Saving Favorite Animal and Pet Sites Online

I've discovered a new place to save all of my favorite pet and animal sites. The site is called Clipix and as the name would indicate, it is a "visual" way of saving places that you want to revisit in an organized way.

I joined clipix about a week ago, and have set up files on my favorite topics. To get started, you open an account which just takes a few minutes, then go to your "clipboard". On the clipboard you will find boxes with titles of some popular categories. You can change the titles to anything you like. You can also add more boxes to the clipboard as you discover sites that interest you on different subjects. And if things get really busy on your clipboard, you can set up "multiboards" and put similar clipboards within them to further organize things.

Since I am new, I've set up some basic boards on some of my favorite things, including animals, books I'd like to read, health and nutrition, recipes, gift ideas...and I'm sure I'll be adding many more.

When you go to your main page, you can click on the title of any one of your clipboards, which will open up a page so that you can see all files in that folder. As I said, I've just started, but here is a picture of the folder I started on animals and pets:



Here is how to save your information to a clipboard. When you join, you "drag" a little "clip" button up into your toolbar if you are using Firefox, or you save it to your toolbar as instructed if you are using Internet Explorer. Then when you are on a page that you like and want to save, you simply click on the clip button in the toolbar, a window will open, you choose a picture that will remind you of the site, label it if you like, and save it into a file that you choose from a drop-down menu. So simple!

I am "happynutritionist" on clipix, when you join, look for me, or tell us in a comment who you are so we can all find you...tell us how you are using Clipix.

 

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Yorkie Chases New Jersey Bears

Okay, now that I have your attention, yes, I did chase a bear this summer, and I'm alive to tell you about it.  The only problem is that we can't really PROVE it because my owners were in such a panic there was no way they were going to grab a camera to take pictures.

Here's how it happened.  One morning, bright and early, we went outside for my usual time of wandering around the yard, chasing a squirrel or cat, and taking care of other business dogs take care of first thing in the morning.  My owner's son heard a sound just around at the side of the house...and so did I.  He ran to go look...and so did I.  Up in the tree near where we usually have the bird feeder hanging (bears LOVE bird seed) there was a medium sized bear, and I ran for it, barking, which scared it down from the tree and then it ran up to the road and across...I ran right behind, very close, with my owner screaming and running after me yelling -  "ASPEN, STOP! STOP!".  I did stop at the end of the yard, and was feeling pretty proud of my accomplishment!  But since, I keep hearing the owners tell my story and say "all that bear had to do was turn around and take one swipe and Aspen would have been a goner".  And now, they are overly cautious when they take me out, which I don't like, but they say it will keep me alive.

There have been a LOT of bears on our property this year.  Here's one picture of a bear about the same size as the one that I chased, going in the same direction, so you get an idea of what happened...this one is moving slowly, though, it's hot, and her cubs were following along behind here, they are in other pictures at Daily Photos by Claudia (she tries to do them daily, but is a little behind:-)



Please read copyright information at Daily Photos by Claudia, this isn't the best picture because we enlarged it, but it's okay to use as long as it's not changed and credit is given to my owner.

Do You Have a Heart for Wild Animals?

We have a lot of wild animals around here, just today my owners and I were out on the deck watching a pair of beavers as they seem to be starting to build a den off our property in the lake. It's interesting to watch, the very first time in 26 years of living here that my owners have seen beavers in our lake.

Then there are the raccoons. They are having their babies now, and are very noisy at night when the babies are being raised. There are also bears around here now, so my owners have to be careful about letting me out at night.

The raccoons like to knock over our garbage cans, so do the bears, and sometimes it's tempting to want to trap the raccoons, but I think you'd be surprised to hear what animals are giving us the most trouble right now....they are Ferrel cats. There are at least 6 of them hanging around. Our animal control in Town makes us catch them and then they will take them, so we need to use a Havahart Easy Set Large Animal Trap to capture them, if they will go into the trap. The only other animals that are sometimes a problem, especially when we start to hear them chewing on the wood of our house like they are trying to get in, are the squirrels, this is when a Havahart Easy Set Small Animal Trap is a handy thing to have around.

We hope we won't have to use any traps, but if we need to find information and help in knowing what to do, we can visit Animal Trapping Tips and read their helpful ideas.

We love animals, and don't want them to be harmed, even if they are a pain sometimes...and I sure do love barking at them, and chasing squirrels whenever I get the chance.

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Woodstream. All opinions are 100% mine...and I love this product so much I'd have written this, sponsored or not.

Updated 11/7/13

There Were Other Pets Before Me

I am not the only pet my owners have had...they've had gerbils, ferrets, a cat, box turtles, and other animals while their children were growing up.  One of those "other animals" was pet hamsters.  So this week, when my owner took part in a challenge on Squidoo about pets, she didn't pick me to talk about, but teddy bear hamsters.

