Responsible Dog Cat Ownership

Entertaining and informative, Pets in America is a portrait of Americans' relationships with the cats, dogs, birds, fishes, rodents, and other animals we call our own. More than 60 percent of U.S. households have pets, and America grows more pet-friendly every day. But as Katherine C. Grier demonstrates, the ways we talk about and treat our pets--as companions, as children, and as objects of beauty, status, or pleasure--have their origins long ago. Grier begins with a natural history of animals as pets, then discusses the changing role of pets in family life, new standards of animal welfare, the problems presented by borderline cases such as livestock pets, and the marketing of both animals and pet products. She focuses particularly on the period between 1840 and 1940, when the emotional, behavioral, and commercial characteristics of contemporary pet keeping were established. The story is filled with the warmth and humor of anecdotes from period diaries, letters, catalogs, and newspapers. Filled with illustrations reflecting the whimsy, the devotion, and the commerce that have shaped centuries of American pet keeping, Pets in America ultimately shows how the history of pets has evolved alongside changing ideas about human nature, child development, and community life. This book accompanies a museum exhibit, "Pets in America," which opens at the McKissick Museum in Columbia, South Carolina, in December 2005 and will travel to five other cities from May 2006 through May 2008.

Responsible Dog Ownership addresses selecting the right dog, responsible breeding practices, neutering, control, multiple-dog ownership, grooming, care and health essentials, letting go, training, and the role of the AKC's Canine Good Citizen Test. Essential!

"Highly compelling...page-turning read" — TNC's Cool Green Science We love our pets. Dogs, cats, birds, reptiles, and other species have become an essential part of more families than ever before—in North America today, pets outnumber people. Pet owners are drawn to their animal companions through an innate desire to connect with other species. But there is a dark side to our domestic connection with animal life: the pet industry is contributing to a global conservation crisis for wildlife—often without the knowledge of pet owners. In Unnatural Companions, journalist Peter Christie issues a call to action for pet owners. If we hope to reverse the alarming trend of wildlife decline, pet owners must acknowledge the pets-versus-conservation dilemma and concede that our well-fed and sheltered cats too often prey on small backyard wildlife and seemingly harmless reptiles released into the wild might be the next destructive invasive species. We want our pets to eat nutritionally healthy food, but how does the designer food we feed them impact the environment? Christie's book is a cautionary tale to responsible pet owners about why we must change the ways we love and care for our pets. It concludes with the positive message that the small changes we make at home can foster better practices within the pet industry that will ultimately benefit our pets’ wild brethren.

Children will delight in the story of Too Many Dogs! Fun rhyming words and whimsical illustrations tell the tale of a house filled with dogs struggling to live together peacefully. Promoting responsible pet ownership and compassion for animals, Too Many Dogs is sure to be a favorite book for dog loving kids!

This book provides data and analyses of pet ownership statistics in the United States.

Poppy and Puppy Are Friends is a charming and informative picture book designed to encourage safe behavior around dogs for the entire family. The many responsibilities associated with having a dog are depicted throughout in an effort to create a general understanding of responsible dog ownership and animal husbandry at even the earliest age! Learning to listen to and communicate with a dog is paramount to successfully raising children and dogs within the same household. In our human world, we often forget that dogs use a nonverbal style of communication called body language to express their feelings. This lighthearted and expressively illustrated book provides children with a general introduction to identifying and respecting these nonverbal cues. Children will delight in the fun, brief text combined with the use of vivid color and grey tones, allowing them to chime in and/or anticipate what is to come for Poppy and her puppy. Parents are invited to partner with young readers and learn along the way! Proactive education promoting respect for animals with safety as a top priority creates happy pets, safe homes, and healthy family relationships ultimately keeping more dogs in their homes and out of overpopulated shelters. Join Poppy in learning how to treat Puppy! The author pledges to donate a portion of all online sales proceeds to Best Friends Animal Society, the nation's largest animal sanctuary located in Kanab, Utah.