Bissel MVP

Hi all!! Mommy entered me into another photo contest just for fun. If you could come and vote for me, that'd be great! You can also enter for the next photo contest period too! Please leave a link when your photo contest period is up for voting!

HTTP://www.BISSELL.com/Redirect.asp?RP_id=104535

Link updated: March 12, 2009 (Voting for this period ends 3/17)

Spay Day 2009

https://photocontest.humanesociety.org/contest.html?page=viewInd&id=6097&contestId=1

The Humane Society is holding a contest to raise money for their annual Spay Day which will be in February this year. Voting costs money, but it goes to a good cause.

Please vote for me! Or you can submit your own picture! If you do submit your own picture, please leave a comment with a link to your contest page. =)

Shiba Inu Stuff

Aloha!!

Mommy forgot to post this last year. There are really cute shiba stuff at this site and their customer service is great. Mommy got a shiba post card set, shiba pencil pouch, and 2 different shiba key chain charm things. Mommy is waiting to see if they get a stationery set with shiba on there and she's going to pounce on that. http://www.digjapan.com/servlet/StoreFront

Once Mommy gets her camera back, she'll take pictures and post them up... hopefully soon!

Vet Sales Tax

California Sales Tax on Veterinary Medicine

We live in California - land of the beautiful people, great weather, smog and traffic! While I love living in this state, our state's economy hasn't been in great shape lately. Recently, our Governator proposed a temporary sales tax increase (from 5 percent to 6.5 percent) to "generate additional sales tax revenues of $ 3.5 billion in 2008-09 for the General Fund". Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposal extends the sales tax to vehicle and furniture repairs, veterinarian services, amusement parks, sporting events and golf fees.

There are many things wrong with proposal, among them is that he has singled out veterinary medicine and not human medicine. However, the last time I checked, a veterinarian IS a doctor.

Additionally, in our current economic climate when household budgets are tightened, how effective would a tax on veterinarian services, furniture repairs and golf fees be? Adding sales tax to veterinary services may end up forcing owners to make difficult choices about the health and welfare of their pets. The proposed tax could add approximately 9% to the cost of veterinary care, which could result in more abandoned or euthanized pets.

The proposal may also put the public health and safety at risk. Veterinary care helps to protect the public from zoonotic diseases such as rabies and leptospirosis.

If you feel as I do, please follow this link and complete the information on the right side of the screen to send out letters to your state legislators as well as Governor Schwarzenegger. It was really simple to do, and didn't take more than 3 minutes!

Humane Society - Take Action California

I took this post from Winnie.

New Record!

According to Mommy and Daddy, I made a new record today! When they came back from going out to eat dinner, they came home with a new toy for me. 10 minutes later, I already broke the squeaker! Woohoo! The first toy that had a squeaker that they got for me lasted a couple of days because I had to look for the squeaker, but not this time! I feel like I've accomplished a lot today!

Darker Coat and Nibbling on Blankets

I'm posting this because Mommy is making me post this:

Does anyone else notice their shiba's coat darkens in the winter and lightens in the summer? When we got Mika last year during the winter, he was as dark as he is now, but during the summer, he lightened out (picture with rawhide and tennis bone toy [taken in July]), and now he's getting darker again (picture that looks like Mika is eating the snowman blanket [taken in January]). He is like the opposite of humans, we tan because of more exposure to sunlight during the summer, and get lighter during the winter because of less exposure to sunlight. How odd... Could this be because of his diet? He is now eating Canidae beef and fish dog food which is higher in protein. When the July picture was taken he was eating Beneful. But when we changed him from Beneful to Royal Canin (which he didn't like... so picky.. this dog likes beef and lamb. He doesn't care much for chicken.) his coat color didn't really change.. it stayed the same as when he was on Beneful, so that rules out food, right? Let me try to find a picture where his "shoulder patches" are showing. His shoulders are the same color as he was during the summer, but most of the rest of him is darkening. You can kind of see his shoulder patch on the picture below. There is a patch of fur that is lighter near his back (color goes dark-light-dark). Looking at pictures of when we first got him, he has always had that "shoulder patch," but now since he's darker, it has made me notice it more.

Any does anyone else's dog like to nibble on down blankets or cloth in general (as I try to show in the picture with Mika looking like he is eating the snowman blanket)? We brought this habit up with the vet and they don't know what is causing his nibbling habit. The vet's guess is that he is itchy and that by chewing on the cloth, he is imagining chewing on himself? (Sounds kind of out there to me.) He seems to prefer nibbling on blankets, his bed, or cloth (only light cloth like t-shirt jersey, not jeans, sweatshirts, socks, and fleece) that is in front of him over chewing on rawhide.

Pet Insurance

Does anyone know anything about pet insurance? Mommy and Daddy are looking at getting insurance for me in case anything happens and vet bills go through the roof. Mommy found this site to look at reviews: http://www.petinsurancereview.com/101.asp, but she would also like to know if anyone has had personal experience with any of the pet insurance agencies. We all say thanks in advance!

Letter to Pets

Mommy found this on an extra page on my Vet's site:

Dear Dogs and Cats,

The dishes with the paw print are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Please note, placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.

The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack.
Beating me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.

I cannot buy anything bigger than a king-sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.

For the last time, there is not a secret exit from the bathroom. If by some miracle I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, and try to turn the knob, or get your paw under the edge and try to pull the door open. I must exit through the same door I entered. I have been using the bathroom for years--canine or feline attendance is not mandatory.

The proper order is kiss me, then go smell the other dog or cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough! To pacify you my dear pets, I have posted the following message on our front door:

Rules for Non-Pet Owners Who Visit and Like to Complain About Our Pets:

1. they live here. You don't.

2. If you don't want hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. (That's why they call it "fur”niture” .)

3. I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.

4. To you, it's an animal. To me, he/she is an adopted son/daughter who is > short, hairy, walks on all fours, and does not speak clearly.

Remember: Dogs and cats are better than kids because they: eat less, don't ask for money all the time, are easier to train, usually come when called, never drive your car, don't hang out with drug-using friends, don't smoke or drink, don't worry about having to buy the latest fashions, don't wear your clothes, don't need a gazillion dollars for college, and if they get pregnant, you can sell their children.

Mommy agrees with the "Remember" part. She'd much rather have us dogs than a kid.

Here is a truly belated holiday picture: