Amy Shojai's Blog, page 128

Monday Mentions: Kitty Cover, Free Books & Pet-astic Links

Monday Mentions is the mash-up-day of all the neato-torpedo writer links and videos, pet schtuff and bling and writer-icity crappiocca collected over the past week. You’ll have to indulge me a weeee bit today, because SQUEEE! the full cover of my thriller is now available and it (DOUBLE SQUEEE!) has a cat on the back.

Yes, we have MACY the Maine Cool hero cat now on the back cover of the print edition of LOST AND FOUND.

I’ve already had two great write-ups about the book, an advance review at Darlene Arden’s PerPETually Speaking and an interview today at Mary Shafer’s Author Blog, woot! Thanks so much to both these terrific writers.

That’s not the only news, though. Last week I announced a new Kindle-lized book, and this week to share my delight in all-things-furry, I’m giving them away. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday the Multi-Dog ComPETability book is free on Kindle. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday the Multi-Cat ComPETability book is free. And Wednesday, Thursday and Friday the Cat-Dog ComPETability book is free. I hope you’ll share the news with your pet-loving friends.

Now on to the other fun stuff. I’ve published nonfiction books with “traditional” publishers, brought my backlist and new nonfiction to life as an “indie” author, and my fiction will be published by a small press. Maybe I’m a hybrid, I don’t know. But the video, below, has some great insight from smarter and more successful authors that have taken a similar path, so don’t miss taking a look at this glimpse of one of the terrific 2012 Thrillerfest Panels on going “indie.”

Meanwhile I’ve compiled the usual helpful and fun links. Enjoy!

WRITER-ICITY SCHTUFF

Amazon NY Signs with Ingram to sell Ebooks through other retailers

Amazon Serials–One Chapter at a Time ooooh this sounds nifty!

Florence, Italy Writers Retreat! oh, I soooo want to do this…maybe you can

Auditory Hallucinations Via Better Drugs, fun mayhem (for your fiction!) from DP Lyle

Tips to Avoid Social Media BurnOut

25 Things Social Media Must-Knows from a truly terrible mind (good stuff!)

Author Website 6 Must Haves, 6 things you should include for readers

7 Freelancing Scams and how to fight them from Writer Beware–and another Freelancer Beware Content Aggregators

What Kind of Reader Are You? here’s a test…do tell?

Get the Most Out of GoodReads oh, and if you’re a member, you can find me on Goodreads here.

PET SCHTUFF

Whale-Tracking DOG! fascinating stuff, a canine environmentalist

Archeologist Doggy Assistant digging for bones–reeeeeely old ones!

Cat Video Festival, meow-velous fun videos featuring fantastic felines (I dare ya to just watch ONE!)

Origin of Dog Collars, with some great historical tidbits and pictures. Awesome!

Thrillerfest 2012 Panel Master Bob Mayer, with Diane Capri, C.J. Lyons, Leo J. Maloney, Aaron Patterson, Lewis Perdue and Jennifer Talty. Tips that you don’t want to miss! Oh, and that’s my amazing publisher and editor in that lineup.

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Cat Behavior & Care, Dog Training & Care, Writing Advice & More Tagged: Amy Shojai, cat behavior, competability, dog behavior, dog training, Lost And Found, pet care, writing advice, www.amyshojai.com

Oh Behave!

This chair “belongs” to Seren.

In the best of all possible worlds, our animal friends bring nothing but joy and pets always behave. Dogs play fetch, get along with the other fur-kids, and never raid the trash. Cats snuggle in our laps, never miss the potty or claw the furniture. They’re born knowing how to walk nicely on a leash, stay off forbidden counter tops, and never bite Great Aunt Suzy. HA!

Dogs aim to help us out–whether we want them to or not! Image Copr. Claire Hodkinson

In reality, pet-loving owners can have unrealistic expectations. Few of us speak “dog” or understand “felinese” at least without practice, and people easily misunderstand normal pet behaviors—and may actually encourage bad antics without even knowing any better. So what do you do?

HELP IS AVAILABLE

Too often, these socially inept cats and dogs (and owners!) means the pet ends up in shelters! Yet there is help available that can literally can save your pet relationship or even the dog and cat’s life. To promote that idea, the Keep the L.O.V.E. Alive Behavior Express Tour sponsored by Ceva Animal Health and the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists may be coming to a city near you!

