Scratchings-and-Sniffings

Here's a Pet Overpopulation Idea to Consider

We all know the terrible statistics about pet overpopulation. Millions of puppies, kittens, adult dogs and cats are put to sleep every year because we can't find homes for them. One of the solutions is obviously spaying and neutering.

Most of us are responsible enough to realize that but many don't heed the call. Whether it's an education issue or a financial issue, lots of dogs and cats don't ever get spayed or neutered. Believe it or not an un-spayed cat and her offspring can produce 400,000 kittens and and an un-spayed dog and her offspring can produce 6000 puppies. That's scary.

Bone Grafts for Fracture Repair

As I well know, sometimes broken bones don't heal properly. I spent most of 2008 dealing with a broken wrist from my mountain biking habit. After and unsuccessful cast I had surgery where a plate was applied to the fracture. Along with the plate I had what is called a bone allograft. That means that I had bone supplied by a tissue bank from some other human donor. This bone was packed into the fracture site along with the plate to help bridge the gap created by the non union.

Using bone from a tissue bank is common practice in human orthopedic surgery. The other option is to harvest bone from the surgical patient at the same time you are doing the fracture repair. Called an autograft as opposed to an allograft, bone is usually taken from the patient's hip for use at the fracture site. 

The Soul of a Horse: Joe Camp Teaches Life Lessons Worth Learning

[UPDATED TO FIX TYPOS - FINGERS MUST HAVE BEEN TOO FAST THE DAY I WROTE THIS]

Everyone always wants to know what you're reading and at any given time I'm reading two or three books at once. No, no...not at once like I have each of them open on my bed and I switch from one to the other every fifteen minutes. Hmmm...I wonder if anyone does that?

What I mean is that one day I'll read book A, the neXt I'll read book B. And so on.

I know people, mostly business people, who profess to read a book a day. I find that a bit unrealistic. A book a day? Are they really short books? Do they just skim the beginning and end and consider the book 'read'? I don't know. It takes me longer than a day to read a book because I read it page by page, from beginning to end. And, with really good books, I stop now and then to think about what I just read. Contemplate it a bit.

Today, I want to talk about a book that has little to do with dogs or cats. It has to do with horses. However, it came about because of a dog. So, it counts.

Do I Hear Barking? Do I Hear Meowing? I Do!

Wait until you see what I found! It has me laughing and crying - and dancing in my chair!

But first...what's up with this blog? I set the previous post to go live on Tuesday - so I thought. Obviously, I clicked the wrong thing - because Typepad had it set to publish on December 29th! Wow -  even I'm not that good, to have posts all lined up until the end of the month. Anyway, I noticed it this morning (or was it this afternoon? ok..Carmel says it was this afternoon), and I told Typepad to publish now. Which it did. With the December 29th date on it! I don't get it.

Well, all's well that ends well, so they say. I republished with today's date and it's fine now. Hence, the mix-up in your aggregator, if you subscribe to this Scratchings and Sniffings. My apologies.

Now...onward and upward, into the happy holiday season. Look at what I found: Barks and Cats pet products. I have to do more investigating, but I'm liking what I see! Check it out for yourself.

They even have a blog! Check out Santa Paws, the story: "upon a time, a dog named Santa Paws delivered goodies to dogs everywhere on Dogmas Eve. Santa Paws was a fat little white dog with curly fur. His eyes were blue and his nose was black. Santa Paws lived at the Dog Pole. It was perfect for dogs because..." Sorry, I'm not giving it away. You have to go to the blog to see the rest.

Enjoy! Then, come back and write a story for me!

Innovation in the World of Pets

This week I'm in New York City at the Fortune Innovation Forum conference. I've been talking about it a lot over on my Marketing to Women Online site, but haven't really mentioned it here. This morning I got to thinking about pets and innovation - and wondered if anyone out there wants to share ideas on this topic.

Is selling human products designed for pets, innovative? Like, doggie beds, clothes for your cat, or cookies for your pet? How do we judge innovation to begin with? Is it anything that's new and different? Or, are there certain requirements? Does innovation have to actually do something, or accomplish something? Does it have to be for the public good? Can creating innovative pet products be for the public good? [pic compliments of or rather, borrowed from, Creature Bug blog.]

I think I'm on a roll. Yesterday I was reading an article in my Smithsonian magazine, by novelist Paul Theroux. His article, "Living with Geese" contains this observation, "Animal lovers often tend to be misanthropes or loners, and so they transfer their affection to the creature in their control."

He goes on to say,