Given the amount of Crasstalkers that live in areas that have experienced natural disasters this spring, it’s always a good idea to be ready. If you have pets, it’s doubly important. You can find some great tips here. Has anyone had any experiences with evacuating or weathering a disaster with their pets?
Normal recaps are like knitting a sweater: difficult, but rewarding. A “16 and Pregnant” recap is like wading into a septic tank with only leggings and flip-flops on. I take this bullet for you. So let’s see whose septic tank we’re wading into this week! Continue reading
Confession: I am the laziest female you will ever meet. There are a bunch of reasons for this, some more valid than others, but the point remains: Like the honey badger, I am a sleepy fuck.
I’m not a tomboy. I’m not some gross hobo living on Lower Wacker. I still want to look good, but I just don’t want to have to try. At all. So, I’ve developed a regimen. It’s not exactly the regimen of a Real Housewife of Orange County, but nor is it that of that creepy girl Karen in 10th grade who didn’t wear deodorant and had bits of old food on her sweater all the time. Continue reading
Remember when “South Park” was fairly new? “Daria”? Even “Beavis and Butthead” had its time in the sun. Great shows, right?
Animated sitcoms have been around forever, and some of them were better than others. We can debate all day long over just how much “The Simpsons” has gone downhill, but some shows never even got the chance to jump the animated shark.
Continue reading
Welcome, everyone, to the increasingly dysfunctional world of “16 and Pregnant.” I don’t recommend you watch the actual show if you have high blood pressure or a soul. Thankfully, I have neither and I’m here to tell you what happened and ask the pertinent hypothetical questions.
This week, we had Jennifer Del Rio, of Tampa, who is a 16-year-old sophomore in high school. She’s expecting twins. I think that’s super. I think having not one, but two, babies before you’re old enough to buy alcohol to drink in the closet while the kids cry it out is a neat idea.
On Wednesday, April 13, the Missouri state legislature voted 85-71 to change the requirements set forth in Proposition B (also called the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act, or PMCPA), the voter referendum that would have imposed stricter standards of care in the “puppy mills” of the state.
The new legislation, SB-113, removes many of the strongest new standards of care from the original bill, including provisions that require solid cage flooring, appropriate temperature regulation, and a cap of 50 breeding animals per facility.
In a “1984”-esque move, the name of the bill is also changed from the PMCPA to the “Canine Cruelty Prevention Act.”
“In spite of decades of urging by the animal welfare community, the Missouri General Assembly remained silent on the issue of puppy mills until after the voters spoke. The failure of the General Assembly to address the problem is why we finally took this straight to the people,” says Cori Menkin, ASPCA Senior Director of Legislative Initiatives. “And as evidenced by the passage of Proposition B, Missourians care deeply about puppy mill reform. That state legislators are discarding Prop B and ignoring the will of the people they are supposed to represent is appalling, insulting and disrespectful.”
In previous articles, the conditions in puppy mills and pet stores were described in detail; treatment ranges from neglectful to cruel. So, given the abhorrent current situation, why would the legislature have gone against the will of the voters, gutted the bill, and allowed the torture of hundreds of thousands of cats and dogs to continue unabated?
The history of Prop B goes something like this: The measure began as a petition circulated in MO by various animal-welfare groups, including the Humane Society of the United States. Even after the petition was certified with nearly 200, 000 signatures, certain organizations challenged it early and often, with a particularly rabid group, the Missouri Federation of Animal Owners (I urge you to check out this link—it is a particularly good example of the kind of ignorance animal welfare groups go up against), filing a lawsuit in August against Secretary of State Robin Carnahan alleging that the term “puppy mill” was inflammatory and unfair and asking that the measure be removed from the ballot.
The lawsuit was dismissed as frivolous, but protests and anti-Prop B editorials continued, with organizations like the American Kennel Club stating their oppostion to the proposed legislation. However, Prop B passed on November 2, 2010, with a “yes” vote of 51.6%.
The reason it passed by such a narrow margin was largely due to a rural “whisper camapaign” by the agricultural lobby. Using the “slippery slope” argument, they were able to convince many farmers and livestock owners that the proposed legislation would be the first step towards requiring that cows be covered with cashmere blankets and allowed to sleep in owners’ beds at night.