Dr. Marty Becker, America’s Veterinarian, is a spokesperson at the September 8, 2012 Dallas event (THAT’S SATURDAY, GANG!) where you’ll find free behavior tips, shelter pet adoptions, behavior demonstrations, giveaways and more. My friend and colleague Dr. Amanda Florsheim, a veterinary behaviorist, will also be on hand to field your dog and cat questions. For a preview, check out this hot-off-the-virtual-press radio interview with Dr. Marty at Pet Peeves Radio.

FINDING PET BEHAVIOR HELP

You really can’t separate pet behavior from their health and well being. For instance, the kitty that gets “creative” outside the box may, indeed, be a behavior problem to you but due to a health condition–or a combination of both. Getting the dog checked by the veterinarian can help pinpoint an anal gland abscess, for instance, that makes him snarl when approached from the rear.

The vet can also direct you to the best person for helping you with a potential behavior issue. Some puppy problems can be fixed with training from a reputable dog trainer. Kitty angst prompting frenzied furniture scratching may be soothed with some help from a cat behavior consultant’s tips about enriching the environment. And veterinarians are the ONLY folks able to prescribe medication (for physical or emotional issues) that may be the tipping point for solving big-time problems. Learn about some of the professional behavior organizations here.  You can learn more about questions to ask to find a dog trainer in this article. Of course, your local veterinarian should know who might be available in your neck of the woods. Many of my referrals come from veterinarians.

MAKING IT PURR-SONAL

Have you ever needed the help of a pet professional like a dog training specialist or a cat behavior consultant? Where do you go for behavior advice? Yes, you can find some solid, helpful tips on the Internet or even in my books–that first one on dog behavior problems is brand new!–but honestly, it’s a toss up how good “free” info might be, and it could do more harm than good. Your pets rely on you to get the best help possible. And the longer a behavior gets “practiced” the more time it will take to un-learn. Just sayin…

What are your top kitty or doggy behavior complaints? How do you manage them? Please share! And if you’re in the area, say “howdy” to Dr. Marty Becker and the other behavior experts at the event. They truly do want to help your pets behave!

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Cat Behavior & Care, Dog Training & Care Tagged: Amy Shojai, behavior problems, cat behavior, cats, competability, dog behavior, dog training, dogs, Dr. Marty Becker, pet behavior, Pet Peeves Rado, veterinary behaviorist, www.amyshojai.com

Dog Shows & Putting On “The Dog”

Have you and your dog ever competed in a dog show? It’s some of the most fun you can have with your canine companion, and isn’t a new activity by any means.

The earliest record of a dog show dates to June 1859 in England, with only 60 hunting dogs (Pointers and Setters) shown. Today the sport of dogs has grown to include more than 200 separate breeds, and expanded beyond pedigree-only dogs to embrace mutts in a variety of shaggy competitions.

DOG SHOW BASICS

I am NOT an expert in purebred dogs or the show fancy. In fact my Magical-Dawg isn’t the right “type” to do well in conformation, although he has the drive and talent to be extraordinary in tracking or other performance sports. It’s not him–it’s me. It takes lots of time and energy and I just can’t manage that right now. If I look the other way and Magic swipes the keys to the Magic-Mobile, no doubt he’ll be heading off to a show of his choice.

How else do you think that luxurious hair stays clean for the judges?

To compete in “conformation” the dogs must be a purebred registered with a kennel club. Purebred dogs adopted through shelters or “rescued” are not eligible unless their registration paperwork remains intact.

Conformation is the beauty contest of the dog world–think of the Westminster Kennel Club Show televised each February at Madison Square Gardens, in New York, or the National Dog Show on Thanksgiving Day. But conformation goes beyond simple looks.

Show judges must know what constitutes the breed “ideal” and measure each competing canine against that mind’s eye image to select the winner that comes closest. Besides looks, the dog’s health, ability to move, and even personality must be up to snuff.

Different types of shows offer entry to different selections of breeds. A “specialty show” features only those dogs of a specific breed–the room may contain a hundred Pugs, for example.

This gorgeous fellow was one of the first Clumber spaniels shown at Westminster!

A group match features all the breeds that belong to a general “type” of dog–say, the Toy group, which includes the Chihuahua, Pug, Pekingese, Yorkshire terrier and Toy poodle (to name only a few). The American Kennel Club (AKC) divides the groups by function and purpose for which the dogs were bred, or by size.

