"Ebony"
Black Lab/Australian Shepherd Mix 1989-2003 I adopted Ebony from
Animal Welfare (www.come.to/awps/), a
no-kill dog shelter in Pueblo, CO in 1989 at about 6 months of age. She
died last year after developing adrenal and splenic cancers. Labrador
Retrievers are genetically prone to both of these cancers. If you have an
older dog (>10yrs.) and can afford it, I recommend a physical exam and bloodwork
twice a year. A chemistry panel shows how most organs in your dog's body
are functioning. If you really want to keep on to of things, you can
request an abdominal ultrasound as well. It can reveal abdominal masses
(cancers) that can be removed before they become critical. If you are ever
concerned that your pet is sick but your regular veterinarian cannot find the
cause of the illness, I recommend seeing a veterinary specialist (internal
medicine, neurologist, ophthalmologist, etc.). They have more advanced
training to help with difficult cases.
"Poo"
Pointer/Yellow Lab/Husky Mix 1989-2003 I adopted Poo from
Animal Welfare, too, in 1989 at 8 weeks of age. He died last year after
developing throat cancer (melanoma), which Pointers are prone to genetically.
"Kiki"
is a 16-year old cat who came to me 10 years ago when the people living next to
me moved away and left him behind. I also recommend physical exams and bloodwork yearly on cats over 10 years of age. Cats get different cancers
from dogs but seem to be genetically prone more to kidney and heart failure and
thyroid disease. If your cat has had an increase in his water intake,
seems to be urinating more or is losing weight, he should definitely make a trip
to the vet.
"Charlie"
is a 14-year old cat we adopted from Larimer Humane Society (www.larimerhumane.org)
in Fort Collins, CO in July 2003. Charlie was given up because his owner
was being deployed overseas. This happened to a lot of animals because of
the war in Iraq. Charlie was at the humane society for 2 months before we
adopted him. Older animals are sometimes harder to find homes for but
Charlie has the energy of a 4-year old. If you're ready to adopt a new
pet, consider rescuing an older one--they'll really appreciate it!
"Tig"
is an 11-year old feral (wild) cat. He is the last survivor of a feral cat
colony I started managing in 1994. His mom died from kidney failure at
about 10 years of age and another female died from cancer about the same time.
It is a misconception that all wild cats living on the streets have hard lives
and die young. They manage quite well when they have a caretaker. I
relocated Tig to the basement of my house. He has a huge cat play room
with an outdoor playpen off one window. (I highly recommend outdoor
enclosures for all cats and discourage tame free-roaming cats. Click
here to see the enclosure.) We recently discovered Tig is FIV positive.
FIV is a virus similar to HIV in humans. He was not infected when I
neutered him at 6 months of age but we guess that he has been infected for at
least the last 4 years. Like HIV, FIV is not an immediate death sentence.
Tig is a very healthy 13 pounds but mildly anemic with bad teeth (two symptoms
of FIV). To learn more about feral cats, visit
www.alleycat.org.
"Duncan"
is a 10-year old Collie we adopted from Pueblo Sheltie/Collie Rescue (www.pueblocolliesheltie.org)
in Pueblo, CO in September 2003. I found Duncan on
www.petfinder.com, a website that
showcases over 100,000 animals in need of homes all across the country.
Did you know that there is a rescue group for practically every breed of dog
somewhere in the country? If you are looking for a particular breed, do an
internet search for "(breed)" + "rescue" + (state)". For example, "beagle
rescue colorado". You may need to look in other states to find some of the
more rare breeds.
"Gracie"
is a 5-year old cat we adopted from Weld County Humane Society (www.weldcountyhumane.org)
in Greeley, CO in June 2002. When all of Tig's wild cat family died, he
was very lonely. We adopted Gracie to keep Tig company--this was before we
discovered Tig is FIV positive. However, Gracie and Tig love each other
and hate being separated. Since FIV is usually only transmitted through
bites and since Tig doesn't have many teeth left, we've decided to let them keep
living together.
"Avron"
is a 4-year old American Eskimo we adopted from the Cheyenne Animal Shelter (www.cheyenneanimalshelter.org)
in Cheyenne, WY in August 2003. Unfortunately, the Cheyenne shelter
receives a large number of young purebred dogs and suspects there is a
correlation to the pet store located nearby. Please do not buy dogs and
cats from pet stores--these animals come from puppy mills and are the result of
very poor inbreeding. (To learn what a puppy mill is, visit
www.canismajor.com/dog/puppymil.html or
www.hsus.org/ace/11797 or
www.hua.org/prison/puppymills.html) I always recommend adopting from
shelters and breed rescue groups. If you want a purebred puppy or kitten,
you should find a responsible breeder. To learn more about what to look
for in a responsible breeder, visit
www.canismajor.com/dog/responbr.html.