Comments Off on Prepare for any Emergency with your Pets!
02 Oct 15

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Being prepared for an emergency with your pet:

  • Have proper ID tags on your dog/cat with your Cell phone # on it.
  • Make sure if your dog is microchiped  – that the microchip registered with your proper contact information (many people don’t realize this) read our post here “Is your pet’s Microchip registered?
  • Have a copy of your pets most recent veterinary records with you and an extra copy in your car, take a photo of them store them on your phone as well.
  • If you have to evacuate – Do you know where you are going? Is it pet friendly shelter or hotel? Can you bring your pets with you?
  • If you are staying with family or friends and they have pets you should bring your pets crate with you, (or go out and buy one now), to be able to give your pet a safe secure place to be incase the pets don’t get along.
  • Have an extra crate in the trunk of your car – if you have to leave in a moments notice.
  • Gas up you car before the storm is close and get some cash so you have it just in case.
  • Have a recent, clear picture of your pet printed out – put in a ziplock baggie, (what if you can’t re-charge your phone?)
  • Store pertinent contact information for Emergency Vets within a 50 mile radius of your home and Animal Shelters in your phone (and have printed out) – you may not have wifi – so being able to access your contact list is helpful.
  • Have a bag prepared and ready to go with all your pets needs.
  • Always have an extra collar and leash in you car and in this bag.  And in your car also.
  • Have a 1st aid kit prepared and in the bag – I keep one in my car too.
  • Take a Pet CPR and 1st Aid class – being prepared ahead, knowing what to do can save a pets life.  Click here to see the next class coming up on Long Island.
  • Have a week’s supply or more of pet food and water (if you feed raw realize that you may have to feed kibble in place of that raw food in case you’re power goes out or if you are staying somewhere with your pet that has no refrigeration for the raw food.)  Also a great option for Raw is the freeze dried raw food that doesn’t have to be refrigerated.
  • Any medication your pet is taking – make sure you have refills of that ready to go – call your veterinarian now – better to be safe than sorry. (Many vets will call a pets prescription into a local pharmacy if you can get to the vet’s office or if you don’t live close to your vet.)
  • Have towels and blankets in your car – incase your pet is wet and needs to be dried off.
  • Have a crate, carrier or cage easily accessible if you need to leave in a hurry – and you can throw it in your car. (Many store our crates in not so easy to get to places – attics, basements, if you have to grab it in a moments notice).

During the storm – if you don’t have to evacuate and you’re riding it out at home as many of us will be – remember that:

  • Many pets can be completely freaked out during storms. They feel the Barometric pressure, they hear the wind, rain and thunder.   So you and your family have to be diligent about keeping them safe, indoors and confined.
  • Make sure your doors leading outside are secured – so your pet doesn’t sneak outside.
  • If you have a gated yard, be sure to tie or bungy cord that gate shut, and if you absolutely have to take your pet out during the storm (this is Very much NOT suggested!).  If you do have to take them out for potty, have a properly secured collar or harness on, (that they can’t slip out of), and leash your pet to take them outside.   Wear gloves or tie your dog to you when going outside so the leash doesn’t slip out of your hands.
  • I personally would wait to take my dog Cody outside or only let him go potty a few feet from the door and if you have wee-wee pads in the house – see if your pet would use them.

This is not about being paranoid – this is about being prepared!

For Long Islander’s you can click here for a list of Animal Shelters below:

Long Island Town Municipal Shelters – where lost pets could be:

Town of Babylon Animal Shelter
51 Lamar Street
West Babylon – 11702
631-643-9270

Town of Brookhaven Animal Shelter & Adoption Center
300 Horseblock Road
Brookhaven – 11719
631-286-4940

Town of Hempstead Animal Shelter
3320 Beltagh Avenue
Wantagh – 11793
516-785-5220

Town of Huntington Animal Shelter/Adoption Center

106 Deposit Road
East Northport – 11731
631-754-8722

Town of Islip Animal Shelter
210 South Denver Avenue
Bay Shore – 11706
631-224-5660

Town of North Hempstead Animal Shelter
75 Marino Avenue
Port Washington – 11050
516-944-8220

Town of Oyster Bay Animal Shelter
150 Miller Place
Syosset – 11773
516-677-5784

Town of Smithtown Animal Shelter
210 East Main Street
Smithtown – 11745
631-360-7575

Town of Southampton Animal Shelter – Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation
102 Old River Road
Hampton Bays – 11946
631-728-7387

Town of Southold Animal Shelter – North Fork Animal Welfare League
Peconic Lane
– Behind the police station
Peconic – 11985
631-765-1811

Town of Riverhead Animal ShelterNorth Fork Animal Welfare League
532 Youngs Ave
Calverton, NY 11933
(631) 369-6189

Comments Off on Dogs take over Splish Splash!
14 Sep 15

Dogs take over Splish Splash! ...

