If we
have inadvertently omitted the name of one of your animal friends, please
accept our apologies. Give us a call or
write us a note so we may include your friend in the next newsletter.
A sad but true fact is that we will
most likely outlive our pets. Whether dogs, cats, birds, horses or any other
living creature, our pet friends affect us in ways that require a special touch
to heal. Listed below are some resources to aid you in your
grieving, and to aid you in the healing process.
Pet Loss Web Sites:
v
Association for Pet Loss and Bereavement (APLB) – (www.aplb.org) dedicated to
helping people who grieve for a lost pet. Provides an international
clearinghouse for information and direction on this subject.
v
Pet Loss Hotline at Washington State University –(www.vetmed.wsu.edu) veterinary
student volunteers can help you cope with grief and bereavement in the pending
or past loss of a companion pet.
v
Pet Loss Support Page – (www.petloss.com)
features articles and resources for dealing with the death of a pet.
v Super Dog's Pet Loss – (www.superdog.com/petloss.htm ) a reference to references.
v
Rhodesians...
(www.avma.org/care4pets/avmaloss.htm ) How do I know when its time? Pet loss
hotline.
Pet Loss Books:
v
The Loss of a Pet : New Revised and Expanded
Edition --
Wallace Sife (Introduction); Paperback
v
When Only the Love Remains : The Pain of Pet
Loss -- Emily
Margaret Stuparyk; Hardcover
v
Journey Through Pet Loss - Revised Edition 2000 -- Deborah Antinori, MA Deborah
Antinori; Audio Cassette
v
Pet Loss : A Thoughtful Guide for Adults &
Children by
Herbert A. Nieburg, et al (Paperback - March 1996)
v
Final Farewell : Preparing for & Mourning
the Loss of Your Pet by Marty Tousley, et al (Paperback - November 1997)
v
Rainbow Bridge: A list by pets-n-places, Pet
Loss Support Books
v
Blessing the Bridge : What Animals Teach
Us About Death, Dying & Beyond by Rita M
Reynolds; Softcover
v
Crossing the Rubicon: Celebrating the
Human Animal Bond in life and Death by Julie Kaufman, D.C., C.A.C; Softcover
v
The Soul of Your Pet: Evidence for the Survival
of Animals After Death by Scott S Smith; Softcover
WELCOME BACK!!
Many of you have heard
me say that our animal companions can come back to us after they have passed
on. This new column is dedicated to our
loving friends who have returned to us.
Please contact us with any names and/or stories about friends that have
returned to you.
Trevor Fitzsimmons back as Katy
Tweety Bowe back as Tweety
Maggie Fister back as Olive
Miss Kitty Billings back as Miss Kitty
Molly Larson back as J.D.
Muffin Devecchio back as Rocky
Augusta Field back as Oakely
Laugh Lines:
DIARY OF A CAT
DAY 752 -
My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine
lavishly on fresh meat, while I am forced to eat dry cereal. The only thing
that keeps me going is the hope of escape, and the mild satisfaction I get from
ruining the occasional piece of furniture. Tomorrow I may eat another
houseplant.
DAY 761
- Today my attempt to kill my captors by weaving around their feet while they
were walking almost succeeded, must try this at the top of the stairs. In an
attempt to disgust and repulse these vile oppressors, I once again induced
myself to vomit on their favorite chair...must try this on their bed.
DAY 762 - Slept all day so that I could
annoy my captors with sleep depriving, incessant pleas for food at ungodly
hours of the night.
DAY 765 - Decapitated a mouse and brought
them the headless body, in attempt to make them aware of what I am capable of,
and to try to strike fear into their hearts. They only cooed and condescended
about what a good little cat I was...Hmmm. Not working according to plan.
DAY 768 - I am finally aware of how
sadistic they are. For no good reason I was chosen for the water torture. This
time however it included a burning foamy chemical called "shampoo."
What sick minds could invent such a liquid? My only consolation is the piece of
thumb still stuck between my teeth.
DAY 771 - There was some sort of
gathering of their accomplices. I was placed in solitary throughout the event.
However, I could hear the noise and smell the foul odor of the glass tubes they
call "beer." More importantly I overheard that my confinement was due
to MY power of "allergies." Must learn that this is, and how to use
it to my advantage....
