Animal Party - Dog & Cat News, Animal Facts, Topics & Guests - Pets & Animals- Pet Life Radio Original (PetLifeRadio.com)

Today Deborah invites to the party, cat expert and animal rescuer, Marci Kladnik from Catalyst for Cats. Marci does feral cat colony management and rescue work in California which has brought her hands-on knowledge of pets who have gone from terrible circumstances to happy homes after animal cruelty and violence sometimes committed by kids. Together host, Deborah Wolfe and Marci discuss the issue of animal cruelty with the emphasis on what you can do to make things better. Stats available through the ASPCA website and other sources show that there is a huge link between family violence and animal abuse.

Fat Cats And Lucky Dogs, author and lawyer Barry Seltzer talks with Deborah about American and Canadian Animal Rights laws and tells you which areas of both countries protect animals best. How can you keep your animals out of the shelter or worse if you die? How do you pick the right person to ask to care for your pets? Barry contributes stories of huge sums designated for pets and outrageous custody battles over dogs. Deborah asks what do George Washington, JFK, and Calvin Coolidge have in common pet-wise?

Deborah shares some Halloween safety tips for dogs and cats and Dusty Rainbolt adds some must-do advice to help you keep your pets safe through Halloween. KEEP YOUR CATS INSIDE TILL A FEW DAYS PAST HALLOWEEN no matter what they are normally used to or they can be killed in cruel pranks. Can owls turn their heads all the way around? Do scorpions glow in the dark plus some more Halloween trivia as we take this party on a ghostly ride with some real pet ghost stories. Ghost Cats who dent the bed with their imprint, Ghost dogs who come with their collars jingling and pets who come to say goodbye like a horse on Christmas. Did you know there are hotels, libraries and other public places known for pet ghosts? Dusty’s book has a list if you want to travel on the creepy side. Actually these ghosts leave the humans with a feeling of good will and happiness. These aren’t scary stories just ghost stories even though some pets appear with no head like Deborah’s dog that was seen as a ghost by a six-year-old boy and no one else. And some come back like Rudi in the night with a message of warning, head only; is it a dream, a ghost? Depends on the message and was Rudi dead at the time he appeared head only with a lot to say? Dusty tells you what to look for and how to notice a pet ghost. They often come to say good-bye shortly after passing but it might be the smell or sound and not the sight that you get explains Dusty who is collecting more pet ghost stories at http://www.dustyrainbolt.com/

Party with 2 pet experts with their pet take on ‘True Blood’ (HBO) & its animal connections. Deborah Wolfe welcomes the editor of www.petsweekly.com, Stacy Mantle back to the show to talk about ‘True Blood’, the HBO TV show, the ancient myths, Halloween lore and wolves. Deborah describes the on set training of wolves, and Stacy contributes the ancient stories behind creatures like werewolves and werecats, & shapeshifters who take on animal form and how they interact with each other and humans. If you love the show ‘True Blood’ you’ll like learning about Kristin Bauer and Alexander Skarsgard and their animal charity work. Or maybe you missed a few episodes and can’t quite figure out how werewolves are created, or how shapeshifters are born, then catch up with us. If you’ve never watched the show, tune into this party for facts about rescue and hybrid wolves, safety tips for Halloween and a trick you can play with bats in your neighbourhood. Farley Mowatt, author of ‘Never Cry Wolf’ is being honored on Canada’s walk of fame this year. He was the first writer to live like a wolf, learn their ways and live alongside them and write about it so that we now understand dogs and wolves in a fundamentally different way.

Win a ‘Catio’ prize or a replacement for your ratty (not hot anymore) dog collar. Stacy Mantle, Author of ‘Conquering the Food Chain;Living Amongst Animals (Without Becoming One)’ brings the hot off the press reviews from Pets Weekly to tell you all about recyclable dog beds from www. poochplanet.com , organic cat beds (smartykat.com), non-toxic hot spot, flea and skin remedies that work (www.dermagic.com) and amazing cat furniture that allows your indoor cats to enjoy the outdoors with safety. In between product reviews Deborah gives you pet news, information and training advice plus pet facts and Pet Insider tips. Why does your pet like small places? Which animals do you think suffer most from the heat? Go to petsweekly.com to find out about all of the products mentioned on today’s show plus many more and you’ll also find pet quotes, and jokes and all kinds of fun for pet lovers including horses, small caged pets, and critters that usually get outshone by cats and dogs. At the end of the show Stacy attempts to educate Deborah on the merits of Team Jacob and the Twilight book series. Which Twilight star plays an animal that s/he also owns and represents in her/his good work for animals? Wolf vs Vampire is a very simple choice for Deborah Wolfe long time admirer of all that is wolf. Deborah promises to read the books, see the movies and come back to the party with Stacy to talk Twilight in October.

