Holiday stress affects our fuzzy friends too

The holidays have arrived and in a big way, Friday is the downtown tree lighting. There will be cocoa, cookies and fireworks. Watson loves to go because he can always find someone who will share their cookie. Unfortunately, when the fireworks start, he is scared silly and becomes frantic. To minimize his stress, we avoid any venues that feature shooting or fireworks.

Holidays are a busy time, and for our pets the flurry of activity can cause them to feel stressed. When routines are disrupted, visitors come, and the normal order of the house is changed your pet notices and reacts.

Cats are really quite solitary. Unlike dogs who are pack animals, they don’t live in or hunt in packs. In fact a recent study highlighted interactions between multiple cats when their owners weren’t home. The results were surprising because the cats hissed and fought.

Enter science with a solution for cats and dogs. Available now are various products that contain pheromones. Pheromones are chemicals that are secreted or excreted that trigger an emotional response. They modify stress behavior to help the animal feel calm.

For dogs a product called Thunder Ease is available in a calming diffuser kit. It eases symptoms of stress and anxiety. For cats one of the most popular is Feliway calming wipes or spray. There are several products on the market that incorporate pheromones. Personally, I haven’t tried any of them yet.

I am not totally sold on the idea of pheromones, but I figure it would be worth a try. Poor Watson suffers through thunder, shooting and fireworks. I hope that the Thunder Ease will work and he will be able to relax and be comfortable.

To make your pets’ holidays more pleasant, you might consider using the pheromone-infused products to help them through the bustling, busy, beautiful holidays.

IN NEED OF

CAPS is presently looking for an Executive Director who will oversee operations at CAPS. You must love animals! This is a 30-hour/week job. Please call 775-423-7500 for details and ask for Pauline. You may also email your résumé to caps@cccomm.net with “Attention Pauline” in the subject line.

Aluminum cans; if you have cans to pick up, give us a call (775-423-7500), and we will come get them.

SHOUT OUT TO

Shannon Miller for adopting older dogs and giving them quality love. A Four Paws Salute to you!

The Junior ROTC volunteers who help out around the shelter. All Tails Are Wagging for you!

COME SEE US

CAPS will be at Walmart on Dec. 15 with the Kissin’ Booth and a puckered-up pooch. Come by to get your pooch smooch. We have CAPS Calendars for 2019, hoodies, shirts and hats. Be sure to check out our merchandise after you’ve hugged our pup.

DON’T FORGET

December Pet Holiday: National Mutt Day

CAPS 2019 calendars are available for purchase at CAPS or 3 Dimension Shipping.

To register in the AmazonSmile program, a website operated by Amazon. Customers enjoy same selection of products, low prices and shopping features as on Amazon.com. The only difference is that, when you shop on AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com), the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5 percent of the price of eligible purchases to the charitable organization selected by you.

Flower Tree Nursery will again be raffling a 20-gallon blue spruce on Dec. 15, and the winner doesn’t have to be present to win. The raffle tickets are available at Flower Tree, and they are $1 for one ticket and $5 for six tickets.

CONTACT CAPS

CAPS’ mailing address is P.O. Box 5128, Fallon, NV 89407. CAPS’ phone number is 775-423-7500. CAPS’ email address is caps@cccomm.net. Please visit the CAPS website (www.capsnevada.com) and Facebook page (Churchill Animal Protection Society). Be sure to “Like” CAPS on Facebook because we are really likeable.

CAPS is open to the public on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Kathleen Williams-Miller is a CAPS volunteer. Contact me, jkwmil@outlook.com.