Contents at a Glance COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL. Introduction...1 Part I: All About Pet Adoption...7. Part II: Welcoming a Dog into Your Life...

Transcription

1 Contents at a Glance Introduction...1 Part I: All About Pet Adoption...7 Chapter 1: Exploring the Pet Adoption Option...9 Chapter 2: Seeking Shelter: Finding and Using Animal Shelters...23 Chapter 3: Rescue Me! All About Pet Rescue Groups...35 Part II: Welcoming a Dog into Your Life...49 Chapter 4: Choosing Your Dog...51 Chapter 5: Helping Your Adopted Dog Make the Homecoming Transition...73 Chapter 6: Caring for Your Adopted Dog...91 Chapter 7: Doggy Boot Camp: Basic Training and Behavior Management Part III: Here Kitty Kitty: Rescuing a Cat Chapter 8: Finding the Purrrfect Feline for You Chapter 9: Welcoming Home Your Adopted Cat Chapter 10: Kitty Care Chapter 11: You Really Can Train a Cat Part IV: Befriending a Little Critter Chapter 12: Choosing Your Critter Chapter 13: Getting Ready for Your Critter Chapter 14: Taking Charge of Your Critter s Care Chapter 15: Critter Behavior and Training Part V: Bringing Home a Feathered Friend COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL Chapter 16: From Macaws to Budgies: Choosing Your Feathered Friend Chapter 17: Creating a Bird-Friendly Home Chapter 18: Caring for Your Adopted Bird Chapter 19: Training Your Bird Part VI: Giving an Exotic a Second Chance Chapter 20: Choosing a Creepy Crawler Chapter 21: Preparing for Your Exotic Pet Chapter 22: Exotic Care and Feeding Chapter 23: Snake Charming and Herp Handling: How to Train Your Exotic Pet...329

2 Part VII: The Part of Tens Chapter 24: Ten Great Reasons to Spay or Neuter Your Adopted Pet Chapter 25: Ten Favors You Can Do for Your Adopted Pet Chapter 26: Ten Ways to Support Your Local Shelter or Rescue Group Index...347

3 Table of Contents Introduction...1 About This Book...2 Conventions Used in This Book...3 What You re Not to Read...3 Foolish Assumptions...4 How This Book Is Organized...4 Part I: All About Pet Adoption...4 Part II: Welcoming a Dog into Your Life...5 Part III: Here Kitty Kitty: Rescuing a Cat...5 Part IV: Befriending a Little Critter...5 Part V: Bringing Home a Feathered Friend...5 Part VI: Giving an Exotic a Second Chance...5 Part VII: The Part of Tens...6 Icons Used in This Book...6 Where to Go from Here...6 Part I: All About Pet Adoption...7 Chapter 1: Exploring the Pet Adoption Option Making Sure You re Ready to Be a Good Pet Parent...9 Considering the time commitment...10 Being mindful of housing restrictions...12 Affording a pet...13 The Good Part: Adopted Pets = Love...14 Perfect Pet Profile Quiz: Find Out What Kind of Pet You Really Want...15 Beyond the Glamour: What It Means to Adopt A dog...18 A cat...19 A small mammal...19 A birdie...20 An exotic...21 Finding Your New Best Friend through Shelters, Humane Societies, and Rescues...21 Uncovering the basics of animal shelters...22 Demystifying the rescue group...22 Chapter 2: Seeking Shelter: Finding and Using Animal Shelters Animal Shelters Explained...24 Shelter pros...26 Shelter cons...27

