PROBLEM

Today's economic crisis is especially crucial for pet owners and guardians, as they attempt to care for beloved pets with little means. Unfortunately, many healthy, previously well cared for animals, and former pets, are being turned in to animal control (kill) shelters, or left abandoned on the streets to fend for themselves.

While your pet will most likely receive humane (?????) euthanasia if you turn him or her into a typical animal control shelter at this point in time, previously cared for animals do not know how to care for themselves when left on the streets, either in the city or out in the country. Your pet is a living being, and one who has come to trust you. Do you really want to drop him or her off on the streets without care, or leave him or her in a shelter to be gassed?

TYPICAL PET NEEDS

During any given month, unless sick or unusually impaired, your pet has few basic needs other than love and attention. These basic needs include food and water, worming (if your pet is ever outside), monthly heart-worm preventative, and monthly flea treatment, especially during the summer months, but most vets recommend such care year around.

CONFESSONS OF A FINANCIALLY CHALLENGED PET OWNER

I have four dogs of my own, and foster one black lab who presently needs a loving home. I recently lost my primary income source when Sonny Perdue, Governor of Georgia, cut the budget for substance abuse services by a grueling 24%. My former middle class income was reduced to less than poverty level, when referrals dropped for in-home substance abuse assessment work after the state's budget cuts. Like many pets, I felt abandoned, and left to fend for myself. Like many humans, I did not have a clue how to care for my pets, or take care of other expenses.

TRADITIONAL METHODS VS COST SAVING METHODS

Like many of you, I was accustomed to purchasing advertised brands for pet care, some costing as much as $60 or more each month for packages of six. These were the good brands, and those my vet recommended, but my monthly income was now less than minimum wage. In spite of my Masters Degree and professional work experience, I am presently living at below poverty level. I did not want to impose less effective brands on my animals, nor did I want to give them up, something that would have been difficult to do anyway, in our present economy as so many are giving up their own pets. As a former breeder of dogs and cats, I returned to some of the old tricks I used when I had many more animals, and now wish to make them public, since so many of you are struggling, and faced with the same dilema.

IF YOU LOVE YOUR PET, READ THIS

There are lower cost methods of using products that work to keep your pet free from worms in general, heart-worm, in particular, and fleas, and some of these products are the same ones you've been paying high dollars to purchase. These methods do require a little more time, but isn't your pet worth it?

HEARTWORM SOLUTIONS

IVOMEC can be purchased for around $50 in most feed stores. It is heart-worm preventative sold as a preventative for cattle and swine. It comes in a bottle containing 50 mL, and here is the cost saving news! Only one mL is required for 75 pounds of body weight, meaning that if you have one Golden Retriever, your heart-worm medication will last you at least 50 months, and longer, if your dog weighs less than 75 pounds as many do. You do the math, but also pay close attention to the precautions listed below, as they are very important.

IVOMEC PRECAUTIONS:

1. DO NOT INJECT IVOMEC DIRECTLY INTO YOUR DOG. WHAT WORKS FOR CATTLE AND SWINE, WILL KILL YOUR PET, AND IF THAT WAS YOUR GOAL, A NO KILL SHELTER WOULD BE LESS EXPENSIVE OR TIME CONSUMING. Purchase a few syringes with needles, and use them to draw up the appropriate dose for your dog. Once you have drawn up your 1 mL or less of IVOMEC, remove the needle, and squirt the heart-worm preventative into your dog's mouth. He or she is then good for the month, and you won't have to spend another $50 for many months.
2. PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR DOG'S WEIGHT. OBVIOUSLY, A TOY POODLE DOES NOT NEED THE FULL mL REQUIRED FOR YOUR GOLDEN RETRIEVER, IN FACT YOUR IVOMEC WILL LAST LITTERALLY YEARS, IN THIS CASE. Medium sized dogs require about a half or one fourth of a mL, depending on the weight of the dog. My Golden retriever only requires about one half of one mL, and my Australian Shepherds require about a fourth of one mL a month. Pay very close attention to the weight of your dog for both his or her safety, as well as effective heart-worm prevention.
3. BOIL THE NEEDLES INBETWEEN TIMES OF DRAWING THE IVOMEC INTO THE SYRINGE. THIS IS JUST SIMPLE COMMON SENSE TO ANYONE IN THE HEALTHCARE FIELD, THOUGH I WOULD NOT WORRY ABOUT MY DOG GETTING HIV FROM SHARED NEEDLES. HE OR SHE IS NOT GETTING INJECTED ANYWAY, BUT OTHER GERMS MIGHT SPREAD FROM USING THE SAME NEEDLE MORE THAN ONCE. BOIL THEM AFTER EACH USE.

