Current Pet Tip |
 |
When Vikas from Madison, WI called wondering what vacuum cleaner to buy to help clean up the dog hair in his house, we received 55 emails from listeners who had their own recommendations. The clear-cut winner was the Dyson Animal. Upon receiving this overwhelming recommendation, Patricia McConnell went out and bought her own Dyson Animal. She absolutely loves it. Now she vacuums as often as she can because of it!
Other recommended vacuum cleaners included:
- Bissell Powerforce Bagless
- Bissell Lift-Off Revolution Pet Vacuum
- Roomba
- Kenmore Progress upright vacuum
- Hoover Elite Rewind – 12 amp
- Rainbow brand vacuum cleaner (available for sale by in-home demo only)
- Electrolux 2000 canister and upright
- Riccar 8750 Commercial Vac
- Simplicity Dura-Tech Vacuum
- Oreck brand vacuum cleaner
|
All Pet Tips
Litter box for an older cat
Janet, who listens to Calling All Pets in Plymouth, Wisconsin said her elderly cat, Ivan, was having problems getting in and out of the litter box. After much searching, she said she found the perfect box -- a dog litter box. It's bigger but has shorter sides and an even shorter entrance into the box. Ivan uses the new box most of the time, now.
Keep cat out of your plants
Of the many tips we've received on how to keep your cat out of your plants is from Toni Hammond. She says chicken wire is a good protector of plants. And you can paint it with diluted black paint to make it harder to see. Toni says it makes weeding a bit difficult but it works really well!
Preventing a mess for cats who like to splash
Regina in Platteville, WI suggests giving water to cats in teacups with saucers underneath. When a cat wants to splash its water, the water goes on the saucer and not on the floor! Mary in Platteville, WI puts her cat’s water container in the bathtub so the cat can’t spill water where it will make a mess! Meanwhile, Geri in Augusta, GA suggests giving cats water in a tall regular drinking glass because cats stick their heads in rather than their paws.
Keeping cats from scratching at night
Kathy in Ashland, WI suggests putting bubble wrap on the bedroom door to keep cats from scratching at night. In addition, Patricia also suggests using sandpaper or citrus sprays as other options.
How to crate your cat
Christine in Tallahassee, FL decided to crate her cat at night so it would leave her alone while she tried to sleep. She got a big crate with plenty of room and every time she put her away, she’d throw a treat inside. The cat went in willingly. After a week or so of howling, the cat realized that crying wasn’t going to get her out. In the morning, the cat would rattle the door trying to get out, and Christine would let her out if she was quiet for five minutes. The crate was stocked with toys and pretty soon the cat would naturally go into her crate when she knew it was time.
Stopping a cat from scratching your door at night
Rob in Stevens Point, WI suggests putting a fan outside a closed bedroom door and point it so that it blows against the door. Cats tend to hate any blowing in their face, and they might avoid scratching/howling at the door and waking you up! It worked for Rob, and now the cats stay away even though the fan is long gone!
Keeping your cat off the tables and countertops
Amy Jo in LaCrosse, WI suggests laying out contact paper, sticky side up, on any surface you want to keep a cat off of. The cat will jump up, gets its paws stuck and not like it, and learn pretty quickly that it’s no fun to be up there. Patricia McConnell says this is a tried and true method that works for lots of people!
Stop your cat from digging up your potted plants
Adelle in Melbourne, FL gets small quarter-sized landscaping rocks and spreads an even layer over the soil of her potted plants. The cats don’t like digging through them, and when she waters the plants, the water can flow between the rocks.
How to get your cat to stop licking you at night
Leona from Boise, ID had kittens that constantly licked her while she tried to sleep! Well, Leona employed an interesting technique in getting her kittens to stop… When her kittens licked her, she licked them back! Leona writes, “That’s right – I held their heads and licked them from the nose to between the ears! Big and sloppy. I had to do this with three separate cats. But – lo and behold – they do not lick my face, ears or chest while I’m sleeping.”
