This poses the question: Are pricier products worth the extra dough?

As consumers we want to make sure that we always get the best bang for our buck even when shopping for our pets.  Whether it be food, toys, or training supplies, which ingredients/materials are most important when trying to go with a more cost-conscious or generic brand?

“If you are referring to any general product, I would have to look at quality versus monetary value,” said Dr. M.A. Crist, clinical assistant professor at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences.

“For any pet owner it is an individual decision to feed kibble, canned diets, semi-moist, all-natural, or homemade food and I recommend input from your veterinarian,” said Crist.

Numerous different ingredients are required for a puppy, kitten, dog, or cat’s wholesome health, and it is important that these are provided for them so that they continue to grow and thrive.

“If one is unsure of what to feed then it is best to remain with the big commercial name-brand manufacturers because most of these companies have used feeding trials to test their foods,” explains Crist.

The best foods are usually tested in actual feeding trials and not by nutritional analysis alone. Crist explains that one can look for the words “complete and balanced nutrition” on the product, which is a statement that explains that the food has been tested “for all life stages” of the feline and canine.

If you are a dog owner, chances are you have figured out by now that your pup most likely prefers the deliciousness that canned food has to offer, however, dry kibble is usually the less expensive choice as well as being easier to handle.

It can also be a good idea to try to buy in bulk and search for any possible coupons or sales that are going on.

“It is very important that a feline’s diet contains taurine because research has linked taurine deficiency in cats to fatal heart disease,” said Crist.

Crist explained that commercial name-brand companies do usually provide higher quality grade ingredients but it is still important to read the label and make sure that it reads “complete for all life stages” and has the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) which helps to govern quality control.

When looking for cheaper alternatives, when you are low on cash, or when you are simply too lazy at the moment to go and pick up some food for your pet; some people are tempted to share their food with their animals in place of pet food.

“It is important to go easy with ‘people food’ and one has to be mindful that these cannot replace the balanced diet of the cat or dog,” said Crist.

Foods made for cats are formulated to contain the vitamins, mineral, and amino acids a cat needs for good health which is why it is important to feed them cat food. But if one is looking for an occasional delicacy for their cat, Crist recommends trying small bits of cheese or cooked tuna, chicken, fish, or liver.

“Carrots are a snack that sometimes we humans enjoy that can be fed to a dog, along with broccoli, green beans, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and zucchini,” said Crist.

If you have a picky or more pampered pooch and would like to try out some homemade recipes: http://www.petdiets.com and http://www.balanceit.com are two websites that have some great ideas.

“I do have a quick recipe that I use to make quick and easy cookies for some of my canine patients, they are fun, very easy, and dogs love them!”

Canine Cookies

3 (2 1/2 oz each) jars of baby food; either beef or chicken

1/4 cup to 1/2 cup wheat germ or cream of wheat

Combine all ingredients in bowl and mix well.  Roll into small balls and place on well-greased cookie sheet. Flatten slightly with a fork or flatten and cut with a small cookie cutter.  Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 15 minutes until brown.  Cool on wire rack.  Refrigerate to keep fresh or freeze.

“A quick kitty recipe that I have used that has been passed around is this kitty recipe. It is very “fishy” but cats like them.”

Kitty Food

7 ozs. mashed sardines

1/4 c. dry non-fat milk

1/2 c. wheat germ

Combine all ingredients and roll into small balls. Place on greased cookie sheet.  and flatten with a fork Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes until brown.  Cool on wire rack.  Refrigerate to keep fresh or freeze.

Going green for your pet is another possible alternative when looking to save a few bucks.

“Catnip makes a fine low-calorie feline treat that most cats will love,” said Crist.

Both catnip and “cat grass”, which is essentially a cereal grass similar to wheat or oats, are easy to grow in a sunny window or purchased from a store either dry or fresh.

“Always be sure that the plant you are offering your furry feline is safe for them but do not be alarmed if your cat regurgitates the kitty grass that can be bought in-stores;  some will do this and it is nothing to be alarmed by,” said Crist.

If your cat is in fact regurgitating the kitty grass, the catnip should suffice.

If there are any questions arise about the safety of a plant, please refer to the ASPCA’s website for more information or follow this link http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/poison-control/plants/

If it is believed that that the feline or any other animal might have eaten a dangerous plant, call your veterinarian immediately, or contact the Animal Poison Control Center at 888-426-4435.

Another good tip for dog owners might be to cut down on the number of unnecessary treats given throughout the day. Instead, try ice cubes or bones that will last longer than a treat. This will help save you money as well as help any canines who are a little overweight.

So if you find yourself in a period where you are pinching pennies, remember that there are always alternatives and options that can help keep you and your pet healthy and happy.

ABOUT PET TALK

Pet Talk is a service of the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University.

Many a visitor has noted the abundance of stray cats in the old imperial capital of Istanbul. They amble and lounge around some mosques and have the run of a couple of universities. Facebook campaigns gather supplies for them, and it’s easy to spot nibbles and plastic containers of water left discreetly on sidewalks for the felines.