Larry Miller, president of the Southeast Missouri Cattlemen’s Association said, “Down the road it’s going to affect everyone in the United States. They want to abolish all livestock production in the United States. They want to do away with hunting, killing animals for food, fishing. What are we going to eat—soybeans and corn?”
This sentiment has been the main obstacle in passing more stringent regulations in other states, such as Iowa and Indiana, which, not coincidentally, have strong agriculturally-based economies and consequently a large number of puppy mills as well.
This has also been a “Tea Party” Libertarian issue. Though these commercial breeders are already required to register with the state and with the USDA, many in Missouri argue that this is a case of the government forcing excessive regulation on the people.
Never mind that many of these breeders have been cited up to one hundred times by the USDA, which would certainly indicate a lack of effectual governance that could be strengthened by state legislation; since all animals are considered “property” from a legal standpoint, the opposition to Prop B were able to argue that people shouldn’t be mandated to do anything with their personal property.
Because Missouri has the largest number of USDA-registered “commercial” breeders, this would have set the tone for other states, and increased the pressure on legislatures to enact similar measures. Prop B became a dirty fight between the HSUS and the national agricultural lobbies because of this.
Besides lobbyist and “libertarian” opposition, the overall continued demand for purebred animals meant that dismantling the bill would have no effect on consumers. As long as people are willing to purchase pets, and as long as cities and municipalities elect not to enact bans on selling animals (San Franciso tried, but the measure was tabled), sick and mistreated animals will still make the mill owners money.
Ultimately, the governor of Missouri, Jay Nixon, still has to sign the new bill. It remains to be seen whether he will follow the will of the voters who supported this measure, or the will of the agriculture lobby and the cowed (pun absolutely intended) state legistature. Even people who oppose the measure on the grounds of being against more government regulation should be able to see that the voters did decide on this issue, and the measure should be enacted accordingly.
Here’s what you can do: contact the governor of Missouri directly if you are a resident and urge Gov. Nixon to veto SB-113. Please don’t call if you aren’t a resident of Missouri, but still consider sending an email to let him know that the will of the people and the future of animals in the United States are at stake.
If you live in a state where “puppy mill bills” are on the agenda, like Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska and Hawaii, urge your representatives to work to pass them. Donate to the HSUS and the ASPCA. Work with your local government to stop the sale of animals- this is the best way, ultimately, to ensure that these commercial breeders’ demand dries up. Educate your friends and family about pet stores and puppy mills.
And keep this in mind: “We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.” – Immanuel Kant
In part 1 of this series, we talked about the conditions in a puppy mill. From a puppy mill, the young dogs go to pet stores. The conditions don’t get any better once they leave the mill. In Part 2, we’ll talk about what these dogs continue to suffer through, and why, under no circumstances, should you ever buy a dog from a pet store.
Pet store conditions
Ultimately, a pet store environment is really no better than that of the puppy mill. These dogs are first transported to the store in just about anything short of a rickshaw. No thought is given to temperature or sanitation en route to the store, and many go long, long ways. Some puppies don’t make the trip and die of dehydration, disease or hypo/hyperthermia along the way.
Assuming they get there alive, they’re then put in cages not unlike the ones they came from: wire on the bottom to make cleaning easier (and getting comfortable harder), too many dogs in one cage, and a lack of bedding or toys that provide crucial solace and enrichment (at a developmental stage that desperately needs these things). Pet store employees may mean well, but they’re often untrained in basic animal care and certainly lack any sort of knowledge of veterinary medicine.
They may not even have the opportunity to play or cuddle with the dogs unless they are taking them out for a prospective buyer. In fact, that’s not part of their job. They are retail workers, not animal professionals. So the care these dogs get is often palliative at best, and enough to keep them alive and appearing healthy, not enough to help them grow into physically and socially healthy animals.
Pet store diseases
Without exception (seriously, it’s very close to 100%, in my anecdotal experience), these dogs are sick. It starts at the puppy mill, but the stress and added pathogen exposure of a pet store, stocked with many other animals of other species and housed with dogs from other litters, combined with poor sanitation practices on the part of the workers means these dogs are sick at the store and will be sick when you take them home.