How to get your cat to let you brush it
Lisa in Sheboygan, WI says her cat tends to get riled up and bite at the brush every time she tries to brush him. To get around this problem, she uses a toy to distract him. She says, “What works best is one of those little burlap bags filled with catnip. One brand is called ‘50 Pounds of Cat Nip’. Toss the bag in front of their nose so they reach away to play with it instead of turning back around to bite the brush.” Lisa also suggests thumping on the bag of catnip with the brush in order to release the smell.
Keep your cat off the furniture
Jane in Grand Island, NY says if you want to keep cats off of furniture or other surfaces where cats don’t belong, just place a large piece of heavy-duty aluminum foil on the furniture – or in one caller's case – the kitchen counter top. Apparently the cats don’t like the noise it makes as they prance across it, and they also may not like the feeling of the foil under their paws.
Keep your cat's fur moist in the winter months
Liz from Gordon, WI says that her cat has had a fascination with steamy showers lately. But she noticed that her cat seems to hang around the steam a lot longer in the winter when her house is much dryer. So now, after towel drying her hair, Liz has taken to laying a wet cotton towel over her cat’s back and stroking her with it from head to tail, moistening her fur without soaking it. The cat seems to appreciate the added moisture in her fur, and at that point, her interest in water is over!
Don't let your cat learn to beg!
Joyce in Fayetteville, AR prevented her cat from ever developing the habit to beg by raising the cat in a separate room of the house. The cat’s room is downstairs, where she stays overnight with all of her food, water and kitty litter. Joyce has made it a practice to never give the cat food while she’s upstairs. It seems to have worked – the cat doesn’t beg, and she has very little interest in counters and table tops as well!
Do a timeshare for cats that don't get along!
Lynne in Evansville, WI wrote in with some advice for people who have cats that don’t get along. She dealt with this problem by timesharing. One cat has access to a certain area of the house on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, while the other cat has access to the same area on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Another way to divide the timeshare is to give one cat access to a room during the day and the other cat access to the room at night. It worked very, very well for her cats and she hopes this will help many of her fellow listeners who can’t get their feisty felines to get along!
Keep your cat's litter in the box!
Jeremy from Logan, UT had a cat that couldn’t help but scoop litter – and other “presents” – out of the litter box. To remedy this problem, Jeremy bought a deep storage bin (the smallest one available) from a local home appliance store. Then he took the lid, cut out the middle of it, and put the lid back onto the storage bin. The hole in the lid was large enough to allow his cat into hte box but it covered the edges such that the cat couldn't scoop or kick his litter out of the box! His cat took to the new litter box immediately!
Play with your cat to reduce aggression!
Sue Ellen in El Dorado, Arkansas has a cat that started chasing her around the house and lunging at her legs for no apparent reason! Around the time that her cat started doing this, she read an article in Cat Fancy magazine that said that cats who live without other feline companions tend to do this a lot!
Well, Sue Ellen has no other cats, so she decided to take the place of another cat by spending more play time with Angora instead of just cuddle time. Sue bought some feathered balls on a fishing pole and laser lights for floor chasing, as well as a battery-operated “crazy ball” that she and the cat would chase on the floor!
Sue says she was able to decrease the frequency of this intensive play after a couple of weeks, though they continued to play these games for years. All of this interaction seemed to fix her cat’s aggressive behavior – no more attacks, and no more unexpected bites!
Deter your cats from waking you up in the morning!
Theresa in Green Bay, WI has a pair of cats that used to meow outside her bedroom door at 5 in the morning waiting to be fed. She discovered that her cats hate the sound of recorders – the musical instrument that sound almost like whistles. She kept one by her bed, and when her cats started meowing in the morning, she played a few notes. Boy did they run! It only took about four days to stop the problem, and she never even had to get out of bed!
Get Your Cat To Go To The Bathroom Outside!
Lynn from Memphis, TN called in to give us some tips on how to get a cat to go to the bathroom outside. She said if you put a couple of bags of sand in a spot where the cat likes to play, they'll be going to the bathroom in teh sand in no time. She says it works like a charm!
