Author Archives: Linda Taylor

2016 Halloween Tips

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10 Tip Series on Halloween Pet Safety

  1. Trick-or-treat candies are not for pets. All forms of chocolate – especially baking or dark chocolate – can be dangerous, even lethal, for dogs and cats
  2. Bring your pet in the house on Halloween: surprisingly, vicious pranksters have been known to tease, injure, steal, or even kill pets on Halloween night. Inexcusable? Yes! But preventable nonetheless.
  3. Keep pets confined and away from the door. Not only will your door be constantly opening and closing on Halloween, but strangers will be dressed in unusual costumes and yelling loudly for their candy. Putting your dog or cat in a secure room away from the front door will also prevent them from darting outside into the night… a night when no one wants to be searching for a lost loved one.
  4. Keep your outdoor cats inside several days before and several days after Halloween. Black cats are especially at risk from pranks or other cruelty-related incidents. In fact, many shelters do not adopt out black cats during the month of October as a safety precaution.
  5. Keep Halloween plants such as pumpkins and corn out of reach. Although they are relatively nontoxic, such plants can induce gastrointestinal upset should your pets ingest them in large quantities. Intestinal blockage can even occur if large pieces are swallowed.
  6. Don’t keep lit pumpkins around pets. Should they get too close, they run the risk of burning themselves or knocking it over and causing a fire.
  7. Keep wires and electric light cords out of reach. If chewed, your pet could cut himself or herself on shards of glass or plastic, or receive a possibly life-threatening electrical shock.
  8. Don’t dress your pet in a costume unless you know they’ll love it. If you do decide that Fido or Kitty needs a costume, make sure it isn’t annoying or unsafe. It should not constrict movement, hearing, or the ability to breathe or bark and meow.
  9. Try on pet costumes before the big night. If they seem distressed, allergic, or show abnormal behavior, consider letting them go in their “birthday suit”. Festival bandanas usually work for party poopers, too.
  10. IDs, please! If your dog or cat should escape and become lost, having the proper identification will increase the chances that they will be returned. Just make sure the information is up-to-date, even inf your pet does have one of those fancy-schmancy embedded microchips.

Everyone at TBAR wishes you and your pets a safe and happy Halloween!

Swimming Safety

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Practice Safe Swimming with your family and pets !

Tip 1: While under supervision, teach young dogs and dogs new to the pool where the steps are. Make sure they always exit at the steps so they will remember where to go if they fall in.

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Tip 2: Even dogs who love the water often need to be forced to take a break. Always be on the lookout for signs of fatigue.

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Tip 3: Not all dogs can swim. Older dogs, heavy dogs, or certain breeds of dogs just don’t get the hang of it immediately. Test your dog in a controlled environment. For these dogs, the safest course of action may be a doggie life vest.

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Bonus! Sunglasses Day!

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What happens to your pets when you are gone?

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What happens when you are gone? Don’t forget about your animal family. Legally, pets are classified as property. But to us, their owners, they are much more.

Legal ways you can deal with this issue is setting up pet trust or guardianship. Another way is to set up a bank account or an investment situation where a lump sum of money could be kept, or set up the beneficiary to be the 501(c)3 animal rescue. In that way, the money in the account is accessible to you, but will go to the charity of your choice upon your death.

Another way to deal with your animal’s future is to write an “Animal Love Letter” to your family.

Attach it to your will. Keep it in a fireproof box with the key in, so no one will steal it. In the letter, outline your wishes for how your animals could be cared for. List names of friends and organizations.

For example:

  • This animal belongs to True Blue Animal Rescue and I am only fostering it.
  • My BFF might take our older dog and add it to his/her family.
  • My Agility dog should go to a home where it can continue competing, here is a list of people who might be able to find him a home.
  • I want my horses to find a home through a reputable 501C3 Animal Rescue. Most rescues have a Donation Contract with a surrender fee to help pay for the care of the animal.

Foster Feature: Family Circle Chis

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A few weeks ago we introduced you to our Charlie Brown family of Chihuahua pups – now meet our Family Circle bunch!

*UPDATE*  We now have folks wanting three of these puppies — PJ, Dolly, and Jeffrey are pending adoption but Billy and mom Tina are still available!

