Blog Posts by vetstreet.com

By Mitch Lipka, Vetstreet.com

Dogs love to run, but in most places the leash is the law, so pups have to go to special areas in order to joyously run loose. Enter the public dog run and dog park - a steadily growing option in communities across the country.

Of course, with every privilege comes responsibility. Your local park will have its own rules that you must follow including hours of operation, poop scooping and more. For most dog owners, a trip to the dog park will go largely without issue. Their dog will run, chase their buddies, get chased back and do a lot of sniffing.

If your dog gets a bit out of hand, it's your job to assess the situation and gain control. And you have a right to expect the same from fellow pet owners - but not everyone is as responsible as you are nor can every wrong turn be foreseen. So who's responsible if something goes awry?

See Also: Why Does My Dog... Stare at Me?

"Legally, pet owners are responsible for

*Most Popular Puppy & Kitten Names

*Meet Boo: The World's Cutest Dog

*Funny Cat Playing Basketball (Cute Video)

*An Actor's Death Puts Spotlight on Banned Breeds

Source Original Photo Gallery: Mascot Madness: Our Picks For The Cutest Animals in The NCAA

* 7 New Wacky Products We Love
* Hot Pet Items - Bionic Toy, Pet DNA Jewelry, Catnip Hurricane, Furminator Accessories
* 10 Least-Trendy Pet Names 2012
* Dog Stops Temper Tantrum (or Video Proof of Why Every Family Needs a Dog)

Source of Original Article: 10 Splurges for Your Favorite Pet

By Dr. Patty Khuly , vetstreet.com

About once a week, I whip out a special device that plenty of veterinarians resort to - the sliding scale. When pet owners can't afford veterinary care, sometimes there's no fancy medical tool that can resurrect a savable pet like a good, old-fashioned freebie.

Although most pet owners have, at one point or another, found themselves in the unenviable position of having to scrimp, scrounge, beg and borrow to pay for their pets' medical care, some of us have had to forgo treatment entirely or euthanize a pet because we couldn't afford life-saving treatment.

Related: 7 Things That Drive Vets Crazy

Truth is, which pets get the necessary care and which don't is kind of random when it comes down to it. Some pets get great care by virtue of their parents' outsized pocketbooks, while others suffer second-rate medicine because their owners can't afford better.

And the least moneyed of all? If they're fortunate, these pets get granted the

By Mikkel Becker, vetstreet.com

Although dog training has become more of a science than a craft in recent years, some persistent myths still mislead us when reading canine behavior. Don't let a myth harm your relationship with your pooch. Here, we dispel 14 common myths and look at the facts.

Although dog training has become more of a science than a craft in recent years, some persistent myths still mislead us when reading canine behavior. Don't let a myth harm your relationship with your pooch. Here, we dispel 14 common myths and look at the facts.

See Also: Top 10 High-Maintenance Dog Breeds

False. Old dogs not only learn new tricks but they thrive when trained. My late Pomeranian, Mr. Teddy, who was adopted at an estimated 10 to 13 years of age, was a training superstar in Vetstreet videos, which were filmed two weeks before he passed away. By the same token, older dogs without housetraining experience as puppies can successfully

Dr. Marty Becker Picks The 7 Craziest Pet Products
Top 10 Trendiest Dog and Cat Names
Should Dogs and Cats Sleep in your Bed?
5 Pet Products That Changed the World

Source of the original article: Wacky Product That We Loved at Global Pet Expo 2012

By Nora Zelevansky, vetstreet.com

Cats are mysterious creatures. With their penetrating eyes, silent steps and hiding spots, they'd make great feline sleuths - which is perhaps why there are a slew of cat detective stories out there.

Related: 4 Games Cats Enjoy Playing the Most

Here's the scoop on six new kitty page-turners worth investigating.

When The Big Cat Nap hits shelves in April, Rita Mae Brown (and her feline coauthor Sneaky Pie) will have been writing about the sleuthing kitty duo of Mrs. Murphy and Pewter for 20 years. This time, their human companion, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen, discovers the town mechanic dead.

Bonus: Brown's nineteenth mystery novel, Hiss of Death, in which Harry goes into the hospital and discovers a well-liked nurse murdered, comes out tomorrow.

Clea Simon's pet noir tale, Cats Can't Shoot (out in April), follows animal psychic Pru Marlowe and her trusty feline friend,

By Linda Lombardi, vetstreet.com

It's International Polar Bear Day and what better way to celebrate these brawny yet somehow still adorable bears - I mean, have you seen our photos of Siku? - than to share some I-never-knew-that facts about the Arctic-roaming creatures.

RELATED: The Busy Life of Siku the Polar Bear; Also, See Him on Live Cam

No way, you say. You've seen them depicted together a million times! But consider this: It was always a cartoon or an illustration, never a photograph, right? That's because, in real life, they two species dwell at opposite ends of the earth: Polar bears live in the Arctic and penguins hang out in the Antarctic.

Study your ancient Greek for further proof: The word "Arctic" derives from the Greek word for bear, while "Antarctic" in Greek means "without bear."

Brown bears can be equally hefty when it comes to