Sporting Group consists of Labs, Setters, Spaniels, pointers, retrievers; Hounds includes Greyhounds, beagles, foxhounds, etc; Working group includes the sled dogs, draft dogs, Doberman, etc.; Terriers consists of nearly any breed with ‘terrier’ in the name; Toys are by size–the little guys; Non-sporting includes Chow chow, Dalmation, Bichon, Lhasa Apso, etc.; Herding are all the shepherds, sheepdogs, cattle dogs, etc; and the Miscellaneous Class is an odd catchall category for dogs that don’t fit in any of the others. A terrific book to find out more is Cheryl Smith’s The Absolute Beginner’s Guide to Dog Shows . . . I believe she’ll soon bring it back into print.

FUN SHOWS

Is your pooch a show-stopper? There are lots of summertime dog-centric events that you and your dog may enjoy. For instance, this Saturday September 8 can compete and win prizes locally at a fun Bark and Paw Dog Show in Denison, Texas. For the second annual event, Downtown Denison’s Bark & Paw show has certain requirements and “groups” –but your pooch does NOT have to be a purebred.

Register your dogs for free—and then sign up for a variety of contests for $1 each at Heritage Park beginning at 9:00 for the day’s events that run from 10 am to 4 pm. All dogs must be up to date on rabies vaccines and stay on leash for the event (except for specific off-leash contests). Anyone can purchase $1 tickets for fun door prizes, too.

I’m one of the judges—but I don’t know which contest yet. It promises to be a dog-gone fun event! Weinie Dog Races leads off at 10 a.m. followed by a retriever contest, most obedient, best trick, and even contests for the biggest, littlest, ugliest, oldest, and one that traveled farthest.

Don’t miss the 11:00 Pet Parade that travels from Forest Park to Heritage Park with Parade Grand Marshal Luke Robinson, founder of 2 Million Dogs and the Puppy Up walks for dog cancer research (2milliondogs.com). The theme is patriotic so owners can “put on the dog” with matching costumes.

Off leash events are at Forest Park while vendors are located on Burnett next to Heritage Park. You’ll find chair massage, pet massage, veterinarian, groomers, trainers, pet adoption, tee shirts, dog bandanas and munchies for both four-legged and two-legged attendees. You’ll even have the opportunity to drool over and then bid on some awesome custom doghouses at 12:30.

Have you ever participated in a doggy “fun show” event? How’d that work out? Do you dress up your dogs for parades, Halloween, or other holiday events? Do tell!

Remember that all dogs are winners when they have someone to love them. Be sure your dog enjoys events where other dogs and people are present, because some pooches prefer to be home-bodies. Please be especially mindful of the weather and keep your hot dogs safe as cool companions. If your dog loves the spotlight, you’ll all have a howling good time.

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Dog Training & Care Tagged: Amy Shojai, dog behavior, dog shows, dog training, dogs, www.amyshojai.com

Writing Evil, Translations & Scary Rhythm

Monday Mentions is the mash-up-day of all the neato-torpedo links and videos, pet schtuff and bling and writer-icity crappiocca collected over the past week. I hope you’re having an awesome Labor Day, and I’ve compiled some truly bizarre as well as helpful and fun links.

I’d also encourage you to check out this Lost And Found Book Give-Away on GoodReads, if you haven’t already done so. Be sure to scan down to the bottom of the post where you’ll find some terrific videos including WHAT IS EVIL? from best-selling thriller authors at Thrillerfest.

How would you answer that question–what is evil? I mean, other than a horrific deadline (shudder!). Please share!

WRITER-ICITY SCHTUFF

Job Opening–Editor for Veterinary E-Newsletter I know nuthin’ more about this but check it out if you’re interested

Kindle “India” Store Not All That  Not yet, anyway. Read this enlightening post by David Gaughran

KOBO Partners with American Booksellers Association

Re-defining “Vanity Publishing” oh my can’t we all be friends?

Calculate Your Sales (or anyone else’s) with this nifty tool to evaluate amazon rank (thanks Diane Capri)

good advice from Lorie Huston

Check Your SEO a nifty tool to grade your effectiveness

Chicken Soup for the Soul Now Soup Nazis? Those who read this blog know why I’m no longer a fan of the CS folks, and now they’re getting into the food biz? Why not, they already license the name to pet food.