They don’t always look sick, though, especially to the untrained eye. Pet store animals are often dosed regularly with antibiotics or other medications that mask the symptoms of serious problems. A dog with diarrhea? You’ll rarely see one at the store, but when you take little Chanel home, you’ll be cleaning it up hourly. Why? The dogs are dosed with metronidazole, an anti-diarrheal and antibiotic that will typically not “treat” the underlying causes of loose stool in puppies, usually worms or poor nutrition, but sometimes something much more serious.
Vaccinations? Good luck. These dogs may have gotten an initial distemper-combo vaccination (typically a DHLPP), but at that age the vaccinations need to be administered every two weeks, and any shots given before six weeks are completely useless, because the animal has not yet developed the immune function to manufacture the appropriate antibodies. In addition, since they were likely taken from the bitch before they were fully weaned, they do not have the advantage of some of the basic immunities they acquire from her milk.
Again, they may have recieved a dewormer like pyrantel pamoate, but this needs to be administered biweekly as well, doesn’t eradicate all common parasites in puppies, and isn’t as effective without a fecal exam to ensure the dog is worm-free.
“Kennel cough,” or bordatella, an upper respiratory infection, is rampant. There is a vaccination for this, but it is rarely given in a pet store and is only marginally effective even in adults with a fully functioning immune system. Many more serious illnesses can be mistaken for kennel cough, as well. Treatment requires at least 7-10 days of antibiotics, and can worsen into pneumonia if neglected.
The most serious of all these problems: Parvovirus. Adult dogs, even unvaccinated ones, typically have a strong enough immune system to avoid this deadly disease. But puppies are very much at risk. Parvo can live outside a host for up to five months, and can only be killed on surfaces with very stringent sanitation and disinfectant protocols. The incubation period for the virus can be up to 14 days, which means that a “healthy” puppy can be in its home for quite a while before showing signs of the disease.
Symptoms are typically lethargy, vomiting and diarrhea (there is a particular smell and appearance to the stool that signifies parvo); if untreated, parvo has an 80% fatality rate. Furthermore, there is no “cure” for it; care is supportive and often requires round-the-clock IV fluids and attention until it has run its course. Unfortunately, many buyers do not realize what is wrong until it’s too late, and the cost of treatment is usually relatively high. Pet store puppies are the highest-risk group of all because of poor standards of care and lack of sanitation in the store.
The “AKC registered” myth
With all the recent attention paid to the puppy mill problem, pet stores have changed their marketing and labeling to mislead a potential buyer into thinking their dog is not from a puppy mill. The most common way they do this is by guaranteeing that the dog is American Kennel Club registered; i.e., from purebred lines. Sadly, the AKC is not in the business of ensuring that their registered dogs are anything but purebred. The AKC makes money from each dog registered with them, and a dog with “papers” does not mean anything. Many people are fooled into thinking the AKC stamp is some kind of “guarantee” or certification; it’s not. The dog may still have many, many problems.
The most important problem with the “purebred” myth: it does not guarantee a lack of congenital defects. Responsible breeders screen both their breeding stock and their offspring for potential problems such as hip dysplasia, luxating patellas, bleeding disorders and eye problems. Some breeds are more prone to these issues than others, and responsible breeders will certify with the OFA (Orthopedic Foundation for Animals) or CERF (Canine Eye Registry Foundation), in addition to providing proof that a dog is Von Willebrand’s or mitral-valve defect-free in their lineage. Very rarely is this the case with a pet store dog.
In addition, pet stores often carry “white” or other “exotic” animals, like pygmies. These pets are often the product of severe inbreeding or mutated animals. In some cases, the genes that produce them cause a host of medical and temperamental issues, and these dogs are considered inhumane “aberrations” in a gene pool. The best example of this is the albino or “Z factor” Doberman, all of whom are descended from a mother and son that were bred together to create a small line of badly damaged dogs. Buying one of these dogs is endorsing the very worst kind of eugenics.
Other misleading terms
Pet stores will often use the terms “rescue” or “adopt” when talking about their animals. Do not be fooled. Large chains like PetSmart and PetCo will often keep animals from reputable shelters and rescues in their stores, but they are not “for sale” and you will easily be able to find out what shelter they are from. Older dogs billed as “rescues” may be returns or breeding stock that have outlasted their usefulness. Every dog in a pet store is from a “private breeder”; this is just a term. A refrigerator can be a GE or a Sub-Zero, but they’re different, and all puppy mills are technically private breeders in that they are not a “company” making puppies in a factory.
