Q. Hey Critter Lady, are you really crazy? A. Only in the nicest possible way.
Q. Are you licensed to rehab wild critters? A. No, and neither are you! So if you do come across an injured animal, call a veterinarian and ask where the closest wildlife rehab facility is. Then please do the right thing and get the injured critter some help.
Q. What's wrong with dumping
"Aflac" ducks at our local pond? Won't they be happier
in the wild?
A. No, because they're not wild animals! And they can't fly.
They belong on farms, and are completely defenseless in the wild.
If you absolutely can't care for that Easter duck any longer,
please click onto:
Q. Is it o.k. to declaw my cat if he's going to be strictly indoors anyway? A. NO! IT'S NOT OK TO DECLAW YOUR CAT FOR ANY REASON!!! Click on http://www.drsfostersmith.com and get your cat some decent scratching posts. The real key to success, though, is this: get a scratching post for every room in your home- bedrooms, living room, kitchen, etc. Put the posts as close to the door of each room as possible. Cats claw to mark their territory, so if there's a scratching post right there by the door as they walk into their "territory," they're much less likely to use your couch or carpet. There are also sprays available to help modify their behavior.
Q. I wanted to teach my kids about wild animals so we raised a baby raccoon, and when he was old enough, we let him go. No problem, right?
A. Let's think about this one. You've raised a "nuisance" animal to feel comfortable with humans, and you've taught him that humans will feed him. Meanwhile, you didn't teach him anything about surviving in the wild. So he goes in search of humans to feed him, and doesn't understand why they throw things at him, or take pot-shots with Junior's bb gun. Think your kids will be o.k. with that?
Q. What do you think about
celebrities like Paris Hilton, with those little dogs in their
purses?
A. I think there should be laws against making dogs listen to
club music.
Q. Hey Critter Lady, we want
to take our kids down to the pond and let them feed those big
white ducks. Can we give the ducks bread, or what?
A. Bread, pretzels, potato
chips - all that junk food is really bad for critters. Ducks,
especially, tend to fill up on it, and then they don't have room left
for what's good for them. If they do enough of that, they can
die from malnutrition. If you really want to help the ducks,
you can feed them any number of healthy things: finely chopped
vegetables like lettuce and kale, cracked corn from a feed store.
Heck, they'll even eat hard-boiled eggs if you chop them up!
And, believe it or not, my experts tell me that plain old cat food will do nicely. Apparently, it's full of protein that's very good for ducks. Just make sure it's round kibble, not X-shaped.
Q. Dear Critter Lady, our ten year old daughter wants a horse. We thought it would be a good idea to get a young horse, so that they could grow up together. What do you think?
A. Bad idea. Someone needs to have some experience, here, and if it's not your daughter, then it needs to be the horse. A young, inexperienced horse will inevitably develop bad habits that inexperienced people won't know how to fix. When that happens, folks usually get rid of the horse, claiming it was "bad," when in fact the only bad thing about the situation was the humans' judgement.
Before you buy anything, sign your daughter up for riding lessons at a reputable stable. Have her spend a year learning about horses in the saddle and on the ground. After that, ask someone at the stable who knows what they're doing to help you find an older, experienced horse to buy, if your daughter still wants one.
Folks, horses aren't like kitties and puppies: you can't just dump them at the local shelter if they don't work out. They're a huge investment of time, money, energy, and love, and if you're not prepared to make that sort of investment, then the "bad" horse you get rid of could easily end up at the glue factory. Far too many do.
On the other hand, if you're smart about it, and educate yourself before you get in over your head, then you could just as easily end up with a great horse who will be a faithful companion for many years to come.