A black Labrador retriever that spent two stints at a Kansas animal shelter is living the good life on a 120-acre Florida farm, thanks to an affluent heir who felt a personal connection to the dog and dispatched a private jet to claim her.

Despite guidelines that recommend vaccinating dogs with key vaccines every three years, many veterinarians continue to push annual vaccinations, a CBC Marketplace investigation reveals. And when dogs get annual jabs, pet owners may be getting gouged. See the full-length investigation video (22 mins.).

Best Wishes,
Andrew Jones, DVM
P.S. My supplements ONLY contain ingredients I have sourced to be safe and effective.

1. You think my tail wagging is always an invitation for you to pet me more. Wrong!
Italian researchers found that dogs wag their tails slightly to the right when they see something they like and to the left when they're confronted with something they want to back away from.

2. You might buy any old dog-grooming brush at the pet store...
...but you should really pick the right one for my coat. A rubber brush will promote circulation and loosen dirt. A bristle brush removes dead hair.

3. You're giving me too much food.
How can you tell? I don't seem motivated by food treats when you're trying to train me. Cut back, and I'll start to pay attention.

4. Grooming day means you bring out the big blow-dryer. Don't!
To make dogs like me look fluffy, shake a little cornstarch into the base of the fur and then brush. It will absorb oil and grease and detangle matted fur.

5. Please don't rush me when I'm going to the bathroom.
There's a reason dogs circle around before getting down to business: We have an instinct to be aligned with the earth's magnetic field before we poop. In fact, researchers watched 70 of us engage in 1,893 defecations over a two-year period just to figure this out.

6. You may think it's nice to let me sleep all day, but too much nap time can affect my personality.
A lot of behavioral problems can be solved by just taking your dog on a daily walk or by playing with your cat for 20 minutes every day.

7. Since I'm an old dog, I get to eat whatever I want, yes? No!
If I have arthritis, I'll be much happier if you give me a daily supplement that contains glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, which protect joint cartilage. And switch me to a food formulated for an animal my age.

8. If you lose me...
...the first thing you should do is call every animal shelter within 100 miles of home, and visit the nearest shelters every day if you can. Many animal control bureaus euthanize animals if they go unclaimed for a specific amount of time. (For good measure, be sure to get me a microchip when I'm young.)

9. If you're getting me spayed...
...ask your vet if she can remove just my ovaries, not my uterus. A much less invasive procedure, it's the way cats and dogs are spayed in Europe, and many U.S. veterinarians have already made the switch.

10. Because I'm a creature of habit, even a subtle change in my behavior is a red flag that I might be sick.
So if it takes me an hour to eat my food instead of 60 seconds as usual, if I'm tiring out faster when we play, if there are more urine clumps in the litter box than usual, or if I seem to be drinking more water, call the vet right away.

11. There's no question that if you keep me inside and don't let me wander the neighborhood...
I'll have a better chance of living a longer life. I won't get hit by a car, stolen, or just plain lost. But once I've been allowed to roam free, it'll be hard to change me.

12. Please introduce me around when I'm young so I'm not afraid of strangers.
Some experts say I should meet 100 new people of different sizes, genders, and ethnicities in my first 100 days at home, even if it's just a quick greeting. Make sure you include people wearing hats and sunglasses, since those accessories can look awfully scary to me.

13. You may think it's cute when I rub my butt on the carpet...
...but it probably means that I'm itchy and would like to see a vet.

14. When you're choosing a new furry friend, ask a vet or trainer for simple tests you can do to gauge temperament.
For example, you can try rolling me over on my back to see how I handle it. If I really struggle, I'm probably going to be tougher to train than an animal who lies there placidly.

15. Forget the Milk-Bones!
If you want me to really pay attention when you're training me, use a treat that's moist, something so gross, you don't even want to hold it in your hand, like a piece of greasy chicken.

16. While some of us gulp down grass only if we've eaten something that doesn't agree with us and we're trying to regurgitate it...
...others of us just love to munch the lawn. So let me graze – just make sure the grass I'm eating is free of pesticides.

