Orangutan (Roscoe) and Dog Make Friends

Adam forwarded me this email about an orangutan in Northern California and his friendship with a dog and I had to share it with you guys. This is a true story about friendship.

WARNING: You might cry.

Feeding Guinea Pigs

In addition to the daily amount of pellets and Timothy Hay, guinea pigs also need to be fed fresh fruit and vegetables.

My sister (the person who gave us our guinea pigs) is really good at making sure her guinea pigs get fresh fruit and veggies every day. She has taught me about some fun treats to feed to your guinea pigs that I wanted to share with you.

1. Strawberries - they love them!
2. Carrots
3. Bananas
4. Red Bell Peppers
5. And Grapes!

Other blog posts that might interest you:
Teddy Roosevelt Chaucer

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Camping With a Dog

This past weekend we went camping with our three dogs and our family. We had a blast and so did the dogs! Camping is a great way to bond with your dogs. There is so much to do for you and your dogs to do, but it always helps to be as prepared possible.

We have taken our dogs camping before and have learned a few tips along the way that I wanted to share with you guys.

1. Before heading out camping we make sure our dogs have recently been shaved. This helps keep out the weed firs and also helps them to keep cool. One year we took them with long fur and it was a mess!
   
2. Bring some sort of dog bed for them to hang out on and get out of the dirt.
3. Make sure you have enough food and cold water to keep them hydrated and fed.
4. Bring glow stick necklaces. I wish I had taken a picture, but these are really nice. Tie them around your dogs neck at night and you can always know where they are!
5. If they have a kennel, bring it. Dogs actually love their kennel - it is their 'den.' We found it helpful to let them chill out in there for an hour or two to get away and have a nice nap.

Below are a few pictures from our trip. You will see that my nieces were very sweet to make them cute doggie necklaces out of grass.

A picture of my sister's dog Daisy. She loved the dog bed we brought.

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Dog Supplies

For those of you who know me, know that I am very frugal. So you will understand my excitement when we took a trip to Dollar Tree and they had an incredible deal on dog leashes and toys - a $1 each!!! SCORE.

The leashes are really high quality ones and bonus, the dogs really needed new ones. Thanks Dollar Tree!


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Another Vampire Attack

But this time it was by a real life vampire!!! I thought this was animal related enough to post, don't you think?

Ha ha, no but really this 19-year-old man was arrested because he broke into a woman's apartment and tried to suck her blood. He claimed he was a 300 year-old vampire that needed to be fed.


Crazy! Makes you wonder...are vampires real? Hurry, someone throw him into the sun and see if he explodes, or shines like diamonds (thanks Stephenie Meyer!).

See the full msnbc story here: 'Vampire' arrest sparks discussion on pop culture.

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Groomed Dogs

Follow-up: our dogs got groomed over the weekend and as expected, they look and smell wonderful. Just thought I would share.

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My 30-Day Challenge Recap

Okay all, I want to recap my 30-Day Challenge with you. For the most part I think I did pretty well. When I first set out to complete this challenge I knew it would be tough, and man o man was I right.

I am positive I saw 31 different animal species during July, but it was hard to see a new one everyday.

Some of the animal highlights were:

Ducks at Silver Lake

A Ball Python at Petsmart

A Dragon Fly outside my work
Overall, I saw new animal species for 18 of the 31 days, but there were many days I saw multiple species, that I couldn't count.

What do you think? Do I do well, or does it seem like I completely failed? How could I make it more successful next time?

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Dog Grooming This Weekend

We are taking a break from dog grooming and letting the professionals do their magic. About twice a year we send our dogs to the professional dog groomer. They are able to do things that we just aren't (anal gland cleaning - no thanks!). And in between, we do touch-up grooming ourselves to save money.

As you can see below, our dog Lily is looking a little shaggy. We think it is time to get them all groomed.

We just love it when our dogs come home from the groomer; they smell so clean. It just makes it so fun to snuggle them. What do you like about getting your dog/dogs groomed?

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Dog Grooming

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First Vampire Bat Bite Death in U.S.

I just saw this article on msnbc and had to post about it. As a little kid I heard about vampire bats, but always thought they weren't real. When I was in high school I found out they really were real.

And now a vampire bat has actually killed someone and the United States has had it's first Vampire Bat bite death. Read the full story here.

(Photo courtesy of msnbc)

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Dog Sitting

I had a great time watching my sisters pets last week. I watched her two dogs, two guinea pigs, a rabbit and a Love Bird.


Do you ever get to do any dog sitting? What about animal sitting? Do you have any fun stories to share?


