Discussing pets

The Life of Rook

2010-08-11T11:27:00.002-04:00

Rook lived for 14 years, 5 months and 2 days. During that time, he was happy, mischievous, energetic, but most of all, always hungry. He was a loyal dog and a great friend.

He died this morning after succumbing to kidney failure. His last few days were hard on him and after a long consultation with his vet of 12 years, we decided the humane thing to do was to let him go.

Goodbye old friend. I'll miss you very much.

how walking my dog saves me from gaining 12 pounds per year!

2010-05-12T21:17:00.003-04:00

So I recently started tracking my caloric intake and i always thought there was no need to track how much walking I do with Rook, particularly since he can barely go for longer than 15 minutes at a time now that he is so old.

Not true.

Here is some quick math.

Now that Rook is 14, he can't hold it for as long as he used to. So now I walk him 3x per day. Once when I wake up, second right when I get home from work, and last just before bedtime. His evening walk usually lasts the longest. But on average, let's say each walk is 0.33 of a mile. (I think this is a light estimate, but let's go with it). So everyday, I have walked 1 extra mile because of rook.

If each mile burns about 125 calories, that's 1*125*30=3,750 calories burned in an average month. It only takes 3,500 calories to burn a pound of fat.

So over the course of 1 year, I burn 3,750*12 = 45,000 calories which translates to 12.8 pounds of fat every year!

What's the moral of the story? Walking your dog every day is good for you health. Go walk your dog, it's good for both of you!

The New Truth About Pet Insurance - VPI Pet Insurance is a waste of money!!!!

2009-08-21T03:00:00.005-04:00

Here is an update to my prior blog entry on pet insurance, particularly the pet insurance offered by the d-bag criminals at VPI Pet Insurance.

Here is a screen shot of their website apparently give you a "real world" example of what kind of reimubursements their customers should expect.

If the picture is a little small to read it says: total vet bill was $1,451.55 and the total reimubursment was $1,241.55

WHAT HORSESHIT!!!!

This is a perfect example of false advertising.

I've been a sucker scammed by this company paying my monthly premiums to this company for the last 10 years. While I was always lucky and never really ran into any major medical problems with my dog, I always kept the insurance for peace of mind just in case something did happen. I was hopeful that VPI Pet Insurance would finally reimuburse some of the $65 per month or $780 per year I have been paying to these criminals for the last 10 years.

When Rook was finally hospitalized and I did get a veterinary bill for $1,322.75, VPI decides to reimburse a whopping $293.85.

Are you kidding me.

Karma is a bitch, and I seriously hope something terrible happens to this company.

Tails Pet Media Group, Inc. | Celebrating the relationship between pets and their people

2009-07-16T23:07:00.001-04:00

Tails Pet Media Group, Inc. | Celebrating the relationship between pets and their people

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Looking for Financial Advice? - ABC News

2009-07-01T21:45:00.001-04:00

Looking for Financial Advice? - ABC News

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from the producer of the news piece from ABC News.

PetWatch Internet Controlled pet feeder

2009-06-30T22:10:00.004-04:00

So I'm watching I want that! Tech Toys on TV and I ran across this product, so I decide to research it and review it.

It turns out it's a Korean manufacturer. Not going to dis it just from that because Samsung has actually come a long way and now makes some decent electronic products. Although I did hear that my friend's Samsung plasma TV just crapped out after just 5 short years.

Anyway, the PetWatch allows you to store food for your pet and control when it is dispensed by a web interface. It also allows you to run off a timer and record your own voice to tell your pooch to come when it's feeding time. (as if he won't smell it once it's out).

It also allows you to spy on your pooch with a tiny little built in webcam that is built right into the device.

More information on the product is available below.

http://eng.petwatch.co.kr/introduction.php

My initial thoughts are wow, what an interesting idea. now, if i get stuck at work or am out and about and can't make it home to feed my dog, this is perfect in a pinch.

That's pretty much where my optimism ended. This thing has to be plugged into a wall electrical socket and has no battery back up in case you lose power. Even crazier, in order for the web cam to work you have to plug an ethernet cable into the back and connect it to your router? That's just nonsense. I can get over plugging it into the wall, because most electrical feeders have to be plugged into something, but with 75% of home networks already wireless, where am I going to find a cable long enough to plug this thing into my hidden wireless router?