Have you ever wondered if all cats are born with blue eyes? Or How hot does it get in a closed car on a summer day and how fast does it heat up? These answers plus a recipe for home made weed killer and homemade flea spray are at this party with Deborah Wolfe and her guest, Joan Miller Vice President of the Cat Fanciers’ Association & All breed Judge, joins Deborah to talk about CatsCenterstage.org a website made for lovers of every type of cat from pet pedigreed to feral and all the many ‘cat-next-door’ types. For the first time ever the website is designed to represent and work for those who love pedigreed, feral and random cats and it offers a huge medical database to help cat owners figure out what to ask their own Vets when their cats are sick. There are games and quizzes for kids and grownups, information, stories, photos and the future is wherever you want it to go with this site which will be growing and evolving to meet the needs of those who post. Deborah asks Joan to contrast cats to dogs a few times during the show comparing the distance between the pets we have know and their wild ancestors in both species. What you see is often what you get when it comes to mutts but with cats you really can’t judge a mixed cat by its cover. Deborah offers up some of her own experience with cats gone feral and cats doing tricks. Did you know that cats do agility (obstacle style) courses like horses, dogs and humans? No leash, no food; just something fun to chase and the cat dives through tunnels, clears hurdles and jumps for the love of racing. Check it out at CatsCenterstage.org and have some fun in the catnip section while you are there. Maybe you think you know a lot about cats; test yourself with the quiz that will challenge you- this show will inform you.

News about Pamela Anderson’s latest Peta poster and the Rodeo gone wrong and right plus information on how to stay safe this summer and have happy times with your pets at home, on the road, the beach, the dog park and vacation trips. What can we copy from how we act with pets to make our love relationships better? Deborah shares the recipe for anti-skunk stink cleaner and more practical pet tips. You may want to check the moon next time you plan to go surfing because sharks attack more often in certain moon phases.

Tim Link joins the party to talk about animals and how they think and communicate with thoughts. He can read your pets. Deborah asks him if they think in words or pictures or something else and he explains. Plus Tim does some readings for pet life radio listeners who emailed photos and questions. Why does one cat bully another? Can Tim help teach some cats to wait to be called before jumping up on their owner’s claws out? Tim does a special reading for Deborah and connects with Squeak the blue heeler who died June 2009. Find out what Tim receives from pets that are no longer alive. Tim also shares lighter readings including a message from Thump who wants his owners to know that yogurt is okay but Thump wants meat and actually any scraps of any kind; He loves the variety and the surprise. Tim explains how all of us can send picture messages to our animals when we want to give them commands or make requests. At first Deborah was somewhat sceptical but since the show was made she has enjoyed amazing results from coupling commands and wishes with visual messages sent on purpose; the cats come quicker and are more polite. Sadie isn’t picking on Peekaboo much anymore and has become relaxed with all the other cats since Tim sent her a message. Check out this party and you’ll learn how to send messages to your pets. It is very easy and you’ll see results immediately.

The party gets started with a party joke as Deborah reads a funny paragraph about dog poop from the book, ‘A Year in Merde’ by Stephen Clarke. A whole lot of goldens, labs and mixes of the two are coming to the party and they are all so well behaved walking on their harnesses and laying down politely without raiding the buffet; these aren’t the rude Labs and Goldens we often see counter-surfing and begging -- they must be well trained ever so polite Guide Dogs. Barry Dunner explains what its like to walk the blindfold walk with only a seeing eye dog for eyes. And Deborah asks what exactly Autism support dogs do for the kids they serve. Did you know the dog stops the child from rocking and helps in ways besides keeping the child from running away? Barry brings touching stories about the impact of the dogs he’s seen trained to serve. It costs $35,000 to train a Seeing Eye dog and the blind person pays nothing, but there is a wait list and demand is high. Barry and Deborah discuss the training, placement and the effect of getting a dog placed; it’s a ripple and everyone wins! You can find out more about Guide Dogs at www.bcguidedog.com

