You know how much I want your pups to be safe at home with you, right? That’s why Barb and I teach you about how important it is that we wear a collar and ID tags. Remember, we need one with your name, address and phone number as well as a license tag from Maricopa County (check this out at Maricopa.gov/pets/license). It is REALLY a good idea to get a microchip for your dog or kitty too so that if they are lost they can be scanned and returned home. Any vet can do this for you for between $25 and $40. What a cool thing for kids to save up for!!!

If your dog is lost there are lots of things for you to do to try and find them!

1. Go to the 2 county shelters every other day and look through the cages for your dog. They have too many animals to tell you if yours is there over the phone! Here are the addresses;

The East Valley facility is located in Mesa at 2630 W. 8th Street

The West Valley facility is located in Phoenix at 2500 S. 27th Avenue

2. Look all through the photos at tinyurl.com/shelter photos.

3. Post colored flyers within a 2 mile radius of where your pet was last seen.

4. Put free ads on craigslist.org, pets911.com, petfinder.com and azcentral.com.

5. Go to petharbor.com and fidofinder.com

6. If your pup was wearing a license tag call 602-506-pets.

7. Talk to your letter carrier, neighbors and paper deliverer about them.

8. Ask your local schools to post your flyer.

9. Offer a reward for anyone that finds your pet.

10. Keep looking for at least 10 days!!!!!

I know how sad you would be if you couldn’t find your special pal. I hope this never happens to you but, if it does, it will help you feel better to get busy doing all you can to get them safely home.

Next time we’ll talk about what to do if you FIND a dog or kitty!

Bye for now and special puppy kisses from me…

Your friend,

Rocket

SAFE AT HOME IN BED

I sure hope you had a good end to your school year! I bet you are so excited to go up to the next grade in the Fall..congrats to you all! I want to say an extra special congrats to the winner of the bike drawing this year, Mary McManus! I had so much fun surprising Mary by kinda sneaking into the classroom by myself with a balloon attached to my collar. No one was expecting me so they were scratching their heads wondering what was happening. Barb came in and told them that I was there to give the winner her gift card, T-shirt and big puppy kisses and we had a fun celebration. It was like a party!!

Mary did a “Happy Dance” which made me feel like the happiest pup ever!! If I had a magic wand, I’d make all my Super Rangers winners of the drawing and I’d make loving homes for all the dogs and kitties in the world. For now, just remember, that all of you that help the animals are winners in the most important way..by growing your hearts bigger and making a difference in the world! Always know that you CAN help.

You can work on a Super Ranger project over the summer and let us know about it. Remember your name gets entered 2 times if you do a Top Dog project by yourself. You can email me all summer at

rockets rangers@yahoo.com

Happy Vacation!

Love from your friend,

Rocket

I know vampires are pretty popular these days in movies and books, but to us pups they are SUPER scary because sometimes, in real life, we get insects attaching to us and drinking our blood!! These insects are called TICKS. Ticks are all over, especially in the summer, and it is easy for them to land on us. They start out pretty tiny so you might not notice them at first, but, once they bite us they start eating our blood and they grow and grow!!

LOOK HOW THEY GROW!!!

The reason ticks are so bad for us is that they spread diseases to us and to people too! These diseases can kill us or cause us a lot of suffering. There are wonderful little drops you can put between your pup’s shoulder blades that kill baby ticks so that they never attach to us..YEAH! You can get this medicine from your vet or a pet store and it works for a whole month. Some of the names you might see are Frontline Plus and Certifect. Old fashion flea and tick collars don’t really work L These medicines can cost a lot but, if you can buy them, they might save money in vet bills later. Sounds like a good project for my Rangers to save up for the medicine! Let me if you do  cuz I’ll make you a Super Ranger for helping!!! My vet, Dr. Kit, has them at the lowest price possible. You can call her at 602-828-4657 and go pick them up from her mobile hospital.

Another thing you can do is check ALL OVER your dog to see if he has any ticks on him. Do it really carefully and often running your fingers deep into the fur and along the skin. You know where ticks REALLY love to hide?? Would you believe between your dog’s toes and down in her ears??? Doesn’t that sound uncomfortable?? It is and it makes us feel awful. If you find one it’s important to take it off the right way! Ask a grownup for some tweezers and carefully get hold of the tick’s head…then pull it off. You don’t want the mouth to get left behind because that still hurts us. You can put it in some alcohol to kill it.

