Good morning Tuesday! On the to-do list today, drink coffee, feed dogs, clean up overnight pet stains(sigh).
Night before last in an act of midnight mischief my black and white cat Quimby decided he wanted a snack and climbed onto the fridge where I had stashed his favorite, safflower oil (oh! he loves this stuff! Why was I silly enough to leave it in the open! Cats can jump and climb after all!). Quimby knocked the bottle off the fridge and the midnight snacking began. I awoke the next morning to many an oily pet paw print across my kitchen tile. Quimby and Bugsys' bellies both covered in oil. They lapped up nearly an entire 16oz bottle! Bugsy threw up through-out the day, good dog that he is he gave me a terribly pathetic look and paced around me just before each time(Luckily I was smart enough to get the clue and let him out!) so he was successful in making it out all but one time which happened in the night. Quimby Cat was fairing better I thought, until I saw my living room carpet this morning. Oh the joys of pets!
So now is a great time to talk about the cleaning agents I use around the house!
Several years ago, when I was dog-less, but double catted, I used bleach to clean my floor and the result was coughing, hacking cats who looked as if they had been strangled. Since then I have sought out more pet safe cleaning options and have found success in the following agents:
1. Vinegar
2. Baking Soda
3. Soda water
4. Scrub brush and old towels designated to the "icky" stuff.
I have a spray bottle with vinegar that I use to clean the dog food prep area, which doubles as a spray for anything else that needs cleaned. On carpet stains I pour a bit of soda water, then vinegar and some baking soda, let it set for a few minutes scrub. Gotta love the fizzy action of the vinegar and baking soda! Some folks make a pre-mix of vinegar, soda water, baking soda and hand soap. Using these cleaning methods my pets have never had an adverse reaction. This is generally cheaper than store bought "pet cleaners" and more often than not more environmentally friendly. So next time you find to a mess, give it a go!
Recipe for turning tummies-
When the boys are sick, I will follow a get "back on track" routine to minimize the likelyhood of continued vomiting/diarrhea. How I follow this plan depends on the kind of sickness and how sick the animal is.
First, I will often have them skip a meal.
Second, plain rice will be served as a meal.
Third, Rice mixed with cottage cheese and maybe some lightly steamed vegetables.
Fourth, Back to normal meal, or maybe a lighter than normal meal.
Some might argue that because I feed raw I should just wait until the animals stomach settles and then serve the usual raw meal. This is also a good option. The small meals of rice "back on track" plan is something I have used since before I fed raw and so I continue to use it and have found it to work just fine. I might also note, that while I feed a raw diet that is grain free I do not stick to the grain free rule 100% of the time. My dogs do get regular dog biscuits as treats now and again(....oh, and the occasional pizza crust,.....) and none of the animals in my household have any food allergies.
I just discovered this link to the 2011 x-ray contest. The winning x-ray is of a dog who ate 9 handballs! Crazy! Makes my pets gulping a bottle of oil seem like nothing!
2011 X-ray Contest
I have to mention, that my vet has a bulletin board of newspaper clippings in his office. While most of them are animal related comics one is an X-ray photo of a St. Bernard puppy's stomach which contained a butcher knife! Ouch!
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