Love taking your dog on walks? It’s a great time to bond. It is also a time for your dog to explore with his nose, eyes and ears.

Your main job is to keep your dog safe on those walks. You know how to watch out for other dogs, traffic and coyotes. But you also need to steer your dog from puddles and wet that can harbor hidden dangers that can wreak havoc on your dog’s health.

Welcome to Spring and for many, that means ambitious gardening projects are underway.  Before going to the garden store, prioritize your dog's health and safety.  

Ensuring your yard is dog-safe starts with the mulch you select for your garden beds.  All mulch is not the same. Some can be downright dangerous – even deadly – if swallowed by a curious dog.

Unfortunately, our dogs and cats can’t tell us if they don’t feel well. But one quick way to assess your pet’s health is to look at the color of the gums. Healthy gums are bubblegum pink. If the gums are not that color, that signals something is not normal.

Yep, gums can change to red, blue, yellow and off white. What color means what?

In my pet first aid and CPR classes, I inspire my students to be their pets’ best health allies by becoming what I call pet poopologists.  Yep, the color, look and smell of poop from your dog or cat can serve as important signals to your pet’s overall health.

Bottom line: poop matters. It may surprise you to learn that veterinarians score the quality of your pet’s poop on a scale of 1 to 7.

In my pet first aid and CPR classes, I love teaching people how to be their pets’ best health allies by showing them how to do weekly head-to-tail wellness checks. We perform them on Pet Safety Dog Kona and Pet Safety Cat Casey.

Here are the three key benefits:

·         These one-on-one sessions give you the opportunity to bond with your pet without any outside distractions or disruptions.

·         You may discover healthy issues……..

When a cat under your care starts choking, it is vital to use your eyes and your ears so you can time when to render pet first aid.

Choking actions and sounds differ from that of a cat experiencing a hairball. A cat will tend to shrug his shoulders and make quick gulp sounds before opening his mouth and releasing a hair-filled hairball.

In households occupied by dogs and cats, there should be a no-dog zone for safety reasons. The area, of course, is where litter boxes are located. This area needs to be off-limits to dogs at all times.

Cats need and deserve to urinate and poop in litter boxes that are in safe, private locations. They don’t want to worry about a dog in the home accessing that area in an attempt to raid the litter box for a stinky piece of poop.

Yep, I said it. Poop.

Like to cook? Enjoy trying new foods? Before you consider sharing anything edible with your dog or cat, do a safety check.

Some items we may love to consume can cause digestive upset – or even death in your pet. As the founder of Pet First Aid 4U, I make it my mission to educate my students on ways to avoid accidental poisoning in their dogs and cats.

Thousands of dogs go missing from their homes every day. It happens in every state. And thousands of panic-filled pet parents search neighborhoods and animal shelters, create lost dog posters, and check in with neighborhood apps like Next Door to try to find their missing pets.

But do you what to do if you spot a free-roaming dog who definitely appears lost? As America’s Pet Health and Safety Coach, I am all about playing it safe.

Some cats act like camels who purr. Many are not big water drinkers. And some dogs also need to be led to the water bowl. But water keeps the organs and body systems hydrated for our pets. It also ushers out body waste, regulates body temperature and acts as a lubricant for joints.

Thanks to advances in medicine and good nutrition, more dogs and indoor cats are reaching senior age status. Old age is not a disease. It is simply a stage in life.

But like people, some cats and dogs do become senile in their senior years. In fact, some pets exhibit certain telltale signs of cognitive dysfunction around age 12.

One of the sneakiest and life-threatening conditions that can strike dogs is what is commonly called bloat. Veterinarians refer to it as gastric dilatation-volvulus (GDV). In my pet first aid/CPR classes I teach in person, via ZOOM and self-paced online courses, I provide students with information that they need to quickly recognize bloat and an action plan to safely get that dog to the nearest veterinary clinic.

Move over, Rover! Many felines are also joining their favorite people on car rides around town and across many states.

I know this firsthand. Casey, my confident orange tabby, is always up for new adventures. He has traveled to 16 states to accompany me for pet behavior talks and pet first aid/CPR courses.  He is also a certified therapy cat who visits seniors at memory care centers as well as kids in schools and at libraries.  

You show your love for your dog in so many great ways. You dish up healthy food. You take your dog for daily walks.  You book regular veterinary exams. You may also see the value of taking a pet CPR and first aid course.

For all of that, I say, take a well-deserved play bow!

But when was the last time you smelled your dog’s breath?  Or peeked inside the ears and took a whiff?

One of the most popular options to occupy a dog’s time (and mind) while home alone is to offer him a Kong or another dog chew toy slathered with peanut butter.  Pet Safety Dog Kona loves, loves, loves this tasty treat.

However, in this age of Keto diets – and with the rise of people diagnosed with diabetes, more popular foods and products are being offered in sugar-free forms. Specifically, these foods contain xylitol.

Wildfires can strike without warning. You may only have minutes to round up your pets and safely escape the blazing flames and heat.

But you and your pets can also be in danger if fires are a few miles away. In my Pet First Aid 4U classes I teach, I alert my students of the hidden danger: inhaling smoke-filled air. Yep, poor air quality from wildfires can be as hard on pets as on pet.

Unfortunately, our dogs do not live in protective bubbles. They can get injured or sick and need our help pronto.

That’s why as a master certified pet first aid/CPR instructor and founder of Pet First Aid 4U, I realize that we don’t always have a pet first aid kit or near a veterinary clinic when our dog – or a client’s dog – gets injured.  This motivated me to create my Muttgyver™ program.

Call this a case of hiss and swell. What should you do – and what should you NEVER do – if your dog or cat gets bit by a snake?

As a master certified pet first aid/CPR instructor, I provide pet professionals and pet parents with veterinarian-approved tips and tactics for a variety of dangerous situations facing our pets – and that includes encounters with snakes.

Some cats win ribbons for their pedigree markings at acclaimed cat shows. Some felines light up TikTok with their silly antics in bathroom sinks.

And then there is my confident, can-do orange tabby named Casey.  What’s his superpower?  He is arguably the busiest pet safety cat on the planet. That’s because he teams up with me to deliver lifesaving, practical pet first aid skills to pet professionals and pet parents all over the world.

You want to learn pet first aid/CPR, but I’m here and you are there.  Guess what? Miles don’t matter. I can train you in real time in our veterinarian-approved Pet First Aid 4U class anywhere on the planet.

As a master certified pet first aid/CPR instructor and founder of Pet First Aid 4U, I am on a mission to teach you wherever you live. Right now, only about two percent of people with pets have completed pet first aid/CPR training.  We need to boost those numbers!  And a great way to do that is by offering convenience to you.

My live, interactive via ZOOM pet first aid/CPR classes allow you to watch, learn and perform pet first aid skills without leaving your comfy home.