All your pups will be so happy that you help them stay safe from these awful creatures! They spread so fast because one adult lays thousands of eggs. One dog can have 1000 if they aren’t taken care of. It makes me so sad to say that a lot of the stray dogs found in Phoenix are covered in ticks.

This would be a great subject for one of my Rangers to do a report on to earn their certificate…HOW ABOUT YOU???

That’s all for now! Love from your friend,

Rocket

Hi Rangers!

Barb and I made some fun doggy treats the other day for my sister Lucy and me and we thought you might like to try them at home. What a fun way for your family to spend time together PLUS we pups will have fun eating them afterwards! We also thought that this might be a fun Top Dog Super Ranger project…you know making them and selling little bags of them to raise money for the animals. You could decorate the bags and write a little note telling people that you are helping homeless animals. Whatever you do with these recipes, have a great time!! See you soon…munch, munch, munch.

Love from your pal,

Rocket

Dog Biscuits

These biscuits, if stored properly, should keep 3 weeks or more.  They can also be refrigerated and frozen.

Economy Cookies (makes about 50)

1/3 cup margarine (butter), softened

3 cups whole wheat flour

½ cup powdered skim milk

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¾ cup water, room temperature

1 egg, beaten

1)     In a large mixing bowl, cream margarine and flour with a pastry cutter and set aside.

2)     In a small bowl, dissolve powdered skim milk and garlic powder in water and whisk in beaten egg.

3)     Make a well in the flour mixture and gradually stir in egg mixture until well blended.

4)     Knead dough on a floured surface, about 3-4 minutes, until dough sticks together and is easy to work with.

5)     With a rolling pin, roll dough to between ¼” and ½” thickness.

6)     Cut with a bone shaped biscuit cutter and place on a lightly greased baking sheet

7)     Bake 50 minutes at 325.

8)     Cool on a rack until hard and store, at room temperature, in a container with a loose fitting lid.

Over the Rainbow Treats (Makes about 55 biscuits)

1 cup canned mixed peas and carrots, drained

2 ½ cups whole wheat flour

½ cup powdered skim milk

1 teaspoon garlic powder

6 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 egg beaten

½ cup ice water

1)     In a blender or a food processor puree carrots and peas and set aside.

2)     In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, powdered skim milk, and garlic powder.

3)     Make a well in the flour mixture and gradually stir in pureed vegetables, oil, beaten egg and ice water until well blended.

4)     Divide dough into 2 balls, so it is easy to work with.

5)     Knead each dough ball on a floured surface, about 2 minutes.

6)     With a rolling pin, roll dough to between ¼” and ½” thickness.

7)     Cut with bone shaped biscuit cutter and place on a baking sheet, lined with foil.

8)     Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees.  Remove from oven and carefully turn each biscuit over.  Continue baking another 25 minutes.

9)     Cool on a rack and store, at room temperature, in a container with a loose fitting lid.

Hi Rangers!

Some of you know that my life had a sad AND a happy beginning sort of like my puppy brother Rocket. The sad part is that I was born in a shed to a feral mom in Colorado in the cold of  late October. One night, when I was 3 weeks old, it was sooo cold that I almost froze to death!! I was barely breathing and my heart rate was VERY SLOW. The happy part is that Barb found me laying in a snow bank that night, put me in her pocket and took me home. She wrapped me in a tiny blanket underneath a heat lamp. It was a miracle, but I woke up and was a healthy kitty from then on. I am 12 ½ years old and still a happy boy!!

Do you know what a feral cat is? It is a cat that is wild and homeless and is not comfortable around people. You might see them in your neighborhood but they won’t let you touch them or play with them.  If I had stayed living in the shed for a few more months I would have been a feral kitty, but Barb found me when I young enough to change and be part of a family. YEAH!!! Who wouldn’t want to have Rocket for a brother???? Sometimes you see a stray cat that DOES let you handle it. That probably means it is not really feral but has lost it’s home. Maybe you can help find it’s family or find it a new home.

Since we can’t take feral cats into our families, what can we do to help them???? The best thing is to trap them in special cages, take them into the vet to be spayed or neuterd and then release them back to where you found them. There is a special group in Phoenix called ALTERED TAILS that loans people the traps and shows them how to use them. Then they spay or neuter them for $25. If we do that, the colony of cats will not get bigger and may even disappear when the last ones get old. Sometimes kind people leave food for the feral cat colonies in their neighborhood . You sure need grownups to help with this but, since feral cats can cause problems, so they may be happy to know what to do! Just go to the website www.alteredtails.org to learn more.