She even said that she'd like to get another one...now that is something she's going to have to think about a bit, because it comes natural to us Yorkies to want to catch mice, and hamsters are in the rodent family.

If you want to see what she wrote, visit Cute Fuzzy Teddy Bear Hamsters.

My Owner Sent This Cute Video

My geeky owners send emails to each other and chat with each other when one of them is at work, and today a really cute one came, it's even more than cute, it's really nice and something that you'll probably never see unless you watch this video:

Dog Breeds - Dalmatian

The Dalmatian has been made popular with children because of the Disney movie, "101 Dalmatians".  

Their association with Fire Stations comes from various bits of information, including their help in chasing rats from fire stations in England, to training them to guide the horse-drawn fire wagons through the streets, while protecting the horses from stray dogs that would attack them. How much of this is fact, and how much fiction, I don't know, but since the origin of the breed is in Europe, it sounds likely. 

Following is an article with more information about the breed written by Kelly Marshall.

Of all the dogs, the Dalmatian is easily spotted by its characteristic black spotted features. How these black spots evolved remains a puzzle. The Dalmatian is a European breed, first discovered in Western Yugoslavia. In the USA the Dalmatian was first introduced about 120 years ago and still remains one of the most popular dogs as a pet.

One of the great features of the Dalmatian is its energy level and ability to exercise for long duration. The Dalmatian is not a pet for a small apartment because it needs a lot of room. Training this dog is not difficult but does require a great deal of patience. Training can be difficult at times because the dog often tends to become stubborn. While the Dalmatian does make a great pet dog, it often does get ill tempered with other dogs. Ironically, it is quite friendly with other animals like cats and even horses. For those families with children, the Dalmatian should not be the first pet as it is full of energy and though not intentional, it can be a little rough with small children. However, if the dog is well trained it can make a great loving pet. Despite its size and energy, the dog will rarely harm a child or the owner.

Upkeep and Maintenance

The Dalmatian is one dog that needs regular exercise and thus, it is more suited for people who are active. Simply taking the Dalmatian out to poop will not be adequate as it prefers to go for long outdoor runs. The majority of Dalmatian owners indicate that it makes a great jogging companion. When you first buy the Dalmatian as a puppy it will gladly live in the apartment, but as soon as it grows, it will let you know where it wants to go. Throwing a ball in the park is another way to provide exercise for them as well.

The Dalmatian prefers the cool temperate weather more so than the hot humid climate. When outside, one has to make sure that it is provided with lots of water and a shade to rest under. The dog does tend to become attached to humans and loves people company. Even though the Dalmatian loves the outdoors, it also prefers to be with humans once inside the home.

Health Information

While the Dalmatian generally is disease free, it does suffer from deafness with age. Other common medical ailments that may afflict the dog include an under active thyroid gland, allergies, visual problems and seizures. While CHD has been reported, it is very rare and no where near as common as what occurs in Rottweilers. All Dalmatian owners are recommended that the dog be checked regularly by a veterinarian to screen for the above mentioned health problems

The majority of pet dalmatians live at least 12-15 years. There are even reports of some Dalmatians living a lot longer. While comparisons are difficult, the dog can be as loving and gentle as a Labrador when it is well trained.

About the Author: Article by Kelly Marshall of http://www.ohmydogsupplies.com, your top spot to buy dog coats & jackets online.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Please look under the category "Dog Breeds" below for posts about other dog breeds that are presently available, and will be added over time.

Look at Poor Punxsutawney Phil, Ground Hog Day

Look at poor Punxsutawney Phil, I don't think I'd be very happy having such and...ummm...undignified picture of me published. You can see cuter ones at his website by clicking his name above.  I think this picture came from the Associated Press and I hope they don't mind a little Yorkie using the picture on her blog.

Even though P. Phil is the most popular Ground Hog today, there are other ground hogs out there who either did, or did not see their shadows, so my owner and I decided that Ground Hog Day must be a regional thing.  When Spring will come depends upon the ground hog that lives closest to you.  What do you think?

Here's what we've been able to pick up from ground hogs around the USA, at least on the Eastern part of the country:

• If you live near Punxsutawney, PA, Phil saw his shadow, so you are probably going to have 6 more weeks of winter


• The brave Ground Hog who makes his home in the Big Apple, New York City, supposedly didn't see his shadow, so just maybe in our area, Spring will come sooner.


• The Marion, Ohio ground hog DID see his shadow, so 6 more weeks of winter there.


• Down in Atlanta, Georgia, no shadow was seen, so in that region there will be an early spring....as if Spring isn't already early enough for you folks down there in the southern states:-)

All I know is I'm getting tired of barking at snow...yes, I bark whenever I look out the window and see that it's snowing,  so Spring can't come soon enough for me (or anyone who has to listen to me.)