Miss Me?

Did you miss me while I was gone? I missed writing to you all. I actually started feeling a bit of internet withdrawal. I do have some sad news to report. Puter T. Laptop died last Wednesday night. He received a fatal injury when he fell off the table over the Christmas holidays but kept on working until the bitter end. Toshi is in training now to handle all the computing needs around here. Be recycled in peace Puter.

Now for this weekend’s events. The Peninsula SPCA is having the 2012 Fur ball tomorrow night at the Hampton Roads Convention Center. The party runs from 6 to 11. You can get more info at http://www.peninsulaspca.org/furball/index.html.

If you’re staying home tomorrow, park yourself in front of the TV and get comfy. The AKC/Eukanuba National Championship will be shown on ABC at 2. The show was held in December in Orlando, Florida. You’ll get to see all the excitement and who wins Best in Show. Don’t forget the snacks for you and your furry friend!

The cats at Heritage Humane Society are competing in the CFA Championship Cat Show tomorrow. There are 6 all-breed judging rings and purebred and household cats can compete for ribbons. Admission is $5, $3 for seniors and kids under 12. The show will be at the Knights of Columbus building on Nettles Drive in Newport News from 9 to 5.

Animal Aid Society may be showing off the dogs from the shelter tomorrow. Look for them at the Tabb Walmart, Hampton Petco, Newport News PetsMart, and the Oyster Point Care A Lot from 12 to 4.

Isle of Wight County Humane Society will be showing off the shelter pets on Sunday. You can meet them at the Newport News Petco from 12 to 4.

You need to get your Valentine Pals Pet Photos done this weekend, Photos by Feist will be at the Diamond Springs Road location of Care A Lot to take photos of your pets. Proceeds benefit K-9 New Life. Photo packages are $12 and can be done from 11 to5. Tom has some really cute frames and can get your photo done on mugs, mouse pads, and all kinds of things. And they’ll be ready for Valentine’s Day!

Don’t forget to buy your hearts! The Nautical Dog in Williamsburg has hearts for sale all this month for $1 and $5. All proceeds benefit Ring Dog Rescue and Heritage Humane Society. They raised $500 last year. Get your hearts and help beat this amount this year!

It’s going to be a good weekend to get out there and have fun with your dog.

Take Legal Action!

No, I don’t want you to take anyone to court. But I do want you to contact your representatives in Richmond about some of the laws they want to change. There are also several laws we should want passed as they will help the animas of Virginia. Besides, tomorrow is Humane Lobby Day.

The bills that need to be passed are:

HB 158 This bill prohibits Devocalization. This is an inhumane practice that removes or injures the vocal cords so dogs can’t bark.

HB 363 This bill lets judges include companion animals in protective orders.

HB 650 This bill enables local shelters and pounds to notify rescues before euthanizing healthy adoptable animals.

HB 695/SB 202 These bills will prohibit fox and coyote penning where foxes and coyotes are caught, put in an enclosure, and hunted by dogs in order to train the dogs to attack while hunting.

SB 359 This bill clarifies that TNR is a legal and acceptable practice to control feral cat populations and should not be hindered by current abandonment laws.

Now the one we really need defeated is SB 610. This bill is being voted on tomorrow by the Senate Agriculture Committee and will take away the protections given to companion animals for working, hunting, and show dogs. These animals would be reclassified as agricultural animals, or livestock. They would no longer be considered companion animals. This bill will also give all authority on the care of these animals to the State Vet and not to localities, humane societies, and animal control officers. Here is the bill:

SENATE BILL NO. 610

Offered January 19, 2012

A BILL to amend and reenact § 3.2-300 of the Code of Virginia and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 3.2-6503.2, relating to the regulation of animal agriculture.

Patron-- Black

Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 3.2-300 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted and that the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered 3.2-6503.2 as follows:

§ 3.2-300. Definitions. As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning: "Agricultural animal" or "livestock" means any domestic animal raised, herded, or farmed as an agricultural product or associated with agriculture, including equids, cows, calves, yearlings, bulls, oxen, sheep, goats, lambs, kids, hogs, pigs, poultry, gamefowl, fowl, hunting dogs, working dogs, and show dogs."