33 Things to Ask Before Hitting “Publish” wow, some awesome tips here for bloggers

Jump Back, Pirates–Proof YOU Own your Book a thread to help authors prove disputed ownership

PET SCHTUFF

Bil-Jac Dog Food Recall

Awesome Training Game–Fruits & Veggies Learn how your dog thinks during training by putting yourself in his “paws.” Thanks to Patricia Tirrell who shared her experiences working with dogs and inmates (yes, you read that right!)

Science Behind the Wet Dog Shake  did you know the smaller the mammal, the faster it must shake to exert the ideal amount of force on the water droplets. For example, a mouse must shake at a rate of 30 times per second, a cat nine times per second, and a Labrador Retriever only four times per second.

Zoo Animals Trained to Help Themselves to take meds, give themselves tests, and more, awesome!

AVMA Pet Census Report from pet guru Steve Dale

Cats are GOOD for Your Health  well of course they are! Just asked the Seren-Kitty

Say WHAT? Don’t let your book be lost in translation!

Does Evil Exist? Speculation from best-selling thriller authors.

Writers and pet folks need to exercise and many of us enjoy music but…this is just disturbing on so many levels! Does it encourage you to get with the program?

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Cat Behavior & Care, Dog Training & Care, Writing Advice & More Tagged: Al Giannini, Alma Katsu, Amy Shojai, John Lescroart, Lost And Found, Monday Mentions, Peter James, Readerpedia, T. Jefferson Parker, thriller, what is evil, William Landay, www.amyshojai.com

Cat Names 101

What would YOU name this lovely American Curl girl?

What do you call your feline friend? How did you come up with the name? After the great time with the Name That Dog and Cat for my upcoming thriller, I’m curious how more folks came up with your special pet names. My blog-pal over at asked this fun question about dog names and inspired me to ask y’all about kitty monikers.

PEDIGREE NAMES

Pedigree kitties are christened with a string of unique and entertaining names to designate the cattery, sometimes the breed or even the appearance. I still remember one of my all-time-fave cat names, “Celticurl’s Sinead O’Curler” for an American Curl feline.

THE HISTORICAL “CAT”

Did you know the words for “cat” seem surprisingly similar throughout the world. Historically, there appear to be three basic origins for the naming. The word for “cat” seems derived from sounds he makes, based on the actions of the animal, or associated with ancient cat-gods of the past.

Egyptians named the cat mau, which means “the seer” (from the word mau, “to see”). Perhaps these ancient people associated the cat’s unique eyes with an ability to view more than meets the eye.

Other historians speculate that the cat’s mewing vocalization inspired her to be called mau. In fact, China’s word for cat is miu–quite similar to the ancient Egyptian’s mau.

The powerful cat-headed gods of the times were alternately referred to as Bast, Bastet, Posht, or Pasht. Some people speculate that puss is a natural derivation of Posht or Pasht, while others believe “puss” evolved from the Latin words pusus and pusa, which mean “little boy” and “little girl.” Admit it–you sometimes call your cats by these endearments, don’t you?

Another version connects the French le puss to the Latin lepus, which means “hare.” In fact, “puss” was used in England to refer to both cats and hares well into the eighteenth century.

Romans called the cat felis from the root word felix, meaning “a good and auspicious omen” linked to magical divination. Later they used catta, the same name as the weasel, because both cats and weasels were used to catch rodents. Other words may come from the root word ghad which means “to grasp or catch.” Seems a perfect fit for our felines.

“CAT” AROUND THE WORLD

For fun, here are a few more words for “cat” from around the world:

Arabic, kittah; Armenian, gatz; Basque, catua; Cornish, kath; French, chat; German, katze, katti or ket; Greek, kata or catta; Italian, gatto; Polish, kot or gatto; Portuguese, gato; Russian, kots or koshka; Spanish, gato; Turkish, kedi; Welsh, kath.

SHARE YOUR MONIKER!

So what do you call your cat? Coat color inspires names like Rusty, Pumpkin or Ginger, Snowball, Cotton, Tabby and Midnight. If a cat is called Suede, Fluffy or Big Foot, what image does that conjure?

Attitude often prompts telling names as well. But don’t name him “Demon-Seed” or “Stupid” unless you want him to fulfill that prediction! Cats given positive names tend to have more positive relationships with their people.

Picking a great cat name can be fun. My little Siamese wannabe is Seren—short for Serendipity because it was such a happy accident we found each other. But I suspect cats also have a “secret name” we humans can’t pronounce.

Maybe that’s why they never come when called.