Marci Kladnik joins the party from Santa Barbara California where she works inside the world of wild feral cats.. Marci explains why TNR (Trap, Neuter & Release) is the best technique for feral cat colony management. Together Deborah and Marci discuss the lives of feral cats and the conflicts- real and political that occur between bird lovers and TNR cat advocates. When a feral cat population truly is threatening a vulnerable bird nesting area, the colony is moved; most of the time the conflict is based on myth not fact and the cats are actually helping the birds with rodent patrol. Eggs and chicks get eaten by rodents constantly on every farm unless either cats or poison are at work. The Tweety vs Sylvester model just doesn’t match up with our rat, and mouse infested, pollution, and fertilizer reality. Why should you spay or neuter your cat? Deborah gives you the selfish, safety and training reasons to alter your cat, and Marci gives you the scary numbers. 3+1= 20 explains Marci who has a whole new kind of math she calls ‘Cat Math’. This party is full of take home party tricks; Marci shows you how to call kittens with a cooing noise so they’ll come and eat and Deborah tells you how to plant your garden with cats in mind- you can draw them to certain areas and keep them out of others just by choosing the right ground cover and plants.

Marilyn Krieger, is the Cat Coach for Cat Fancy Magazine, catchannel.com and now for us at Animal Party. She’ll explain her new book ‘Click Your Cat to Better Behavior’ by solving our own email cat problems about cats who attack us, hide on stairs, jump up on counters, dart out doors, destroy furniture and avoid litter boxes. Plus she’ll share her party tricks for getting cats to do fun tricks using the clicker and her new book. If you’ve got a cat of any kind you can use her tips to curb the mischief and get some great two-way communication going with trick training. You can also use your cat’s new ability to come or sit or high five on command to silence the smug cat hater in your family. We ask Marilyn her opinion on Trap, Neuter and Release feral cat management efforts, her opinion on the indoor vs. outdoor debate for pet cats and what she knows about declawing. Deborah adds news items from around the world that match the topics plus contrasts dogs with cats in places to keep you dog lovers enjoying the show. If you’ve got a cat hater in your family you can listen to this show and you’ll be able to show off a cat trick and silence that smug person. Do you know which animal brain is most similar to the human brain; the cat or dog? Listen to the show and find out while you also learn how to solve the most common cat training problems. Mordecai Siegel, cat and dog expert and author, ‘Uncle’ and mentor to many other writers and experts will be sadly missed by both Marilyn and Deborah who share their thoughts in the wake of his passing.

Teri Wilson, author of Dog books, and Romance books including ‘Cup of Joe’, ‘All Creatures of Our God & King', ‘Do You Hear What I Hear?’, ‘Rodeo Redemption’ (& others) took her southern self to the Alaskan Iditarod and worked a dog team. See www.spanieldiaries.blogspot.com to see what volunteering at the Iditarod is like. Teri explains the unbelievable tug-of war style power of a team of pulling dogs and how she got trained to roll out of the way. What does an ice hook have to do with mushing? Listen to the show and find out. Teri describes the sites of the region including the historical dog journey from Anchorage to Gnome of over 1,000 miles, which brought diphtheria medicine to children and saved lives. This is a great example of dog work that helps humans and teamwork human with dogs. Would you like to go next year and volunteer?

Deborah reports on a treatment that is both new and old and gets rid of allergies in people and pets. About four treatments is all it takes to handle most allergies and for severe peanut allergies there is a 100% guarantee. Did you know that recently Canada changed its regulations so now all Canadian flights must have animals in cargo? Why? Because 1 in 10 passengers surveyed complained of severe pet allergies when confined on planes. Deborah tells you some things you can do to help the allergy sufferers in your family when they visit your pet filled home. Laura Cook from Zero Allergies joins the party with her expertise and she’s brought with her samples of every thing that allergy sufferers avoid from pollen to wheat to cat hair and vacuum lint. It is March right now- cherry tree season- on the west coast and for the first time ever Deborah is doing radio with no allergy meds thanks to these treatments. Plus Deborah is finally winning her long battle with cat allergies and the cats are sleeping wherever they choose not exiled from the bedroom. Laura describes the science behind the treatments and Deborah tells you what it is like as a patient. This treatment involves no needles and you can keep taking meds if you need them so there is no risk to giving it a try. Laura also treats diabetics to help them need less insulin, patients suffering from MS, arthritis and every kind of digestive or allergic problem.