Exchange scents to get cats and dogs to accept one another
Teddy from Florida wrote in to tell us about his min-pin and beagles who always wanted to play with the cats. The cats wanted nothing to do with it! Teddy separated the cat and the dogs with a child gate and then hurried the process along by petting the dog, then petting the cat, and vice versa. By exchanging the scents of the animals, they easily became familiar with each other’s smell.
An inexpensive toy for your cat!
Michele from Arcata, CA says she discovered that her cat’s favorite toy is the cardboard roll left over after a roll of toilet paper is used up! Michele tears up one edge of the roll to give the cat a start, and then the cat takes over. She kicks at it, bites it, tosses it in the air and sends it flying across the room! She’ll always choose her toilet paper roll over a store-bought toy!
Another dog can teach your dog to swim
Mary in Ft. Atkinson, Wisconsin wrote in to tell us her dog, Joshua, loves to swim. Her friend's dog showed signs of wanting to swim but could only manage to splash the water. So Joshua swam over to the other dog who reacted as if "Oh! That's how you do it!" and started to swim, too. Mary thinks some dogs may simply need a doggie swimming instructor.
How to help your dog’s separation anxiety
Mary Lou in Norfolk, VA got a suggestion from her dog training on how to help separation anxiety. Give your dog a handful of cooked macaroni with its food. The carbs in the noodles will make the dog sleepy and more relaxed. She says it works great!
Saving your lawn from unsightly yellow grass
Rick from Wauwatosa, WI watches closely when his two Golden Retrievers do their business out in the yard. When they’re done, he goes out with a bucket of water and soaks the spots where they went. He says the dilution helps cut down on the yellow patches that the dogs’ urine tends to leave!
How to get your dog to stop scratching the door AND tell you when she wants out
Blair from Anchorage, AK tied a jingle bell up on her door frame by the dog’s scratch marks so that the dog would hit the bell instead of the door. Not only did it save her doorframe, but it let everyone know that the dog had to go out. Also, Patrick from Spiro, OK suggests attaching a balloon to the scratching spots of the door. One pop should deter even the most stubborn of pets from scratching there again.
Keep dogs from going to the bathroom indoors
Kevin in Whitehall, WI sprinkled his dog’s favorite indoor potty spots with pepper. When the dog went over to sniff the spots, he sniffed the pepper and never did it again!
How to stop your dog from overreacting to visitors
Donna from Green Bay, WI had two German Shepherds who loved to greet visitors by licking their ears! To prevent this from happening with her third dog, Tera, she got Tera a special “Greeting Chair”! When Donna comes home, she tells Tera to go right to the chair. Then, Tera stands with her front paws on the chair until Donna comes over to pet her. Now when company comes over, they greet Tera at the Greeting Chair and enjoy a big, wet kiss on the ear without being jumped on!
Avoid harming your dog’s ear drums in the car
We once had a caller on our program that said that ever since she slammed her hatchback shut, her dog would never get back in the car. Many of you listeners sent us the same observation: Most cars today are built airtight. So when a hatchback is slammed, the pressure in the car increases dramatically. This sudden change in pressure probably hurts the dog’s sensitive eardrums! To prevent this from happening, either open the windows a crack before shutting the hatchback or close the hatchback slowly, then wait five seconds before latching it completely. This may help the dog readjust to the pressure change without hurting his eardrums.
Keeping your dogs cool in the summertime
Galen in Watonga , OK collects empty milk and soda jugs and fills them with water and freezes them. Then he puts them in the shade in his yard for the dogs to lay next to during the day. Patricia likens this technique to an air conditioner for dogs.
A bed for an old dog
Beth Taylor wrote to us from Ketchikan, Alaska about her 200 lb. Newfoundland who had incontinence in his old age. She wanted to get him a suitable bed to sleep on that was comfortable but easy to clean up when he has an accident. She found that an inflatable mattress did the trick! The Newfie did manage to pop the first one but Beth says she just used that old one as a protective cover for the new one
Keep your high-energy Border Collie busy
Sandy from Anchorage, Alaska sent us a pet tip telling us how she kept her high-energy Border Collie busy. She says, "When a good run, a long walk, and some time with the Frisbee is not enough activity for our three-year-old Border Collie, Cosmo, we pull out the oscillating lawn sprinkler. He runs through it, around it, and over it until he is completely worn out – for a short while, anyway!”