17. Beware, Mom, because I will eat your underwear...
...especially if they've been worn. Veterinarians surgically remove hundreds of pairs from dogs' bellies every year.

18. Please, please can I choose my own bed?
The most comfortable one will depend on how I sleep. Let me try out a few in a pet store. If I usually sleep with my legs sprawled out, I'll be more comfortable on a flat bed without side bumpers. But if I like to curl up, I'll probably love a bumper bed.

19. You say I'm great with kids, but...
...if I'm licking, pulling my ears back, turning my head away, or yawning (all signs of anxiety) while they play with me, I'm probably just barely tolerating them. If you keep letting them pull my tail, one of these days, I might lose it.

20. Hold those clippers!
No matter how high the mercury climbs or how long my hair is, I don't need to be shaved. My undercoat actually insulates me from heat, so it helps me stay cool. Just make sure you keep my coat brushed and mat-free to promote good air circulation.

21. If you leave me in the backyard when you're not home...
...don't fool yourself that I'm going to run around and have fun. The truth is, I'm probably going to sit in one spot and wait for you to return. Dogs are den animals, and many of us prefer to be inside, ideally with you.

22. I love to fetch and would like to learn how to catch a flying disc...
...but those hard plastic FRISBEEs can hurt my teeth and gums. Instead, look for a soft one at a pet store.

23. If I'm not used to strangers and you reach out toward me when you first meet me...
...your hand may as well be a meat cleaver. Instead, crouch down on one leg and look slightly away. Then let me approach you and give you a sniff.

24. Let's get one thing straight: Declawing is not the same as cutting our nails.
It's a hideous, painful surgery that's much more like amputating the last two knuckles of your fingers. If my scratching is really bad, try glue-on nail caps.

25. If I'm spraying "outside the box," I'm not being spiteful.
Something is stressing me out. It may be a new person, a new pet, or even a new piece of furniture in the house that seems to be encroaching on my territory.

26. I'm confused. When I jumped up on you earlier...
...you gave me such a nice pet. But now you're mad at me for jumping on Aunt Martha. Am I allowed to jump up or not?

27. If you let me on the furniture now, while I'm young and cute...
...I will always think it's OK, no matter how big I get.

28. What do you mean you can't teach an old dog new tricks?
My owner taught me to fetch the newspaper from the driveway and take it to him when I was ten.

29. Remember when I was little and you shoved my nose in a puddle of pee I left?
I have no idea why you did that. Instead, get me outside as quickly as possible and praise me whenever I pee outdoors.

30. Want me to learn to walk by your side on a leash?
Well, give me some incentive. As soon as I start to pull ahead, stop walking. When I turn and look back, offer me a treat right next to your leg. I'll quickly figure out I need to stay next to you in order to keep doing what I love most: moving and exploring.

31. If you're tired of finding pet hair on your sofa and want to keep me off...
...try a Scat Mat, which gives out a small, harmless electrostatic pulse when it's stepped on. Or buy a car mat and turn it upside down on your couch, so the little rubber prongs are facing up. I hate those.

32. When I bark, jump, and grab the towel off the countertop...
...I'm not trying to be bad. I'm just bored! I want your attention! Please, get off your smartphone and play with me.

33. If I'm a dog who is scared of thunderstorms or loud noises, get me a snug-fitting Thundershirt.
Or you can make your own. Wrap an Ace bandage across my chest, cross it over the top of my body and then back under, going over and under until it's midway down my back, and then secure it. The constant pressure against the middle of my body will help ease my anxiety and calm me down.

34. Remember, my digestive system is very different from yours.
Raisins and grapes can shut down a dog's kidneys. Other dangerous foods include chocolate, coffee, macadamia nuts and avocado.

35. Want my coat to be thick and shiny?
Make sure my diet has plenty of essential fatty acids. Most high-quality commercial pet foods have enough, but pets on low-quality foods or homemade diets that aren't balanced may develop a dull coat.