Associated Press - In this Jan. 19, 2006 photo, a Turkish Van cat looks at the camera in the eastern Turkish city of Van. The official mascot is "Bascat," a white cat with one blue eye and one green eye, similar to an unusual breed native to the eastern city of Van.

This month, cats will get a publicity boost when the world basketball championships begin in Istanbul and three other Turkish cities. The official mascot is “Bascat,” a white cat with one blue eye and one green eye, similar to an unusual breed native to the eastern city of Van.

The special status of stray cats in Istanbul and elsewhere in Turkey reflects a tradition-bound country on the path to modernity. It partly derives from Muslim ideas about tolerance, and an urban elite with Western-style ideas about animal rights. It points to the freewheeling side of a society that seeks entry into the European Union’s world of regulation.

Sevgin Akis Roney, an economics professor at Istanbul’s Bosphorus University, said the school is so well-known for adopting strays that people leave unwanted cats there, knowing they’ll get fed. Cats wander freely into classrooms at the school, perched on a hill over the strait that separates the Asian and European continents.

“We should learn to live with these animals,” said Roney, who walks around with cat food for hungry strays.
Turkey introduced an animal protection law in 2004, and state policy is to catch, neuter and release or find a home for street animals. Funds for such projects are limited. Alleged poisoning campaigns by some municipalities, usually targeting dogs, suggest laws are sometimes flouted altogether.

Stray dogs are considered more of a nuisance and sanitation threat than cats, and Islamic tradition — while espousing tolerance for all creatures — labels them unclean. In 1910, Istanbul officials unloaded tens of thousands of stray dogs on an island in the Sea of Marmara, where they starved.

Istanbul experienced an explosion of uncontrolled growth in the second half of the 20th century. Millions of people flooded from the countryside, cramming into cheap, illegal housing called “gecekondu,” which means “built overnight” in Turkish. Highways and shopping malls sprouted. That urban sprawl made Istanbul less hospitable for street cats, but pockets of the city kept the tradition of caring for strays — an easy option for Turks who don’t want the hassle of a pet at home.

Cats benefit from their association with Islam in Turkey, where the population is mostly Muslim though the laws and political system are secular. A popular saying goes: “If you’ve killed a cat, you need to build a mosque to be forgiven by God.”

Islamic lore tells of a cat thwarting a poisonous snake that had approached the Prophet Muhammad. In another tale, the prophet found his cat sleeping on the edge of his vest. Instead of shifting the cat, the prophet cut off the portion of the vest that was free and wore it without disturbing the pet.

Associated Press - A young girl feeds a stray cat Aug. 20 in the courtyard of a mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. Many a visitor to Turkey has noted the abundance of stray cats in the old imperial capital of Istanbul.

Nukhet Barlas, an environmental consultant, photographed cats for an online exhibition backed by the European Capital of Culture project, which focused on Istanbul this year. Her images show cats posing in front of mosques, ruins and iconic buildings, ceramics and the shoreline.

“Most of these strays have developed friendly relationships with people. They have personalities and in many neighborhoods, they are almost part of the community,” Barlas wrote in an email.

On her strolls, Barlas photographed long-haired Angora cats and “chalk-white/blue-eyed” Van mixes as well as non-Turkish breeds resembling Abyssinian or Egyptian Mau cats. She believes the variety stems from Istanbul’s role as capital of the continent-spanning Ottoman Empire and a transit point for trade over the centuries. “New breeds appear to continue,” she said. “I find stray cats that look like the popular British Shorthair, or Balinese.”

One tourist hostel in Istanbul is called the Stray Cat. At the Kaktus Cafe in Istanbul’s Cihangir district, cats sit next to customers or doze on the chairs. Cat images decorate dishes and tablecloths.

“Cats are lazy anarchists,” said Ozgur Kantemir, who has eight cats and lives in Ankara, the Turkish capital. “This might be one reason why they conform with us just fine in big cities.”

While cats seep into the culture, they’re not always welcome. The yowls and whoops of cats in combat disturb the sleep of quite a few urban dwellers.

“If you’re on the ground floor and leave your window open, you can come home to a cat looking up to you, asking ’What are you doing here?“’ joked Allen Collinsworth, an American business consultant.

In 2004, Erdogan sued a cartoonist for Cumhuriyet newspaper after he depicted the prime minister as a cat entangled in yarn representing Islamic vocational schools that Erdogan backed. The image went to the heart of hostility between fiercely secular elites and Erdogan’s Islamic-oriented government that has since shaped Turkey’s political debate.

Istanbul’s bounty of stray cats amazed Sir Evelyn Wrench, a former editor of Britain’s The Spectator magazine who wrote in 1935 that Turks thought drowning kitten litters was cruel, so they dropped them in the “dustheap” instead.

“In every side street you meet the cats, old and emaciated cats, cats with one eye blind, kittens toddling with unsteady step, cats with skin diseases, cats eternally scratching themselves, dying cats run over by cars on the roadside, Wrench wrote. “When I asked residents in Istanbul what could be done about the cats, they shrugged their shoulders. ‘Istanbul was menaced in its old wooden houses by a plague of rats; cats were necessary.’”