Adopting and buying are not synonymous. If you are asked to pay any more than a couple hundred dollars (and you should easily be able to find out what that “adoption fee” goes toward), you aren’t adopting. If the pet isn’t spayed or neutered (and they can be as early as 6-8 weeks), and you’re not required to pay a deposit or sign a spay/neuter agreement, you’re not adopting.
The end result of getting a pet store dog
Once you get that dog home, you are virtually guaranteed to have housebreaking and training problems. Cash in your 401k for the vet bills. And, from a moral standpoint, the two thousand dollars that dog cost went right into the pocket of a puppy mill breeder to continue the cycle. No matter how good your intentions, do not buy a dog from a pet store. “Rescuing” that one little puppy from hell sadly endorses the practice.
So what now? In Part Three, I’ll discuss what we can do, from a practical and a legislative standpoint, to stop puppy mills from operating. We’ll talk about the USDA and what they do and don’t do to regulate the sale of dogs, as well as how to distinguish a reputable breeder from a puppy mill.
Chances are you’ve heard of “puppy mills.” You’ve probably been told not to get a dog or cat from a pet store. You might even know why you shouldn’t.
The problem: lots of people still don’t. All over the United States, legislation regulating “puppy mills” is being debated, passed, or voted down. Some cities, like San Francisco, don’t even allow puppies to be sold in pet stores. Other states, like Missouri, have gone against the will of the people to ensure that these facilities can carry on as usual. This is part one of a guide to these facilities, the pet stores these dogs go to, the legislation on the table, and what you can do to help these animals have better lives.
It’s important to understand what people typically mean when they use the term “puppy mill.” For the extents and purposes of this article, I’ll define puppy mill as a facility where multiple animals are bred and sold for profit without regard to the comfort, health and temperament of the animals being raised or sold, or the suitability of the home they go to. This is a fairly objective definition, and does not include responsible hobby or show breeders.
Why do puppy mills exist? Supply and demand. Owners of these operations often profit quite a bit. Also, a number of people consider pets an accessory, an impulse buy, an object. These people may not want to go through the process of adopting or rescuing an animal. Also, the demand for purebred or “designer dogs,” and the fact that many people want a puppy, ensures that there are simply some people who will seek out a dog the same way they’d seek out an iPad 2.
What goes on in a puppy mill
The primary problem with puppy mills is the conditions the dogs are kept in. Overcrowding is the norm, and to ensure a higher profit, as many animals as possible are often crammed into extremely small cages. Stacking cages is also the norm, and since the crates typically have only wire mesh as a floor, urine, feces and other bodily fluids often trickle down into other cages. Often, there is poor ventilation and temperature regulation, which can further endanger the health of puppies already exposed to the bacteria and viruses rampant in unclean conditions. Vet care is minimal if there is any; owners frequently take “treatment,” up to and including euthanasia, into their own hands. Water bowls can freeze, disallowing access to any water in cold climates, and food left in cages can rapidly grow bacteria in hotter climates.
A puppy mill cannot exist without grist, and sexually mature females are just that. A bitch will often have her first heat at around six months of age. While best practices dictate that a dog should not be bred until 2 years of age (for the same physical reasons an 11-year-old should not get pregnant), owners disregard this and breed bitches every heat cycle, twice a year, until the dog either dies as a result of pregnancy or can no longer conceive. When she survives, she is often killed or sold to a laboratory for testing.
These dogs are bred even if they give birth to litters that exhibit obvious physical deformities or higher fatality rates. Part of a true “breed standard” is a lack of congenital defects and a sound temperament, in addition to appearance. None of these things matter in a puppy mill. Dogs prone to hip dysplasia, bleeding disorders, and severe aggression are bred over and over, ensuring plenty of their progeny will go out into the world to unsuspecting buyers.
Once the puppies are born, they are often separated from the mother as soon as they can eat solid food. This creates a temperament problem that will often follow them through the rest of their lives. When a dog or cat is taken away from their mother or litter-mates too soon, they often do not learn basic things like bite inhibition and social behavior, and the window for such learning is very small. In many cases, they will not be able to “learn” to behave appropriately in certain situations.