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

End of summer – pools close down, water parks drain their pools – but wait, why not open them to our DOGS?  I am starting to see this happen more often – last year was the first time I heard of a waterpark in New Jersey opening up to our canines for a fantastic romp in the pool – and I thought ‘what a great idea!’  I love it when people come up with new and creative ideas for our pups to enjoy (and us!).

I literally wrote down on a post it, put it in my calendar ‘Splish Splash evening swim for dogs – contact them next summer’ – but never actually contacted them (I am a bit busy here!). Then over the summer one of our members of American Pet Professionals Jodi Ekberg of The Husky Brothers – organized it for the Meetup Group the Empire State Snow Dog Club – and my dog Cody and I were lucky to get an invite.  Hey Cody is a wanna be husky as he is very, very vocal and makes some crazy sounding noises – and he can almost say momma!

"Hey you went in, was it cold?" haha

I was so happy when I heard from Jodi that she organized this (if you own a husky – you have to check out her page and go to one of her well organized events – they go all over!).  Since it was the first one that Splish Splash hosted and not my event to promote – (cause you know I wanted to!) – I was curious to see how it went, was run, etc.  And boy can I tell you it was very well done, the people that were there were responsible dog owners – and of course some good suggestions came of it for next year.

Cody swimming in one of the pools at Splish Splash!

If you’re dog is not dog friendly (be honest with yourself), or afraid of water/pools – it might not be something you want to attend with him.  Just like if you shouldn’t be heading to the dog park if your dog is not well socialized or is aggressive toward other dogs.

All the dogs were having so much fun!

Dogs and their owners enjoying a beautiful day at Splish Splash

All in all – it was a fabulous event – and Cody, just like a little kid did NOT want to leave! He dragged me back to one of the pools for a final dip (dogs are crazy smart aren’t they!)

Another cool aquatic dog event I saw was New Hyde Park pool had a doggie swim for residents.   I have been seeing this happen more and more across the country where public town pools are having doggie swims before they drain the pools. What a great idea for the town to make some extra revenue before they shut down for the season.  OR a great idea for the town to host a fundraising event for their local animal shelter.   Just think if every city, town and village pool did this across Long Island for one day – how much moola could be raised – and how many happy dogs there would be.  I bet even some dogs could be adopted if they held them in conjunction with an adopt-a-thon.  Anyone getting good ideas?

Ok, you have a year to plan!  To see a TON of pictures from the event, CLICK HERE!

What a beauty, look at those eyes!

Comments Off on Does your dog eat grass?
01 Jun 15

Does your dog eat grass? ...

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

Every dog I have ever had has been a grass eater.  Some more than others – and the old saying, ‘he’s eating grass because he doesn’t feel well’ had nothing to do with why my dogs ate grass.  My doberman Shanna, ate grass daily – and she taught my other dog, my pit bull Max – and he grazed like a cow.  I used to call him Moo Cow – with his coloring it was fitting.

I couldn’t stop them from eating it – and it really seemed like more of a habit than anything else.  I did worry a bit about them eating it, due to fertizliers in the grass and Max did get sick once from eating a brown mushroom in my yard – luckily it was a small one and he was 62 lbs. He was ok, after a visit to the vet and meds, but that made me more diligent about checking to see if there were any shrooms growing in the grass.

My newly adopted dog Cody has started to eat grass a few weeks ago, (and some sticks), with training he is learning to drop the sticks and not eat them – but the grass he still likes to take a bite of.  So what to do?  How do I get him to stop?

When I was at Global Pet Expo in March, one of the booths I stopped at was Pet Greens and I always thought that the grass they had was just for cats.  After speaking with the rep their he told me about the different grasses they had and how dogs can eat them to.  Best part?  Well a few actually, but first they are certified organic and you can grow them conviently at home.  Fun and cool at the same time.  Remember growing sunflowers or seedlings as a kid in school? Kind of like that, and for those of you that don’t have a green thumb – don’t worry anyone can grow this grass.

The grass comes in this super easy ‘Self Grow’ bag – and all the seeds and soil you need.  All you have to do is poke 10 holes in the bottom of the bag, put the seeds about 1/4 inch below the soil and water!

Looks like this after your prepare it.

Cody was inspecting my preparation!


It took about 4 days, which is pretty fast, until I noticed the seeds were sprouting, and probably another four until I had this result.  Now I just break off a handful and give it to Cody, he loves it.  And this grass is Oat, Rye and Barley grass – and organic of course.  You can grow this right in  your window sill or outside near your other seedlings.  I recommend putting a dish or plastic garden container under as you are watering it and did put holes in the bottom of the bag!  It grows pretty quickly so even after you have tore off or cut of the grass, in about 2 days it’s ready to go again.

