Sit and Stay

With the slow start we had to our spring in Portland, I spend the warm days as wisely as possible. Often, they lend themselves to a trip to the dog park with a friend or two. Not one to go unprepared—especially when it comes to my dog, Emerson—I bring a collection of essentials, such as [...]

Emerson

In the summer, it’s amazing how many opportunities exist to socialize my 3-year-old Lhasa Apso, Emerson. Granted, I live in the particularly dog-friendly town of Portland, Ore. That said, it seems that as the weather warms up, dogs accompany their owners on more and more activities—sometimes even to the grocery store (though it’s not always [...]

For the entire month of April, you can support the Banfield Charitable Trust’s Pet Peace of Mind program by voting for ’Help Hospice Patients Keep their Pets’ in the Pepsi Refresh Challenge. The Pet Peace of Mind program provides non-profit hospice programs with resources and funding to help hospice patients care for their Pets during [...]

Emerson
Two years ago today, I adopted my first dog, a Lhasa Apso mix, from the Oregon Humane Society, a local shelter here in Portland. The process involved two visits, a trip to PetSmart to stock up on supplies, and one sleepless night. Visit number one was prompted by an ad I had seen online, describing [...]

With the recent news from the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) that a cat tested positive for the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus, keeping your Pet protected has probably crossed your mind as a Pet owner. If you or someone in your household has the H1N1 virus, this recent news means it is possible — though [...]

Just over 11 years ago I moved to Oregon from NY to be with Ricky my then boyfriend, now husband. The day after I arrived we adopted Niko from the Oregon Humane Society. Several days later we brought him home and though we had a few hiccups early on: he ate our house the first [...]

Before moving to Portland, I lived in a more rural area of Pacific Northwest where fall is one of my favorite times of the year — a great way for me to spend a fall afternoon is seeing all the color changes that the season brings. The vibrant leaf changes and seasonal foliage are [...]

Yesterday was our dog, Niko’s, birthday-he’s officially 12. This year, we fulfilled two birthday promises–first, we ran a Wisdom Panel, which is a mixed breed dog DNA test and the results are in. It turns out you guys know your dogs–he’s equal parts Doberman pinscher, Siberian husky and Flat-coated Retriever. That third one was a [...]

I am not one of our regular bloggers. Nor am I a Pet healthcare expert. I have, however, worked at Banfield for over nine years and, like all of my colleagues here, am a Pet lover. I decided to write this week because something’s been on my mind for a while— my dog, Niko. He’s [...]

As you may remember from last week I spent one summer in the mid 80s working at a rehab on the San Juan Islands. I have already recounted my meetings with Frank and Blanche the raccoon and sea otter that I met there. The final feathered friend I made there was “the swan” [...]