Entertain your dog outdoors!
Kathy in Orange, TX wrote in to tell us that her large Catahoula Leopard Dog has a strong drive for prey and demanding exercise needs. Her trainer recommended a buggy whip to keep her dog active! You use it much like you’d wave a string around a cat! You can go around in circles, drag the tip of the whip on the ground, or flip it up in the air to have the dog jump for it. Kathy notes that it’s a good training tool too, if you want to teach your dog self-control.
Also, Jennifer in Pleasant Prairie, WI says she’ll occasionally sprinkle the lawn with dog food. Her dogs love to use their hunting instincts and this is a fine way to keep the dogs busy so they’re not bored!
Help your dogs sleep through the night!
Melissa in Fayetteville, AR has two large dogs that sleep inside at night, and for a long time, they’d start barking at approximately 3:00 and 5:00 in the morning. One night, she came up with the idea of leaving NPR playing softly in the room where they slept. The first night, they slept without waking! In fact, she could hardly rouse them the next morning. When left with the local rock station playing on the radio, the barking started again. After switching back to NPR for a week, she tried leaving the radio off altogether and the barking continued. So now they all sleep soundly as long as NPR is playing on the radio. Melissa has created more NPR junkies in the family!
Stop dogs from chasing your bicycle!
Brian in Green Bay, WI wrote in to tell us how he keeps dogs from chasing him while he's riding his bicycle. He carries a compressed airhorn in the water bottle holder of the bicycle. He says a short blast of the horn stops the dog in its tracks and can help when motor vehicle drivers aren't paying attention too!
Make your dog stop rolling in unpleasant odors!
Listeners named Ken and Lynn wrote in to tell us that their poodle liked to roll around in scat from raccoons and skunks outside. They used to have to bathe him immediately after being outside, but they found that if they could train him to roll on scratch-and-sniff perfume ads from magazines, he would no longer wish to roll around outdoors! This gave a whole newmeaning to the term “French Poodle.”
A Remedy For Sneaky Dogs.
Heather in Prudhoe Bay, AK had trouble with her huskies sneaking up on moose when they were out skijoring! Heather’s solution was to put bells on her dog’s collars! With jingle bells on their neck, the dogs can’t sneak up on anything!
Stop woodpeckers from pecking your house
Brian in Galena, Illinois was having problems with woodpeckers pecking holes in the side of his house. After trying several things, he found an old crow-call (like a duck-call) in his house. When he heard the woodpeckers a-peckin', he blew into the call. It took a couple of tries but the woodpecker left to find a new place to peck in a nearby tree
Stop the birds from pecking your window!
Janet from Palm Beach City, Florida sent us a pet tip in response to a caller who couldn't keep a cardinal from pecking at his windows. Janet was recently in Arusa, Tanzania and a bird kept waking her up every morning. To remedy this problem, she put magazine pictures of people in the window and the bird quit pecking. Janet reports, "Actually, Oprah was the most effective, but let's not tell her that!"
Great toy for your bird
Tom and Bonnie Farber wrote in to tell us the virtues of Reader's Digest. They roll it and tie it up as tight as possible with a shoestring then hang it in their birds' cage. The birds spend lots of time happily destroying the magazine. It's a cheap and easy way to keep their birds occupied.
Cleaning a bird cage without making a mess
Chris in Anchorage, AK suggests taking three sheets of Plexiglas just larger than the surface of the cage, taping them together with clear packing tape, and adhering them to the sides and back of the cage – leaving the front and top open for ventilation. He takes them off once a week for cleaning and it keeps all the food crumbs, etc. from spilling out of the cage on to the floor and furniture! Patricia says this is a great solution, and for those less industrious than Chris, you can find cages like this at big pet stores!
How to attract birds to your feeder
Evelyn in Eden, NY suggests hanging brightly colored ribbons by the feeder. Try red for Cardinals, blue for Blue Jays, gold for Finches, and so on. Patricia McConnell says that the ribbons may attract a territorial response from birds, but when they get to the feeder, there’s no bird there after all – so they stay for the meal!