He’s a dog, after all, a stray dog from a country with an estimated 400,000 stray dogs who fight every day for survival.

But the story of Francisco and how he got to Greeley, how he adopted an American, is considered a miracle by those who know him.

Tyler Rugh of Greeley now owns Francisco, or is owned by him, depending on how you look at the story.

Associated Press - Fransisco the dog gets some love from Tyler Rugh, right, and his girlfriend Rebekah Marsh Aug. 11 at his new home in Greeley, Colo.

Tyler is 24, grew up in Greeley and graduated from Greeley West High School. He works at Jamplay.com, an online guitar lesson company based in Greeley. Tyler is the company’s online video producer.

The strange story of Tyler and Francisco began last month, when Tyler was on vacation with his girlfriend, Rebekah Marsh, in Puerto Rico. Both live in Greeley, but they went to Puerto Rico to visit a friend from Greeley, Sirah Masters.

“We went to this restaurant in Puerto Rico one day, and this dog was out in front, at the entrance,” Tyler said. “I petted him, and we went on inside. The next day, same restaurant, he was there again. I petted him again.”

Later, as Tyler and Rebekah started walking, the strange dog followed them. They went to a bar on the beach, and the dog sat on the sand and watched them.

“Then he somehow sneaked up an embankment to the bar, and suddenly he was right beside me,” Tyler said. “That’s when he started taking a place in my heart.”

The odd dog followed them to their apartment, stayed outside all night and waited. The next day, when the couple was scuba diving, “I looked up,” Tyler said, “and he was on the beach again, watching.”

Tyler called his mother in Greeley and asked if he should go through all the trouble of bringing a stray dog home. She said yes.

So, the next day, the day before their flight back home to Greeley, Tyler and Rebekah were walking the new dog — which they named Francisco — to the vet’s office to get clearance for the trip to America.

“But a car came around the corner and hit Francisco,” Tyler said. “He was injured and ran off.”

And now the second part of the miracle begins.

“He was gone,” Tyler said of his new friend. “He was injured, and we searched everywhere, but we couldn’t find him. We flew home the next day. … I was crying on the plane.”

Tyler had decided he would probably adopt another homeless dog in Greeley, in memory of Francisco, the dog he almost brought home.

A few days later, back in Puerto Rico, Masters was working at a restaurant when a customer told her he wanted to take the leftovers to a dog that was outside, who had injured legs and had been on the beach, bleeding.

Masters followed the customer and found the injured dog. She tended to the dog’s cuts on his rear legs, but she also called Tyler.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Tyler said. “She’d found Francisco.”

It was only the beginning of the long process of bringing a dog to Greeley. Masters started the process by obtaining a certificate of health from a veterinarian and a certificate of American adoption, and she made arrangements for a flight to Colorado.

“We couldn’t find the right kennel to put Francisco in that would meet federal regulations,” Masters said. “It looked like we’d have to cancel everything at the last minute. Then we found the right kennel, just before the flight, at a Walmart.”

So Francisco, the once-stray dog who adopted an American, flew out of Puerto Rico to New York, then to the Denver International Airport, where Tyler was waiting.

“Sirah and her mother did all this work to get Francisco here,” Tyler said. “We really owe them for that.”

The vet bills, kennel and flight cost Tyler about $500. He said it was worth it.

Tyler and his new friend are almost inseparable now. Francisco won’t let Tyler out of his sight, sleeps at his side and looks at his rescuer with obvious love.

Francisco, part Australian shepherd and mostly mutt, needs to gain about 10 pounds, and Tyler is working on training. Because Francisco came from a Spanish-speaking country, the question was whether the dog could understand English.

“Doesn’t make any difference,” Tyler said with a grin. “He doesn’t listen in either language.”

Francisco is Tyler’s first dog, and it’s pretty obvious Tyler is Francisco’s first human. Out of 400,00 stray dogs in Puerto Rico, they found each other.

Heartworm disease most commonly affects dogs, however cats and humans are sometimes affected. Heartworm disease is caused by heartworms, which live in the blood vessel connecting the heart to the lungs. It is a life-threatening disease for dogs. Individuals are infected with the worm through the bite of a mosquito carrying the larvae of the worm. It can be prevented in dogs and cats with monthly pills or topical treatments. Once an individual is infected, treatment is very difficult and is risky.

“Treatment of heartworm disease is expensive and potentially dangerous,” explains Dr. Mark Stickney, clinical assistant professor at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences. “There are numerous side effects to treatments, for example the patient can develop blood clots. The best option is to take preventative measures and develop a monthly heartworm preventative schedule to give to your pets.”

The West Nile virus is another disease that is common among animals. It is spread when a mosquito bites a bird infected with the virus and then in turn bites another individual to spread the disease. It first appeared in the United States in New York City in 1999. Since then, it has spread throughout the United States. Horses are the most commonly affected animals. Humans and dogs are also affected but on much rarer occasions.

“The symptoms of the West Nile virus are similar in horses and humans,” notes Stickney. “Both victims develop neurologic symptoms that include stumbling, seizures, and inability to use limbs. When dogs are exposed to the virus their body normally does not show any outward reactions because their body usually fights it off. When they do develop the disease, dogs also show neurological signs.”

