10 Reasons To Adopt A Shelter Pet

1.) You’ll save a life.

According to the SPCA, every year 2.7 million animals are euthanized (1.2 million dogs and 1.4 million cats) because they cannot find homes. This number could be dramatically reduced if more people adopted pets.

2.) Many dogs are already house-trained and have excellent socialization skills.

Often animals end up in the shelter by no fault of their own and they have no behavioral problems. Many of them even know several commands!

3.)You’ll never be bored or lonely.

Shelter pets each have their own unique personalities but one thing they all have in common is loyalty to their rescuer. When you adopt a dog, you know you’ll have a best friend for life.

4.) You are not supporting puppy mills.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Puppy mills are commercial breeding operations where animals health and well-being are not considered. Females are bred repeatedly and confined in tiny, unsanitary spaces for their entire lives. Once they cannot produce puppies anymore they are often discarded or killed.  Every year over 2 million puppies are sold from puppy mills. This is not only a tragedy for the dogs involved but it puts more strain on our shelters.

5.) You’ll pay less and get a healthy dog.

How Do Bugs Survive Winter?

Have you ever wondered where bugs disappear to in winter and how they emerge so quickly in spring?  It’s popular belief that bugs either migrate or die during winter.  However, most insects actually continue to live among us in all life stages during colder months.

How do they survive?

Migrate
Many species such as butterflies, dragonflies, moths and beetles migrate in large groups to warmer areas. Distance depends on species and where they started from, but some have been known to travel several thousand miles.

Communal Living
Some insects such as bees, ants and termites practice communal living in order to survive on stored food and a colony for support.

Seek Shelter
Most insects such as mosquitoes and fleas, seek shelter in the winter. This could be something such as a brush pile, a dog house or your home.

Freeze Control
Many insects have developed strategies for surviving harsh conditions including controlling their body’s ability to freeze.

Diapause
Similar to hibernation, somebugs enter a paused period of development called Diapause. This allows them to slow their metabolism and become inactive. This can take place in insects at all life stages and some larvae can freeze and then resume developing when temperatures rise.

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How do I keep them out of my home?

The best way to keep bugs from seeking shelter in your home is to make sure to block all possible entry points. Doing a thorough perimeter check at least twice a year is good practice for bug prevention.

Areas to check could include but are not limited to:

Windows
Window Screens
Doorways
Dryer Vents
Foundation cracks
Exterior cracks
Roof Openings
Trash Bins
Recycle bins

Only you know your property. Don’t rely purely on this list for a thorough check.

 

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What kind of bugs are most common inside the home?

Fleas are one of the most common pests that we get calls about during winter. If fleas are able to live indoors they will continue to multiply in your home. Performing regular flea checks on your pets as well as using natural preventatives is key in keeping fleas from becoming a problem.

If you do see fleas, be sure to wash any bedding, clothes or items that you believe could also have been exposed. Vacuuming floors and furniture will pick up any eggs that may be hiding in the fibers. (For bigger infestations, check out this natural home treatment kit.)

Bugs to watch for outside of your house
Do you stack firewood near your home? If so, you could be inviting wood boring bugs to your home. Make sure that you do not store wood inside your home and only bring it indoors when you are ready to use it. This will eliminate bugs that have been harboring in the wood to escape inside your home.

Even though it’s year round, pest prevention should be easy. Knowing how to keep them out and what to use when you do see one what’s most important.

The post How Do Bugs Survive Winter? appeared first on CedarCide.

Cedarcide Animal Rescue Project

 

Cedarcide is overjoyed to announce that its first rescue horses will be arriving to the Cedarcide rescue facility in Dallas this week.

These horses were rescued on Labor Day from the Kaufman kill pens in Forney, Texas, where they were scheduled to be shipped to slaughter on Thursday, September 8th.

Luckily the Cedarcide team found out about these horses and were able to intervene and give these boys a second chance.

We do not know much about their backgrounds except that the bay gelding was a former racehorse with $150,000 in winnings. (He has the lip tattoo to prove it.)

Why or how someone could abandon these beautiful horses is a mystery to us but we are elated to have the opportunity to rehabilitate them.

We will continue updating on their progress as we go along.

Below are pictures from day one at the kill pen:

The post Cedarcide Animal Rescue Project appeared first on CedarCide.