Deborah asks Caroline Coile the most common questions she gets when on tour plus her own questions too; Are some cats gay? Do cats masturbate? Facts about the cat penis. What is the cat purr all about? Do cats hate car rides? Are cats bothered by sound pollution? Cats hear better and see better in most ways than dogs but their sense of smell though worse than dogs. Caroline explains the amazing facts of cat vision and contrasts the cat to its fellow mammals. Do cross eyed cats see okay? Can cats count? Is catnip like pot? Deborah adds to the discussion with information on dogs and large cats, Hans the horse, and Caroline gives you the most interesting science behind the cat and how experiments are structured to test pets and babies for abilities. Are some feline breeds smarter than others? Deborah tells you how to teach your dog or any dog how to accept cats and learn not to chase and bug them. Deborah complains about the myth that all cats are like high-strung snobby women and all dogs are like easygoing guys and Caroline responds with her experience of dogs, cats, men and women. Her most loyal pet that would be most likely to come to her rescue was a cat- not a dog -explains Caroline who went swimming as a girl with her cats following and waiting for her on the beach. Deborah talks about two cats she knows who hitch rides. Advice on car trips with cats. Test your own cats to see if they will sympathetically yawn with you like dogs and people.

We all know a cheetah is faster than a man running, but is a cheetah faster than a gold medal speed skater? Find out how humans rank against animals in sport. Deborah shares the results of the Camp Good Dog Dog-Olympics so far with guest camper dogs competing in several events including hockey! A big thank you to the working dogs of the Olympics as Deborah explains how avalanche, airport and police dogs are selected, trained, and assigned to the Games. 56 dogs are keeping the Games going and horses too with the RCMP. The British and Russian press has been blasting Vancouver and the Olympics with criticism which is interesting given that they are next to host and given that Britain has no medals and Russia has lost face winning fewer medals than they’d hoped and losing to the Canadians (yay) in men’s hockey last night. Men’s hockey seems to trump all in both Russia and Canada even though it is Canadian women that bring home hockey medals most ( and hopefully will again tonight). In fact 13.5 of the 16 Canadian medals won so far were by Women; this is partly because in Canada laws, rules and norms dictate that men and women get equal access and equal funding for sport (almost) and that puts our women at an advantage over the rest of the world’s women who take a backseat to their brothers. Perhaps some countries will notice this and support their women more in future. Perhaps women’s ski jumping will get their turn! Politics and Olympics to overlap and this time Nature is getting heard too. ‘You say protest, I say party!’ shouts one group of Olympic loving Canadians. Deborah gets to the core of the protests and explains the facts behind the legitimate concerns for antipoverty initiatives, and on the animal side - for bears and salmon. In fact, for the first time ever in Olympic history, First Nations are official hosts here in Vancouver-Whistler, B.C. for these 2010 Canadian Olympic Winter Games and this is giving them a platform to reach international ears with their message of no more trophy bear hunting, and no more salmon farms. Find out why it matters so much and how these creative people are getting their message on camera. If you can come to the Games, it is well worth it and very family friendly; the Police are doing a terrific job and they are everywhere you go smiling. Free live music, performers of all sorts from jugglers to dancers throughout the downtown, Yaletown and at every suburb venue all connected by skytrain plus free admission to big deal places like the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Olympic pavilions makes this a giant street party. Big Screens show star moments, gold medal finishes and get crowds fired up as they dance and sing with the many different Canadian bands. For those listeners here right now in Vancouver, please take the time to get away from the Games and get out in Nature. Deborah describes a few quick easy side trips you can take to see eagles, bears, artists blowing glass & making beads, get spa treatments at a natural hot spring with more eagles to view en route, check out the sea wall downtown on foot or by rental bike or ride the skytrain just for the view of it all over town. And if you’d like to do something good for wildlife and still have a terrific fishing day, check out sturgeon fishing on the Fraser River, out of Mission, B.C. (45 min east of Vancouver) and you can get your own ‘big fish photo’ with a prehistoric fish that is the biggest on earth.