DAY 774
- I am convinced the other captives are flunkies and maybe snitches. The dog is
routinely released and seems more than happy to return. He is obviously a
half-wit. The Bird, on the other hand, has got to be an informant. He has
mastered their frightful tongue (something akin to mole speak) and speaks with
them regularly. I am certain he reports my every move. Due to his current
placement in the metal room his safety is assured. But I can wait; it is only a
matter of time.
A Dog's Diary:
5:30am:
Started the day as a hero! When the sound of the newspaper hitting the driveway
roused
me from my deep slumber - the
impact indicating the paper was much heavier than normal - I
realized that no one in the house
was yet awake! I roused my master by licking him in the face. He
appeared very angry with himself for
having overslept, shouting and waving his arms. His ill temper
even seemed directed at me a bit,
which is silly since it is I who saved him from being fired. Funny
thing though: He didn’t go into
work, but spent the morning leafing through the large newspaper
and drinking coffee. He seems to
do this once a week, and I don't know why.
7:30am: Invaders! The people who live next door came out into their yard,
obviously getting
ready to lay siege to
our house. Snarling and barking, I let them know in no uncertain terms that
I was prepared to tear
them from limb to limb it they came any closer, and was able to repel
the invasion. This is
an almost daily occurrence; you'd think they'd learn. My master added his
voice to the fray as
well, yelling angrily. I am sure the people couldn't hear him, but it was nice
of him to lend his
support.
10:00am: I was forced to move, as the patch of sun in which I was
lying had, for some reason,
slid over a few feet.
It's not easy being a dog.
1:00pm:
I have the most thoughtful master in the world! While it's true he left me
alone in the
house for several hours, he did
set out a treat for me on the kitchen counter. It was even gift-wrapped,
a courtesy I wish he'd skipped,
since it led to me having a lot of plastic
in my teeth. The roast was
delicious, though frozen in the
center. I don’t want to seem ungrateful, but crunching through two
inches of rock-hard beef is hardly
my idea of a delicacy.
2:00pm: Most unpleasant
experience when my master returned home and was furious that I had not
eaten the plastic wrap, which had been covering my present. He
kept pointing at the small pieces of
Styrofoam and other debris and
raving in a most irrational fashion. I'm sorry, but he should know
that I can’t eat that stuff, it
makes my stomach upset. When he began rolling up a newspaper I
realized he'd lost all reason and
bolted for the front door, which was fortunately open just a crack.
4:00pm:
Spent the afternoon with the girls. A most productive day I was able to mark
territory
for two blocks. "Drip 'til
you drop" is our motto. We had a small snack at an outdoor cafe we like,
with meat scraps and bread served
out of circular containers with easily displaced lids, Ran into that
rogue Sebastian, who lifted his
leg with irritating nonchalance - does he think I don't know about
his obsession with Muffy, that
snotty schnauzer from down the road? Last month there wasn't a
male in the neighborhood who
couldn’t be found outside her fence, and Sebastian was at the head
of the pack. I let him know I want
nothing more to do with him.
5:00pm: What a treat! On the way home a
flock of ravens drew my attention to a squirrel that had been flattened by an
automobile. After several days in the sun, the aroma was so delicious it made
my nose quiver. I rolled in the wondrous fragrance for several minutes, and
when I stood up I positively radiated eau de roadkill. Let Sebastian drool over
Muffy - he doesn’t know what he's missing.
6:00pm: Of all the times to get a bath!
My master, still in a foul mood, made me stand outside in the chill air while
he shampooed and rinsed me several times. Every time I shook the water from my
fur he, too, became drenched, and in the end he was shivering. Why in the world
does he do stuff like this?
9:00pm: Time to sleep, though I am not
allowed on the bed whenever anyone's home. Ah, the life of a dog.
SMALL ANIMAL ACUPRESSURE TRAINING
-
Saturday
& Sunday, April 6th & 7th
ARDEN, DELAWARE ------ An Introduction to Small Animal Acupressure
Training will be offered on Saturday and Sunday April 6th and 7Ih from 9AM to 4PM in Arden, Delaware. This training
course is perfect for all pet guardians, trainers, handlers, and healthcare
practitioners, and other animal healthcare practitioners to learn the basics of
animal acupressure.
