Info Feature: Miscellany
This month, having been stymied in my quest for
information on the subject of which I was going
to write, we have a short info feature featuring
a little hodge-podge of miscellaneous topics. I
also welcome suggestions for future articles from
my clients; if there’s something you’d like to see
covered, or some knowledge that you’ve gained the
hard way that could help other pets and their people,
by all means let me know!
BEFORE YOU ADOPT ANOTHER PET
I love how people will have one perfectly happy
animal-inclusive household and completely upset the
apple cart by getting another pet from a rescue.
I love it because there are so many animals in need
of a good home, and it seems that there’ll never
be enough places for them. Spreading the good fortune
around to more animals is, to me, a ticket back into
heaven that can make up for a lot in life. Forget
being born again; get another dog! Seriously, there
ARE some things to consider when thinking about getting
another pet. The biggest two, to me, are the question
of whether your household can handle your present
pet, let alone a second, and the potential candidate’s
compatibility with your existing animal/s. Another
one, though, is the ability of the potential new
pet to become a client here at Kamp K9. To illustrate
this point: this past year, we’ve lost two clients
due to families having adopted second dogs who absolutely
cannot attend kamp due to severe anxiety and/or dominance
issues. I bring this up not because we lost business
here, but because those folks really liked what we’d
been able to do for their dogs in the past, and they’re
now unable to keep bringing their little loved ones
here (because they don’t want to split up their pets
and have to deal with two facilities). So please
keep this in mind when you start thinking about dog
or cat number two...or three...and look for any indication
of the animal’s sociability with others of their
kind on their personality profile.
FOREWARNED IS FOREARMED
I suppose this one could possibly be coming from
the “grumpy old coot” files, but nevertheless it
really should be covered. All new customers are given
a form to fill out and sign, which is kept on file
here along with their pet’s shot records. That form
is called the “Terms and Conditions” form. Contained
in that form is a lot of information about what we
require from your pet. (You can also download and
view an updated version at our web site on the “Facility/Requirements/Contact”
page at any time.) Lately, there have been a surprising
number of incidents where people have been unaware
of one or more of the conditions that they agreed
to when they signed that form and handed it in to
us, in spite of the fact that people are always told
to read it very thoroughly. If it’s been a while
since you’ve looked at it, please take some time
to revisit that form, so you’re not shocked if, for
example, a “pee fee” or damage charge appears on
your bill. Conversely, click these links to see what
you can expect from US:
Code of
Ethics Owner Bill of Rights
DO WHAT BOB BARKER ALWAYS SAID
At the end of every airing of “The Price is Right”
Bob Barker exhorted viewers to have their pets spayed
or neutered. (Drew Carey is apparently carrying on
that tradition.) There are NUMEROUS reasons to do
so for the benefit of the health of your pet and
for the integrity of blood lines in the furry, four-legged
population as a whole. Here’s an article on the subject
found in a veterinary health web site from Canada.
http://www.animalhealthcare.ca/contents/content.asp?id=89&cat=cats
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