Dear Fisher,

My pet-mate and I have a human who is not being fair. Cosmo, an allegedly “soft coated” Wheaten Terrier, is allowed on the couch, while I, a rat terrier, am not allowed on the couch. When my human is not home, you bet the first thing I do is jump right on that bad boy.

To be fair, my human has provided me with exclusive use of my own rocker recliner. Cosmo is not allowed to even sniff it, let alone sit on. Still, it seems unfair that just because I generously share my fur with everyone and everything, that this keeps me from being allowed on the couch. How can my human be so, um, inhumane?

Cookie – the davenport deprived dog

Dear Cookie,

Perhaps you are approaching this issue from the “glass is half empty” school of thought. It is probably not that your human likes Cosmo better than you, but more likely Cosmo’s occupancy of the sofa and your homesteading of the rocker recliner is simply because your human likes the sofa better than the recliner. Your “alleged” soft coated Wheaten Terrier pet-mate likely does very little shedding, unlike you, of the rat terrier breed. Rat terriers have a tendency toward profuse shedding. Your human seems to have come up with a no mess, no fuss solution and should be applauded.

Your first order of business is to accept you rocker recliner with dignity. Shedding is nothing to be ashamed of and if you are deemed healthy and fit, it is just a natural occurrence for your breed. However, I can disclose some helpful grooming tools others have used:

1. recommended brushes such as a bristle brush and soft horse hair brush
2. a glove with little nubs on it is helpful for removing hair and is soothing for you
3. a nice bath with a natural ingredient shampoo and conditioner
4. a vacuum cleaner (OK, do not panic! Must be done with care.)

You can read about other dog lovers and their solutions at
http:Wonder Puppy. Search for Helpful Hints for Shedding Problems. They even tell you how to introduce a dog to the vacuum cleaning method of hair removal. I am not necessarily recommending this, it is just an idea.

On another note, you might want to consider putting all that discarded fur to good use. Your human could gather it all up and create a pillow – or in your case, a doggy bed. Better yet, VIP Fibers can spin it into yarn. Perhaps your human would like to knit up some warm socks for friends and family living in the northern parts of the country. Maybe a doggy sweater for you made from your own fur would convince you that you really are quite special.

In the meantime, think of your rocker recliner as a throne. You might try to use that lever on the side and learn to pull it up, thus giving you more room to stretch out. Enjoy!

Your friend,
Fisher

From my friends at cutebreak.com

For more fun visit CuteBreak.

I love my email. Yesterday my friend Casey, from Ideas Collide in Arizona, sent me a great suggestion for taking some time off and just having fun.

Speaking of having fun, we all love to travel and it is always much more fun when our pets can go with us.

Best Western: Pet Friendly. With our breakfasts, free in-room coffee, internet and rewards program we’ve always been known as an extremely people friendly hotel chain.
We also wanted to show you that we love your pets too. With 1900 pet friendly hotels, you and your pet can now travel and vacation together.
Each Best Western® hotel is independently owned and operated.

But, back to Casey. Look very closely at this dog photo. See anything a little odd? A little endearing? How would you like to morph you photo with your pet’s photo?

Ready, set, go have fun at Inseparator!

How did you do? Send me an email with your inseparable new photo and I will put them in my blog.

Your friend,
Fisher

Dear Fisher,

My name is Roscoe (you can call me lucky) recently I went out to potty first thing in the morning and discovered what a Cane Toad is. I thought I was in heaven until I bit down on one. I started foaming at the mouth and became very sick. Thank goodness my daddy took quick action and rinsed my mouth out with the sink sprayer five times and sought medical help. These poisonous toads are everywhere in my back yard and I can’t resist. Now I only go potty during the daylight hours. Please tell everyone about the dangers of these cane toads and encourage them read up on this danger. Thank you.

