Creating the Best Life for Animals

I recently finished Temple Grandin's latest book, Animals Make Us Human. It's a really compelling book that covers a wide spectrum of interests. If you want to know more about how to keep your cat or dog happy, read this book. If you are interested in animal welfare for both domestic and wild animals, read this book. If you own or work in a slaughterhouse or eat meat, read this book. And if you don't eat meat and are an animal rights activist, read this book.

Temple Grandin thinks about animal welfare from all perspectives. She has designed the audit systems now in place for many slaughterhouses and used by places like McDonald's and Wendy's to ensure their product comes from humane sources, and humane devices to lessen animal trauma or fear in these places. Her top concern, at all times, is the welfare of animals. If we are going raise animals for consumption, companionship or entertainment (aka: farm animals, pets, or zoos) then we should at all points in the process be focused on ensuring that these animals are emotionally and physically in the best state possible.

Her previous book written for the public, Animals in Translation, focused more how language and sensory perception works in animals. It was a good book, but this new book is really groundbreaking, I feel, in being accessible to the public and touching on so many important concepts. My only wish is that she had focused a little more on backyard/small farm chickens, in her chapter on chickens, which focused primarily on larger operations. However, that is just because I have some ;)

Other chapters include Horses, Dogs, Cats, Pigs, Cows, Wild Animals, Zoos, What Do Animals Need, and Why Do I Still Work for the Industry?

So if you need a last minute gift for an animal lover, owner, farmer, lawyer or well, just about anyone, I highly recommend this book!

Chicken Wars: One Woman's Fight to Own Backyard Hens

I like to check in at http://www.backyardchickens.com/ and see what's new on the forums every once in a while. One woman who petitioned her city to allow hens among the city ordinances received a castigating "welcome to town" in the local paper for her efforts. Now, BYCers (as those who frequent the forums like to call themselves) are taking up her cause and are helping her by writing letters to the paper and the local council. I myself was incensed enough by the condescending, un-informed authorship of the following article to write in a comment as well...

For those who love chickens, and for the curious, I include the article and my response below :) If you wind up wanting to write in a comment, too, go to http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2009/dec/19/home-home-ranch/


Home, home on the ranch
Saturday, December 19, 2009

EAST COUNTY — Ah, the sounds and sights of morning. The coffee pot perking, the newspaper hitting the driveway, the before-dawn walkers gliding by as darkness lifts, the gaggle of sounds from the chickens next door ...
Squawk!

Someone tried to slip a henhouse by the La Mesa City Council the other night, but that group of stalwarts – “foxy” isjn’t the right word word to describe them – was too alert.
Jill Richardson, a newcomer to La Mesa, asked permission to keep a half-dozen chickens as pets and egg producers. That’s a no-no in La Mesa, save for a couple of areas with large lots and grandfather clauses.

City officials suggested it would cost $20,000 to revise the ordinance. In fairness to Richardson, however, $20,000 to a city with a $36 million budget is, shall we say, mere chicken feed.
No, there are reasons chickens have persona non grata status inside most city limits. One has to do with sanitation and public health. Another with keeping peace between neighbors – that plump hen just beyond the fence is pretty inviting to a bored feline or canine. And third is the noise. Romantics aside, roosters don’t just crow at the crack of dawn.

Richardson made a strategic mistake, and we don’t mean asking for permission. If anything, she forgot the prime tenet of real estate – location.

One virtue of neighboring El Cajon and points east is that you can be in the city but just a five-minute drive from open country. If East County is anything, it is horse corrals, mini-orchards, occasional swaths of alfalfa and plenty of rugged eagle’s-nest views.

La Mesa has charming homes on twisting hillside roads with canopies of trees, but most lots are distinctly city-sized.

We don’t fault Richardson for wanting a few pets or exceptionally fresh eggs. But she needs to do what many of us old-timers should be doing more of, taking a day trip to explore and get away from it all while hardly leaving our back yard.

Find a Thomas Bros. mapbook and head for Campo, Jamacha, Jamul, Dehesa or Crest. Or aim for Barona, Sycuan or Viejas, but take time getting there – and circle around. You’ll be away from it all, yet not that far from the city.

Here’s welcoming Jill Richardson. For many, East County has just the right mix of city and country. We’re confident she’ll find hers, too.


