National Adopt A Shelter Pet Day April 30th is National Adopt A Shelter Pet Day- a great opportunity to bring home a new, four-legged family member! This holiday was created to raise awareness for the millions of animals that are waiting for someone special to give them a forever home. Have you been thinking about adopting an animal? Visit your local animal shelter today! Choosing The Right Animal- Adopt Don’t Shop! There are so many animals waiting to find their forever homes in shelters. According to the Humane Society, each year 2.7 million adoptable dogs and cats are euthanized […] Read more »
Animal Fact: Horses Are Not Colorblind Horses are beautiful creatures to look at, and thousands of fanatics enjoy riding them or showing them every year. A male horse is called a stallion and a female horse is a mare. Horses which have been tamed usually live to be around 25 years old. However, the oldest domestic horse on record was Old Billy, who died at the age of 62. Another good fact about horses is, when they are seen standing up, don’t assume they are awake! These creatures can sleep either standing up or lying down. A group of horses will […] Read more »
National Kids and Pets Day National kids and pets day was created in 2005 by Colleen Paige, a mother, former EMT/Medic, and an expert in celebrities, families, and pet lifestyles. Paige established this day in order to recognize the bond between children and animals and to help bring awareness to pets that are still waiting to find their forever homes. This holiday was intended to educate people about the necessary safety that should occur between children and pets. Is your family thinking about adopting a pet? That’s great! Pets make incredible companions to children and can teach them many lessons […] Read more »
Animal Fact: Toucans curl into little balls when they sleep There are about 40 different species of toucans. They live in tropical and sub-tropical jungle regions, they are native to southern Mexico in Central America, the northern areas of South America, and the Caribbean region. Toucans are renown for their large colorful bills. At 8 inches (20 cm) they have the longest bill of any bird in the world. The relatively small wings of the toucan mean they are not very good at flying. This is fine by them though, they often don’t move far, and usually hop between branches using curved […] Read more »
National Lost Dogs Awareness Day National Lost Dogs Awareness Day was first celebrated on April 23rd, 2014 after Susan Taney and Kathy Pobloskie, the directors of Lost Dogs Illinois and Lost Dogs of Wisconsin, created the holiday. The two established the day in order to bring attention to all of the dogs that get lost each year, but also to celebrate the joy of lost dogs that are reunited with their families. Finding A Lost Pet Have you lost your pet? We know this can be a time of constant stress and uncertainty. Pets are like our family members, and when […] Read more »
The Turkish Van If you hear someone bragging about their Turkish Van, you’d be forgiven for thinking they were talking about an imported car. However, the Turkish Van is not a car but a rare breed of cat. This rare cat has a one-of-a-kind coat. While most cats have coats consisting of three hair types, the Turkish Van prefers a coat of one hair type, with no undercoat. This makes her fur cashmere-like in both texture and looks. Plus, it’s water-resistant, which works out fantastically since they are also known as the “swimming cat”. This cat not only loves to go out for a […] Read more »
Celebrate National Earth Day by Helping Animals Earth Day is a great opportunity to learn and to teach others about taking care of the planet and making choices that will help the environment and the animals that live here! Holiday History In 1970, the first Earth Day was created by using the energy of the anti-war protest movement in order to make environmental concerns a priority. The holiday was founded by Gaylord Nelson, a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin after he saw the huge oil spill in Santa Barbara, California in 1969. On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans rallied for […] Read more »
The Flying Tree Snake Chrysopelea is most commonly known as the flying tree snake or gliding snake. They are a genus of the family Colubridae, the largest snake family to 51% of all known living snakes. There are five species of flying snakes, which inhabit jungles, forests, and woodlands of South and Southeast Asia. These colorful snakes do not actually fly, but they do in fact glide. They are known to travel more than 100-meters in just a single glide, which amounts to about 8-10-meters per second. How amazing is that? Although these snakes are venomous, they have tiny, fixed rear fangs that make them […] Read more »
April is Heartworm Awareness Month The best time to learn about the serious disease that can impact cats and dogs everywhere. The American Heartworm Society defines heartworm as, “a disease caused by foot-long worms that live in the hearts, lungs, and associated blood vessels of affected pets, causing severe lung disease, heart failure, and damage to other organs in the body.” Heartworm disease can affect an animal’s health and quality of life even long after the parasites are gone, so it is important to prevent the disease to give an animal the best chance at life! How do animals get […] Read more »
These beautiful creatures can detect a mouse from a distance of 250 feet! They are carnivores and usually hunt small mammals, such as snowshoe hares, mice, squirrels, and birds – some that are larger in size often hunt bigger animals, such as deer. They find prey by sight and sound as they are not as swift or powerful a runner as some of their feline relatives. The males are competitive in their search for a mate. Females do not build nests, they prefer a natural, concealed lair such as under a rocky ledge, a hollow tree or beneath dense undergrowth […] Read more »