4 xii Adopting a Pet For Dummies Finding a Great Shelter Near You...28 Checking the Yellow Pages and Internet...28 Rounding up recommendations...29 Walking through the Adoption Process...30 Checking out the facility...30 Looking at the pets...31 Asking the right questions...32 Avoiding second thoughts: The waiting period...33 Sealing the Deal...34 Chapter 3: Rescue Me! All About Pet Rescue Groups Weighing the Pros and Cons of Adopting from a Rescue Group...36 Rescue group pros...36 Rescue group cons...38 Scouting Out a Particular Rescue Group...38 Asking around...39 Surfing the Net...39 Surviving the Screening Process...40 Making contact and checking references...41 Answering questions, questions, and more questions...42 Preparing for a house visit...44 Meeting the pets...45 Making a Commitment: Signing the Rescue Contract...47 Part II: Welcoming a Dog into Your Life...49 Chapter 4: Choosing Your Dog Puppies Are Precious, but Pros and cons of adopting a puppy...52 Pros and cons of adopting an adult dog...53 Deciding on a Male or Female...54 Identifying Signs of a Healthy Dog...55 Bright eyes and bushy tails...55 Skin-tastic...56 Bringing up the rear...57 The great big world: How the dog interacts...58 Temperament Testing...58 Exploring the effects of breed temperament...59 Understanding the basics of temperament...62 Go-getters, chill-outers, and wait-and-seers...63 What Kind of Dog Is That? The Joy of Mixed Breeds...64 Adopting a Purebred Dog...66 All about breed groups...67 Good buddies: Companion dogs...67 Imposing Guardian breeds...68 Active Sporting breeds...69 Born to run: Cold-hardy Northern breeds...70

5 Table of Contents xiii Eye on the prize: Sighthounds...70 The nose knows: Scenthounds...71 Feisty Terrier breeds...71 Superfocused Herding breeds...72 Chapter 5: Helping Your Adopted Dog Make the Homecoming Transition Preparing Your Pad...73 Puppy-proofing first (even for adult dogs)...74 Gathering doggy accoutrements...76 Welcoming Doggy Home...80 Dog, meet potty spot...80 Showing your dog to his den...81 Introducing your people...83 Introducing other pets...85 Downtime...88 Recognizing Adjustment Problems...89 Chapter 6: Caring for Your Adopted Dog Keeping Your Dog Healthy...92 First things first: Choosing a great vet...92 Giving your new friend a good once-over: The first exam...93 Noticing problems after you get home...97 Following up with an annual exam...99 Somebody s Hungry!...99 Choosing the right food for your dog Addressing bad nutritional habits: What your dog doesn t need to eat Helping Fido s tummy transition Deciding when to ring the dinner bell Keeping an eye on your dog s waistline Administering the body evaluation test Correcting a weight problem Good Grooming Matters Grooming disguised as a checkup Brush, comb, trim, bathe, and polish Chapter 7: Doggy Boot Camp: Basic Training and Behavior Management Housetraining Made Easy Beginning with the basics Adding crate training Adding schedule training Dealing with mistakes Teaching Good Doggy Manners Off to school: Finding a training class Socialization strategies Teaching the building-block training cues...118

6 xiv Adopting a Pet For Dummies Breaking Adopted Dogs of Bad Habits Managing Behavior Problems Common to Adopted Dogs Lassie come home: Keeping your dog from running away Oh the noise, noise, noise, noise, noise: Curtailing excessive barking My dog is knocking me over: Teaching dogs to quit jumping up Didn t I have a couch here? Ending destructive chewing Ouch! Nipping that annoying nipping and biting But this is my dinner! Stopping your dog from begging Where s the garden? Reclaiming your yard from a digger Comeback Kid: Coping with Separation Anxiety Who s the Boss? Managing Aggression Managing the Mistreated Dog Deciding whether you can handle a problem Getting professional help Part III: Here Kitty Kitty: Rescuing a Cat Chapter 8: Finding the Purrrfect Feline for You Deciding between a Kitten and a Cat Considering a kitten Acknowledging the advantages of an adult cat Boy cat or girl cat? What about feral and stray cats? Recognizing Signs of a Healthy Cat Silky coats and eyes like jewels Itchy kitty? Signs of parasites and skin/coat problems The tail end Curiosity quotient: How your cat interacts Temperament Testing Determining what traits suit your fancy Profiling kitty companions Asking the experts: Shelter workers provide the skinny on your kitty Finding a Good Match: What to Expect from Different Breeds and Mixes Cats of undetermined origin: Mixed-breed cats Perfectly stunning Persians (and their relatives) Clever Siamese... both types! The all-american shorthairs Mellow Maine coons, America s native long-haired cat...150