What puppy mill rescues look like
In Missouri, I have worked for a shelter that raided several notorious puppy mills. It’s not a simple process to seize dogs from a mill; these facilities need only be licensed by the USDA to be “legal.” After that, it is difficult to track and prove animal cruelty that would result in the license being taken away, and many facilities have nearly one hundred reprimands on their record from the USDA and remain licensed.
When we receive dogs from a puppy mill, their condition is, across the board, abhorrent. In one rescue, all thirty-plus dogs seized had to be completely shaved. Not only were mats pulling the dogs’ skin and hiding abscesses (including one dog who had a gaping, bleeding hole in his muzzle), it was literally impossible to guess what breed they were. Many of the animals are covered in their own urine and feces.
Some dogs have infected and necrotic limbs that need to be removed. Some are so emaciated that they are days from dying. Some are so full of mange or other parasites that their lives are comprised solely of suffering. Puppies, because their immune systems are young and weak, may have parvo-virus, a highly contagious and deadly disease when not treated immediately and aggressively. Worms of all kinds and kennel cough, an upper respiratory infection, are par for the course.
Many of these dogs are terrified and some are aggressive. They receive little to no human interaction in their cages and have no idea what to expect when a rescue worker reaches into their enclosure. Because, as mentioned above, they’ve lived this way since puppy-hood, it can take months or longer to rehabilitate them socially. Many may never be “normal.”
Many of the older dogs rescued have severe dental disease due to poor nutrition. Poor dental hygiene can lead to the same problems in animals as it does in humans, up to and including heart disease. Some females may have serious reproductive issues, such as mammary tumor, pyometra, or a prolapsed uterus (the first is often cancerous, the last two disgusting, painful and usually deadly).
Some of these dogs, despite being rescued, are so ill, are in so much pain, that rehabilitation is not possible. In all honesty, some animals must be euthanized because they are so sick or deformed that they can never live a normal life according to “humane” standards.
Most of these dogs are the “breeding stock,” and those adorable puppies in the window are already at the pet store. In Part 2 of this series, we’ll talk about what their lives are like.
Cat lovers! Your time is finally here. Sorry about the wait, but let’s just be honest: Cats are easier than dogs. Dogs are the “athletic sister” in the family, cats are the “smart sister.” (I’m the cat in my family, obviously. I’m fine with that.)
However, one thing almost all cat lovers struggle with at one point or another: the damn litterbox. Cats, being finicky creatures of habit, aren’t as likely as disgusting dogs to use the entire house as a giant pee pad, but once they have a preference, it’s hard to shake it. If they dislike even one thing about their litterbox setup, they won’t use it. Also, they’re super-sensitive to changes. Moving the box, changing the litter, a super moon, or a new pet can cause the cats to freak out. So, if your cat is having issues, here’s what you can do.
Take the cat to the vet.
One of the major reasons a cat will eliminate in places other than its litterbox is illness. A UTI or systemic illness can cause cats to act strangely, including changes in their litterbox habits. So the first thing you need to do is get them checked out. Do a full workup; blood, urinalysis, stool sample. Yeah, it may all come back negative, but a physical ailment is typically easy to resolve and then, at least, you’ve ruled out one huge cause of inappropriate elimination.
Consider the variables of your setup.
Is your box covered? Uncovered? What kind of litter do you use? Where is the box located? How often do you clean it? If you have multiple cats, how many litterboxes do you have? Do you like the color pink? I DO.
All these things can screw up the fragile balance of a cat’s day. A box that’s located where there’s a lot of foot traffic, or even in a place they feel is less than private, can cause them to stop using it. After all, your toilet isn’t in the hallway of your building, and for good reason. Try relocating the box to a more out-of-the-way area or try a covered box. Don’t rule out this cause just because you think it’s a private place. If you share the bathroom with the cats, that in and of itself can be much too public for them. Think like a cat. Follow your cat around a little. Put in a nanny cam for them (fun drinking game: drink every time they lick themselves. Not for amateurs). Watch “Cats.” You get the idea.