I wanted to say how exciting it can be to foster a litter of puppies!   Watching their eyes begin to open and when they begin to focus on the world around them.    One key is preparation.   We used an inexpensive child’s swimming pool for our whelping box.   This is easy to find this time of year and allows the mother to get away from her puppies while leaving them safe and confined.   Combined with puppy pads for the floor, the surface is easy to keep clean.  These pups were big enough to climb out at about 4 weeks when they started trying to eat soft, moist kibble.   We put two doggie exercise  pens together to make  a 6 x 3  pen for them to learn to run and play in.   It will be still be several weeks before these pups are completely weaned.   During that time,  it is important to socialize and handle all the puppies.    Get them used to different types of surfaces beneath their feet, different noises, different types of toys.  Also, rub their toes, rub their ears, turn them over — establish a human-dog trust.     This will help your puppies to develop into well socialized,  outgoing puppies at an early age and keep them from being shy or fearsome.   Thanks TBAR for the opportunity to raise this cute litter!   Linda and James

TBAR depends on foster homes to help us save animals, as we do not have a shelter location. We hope this story has inspired you to consider becoming a TBAR foster home. If so, please email us at [email protected] or call (936) 878-2349 and help us save more lives!

Be Kind to Animals Week 2014

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I would venture to guess that everyone reading this is kind to animals.

We all love pictures of cute animals, happy tail photos of adopted animals, and the warm fuzzies that come with happy endings.

As members of an animal rescue, we all see bad things happen to animals, but it is the happy side of rescue keeps us going.  Let us spread the word far and wide about animal welfare!

I did some research and the American Humane Association created Be Kind to Animals Week in 1915 to encourage compassion toward animals. During this week they encourage everyone to be more than compassionate. Let us ask ourselves how we can influence more good outcomes? How can we spread more warm fuzzies and make more animals feel loved?

Here are a few tips from the American Humane Association:

• Report any suspected animal abuse or neglect to animal control in your county

• Commit to adopting your next pet from an animal shelter

• Donate to or volunteer at your local animal shelter or for a local rescue group

• Spay or neuter your pets and encourage friends and family to do the same

• Spend quality time with your pet

• Make sure your pet has an ID tag or microchip

• Drive cautiously through areas populated by wild animals such as deer

• Plant flowers in your yard that will attract butterflies or hummingbirds

• Speak out in your community about the importance of respecting animals

 

TBAR Volunteers invite you to choose one of the above activities or come up with one of your own to celebrate “Be Kind to Animals” week.

We also invite everyone to make a donation to True Blue Animal Rescue, and then post a special message on our Facebook page. You can use this message to honor the memory of a beloved pet. Tell us what special thing you will do this week to honor that pet’s memory in conjunction with Be Kind to Animals Week. Please keep all comments family appropriate.

Here, let me get us started:

In memory of Zach, the cocker spaniel who passed over the rainbow bridge way to early in his life. His short life touched many hearts.    In his memory,   I will donate $20 to TBAR.

TBAR Speaks to Aggieland Rotary Club

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AggielandRotary2As a part of our Community outreach and involvement TBAR often gives presentations to different groups to spread the TBAR mission and message while possibly setting up future partnerships. These presentations help to grow awareness about improving the treatment of animals in our community.

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TBAR was pleased to have several of our members attend a meeting of the Aggieland Rotary club this past Thursday, February 27, from 11:30am-1:00pm at Traditions Country Club in Bryan, Texas. Our Marketing and Events Coordinator, Linda Taylor, gave an informative presentation complete with slideshow covering the TBAR goal of improving the treatment of animals through education and communication.

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The members of the Rotary seemed very engaged and interested and we were pleased that a few of them have already inquired about becoming foster and adoptive homes. In addition, shortly after the event TBAR’s Facebook page passed 3000 followers! We are very excited to have crossed this milestone so we can continue to make an impact for better animal treatment in the Brazos Valley area!

TBAR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit no-kill animal rescue organization. If you would like to help animals such as these please consider donating to TBAR, volunteering, fostering, or adopting. Every little bit helps us to help another animal in need of safety and rehabilitation. Save a life: adopt instead of shop and spay or neuter your pets!