At this point there is no treatment for the West Nile virus. Scientists are currently working on a vaccine for humans.

One of the most dangerous mosquito borne viruses that affects horses and humans is Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE). It affects the central nervous system and causes severe complications that may lead to death. This virus also originates from mosquitoes biting an infected bird and then passing that infection on to their victim.

EEE is also known as the “sleeping sickness” because its onset is very fast and is hard to diagnose. Symptoms of EEE in horses usually break through within five days of the infected mosquito bite. Initially, horses are depressed and quiet. They experience impaired vision, inability to swallow, and aimless wandering. As the virus strengthens the horse will start to exhibit paralysis, convulsions, and ultimately death. Death normally occurs after two to three days of the infected horse showing signs. Vaccines are available for horses and it is recommended that they get them yearly.

Most people who are exposed to EEE do not have any complications. The rare few who are affected incur severe symptoms. Initially they experience headaches, fever, chills, and vomiting. The symptoms may advance to disorientation, seizures, coma, or sometimes even death.

One can take preventive measures to avoid the occurrence of mosquitoes.

“Avoid being outside from dusk until dawn during mosquito season when mosquitoes are most active,” explains Stickney. “Get rid of standing water. If you have a pond, lake, or tank on your property put mosquito dunks in the water to prevent mosquito eggs and larvae from developing. Don’t depend on flea and tick labeled repellants to ward off mosquitoes because your pet can still get bitten.”

Prior to mosquito season it is important to do a check up and mosquito proof houses. Fix or install window and door screens so that there are no leaks into the house. Make sure to remove areas or cover containers with standing water where mosquitoes lay eggs.

“Don’t assume that just because your cat or dog has long hair that mosquitoes won’t bite them because they will,” notes Stickney.  “If your pet is an inside animal they are also affected by mosquitoes because mosquitoes can force themselves inside too. The best method is to take preventative measures because with all these mosquito transmitted diseases an ounce of prevention is truly worth a pound of cure.”

ABOUT PET TALK

Pet Talk is a service of the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University.

After the 8-year-old dog was led into the packed hearing room, the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles voted 3-0 to deny early release to 23-year-old Juan Daniels of Montgomery, who was sentenced in 2009 to nine years and six months in prison, a record in Alabama in an animal cruelty case.

Daniels, whose supporters said he had been sentenced far more harshly than criminals who harm human beings, will be eligible for parole again in July 2012.

Associated Press - The dog Louis Vuitton leaves a Pardons and Paroles hearing Tuesday in Montgomery, Ala.

The dog stuck his head forward for everyone who wanted to pet him as he entered. He bears burn scars from his head to his wagging tail, including white lines on his brown body where the burning lighter fluid seared his skin.

“You have to see the scars to see what was done to him,” said the dog’s owner, Dee Hartley of Montgomery. She and her husband adopted the dog after the torture incident.

It’s unusual for a dog or other animal to make an appearance before such a panel.

“I don’t recall every having one here before,” said Cynthia Dillard, executive director of the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles.

The September 2007 attack on the dog drew wide notice. The Montgomery Humane Society got as many as 50 calls a day about the case, some from other countries. The dog was given the name of a French fashion brand, “Louis Vuitton,” in honor of a dog named “Gucci,” whose torture case in Mobile in 1994 led to passage of “Gucci’s law,” which made animal cruelty a felony in Alabama.

More than 60 law enforcement officers, animal rights advocates and other supporters of Louis crowded into the hearing. Relatives and friends of Daniels also faced the board and asked that he be released.

Montgomery County District Attorney Ellen Brooks asked parole board members to make Daniels serve his entire sentence because of his cruelty to the dog and the nine disciplinary actions taken against him in prison.

“The first reason to deny parole is to prevent him from hurting another animal or a person,” Brooks said. She said he was accused of torturing the dog, which then belonged to his mother, because he was angry at her for not letting him use the car.

His mother, Vellica Daniels, asked for leniency for her son, so that he could get on with his life.

A cousin, Thomas Hudson, said after the hearing he didn’t think it was fair because Daniels is behind bars with “folks who committed more extensive crimes than he committed.”

Holladay Simmons, the veterinarian who treated Louis immediately after he was burned, told the board the dog’s wounds were as bad as she had ever seen.

Matt Cooper, the county animal cruelty officer who responded to the call, said after the hearing, “I’ve worked cases where people let their dog starve to death, but this was the worst case of animal cruelty that I’ve seen.”

Louis stood patiently outside the parole board offices after the hearing as people lined up to pat him on the head. He nuzzled up to many of his admirers, giving some a big, juicy lick on the face.

So far, she’s on the right track, although there’s still work to be done before he’s truly Tranquil. Kennedy contacted Rainier, who specializes in canine massage, this spring to work with her rambunctious year-old golden retriever, who is called Quil for short.

“For us, even a little bit of work — it’s made a huge difference,” said Kennedy, who lives in Beverly Beach.