Agricultural operation" means any owned or leased operation, facility, or land devoted to the bona fide production or processing of crops, or agricultural products, animals, or fowl including the production of fruits and vegetables of all kinds; meat, dairy, and poultry products; nuts, tobacco, nursery, and floral products; and the production and harvest of products from silviculture activity. "Agricultural operation" includes the use of farm machinery, equipment, devices, chemicals, medications or devices used for administering medications, products for agricultural use, and materials or structures designed for agricultural use or housing and used in accordance with generally accepted or traditional farm or sporting practices. "

Production agriculture and silviculture" means the bona fide production or harvesting of agricultural or silvicultural products but shall not include the processing of agricultural or silvicultural products or the above ground application or storage of sewage sludge.

"Traditional farm practice" means an accepted and customary standard established by similar agricultural operations under similar circumstances, including notching, docking, tagging, dehorning, debeaking, shoeing, trimming, dubbing, castrating, penning, cooping, caging, tethering, herding, hauling, training, showing, and culling.

§ 3.2-6503.2. Regulation of care and handling of agricultural animals. The Department occupies the entire field of regulation of the care, control, and handling of agricultural animals. No political subdivision, locality, or humane society shall regulate the care and handling of agricultural animals.

Here are the email addresses of the committee members:

district24@senate.virginia.gov, Emmett Hanger - Chairman

district13@senate.virginia.gov, Richard Black - Patron of SB610

district14@senate.virginia.gov, Harry Blevins

district30@senate.virginia.gov, Adam Ebbin

district37@senate.virginia.gov, David Marsden

district09@senate.virginia.gov, Donald McEachin

district01@senate.virginia.gov, John Miller

district06@senate.virginia.gov, Ralph Northam

district26@senate.virginia.gov, Mark Obenshain

district38@senate.virginia.gov, Phillip Puckett

district34@senate.virginia.gov, Chap Petersen

district15@senate.virginia.gov, Frank Ruff

district20@senate.virginia.gov, William Stanley

district28@senate.virginia.gov Richard Stuart

district10@senate.virginia.gov John Watkins

You can also send your representative an email. If you don’t know who that is, you can find out at http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy.nsf/main?openform. If you want to call them, the phone number is 804-698-75xx. The xx is the 2 digit District number. The bill is being heard tomorrow at 2 p.m. in the General Assembly Building in Richmond. If you plan to attend please wear business attire. We really need to get this bill defeated and protect our canine companions.

The Truth about Mars, Incorporated

Well, Mars, Inc. isn’t happy with my blog post last week. I got an email from Ryan Bowling. He says the video I had a link for was not filmed at any Mars Facility.

So I did some checking because I don’t usually just take someone’s word for things. The first time I saw the video description, it said that it was filmed at a Mars facility. When I found it again at the Mars Candy Kills Facebook page, it had a completely different description. And the posting of the video was the last activity on the page, dated May 1, 2010. That’s almost 2 years ago. I figure if the original poster can’t get his story straight, something is wrong with the story.

Mr. Bowling sent me a copy of the Mars Animal Policy. You can find it at www.mars.com/global/press-center/media-library.aspx?query=factsheet. It’s a pdf download on the 2nd page of the site. It states “In the development of our snackfood and human food and drink products, as well as our products for dogs, cats, birds and horses, we do not undertake, support or sponsor research that harms animals.” It also states “When necessary, we conduct human clinical studies to substantiate the health benefits claimed on our snackfood, food and drink products.”

The FTC agreed after an investigation. You can find the letter from the FTC to Mars, Inc. at www.ftc.gov/os/closings/staff/080407mars.pdf. The letter is dated April 7, 2008. It states “It is our understanding that Mars does not conduct any animal research in connection with the development of any human food, drink, or snack products, or any animal product for dogs, cats, birds, and horses.”

