<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"><channel><title>Pets Blog</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/</link><description>Pets, those feathered, gilled, furry, four legged and sometimes scaly family members we all love.  Learn more about caring for your pets and including them in family fun here at the Families.com Pets Blog.</description><language>en-us</language><pubDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:08:56 +0000</pubDate><lastBuildDate>Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:08:56 +0000</lastBuildDate><ttl>60</ttl><item><title>Dogs and Cats Who Blog</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/dogs-and-cats-who-blog</link><pubDate>Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:54:32 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/dogs-and-cats-who-blog</guid><description><![CDATA[Do your pets keep a blog?  Do they tweet?  Do they have a Myspace page?  Do they chat with other ani-pals on Facebook (or Dogbook or Catbook)?

Writing for your pets can actually be a great creative exercise and imagination outlet.]]></description></item><item><title>First Swine Flu Case Confirmed in Family Pet</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/first-swine-flu-case-confirmed-in-family-pet</link><pubDate>Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:22:28 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/first-swine-flu-case-confirmed-in-family-pet</guid><description><![CDATA[Despite all the worry about swine flu (H1N1) over the last few months, I've been confident that four-legged family members were safe from the disease.

Until now.]]></description></item><item><title>How to Find a Vet for Your Exotic Pet</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/how-to-find-a-vet-for-your-exotic-pet</link><pubDate>Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:08:11 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/how-to-find-a-vet-for-your-exotic-pet</guid><description><![CDATA[Choosing a vet can be tricky.  You want a doc and staff who know their stuff, convenient hours, close to home, fair prices, and more.  Maybe you want somebody who remembers your pet's name, or has a gentle hand, or seems to genuinely love all animals.]]></description></item><item><title>Diary of a Cat Care B&amp;B:  the Worst Part of the Job</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/diary-of-a-cat-care-b-ampb-the-worst-part-of-the-job</link><pubDate>Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:17:20 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/diary-of-a-cat-care-b-ampb-the-worst-part-of-the-job</guid><description><![CDATA[It feels like this year has been a rough one for some of our favorite clients at the cats-only boarding facility.  Some of our long-time visitors succumbed to chronic health issues or old age.  It feels like we've been sending a lot of condolence cards.

I don't like it.  Not one bit.]]></description></item><item><title>Bad Weather and Active Pets</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/bad-weather-and-active-pets</link><pubDate>Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:32:42 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/bad-weather-and-active-pets</guid><description><![CDATA[Fall and winter in the Pacific Northwest often means rain.  And rain means MUD!  There are days I want to walk my dogs in hip boots and a full-length coat (at least I have the coat, in a muddish shade of brown so the splatters don't show).]]></description></item><item><title>Halloween and the Escape Artist</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/halloween-and-the-escape-artist</link><pubDate>Sat, 31 Oct 2009 16:14:43 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/halloween-and-the-escape-artist</guid><description><![CDATA[Halloween can be a day with more tricks than treats if you share your home with a four-legged escape artist.

Picture it:  Halloween 2004.  Moose, Lally, and I were living in New Jersey with my grandmother.]]></description></item><item><title>Positive Reinforcement and the Power of Distraction</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/positive-reinforcement-and-the-power-of-distraction</link><pubDate>Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:33:10 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/positive-reinforcement-and-the-power-of-distraction</guid><description><![CDATA[I try very hard to be a positive reinforcement trainer with my dogs, and not a negative reinforcement.  Some days it works better than others.]]></description></item><item><title>TNR Programs Gaining Popularity</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/tnr-programs-gaining-popularity</link><pubDate>Fri, 23 Oct 2009 00:10:20 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/tnr-programs-gaining-popularity</guid><description><![CDATA[What is TNR, you ask?  TNR stands for Trap-Neuter-Return... and is a policy for dealing with feral cat populations that is gaining popularity.]]></description></item><item><title>Dog Breed:  Xoloitzcuintli</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/dog-breed-xoloitzcuintli</link><pubDate>Mon, 19 Oct 2009 20:47:23 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/dog-breed-xoloitzcuintli</guid><description><![CDATA[One of the most unique breeds of dogs I've ever seen is the Xoloitzcuintli.  I wouldn't even know how to pronounce the name... if it weren't for catching an Animal Planet special on the breed.]]></description></item><item><title>The Longevity of Pets</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/the-longevity-of-pets</link><pubDate>Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:51:07 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/the-longevity-of-pets</guid><description><![CDATA[If you're planning to live to be a hundred, you might want some company.]]></description></item><item><title>When Litterbox Smells Attack!</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/when-litterbox-smells-attack</link><pubDate>Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:47:08 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/when-litterbox-smells-attack</guid><description><![CDATA[It's Halloween season... time for a horror story!  And let's face it -- as cute as our pets are (of all species), sometimes they produce some awful smells.  In my work at the cats-only boarding facility, I encounter the whole rainbow of litterbox nightmares.]]></description></item><item><title>The Luckiest Turtle</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/the-luckiest-turtle</link><pubDate>Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:31:41 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/the-luckiest-turtle</guid><description><![CDATA[The turtle in question was already named Lucky... and then he earned it.

