Postings by Hotchner

Food & Nutrition > Toxic Dog Treats from China

Hotchner 1181233     Barked: Tue May 1, '12 9:16am PST  Big thanks to the above poster for the ACCURATE information. Point blank, the chicken treats have been extensively tested by the FDA and they are not finding a specific contaminant to blame, nor has a recall been issued. They are simply warning the public due to the complaints received, not stating that the treats are in any way "poisoned." I've spoken to my vet about this and share his opinion on the matter after what I've observed working retail at a pet supply store. In fact, there is little mystery to me as to what is going on when I see how much and how often people feed them to their dogs. These treats are literally an entire chicken breast dehydrated down into strips, and preserved with vegetable glycerin - a hygroscopic molecule. This means two things: they are a very high protein food minus the moisture content that would accompany a raw feeding, and they absorb moisture. Even for a carnivore, high protein low moisture = stressed kidneys - and while the average dog would do fine having a piece of one of these treats daily, that ISN'T how people are feeding them. Recently, the owner of a bichon confided in me that he goes through a full 30oz package of the treats a WEEK - a week! Treats fed as treats - that is, a small, occasional reward - are by and large harmless. But when people dole out half a jerk strip a dozen times a day, there are definitely risks involved. Personally, I'll reserve my judgement and avoid panicking until I see some concrete evidence in the form of a) an identified toxic compound verified in the treats via testing by the FDA and/or b) a peer-reviewed research study in a veterinary journal. Meanwhile, I'll just keep doing what I've always done: avoid wasting my money on overpriced overseas jerky and keep feeding my dogs straight up fresh meat when I want to spoil them. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Hotchner 1181233     Barked: Mon Mar 12, '12 6:29am PST  I've never really found rescues to be overly picky. I'm not sure there is much of an "overly picky" when it comes to ensuring the quality, life-long care of a living being. Yes, they do ask a lot of questions to determine the living situation and owner's dog-knowledge. Yes, they often require home and vet checks. This doesn't really seem like much to me, and I have a funny feeling that if people who SELL dogs did the same kind of background-checking, there wouldn't be so many dogs in shelters today. It is possible, of course, that I appreciate stringency seeing that since moving to Alabama, I have witnessed a stray crisis of ridiculous magnitude, as well as a pervasive owner irresponsibility; the two very much go hand in hand. I have already fostered and placed 3 cats and 4 dogs out of pocket since moving down here that were found just in my yard or on my commute. It gets old, fast, and you can bet I carefully screened any adopters so they wouldn't wind up back in that situation. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Behavior & Training > The Proper Way Of Walking

Hotchner 1181233     Barked: Thu Feb 9, '12 2:39am PST  I prefer my dogs walk to my side or very slightly ahead or behind me, but I'm not picky about which side they are on. I've found they generally will choose a side that they prefer to walk on, and I'm fine with whichever their choice is. Hotchner has always walked to my left, Toki will generally choose my right. Either is acceptable in my book, and I try to keep them flexible enough to go on the other side if we're passing human or canine foot-traffic. *shrugs* my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

Rescue, Adoption & Happy Endings > For those of you who have adopted "strays"

Hotchner 1181233     Barked: Fri Jan 27, '12 5:06am PST  I tend to be of the belief that if you find a dog with no primary or secondary ID, make a reasonable effort to find the owner, then make a financial and emotional investment in its care, it is YOUR dog and the prior owners do not have too much of a leg to stand on legally or morally. I would take these matters on a case-by-case basis, of course, but to be perfectly honest, the owner is often at fault when a pet goes missing and isn't quickly reunited with them. Having a collar and tags dramatically increases the chance of animals being reunited with their owners. Having a microchip only further increases this chance. Individuals who are not providing either/or are not taking their pets' safety seriously as far as I'm concerned. I live in the south, where the stray problem is seriously on par with some third world nations in rural areas. I see easily a dozen free roaming dogs, some owned and some not, every day on the ride to work. I have picked up two dogs off of the road: one, an emaciated, terrified stray who was in a high way median eating a dog carcass (Hotch, the dog pictured), another a little dachshund mix on the railroad tracks. It was very obvious that Hotch was abused and never had an owner that cared for him. Sam, the other dog, was friendly, well fed, affectionate, and I thought for SURE someone had to be looking for her. So for months, I looked for her owners, who weren't looking for her. And then I discovered that she had terrible teeth, heartworm disease, horrible parasitic infestations - the whole nine yards. Suddenly I wasn't at all interested in finding her former owners, because even if the fed and petted her, they did not provide for her basic care needs. And if they came around wanting her back? I'd tell them to repay me the thousand plus dollars in vet bills it took to get her healthy. I have a funny feeling they wouldn't pay up. my posts | my page | msg me | my family's posts | gift me | become pals [notify]

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