So, your candy and pet food really are safe and not tested on animals. However…. You knew that was coming, right? Mars, Inc. has 2 smaller businesses called Symbioscience and Mars Fishcare. Symbioscience does research to develop pharmaceutical and therapeutic products. They’re looking for ingredients for nutriceuticals and supplements. These ingredients, called flavanols, are said to help with heart, vascular, and cognitive health and the treatment of diabetes and certain forms of cancer.

Flavanols are tested on rats and mice. Rats and mice may be insignificant to some but they’re still living beings who feel pain, bleed, think, and learn. The Mars Animal Policy states that they ensure the animals don’t suffer. It would really help me if I knew how they ensure this. You can read the reports on some of these tests at:

www.nutraingredients.com/news/ng.asp?id=77026-mars-epicatechin-memory

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17537957 &ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

Here is an article about why consumers should be careful when claims of health benefits are reported:

www.redorbit.com/news/health/1427899/swallowing_the_hype/.

If you want to find out more about Mars, Inc., check out these websites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars,_Incorporated

www.mars.com

Mars, Inc. says that any tests on animals are limited and only done when non-animal tests are not feasible. It is rather difficult to study a brain or heart while the being is still alive. The company says that they follow the highest ethical standards and replace these tests with non-animal tests when possible. I don’t know what they consider the highest ethical standards so I can’t really comment on that.

So the question is does Mars, Inc. test on animals? The answer is yes and no. If you see Mars, Inc. as a separate entity from Symbioscience, then the answer is no. But if you see Mars, Inc. as a conglomerate of Mars, Symbiocience, and Mars Fishcare, then technically the answer is yes. Maybe Mr. Bowling can clear that up sometime.

Bingo And Chili!

Yes, you can enjoy a good game of Bingo and some delicious chili this weekend while helping the local shelters and rescues. There are a lot of other events too. I think everyone has recovered from the holidays and has gotten their calendars out for planning.

Dogs Deserve Better is having a Bingo fundraiser tonight. Doors open at 5 and games begin at 6. Game pack is $20 and an expansion pack is available at the door for $10. Bingo is being held at the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #8, 961 South Birdneck Road in Virginia Beach. There will be lots of prizes, a Bingo 50/50 for cash, raffles, and a dessert bar. Head on over and have fun!

K9 Justice League is having a Chili Cook Off tomorrow at Krossroads Café and Tavern. The chili will be ready at noon and cost 50 cents a cup. All proceeds benefit K9 Justice League. Krossroads is located at 4221 Pleasant Valley Road in Virginia Beach. If you want to enter some chili for the cook off, call 757-467-2890.

If you get your chili recipe perfected, you can also enter some in the A J Gator’s Chili Cook Off next Saturday. This one benefits Suffolk Humane Society. You can enter a gallon of chili for $20 and have it there by 11 am. Call 757-729-2554 for more info.

You can still get tickets for the Fur Ball Gala next Saturday. Portsmouth Humane Society is hosting the Gala to benefit the animals at PHS. You can get more info at www.portsmouthhumanesociety.org/furball.html.

Animal Rescue of Tidewater will have some sweet adoptable dogs out to meet you on Sunday. You can meet them at the Greenbrier PetsMart in Chesapeake from 2 to 4.

Virginia Beach Animal Care and Adoption Center is having their first adoption event tomorrow at 10 a.m. at the new shelter. You can meet all the great pets at 341 Birdneck Road.

Animal Aid Society may be out tomorrow with some great dogs from the shelter. Look for them at the Newport News PetsMart, Hampton Petco, Tabb Walart, and the Oyster Point Care A Lot. They’ll be out from 12 to 4.

Isle of Wight County Humane Society will have pets from the shelter out at the Newport News Petco on Sunday. You can meet them from 12 to 4. You can also meet some cats from IOWCHS at the Newport News PetsMart tomorrow from 12 to 4.

Rainbow Animal Rescue will be out tomorrow with some really sweet dogs. You can meet them at Care A Lot on Indian River Road in Virginia Beach from12 to 3.

They’re trying to get hunting allowed on Sundays again. We’ve been through this before. Sunday is the only day in hunting season that hunting isn’t allowed. Equestrians in the area are very much against this. That includes me. Contact your representative and let them know how you feel about the matter. You can find their info at http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy.nsf/main?openform.