And here's my comment to the paper:

What a condescending article -- not only was it rude, but the author clearly knows little to nothing about chickens.

Chickens are not dirty, and they don't smell. Just as one must clean up after their cat or dog to assure clean conditions, so must a coop be regularly cleaned: the difference is that chicken manure is an inoffensive addition to compost, and safe to use in the garden.

Ms. Richardson asked specifically for the city to allow hens, not roosters -- hens do not crow, or make any more noise than your average cat. Chickens are not "inviting prey" for most cats, and most city ordinances for chickens require them to be fenced in securely within coops with runs to keep them in and dogs and cats out. Similarly, most dogs are required to be fenced in or on leash, regardless of how tempting a morsel in the neighbors yard may be: whether it is a toddler, a chicken or a steak on the grill!

City ordinances can also specify how much space each chicken must have to ensure humane animal practices, and restrict the number of chickens per household. Many cities these days in developed nations allow chickens, including the United States -- I am surprised that the writer did not do a little more research into the positive possibilties before "welcoming" Ms. Richardson so publicly.

Easy, Tasty Cookies without the Guilt

I made up this recipe yesterday and they were a huge hit. They taste a lot like snowball cookies if you roll them in confectioners sugar, but they don't need it. The best thing about these cookies is that even though they are quite healthy, they don't taste like it ;)

*Walnut Date Cookies*

3/4 cup walnuts
1/2 cup dates
1/4 cup sugar
1.5 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 tps vanilla
1 stick butter
2 Tbs milk

Preheat oven to 325F.
In a food processor combine dates, walnuts, and half the flour. Process until finely ground. Add remaining flour and sugar and pulse to combine. Cut butter into smaller pieces, add to processor and pulse until it is fully combined. Add milk and combine fully. Remove dough from processor.
Form small 1-inch balls and place on baking trays. Bake for 15-18 minutes.
If dusting with confectioner's sugar, do so just a couple minutes after removing from oven by rolling in a bowl of the sugar. Otherwise, simply cool on racks, and eat :)
Makes about 36 cookies.

Grandma's Fudge Never Fails

I just finished making up a 5LB batch of my grandmother's fudge... She used to make it and cut it into small 1 inch squares that she individually wrapped in tin foil. This kept it fresh and we snacked on it all through the last half of December. I loved unwrapping those pieces as a little girl. I'd eat the walnut bits first and then savor the fudge. mmmm. So I do the same thing, and give it out to lucky friends and family in cute little tins or among other cookies on a plate.

When i was around 20 I asked Grandma for the recipe, since she was in Florida by then and no longer making it for us all... Imagine my surprise when she directed me to the large jars of Fluff and their "Never Fail Fudge Recipe" that is always printed on there. I have always hated Fluff, even as a kid, and these days you know I cook healthy and avoid the evil corn syrup... but I can't get away from that recipe. I've had and made others and they just don't compare.

One secret -- the fluff fudge turns out best if you let it set in the fridge or a very cold wintry garage. Other women in the family have made the fudge and it doesn't turn out as good as grandma's or mine (grandma always got a kick out of that)... It was a mystery to me how they could be messing up such a basic recipt until one year I let mine set and cool at room temperature -- and it never did taste quite the same, or have quite the same fabulous texture as all those previous batches. Somehow, setting at the colder temps noticeably improves the fudge.

Warm and Cozy: A Simple Knit Dress for Babies and Toddlers

This cute little dress is super simple, and super warm, perfect for layering over onesies Fall through Spring. If you can do a a basic knit stitch and thread a sweing needle, you can make this for your little one.

The thickness of your yarn and needles will affect your dress -- the thicker the needles, the looser the knit. The finer your yarn, the thinner your resulting "fabric" will be.

For this dressed I used size 8 needles and a thinner, textured yarn: a beautiful nubbly purple and blue cotton/acrylic blend, which actually resulted in a tight and relatively thick "fabric" that is very soft.

I cast on 60 stiches, making the width about 20 inches, and knit row after row until it was the height I wanted: about 13 inches. Then I cast off.

I made the two straps 4 stitches wide and about 6 inches long.

After that, it was a simple matter of folding the large knit rectangle in half and sewing the two shorter ends together.

