Guiding Eyes for
the Blind
Erie Region Newsletter
Fall 2007
Holiday Hazards
You’ve decked the halls,
wrapped packages and shopped till you dropped.
But have you done everything to protect your puppy from potential holiday
hazards? To make sure the holidays are
happy and safe for your puppy, follow these simple tips.
·
Keep your puppy from
toppling the tree by securing the tree to a wall or ceiling with sturdy fishing
line.
·
Make tree water, which
can harbor dangerous bacteria and chemicals, a no-drinking zone by covering the
tree stand reservoir with a tree skirt or aluminum foil.
·
Pick up pine needles,
which can injure your puppy’s intestines if ingested, and tape down electrical
cords.
·
Skip the tinsel on the
tree. This time honored holiday
decoration has long been a no-no for puppies.
If swallowed, tinsel can cause choking or intestinal blockages and
tears.
·
Keep your puppy away from
wrapping supplies since eating ribbon, bows, paper and cellophane can lead to
intestinal blockages and choking.
·
Before placing a wrapped
gift under the tree, ask the gift giver if the package contains food. Keep in
mind it may contain dangerous food tempting to a puppy.
·
After opening gifts, set
aside small items or stow them away.
Small toy pieces and balls can cause choking and intestinal blockages.
·
Many holiday foods can
cause illnesses ranging from vomiting and diarrhea to pancreatitis. Even a well-mannered puppy can be tempted by
all the holiday treats placed conveniently for guests on coffee tables or
serving trays at the level of a puppy’s nose.
Some guests may be tempted to slip a treat to your puppy, so ask guests
to refrain from feeding your puppy. Placing your puppy in a crate, located in a
quiet room, during party time may be a viable alternative.
·
Play it safe and keep
candles out of paw’s and tail’s reach.
·
Some of the most popular
living symbols of the holidays are toxic to puppies and can cause symptoms from
gastrointestinal irritation to diarrhea to cardiac problems, even death. Plants to avoid include Christmas cactus,
holly, lilies, mistletoe, poinsettia, hemlock and ivy. Keep these plants out of reach and
immediately pick up fallen leaves, stems and berries.
·
Be sure to close and
secure doors and gates after guests arrive or leave.
·
Busy and erratic
schedules, steady streams of guests and changes to your home, like rearranging
furniture to accommodate a tree, can stress out even the mellowest puppy. Limit stress by maintaining regular exercise
and feeding schedules. Provide a quiet
place for a crate where the puppy can get away from all the activity.
More
holiday tips are available on the Erie Region web site. After logging onto the site, click on Paws
& Read.
Happy 1st Birthday
The
following puppies and raisers are celebrating!
·
Angie, born on
9/24/06, celebrated her birthday with many hugs from Cecilia.
·
Renae had a party for her puppy Chico who was
born on 9/26/06.
·
Mr. Handsome, Dodger, celebrated his big day
with his raisers Jon and Marla. He
arrived in the world on 10/6/06.
·
Howie, born on
10/11/06, celebrated his birthday with his raiser Sara
·
Island was the
guest of honor at a party hosted by her raiser Laura. She was born on 10/17/06.
It
may be convenient to share your shampoo with your puppy, but it’s not the best
thing for your puppy. Human shampoo,
which is pH-balanced for people but not puppies, can dry out and damage the
coat and skin. The resulting itchiness,
aside from making her miserable, can cause scratching and chewing their skin to
the point of irritating and abrading it.
This sets the stage for secondary bacterial or yeast infections.
Most
puppies don’t need many baths as long as they don’t play in the mud or roll in
something stinky. The number of baths should not exceed two per month,
unless otherwise instructed. Regular brushing keeps the coat and skin
healthy and odor-free. When you bathe
your puppy, place cotton balls in the puppy’s ears to keep them dry. Use the smallest amount of shampoo needed to
lather well. Rinse well using a spray
nozzle, if possible, making certain that you’ve removed all the shampoo. Leftover shampoo residue will dull the coat
and make them itch. Remove cotton balls from the ears after bathing.