How to keep swallows from nesting on your porch
Bob in Fredonia, KS had a problem with swallows nesting above his front door. All he had to do to solve the problem was paint the ceiling of his porch light sky blue! He says the birds don’t find the porch attractive anymore because the “sky”, meaning the sky-blue ceiling, doesn’t provide the same protection the old ceiling once did. Meanwhile, Phil in Ashland, WI hung wind chimes on the side of his house. As soon as he did, the swallows left and they never came back!
Keeping seagulls off your swim raft
Many listeners wrote in to suggest ways to keep seagulls off of your swimming raft. The first suggestion is put a tall pole at each corner of the deck and string some heavy fish line across the top of the poles. Make sure the fish line is above everyone’s head. This is what restaurant owners in Florida do to keep the seagulls out of their seaside dining areas.
Another suggestion is to put a large artificial snake out on the deck! Just nail the tail down so it doesn’t blow away in the wind, and the seagulls will likely stay away.
Keep squirrels out of your chimney
Geoff in Wasilla, Alaska wrote to the show to tell us how to keep rodents, like squirrels, out of your chimney! He recommends taking natural peppermint oil, dipping a few cotton balls or Q-tips into the oil, then dabbing the oil where the squirrels like to hang out. Apparently, small rodents can’t stand the smell of peppermint! This method worked for Geoff when he needed to get rid of mice and voles. In a relatively closed space, such as the squirrel’s new nesting place, several peppermint-saturated cotton balls might make the squirrels feel a bit unwelcome without harming them!
Getting bats out of your attic
Bea in Roscoe, IL used helium balloons to solve her bat problem. She tied them to the are around where the bats were coming in and out to scare them away. She thinks that it ws interfering with their sonar. Patricia McConnell suggests that the bats may have identified the balloons as potential predators.
Keep ants out of your pet's food dish
Karen in Glendale, Wisconsin offered a great way to keep ants out of your pet's food dish. Place the dish in a shallow pan filled with water and some dish soap. That prevents the ants from being to cross the water and get into the food. Karen's pest control guy liked it so much, he recommends it to his other clients who have pets.
Get rid of chipmunks in your house
Sue let us in on a great solution for getting rid of chipmunks that have come into your house via cat door. Since chipmunks like places to burrow, Sue has a mail tube and lays it down with one end open near where the chipmunk is hiding. The chipper quickly runs into the tube which she then takes outside to shake out the rescued chipmunk. Sue says she's saved six chipmunks this way in the last three years
Chuckle to put your pet at ease
Ellen wrote us about her African Grey that's sensitive to loud noises. The first sound her bird learned, though, was Ellen's chuckle. If her bird gets panicky in some way, Ellen just chuckles and her bird visibly relaxes. She now uses her chuckle as a way to introduce her bird to new foods and people.
Getting your bunny to use the litter box
Ruth in Houston, MN had a rabbit that stopped using the litter box in her crate. Ruth fashioned a wooden partition with a little door and roof, and the rabbit took to it immediately. Patricia McConnell says this is a great pet tip because rabbits don’t like to urinate where they live. Finding a way to separate the litter box from the living space is a great idea!
Litter training your rabbit
Suzanna from Gresham, WI trained her rabbit to go to the bathroom in one specific area of her cage. To train her rabbit to do this, Suzanna put litter in a specific corner of her bunny's cage. Nothing else but a towel lined the other end of the cage, so he would know where to cuddle up. This reduced any confusion as to “where to go”, and Suzanna says it’s also very easy to clean up!
Control Your Ferret's Odor
Listeners named Ernie and Lisa wrote to say that feeding ferrets cooked meat will prevent them from defecating so much. Meanwhile, Sara from Wisconsin gave us a short list of easy steps to keep a ferret’s smell down:
- Wash all the bedding in the ferret’s cage every three to four days and let it air dry.
- Be sure not to feed your ferret anything with fish by-products in it.
- Don’t bathe the ferret too often. Doing so will cause the ferret to kick up its musk production, which only makes the problem worse.
| 
