The South Koreans have apparently successfully cloned a cat that glows in the dark. Well, momma cat didn’t glow in the dark, but her kittens did. The scientists did their normal cloning thing, take a skin cell from the mother cat, replace the genetic material from the ovum with that of the skin cell, then implant the egg into the donor cat. But what they differently was to do a little gene therapy on the genetic material from the skin cell. With the help of a virus, they were able to alter a gene so that the protein it produces fluoresces red under UV light.

Below is the image from the Korea Times that shows a glow-in-the-dark cat and a non-glow-in-the-dark cat under a UV light. The glow-in-the-dark cat fluoresces red while the non-glow-in-the-dark cat appears green.

[Picture taken from Korea Times]

I’m not sure of the medical research implications that this may have. But what I do know is that when a black cat crosses my path on Halloween or Friday the 13th I won’t be near as creeped-out as I would be with a red-glowing kitty staring me down. Congratulations black cats everywhere, you just moved up a notch!

Apparently the owner of these furry felines, Julie Jackson, feels that her cats aren’t prissy enough … so why not dress them up in wigs? According to the report this morning, the owner and her cats enjoy dressing up and dancing around the house in wigs. Sounds like a fun place if I was a kitty drag queen.

In all seriousness, it’s a fun site to check out and chuckle. And why not dress up your kitty in a wig? You can check out her site at http://www.kittywigs.com/.

It is of no surprise to me that something like this is happening in Beverly Hills (puggles, super-tiny chihuahuas, etc), but what did surprise me is that no matter where you find your puppy, up-scale pet stores, dog breeders, there is almost no way to determine the reputation of the breeder from where the puppy came. It’s big business! I, for one, have always acquired my dogs from shelters or rescues. I just can’t fathom paying hundred (or thousands) for a dog that I am going to love unconditionally.

Suggestion #1: Limit your carry-ons
Probably the worst part of this whole experience was getting through security. I normally travel with my laptop case, which many of you already know is a pain in itself. Not only do you have to remove your shoes and belt, but you must also place your laptop in a separate bin. Now try doing all of this while also having to remove your pet from its carrier to carry it through the metal detector. I’m sure with some practice this gets easier … the laptop in the separate bin did.

Suggestion #2: Arrive an hour and 15 minutes before your flight departure time
While my sister and I did our research on flying with pets, we found a few places on the Internet that suggested to arrive 3 hours before your flight to allow enough time to get through security with your pet. NO! I strongly encourage you not to arrive too early because once you are past security where is your pet going to do it’s business? Plus it has to be on a flight for another two or three hours, maybe more.

Try arriving a few minutes earlier than you would normally, walk the dog outside the airport, and then go in.

Suggestion #3: Nothing to eat or drink two hours before departure
This will help to diminish the possibility of an accident in the carrier and motion sickness. I didn’t have a problem with this, but can you imagine if this happened on the plane?

Suggestion #4: Carry a collapsible water bowl
Cabin air is very dry. According to Flyana.com, “Dry cabin air causes dehydration“, cabin air humidity is drier than that of the Sahara. When I fly, I tend to buy a water bottle once I’m past the security checkpoint and drink it throughout the flight. For your pet, on the other hand, this can be very difficult. Airlines have very strict policies regarding pets in the cabin. As far as Continental is concerned, pets are not allowed out of their carriers while on the airplane. This makes it difficult for your pet to have a drink of water while on the airplane. And since your pet’s surface area to volume ratio is greater than yours, dehydration will occur at a faster rate.

With the above being said, as soon as you arrive to your destination airport, pull your dog out of its carrier and your collapsible water bowl, and give the poor guy a drink.

Additional suggestions:

1. Carry a leash. You can walk your dog inside the terminal while waiting at the airport.
2. Be sure to have your paperwork. Although no one actually asked to see it, someone did ask me if I had it.
3. Be considerate of the non-pet lovers. When walking around the terminal with your pet on a leash, keep him close by. Don’t let him jump on the unsuspecting tourists. Owning a pet means also carrying the responsibility of pet ownership.

Flying with a small dog was not easy. I worried a lot. But with the right preparations, and some practice, I’m sure the process will become much easier.

Murphy, my problem dog, has been having what appeared to be dandruff for quite a long time. Along her back she would have large flakes and she would always itch … incessantly. She would itch so much that she would be red and irritated all over her underside, and she would have scabs throughout her coat. What was my solution? It was the same solution for humans … I would bathe her more often … but that didn’t fix the problem.

My pet sitter suggested it could be a food allergy … I honestly never thought of that. She said that if I was feeding her something like Beneful, which is loaded with carbohydrates, she has seen several dogs have similar conditions like Murphy’s. It turns out that Beneful tastes really good (to dogs … seriously, don’t try it yourself … doesn’t taste as good) because it is loaded with carbohydrates.

I checked the bag in the garage … yep, we were feeding our dogs Beneful! Well, since I figured it wouldn’t hurt to try something new, we went to Petco, asked for recommendations, and now our dogs are on Nutro Natural Choice Adult Dog Food.

It’s only been a couple of weeks, so I haven’t noticed a difference yet. The dogs did not refuse the new food … I guess that’s good … but I’ll be sure to keep you posted on Murphy’s progress.

My cats are much more pleasant people when they stay at home, instead of in a kennel. After boarding, I get reports of Jupiter, my Siamese mix, being very vocal and threatening towards the kennel staff. Jaromir, my older kitty, only hides for his entire boarding experience. At home, they are much more pleasant and loving with my sitter. And they don’t have to go through the stress of living in a cage for days and being taken care of by strangers that don’t understand them.

When boarding my dogs, all four, they end up being separated “for their own safety” at a kennel. At home, they all run and play together, like a pack. Their favorite times of the day include being in their three-quarters of an acre yard, and family love time. Family love time is when all the dogs and I get on the floor, and we wrestle and snuggle together. These things are not provided for them in a boarding situation, and that concerns me. I want them to be as happy as they can be without me there. That is where my pet sitter comes in. She can provide them with the most important parts of their day.

Then, comes the concern of leaving my home empty. Without my dogs barking at every noise near the house, an intruder may see it as an opportunity to break in unnoticed. Also, my pet sitter turns lights on and off for my pets’ comfort, and it serves as a deterrent for anyone looking for empty homes.

This is why pet sitters are the way to go. They keep pets’ the happiest and most comfortable, all while helping keep my house looking occupied.

Although I love my vet, I can’t deny that my dogs appear in much better health (less stressed) when we come back from a trip and my parents have been watching them than when they have been left at the kennel. And I swear Murphy, my brittany spaniel, would always come back a little thinner and balder when she stayed at the kennel.

A few weeks ago, my wife and I, along with my parents, took a trip to South America. My sister had told me about pet-sitting before, but I had never tried it. We decided to give it a shot. Since I live in the Houston-area, and I can’t use Wright Pets, I did a search for pet sitters near me. We couldn’t have been happier with this service! The dogs looked happy and healthy when we came home, and it cost us just a tad more to have at-home pet-sitting for our two dogs than it did to have them boarded in the same run at the kennel.

In addition to checking on the dogs and feeding them, my pet sitter collected my mail, newspapers, and even paid the lawn guy when he showed up at the door. When I emailed her from Colombia she would reply with updates on the dogs. In fact, she told me how she stayed at the house during a rain storm because she knew how nervous Murphy got with thunder.

I am sold on at-home pet-sitting services and I’ll be using this pet sitter again. If you live in the Clear Lake City area of Houston, Texas and are in need of a pet-sitter try Clear Lake Pets.