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Pet Nutrition
MOM…..I’M THIRSTY….
Recently my doctor told me that I should drink half my
PET CONVERSATIONS
WITH MARIBETH DECKER
THE DOWNSIDE OF DOING ANIMAL COMMUNICATION
BY MARIBETH DECKER, SACREDGROVE.COM,
ANIMAL
COMMUNICATOR
I discovered an unexpected
downside to doing intuitive
animal communication sessions!
It
started with cats!
I was working with two
cats – the younger one, let’s
call her Naomi, was two
years old. She kept
attacking
the older cat, who I’ll call
Orvis. Tail twitching, back
legs primed to jump in an allout
sneak attack, her eyes and
ears focused like radar on Orvis.
Then Naomi pounced!
She landed on his back and
held on like a rodeo rider,
scaring the dickens out of Orvis!
He scampered around,
trying to shake her off .
But Naomi wasn’t a mean
cat; she just wanted to practice
her “killer kitty” skills that
SHE thought was playful. If
there had been another young
cat in the family, they could
have taken turns “attacking”
and chasing each other. But
Orvis’ idea of a good day was
stretching out in a sunny spot
and getting attention from his
person.
Asking for changes in behavior
In our animal communication
session, I asked Naomi
to stop “riding” Orvis. I also
suggested to Orvis that he
might have fun playing chase
with Naomi.
I heard later that the issue
had resolved.
My cat changes her behavior
Interestingly, I had been
having issues with my eightmonth
old kitty, Shadow.
She was attacking my eightYEAR
old cat, Mac. Shadow
would ambush Mac and swat
him hard, but without claws.
Mac would come out with a
pitiful wail, clearly wanting
her to stop.
After my session with Naomi
and Orvis,
I caught my
little vixen Shadow trying
to ride Mac like Naomi rode
Orvis. She had never done
this before. Holy cow, she had
eavesdropped on my session.
Setting Shadow straight
I connected to her and explained
she missed the point –
she focused on how much fun
it might be to jump Mac. We
asked Naomi to STOP jumping
Orvis, I explained. And
we didn’t want Shadow jumping
Mac. Shadow stopped after
a few more tries.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 76
Shadow
body weight in water every day. Whaaaatt??? That’s a
tall order but when my older dog was recently diagnosed
with a potentially early stage of kidney disease, I thought,
hmmm, should she be doing the same thing? After much
research and a course in kidney and liver function in dogs,
the answer is — sort of…. Unfortunately, I started her
out, as I did all my pups, on just kibble – not the grocery
store bought brands, but kibble none the less. Yes, she
drank water, but it wasn’t until we opened Whole Dogz,
and I started taking nutrition classes did I understand that
dogs need a whole lot more.
Think about it. Wolves don’t run around eating little
dried up bits of processed food. They eat the whole animal
that they capture, all the meat and extras that have
their own moisture content. Of course, they also drink a
lot of water in streams and they get a lot of exercise. Today’s
pups, while evolved, still need that moisture and exercise
to keep their organs working.
I realize that not everyone can aff ord a raw diet, and not
everyone likes the idea of raw meat on the fl oor where
kiddos might come in contact with a pup’s bowl. But
there are ways to boost your pup’s diet to ensure that it is
getting the moisture it needs.
First, add some freeze dried raw if you can. You can
re-hydrate it in the fridge, or simply add it to your pup’s
food but you MUST add water. Even that’s not enough
but there are many other ways to entice your pup to increase
its moisture intake. My wise Mom always made
us soup for whatever ailed us, with the magic ingredient
always including meat or chicken bones. Bone broth is
now a hit on the revival stage for us humans, and dog versions
– both hydrated and freeze dried, are great options
to add to your pup’s food. And, I have yet to see a dog
deny themselves a bowl of goat milk! Yup, it too can be
purchased freeze dried or hydrated and it contains marvelous
probiotics to help settle even the most egregious
gassy pup tummies.
Finally, your pups need exercise. The one that comes
from socialization of course we think is best, but exercise
is crucial to keep your pups healthy. After all, a healthy
dog is a happy dog!
Mary and Patrick Kenkel own Whole Dogz, a doggie day
care, boarding facility, and retail store located at 4748 Eisenhower
Avenue in Alexandria. Visit in person or online at wholedogz.com
and store.wholedogz.com
KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN MIGHT CATAPULT CAT CAFE
Imagine a place that feels
likes home, where you can
drink wine and play with
cats, all while contributing
to a good cause. This is
that place. Mount Purrnon Cat
Café and Wine Bar plans to be
Northern Virginia’s fi rst cat
café, combining adoptable
cats, history, and wine to create
a unique experience for
visitors. In late April, founders
Kristin Cowan and Adam
Patterson launched a Kickstarter
campaign for the café,
hoping to raise funds to assist
in startup costs.
74
ZEBRA PRESS
The
café will include
a
lounge room fi lled with
adoptable cats and a separate
bar/café area where visitors
can grab café items, snacks,
beer, and wine. “Even if people
aren’t huge cat fans, they
can still visit the cat café and
grab a drink,” says Kristin,
“but they will probably want
to go into the cat room when
they see how much fun it is.”
Featuring an early U.S. history
theme, Mount Purrnon
also plans to off er information
on the area via books,
reference materials, and maps.
“We plan to be in the Old
Town Alexandria area; it is
part of the theme,” says Kristin.
The café will also hold
special events like cat yoga,
trivia, and game night, and
will be working with a local
shelter to get the cats adopted.
Cat cafés have been a growing
trend. Originating in Taiwan
in the 1990s, cat cafés
became a popular destination
for those who want to
play with socialized felines.
“One of the benefi ts of cat
cafés is that they get cats out
of the shelter and help to socialize
them,” says Kristin. Of
course, perhaps the greatest
MAY 2018
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