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Cat Behavior & Care Tagged: Amy Shojai, cat history,

Woof Wednesday: West Nile & Puppy Parasite Prevention

I live just north of Dallas, Texas where the greatest number of West Nile cases are being reported. It’s scary–people have died. Horses at least have a preventative vaccine to help protect them. But what about dogs and cats?

Apparently while pets CAN contract the disease from mosquitoes and a few have been reported, symptoms typically are mild. But there’s no vaccination for pets, or for people. Some flea medications purport to help prevent or repel mosquitoes but it’s best to prevent buggy bites altogether. Petfinder.com has posted an excellent report on West Nile and pets here.

In fact, our dogs act like magnets for parasites. It’s not just fleas or those creepy-crawly ticks, either. If you have puppies (or kittens) there’s a good chance you’ll need to address roundworms, those spaghetti-like creatures passed in the potty deposite (urk!) because those can be a health risk to kids (double urk!). But the intestinal worms are just the tip of the buggy iceberg. Everything from ringworm (fungus) and mange mites that attack the skin, to protozoan parasites so tiny they’re hard to detect or even heartworms–also transmitted by mosquitoes–can affect dogs. Check out this Pet Peeves radio show with Dr. Wallace Graham for the latest on heartworms. I’ve compiled a roundup of more than a dozen articles covering everything you need to know about these most common puppy parasites here.   

What about your dogs? How do you protect them from buggy hitchhikers? Magical-Dawg gets a monthly preventive called Revolution that helps prevent the lion’s share of these parasites. My cat Seren-dipity came to us with a case of ringworm–minor, thank goodness, and it resolved quickly.

As for West Nile virus, are you protecting your horses? What about your human family members? I’m one of those folks mosquitoes loves–Mom always said I must have “sweet blood.” So I stay inside during prime mosquito feeding at dawn and twilight. How do you “bite back” at the mosquito menace? Please share!

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Dog Training & Care Tagged: Amy Shojai, dogs, fleas, mosquitoes, parasites, Pet Peeves radio, petfinder.com, puppies, puppies.About.com, ticks, West Nile, www.amyshojai.com

Monday Mentions: Catherine Coulter, Vicious Toads & Thriller Trailer!

Monday Mentions is the mash-up-day of all the neato-torpedo links and videos, pet schtuff and bling and writer-icity crappiocca collected over the past week. Some of this “schtuff” can be hard to categorize and may fit more than one topic so I urge you to at least scan them all.

My Internet finally came back up late last week. While it was down, here’s what I did:

You also won’t want to miss the awesome short video at the bottom of the post from Gayle Lynds interview with Catherine Coulter at this year’s Thrillerfest! Check out the shoes!

Before we get to the more serious stuff, enjoy this just-for-the-heck-of-it video. Serves ya right, if’n ya tease the toad…

WRITER-ICTY SCHTUFF

Warning Flags of Writing Contests from Writers Beware Blog

Serial Killers and Supernatural Powers lots of food for thought for authors–and others

A Celebration of BAD Writing fun stuff!

Author Activism & Critical Thinking more from Writers Beware

Develop the WRITE Biz Plan for You

What’s the Deal with KLOUT?  are you better than a squirrel? Hmnnnn.

Links & Link Building Ops penalties, cautions and more here.

Plagiarism Check do a free search to protect your work!

PET SCHTUFF

Top 10 Animals that Attack Pets  Heck, I need to do a roundup like this, I’ve written about skunks and scorpions and other nasties like snakes

The Smell of Fear and yes, even PLANTS have this, awesome article!

Chew Toy–ZOMBIE FOOT for Dogs, for the dog that has (almost) everything

Does Your Dog’s Back Need Help? 7 signs of disk disease

Sneaky-Pie for President why not a cat?

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Cat Behavior & Care, Dog Training & Care, Writing Advice & More Tagged: Amy Shojai, Ask Amy, biting frog, biting toad, Catherine Coulter, Gayle Lynds, publishing advice, Thrillerfest, video, writing advice, www.amyshojai.com

Feline Friday: Why Cats Hate Vets & What To Do

Look into those eyes–and promise your cat a better vet experience! Image Copr. Karyl Cunningham

This whole week has been National Take Your Cat to the Vet Week, and today even the savvy dog folks like Magical Dawg and Fidose of Reality are promoting the idea. Dogs care about their cat buddies, too (even if they won’t always admit it!).

Cats get the short end of the health care stick. According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, cats visit the vet much less frequently than dogs. It’s not that felines are healthier, although cats do hide illness better.