Box turtle Lucky and his lady friend Lovey have a safe and happy life in their enclosed pen in a California backyard.  But back in July, owner Sally Pyne found both turtles outside their pen.]]></description></item><item><title>Dogs and Cats Living Together:  Gate Jumpers</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/dogs-and-cats-living-together-gate-jumpers</link><pubDate>Mon, 05 Oct 2009 23:15:33 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/dogs-and-cats-living-together-gate-jumpers</guid><description><![CDATA[In my six month update, I mentioned one of my worst fears:  that one of my roommates' cats will jump the gate and encounter the dogs.  Well, it's happened.  Twice.

A quick background for new readers:  in January, I moved in with roommates.  Roommates who have cats.]]></description></item><item><title>Goldfish Bloat</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/goldfish-bloat</link><pubDate>Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:40:52 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/goldfish-bloat</guid><description><![CDATA[Bloat can be a serious health issue for aquarium fish -- especially goldfish.

How do you know if your goldfish has bloat?  The following symptoms are common at various stages of bloat:


  Bloating or swelling of the body.

  Passing clear, bubbly strings of feces (in early bloat).]]></description></item><item><title>Dealing with Aquarium Surface Scum</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/dealing-with-aquarium-surface-scum</link><pubDate>Mon, 28 Sep 2009 17:33:06 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/dealing-with-aquarium-surface-scum</guid><description><![CDATA[Keeping aquarium pets is a lot more work than some people expect.]]></description></item><item><title>Diagnosing Cancer in Pets</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/diagnosing-cancer-in-pets</link><pubDate>Sun, 27 Sep 2009 20:34:11 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/diagnosing-cancer-in-pets</guid><description><![CDATA[I was chatting with an owner at the cats-only boarding facility about various health issues, and the topic of cancer came up.  "How do you know if a cat has cancer?" he asked me.  I was stumped for a moment, then managed to say that it was probably the same way we figure it out in humans.]]></description></item><item><title>Can Pets Sense Our Emotions?</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/can-pets-sense-our-emotions</link><pubDate>Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:44:05 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/can-pets-sense-our-emotions</guid><description><![CDATA[I've always believed that animals are sensitive to emotions -- in their owners, in new people they meet, maybe even in other animals.

But if you try to go looking for proof, you get a whole lot of anecdotal evidence.]]></description></item><item><title>How Much Do You Feed Your Pets?</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/how-much-do-you-feed-your-pets</link><pubDate>Fri, 18 Sep 2009 18:55:08 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/how-much-do-you-feed-your-pets</guid><description><![CDATA[My dog Moose would eat until he hurt himself, if he had the opportunity.  He's not what I'd call "self-regulating" when it comes to meals.  If the food is there, he'll eat it.  If my other dog's food is there, he'll try to eat that, too.

My dog Lally, on the other hand, IS self-regulating.]]></description></item><item><title>Dealing with Ringworm in Pets</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/dealing-with-ringworm-in-pets</link><pubDate>Mon, 14 Sep 2009 03:20:37 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/dealing-with-ringworm-in-pets</guid><description><![CDATA[Ugh... just the name makes my skin feel all crawly.  Ringworm.  It's not actually a worm -- ringworm is a couple different types of fungus that can infect dogs, cats, and humans.

Gross ringworm facts:

  Shed ringworm spores can live in the environment for up to a year and a half.]]></description></item><item><title>Madness by Any Other Name is Just as Sweet</title><link>http://pets.families.com/blog/madness-by-any-other-name-is-just-as-sweet</link><pubDate>Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:40:30 +0000</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="true">http://pets.families.com/blog/madness-by-any-other-name-is-just-as-sweet</guid><description><![CDATA[A friend of mine just wrote a piece about her dog and The Madness:  out of nowhere, the dog will go from inactive to active, running around in circles, making funny noises, and generally being a total goofball.]]></description></item></channel></rss>