Well, that should keep you busy this weekend. I’ll have more for you next week. Get out there and have fun with your dog!

Act, Then Eat

Weird title but that’s what I want you to do. Action for animals, then fix a meal everyone will love. Both are very easy.

The first action involves emailing your senator. Senate Bill 359 is going to a vote today and we need to email our senators and tell them we want this bill to pass. This bill will help Trap, Neuter, and Return programs all over the state. Right now, anyone involved with TNR can be charged with abandoning a feral animal after it is altered because caretakers of feral colonies are considered “owners” of the cats.

SB 359 states “Trap, Neuter and Return Programs. Permits the operation of a formal program of trapping, sterilizing and returning feral cats to their colonies and excludes participants in such a program from the definition of "owner".”

Caretakers watch over the colony, make sure injured or ill cats get veterinary treatment, cats are altered, fed, and have safe shelter. But no one actually owns the colony or the individual cats. You have to be registered to do this in Newport News and other districts. Passing this bill will help caretakers do what they do best, care for feral cats.

You can read the article and get your senator’s email address at www.neighborhoodcats.org/article/HOME/69.

The next action is for dogs all over the world. We have to get pets vaccinated or rabies. It’s the law here. But it isn’t the law in other countries. Dogs tend to roam freely and they don’t get vaccinated for anything. So when people get bit or scratched, everyone is afraid of getting rabies. And their idea to get rid of rabies is to kill all the dogs.  Only problem is that killing all the dogs won’t get rid of rabies. Vaccinating dogs will.

The WSPA is vaccinating dogs so people won’t be killing them. After dogs are vaccinated for rabies, they get a red collar so everyone will know they are safe to be around.

The WSPA is having a virtual walk on January 24th and some big name celebrities are participating. Go to www.wspa-usa.org/red-collar/dog-march/default.aspx and pick a dog for your own and name it. Mine is named Scruffy. Choose a message for your dog to carry in the march. Your virtual dog will walk in the dog march to raise awareness and help vaccinated dogs. You can donate to help get more dogs vaccinated too.

Now for the recipe.  Everybody at my house like this and it’s really easy to make.

Baked Salmon Patties

1 14.75 ounce can of salmon, drain most of the liquid but not all of it

1 egg

8 crushed saltine crackers, bread crumbs, or oatmeal (enough to bind it together)

A couple tablespoons of mayo

A teaspoon of Dijon mustard

Any kind of seasonings you want (if dogs are eating this leave the onions out)

Mix everything together in a bowl and form into patties. You can make 4 large patties, 8 small ones, or meatballs. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and put on the patties. Bake at 400 to 425 for 8 minutes a side or until browned. You can fry them in a skillet if you don’t want to heat up the oven.

These are so yummy! You can use Old Bay, Cajun, Creole, or blackened seasoning, lemon zest and juice, parsley, cilantro, dill, Worcestershire sauce, Barbeque sauce, teriyaki sauce, thick and chunky salsa, chili sauce, or cocktail sauce in the patties. Make it taste the way you want it. You can serve them on buns or just on the plate. If dogs and cats are eating this you may want to keep it mild.

Well, that's it for today. Make up some extra salmon patties so you won’t have to cook much after the weekend events.

Animal Testing

Animal testing is rather controversial. Some people don’t believe companies really test stuff on animals, others think it’s okay, and people like me don’t really see the need in testing products and ingredients on animals. What testers do is cruel, inhumane, and not necessary.

Remember last week when I had a link to a petition to stop plans for puppy mill to raise beagles just for experiments? You can find the petition here: http://forcechange.com/10854/dont-breed-beagles-for-painful-experiments/. The reason beagles are used so much is because they’re very docile and small. They don’t easily fight back the way more aggressive dogs do. Mice, rats, primates like chimpanzees, and rabbits are also used in testing.

A lot of this testing and experimenting can be done with simulators and computer simulation. Animals aren’t needed for this. Quite a bit of this testing is unnecessary because there are plenty of human studies and the results have been published world wide. Why do companies need to repeat tests that have published results? Do they think the results are going to change?