A
bath is highly recommended for all females at the end of their Heat.
Local Heroes - Comings
& Goings of our Puppies
Best
Wishes to the
following dogs and their proud raisers.
Congratulations for a job well done!
§
Katie
said good-bye to her 2nd puppy Walden.
§
Yardley gave lots of hugs and kisses to his
raiser Barbara. He is her 2nd puppy.
§
Barkley, Sue’s 2nd puppy, said
good-bye to his raiser.
Welcome to the newest members of our region:
§
Elsie is joining the home of Dawn. Elsie is
her 1st puppy.
§
Gable, Darlene’s 1st puppy, was
welcomed with lots of hugs and kisses.
§
Mary
Ellen and Barry welcomed Imogene,
their 20th puppy.
§
Danny is joining the home of Katie. Danny is her 3rd puppy.
Puppy le Peu
Having a close encounter of
the black-and-white kind is no fun for you or your puppy. Skunks belong to the
weasel family and possess one of that family’s key characteristics - scent
glands. Skunks are nocturnal by
nature. It’s common to see them at dusk
when they first start foraging. They dig up grubs, leaving little funnel shaped
holes in the lawn or garden. Some of
their favorite menu items include trash, dropped fruit from trees and
nuts. The skunk is at home in brush
piles, open irrigation pipes, sheds and under porches.
Basically shy, the skunk may
discharge their scent when disturbed, cornered or harassed. Unless surprised suddenly, a skunk will give
warning signals before it sprays. These
signals include: arched back, stamping front feet and shuffling backwards. The skunk will raise its tail and bend its
body into a U-shape before it sprays. The skunk has the ability to direct the
musk spray by alternating the direction of the protractile glands. The fluid can be expelled a distance of 8 to
15 feet.
As a precaution, check your
yard at dusk; eliminate the food sources and habitats that would attract them
to the area around your home. The best
defense is to make your home an undesirable area for the skunk so you don’t
meet and greet. But, sometimes bad things happen to good puppies and careful
raisers. If your puppy gets sprayed,
contact your Area Coordinator immediately.
A puppy sprayed in the face can have serious eye problems. As for the odor, a recipe for skunk shampoo
can be found on the Erie Region web site.
After logging onto the site, click on Paws & Read.
Upcoming Events
Please stop by to lend your support at these events!
However, unless you and your puppy are
scheduled to work at an event, please refrain from
bringing your puppy with you.
11/04/07 Puppy Pre-Placement Class - St. Catherine’s
of Sienna, West Seneca, 1-4 PM
11/08/07 Waynesville Lions Club - informational
& educational presentation
11/11//07 Puppy Pre-Placement Class - Lake Shore
Fire Hall, Hamburg, 1-4 PM
11/14/07 Lancaster Women’s Civic Club - Municipal
Building - informational & educational presentation
11/18/07 Puppy Pre-Placement Class - St.
Catherine’s of Sienna, West Seneca, 1-4 PM
11/19/07 Puppy Pre-Placement Orientation - West
Seneca East Senior High School, 7PM
11/25/07 Puppy Pre-Placement Class - Lake Shore
Fire Hall, Hamburg, 1-4 PM
12/03/07 Holiday Party - West Seneca East Senior
High School, pictures with Santa
Contact
Russ or Mary Ellen with any Public Relations Events or Speaker’s Bureau
requests.
Web
Wise
The CDC web site has a fresh new look. Information about Puppy Raising and cute
puppy pictures are available in a new format. Check it out at
cdc.guidingeyes.org.
Puppy Jeopardy
Want to win
a Bonus Bone? Below is the Puppy
Jeopardy answer in the Eye & Vision category. The first class participant to provide the correct question at
the next class wrap-up earns a Bonus Bone.
Good Luck!
An illness caused by eating rich, fatty foods. Symptoms include listlessness, excessive
panting,
scratching, swelling, constipation, difficulty
breathing or an inability to rest comfortably