MONTHLY OR BI-MONTHLY GENERAL WORMING WITH STRONGYLECARE HORSE DEWORMER

If your dog is outside much at all, he or she may require worming for all worm types any time she or he is exposed to substances that can be eaten without your knowledge or CONSENT. Retriever dogs are especially prone to grab cat feces (loaded with worms) while you aren't watching, OR BEFORE YOU CAN STOP THEM. You might want to worm your dog anytime you suspect he or she has managed to grab a snack you did not supply, and now you can do so at a tenth of the cost of dog and cat worm-er sold at pet stores and most vet offices. StrongyleCare Horse Worm-er is available in most feed stores, and it is the same stuff your vet sells at a higher price for monthly worming of your dog or cat. It is 100 percent safe, and using a horse sized amount would not kill your pet, but is certainly not necessary for monthly or more than monthly worming. A portion about the size of a green pea will work for your dog, and even less will keep your cat wormed every month. The contents shown above will last you years if you only have one pet, and save you hundreds of dollars, even if you have as many as I do.

KILLING FLEAS FOR YOUR WHOLE PET FAMILY THROUGH USING FRONTLINE SOLD FOR USE ON THE LARGEST SIZE DOG AROUND

Frontline, one of the most effective and popular brands of monthly topical flea treatments, can be used on both dogs and cats. In some cases, it can even be purchased in single doses that will treat many dogs and cats of smaller sizes than the largest sized dog single dose available. I recommend always purchasing the largest size, as there is little difference in the prices per dog size, and the largest size goes much further. Two single doses of Frontline for one huge dog, successfully treats my four dogs, the foster dog in my kennel, and all three cats for a full month, and I actually have some left over to use the next month. Again, pay special attention to the size and weight of your pet, as doing so will insure a safe dose for your pet, and added savings for you.

OTHER OPTIONS

If reasons exist that leave you no choice other than turning your animal over for adoption, options still exist that any lover of animals should know about. You do not have to turn your animal over to a typical animal control shelter that will kill him or her, usually after a three day period. Right off hand, I know of three options for finding your pet a home.

PET RESCUE OPTIONS:

Golden Retrievers

If your pet is a Golden Retriever, look for Adopt A Golden sites on your computer. Atlanta has one as do many other cities, but you might also just press in Golden Retriever Rescue services, and something should come up. I do not know if they are all called by the same name. My business website, www.poetrytogo.net has a link to Adopt A Golden, Atlanta, directly under a picture of a golden retriever on the site.

Labrador Retrievers

Most cities also have rescue groups for Labrador retrievers. Reach the Atlanta Lab Rescue group by email at info@atlantalabrescue.com, or contact Karen at 404 431-4445. These organizations actually find a foster home for your dog until they can locate a permanent home for him or her.

RURAL AREAS

Some rural areas and small towns, such as Barnesville, Georgia, have very effective dog rescue organizations in place that may also assist with cat rescue. Dolly Good Puppy, of Barnesville, GA, has offered to help with vaccinations and food for the black lab, rescued, and presently living in my kennel. If you live in a rural area, or small town, you might want to click Dog, or Pet rescue into your computer. You might be surprized to discover that help is actually available for you.

OTHER SUGGESTIONS

1. SPAY OR NEUTER YOUR PETS. Please visit my website at www.poetrytogo.net for a link to Paradox Spay Neuter, located in Oxford, Georgia, if you live in or near the Atlanta area, or surrounding areas of Georgia. If you do not, click in Spay/Neuter with your computer, and some cost saving program will reveal itself. Do whatever you need to do in the meantime to keep your pets from reproducing, and do not add to the problem that already exists of pet overpopulation. IF YOU ARE READING THIS ARTICLE, YOU ALREADY KNOW A PROBLEM EXISTS.
2. If you opt to find a new home for your pet, do NOT drop him or her off at a kill shelter, or on the streets. Do NOT sell him or her on Craig's List, or give him or her away to someone whom you know nothing about, as many pets so sold or given away, are tortured and mutilated by sick individuals who purchased or took them for that express purpose. Do not allow just anyone to take your pet, as he or she may end up worse off than he or she is with you.
3. Remember that this is a loyal member of your family who is trusting you to be concerned about his or her welfare. Do your homework. Find the appropriate rescue organization, as there are many for each breed, and some for mixed breeds as well. You may also find an appropriate family in your community, as I did in the case of Maximus Golden Boy, pictured above. Maximus now lives with a caring family who has a large amount of land. He has the company of their children, and a spayed female companion. He is a happy healthy dog, because I took the time to ask some questions before finding him a new home.