Dear Friends,
By now, you have looked at yourself in the mirror from all angles and are wondering how and when THAT happened, am I right? Come on......you KNOW how it happened! You should be SO thoroughly ashamed of how much you pigged out over the holidays! You ate too much of everything, didn't you? And probably a lot of not-very-good-for-you treats and snacks, too, am I right or wrong? And I bet you used the cold weather as an excuse for not running to your people with your leash and asking for a nice brisk walk, didn't you?
*SIGH*
All I have to say, my little porkolette dog and cat friends, is - it's a good thing that your Lizzie is willing to heave her (only very slightly chunky) body up out of her warm comfy bed to chastise you and to tell you how to get back on the straight and narrow. I have been thinking and thinking about what I should suggest for your New Year's resolutions, and I have decided that they should be about getting YOU back in shape and keeping you healthy. So here they are:
Resolution #1: Is your owner feeding you dry food? If so, please steer them to the computer to learn about what would be a better choice. Remind them that even a good quality dry or canned food is like eating 100% balanced Special K cereal every day, with nothing else. And show them your teeth to refresh their memory about what carnivores eat - it ain't cereal grains! You can even show them some of my old columns that talk about fresh food choices, like THEY get to eat. Check out my November 2008 one, too!
Resolution #2: Instead of some icky, calorie-laden, artificially colored and flavored pet snack, ask your people to feed you some REAL treats. Nothing is better for you than a nice fresh piece of chicken or beef, or maybe even a little chunk of salmon, or a shrimp or two. Or maybe a baby carrot, or a couple of green beans (really, we DO like those!). If your people HAVE to buy you a treat in a package, remind them that I am helping my Mom pick out some nice treats to have here at the clinic (we hope to have them by the end of the month). We will have some of the Zuke's meat treats, and the Sojo's grain-free treats, and the Stella & Chewy's "crunch" treats, and the Ziwi peak Good Dog all-meat treats.
Resolution #3: Emmett also says that you should resolve to remember that most kitties like fresh meat treats also, and to cut it up into the size they like best . (Emmett likes chicken breast meat torn into long thin strips). Oh, and he says it tastes better if you hand-feed it, too! I guess I should tell you that we will make sure to have good cat treats here at the hospital, in all the kinds I already listed. Emmett likes the duck and the liver ones best.
Resolution #4: If you are a senior pet, resolve to ask your owner to get you a senior health panel this spring at the same time as your heartworm test. You will remember that I talked about blood tests a couple years ago, and told you what you needed to get checked and why. If you are older than 7 years of age, you need to get this done NOW. The information your human will get could save your life.
Resolution #5: Please try to make yourself bring your leash to your people and ask them for a walk every day, OK? I know that it is hard when it is very cold, but really, you will feel much better if you exercise your joints every day, especially if you are getting a little old and stiff. Tell your people that if they take you for a walk every day, their butts will look better, too!
Resolution #6: Are you an older gentleman dog? Is your owner? (If he is, he already knows where I am going with this, I bet!) If you are, you really need to resolve to have your prostate checked regularly if you are not neutered. And even if you are. Your vet will need to put on a glove to do this. I will not say more, except to say that it is really, really important to get this checked every year!
Resolution #7: Do you absolutely hate to be outside walking in the winter? Does your owner hate it, too? Well, you do have one good option to taking your leash to your owner and looking pitiful - you can resolve to drag your person over to the computer and have them read my last column about hydrotherapy. Swimming is a really great way to get fit and stay warm at the same time. I go swimming every week, and I am getting a little bit stronger every time. My swimming coach says so!
Resolution #8: My dear friends, please resolve to pay attention THIS TIME when our dental reminder come to your house this spring. Did you know that keeping your teeth and gums healthy can add YEARS to your life? So whisper in your person’s ear to take a look at your teeth. If those teeth are yellow, or if your gums are red, you are overdue for a good dental cleaning. And, my friends, I want to tell you that you will even get a discount on getting the cleaning done if your people make the appointment during our Dental Month.
Resolution #9: Resolve to learn a little bit more about vaccines this year! Sure, vaccinations can protect you against some awful diseases, but too many of them can cause more harm than good sometimes. We have been telling you to be careful about vaccines since 1998. Make sure to remind your people that there are good alternatives to getting all those shots every year. Next time they bring you to the office, make them LISTEN to our Nurses when they talk about three-year vaccines and titers, OK? We want you to stay healthy!
Resolution #10: Resolve to remind your people about what ELSE your body needs besides a healthy diet and lots of exercise, OK? Remember me telling you that even the best diet might not be enough if you are senior, or if you have been sick, or maybe even during our crummy Chicago winter weather? All of those things can stress out your immune system, and that can make it easy for you to get sick. Remind your people about probiotics and vitamins, will ya? They know those things are important for them, and they are important for you, too.
Next month, I will have all kinds of cool stuff to tell you about what all the experts have to say at the North American Veterinary Conference. Chani is going and Nikki, too, and my Mom will be lecturing there. They will all learn a lot and Mom always bring me lots home to read. I will make sure to find some good things to tell you that you can use to stay healthy!
YOUR FRIEND, LIZZIE