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What did you think of Shark Week?

I want to know what you thought of this season's Shark Week?

Which show did you like the best. Please leave your comments in the comments section below.

Other Shark Week blog posts that might interest you:
Fun Shark Facts
10 Reasons Why Bear Week Would Be Better than Shark Week
Great White Invasion Review

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Shark City Review

Last night I watched "Shark City" on the Discovery Channel. I have to say that "Shark City' was most original of their seven shows they aired this season. In fact, it is probably the most original show ever on Shark Week.

"Shark City" is a hilarious introduction to sharks and the 'cities' that they live in. Most people believe sharks to be solitary creatures, but in many parts of the world, like the Bahamas, sharks live and feed with other sharks.

The show featuring Adam Samberg allows us a rare look into a sharks daily life and helps the viewer to get to know the sharks individually because each shark is given a name, such as 'Big Mama,' 'Harry' and 'Lloyd.'

I really enjoyed the interpretation of a shark's daily life and the names each shark was given. Adam and I were laughing the entire time. If you DVR anything this week, make sure you record this and watch it this weekend.



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Fun Shark Facts - Did You Know?

I put together a list of fun shark facts. Have a look and let me know if any of the shark facts shock you!

• There are more than 400 different kinds of sharks.
• You are 1,000 times more likely to drown in the sea than you are to be bitten by a shark.
• Sharks are more related to fishes like the stingray than they are barracuda.
• A shark can hear a fish in the water from more than a mile away.
• Sharks can smell one drop of blood in a million drops of water.
• Scientists can determine the age of a shark by counting the rings that form on its vertebra, much as you can count the rings on a tree to tell its age.
• Sharks’ wounds heal quickly and they rarely get tumors.
• The Dermal denticles that covers Shark skin is so tough and hard that before the invention of sandpaper, shark skin was used to polish wood.
• Shark teeth have been used as weapons and tools for many centuries.
• Eating Shark flesh is forbidden in both the Solomon and Fiji islands.
• About 100 people in the world are bitten by sharks each year. Of these, five to ten die.
• The chance of being killed by a shark is one in 300 million. The chance of being killed by airplane parts falling from the sky is one in 10 million.

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10 Reasons Why Bear Week Would Be Better Than Shark Week

Now I don't agree with the title of my post...I think Discovery Channel's Shark Week is awesome, especially Shark Week 2011 episodes! But, I found this funny article on College Humor and thought I would share a laugh with my readers.

Here is a little taste of the top 10 reasons. For the entire list please visit the 10 Reasons Why Bear Week Would Be Better Than Shark Week on College Humor. Special thanks and all credit should be given to Kevin Corrigan who wrote the article.



I must admit that the first reason is pretty convincing! What do you think?

Other Blog Posts that Might Interest You:
Great White Invasion Show Review
Sharks Close to the Beach

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Great White Invasion Review

I hope you all have had a chance to watch the Great White Invasion on the Discovery Channel, it is definitely worth the watch. Great White Invasion is one of their seven new shows they are airing this week. It features, you guessed it "the Great White Shark!"

It highlights the new places biologists are seeing Great White Sharks, locations they haven't seen them before, for example, they are seeing tons of Great Whites next to California beaches - really popular California beaches.

Most scientists think it has something to do with Global Warming. Sharks like warm water and since the new warmer waters tend to circulate near beaches, that is where they are now finding the sharks. Another theory is that the warm waters also brings in a huge food source for them. And who doesn't want to live by their food?

Overall, I thought this episode was really thrilling, especially when one of the scientists took a paddle board and paddled on top of the water above a Great White Shark. Personally I thought he was nuts!

If you want to know more, you will have to watch the 1-hour special for yourself. But I promise it is worth the watch!

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Find Shark Week on Facebook

Don't miss out, follow Shark Week on Facebook. They will keep you up-to-date on all the latest and greatest. Enjoy!


By the way, which new Shark Week show have you liked the most this year? So far I think mine has been the Great White Invasion.


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Sharks Close to the Beach?

I have been really into Shark Week on the Discovery Channel for about three years now and it was about that time that I saw some of the most startling shark footage ever; hundreds of sharks were swimming right next to beaches covered with people!!!

I tried to find the exact video, but I didn't have any luck, however I did find a similar video that was also quite shocking.

In addition, I wanted to also show you some images I found. Scary!


Now, I am not trying to say that people should fear sharks, but just be cautious. Have any of you had any experiences with sharks in the wild?

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Great White Leaps onto Boat

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