7 Table of Contents xv Chapter 9: Welcoming Home Your Adopted Cat Kitten-Proofing Even For Adult Cats! Stocking Up on Supplies Gathering the basics Spoiling Fluffy with fancy supplies What to Expect When You Get Home Getting acclimated Meeting the family Meeting resident pets Run of the house Recognizing Adjustment Problems Chapter 10: Kitty Care Keeping Your Cat Healthy Choosing a great cat vet The first exam Remaining on the lookout for health problems Making time for an annual exam Chow Time! Choosing the right food for your cat Avoiding harmful foods Switching foods Deciding between free feeding and meal feeding Do you have a fat cat or a scrawny kitty? Helping Your Cat Practice Good Feline Hygiene Grooming disguised as a health-care checkup Brushing and combing basics Clipping nails down to size, not the quick Giving a cat a bath Chapter 11: You Really Can Train a Cat Not Going Outside the Box Kitty, meet litter Dealing with litter-box aversion Your Cat: Mighty Hunter Scratch Zone Foiling the Climbing Cat Attack Cat: Biting, Scratching, and Pouncing The Amazing Disappearing Kitty: Shyness and Hiding Harry Hou-Kitty: The Escape Artist Cat Cat Talk: When Your Cat Just Won t Be Quiet Cat on Cat: Sibling Rivalry and Other-Pet Issues Calming Kitten Chaos Finding a Feline Behaviorist Training Your Cat the Easy Way...195

8 xvi Adopting a Pet For Dummies Part IV: Befriending a Little Critter Chapter 12: Choosing Your Critter Considering a Little Critter Exploring the appeal of small-animal pets Deciding you and small critters aren t a fit Pairing kids with critters: Perfect pet or potential problem? Finding the Critter That s Right for You Ferret facts Rabbit run-down Guinea-pig guide Rats rule Hamster and gerbil handbook Mouse manifesto Exotics: Chinchillas and hedgehogs Save a Critter Today! Finding Adoptable Critters Chapter 13: Getting Ready for Your Critter Preparing Your Home for Critter Conditions Making your home critterproof Considering the free-roaming route Stocking Crucial Critter Supplies Settling into a new enclosure Getting the supplies your pet needs Helping Your New Critter Settle In Understand the limits of handling Give him space Supervise your children Know when to get help and when to back off Chapter 14: Taking Charge of Your Critter s Care Keeping Your Critter Healthy Finding a good critter vet Understanding potential health problems Keeping your critters from breeding! Knowing when to see a vet Feeding Your Critter Critter Grooming Chapter 15: Critter Behavior and Training Adopted Small Animal Issues Fixing what you can Managing what you can Accepting what you can t change Knowing when it s a physical problem...236

9 Table of Contents xvii Understanding What Small Animals Can and Should Learn Litter-box training your ferret Litter-box training your rabbit Hand-taming pocket pets Teaching small animals to come Interpreting Your Small Animal s Sounds and Movements Understanding ferret sounds and behavior Hearing what your rabbit is saying Figuring out your rat s behavior Listening to your guinea pig Checking out hamster, gerbil, and mouse behaviors Part V: Bringing Home a Feathered Friend Chapter 16: From Macaws to Budgies: Choosing Your Feathered Friend Understanding Your Adopted Bird Knowing What Adopted Birds Need Finding a Breed that Suits You Choosing for health and temperament Go large: Macaws and cockatoos Talking about Amazon parrots and African greys Conures, Quakers, toucans, and other medium-sized birds What about doves? Parakeets and cockatiels: Pros and cons Chapter 17: Creating a Bird-Friendly Home Getting Ready for a Bird in the House Bird-proofing To fly free or not to fly free? The Best Bird Supplies Cage considerations Food for the birds Perches Bird stimulation: Toys and climbing devices Travel carrier or small travel cage Cage cover Perch cleaner Cuttlebone Nontoxic cage bedding Spray bottle, grooming spray, or a bird bath Nail trimmers or cement perch Bringing Home Birdie Introducing your new bird to its new home Getting to know the family Child-bird relations Other pets: The Tweety and Sylvester syndrome...268

