I just read this interesting tweet from a contact on Facebook and learned that our pet's fur can be put to good use in helping to clean up the Gulf of Mexico's oil spill. Most Sibes are starting to (if not already in the middle of) blowing their winter coats, and we all know how much fur that is! Most times their shedding fur makes it look as though it is snowing in the middle of warm weather. Let's band together and put that disgarded fur to an excellent use. Click on the link below and it will direct you to how your pet's shedding fur can help out.   http://inhabitat.com/2010/05/04/donate-your-dog-and-cat-hair-to-clean-up-the-oil-spill/

Well, it's not quite the "dog days of summer," which, if you have a Sibe in your family, summer is not really the season of dog days, winter is...but, anyhow, here on the East Coast it's been pretty warm, reaching 90 during the day, and only dropping down to 60 at night. We didn't really have a true spring yet, so the temps do this drastic one-day-it's-40, the-next-it's-90 kind of jump. No gradual temps here. While the warmer weather is nice for the Hu-family, it is always a challenge to keep our Sibe kids cool. Of course for our big wooly Sibe boy, Gibson, we keep an extra eye on him so he doesn't overheat and have a seizure (he is the epileptic and runs way warmer than the other four clocking in at 113 pounds!). He gets one of the cool waterbeds in his kennel; the rest will as we get closer to summer, but since he runs really warm, he gets his a little earlier. His routine includes checking out all the rooms to see if it's cooler on the floor und...

I came across a very interesting and alarming article from Drs. Fosters & Smith about cocoa mulch that I thought I'd share. Now that it is spring time and many folks are planning their gardens and sprucing up their lawns, here is something to be aware of using around our beloved pets. And I had never even heard of cocoa mulch before! http://www.dfs-pet-blog.com/2010/04/cocoa-mulch/?utm_source=TW&utm_medium=Blog&utm_campaign=1

Just watched this pretty cool clip featured on The Dog Files on "urban" dogsledding with a kick bike! How cool and fun is that???!

April is Stress Awareness Month. In the previous blog, we’ve talked about how our wonderful Sibes help us to de-stress (I love The Thundering Herd’s description of a "Sibe blanket!"), but now let’s turn the tables and discuss how we can help them.  Right at this exact moment while looking at my FiveSibes sleeping peacefully, with a couple basking in the sun (yes, I have two who just love sunbathing, go figure-I think they missed the “Siberian” memo), while the other three are stretched out in their shady happy place, one would think “no stress here.” While true, there are many who do experience stress or wind up in stressful situations. Even my wooly boy did two years ago, when there he was totally enjoying life as a Sibe pup, getting spoiled, growing up, and falling in love with our alpha girl. It was a year of bliss for him. Then suddenly, three crazy, frisky, jumping, crying, talking Sibe pups dropped in…and not for a visit, they came to stay. My poor boy just sat on t...

I just recently read an article on Petplace.com about how pets help their owners deal with stress. There is much documented proof of how pets help reduce blood pressure, cheer up the elderly, help the ill, etc., of which I wholeheartedly concur. Recently, I have had to deal with some things that have sent my stress levels soaring. You know, when one of life's wake-up calls come screaming, "Hey, you, it’s time to think about you ." Now, it’s my ingrained personality to always think of and help others first. This "me" thing is not my thing. So, naturally, it begs the question, "How do I learn to reduce stress and learn to live with it in a healthier manner?" Well, thanks to both my Hu-family and my Sibe-family (and the cat that adopted us!), I’m learning some answers that work best for me. First, I’m blessed to have a great immediate family. And then there are our Sibes and our cat. The Sibes automatically hone right in on when on...