Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop | Sandy Kubillus

4 Tips for Walking Your Dog in the Snow

January 24, 2018January 23, 2018

Halfway through your walk around the block, your dog lifts up his paw and hobbles on three legs. Then he stops and licks his paw. You coax him to move forward. After twenty feet of walking in fresh snow, he stops limping. Then the cycle repeats after the next salted sidewalk. Why is your dog … Read more

Protect your dog’s paws—Bootie Up in the Cold!

January 3, 2018

This past week it has been colder than it has been in a long time in the Chicago area. Last night it was -7°. It’s been years since we had an extended period with low temperatures below zero. Buffy, my cocker spaniel, does not like the cold or the snow. I usually put a coat … Read more

Goodbye Mr. Chips

December 10, 2017November 21, 2017

Chipper was my 12 1/2 year-old cocker spaniel. Yes, I mean was. His last day was November 15.

During his half-year checkup on October 3, the vet found an enlarged spleen. It was almost three times its normal size.

How much is your dog worth?

November 7, 2017October 10, 2017

Priceless, most of us would say. But what happens when you have an old dog and an unknown illness, like an abdominal mass? Your vet runs through several scenarios:

Run multiple tests to try to identify the problem. That would cost of over a grand, and not involve treatment. If we’re lucky, the problem can be determined from only one or two tests. Plus the cost of treatment, whatever that may be.
She could do exploratory surgery and remove the mass, but if there were multiple tumors, then she would euthanize your dog.
Or she could just make him comfortable, which may last only a few weeks.

How far do you go down the rabbit hole?

Raw Dog Food—is it right for Your Dog?

November 7, 2017October 3, 2017

Let your dog decide

Feeding your dog raw food is a fairly new concept based on what dogs ate naturally in the wild. Modern technology changes much faster than anatomy, which may take many hundreds of years to adapt to dietary changes.

This trend to feed natural foods based on a dogs ancestral diet is similar to people going back to natural foods after more than a half century of eating a processed diet that contributed to many illnesses.

Why You Should Pick Up After Your Dog

October 3, 2017September 27, 2017

Forty percent of dog owners don’t pick up after their dogs, so why should you?

The average dog produces ¾ pound a poop a day X 83 million dogs in America = 10.6 million tons of dog crap each year.

Why are Skunks so Common Now?

August 29, 2017August 15, 2017

Even just five or so years ago, it seemed rare to see a skunk wandering around my residential neighborhood—almost unheard of ten years ago. Usually I’d see them at dusk while camping or walking around the state park, but not in my neighbor’s yard. What happened?

When your Dog has the Runs—Should You Visit the Vet?

August 16, 2017August 8, 2017

On Monday, I arrived home later than usual after work and found my husband scrubbing the carpet, a roll of paper towels lay on the floor and a scowl across his face. Buffy, my tan cocker spaniel had made a huge mess all over the living room rug. Diarrhea.

Buffy at the vet — Buffy sticking out her tongue at me at the vet’s office.

After You Scoop—Where Do You Drop the Poop?

August 5, 2017July 25, 2017

Do you throw your dog’s waste in the nearest trash can? I actually plan my dog walks to go past several garbage cans so that I don’t have to carry the poop bag very far. Do you do this?

Do you take your dog to parks where they provide bags so you don’t have to bring your own?