I used 1/2 inch elastic sewn to the seam at the top of the dress (the cast off end, since the way I knit that end is usually less stretchy and my plan was to gather the elastic end anyway) and then folded the "fabric" over the elastic and sewed that down on the inside of the dress, gathering it up so that the top of the dress is at least a couple inches narrower than the bottom (the dress I made should fit babies 2-8 months loosely as a warm play-dress, and then up to 1.5 years as a more fitted sweater vest). When I came full circle on the elastic, I sewed that in securely and finished off the folded down bit of the sweater so that you can't see the elastic at all (still working on the inside of the dress).

Then I sewed in the straps, attaching them to the inside edge of the dress.

I finished the whole ensemble off with a couple of decorative butterfly buttons - adorable! The straps could easily also be made to be adjustable with functional buttons.

Kids and the Great Outdoors

I just read this great parenting tip on Phylameana's Healing Blog on About.com:

"Cherokee said that when she was growing up that her and her sister would be instructed to take their differences and disagreements outdoors, and not to bring them back inside. Oh... how I wish I'd known about this when my kids were little and having their sibling spats. "

I think this is just great. I can't imagine doing it every time, but oh, how the outdoors can be a wonderful balm for the soul. I noticed that when my son was a baby, if he started really crying about something (which he rarely did) I could just open the front door and stand a couple feet outside with him and he would stop almost immediately. This was great at work (my old retail store), where he came with me daily from when he was 6 weeks to 2 years old. He would start wailing and I would say "reset!" and rush outside for a moment. Worked like a charm every time, no matter what the weather was.

I think a lot of us have forgotten how important fresh air is for children. Or we know, but we just don't do anything about it... My grandmother put all her babies (her own and over 30 foster babies, plus her daycare babies) in the pram all bundled up outside every day for at least 20 minutes and generally an hour, rain or shine, no matter how cold it was. Just their little nose and eyes peeking out.

As to sending the kids outside to work things out, I think it's a great idea -- as long as you keep watch that they don't pick up any heavy battling sticks!

Surprise!

Yesterday morning I went in my son's room and saw this drawing on his easle.

He's written a few letters on his own, and loves to scribble, but I've never seen him draw any sort of a figure, especially one I can recognize. The pictures they send home from school, which always have eyes in the right places, etc -- I assumed he was getting help lately. But when I asked him and Daddy (who watched Lucas while I was out the night before) -- Daddy hadn't done any drawing with him and Lucas said he "was trying to draw a robot, but that the arms with the guns weren't in the right place" (the long cross like lines on either side). The crosses are little guns that the robot is holding, according to lucas. I am totally impressed by my wee budding artist, and how everything is so symmetrical and in (mostly) the right place.

It's so neat to watch children when they leap forward to a new developmental stage. (He's almost 3 and a half.)

Just had to share :)

My New Book, Natural Animal Healing!

I am really excited to announce that I published my latest book last month, an exciting new Earth Lodge Guide to Pet Wellness: Natural Animal Healing.

Natural Animal Healing includes natural health solutions for pets from many modalities including homeopathy, flower essences, energy healing, animal communications, aromatherapy, crystal healing, over 50 pages of herbs, a comprehensive table of ailments and corresponding remedies, and a multitude of gorgeous hand-drawn pen and ink illustrations. Whether you have a cat, dog, or large animal this book is an informative, easy to use guide to pet wellness packed with enjoyable anecdotes and healing examples. (For more info or to order your copy, just click on the book cover pictured on the left side of this blog, or go to www.lulu.com)

My mother, Sandra Cointreau, also published her first healing book last month, Energy Healing for Animals & Their Owners, which is also available on www.lulu.com. Her book is a great companion to my book, teaching you how to heal your animals with the energy that flows through your own two hands. Her book also teaches animal communication and energy healing techniques, meditations and diagrams. "Energy healing is a powerful tool, and Sandra shows you exactly how to use it.” Marta Williams, Author/Animal Communicator, Learning Their Language and Beyond Words

Make Your Own Liquid Laundry (and Dish) Detergent

Today I finally got around to making my own laundry detergent. This is something I have been wanting to do for a long time, and I have many recipes I'd acquired, but I never went out and got the few basic ingredients I needed -- until now!