Acupressure is a safe,
noninvasive, deceptively gentle and an extremely powerful ancient healing art.
The class includes both demonstrations and hands-on exercises. The course will
cover the following:
· Key Concepts Underlying Traditional
Chinese Medicine
· Exercises to Open and Balance Chi
Energy
· How to Perform a Complete Acupressure
Treatment
· Location and Function of Meridians on
Dogs and Cats
· Specific Acupressure Points for Common
Canine & Feline Conditions.
Amy Snow and Nancy Zidonis, authors of The Well-Connected Dog: A Guide to Canine
Acupressure, and Acu-Cat: A Guide to Feline Acupressure will
teach the class. They teach animal acupressure worldwide and have also
co-authored Equine Acupressure: A Working
Manual Acupressure. Nancy Zidonis is a founding board member of the
International Associate of Animal Therapy and Healing (IAATH).
The fee for the 2-day training course is $250.00
For
Registration And More Information: Tallgrass Animal Acupressure
888-841-7211/www.animalacupressure.com, and acupressure4all@earthlink. net To contact your
local host, Ronni Yaskin, 302-529-7882, vaskinworld@dea.net
From the Kitchen
If you have a favorite recipe for treats for you
pet please share them with us. Here are a few snacks we have come across:
****************************************************************************************
Horse or Dog
Treats
Oliver's
Cookies
3c corn meal 3c
oatmeal or granola 2c wheat
bran (NOT cereal!)
1/2c flour 1
c sugar 1/4c
wheat germ
8 oz molasses 2
big handfuls of grain 1t salt
Bit of vegetable oil
Mix all ingredients - should be firm like cookie
dough. Add oil and molasses to adjust texture. Form into balls and bake until
hard. About 1/2 hour @ 350.
Low fat: use egg whites and water for oil and use
Lowfat granola
More fat to gain weight: add peanut butter.
Experiment. It is a very forgiving recipe. The
more sugar and molasses, the less they notice the burnt parts!
{Thanks Sharon Small}
****************************************************************************************
Dog Treats
Stuart's
Cookies
1 1/2c flour 3/4c
oatmeal 1/4c honey crunch
wheat germ
1/4c peanut butter 1/4c
salad oil 1/4c honey
1t baking powder
In a large bowl, with mixer at low speed, mix 1c
flour with remaining ingredients and 1/2c water until wall blended. Still in
remaining 1/2c flour with a wooden spoon.
With floured hands on
well-floured surface, knead dough until dough holds together. Roll dough to
1/4" thickness. With person or cat or squirrel cookie cutter, cut as many
as possible. Bake on large, ungreased cookie sheet @ 350 for 20 minutes. Turn
off oven and let cookies remain in over for one hour longer to harden up a bit.
Makes approx. 20 medium cookies. (For softer cookies leave in oven for less
time)
{Kathie Schroeder}
****************************************************************************************
Cat Treats
Mikey’s
Mackerels (Yield:
1 servings)
1/2 c canned mackerel, drained 1 c Whole-grain bread crumbs 1 tb Vegetable oil
1 ea Egg,
beaten 1/2
ts Brewer's yeast, optional
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium-sized
bowl, mash the mackerel with a fork into tiny pieces. Combine it with the
remaining ingredients and mix well. Drop mixture by 1/4 teaspoonfuls onto
greased cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool to room temperature and store in
an airtight container in the refrigerator.
{From "Cat
Nips!" by Rick and Martha Reynolds ($ 8.95; Berkley)}
First Aid and Home Remedies for pets:
Signs of Cushing's syndrome.
(If your dog
shows the following signs check with your vet to makes sure your dog is
okay. Cushing Syndrome can be treated.)