Cats also are insured less frequently, which is why Pets Best Insurance has launched a low cost feline-only illness cat insurance plan to help cat owners provide the best veterinary care to their pets. You can get a free quote here.

I also got an email on behalf of Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation noting that summertime claims often increase due to pets spending more time outside. Even healthy cats that are kept safe indoors need “well-cat” exams once or twice a year. But many cats hate the vet so much they morph into “Demon-Kitty.”

Cats protect themselves from stranger danger. What’s familiar is safe, while anything new or different raises kitty suspicions. A vet visit delivers a triple-whammy by changing the cat’s routine, environment, and exposure to strangers.

7 REASONS CAT HATE VETS & WHAT TO DO

Crate Expectations. Cats learn very quickly to recognize cause-and-effect. The appearance of the cat carrier prompts kitty disappearing acts if used only for vet visits. Make the carrier part of the furniture. Add a fuzzy bed or catnip toys inside, to create a pleasant association. Check out this award-winning video on cat crate training tips from Catalyst Council.

Car Rides. While humans see out windows and know what’s happening, the cats-eye-view from the carrier offers movement without warning. Odd sounds and being in a strange environment raises cat blood pressure and might even prompt motion sickness. Covering the view with a towel over the carrier’s door helps some cats. But simply taking Kitty for many short rides around the driveway (and never going to the vet!) followed by treats or games can diminish the nerves. Check out these 8 tips for car travel with cats.

Scary Smells. Cats experience life through their nose. The unfamiliar scent of the hospital—antiseptic, strangers, other animal’s fear—can ramp up kitty fright factor. A pheromone product like Comfort Zone with Feliway that the kitty sniffs can help sooth environmental stress. Feliway comes as a spray that can be spritzed on a towel inside the carrier.

Strange Pets. Nothing turns cats into hiss-terical claw-monsters like barking dogs or meowing cats. When confined inside the carrier, your frightened cat can’t flee, so the fight-or-flight instinct leaves few options. She may redirect her fear aggression on the nearest target—you, or the vet staff. Ask to schedule your cat’s exam early in the morning or at slow times to avoid a busy waiting room. Some vet practices have separate waiting rooms and entrances for cats and dogs so your pet never has to see or hear a strange critter. For my Seren-Kitty, the feline Thundershirt helped enormously to reduce kitty stress. I’ve even got a video of Seren wearing the thundershirt here.

Cold Table. While cats may hate getting into the carrier, being dumped on a cold metal table elevates the “strangeness” of the experience. After all, Kitty-Boy’s preferred lounging spots are the windowsill with a view, the soft top of the sofa, or a table underneath a warm lamp. Take along a towel or even the cat’s bed that smells like your cat to make the exam table more feline friendly. Some cat specialty practices have exam room windows with bird feeders outside, or water fountains and fish tanks for kitty viewing distraction.

Weird People. The vet and clinic staff love animals, but to your cat, they’re from Mars. Maybe they wear uniforms and smell like dogs (spit!), and don’t ask permission to pet. The cat might be handled by several different people—the vet tech for temperature or stool sample, for example, and later the veterinarian. Reducing the numbers of individual handlers may help. Scheduling enough time so the cat doesn’t feel rushed also can ease the tension.

Rude Handling. Having a cold thermometer inserted into kitty nether regions is no way to make friends. Needle sticks for vaccinations aren’t much fun, either, but are necessary. The veterinarian and staff often need to hurry the exam along. It’s up to owners to offer treats or toys during and immediately after any upsetting procedure to help change how your cat feels about the vet visit. It can be helpful to find a cat friendly practice–here’s a list to start you off.

Cats remember discomfort, fear, and bad experiences and expect them in the future. But they also remember GOOD experiences and anticipate accordingly.

Ask about bringing your kitten for “fun visits” to meet and get used to the vet and staff so they can simply play and be pet rather than examined and treated. Repeated happy visits take the scary out of the equation. Make vet visits more pleasant, and your cat will be happier—and healthier.

Do YOUR cats turn into “demon kitties” at the vet? How do you manage the angst? What about pet insurance, are your cats covered?

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Cat Behavior & Care Tagged: Amy Shojai, cat behavior, cat care, cat Thundershirt, cats, cats and carriers, cats and veterinarians, Healthy Paws Pet Insurance, Pets Best Insurance, take your cat to the vet day, www.amyshojai.com

Woof Wednesday: Forced Vacation

“Do you gotta work? Play wif me instead? Pullleeeeeze?”