She said Quil is calmer after a massage, and even sleeps better.

“That’s why I do it,” said Rainier, who opened Luckie Dog Wellness of Baltimore in 2005. “You come in and see this anxious dog and anxious owner, and this is what you get. It’s the coolest thing in the world.”

Rainier is among a group of people in the area making a living massaging dogs or other animals, such as horses, or performing the service as a sideline. Many were trained at a Virginia school called Equissage, and now teach their own classes. Dee Schreiber, who runs Equissage near Leesburg with his wife, estimates more than 100 people from Anne Arundel County have trained there. Equissage was founded in 1989.

Rainier and others said animal massage isn’t all that dissimilar from massaging people — the strokes are essentially the same — but animals can’t tell them what’s sore, or what area they’d like them to work on. So, these practitioners have learned to rely on information from pet owners and nonverbal cues from the animals.

Associated Press - Diana Lee Freed massages Rupert on July 30.

For example, if Diana Lee Freed of Annapolis is working on a dog, she’ll watch for how the animal moves. Everything from how it shifts its body weight, breathes or turns its head are signs, she said.

“I think working with the animals helps me to be a better human, period,” said Freed, who is also licensed as a human massage therapist.

Rainier said the initial session depends a lot on the dog. If it’s skittish, she’ll let it run around and work out some nervous energy before trying to get acquainted. After that, the more serious massage work can usually start. With each session, the relationship progresses, as does the work. She charges $65 per meeting, which can run well over an hour if the dog wants to scamper around a bit beforehand. Rates vary with others, but are generally set by the hour and around the same price.

“Just about any pet can enjoy a massage when it’s done by someone who’s trained,” said Dr. Cate Adsit, who works at South Arundel Veterinary Hospital in Edgewater.

She added that a massage can be especially beneficial post-surgery or post-trauma. That definitely was the case for Princess Elizabeth, a pit bull owned by Philip Knighton of Glen Burnie.

Knighton took on the dog, which had been severely injured after being used for fighting, when a veterinarian at a Baltimore animal hospital contacted him about her a year ago. He wanted to do everything he could to make the dog more comfortable, so he looked online and found Rainier.

She gave regular massages to Princess Elizabeth for several months, and it definitely made a difference in the pit bull’s life, Knighton said. The dog passed away in April.

“I was trying to find something to comfort her,” said Knighton. “It was just amazing; just the caring, you know. With the attention she got and feeling better, I think it let her become a dog again.”

Aggie and Rupert aren’t easily separated.

So, when Freed shows up to give Aggie a massage, Rupert is always close by, and vice versa. The dogs are owned by Donna O’Berry of Calvert County, who contacted Freed several months ago as Aggie, a black Labrador retriever, was recovering from treatments for bone cancer.

“I wanted to do more for Aggie, to make her feel good,” O’Berry said. “I think it helps. It certainly isn’t hurting. Massage is good for people and Rupert and Aggie seem to enjoy it.”

Freed clearly enjoys it too. As she demonstrated her technique recently on Rupert at Perfect Pet Resort in Lothian, she whispered soft, soothing words to him and gently stroked his fur.

Freed has been working on animals for nine years and humans for 16. Interestingly, she said that despite the fur, it’s actually easier to work on dog muscles than human muscles because there’s less fatty tissue to deal with.

Freed got into massage because of her husband. He was interested in learning about massage, and she ended up going to school with him. She’s the one who turned it into a career, however. About 30 percent of her clients are animals.

“I think she’s very open, any time we have questions,” O’Berry said. “She’s got a great attitude.”

Elizabeth Chaney, owner of Perfect Pet, also gave Freed high marks. She’s massaged other dogs there, providing relaxation, and has even taught seminars at the facility. Chaney said part of what makes Freed special is that she works as well with the dogs as their owners, readily sharing some of her knowledge so they can do a bit of what she does on their own. “I think it’s excellent,” Chaney added.

Gatsby is a very content elder statesman at TLC Equestrian Center in Davidsonville. The 34-year-old tan quarter horse-thoroughbred cross has regular work helping to teach people how to ride, and gets treated to a regular massage.

“He feels better than you or I do when we get up in the morning,” said Sherry Cash, who runs TLC with her husband, Terry.

Cash has been massaging the horses there since 2002, and works on both her horses and the ones people board with her. She does between four and six massages a week, each lasting about an hour.

Cash contends that one of the reasons Gatsby is doing so well at his age is because of the massages. Gatsby would be over 100 in people years.

“You have to look at a horse as an athlete,” she said. “So, it’s the same as an athlete who gets massaged. All the muscles will be more relaxed and softer, and they’ll be more flexible and have more energy.”

Cash, though, admitted she was a bit skeptical when she first heard about massaging horses. But as soon she saw it done and noticed the difference in the animals, she was a believer.

“They’re so generous to let us get on their backs and ride around,” she said. “It makes me feel good I can help them feel better.”

They feast on fruit gruel and hunt insects in jungles of plastic ivy and hollow cork log. They chirp and croak. They mate.

Meanwhile, 4,000 tropical cockroaches click and scuttle in colonies on paper egg crates kept inside hard plastic containers. They dine on chicken food and rotten bananas.

