These pet bandages are made with an exclusive blend of natural ingredients – including cayenne pepper, lemon powder, clove oil and oregano – that safely and effectively discourages pets from bothering skin irritations so they have a chance to heal. The bandages are available in small, medium and large sizes and come in a (6) Six Pack or (2) Two Pack.

Something Natural to Keep Mouths Busy

Road trips can be long, and you’ll want something to keep your dog occupied with minimal mess. Not only do Free Range Dog Chews Buckarooz™! occupy your pet, these natural deer antler treats satisfy your dog’s instinctive need to chew. Buckarooz! are long-lasting and as natural as natural get! Each marrow-rich antler has been naturally shed by the deer, leaving the perfect long-lasting chew your buckaroo will go wild for — instead of your car seats.

Bad pet breath doesn’t take a vacation. TropiClean® fresh breath made easy!™ is a new line of natural, easy-to-use oral pet care products designed to promote cleaner teeth and fresher breath. The line consists of four products, Clean Teeth Gel, Water Additive, Dental Treats and Fresh Mint Foam, which can be used together or separately. These innovative products are designed to promote cleaner, healthier teeth as well as freshen breath. Made with safe, natural ingredients like mint, green tea and aloe, TropiClean products help combat periodontal disease without brushing. These dental dog and cat products are perfect for pets on the go.

Custom Nutrition Delivered

Half the stress of a road trip is making sure things will be in order when you return home. Running errands, especially for dog or cat food, is the last thing you want to do while preparing for your trip. RedMoon™ Custom PetFood makes it possible to pre-order your pet’s food online and have it delivered right to your door! Order from the road and know that a nutritious, custom-created bag of food will be waiting for you. The natural ingredients used in RedMoon are the finest available—including raw, whole produce and regionally sourced antibiotic and hormone-free meats. Plus, every slow-cooked base kibble recipe is grain, gluten, soy, wheat and corn-free. You can also fortify your pet’s food with special supplements to help with allergies, digestion, joints, skin and coat and more! All orders include free shipping and two free supplements.

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Omega-Caps™ HP Snip Tips Capsules For Dogs & Cats

Omega-Caps™ HP Snip Tips Capsules, from Pet Health Solutions™, are a highly concentrated EPA and DHA Omega Fatty Acid fish oil supplement for dogs and cats. Omega-Caps™ HP Snip Tips are recommended to support pet immune systems, joint health, and promotes healthy skin and coats. The product is available in different formulation sizes of small dogs and cats, and medium and large breeds.

In addition to Omega-Caps™ HP Snip Tips, Pet Health Solutions™ also provides pet food supplements, joint supplements, vitamins, grooming products, dental products, shampoos, and cleansers. These products include Joint MAX Triple Strength®, Vita-Tabs®, Derm Tabs®, Shed-Pro™, Ora-Clens®, Vita-Soothe™ and others.

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