Some cats are fairly OCD and won’t use a box unless it is totally devoid of all urine and fecal matter. Others like to have a little bit in there to reassure them it’s their box. But no cat likes to have to dig around pounds of old poop to find a small clean place to go. So err on the side of clean to very clean. Don’t lie to me and pretend your box-cleaning schedule is beyond reproach; we all slack once in a while. So if they’re going near the box but not in it, the cleanliness is the first thing to check.
If you have more than one cat, the general rule of thumb is one box per cat plus one. However, if you live in a studio apartment, this is insane, and you might as well just cover all your floors in a thick layer of kitty litter. If one cat is “guarding” the box, though, or a cat has developed an aversion to marking it’s territory where the other already has, you may still want to find a way to squeeze another box in the place; preferably, somewhere far away from the first one so there are no disputes.
If you have no idea which of these circumstances apply to your cat, you can try and change one thing at a time, slowly. Changing the place of the box/litter/taking the cover off all at once is just going to make Chairman Meow have a coronary. And while that means your litterbox problems are solved, that’s just sad.
Life changes: Help your cat deal.
Though you’re aware that having your significant other move in or having that kid is going to throw the cats for a loop, you may not know how to deal with it. Some cats stop using the box purely because of changes in the rest of their daily life, or begin “marking” in other places to reassert that everything in their purview is theirs, not yours or that of the new screamy thing that looks like a large naked mole rat.
Try and keep as much of their routine the same as possible. If you’ve just had a kid, set aside a few minutes a day just with the cats. I know they’re no longer your actual “babies,” but they’ll still want the love. If you’re moving, or someone else is moving in, try to keep the general layout/placement of the litterbox area the same, and again, give a little extra love to kitty. They’re stressed. They don’t know that you decided to move because the ceiling in your last place was caving in; they think you’re moving because you hate them.
On that note, make sure your carpet or any other place your cat’s been eliminating (or in the case of moving,where someone else’s cat was eliminating) is clean, clean, clean. Use a cleaner specifically formulated for ammonia-based pet odors, like Nature’s Miracle. And don’t half-ass the cleaning process. If there’s even a hint of scent there, the probability that ol’ Ernesto is going to visit again is very high.
Another helpful hint when you’re in a situation where you know your cat is stressed: using Feliway. It’s basically a Glade Plug-In with feline facial pheromones instead of “Pina Colada Passion.” Plug it in near the litterbox; it’ll create a more soothing, welcoming environment; in fact, it’s great for any stressful event even if Purrtis Sittenfeld is using her box.
If all else fails: Start over.
If there’s nothing medically wrong, you’ve pretty much ruled out all the common behavioral causes, and your cat is still refusing to come within a foot of the litterbox, you need to start littertraining all over again. Most people never even “trained” their cat to use the box in the first place; I just kind of put a litterbox in a corner and hoped for the best and didn’t have any issues at first.
What you’ll actually need to do is confine your cat to one room with its food, water, and litterbox; a small room like a bathroom is best. Ideally, you’ll want to do this in the room the box is currently in, but this is also a great way to acclimate a cat to a new placement. Obviously, you’ll want the food to be as far away from the box as possible; “you don’t shit where you eat” is a good rule of thumb for both you and your cat.
Keep your cat confined to that room. Make sure they’re using the box. Go in and hang out with your cat, bring him treats, get him some cool toys, but keep your cat confined until you know he’s reliably using the box; at least three days, but I’d even recommend longer if you’ve been having problems. Once you’ve confirmed that he’s regularly using the box, you can start to allow him access to the rest of the house, one room at a time; if he’s the type that pees when you’re gone, you may still want to confine him when you’re not home.
Hopefully, problem solved. There is always a reason your cat is not using its litterbox, I promise. It’s not because Clawed Monet is mad at you or doesn’t care for the color of those shoes you wore yesterday, either. If these steps don’t work or don’t apply to your situation, finding the cause may be more difficult, but it can still be done.
If your cat will not use the box (or whatever you want it to use; maybe it’s the bathtub) and it remains a problem, you have a few options, but surrendering the cat is often not one. In a shelter with hundreds of great cats that do use a litterbox, no one is going to adopt the one who habitually does not. Sad but true. So persevere, put up with it, or rehome the cat with someone who doesn’t care or has a lot of free time to potty-train a cat.
Still have questions? Email them to TrainingCornerNerds -at- gmail for use in a future column.