So now Cody gets a small snipping of this organic grass, probably every 2-days or so.  I have to say he is still eating some grass outside, but it is definitely less than he was.

I really like this product – and for those cat owners out there, they have different varieties of grass you can grow and your cats can safely chew on and eat as well.  What do you think?  Have a grass grazer at home?

Comments Off on And the winner is…
18 Feb 15

And the winner is… ...

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com (All photos and Video taken by Nancy E. Hassel)

And the winner is…the 15 inch Beagle, Miss. P!  This adorable little dog took home the most prestigious title in the dog show world in the United States, Best in Show at Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show.

The crowd went absolutely ballistic when the Old English Sheepdog went around the ring, the noise was insane. He was clearly the crowd favorite, the Beagle was the crowd’s 2nd favorite.

I personally am always pulling for the underdog or different breed – seems like it is the same 7 breeds year in or year out – and there is always a poodle in BIS.  Nothing against the adorable poodles, just always wonder why every year there is a poodle?  With 192 different breeds now competeting in Westminster, it would be nice to see something completely different in BIS, a Doberman, AmStaff, Frenchie winning perhaps? Aww one can dream! (Fifi the Doberman was so close a couple years ago). (What breed were you cheering for? Tell us in the comment section at the bottom!) The Doberman in the working group came close to making it to BIS, beautiful dog:

Regardless of who my favorite choice would be (I too have many breeds I would love to see in that BIS ring!), Westminster is an incredible event to be at. The excitement in the air, and during the group judging can be nail biting. It’s not often you can see so many different types of dogs in one location. People and their dogs travel from all over the world, and Long Island, (smile), to compete!

Some of our Long Island dogs, like the Leonbergers, Mr. America, Hollywood and Magnetto – with local owner, breeder, and handler – Morgan Williams, were in the ring and Magneto won Winners Dog!

Then there is this adorable little Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Abbie, who is also a therapy dog from Long Island – she stood out amoung all the Staffy’s not just because of her beautiful markings – but because of her spunk.

This dog Brennan, well he is not from Long Island, but his relatives (human ones) used to live here, and he was a show stopper, even while laying down! You can see why, he is a 240lb massive Mastiff – is that redundant?

Another dog that stood out to me was Kennedy, a beautiful sweet, and non-docked eared American Staffordshire Terrier – she took 2nd place in her group. Love that she placed and without her ears being docked – my preferred look for an AmStaff (aka American Pit Bull Terrier for those of you who are wondering same dog different breed names for AKC vs. UKC look it up if you’re not sure!). She was not from Long Island, but sure does look like a lot of our AmStaffs living locally!  Congrats Kennedy!

I say this every year, but if you have never been to Westminster, love dogs, and live close by – you have to make plans to go next year!  For a lot more PICTURES, click here!

What breed were you cheering for?

Comments Off on Westminster Agility, meets the breeds
16 Feb 15

Westminster Agility, meets the breed ...

by Nancy E. Hassel, LIPetPlace.com

The 2nd Annual Westminster Masters Agility Championship was held in New York City on Saturday, February 14, 2015 at Pier 94. This was my 2nd year there, and it did not disappoint – very exciting to watch the finals!  Many dogs from Long Island were there representing, and dogs you don’t always see in agility like: Dobermans, Rotties, AmStaffs, mixed breeds, among the speed demons – aka the Border Collie.

Doberman from Lake Grove, NY - she was awesome!

I am telling you now, if you didn’t go, you have to plan to attend next year’s event.  Check out some of our video coverage from the event below and to see a lot more pictures, CLICK HERE.

In addition to the agility, the American Kennel Club hosted their annual ‘Meet the Breeds’ next door at Pier 92.  This event is normally held at the Javits Center, and usually has cats too – but this year it was just for dogs.  To say it was crowded would be a huge understatement.  Despite the frigid temperatures and snow falling outside, the line was incredibly long to get in!  The picture below is from inside, that crowd went all the way back to the end of the pier!

This breed of dog kind of looks like a sheepdog in wools clothing perhaps?  It is a Bergamasco!

Can you figure out what breed this is? Looks a little like a large Carin terrier right? It is a Berger Picard.

Another local Long Island Doberman from Huntington – what a beauty!

New to Westminster this year is the Coton de tulear.

The Wired Haired Vizla is also new to West minster this year.

A breed I have never seen before and used to hunt boar in Japan is the Kishu Ken –  this dog was as sweet as could be.

To see a lot more pictures from Meet the Breeds CLICK HERE!