Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Petlife.
When Whales Get Sick, Activists Show Their True Colors
Earlier last month, I wrote about how the Southern Resident orca population off the coast of Washington state had been placed on the international spotlight when an adult female known as Tahlequah, also known as J35, spent seventeen days carrying around her calf, who died shortly after birth. Around the same time, her cousin, J50, also known as Scarlet, began to battle malnutrition as a result of not being able to feed on Chinook salmon, the primary food source of this endangered orca population. After several attempts to feed her live fish and darting her with medications as a way to treat a possible infection, the US National Marine Fisheries Service has now suggested a plan that might be the only thing that could save her life-capturing Scarlet by locating her to a sea pen where she would be rehabilitated until she is healthy enough to rejoin her pod. Sounds like a simple idea to a complicated issue right? While it seems so ideal, there is one group of people who are in the way of this: the animal rights movement.
By Jenna Deedy7 years ago in Petlife
How I Ride Horses for Free
I have always loved riding horses. The physical act of riding a horse is hard work, but so is taking care of one—feeding, grooming, stall cleaning, watering, sweeping, and more. As a broke post-graduate professional, I didn’t want to give up my love of horses, so I learned to work for free. Instead of leasing a horse and only being responsible for that animal, I spend countless hours at the barn taking care of horses—and other farm animals—that aren’t mine. I volunteer at a local animal rescue with horses, and while I am not paid for my time, I am compensated with free riding lessons and hack time. While most of my hours at the barn are not spent riding, the extra time and effort are well worth it for being able to spend time in the saddle.
By Laura Fitzgerald7 years ago in Petlife
'So, You Own an Ex-Racehorse?'
When owning an ex-racehorse, you put up with a lot—and it's not all to do with the horse. A lot of the time, it comes from people that cannot understand why anyone would decide to buy an ex-racer and retrain it for other disciplines such as dressage, showjumping or even as a happy hacker. Although, they never say this outright, it can be heard in the subtext of the questions they ask you.
By Rebecca White7 years ago in Petlife
10 Famous Movie Pets Everyone Loved. Top Story - September 2018.
When I was little, the only movie I wanted to watch was Homeward Bound. With few exceptions, you could only get me to watch anything else by replacing the beloved Shadow, Sassy, and Chance with other famous movie pets. As long as there was a dog on the screen, I was happy.
By Nicola P. Young7 years ago in Petlife
Patience
I didn't know you could be depressed as a 9-year-old. I lost my grandmother when I was six, and she was the only person keeping our family together. Without her, the seams came undone. Everyone shut down, became bitter, became hateful. It also didn't help that my 4th grade teacher told me I would never amount to anything. How can you tell a 9-year-old girl, who's just not the best at math, that she'll never amount to anything?
By Courtney Ferguson7 years ago in Petlife
My Boy Buddy
I met Buddy when I was doing social work for a school for autistic students. I was doing field work with our nurse for a student who required a clinical visit. As we began to enter the hospital we saw an emaciated Yellow Lab mix dog at the entrance. My heart broke for him but I had to go inside to do work. The nurse, who was also an animal lover and I took turns running out to see if he was still there which he was for the duration of our work at the hospital. I decided I was going to adopt him but here was the thing: he thought we were a two for one model and would not go with just one of us it had to be with both! Fortunately, we were both able to coax him into her car to take him home. My daughter had just gotten home from school and was thrilled that I had brought a dog home but he needed care. He needed to see a vet and be checked out. He had mange and he was starving but getting him to the vet was a challenge because he was terrified of crossing the streets. I had to carry him across every street on the long walk to the vet's office.
By Florence Mattersdorfer7 years ago in Petlife
The Little Kitten That Could (Part 3)
In my many years of having a cat in my family home, you'd think I would be used to the idea that cats by nature will get out and explore. It's in their nature. No matter how hard we try to keep our little fur babies indoors, they do eventually get out and if it is the first time, it is quite possibly the scariest.
By Abstract Ammy 7 years ago in Petlife