It’s just another evening at Terri Kane’s home in rural Edgerton.

“It’s like being in a rainforest,” Kane says.

Kane, who signs her e-mails and business correspondence as “The Lizard Lady,” raises, breeds and sells several varieties of exotic Rhacodactylus gecko.

Kane is one of the Midwest’s most experienced breeders of the geckos, which are a type of tree lizard native to the islands of New Caledonia near New Zealand.

Oh, and Kane also raises and sells giant cockroaches. She feeds them to her geckos and sells them online and to exotic reptile breeders.

“I acknowledge normal people do not have a house full of geckos and roaches. But not everyone has an indulgent husband like mine who’ll put up with this,” Kane says.

Her husband, Chuck, just smiles.

In a plastic Sterilite container, one colony of Kane’s odd insects, known as Guyana Orange Spotted roaches, writhe on top of each other. The 2-inch-long roaches, which are native to Central and South America, look like some kind of prehistoric armadillo.

On Kane’s shoulder perches Anna, a mossy green Giant Rhacodactylus gecko. Using odd, double-jointed toes tipped with sticky scales, the 11-inch gecko kneads its way down Kane’s T-shirt, perching on top of an orange lizard tattoo on her arm.

The gecko’s eyes are expressionless, solid white. Kane kisses its snout.

“Pretty girl,” she says.

Although Kane sells the roaches and lizards, she has a zoologist’s fascination with them. She marvels at a trait unique to Orange Spotted roaches: The females, which have 30 offspring at a time via live birth, stand guard over their young until their exoskeletons harden.

“You wouldn’t think a bug would have that kind of mothering instinct,” she says.

Kane pours hours into tending her roaches and geckos. Among her duties: cleaning the 21 gecko tanks in her house, feeding the animals and breeding them.

She only touches on how the breeding works. For the roaches, it involves electric heat pads and controlled colonization.

For the lizards, it has something to do with chirping and barking.

Kane doesn’t worry about a roach infestation if some of the insects get loose in her home. They can only breed and colonize at temperatures around 100 degrees, and they become sluggish and easy to catch at room temperature, Kane says.

The worst risk in a roach escape is that one could get trampled underfoot.

“It’s happened,” Kane says. “They’re like a cream puff inside. It’s white and fluffy.”

Imagine eating one.

Though Kane has oodles of roaches on hand, her lizards don’t get a bug smorgasbord. Since Rhacodactylus geckos are primarily fruit-eaters, Kane only feeds them a small number of juvenile roaches as a nutritional supplement.

“Roaches are like ice cream for kids. You can’t live off of it,” she says.

When she gets a surplus of the roaches, she sells them online, sometimes mailing the roaches to customers by ground mail. The insects are used to feed pet reptiles, rats and certain marsupials.

It took Kane over a year of research to learn to raise exotic roaches and geckos. She found books on care and breeding the animals, and she learned by trial and error how to keep them happy and healthy.

Kane says she’s driven to a reptile specialist in Chicago for emergency surgery on female geckos that became bloated with eggs.

“I believe no animal should have to suffer,” she says.

Kane also keeps rabbits, chickens and cats as pets at her farm. But Geckos are her first love. The roaches come second.

Money? A distant third.

“You won’t get rich raising and breeding animals, and you have to know that,” Kane says. “You have to learn them. You have to love them.”

But when Thomas put Pogo in bed beside the woman, she wrapped her arms around the dog, stroked his fur and began to grin.

“She hasn’t been able to smile in two years,” her husband told Thomas.

The woman died the next day, but Thomas soon received a letter from the husband thanking her for allowing him to see his wife smile one more time.

Associated Press - Steven Bonwit, right, introduces his dog Max to patient 21-month-old Matthew Roig, center, and his grandmother, Lidia Alonso, both of Miami, on July 1.

“I have so many stories like that,” said Thomas, who has been making pet therapy rounds with Pogo for 11 years. “It’s just amazing what the animals can do.”

Thomas’ Paws for Smiles program, which operates primarily in Broward’s Memorial Healthcare System, is one of at least five pet therapy programs in South Florida.

Designed to bring smiles to suffering patients, the pups and their handlers travel to the rooms of patients at Miami Children’s, Jackson Memorial, South Miami and Baptist hospitals in Miami-Dade, along with Memorial Manor, Memorial West, Memorial Pembroke, Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital and Vistas Hospice in Broward.

“We hear that the patients miss their own pets,” said Nuria Claramunt, assistant director for community and volunteer resources at Miami Children’s Hospital.

“It allows them to be loved unconditionally in stressful, scary moments,” she said.

Miami Children’s robust pet therapy program, which has been in existence for more than 15 years, features 14 dogs.

Among them: a 2-year-old Great Dane named Max that weighs 147 pounds and stands a towering six-foot two-inches from his hind legs.

“That’s not a dog, that’s a horse!” patients and their families have said as they whipped out their iPhones to snap pictures as Max trotted by their rooms.

Max’s human counterpart, Steve Bonwit, has been a volunteer at the hospital for 14 years.