If you want to make sure that products you buy are not tested on animals, you can download a pdf file and search for companies at www.peta.org/living/beauty-and-personal-care/companies/default.aspx. You can search for companies that do or don’t test on animals and save the pdf files with the info. One of the big companies that doesn’t test on animals is Bath and Body Works. I may have to give them more business. Now on to something more cheerful.

I know you want to eat out tonight. Maybe that’s just me. Isle of Wight County Humane Society is having a fundraiser at Tropical Smoothie Café tonight. You can get a good meal and help the animals too. A portion of the sales from 5 to 8 tonight will be donated to IWOCHS. TSC is located in Eagle Harbor shopping center on Route 17.

Want to play Bingo this Friday? Dogs Deserve Better is having a Bingo fundraiser at the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #8 in Virginia Beach. It’s a multi-vendor event with lots of prizes and fun. Each pack has 20 regular games and 3 specials. There’s also going to be Bingo 50/50 for cash, raffles, and a dessert bar. Tickets are $20 and you can get an expansion pack at the door for $10. Doors open at 5 p.m. and games start at 6. The lodge is located at 961 South Birdneck Road. You can call the center at 757-357-9292. to get tickets early.

Ever want to tell people who keep their dogs chained outside why they need to bring their dog in? That could be kind of dangerous in my neighborhood. Dogs Deserve Better can do it for you and your neighbors won’t know it came from you. They will send Valentine’s and info to the address you provide to help these people realize that their dog should be part of the family. This is their 10th year doing this and the goal this year is to help 18,000 dogs. You can check it out at www.dogsdeservebetter.org/Valentines2012.html.

I may have a recipe for you tomorrow.

Bundle Up!

We’ve got events this weekend so bundle up so you can stay warm. Then get out there and support the local rescues and shelters.

Isle of Wight County Humane Society is having Pet Photos with Taunya Tae. Get you pet’s picture taken at Pawsitive Attitudes in Carrollton tomorrow. Give them a call for session times. You can also see all the great cats at IOWCHS at the Newport News PetsMart tomorrow from 12 to 5. You can meet cats and dogs on Sunday at the Newport News Petco from 12 to 5.

Chesapeake Humane Society will have pets from the shelter out to meet you at the Greenbrier PetsMart tomorrow. You can check them out from 10 to 4.

United States Equine Rescue League is having a planning meeting for people interested in volunteering. They’re meeting at Fire Mountain Grille in Suffolk. The meeting starts at 6. Let Michele Schmoll know by this evening if you’re planning to attend. Send her an email at mschmoll@hughes.net. Fire Mountain Grille is located at 1202 North Main Street. There’s going to door prizes for those attending!

Tonight is Great Dane Night at Baker’s Crust in Norfolk. Get the flyer from the events page on the website at www.gdroc.com. Take it to the Ghent location and order your meal. A percentage of the sales from 4 until closing will go to Great Dane Rescue of the Commonwealth. Baker’s Crust is located at 330 West 21st. Street.

Animal Aid Society may have dogs from the shelter out to meet you tomorrow. Look for them at the Tabb Walmart, Hampton Petco, Newport News PetsMart, and the Oyster Point Care A Lot from 12 to 4.

Get your chili recipe perfected. Suffolk Humane is having a Chili Cook off at A J Gators on the 28th. K9 Justice League is having a Chili Cook off at Krossroads Café and Tavern on the 21st. Call the restaurants for more info on entering.

MarsCon is happening this weekend at the Holiday Inn Hotel Patriot in Williamsburg. Heritage Humane Society will be there tomorrow at noon. Check them out and have some fun. If you can’t make it, you can follow all the action live on Twitter at www.twitter.com/HHSwilliamsburg.

Got another recipe for you. Boil some chicken liver in water or broth until done. Strain out the liver and save the broth to add to kibble. Put the liver on a baking pan and sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake for about 15 minutes at 300 to 350 degrees. I understand no dog can resist these.  I haven’t tried it yet because I haven’t gone to the store to get the liver. By the way, chicken liver is very cheap. It’s about $1.50 for a pound. I will warn you, it stinks. But the dogs love it.