36. Every bag of pet food has an Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) statement on the label...
...although you might need a magnifying glass to read it. Look for one that says the food has undergone animal feeding trials rather than one that's been “formulated” by a computer. The trials are expensive, but they indicate that real dogs actually ate the food for six months with good results.

37. Check with a board-certified veterinary nutritionist before giving me a homemade-food diet.
Researchers at the University of California, Davis, who examined 200 recipes last year for home-prepared dog food found that 95 percent had some serious nutritional deficiencies.

38. Did you hear the hype about grain-free cat and dog food?
That's what it is: hype. There's nothing wrong with feeding me grains – they can actually be an important part of a balanced diet. Before you make any change, talk to your vet.

39. If you switch me to a raw diet, I may end up with cracked teeth or a bacterial infection.
Also, exposure to my feces could put anyone with a weakened immune system at risk. That's why the ASPCA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other institutions all strongly discourage raw diets.

Sources: Brian Hare, PhD, codirector of the Canine Cognition Center at Duke University; Rebecca Remillard, PhD, DVM, DACVN, a veterinary nutritionist at North Carolina State University and founder of petdiets.com; Jorge Bendersky, a groomer and pet stylist in New York City; Spencer Williams, owner and president of West Paw Design, a company that makes pet toys and beds; Nancy Kay, DVM, author of Speaking for Spot: Be the Advocate Your Dog Needs to Live a Happy, Healthy, Longer Life; Jennifer Coates, DVM, veterinary adviser to petmd.com; Victoria Schade, dog-training and behavioral expert at pet360.com and author of Bonding with Your Dog: A Trainer's Secrets for Building a Better Relationship; Sophia Yin, DVM, a veterinarian and animal behaviorist and the author of How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves; K. C. Theisen, director of pet-care issues at the Humane Society of the United States; Amy Farcas, DVM, DACVN, a veterinary nutritionist at the University of Pennsylvania; Marilyn Krieger, cat behavioral consultant and author of Naughty No More; Karen “Doc” Halligan, DVM, author of Doc Halligan's What Every Pet Owner Should Know; Jackson Galaxy, cat behaviorist and host of Animal Planet's My Cat from Hell; Stephen Zawistowski, PhD, animal behaviorist and adviser at the ASPCA.

I talk a lot about vaccine dangers, and I often mention a condition called vaccinosis.

Since vaccinosis isn't recognized by most traditional veterinarians and isn't something many pet owners have ever heard of before, I thought it would be helpful to do a short video to explain the condition.

 

Vaccinosis Defined

First, let's talk about what vaccinosis isn't.

It isn't an acute, often immediate adverse reaction to a vaccine. Adverse events, or hypersensitivities, whether mild (such as lethargy, flu-like symptoms, etc.), or severe (such as anaphylactic shock), that are clearly linked to a recent vaccination are widely acknowledged by the traditional veterinary community.

Unfortunately, these reactions are considered by traditional vets to be occasional aberrations that result from a basically safe procedure.

Vaccinosis, on the other hand, is a problem only holistic veterinarians seem willing to acknowledge. It is a reaction of a pet's body to vaccines that have been injected without the pet having experienced a notable adverse event or hypersensitivity. These are chronic reactions to not only the altered virus contained in the vaccine, but also to the chemicals, adjuvants, and other components of tissue culture cell lines – as well as possible genetic changes – that can be induced by vaccines.

Dr. Richard Pitcairn, who holds a PhD in immunology, defines it this way: "Vaccinosis is to be understood as the disturbance of the vital force by vaccination that results in mental, emotional, and a physical change that can, in some cases, be a permanent condition."

Dr. Pitcairn: Vaccines Create Chronic Disease

According to Dr. Pitcairn, vaccines intended to protect pets against acute natural diseases actually create chronic conditions with features of the disease the vaccine was supposed to prevent.

This transformation begins in the laboratory, where natural viruses are modified in order to make vaccines.