Roscoe

Dear Roscoe,

I am certainly happy to hear your daddy is so on the ball when it comes to your safety. I am guessing he has restricted your outside relief periods to daylight so you will not be tempted for a killer tasty treat. He deserves a huge pat on the back and you, Roscoe, also deserve a vigorous tummy rub for wanting to share this information with your fellow critters.

First order of business is to learn where these creatures hang out. They are found anywhere in a wide span of territory from the Rio Grande Valley of Texas south to the Central Amazon and southeastern Peru. They are in the Caribbean Islands, Australia, and Hawaii. At your request, I am trying to cover everywhere, so the word gets around. The scariest for my neighbors is right here in South Florida (Key West and Stock islands, Tampa Bay, Hillsborough, Dade and Broward counties.

Cane toads definitely like the tropics with heavy foliage and access to water. But hanging out in the tropics is no holiday, as they are always prepared to fight off predators. Their first defense is to secrete a white thick syrupy fluid from their glands. Yuk! They care nothing about the happy-go-lucky dog who just relieved himself and is now feeling a little frisky and tries to take a nibble. Any predator who ingests any of the toxins or has contact with the mucous membranes can expect the following results: profuse salivation, vomiting, twitching, weakness in hind limbs and shallow breathing. If that does not scare you guys our there, temporary paralysis and death are also in the offing. You are indeed Lucky!

There is a lot of cane toad information for pets and their owners to absorb, and I urge you to start now.

1. If you do not have to meander about the yard in dark, cross that activity off your list
2. Always have the nearest pet emergency number posted so it is easy to find if needed
3. If you live in southern humid tropical areas, let all your pet friends know about this

You can read up on emergency actions. Visit this blog. Learn about other dangers lurking in your area in the dark of the night.

I wonder, Roscoe, if you and your daddy are having nightmares about the cane toads. I think I might have one myself. Or, better yet, I might just dream about you and how good it is that you are still with us.

Your friend,

Fisher

Lucky me! I received a most wonderful gift in my mail box. Of course I was immediately curious and we rushed to open up the box. Inside we found the neatest toy. First thing was to read over the packaging to see what it was all about.

I have to tell you – right from the start and before even taking it out of the packaging, I was enthralled. I read “batteries included”. Someone out there knows how hard it is for one small cat to go out and purchase batteries when it is the immediate curiosity that has my attention.

Then I read “wings move like real bugs!” OK, I’m in. On the back of the package for CAT QUEST!, there, in big words, is HAVE RESPECT. These people have taken their time to care about us cats. They know cats become bored with the same toys and tell our people to rotate them. “For active toys like CAT QUEST! keep play time short so cats don’t become exhausted.” Oh yes, we do not want to get carried and play through our nap time.

Once the package was opened, it took less than a minute to put CAT QUEST! together. Let the fun begin! It truly is like chasing a real bug, only my people would not let me capture it. The wings flutter and make that little bug noise which drives us cats buggy. Every once in awhile the human would pause it to let us pounce on it and get the feeling of victory. Then, up and away buzzing and fluttering wings to dive for. We love this toy – it is totally innovative.

I had to find out a little about the people behind this magnificent toy. The toy is made by Cardinal Laboratories, Inc. Their website has great information and wonderful pet products which can be purchased right there in their store. Their products are developed by skilled professionals who most assuredly have the love for animals in their hearts. If I ever quit my writing job, I want to go work for them.

How many stars can one can give for BEST PRODUCT? That is how many we give this product. There is much activity here at our house while we cats hone our hunting skills. Who would have thought this could happen in a downtown condo? Of course by now I know the answer to that: The CRAZY CAT people who developed CAT QUEST had me in mind!

Your friend,
Fisher

Thank you all who entered the contest, giving me lots of fun and ideas for more contests! I hope you all enjoyed it and will come back to see what I come up with next!

Winner, Roscoe, sent in a letter regarding his dangerous temptation. The letter first goes off to the news editor and after it is published in the paper, it will appear in my blog. Stay tuned!

And by the way, how did you like the contest? Should we do another one?