10 xviii Adopting a Pet For Dummies Chapter 18: Caring for Your Adopted Bird Keeping Your Bird Healthy Finding a good bird vet The first vet visit Common health problems in adopted birds Bird breeding: Why and how not to Feeding Your Adopted Bird: A Mixed Bag Giving your bird a balanced diet Giving your bird the best and worst foods Understanding the diets of specific species Knowing how often to feed your bird Converting your bird to the proper diet Grooming Your Bird Chapter 19: Training Your Bird Understanding Bird Behavior Solving Bird Behavior Problems The bird that won t adjust: Fear and anxiety Noise solutions Biting and aggression Feather picking and chewing Finding an Avian Behavior Consultant Bird Bonding: Bringing Out Your Bird s Best Bird Basic Training Socializing with your bird Hand-training The step-up cue Teaching your bird to behave on your shoulder Cage-free manners Mating Season and Avian Adolescence Part VI: Giving an Exotic a Second Chance Chapter 20: Choosing a Creepy Crawler Determining Whether Exotic Herps and Bugs Are Right for You Picking Your Exotic Pet Constrictors: Pythons, boas, and other huggable snakes Small slitherers: Garter snakes, king snakes, corn snakes, and other Colubrids Green iguanas Turtle time Other reptiles of the tropics and the deserts The slime factor: Frogs, salamanders, and newts...304

11 Table of Contents xix Shell chic: All about hermit crabs Bugs: Tarantulas and beyond Seeking Out Secondhand Snakes, Lizards, and Spiders Chapter 21: Preparing for Your Exotic Pet Herp-Proofing Your Home Exotic Equipment and Supplies Exotic enclosures Light, heat, bedding, and water Exotic supply list Exotic Homecoming: What to Expect Traveling with your exotic bringing him home Welcoming your pet home making him comfortable Chapter 22: Exotic Care and Feeding Bright Eyes and Scaly Tails Finding a good exotic pet vet What to expect during the first exam Recognizing special health problems adopted exotics may have Noticing when your exotic is sick and needs a vet Identifying reasons not to be alarmed Exotics and kids: What you must know Exotic Meals: Feeding Your Exotic Pet Snacks for snakes Lizard lunch Turtle tidbits Amphibian appetizers Arachnids and other bug basics Hungry hermit crabs Herp Hygiene and Grooming Chapter 23: Snake Charming and Herp Handling: How to Train Your Exotic Pet Exploring the Possibilities and Limits of Exotic Taming and Training How to recognize a tamed exotic How to tame your exotic Handling Your Exotic Pet Snake couture Lizard love Turtle touch Touchy toads and feely frogs Tarantula taming Hermit crab handling Dealing with a Herp Bite...338

12 xx Adopting a Pet For Dummies Part VII: The Part of Tens Chapter 24: Ten Great Reasons to Spay or Neuter Your Adopted Pet You Can Do It on the Cheap Spaying/Neutering Makes Pets Healthier Spaying/Neutering Keeps Pets Home So What If Your Pet Is a Purebred? Spaying/Neutering Improves Behavior If They Never Do It, They Never Miss It Reproduction Is Risky Your Pet Won t Miss the Family Jewels Eight Million Pets and Counting Chapter 25: Ten Favors You Can Do for Your Adopted Pet A Forever Home The Right Diet... at Last Indoor Shelter Exercise, Exercise, Exercise Attention Physical Touch... or Not Mental Challenges for Better Behavior Family Member Status Grooming and Good Housekeeping Regular Vet Care Chapter 26: Ten Ways to Support Your Local Shelter or Rescue Group Volunteering Donating Money or Talent Fostering a Pet Dropping Off Food and Supplies Giving Gifts in Others Names Referring Your Friends Staying Informed Spreading the Word Starting a Rescue Adopting Another Pet Index...347