Whereas the natural virus would trigger a strong immune system response, the modified lab-created virus in the vaccine doesn't elicit much of a reaction by the animal's immune system. Instead, it creates chronic disease.

The delivery of a vaccine is also very different from how a natural disease develops in an animal's body.

Vaccines contain a number of toxic substances, including viruses, mutated bacteria, immune irritants, foreign proteins, and chemical preservatives. All of these toxins are delivered by injection directly into the blood and lymph, bypassing the usual first line of defenses, including the skin, mucous membranes, saliva, and so forth. So not only is the virus in the vaccine unnatural, the way it enters a pet's body is also very unnatural.

When you look at the situation from this perspective, it's easy to see how abnormal immune reactions are triggered by vaccinations.

Your Pet's Individual Risk of Vaccinosis

The strength and balance of every animal's immune system is different, so there's no way to predict – unless your dog or cat has had a reaction in the past – how much danger your pet is in from exposure to the modified virus contained in any given vaccine or the many toxic ingredients it contains.

That's why I strongly encourage pet owners to avoid all unnecessary vaccines and re-vaccinations [i.e., "booster" shots].

Symptoms of Vaccinosis

COMMON VACCINE REACTIONS INCLUDE:

Lethargy	Stiffness
Hair loss	Lack of appetite
Hair color change at injection site	Conjunctivitis
Fever	Sneezing
Soreness	Oral ulcers

NEW YORK (MainStreet) – Millennials are usually seen as a demographic that is irrational, debt-saddled, underemployed and financially irresponsible. That inevitably means low disposable income. But you may be surprised by how much money 20-somethings are willing to spend when it comes to taking care of their dogs.

According to a report aggregated by an Arlington, Virginia-based market research firm Wakefield Research, 76% of Millennials are more willing to make impulse and pampering purchases for their pet than they would for themselves on certain pricey items, such as expensive treats or a custom bed. By contrast, only half of Boomers would like to spoil their pets by purchasing those items.

"It's a trend that Millennials are becoming the major power to the future consuming market in the pet industry," says Nathan Ritcher, CEO of the Wakefield Research. As the pet industry is predicted to be a $59 billion market in 2014, according to American Pet Products Association, Ritcher said, "It's good evidence to show that Millennials are redefining which products are more important."

Millennials made up less than a third of the U.S. adult population, yet their spending power is expected to surpass that of Boomers at $3.39 trillion in the next four years. As pet owners, they are grandiose, conscientious, and irrational; they think differently about what is "essential" when purchasing products.

Wakefield's report shows more than half of the younger shoppers own clothing for their pets and think it's important to carry their pets as a kind of accessory so that they are able to travel with their pets easily; meanwhile, pet supplies that contain chemical-free, natural, organic and hypoallergenic elements are more demanded by them than Boomers, since they usually value health and food safety more than their parents and grandparents.

But how come the younger generation who often asks for financial support is actually the main force of pet ownership with large expenditures?

The psychological explanation behind their consuming behavior is that most Millennials are narcissists who are pursuing self-recognition by all kinds of means, according to Dr. Peter Noel Murray, principal of a consumer psychology practice based in New York City.

"Their choices of what to acquire in life are made in large part on how well they validate their positive self-image," he told MainStreet.

Unlike most pet owners who are looking for companionship and love from their pets, said Murray, "the appeal of a pet to this young adult is more likely to be how well it reflects on the individual and captures the attention of friends."

To be noticeable, social media encourages Millennials to be exposed actively as pet owners, which also applies to the characteristic of being narcissistic. According to Murray, self-focus on social networks and the obsession with "selfies" both explained their unquenchable thirst for recognition.

"They see themselves, and want others to see them, as special and unique," he said.

Wakefield's report indicates that only 10% Millennials are not on social platforms. For Millennials who have a social media account for their pets, 66% are on Facebook, 38% are on Twitter, and 34% are on Instagram. Also, more than half of Millennials share "selfies" while only 9% of Boomers would do the same.