You are already spending several hundred bucks to buy a device like this, presumably it's a few hundred dollars because of the internal web cam, drivers and software to run the simple mechanics of the product, but if my nikon coolpix camera can connect wireless to my Wifi network, why can't this?

Ok so much for reviewing the product when it's being used correctly. Next question is how does this product work when the dog starts acting like a dog. I know my dog would start to wonder where the food came from the first time it dispenses food, and with me not around, he'd definitely investigate. Does the top lock? The product is more tall than wide, what if the dog "noses" at it and knocks it over. Will the top come off revealing all the food? Will it still dispense food when it's knocked over and there is no gravity to pull the food down when the door is open?

Bottom line, i love everything this product wants to do, I'm hoping the company is around long enough to release new version. one that is wifi compatible and a little more puppy proof for the mischievous puppy.

petciety featured on ABC News

2009-06-28T15:55:00.001-04:00

Hello everyone.

Sorry for the long hiatus. Here is a link for the ABC News piece that featured Petciety.

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=7885033

The New Normal in Pet Care

2009-06-22T12:04:00.001-04:00

The New Normal in Pet Care

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petciety coverage on NBC

2009-02-28T22:40:00.002-05:00

great little PR piece discussing the benefits of petciety. watch till the end.

Big Dog event in central park

2008-09-30T04:41:00.001-04:00

http://www.centralparkpaws.net/index.php?page=fair

i'll be attending this event in central park on October 18. Come join me.

funny dog video

2008-09-30T04:26:00.000-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mLLBcAL8IdA

thought this was a funny dog video i found on youtube.

Funny dog pictures

2008-09-29T22:45:00.000-04:00

does anyone have any funny dog pictures to share? a friend of mind just sent me this one. send me more!

Dog grooming locations in midtown

2008-04-08T17:19:00.000-04:00

Today I decided to look for dog groomers near where I live in midtown west.

Hands down the best place is a spot in the Village called Dog Wash. They even have a self serve option where you can wash your dog on your own in one of their booths. It's actually pretty fun and much less back breaking than washing your dog in your tub.

But alas, my dog is too old now to make that long walk so I decided to look for other options and here is what I found.

Name	Address	Price
Town House Grooming	369 W 19th St @ 9th Ave	$55 plus tax
Service	Phone	Notes
wash, nails, ears	(212) 929-2910

Name	Address	Price
Paws Inn Chelsea	145 West 24th St b/t 7th and 6th Ave	$65 plus tax
Service	Phone	Notes
wash, nails, ears	(212) 243-3020

Name	Address	Price
Downtown Doghouse	259 W 18th St b/t 8th and 7th Ave
Service	Phone	Notes
$65 plus tax	wash, nails, ears	(212) 924-5300

Name	Address	Price
Hell's Kitchen Groom Room	666 10th Ave @ 47th St
Service	Phone	Notes
	(212) 459-3795	closed mondays and tuesdays

Name	Address	Price
New York Dog Spa and Hotel	32 West 25th St @ Broadway	$50 plus tax
Service	Phone	Notes
wash, nails, ears	(212) 243-2135

Name	Address	Price
D is for Doggy	156 West 22nd St b/t 6th and 7th Ave	starting at $45 plus tax
Service	Phone	Notes
wash, nails, ears	(212) 633-0040	no answer on their phone

Name	Address	Price
Dog Wash	177 MacDougal St @ W 8th Street	$35 plus tax
Service	Phone	Notes
wash, nails, ears	(212) 673-3290

Name	Address	Price
Dog Wash	177 MacDougal St @ W 8th Street	$19 plus tax
Service	Phone	Notes
self serve	(212) 673-3290

play with puppy's paws and teeth

2008-02-26T19:05:00.000-05:00

This week's dog training tip.

While your dog is a puppy, it's important to continuously play with your puppy's teeth, gums, paws, paw pads, and claws. Why? As your puppy gets older, you'll need to do standard maintenance like brushing your dog's teeth, wiping down their paws when they step in something gross and trimming their nails when it gets too long.