-Constant
panting and shortness of breath
-Infertility
-Lethargy
-Depression or
odd behavior
-Decreased
interaction with owner
-Seeking our
cool surfaces to lie on
-Irregular
sleep/wake pattern such as sleeping during day and waking at night
-Excessive
water intake
-Increased or
frequent urination
-Diarrhea
-Increased or
ravenous appetite/obesity
-Vomiting
-Thinning hair
and lack of new hair growth on the trunk
-Skull-like
appearance of the head
-Blackheads
and darkening of the skin, especially on the abdomen
-Chronic or
frequent infections
-Enlarged,
distended abdomen
-Extreme
muscle stiffness
-Muscle
weakness in the back legs
-Diabetes
mellitus may develop, often resistant to insulin
-Seizures
Most often
affects:
Beagles, Boston Terriers, Boxers, Dachshunds,
Miniature and Toy Poodles, German Shepherds, Golden Retrievers, Yorkshire
Terriers
De-Skunking formula:
Just in case
you missed this in our last issue, we reprinted it for the spring!!
Does your pet
head the Welcome Wagon committee to greet skunks returning from their
hibernation time? Has the skunk objected?
Mix 1-quart
hydrogen peroxide (3% USP), 1/4 cup baking soda and 1-teaspoon dish
detergent. Work it through the hair
coat and rinse well. Users claim it
works!
Garden Dangers:
Plants that affect your dog's heart:
Lily of the
valley, oleander, rhododendron, azalea, rosebay, yew, foxglove, kalanchoe
species, mountain and sierra laurel, lambkill, calico bush, dog hobble, dog
laurel, fetter bush, male berry, stagger bush, pernettya species.
Plants that can cause kidney failure:
Rhubarb
(leaves only)
Plants that can cause liver failure:
Sago palm,
Amanita phalloides mushroom
Plant that can cause multiple ill effects:
Crocus, castor
bean, mushrooms
For more complete
list visit ASPCA websites at www.aspca.org
and Humane Society of the US at www.hsus.org.
OF GENERAL INTEREST
I sometimes forget that not all the readers
of my newsletter are clients and that we have added new services as this
business evolves. Listed below is a
brief description of the services we now offer.
Consultations - $25.00/15 min.
These consultations are all done over the
telephone. I can help many more animals in a shorter amount of time this
way. It is also less distracting for
the animal to be in his own home environment.
Tape
recording -
$5.00/tape
A tape recording of your consultation is
entirely optional. If you decide you don’t want the tape after having your
consultation recorded, you just don’t send the extra $5.00.
Workshops - $85.00 and up
The workshop fees can vary because of travel
costs, space rental, and lunches provided.
Lectures - Mileage fee
Sponsors
of the lecture may charge admission as a fundraising event. I do require reimbursement for travel
expenses.
Books
& Video tape- see below + $2.00 to ship item &
PA tax for PA residents.
v
Anita’s books: ‘Animal
Wisdom: Communications with Animals’ and ‘How to Hear
the Animals’ (kit) have been combined into one book: ‘Animal Wisdom: How to
Hear the Animals’ $15.95 (Meditation Tape $2.00)
v
The Psychic Connection $15.00
A video of interviews with
animal communicators featuring Anita Curtis, Carol Gurney, Lydia Hiby, Beatrice
Lydecker, Penelope Smith, and Teresa Wagner.
v
Flower Essences - $10.00 + $3.00 shipping.
If you are unable to find
flower essences in your area we are able to provide these for you. They can be mixed to suit your needs. You might be interested in a line of flower
essences carried by Equilite that are designed especially for either small
animals or horses. Call 800 942 LITE
for more information.
v
Gift Certificates - variable
We can provide gift
certificates for consultations (w/wo tape), workshops, books, flower essences,
virtually any service we provide.
PHOTOS,
PHOTOS, PHOTOS
Anita receives many photos from clients of
their animal friends and we would like to share them with you. Starting with this newsletter we would
like to ask you to send us cute photos of your animal friends. Unfortunately we can’t guarantee that your
photo will be printed. But if we do use
your photo we will send you a $5.00 Gift coupon good towards a discount off of
any of Anita’s services or products.
Please don’t send any original photos to insure that we don’t lose your
only copy. We can’t take that kind of
guilt!!!!! If you would like the photo
returned, please send a self-addressed envelope and we will do our best to
return it to you.
Please label the picture with your name, the
name of your animal friend or friends in the picture, and any caption you would
like printed.
Happy
Spring! 
