Holiday Protection for the Fur Babies

With the holiday season right around the corner, it never hurts
to make known just how many everyday items can be less than
festive to our fur babies. If you have pets and want to look out
for them, and especially if you plan on taking them visiting into
unfamiliar territory, be sure and read up on these typical and
often unknown hazards.

ASPCA list of House Plants Toxic to Dogs & Cats, etc.

Likewise, with all the additional food that tends to be available
in a household over the Winter season, there are precautions
to be reminded of regarding foods that not unhealthy and toxic
for cats and dogs.

Dog Whisperer List of Dangerous/Deadly Foods

Make sure you look out for your little (and not-so-little) guys
since they love to put anything and everything in their mouth
without a lick of forethought or discrimination!

Keep a fresh bottle of hydrogen peroxide available since giving
some to a pet can make them vomit up any plant or food they may
have ingested.

And keep your personal vet's--and all local vets'--emergency
phone numbers posted where you can find them in a hurry.

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The Bottled Water Debate

What's your eco-footprint?

You hear a lot about the Plastic Bottle Monster, and how the
discarded plastic bottles for drinking water make up an insane
amount of landfill and other waste every year.

But I continue to use the convenient bottles, buying a case a month
for only $3, for health reasons. I dislike re-using an existing plastic
bottle because plastic holds germs and is difficult to clean (I don't
own a dishwasher.) Plastic bottles reused, even when washed well
by hand, can be a germ factory.

Like many, I live in an area where good clean water is not readily
available when you go out. And taking water with me means I have
it whenever I need it, which is always! (I'm constantly thirsty because
I am diabetic, I sweat profusely all the time, and I have meds which
cause severe dry mouth.)

Rather than leave it to chance or put up with bad water, I like to
take it with me. You also avoid touching water fountain handles,
other people's glassware (and I have seen some nasty, unclean junk in
my day--ugh!,) and it's always self-contained. (Again, the problem with
a reusable bottle of your own is needing to constantly clean it, and do
so thoroughly.)

So, to be responsible and conscientious, I simply recycle. I don't see a
problem with that. It's easy to do. There is no recycling in my area, so
I have a large, clean cardboard box under my sink, and I rinse out all my
plastics and drain them, then store them til I go to 'the Big City,' and cart
them with me to the recycling center.

A reusable container is great if you have a dish-washing machine.
A filter is great if you're going to be stationary throughout the course of
the day. But if you travel a lot and are concerned with the germs, I say
just use the bottled water, and make sure you maintain responsibility
for not adding to waste.

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