As the irrational behaviors have stimulated the pet industry, marketers are seizing the opportunity to cater to the potential market demand from Millennials.

"We are creating incredible mobile friendly website and apps and personalized offers to interact with our younger shoppers," says Jeff Eckerling, CEO of Doggyloot.com, a Chicago-based e-commerce site for dog products. Currently, the online shopping hub has more than one million subscribers, according to Eckerling, and most of them are at their mid-40s. That said, Millennials have brought one third of the web traffic to Doggyloot's website and 23% of them are being active on its Facebook fan page.

In the Wakefield report, despite the fact that Millennials see their pets as their family members like Boomers do, they are more likely to feel that raising a pet is part of the preparation for having a family.

"A lot of Millennials view their pets as a way to train themselves to be a good parent in the future," says Ritcher.

In response to that, Murray thinks it's wrong to confuse the relationship between having a pet and raising a kid.

"They think it might be helpful to develop their responsibilities [to be a future parent] but it's unrealistic; it's not happening," he said, "They are focused on valuing things but they don't care how they attain those."

In addition, he is also concerned since Millennials are highly prone to discard items when they no longer serve their purpose. When their pets have slowed down middle-aged or grown old and need comfort and care, Millennials may not be able to fulfill the psychological needs of their formerly pampered pets, Murray says.

"It could well turn into a crisis for animal shelters in the not-too-distant future," he said.

By Deidre Grieves, Pet360.com
People make money buying houses for low prices and then reselling them for profits. It's a practice known as flipping – and it looks like this may be happening with dogs as well.

A Craigslist ad is sparking controversy after a woman who adopted a Jack Russell Terrier from a Hawaiian animal shelter allegedly put the dog up for sale just an hour after picking the pooch up from the shelter. According to a report from KHON2 News, the advertised rate for the dog was "$200 or best offer," which is more than double what the woman paid in adoption fees.

The 10-year-old Jack Russell named Sally Mae was adopted by a young woman, but an hour later, the same dog was offered up for sale in an ad on Craigslist that stated that the woman and her boyfriend were caught up working two jobs and couldn't take care of the dog. The posting immediately sparked outrage and sadness from the local animal community.

Christina Kam, the shelter's communications and event coordinator, told reporters, "It's really disappointing to think that animals are really seen as a commodity versus your loving pet that's part of your family, so that's really hard for us."

Sally Mae, the Jack Russell Terrier listed on Craigslist Immediately after Adoption

The shelter did attempt to call the new owner and get Sally Mae returned to the shelter so that they could find her a loving home. However, when reporters reached out to the woman who adopted Sally Mae, the woman explained that it was a misunderstanding. She told Hawaii News Now that she was selling Sally Mae because she was loud and energetic and wasn't fitting in.

Ultimately, the woman told reporters that her family would help care for the dog, and that she plans on keeping Sally Mae.

People that return animals to the adoption center within 30 days are given a full refund and Kekama Amona, who volunteers to make videos of the animals for the shelter, believes that is exactly what the woman should do. "I think she should return the dog and give it to somebody who really wants to keep the dog," he told Hawaii News Now.

Unfortunately, the Craigslist poster did not technically break any laws. There are no rules or regulations that make the reselling of adoptable animals illegal or punishable. The shelter does not have language in its adoption contracts preventing owners from "flipping" pets, but after this incident, the shelter is looking into making that a part of contracts in the future.

This is a truly sad story, and the victim here is undoubtedly Sally Mae. That Jack Russell deserves a loving pet parent, not one that tries to sell her for profit just because she is loud and energetic. If the woman had done any research beforehand, she would have known that Jack Russells have plenty of energy and need an active family. All we can hope is that Sally Mae manages to have a good life, whether she remains with the woman who adopted her or with a completely different family. Dog-flipping of any kind – no matter the circumstances – should absolutely be prohibited by law.

UPDATE: The Hawaiian animal shelter announced that the 10-year-old Jack Russell Terrier was returned and successfully placed with another family.