Saturday, December 31, 2011

Staying in Hotels and Traveling with Pets

Kevin Elder, president of Planit Meetings, a hotel travel and meeting company, and life-long dog and cat owner, suggests the following, regarding planning hotel trips for dogs.

If you’re facing a long flight, like from Nashville to Seattle, consider Pet Airways, a pets only airline. Go to www.petairways.com for rates, and schedules. Planit Meetings loves Pet Airways, because they transport rescue dogs, to their forever homes, at a 50% or more discount, flying standby. (If you see a photo and a story about a dog, on the Proverbs website, or this blog, but adoption seems impossible, because of the distance, Pet Airways can help you.)

Romeo

Some hotels charge a $50 - $150, non-refundable pet fee, or have pound restrictions. Other hotels do not permit you to leave your dog in your hotel room alone, even if the dog is secure, in a crate. Find out about all the restrictions before you arrive, to avoid unpleasant surprises, like hidden fees. Search for a smoke-free, pet-friendly hotel. Hotels that have smoking floors always put pets in smoking rooms.

After you’ve made your hotel reservation, call the hotel’s front desk, to request a quiet room, on a low floor, and also ask them to send via U.S. Mail, a printed copy of their pet policy. (Also, ask for a corner room, usually the best rooms, away from the elevator.)

Consider staying at a Kimpton Hotel. All Kimptons have always been dog-welcoming, with no pet fees, no pound limitations, or other restrictions. Further, the Kimpton Hotels, world-wide, offer great pet amenities, and even in-room dog massages and grooming, and complimentary dog-walking, at some Kimptons. Planit Meetings’ favorite pet-friendly budget hotel is the Red Roof Inn (but not all Red Roof Inns are pet-friendly, so call ahead). Their no-frills, no carpeting and upholstery rooms allow better cleaning...as in no carpeting for the inevitable dog-accident.

If you’re planning sightseeing, with your dog staying in his/her room, for long periods of time, consider doggie day care, for your pup, for some of the days, of your trip. Also consider putting off your dog’s grooming, for your vacation. Many groomers offer pick-up and drop-off; while you’re sight-seeing, your pup will be getting a necessary chore, out of the way, and will not be stuck in the hotel room all day, while you’re out exploring.

Learn where the city’s dog parks, pet-friendly cafes, good walking trails, are, before you travel. Hotel concierges are a great source of information. If the concierge at the hotel, where you will be staying, doesn’t know, call another hotel in the same zip code, and ask that hotel’s concierge.

Locate in advance the city’s vet E.R.

It goes without saying, even though restaurants and other establishments frequently have dog bowls by their door, bring your own collapsible water bowl. With most CVS stores carrying dog food, and other supplies, traveling with all your dog’s supplies is not the necessity that it once was, but do not forget an extra leash, and make sure the dog tags are secure on your dog’s collar.

Finally, as much as you love your dog, and how much you miss your dog, when you’re away, consider keeping your dog at home, with a very good pet-sitter, in your home. Recently, a Planit Meetings’ colleague, her family and their pet went to a lovely pet-friendly inn, for a long weekend. The dog did not get along with the inn-keepers’ dog, and further, picked up a skin-irritant, hiking in the woods and fields near the inn, necessitating a couple of vet visits after.

For questions about traveling with pets, or for the best hotel rates at pet-friendly hotels, email Kevin, at Kelder@planitmeetings.com, and mention Proverbs 12:10.

Welcome to Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue!

Welcome to Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue
Bellevue, Tennessee

Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue's purpose is provide shelter and loving care, which includes food, veterinary care and any other necessity, for animals that were abused, abandoned, owner surrendered, or otherwise destined to be euthanized, due to over-crowded shelter conditions. Through the use of foster homes, Proverbs cares for these animals until good, responsible, loving homes can be found for all adoptable animals.

www.proverbs1210rescue.org
info@proverbsrescue.org

Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue
PO Box 210830
Nashville, TN 37221

Why Do Dogs Eat Grass?

Excerpt from an article by: Virginia Wells

Although dogs are primarily carnivoires, they will eat almost anything; they can survive on a well-balanced vegetarian diet. Like all living creatures, dogs need a combination of fats, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and water in a balanced diet.

We're not sure why your pup likes grass; there have been many theories offered. Primarily, dogs are descended from wild canids, which ate the entire "kill" when they hunted for food. Since they consumed many herbivores (plant-eating animals), they wound up eating a lot of plants and even berries found in the stomach and intestines of their prey. Interestingly, carnivores tend to go for the stomach and its contents first, so it's likely that dogs may eat grass because they like it and it was once part of their normal diet.

Do dogs eat grass to make themselves vomit? Or do they vomit because they eat the grass? Most veterinarians believe that dogs eat grass simply because they like it, and vomiting naturally follows. When dogs eat grass, the grass acts as an irritant and causes vomiting. However, they may not be smart enough to use grass as a medicine when they have an upset stomach. That said, one of us has seem a dog with burrs stuck in his throat pounce on a Ficus plant and voraciously start scoffing great scads of leaves until he threw up, presumably in an attempt to dislodge the foreign material.

Some veterinarians believe that dogs eat grass because their prepared diets are lacking in greens and so they eat grass.

No matter what the reason, your dog's "grass" habit is normal behavior and you need not be concerned about it. A note of caution, however: Take care that your pet does not eat grass that has been treated with fertilizer, pesticides or herbicides.