Making your own detergent saves a lot:
you save the earth (less packaging)
you save money (see my estimates at the bottom to find out just how much)
you save the environment (homemade soap is low-impact to the groundwater ecosystems)
you save your back (store bought detergent is heavy, and requires carrying from shelf to cart to cashier to car to home)

Plus, you get to control what scents you use, and just how pure your soap is.

As I said, I've been researching this for quite a while, and everyone claims that it works very well on everything from delicates to cloth diapers and tough stains. I tried it right away on my son's own cloth diapers, and I must agree. The diapers were totally fresh smelling, bright white and soft. Better than they have looked or smelled in months, frankly, no matter what detergents or additives I tried.

Here's What You'll Need:

A One-Gallon Glass or Plastic Container with lid (old vinegar or ale bottles work well)
1/4 Cup Washing Soda (In your laundry aisle at the grocery store)
1/4 Cup Borax (In your laundry aisle at the grocery store)
1/2 Bar of Soap, Grated (Many people use Ivory, or you can use something even more pure like Castile, Goat's Milk, or another Homemade Soap. For this first batch I mixed Ivory Soap and Lavender Dr. Bronner's)
Warm Water
A Cooking Pot
1/4 oz. essential oil of your choice (optional)

1. Heat the grated soap and 3 cups water in a pot on the stove, stirring until soap has melted. Add Borax and Washing Soda and stir until dissolved. Remove from heat.

2. Put 2 cups warm water in your storage container. If adding essential oil, now is the time. Add Soap Mixture and stir. Then fill container with warm water, stir again.

3. Let sit 24 hours. It will thicken to a light gel consistency. If you use cold water instead of warm the final consistency will be similar to egg drop soup.

Use 1/2 cup of detergent per load of laundry.
Each gallon of homemade soap gives you 32 loads!

But At What Cost?

Initial Outlay: $6.35
1 bar Ivory Soap: $0.50
Borax, 76 oz. Cardboard Box, $3.25
Washing Soda, 55 oz Cardboard Box, $2.85

One Gallon Detergent: $0.43
Gallon Container (recycled, re-usable vinegar bottle) $0.00
1/2 bar Ivory Soap $0.25
1/4 Cup Borax (1 oz. weight= appx .14 cup volume) = $0.08
1/4 Cup Washing Soda (1 oz. weight=appx .14 cup volume) = $0.10

One Load of Laundry: $0.013


Why buy detergent ever again??

Personally, compared to the laundry detergents I generally use I am saving about 7-10 dollars a month.

This recipe can easily be doubled and quadrupled, just line up some storage containers before hand and make your own detergent in minutes a few times a year (yes, literally, it takes me less than 5 from start to finish.)

Please note: You can also adjust quantities depending on the type of laundry you do (mostly washing diapers and oily mechanics clothes? Add some extra borax and/or washing soda) And you can dilute it in half with water and use it to re-fill your liquid dishwashing containers, unless you use aluminum utensils or pots. Also, this is a low-sudsing soap, which means you won't see a lot of bubbles: don't worry, it IS doing its job!

Raw Food

As most of you know, I adore food in all its forms. Most recently I had the pleasure of eating a completely raw and vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Tart with Whipped Almond Cream (very much like fresh whipped cream, but even better) made by my mother's neighbors who are are vegan and eat only raw foods at home. This was the best dessert I have had in years. Years, I tell you! That is saying a lot, since we eat at some very fine restaurants and I am a baker myself. You would never know that this was not baked, and it could have been served in any 3-star Michelin restaurant.

So, I have hunted down the recipes and the cookbooks from whence they came, and am thinking that if the rest of the raw recipes are this great, I will have to begin incorporating them into my diet. I don't think I would ever go all raw but I would love to include the ideas with my whole food mentality...

The books the recipes came from, for those who are curious, are:

Everyday Raw by Matthew Kenney

Pure and Simple, Delicious Whole Natural Foods Cookbook. Vegan, MSG Free and Gluten Free. by Tami A. Benton (Author)

DIY Boy's Haircut

I have been cutting my son's hair practically since he was born. Like everyone on my side of family, he was born wth a full head of hair, already over a centimeter long and nice and thick. And, also like me, it grows incredibly fast.

For the first two years, I used tiny baby scissors. At first, I cut his hair when he was sleeping, then we progressed to the highchair in front of a movie with a bowl of something special to eat (generally a yogurt, popsicle, or ice cream) From two to three, we used the same method, but with slightly larger round-tipped sewing scissors.