That should keep you busy this weekend. Get out there and have fun with your dog! If it’s too windy, snuggle up together and enjoy a movie.

Read The Labels!

I read an article that was posted last week about poison being found in pet food. It’s another reason to always read the label. Sometimes I feel like I need to be a chemist when I read the labels on pet food. I have a degree in English and still can’t pronounce the ingredients. You can find the article at http://ktna.org/2012/01/04/thousands-of-pet-deaths-caused-by-antifreeze-in-pet-food/.

I found out from the article that cheaper semi-moist foods contain Propylene Glycol as a preservative. You would know it better as antifreeze. It doesn’t take much antifreeze to kill your pet. A little bit does a lot of damage.

Propylene Glycol is used in both dog and cat food. So you aren’t safe because you have one or the other. Antifreeze poisoning causes kidney failure. Your pet will have excessive water intake, finicky eating habits, and weight loss. And there’s not much you can do to reverse it.

Other than reading the ingredients label and switching foods, you could cook your pets’ food yourself. You will know what is in it and how fresh it is. There wasn’t a huge pet food market 50 or 60 years ago. Pets ate a lot of leftovers because there wasn’t kibble in the store. You could get canned food in some places but that was about it.

Do an internet search for “homemade dog or cat food recipes.” You’ll get hundreds of pages of recipes. It’s a lot of information to wade through but you’ll find some easy recipes to cook. Some of them can be done in a crock pot so you don’t even have to be in the kitchen standing over a hot stove.

An alternative to cooking your own pet food is to use the raw diets available. There are several kinds from several companies. You can get them at pet supply stores. You can also get Fresh Pet meals in the grocery store. Munchkin loves the raw nuggets and the Fresh Pet meals. The Queen of Picky Eaters knows what’s good!

Two good places to look for recipes are www.all-natural-dog-treat.com and www.allthebestpetcare.com. You can also check out The Honest Kitchen. They have a cook book and sell ready made meals too.

So, start reading the ingredients on your pet food. You need to know what is in the food your pet eats. And, you would be amazed at what companies will put in pet food just to make a buck.

If you’re like me and planning what to get for Valentine’s Day, Easter, and Mother’s Day, You can get great gifts and help 2 local shelters. New Kent County Humane Society is having a Scentsy party. Send an email to warmingmoments@gmail.com and mention NKHS. Ten percent of net proceeds goes to NKHS.

Dogs Deserve Better is also having a Scentsy party. Go to www.buildingmemories.scentsy.us and look for the DDB party. The consultant is donating 50 percent of her commission to DDB during the month of January. There’s also a prize for the person with the highest order.

Get you calendars out! I’ll have the weekend events for you tomorrow!

Easy Peasy Treats

I went grocery shopping Monday. The next to the last stop was at Costco. I get dry dog and cat food there and sometimes pick up treats. Monday they had jerky treats from 2 different companies, Waggin’ Train and Cadet. Both of these treats are made in China.

With the most recent FDA warning about jerky treats from China, I refuse to buy them. Over 350 dogs have died from these treats in the last couple months. I won’t put my dogs in that kind of danger for a treat. But it still amazes me how many people will still buy them. While I was in Costco I warned several people about the death of dogs because of the jerky treats. I just can’t believe they didn’t already know.

Jerky treats look like something all dogs would love. And they do love them. You just have to find ones made in the US. Kona’s Chips are made here and there are some others made here too. You just have to be careful and read the labels. If you really want to make sure the treats are fresh and safe, make your own. Making jerky treats is so easy to do and it’s safer than buying them.

Buy some boneless, skinless, chicken breast. You can get them on sale and stock up. Wash the chicken off and remove any fat. Cut into strips with the grain of the meat. Strips should be 1/8 to ¼ inch thick. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet or use some cooking spray. Place the strips on the baking sheet and bake for about 2 hours. Treats should be firm and dry, not soft or spongy. If they aren’t firm and dry, bake them a little longer. Cool on a wire rack. After they’re cool, cut them in to pieces with kitchen scissors or a pizza cutter.

