To celebrate Petfinder’s 15th anniversary, today is “Help Petfinder Adopt the Internet Day,” dedicated to raising awareness of pet adoption. Petfinder is asking websites and bloggers everywhere to talk about pet adoption. As Dogsteris partnering on the campaign, all blog posts published on the site today are about dog adoption.
Raising awareness of adoption was never more important than right now. All over America and the world, millions ofbeautiful, sweet, healthydogs – from puppies to seniors -are being killed because there arent enough homes for them all.
So, whether you have a blog or you prefer micro-blogging on Twitter, please get online pronto and spread the word about the joys of dog adoption. Tell a happy tail story, your own or someone elses. Blog about your local shelter or a shelter you visited far, faraway.
Devote at least one blog post today – and more, if you can; the more, the better! – to the subject of pet adoption, and include a blogger badge (find one here) or a link back toPetfinder’s All Star gallery. If youre stumped for something to write, simply spotlight one of the Adopt-the-Internet All-Star Adoptable pets (pick one here).
Since thisis a lifestyle column, I thought I’d blog about some of my favoritehomekeepingproducts that give new meaning to homekeeping. Theseproducts helpkeep dogs where they belong: At home. And that means fewer dogs abandoned at animal shelters.
Sadly, thousands of dogs are relinquished to animal shelters every year because they soiled the house. Accidents happen; we Dogsters clean them up. It’s as simple as that. Or is it?
If we don’t use the right cleaning product, the scent of the accident stays – and Spot instinctively goes right back to the spot, and marks it again. He can’t help it; he’s a dog with a fine-tuned sense of smell. But we can help it – by using a cleaner thatextracts the stain completely, so even Spot’s sensitive nose can’t sniff it out. And if he can’t smell it, he won’t “go” over it.
Doessuch a cleaner exist? Thankfully, yes: It’s called Get Serious, and it effectively stops the re-soiling cycle by completely, permanently removing the pheromone,thescent that compels a dog to mark an old spot yet goes undetected by human nostrils.
If you love your dog, it’s the single most important home cleaning product you can buy. Get Serious makes unpleasantstains and odors go away, so pets never have to be banished. It works to remove all trace of set-in stains and odors, so even ifyour pet’s accident happened months ago, you can erase it completely today.
Get Seriousworks on hard and soft surfaces; I’ve used it on everything from wood floors to rugs to upholstery, always with great results. And it’s really easy to use: just aim, squirt, and blot with a towel, then toss the soaked towel in the laundry with detergentplus a cup ofGet Serious. With the number of dogs I have, I simply wouldn’t be able to getby without this stuff. Seriously.
An added plus: Get Serious is non-toxic, so it’s safe to use around children and animals – yes, even on the carpet, where rugrats and pets like to hang out. It works without the use of enzymes, which means it won’taggravatesymptoms for people with allergies. And let’s face it: Pets are not the only ones who leave behind unpleasant stains. Get Serious works on all kinds of stains produced by all kinds of species – even humans!
The other must-have item in your home-cleaningarsenal is a powerful vacuum cleaner.Happily,more and more vacuum cleaner brands are acknowledging pet owners’ need to suck up pet particles (i.e. shedded hairs and dander). Bissell, aleader in home cleaning technology, offers several products to help pet owners reduce pet particles at home. Most of the company’s staff have adopted shelter dogs – woo hoo!
My favorite Bissell is the aptly-named Pet Hair Eraser, left. Best-selling author and Boston Terrier rescuer Julie Klam, meanwhile, swears by Bissell’s SpotBot, which she raved about in a recent Wall Street Journal article.
Finally, if you’re housetraining a dog, you’ll need a crate. But many people don’t like to use crates because they look like mini-prisons. And as a result, many dogs don’t get properly housetrained,so they wind upbehind bars atanimal shelters. What’s worse: A training tool that looks like a prison, or an actual prison?
Happily, there’s a solutionto soften the training crate’s hard edge: the Crate Mat by Crypton. This ingenious invention sandwiches a layer offiberfill betweentwo panels of stain- and moisture-resistant Crypton Super Fabric. If an accident happens on the crate mat, simply wipe it up and toss it in the laundry on the cold setting, then hang it up to dry.
The Crate Mat is socozy that my sweet, old girlSheba – who never, ever needed a crate aince the day I adopted her, and doesn’t love to feel confined- actually seeks out the crate I useto occasionally corralmy little rescue pitCupcake for training tune-ups, and selects it as a snoozing spot. That’s some endorsement.
Happy Adopt the Internet Day!
