Pets

Active, retired and disabled military service members and their families will be connected with adoptable dogs and cats, and the pets will receive a second chance at life thanks to a new partnership between Pets for Patriots and the Humane Society of Harford County (HSHC). Through the partnership, service men and women will receive a discount on the normal adoption fee. Any member of any branch of the United States armed forces is eligible at any stage of their career, up to and including retired or reserve.

Love your pet with all your heart? It may not be just an emotional thing. Researchers said recently that having a pet may help reduce heart disease in humans. The American Heart Association released a study that said pet ownership, especially dog ownership, is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease and increased survival among patients. Why is dog ownership more beneficial? Experts said it's probably because owning a pooch provides cardiovascular benefits -- all those walks and games of fetch add up!

Q: Dogs and cats are commonly perceived as showing affection to owners. Are other types of pets -- birds, hamsters, rabbits, snakes -- capable of such affection? A: That's a great question. The dictionary defines affection as “fond attachment, devotion or love,” which certainly implies an emotional component. We know that many animals we consider intelligent -- including dogs, cats, primates, elephants, marine mammals, horses -- certainly have and display what we'd call emotions.

Cicadas are coming! I have a dog and a cat that both go outside. Do I need to worry if they eat cicadas, or how many is too many? As these red-eyed screechy little bugs begin emerging from the ground, concern among pet parents rises as well. This brood is different from the one we saw in 2004 and its appearance in this state will be limited to parts of Southern Maryland, which is good news. There are several thing pet owners should keep in mind during cicada season: 1.They are not toxic to pets.

Q: What do we do if our pets get sick or injured when our own vet is closed? A: Great question! Like kids, pets don't time illness and injury to regular business hours. We actually have three emergency vet clinics in and around Howard County. Keep this information handy -- it could save your pet's life: Emergency Animal Hospital 10270 Baltimore National Pike (Route 40 West) Ellicott City, MD 21042; 410-750-1177 www.ellicottcityemergencyvet.com Open weekends, holidays and nights 7 p.m.-7 a.m. Emergency Veterinary Clinic 32 Mellor Ave., Catonsville, MD 21228 410-788-7040; www.evccatonsville.com Open 24 hours, 7 days Anne Arundel Veterinary Emergency Clinic 808 Bestgate Road, Suite 111  Annapolis, MD 21401; 410-224-0331 www.aavec.com ; open 24 hours, 7 days 

Air travel seems to get harder all the time. The latest threat to the traveling public comes in the form of four legs and fur. According to an editorial published this week in the Canadian Medical Assocation Journal, it's time for humans with pet allergies to take back the skies. So many people today are flying with small pets in the airline cabins that people with pet allergies are being put at risk, state the authors of the paper, who represent the journal and the University of Ottawa.

What's the best way to deal with seasonal allergies? Pets react to airborne allergies just like humans do. But when they inhale these potential allergens, instead of just sneezing and sniffling, they get very inflamed and itchy skin that can become infected. It is important to treat any secondary infections or underlying conditions before starting to treat seasonal allergies. The idea of treating seasonal allergies is to make the skin less reactive. Here are some of the agents used to treat or manage allergies for pets.

Labragator in the house, ready to cheer on the Ravens this Sunday. Truth be told, she was less than amused at being dressed up in people clothes for a photo. When kickoff finally gets here, though, I have no doubt she'll be more than ready for some of our gameday snacks. And while I'll be tempted to share (those big brown eyes get me every time), the experts say I'd better be careful -- not all people snacks are OK for our pets. Trainer and T.V. star Cesar Millan says there are some treats that are fine for man and canine, including peanut butter, cooked chicken (if your dog isn't allergic -- Molly is, so this is off our list)

Ask patients in some area hospitals which caregivers they most look forward to seeing, and they'll say the ones with hairy faces and bad breath. For Sean Harris, they were his dogs Diesel and Wilson. For Michael Friedman, it was the family pooch, Larissa. "My mother and grandfather had been [at Levindale Hebrew Geriatric Center & Hospital] before and we brought the dog to visit, so when my father got sick, we knew we could bring her," Brad Friedman said of Larissa, a friendly 5-year-old Australian shepherd.