If you need to store them, place in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. For longer storage (if you stock up), freeze them for up to 8 months. The ones I make aren’t around that long. I told you they were easy peasy treats! Mac and Munch love these and I know they’re safe.

While you’re waiting for the treats to bake, there are a couple things you can do for other dogs. The City of Hampton wants your input about tethering or chaining dogs outside for long periods of time. They’re thinking about putting limits on how long a dog can be tied outside. You can tell them what you think at http://hampton.us2.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_0jQoQN1yUatPUgY. The survey will be up through the 17th.

The UK is thinking about allowing a company to breed beagles for live animal research. These little beagles will be subjected to cruel experiments, made to inhale toxic substances, have toxic stuff dropped in their eyes and rubbed on the skin. There is no love, affection, or compassion. These dogs are bred just to experiment on and then they’re killed. You can sign a petition to stop this puppy mill before it starts at http://forcechange.com/10854/dont-breed-beagles-for-painful-experiments/.

Skechers has a new commercial ready to air during the Super Bowl. This ad promotes greyhound racing just to sell shoes. It was filmed at a greyhound track and shows dogs racing against a smaller dog wearing Skechers. The little dog wearing shoes wins the race. The company obviously didn’t pay any attention to the living conditions of the racing dogs or the fact that they are usually killed when they can’t race any more. Greyhounds are sweet loving dogs that shouldn’t be treated like this. You can sign a petition to stop Skechers from airing this ad at www.change.org/petitions/stop-the-super-bowl-ad-promoting-dog-racing.

Well, that should get you started. Your dogs are going to love the treats and they’re so easy to make. I’ll have something new for you tomorrow.

First Events Of 2012

Yes, this is the first weekend of 2012 and we have events for animal lovers. We’re off to a great start this year!

Isle of Wight County Humane Society will be at the Newport News PetsMart with some sweet cats looking for anew home. You can meet them from 12 to 5. The IOWCHS will be at the Newport News Petco with some wonderful dogs and cats on Sunday. You can meet them from 12 to 5. Come on out and find your new best friend!

United States Equine rescue League is having a meeting next Saturday, the 14th. They’re meeting at Fire Mountain Grille in Suffolk. If you want to attend, RSVP to Michele Schmoll at mschmoll@hughes.net by the 13th.

Great Dane Rescue of the Commonwealth will have some of their great dogs out to meet you on Sunday. They’ll be at the new location of Care A Lot from 11 to 2. The new store is located at 5457 Indian River Road in Virginia Beach.

Animal Aid Society may be out around the peninsula tomorrow with some dogs from the shelter. Look for them at the Tabb Wal-mart, Hampton Petco, Newport News PetsMart, and the Oyster Point Care A Lot. They’ll be out to meet you from 12 to 4.

K-9 New Life will be showing off the dogs tomorrow. They’ll be at the Town Center PetsMart in Virginia Beach. You can meet them from 12 to 3. The store is located at 4421 Virginia Beach Boulevard.

Rainbow Animal Rescue will be at two places tomorrow. They’ll be at both the Diamond Springs Road and the Indian River Road locations of Care A Lot. You can meet the sweet pets from the shelter from 11 to 2.

Dogs Deserve Better is having a fundraiser with some really great scents. Your nose will love it! They’re having a Scentsy party the entire month of January. Angela Brown is donating 50% of her commission and the person with the highest order will get a free warmer and scent. Go to www.buildingmemories.scentsy.us and look for the DDB party.

New Kent Humane Society is also having a Scentsy party. Send and email to warmingmoments@gmail.com or call 757-897-4726 to pace your order. Ten percent of the net proceeds from all orders will be donated to NKHS.

There is still time to get your tickets to the Fur Ball. Portsmouth Humane Society is having their fur Ball Gala on January 28th. You can get more info about it at www.portsmouthhumanesociety.org/furball.html.

The Peninsula SPCA is having their Fur Ball on February 4th. You can get more info about it at www.peninsulaspca.com.

That’s a good start for 2012! Get out there and have fun with your dog. Or go adopt one to have fun with. You’ll get lots of love in return!