I think there’s a furry conspiracy afoot. Monday I lost my Internet connection which meant I spent most of the next day out of the house finding a “hot spot” to get work done. But once I returned home–with a week-in-advance caught up online–the pets ambushed me for EXTRA attention! They celebrated the fact the plastic-box-thingy I stare at nearly 24/7 had been shut down and put away. Even my Blackberry refused to download emails.

Radio silence meant I could concentrate on more important things. Like tossing the Frisbee. And petting the kitty.

How often do we bemoan having so little “free time” to spend doing what we truly want to do? And then when technology failure actually “gifts” us with a forced vacation, we gnash our teeth with frustration and can’t even enjoy the change of pace.

Well enough already. Yesterday at Panera Bread I published a puppy article about rabies risk and blogged about it. And then uploaded and scheduled two more puppies articles and blogs, plus THIS blog and two more future ones. I am sooooo done. Therefore, if the blogs over the next several days seem a weee bit short–well, that’s because~~~



I’m tossing a Frisbee for the Magical-Dawg, or running the hose for him, or rambling the 13 acres while he sniffs out adventures, or playing chase-the-feature with Seren-Kitty, or playing my piano/cello/singing or even READING for recreation for a change.

How do you deal with forced vacation? If you didn’t have deadlines, what would you do RIGHT THIS MINUTE? Please share…and you’ll be ready the next time the Internet or some other karma deals you an unexpected gift of free time.

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Dog Training & Care Tagged: Amy Shojai, behavior, books, dog books, dogs, http://www.amyshojai.com, http://www.shojai.com, pet books, play, puppies.About.com, rabies, www.amyshojai.com

Tuesday Tips: Verizon Sucks, Panera’s Awesome & Thrillerfest Social Networking Tips

As y’all noticed, there were no Monday Mentions and instead today you’ll find terrific video from a Thrillerfest panel about social networking featuring Alma Katsu, Jessica Barraco, Claire Goldwitz, Kevin Kaiser, Kristen Lamb, Meryl Moss and Matt Schwartz. Share-share-share, there’s tons of fantastic advice in this short video! Do you agree? What has worked for you? Offer your hot tips in the comments.

Today, though, I’m doing my “social networking” from Panera Bread. That’s because yesterday, my Internet connection went “ker-flooey.” That’s a techie term that translated means VERIZON SUCK-ETH BIGTIME!

I spent nearly 2 hours on the phone with the V-guys, turning connections on and off, typing in weird combos of letters and numbers, inserting plug A into slot C — you get the picture. Ultimately nothing was fixed. They make you jump through all those hoops even when they KNOW there’s a network-wide problem. Finally I convinced them that tech supported needed to FIX the furshluggener problem, and they scheduled me a tech-guy to come to the house. . .

Next Tuesday. Sometime before 5 pm.

WHAT?!!! My entire work life not to mention income is derived from online connections. And the earliest possible time they have to get me back to work is 9 days? I spoke to a supervisor. Same thing–  “thank you for understanding, we’re so very sorry, that’s the earliest, we’ll put you on a list if there’s a cancellation/somebody’s in the area/yada-yada.”

This morning not even my Blackberry could download email, due to not enough network coverage. Huh? Over the weekend it was fine but by this morning the network went flooey? Ri-ight.

It begs a question I’d now ask of the panel (below). What do you do to supplement online networking in case, you know, it goes ker-flooey? Have any of y’all had longtime outages? How did you manage? I discovered when I logged on here at Panera Bread that there also were connections from the nearby Wendy’s and several other hot-spots. But I recall the days of dial-up and no coffee shop options.

Zombie apocalypse? No worries. Crazed cats? That’s nuthin. Pushy pooches? Fuggedaboutit. Shut off my internet? NOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooo!

I love hearing from you, so please share comments and questions. Do you have an ASK AMY question you’d like answered? Do you have a new kitten and need answers? Stay up to date on all the latest just subscribe the blog, “like” me on Facebook, listen to the weekly radio show, check out weekly FREE PUPPY CARE newsletter, and sign up for Pet Peeves newsletter. Stay tuned for more news about my forthcoming THRILLER, LOST & FOUND!

Filed under: Ask Amy Videos, Writing Advice & More Tagged: Amy Shojai, how to write, internet outages, social networking, Thrillerfest, writing advice, www.amyshojai.com