When Bonwit was recovering at South Miami Hospital from abdominal surgery in 2009, a dog from the hospital’s pet therapy program came into his room and lifted his spirits.

The visit got him thinking that Max would make a great therapy dog.

And so in February of this year, after six visits to a local nursing home to see how Max would react in such a setting, Bonwit began taking Max around the second floor of Miami Children’s Hospital once a week for an hour to visit the orthopedic and cardiac patients.

“Max absolutely loves kids. They can pull on his tail, and he won’t respond,” said Bonwit, who added that his white Great Dane can sense when a patient has had surgery. He sniffs around and can detect which part of the patient’s body has been worked on, and he will lie along the other side.

To participate in most pet therapy programs, dogs must be at least a year old, walk well on a leash and get along with other dogs.

Associated Press - Steven Bonwit, left, walks his dog Max from room to room visiting hospitalized children July 1.

They also must be well-groomed, with clipped nails, and have an up-to-date rabies vaccine and a negative fecal exam.

Thomas is a certified tester for the national organization, Therapy Dogs Inc. She takes potential therapy dogs on at least three visits to Memorial Manor nursing home.

If the dogs are well-behaved on their visits — they have to be able to handle loud noises, crowded rooms and lots of petting — they “graduate” and can begin working in a local pet therapy program.

The graduates’ owners must pay $35 for national registration, which covers insurance.

A 9-year-old, trilingual golden Lab named Jean comprises Jackson Memorial Hospital’s unique pet therapy unit.

Jean doesn’t only cheer up her patients, she helps them get moving.

Jean was bred and trained by Canine Companions for Independence, a nonprofit organization that provides trained assistance dogs to people with hearing loss, developmental disorders and/or physical disabilities.

When Jean’s owner, Cathy Herring — a recreation therapist at Jackson for 20 years — found out that the organization trained dogs to work with professionals in hospitals, she immediately put in an application.

Jean had already had nine months of intensive training with the organization when Herring got her. The two underwent two weeks of team training.

Seven years later, the two are staples in Jackson’s pediatric, trauma and spinal-cord rehabilitation units, coming two to three days a week for eight-hour days. Herring incorporates Jean into traditional physical therapy regimens.

On a recent morning, Jean helped 49-year-old Edgar Castaneda improve the strength and mobility of his right arm and hand.

Castaneda was the victim of a brutal assault in 1995. Two teenagers attacked him as he made a nighttime deposit at bank. The teens followed him back to his apartment and shot him in the back of the head.

He was in a coma for two months, and has spent the past decade in assisted living facilities. Now, he goes to Jackson for physical, occupational and speech therapy.

Herring instructed Castaneda to stroke Jean’s fur and to feed her carrots, Jean’s favorite treat, by clasping the chopped vegetable in his palm, holding it to her mouth, and saying “OK.”

When Edgar’s shaking hand grazed Jean’s mouth and Jean licked his fingers, he giggled.

“She loves to give kisses,” said Herring.

“Jean,” Edgar murmurred as he rested his chin on the table to be at eye-level with the Lab and grinned.

Herring said the mild-mannered Jean, who understands commands in English, Spanish and Creole, is loved by all who she comes in contact with. Everyone on Metrorail knows her name, Herring said, and patients bring her gifts and dog cookies.

In addition to bringing smiles to patients, Herring believes Jean enhances the therapy sessions.

“They try so much harder with the dog there,” she said, describing how one patient refused to glide around the perimeter of a bed, but when Herring suggested that the patient glide to certain points to feed Jean carrots, the patient happily obliged.

And making patients happy, improving their day, is what it’s all about for these pups and their owners.

“If we make one child smile a day, we’ve done our job,” said Bonwit. “That’s my goal.”

That’s why the number of rabbits in animal shelters across the country swells every summer.

“We are in crisis,” said Caroline Charland, founder of The Bunny Bunch, which has 350 rabbits who need homes.

Associated Press - Caroline Charland, founder of The Bunny Bunch, feeds rabbits July 26 at The Burrow in Montclair, Calif.

Two hundred of the rabbits are in foster care and 150 are at The Burrow, the adoption center her 20-year-old rescue operates in Montclair, about 35 miles east of Los Angeles.

Charland tries to keep the group’s rabbit count around 300, but that isn’t always possible, especially in the summer. Kill shelters throughout Southern California will call her and say: “We are euthanizing today. Can you take any rabbits?”

Domestic rabbits who make it to shelters and to people like Charland are the lucky ones, said Betsy Saul, co-founder of Petfinder.com, an online pet adoption database.

“People take rabbits out and figure they will survive on their own,” and that’s usually a deadly decision for the animals, Saul said.

“Rabbits can die of heart attacks from the very approach of a predator,” said Mary E. Cotter in New York. She is with the House Rabbit Society, an international nonprofit organization that rescues rabbits from animal shelters.

The Associated Press, the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Pet Products Association estimate rabbits are the pets of choice in about 2 percent of American households — the same as horses. But in shelters, the animals come in third behind dogs and cats, said Ana Bustilloz, a spokeswoman for spcaLA in Los Angeles.