When you play with your puppy, take care to particularly play with all those parts and get him accustomed to your touch. This will save you a lot of trouble and potentially a few bites in the future.

This week's puppy training tip

2008-02-15T20:37:00.000-05:00

Many of my friends have welcomed new puppies into their homes recently so i thought i would start a weekly (i hope) blog with some of my key learnings from training dogs.

This week's focus will be on general puppy training techniques.

There are so many theories out there regarding the best way to train puppies, and this is just my opinion.

Do:
1) use lots of positive reinforcement. this includes verbal praise and lots of petting. petting is interesting, bc when my dog was a puppy, he actually did not really enjoy being petted too vigorously and would actually try to get away, but keep at it. puppies need to learn that petting is a master's sign of affection and it's actually a good thing.
2) verbal praise should be over the top praise. the words are important (ie. good boy or good girl), but just as important, the puppy needs to learn what the praising tone of voice is. so try to keep it consistent.
3) this is debatable, some trainers like to and some don't. but i like to use treats as rewards for doing the right thing during a training session. it causes the puppy to really want the treat down the road, but it really is effective. the true hard core trainers will tell you it's somewhat "cheating."
4) when training, use both voice and hand commands. it doesn't matter what the hand commands are so long as you keep it consistent. this is extremely important, and master's often get lazy with this step and just rely on voice command, but don't fall victim to your laziness. always use both. the reason for this is for when the dog is older and in a situation that is crowded, your dog may only be able to see you but not hear you. if you have properly trained your puppy to obey both voice and hand commands, down the road they become interchangeable.
5) teach your puppy the word "no." although, this is also debatable, i feel this is actually one of the first words your puppy should learn. when saying no, your tone of voice has to be stern and distinct from the tone of voice you use for praise.

Don't:
1) overwhelm your puppy with overtraining. create a schedule where you spend 1 full week trying to teach your puppy one new word. If you overtrain and try to teach your puppy several words all at once, it will be too confusing to remember. For example, do not try to teach, sit, down and stay all at once. spend a week on each one, and each progressive week, continue saying the commands from the prior weeks so he doesn't forget.
2) try to train when your puppy is very active. puppies need exercise and when they are excited and running around the room, they will not want to pay attention to training commands. Let the puppy run off his excess energy first. then, he will be far more responsive to training
3) life of your puppy should not be all about training. however, you should be training on a daily basis. try training for 10 minutes a day to begin. then gradually add 5 minutes to each training session each week and build up to 30 minutes of training per day.

Hope this helps.

The truth about pet insurance

2008-02-05T22:01:00.000-05:00

I've debated in my own head the worth and value of keeping my pet insurance for years now.

The facts... my 11 year old yellow lab with the exception of a few minor bumps and scrapes has thankfully lived an incident free life.

Yet for years, I have, through guilt or whatever other rationale, have been paying monthly premiums for pet insurance to the tune of approximately $60 per month ~ $58.14 to be exact. And I just got a notice that they would be increasing my rates once my dog turns 12 in March. Think about that for a second. That's almost $700 a year on insurance that may or may not get used.

On a normal year, I take my dog to the vet once a year for his annual visit to update his vaccinations (if needed, older dogs only need new shots every 3 years), and go through his routine veterinary exams. How much do these routine visits cost? Depending on what battery of tests my vet convinces me to opt-in to, anywhere from $200 - $300 per visit. So where's the logic in that? I spent $700 on insurance and how much do I get reimbursed? After fees, deductibles and x% co-insurance, about $120 - $190.

Last year, my dog actually had an incident and had a benign growth removed from his leg. In total, that cost me about $1,000. How much did insurance cover? about $530. so what gives?

I have never broken even on my insurance costs. Granted, my premiums included additional cancer coverage and thankfully my dog has not gotten cancer, but i'm starting to doubt whether I will ever be paid any more benefit than the premiums I have already spent.

So why do I do it? Why don't I just cancel the coverage and save the money? Because I have to. As sure as Murphy's law will intervene, the second I cancel coverage, I know I will find something bad growing on my dog.

So for now, the pet insurance companies still win, and suckers like me still pay.

What does everyone else think?