In what lawyers believe was a first in Maryland, a judge recently ordered a divorcing Calvert County couple to split custody of their dog, a recognition, experts say, that pets stand apart from other property. Once rare, post-breakup disputes over who keeps the pet have grown more common in the past two decades. At the same time, some couples, many choosing not to have children, are lavishing attention on their pets and are willing to spend thousands of dollars in legal fees fighting for custody of Rover.

Being a teacher's pet as a child endeared me to no one but teachers. My third-grade teacher, Marian Gulley, once let me take a fourth-graders' history test. (At Elizaville Elementary School, the third and fourth grades were in a single classroom; the teacher instructed one class while the other studied, then reversed.) I scored a 96, from having listened to the fourth-grade class and read their history textbook for amusement. It was the highest grade on the test. I was proud, but my mother observed sagely, "I bet that didn't make you many friends in the fourth grade.

Have a passion for saving orphaned pets? Can you offer a between-homes home to a dog or cat? Have place in your heart and your house for a temporary visitor of the furry kind? Then this party is for you! The Maryland SPCA will hold an open house for prospective pet foster care volunteers from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 11. Attendees will learn how fostering needy pets can help save lives; meet current foster parents and the animals they care for; learn how to set up their homes to make fostering work for them; and receive a tour of the MD SPCA.

Our elderly dog, Katie, and our "granddog," Lacey, have been best buddies for many years. Whenever we've gone away, Katie has stayed at our daughter's house with Lacey and has been a perfect guest. Lately, however, she urinates several times during each visit, even after being taken outside. She has never urinated in our house or in any another house she's been to in all the years we've had her. What do you think could be happening with her, and is there anything we can do to prevent this behavior from occurring?

A recent post on the Lab Rescue Facebook page broke my heart: a woman wrote that her beloved dog died unexpectedly, and that an autopsy showed that her liver had been completely destroyed. The culprit? Heliotrope, a common flowering plant the woman had on her deck that the dog nibbled on. Most of us know to watch out for pet-toxic plants around Christmas and Easter, but we don't think that what's growing in our yards might be just as dangerous. I took a look at the ASPCA's list of pet-toxic plants this morning, and was really surprised to see that some of the things in my yard are dangerous to the Labragator.

Is your dog a DINOS ? The acronym hasn't quite caught on yet, but it stands for Dog in Need of Space. Coined by Maine dogwalker Jessica Dolce, the term is used to describe dogs who don't like being approached by other dogs or strange people -- they need space to be comfortable. If you haven't heard of DINOS, perhaps you've heard of The Yellow Dog Project , which is making its way around Facebook in the form of a screenshot of a poster asking people with less-than-social dogs to tie yellow ribbons to their collars and leashes, as a sign that they shouldn't be approached.

Now that our lawmakers have failed to pass breed-neutral legislation that would overturn the court ruling that declared one breed of dog dangerous, thousands of Maryland voters and their pets will unfairly be affected ("General Assembly session ends in flurry of votes," April 9). We counted on legislators to right a wrong that was already causing a negative impact in homes and animal shelters in Maryland. This did not happen. The direct impact from the lack of compromise between our legislators will lead to more landlords burdened with the responsibility of determining a dog's breed and forcing tenants to choose between their home and their pets; more Marylanders having to give up their beloved pets; and an increase in abandoned pit-bull type dogs in already crowded animal shelters.

I have the best kind of pet — somebody else's. There's Lulu, Amber and Theo. Wonderful dogs that belong to my neighbors. And Sugar, Elmo and Roxy, dogs that belong to out-of-town relatives. My pets are wildly happy to see me when I arrive, but I leave without them. I live the carefree life of someone who enjoys the unconditional love of an animal, but without any of the vet bills or the dog hair. It is a kind of pet lend/lease program. I have permission to enter the locked homes of my neighbors for a collar and a leash so I can enjoy a springtime walk with their dogs.

Q: Our family has two dogs, and we're considering adopting a third. How can we ensure they all get along? A: Canines naturally live in a hierarchy, and humans need to be at the top in order for pets in a multi-dog household to be happy and secure. Our colleague Howard Weinstein at Day-One Dog Training ( dayonedogtraining.com ) suggests the first step is making sure all your dogs know their basic obedience commands. “Every dog -- no matter what age -- can and should learn at least seven or eight basic commands,” Weinstein says.