At the Pasadena Humane Society, there are about 15 rabbits now and normally they would have fewer than 10, spokeswoman Hillary Gatlin said.

As a rule, it costs $30 to adopt a spayed or neutered and microchipped rabbit from Pasadena, but while there are so many, the shelter is running a 2-for-1 special. You get two rabbits, both fixed and microchipped, for $30. “That’s a steal,” Gatlin said.

Rabbits make good pets because they can easily be trained to use a litter box, come when you call them and will play tag, Cotter said. They are inquisitive, intelligent, sociable and affectionate.

But, she warned, rabbits aren’t for everyone.

They live seven to 10 or more years, generally they are not good around small children, they must live indoors and require daily feeding, grooming, exercise, together time and cleanup.

Rabbits have long been used in research. “Think about what’s necessary from a research animal. They are loving, kind, trusting, incredibly domesticatable, trainable. The very things that damn them to be such good subjects make them great pets,” Saul said in a telephone interview.

The ASPCA estimates it costs $730 a year to care for a rabbit. The first year, it will be about $1,055 because of $325 in capital costs (cage, litter box, spay and neutering).

A new owner will have to do some rabbit-proofing in areas where the animals will roam, Saul said.

Rabbits need to chew their entire life — it’s not a phase they will outgrow, so cable guards and furniture leg guards will have to be installed.

Associated Press - Rabbits are seen at a shelter for rescued rabbits July 26 at The Burrow, the Bunny Bunch headquarters in Montclair, Calif.

Rabbits seem to flourish in mature adult homes, Saul said, because they prefer quiet, bookish pursuits to rambunctious play in rowdy homes.

At The Burrow, the rabbits seem to know it’s safe and often greet visitors. One of the friendliest is Nutmeg, a cinnamon colored red Rex with velvet feeling fur who will stick her nose through the cage to be petted.

She was found alongside a road with a broken leg.

Education is a big part of what The Bunny Bunch does. “We talk as many people out of getting a rabbit as we adopt to,” Charland said.

People who get rabbits as gifts or from a store will keep the rabbits outside, where they can quickly die in heat, or in a small cage, where they can become aggressive in a confined space, developing what is called “cage rage” as they protect their small area, she said.

Shelters, rescues and animal experts all have one major piece of advice when it comes to rabbits: Give as many Easter bunnies for gifts as you want next year — but make them all chocolate.

The bay is neither broken nor closed, but is reserved for the more hirsute members of the family.

Tracey’s Pet Wash, located at 2662 Kirby Whitten Parkway in Memphis, opened in November and offers a self-serve grooming option for local pet lovers and their better halves.

“It’s very economical,” said pet wash manager Tracey Anderson. “It’s a good $40 to get (my dog) groomed. They usually do it by weight, and she weighs 100 pounds.”

Associated Press - Tracey Anderson cleans her golden retriever, Reagan, June 24 at her coin-op pet wash station at the Jolly Car Wash in Memphis, Tenn.

For $6, which gives users 10 minutes, pet owners can rinse, shampoo — with flea and tick or tearless shampoo options — condition, blow dry with a heatless dryer and vacuum their dogs.

“People who’ve used it love it,” Anderson said.

And according to Anderson, the canines love it too.

“(My dog) Reagan loves to get a bath. She’d do it every week if she could. When she wants a bath, she’ll find something nasty to roll in,” Anderson said.

Reagan walks, or hops, up the ramp into the sink, where there are leashes for hooking to her collar to keep her from running after squirrels or greeting other customers while getting freshened up.

After inserting quarters — the machine is cash-only — a DIY groomer chooses options like shampooing and rinsing, which all come out of the same hose, by turning a dial.

The machine beeps with a warning when time is almost up, and each extra dollar adds another 21/2 minutes.

A changer near the bay takes bills up to $10.

For Barbara Kitchens, a regular, 10 minutes is plenty of time to get Murphy, her 31/2 -year-old golden retriever, spruced up.

“Six dollars can do everything,” Kitchens said.

They favor the vacuum option.

“That way I don’t have to worry about running around chasing him with a towel all day,” Kitchens said. “It’s more convenient. You don’t have to try to put soap on. You just hold the sprayer.”

She also approves of the cost.

“I’m frugal, so it’s nice to be able to go somewhere I don’t have to spend a fortune,” she said. “Just recently (Murphy) tried to help us paint, so I just took him to the pet wash and cleaned it off.”

Anderson ordered the pet wash from National Pride Equipment out of Ashland, Ohio, which sells about 70 units a year to businesses, individuals and even dog parks in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Europe.

“Whenever we put one up, it usually creates a lot of excitement,” said National Pride head salesman Rodney Summers. “People love them. It’s an efficient way to groom your dog, plus you have total control over how much shampoo or conditioner you put on your dog, and it’s a lot less messier than doing it at home.”

That idea is one of the catch phrases Anderson uses to get the word out.

“You leave the mess to us,” she said. “When the dog shakes, it’s not in your bathroom.”

She hopes to eventually install another wash in the same bay.