's motd Sat June 12, 2010

[Guest guest]

PET PRAISE

Saturday, 12 June 2010

In 1980, I opened the door to my home to find a little present waiting for me in the living room. Wrapped in a royal-worthy piece of red velvet was the sweetest little puppy I'd ever seen. She was a Dalmatian and her spots were just beginning to show! (Did you know Dalmatians are born white and the spots come in later?)

The puppy was a birthday present from my publicist and she'd dropped my new baby off at the house. Oh, that little Dalmatian was truly my best birthday present ever! I had a great dog when I was a kid and his name was Mickey. (He was really more of the family dog.) But this little beauty I'd received for my birthday was all mine. I named her Scarlett and I have to tell you, she just stole my heart!Well, after a few weeks with Scarlett, I decided she needed a little sister to play with. That's when I got my second Dalmatian and I named her . (I named them after characters from Gone With The Wind.)Now when Scarlett and came to live with me, I was having a lot of construction work done around my house. And, oh no...during all of the activity, one day Scarlett and escaped from the yard! We searched for days but my girls were nowhere to be found. I was paralyzed with fear that something terrible may have happened to them.

I got so lonely without them that I had to have another puppy. And within a few days, I had my newest Dalmatian puppy, Marty. But on the day after Marty came to live with me, I got not one but two phone calls. They were from the people who'd found Scarlett and ! Seems Scarlett had taken a right turn out of the yard and ended up in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel Air. Meanwhile, had taken a left turn and was found in the Coldwater Canyon area of Los Angeles. So I had three Dalmatians now and...I was thrilled!Years later, I had Marty mated. I gave one of her puppies to my mother back in New Orleans and kept one of the girls from the litter. I named her . One of my breeder's Dalmatians later had puppies and that's when I got Prissy and Pitty Pat. (And yes, I stayed with the Gone With The Wind theme as I named each of them.) And now, I had six Dalmatians. (Not quite 101 but...I was getting there!)

My girls lived to be 15 and 16 years-old before going on to Dog's Heaven. Well, I just couldn't be alone and thanks to my breeder, Hattie and Dolly entered my life. As many of you know, Dolly passed away last year and I still miss her so much. Hattie is still with me and she'll be fourteen years-old next month. I'm so in love with Dalmatians. I'm telling you, I could never be without them. I know that many of you can relate to today's message because you're pet lovers, too. One thing I've always done is take very good care of my pets. I mean, after all, they really are like members of the family, aren't they? And because I love them so much, one thing I never did was overfeed them. See, the same bad things that happen to a person's body when they're overweight also happen to a cat or a dog. It's just not good for them.

When a pet is overweight, they're sluggish, don't walk well nor do they breath as well as they should. (Hey, just like overweight people.) And here's the not-so-good news. We animal lovers tend to show our pets the love we have for them...with food.

You know how it is. If you're having a cookie, you want your little barker to have one. Or you drop a little piece of chicken for your purring friend to have. And before you know it, your pet is following you around waiting for that next morsel of food to drop.I want you to take a good look at your pet today to determine if he or she may be overweight. (Your vet can help determine that.) And remember, your pet loses weight the same way humans do. You have to feed them less. And...you need to give your pet a chance to be more active. Take your dog for a walk. (It'll be good for you both!) Get out in the yard and play a little game of fetch with your dog. Play with your kitties, too. (You know how much they love to chase after things.) Train your pets to be active and healthy and please don't overfeed them. (Hey, sounds like advice that'll work for you and your pet!)I promise, if you take good care of your pets. you'll have them giving you that unconditional love of theirs for years to come!Love,