Two months ago I decided to give shaving a try. I bought a $22 kit from Wahl at Walmart, with 10 blade lengths, all color coded, ear trimming guides, scissors, and a comb, all in a nice plastic case. I figured even if it didn't work with my son, for the price it was worth a shot. At home, 15 minutes after setting up in a chair with a movie and a popsicle, we were done and my son had one of the best haircuts I'd ever given him. Wow!

Today I tried again and am definitely sold. We used 5 blade lengths (which gives that nice barbershop "fade" look) and the ear trimmer attachments. It took all of 5 minutes. I just set him up in a chair while he watched Tom & Jerry classic cartoons, with the promise that if he behaved he could have ice cream after. Amazing. He has a little cowlick in front that he's had since birth, and the width of the blade makes it a bit hard to trim as close to his ear as I would like, but all in all, I am a very satisified customer.

Now, if my husband would just trust me a little more... I used to cut his hair with scissors when we were young and his hair was longer, but he doesn't quite have confidence in the idea of me with a shaver.

Could Humans Infect Pets With H1N1? YUP.

by Jennifer Viegas, Discovery News

Nov. 6, 2009

Until this week, many veterinarians asserted that it was a myth that house cats could catch the deadly H1N1 flu from their owners.Those veterinarians, along with other health experts, are revising their views after an Iowa Department of Public Health announcement Wednesday that the virus has been confirmed in an indoor 13-year-old cat, which likely contracted the illness from two flu-sick humans in its home.

Although all of the victims have since recovered, this latest H1N1 animal case puts the focus on humans as the primary carriers of the illness, which experts don't even want to call "swine" flu anymore.

"We're seeing reverse zoonosis, with the virus jumping from people to animals," Alfonso Torres told Discovery News, explaining that several ferrets have also been infected, resulting in at least one pet ferret death in Nebraska.

"In theory, cats could infect humans, but there is no evidence for that yet," added Torres, former chief veterinary officer of the United States who is now associate dean for public policy at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine.Torres was "not entirely surprised" by the diagnosis in a cat. He said that until four years ago, no evidence supported that felines could catch viruses from other species.

That changed when several captive tigers and leopards died after consuming chickens infected with avian flu (H5N1). A later study concluded that house cats could also contract avian flu.While no dog has yet been diagnosed with H1N1, a deadly canine influenza strain has led to outbreaks among dogs since the first reported case in 2004. Canine influenza arose when a horse virus, H3N8, infected a dog.

It is not yet clear why ferrets and cats may be more susceptible to H1N1 flu, but Torres explained that "viruses need receptors" to enable infection of an individual. Sometimes these receptors are located in the throat and nose, while other times they are located more deeply in the lungs.

It could be that the anatomy of pigs and ferrets means that their receptors more closely match those of humans for H1N1. It's possible that cats have similar receptors, but further studies are needed to better understand the virus in felines and how to best treat it."The human H1N1 vaccine may or may not work in cats," Torres said. "There are some 60 million cats and only the one reported case, so the risk of other cats becoming infected appears to be low at this point."

Since both the avian and "swine" influenza strains emerged under crowded farming conditions, Torres suspects the growing worldwide demand for meat could be setting the stage for such outbreaks. It's predicted that meat production will increase by 50 to 60 percent by 2020 in response to human population growth and economic changes in developing countries.However, animals and humans living together in close proximity is only one probable factor that could lead to such outbreaks. Increased travel, more pets, climate change and better diagnostic techniques could also help to explain the rash of interspecies illness, he said.

Michael San Filippo, a spokesperson for the American Veterinary Medical Association, told Discovery News that the cat H1N1 case "provides a good reminder that viruses can pass from humans to animals."While both he and Torres wonder if the Iowa cat suffered from an underlying health condition that might have compromised its immune system they still advise all pet owners to take precautions if they come down with influenza.

"Avoid direct contact with pets if you have the flu," San Filippo said. "Keep them off of your bed and be sure to cover up coughs and sneezes. Wash your hands regularly."

He concluded: "Pets are members of our families, so exercise the same precautions that you would for other friends and family."

It's a girl!

Just a quick update before I run out the door!

Looks like the pinafores I made will be put to good use -- the ultrasound we just had shows that our little january angel will be a girl :)