Here’s some great news:

******ALTERED TAILS is spaying girl kitties for only $20 in February *****

If you haven’t had your sweet girl spayed, this is a super deal!! Go to the website or call 602-943-7729 to find out the details. Sometimes kittens born to families get loose and live a feral life which is scary! Don’t let that happen in your family.

I wish I could come meet you Rangers in person, but I really hate to go in the car L We can be friends on the website, OK?

Moew for Now,

Mango

Hi Rangers!

Are you having some fun over the Holiday break? I got some swell treats for Christmas..some even had my name written on them. We’ll be sending you a recipe to make treats  for your own pups soon.

One of the most fun things to do when you have some free time is to read. Barb seems to read every day and sometimes she reads to me and my adopted sister Lucy. We love it!! Have you ever read to your dog or kitty? Some of us are very good listeners and we are very patient if some of the words are hard for you. We just love the feeling of being part of your fun..you know because we’re part of the family!!

Since we want to help you learn more about animals, why not check out the booklist on the Rocket’s Rangers website. You’ll see it on the menu on the left side. If you do, and if you write a book report on one of those books, just send it in to me so you can become a Top Dog Super Ranger. Don’t forget the bike drawing is in only 5 months..wow!! I love to read all the things my Rangers write to me.

You know what else we pups like? Sometimes when we’re cuddled up reading, Barb also tells us some of the things she’s thinking about. If it’s something sad or scary we help her feel better just by being there. We love you guys no matter what !! If it’s something exciting, sometimes we just have to run out and play to celebrate.

I wish you all a very Happy New Year and can’t wait to see you in school!!!

Love,

Rocket

You know how Barb and I talk to you about not really knowing what kind of dog I am ? And you know how it doesn’t really matter cuz I’m full of love and kind of cute (Barb said that part!) Well I was thinking that it is true about people too! I don’t care what color you are or what religion you are or what country you are from…I love you because you are loving to me and see the best in me which is my heart. I was thinking that it is such a good time of year to remember that we are all a little different from each other whether we’re mixed up mutts like me or people from all different places and beliefs !! Will you join your buddy Rocket this season in celebrating the colorful differences in all dogs, kitties and people and knowing that, deep down, we all need and want the same things??!!  I hope you all have what you need this year whether it’s a full bowl, a soft bed or a soft scratch behind the ears!

Love from your friend,

Rocket

Hi Rangers!

I know you think I’m pretty brave because I won a Hero award for staying alive when I was abandoned, but there IS something I’m afraid of and that’s THUNDER and LIGHTENING!! We pups can feel when a storm is coming and right away I get a little shaky. You should see me when it starts booming!! Sometimes I shake all over like crazy. The other thing I try to do is stop the thunder by barking at it. It’s funny cuz when I let out a big bark it seems to stop for a minute and I feel pretty strong then BOOM it does it again. Barb says the barking is not much fun to listen to. My sister Lucy the Border Collie is even more scared of storms than I am, so Barb has tried to help us feel safe by doing a few things. Every dog is different so you can see what works for your buddy.

If we had lived with Barb when we were puppies, instead of being adopted later, she would have tried putting us in our cozy crates in a small room with things we love to cuddle and chew and maybe some happy noise to distract us when a thunder storm started. But we were almost 2 when we got together and hadn’t had that kind of care soooo she had to experiment. This is what works for me. Instead of being outside or in the whole house, I lie beside Barb’s feet wherever she is. When I hear a big boom and start to shake, she gives me a hug and tells me I’m ok. She also gives me a few drops of flower extracts called “Rescue Remedy” which helps me feel calmer. Usually we are in a small room and she will close the window shade and put on nice music. Pretty soon I fall asleep . Lucy is harder to help. Barb bought her a”Thunder” shirt made for dogs that is stretchy and fits really tightly around her middle. It’s amazing, but it helps her feel safe, sort of like when they wrap up new babies in tight blankets. Lucy stays in the small room with us and goes behind the sofa until it’s all over. No amount of petting will convince her that she’s all right!

If these things don’t help your dog, it’s a good idea to talk to your Vet, who may want to give them some medicine or share other ideas!!

So now you know what scares me and I know don’t think any less of me, right? I think everyone has something they are scared of even BIG BULLIES. I hope you have someone you can tell about what YOU are afraid of so you can find ways to feel better too!!!

I JUST HEARD A LITTLE THUNDER….GOT TO GO FIND BARB!!

Love you Rangers!

Rocket

Hi Rangers!

I sure hope you all had a great summer vacation!! I’ve been relaxing and having some fun adventures, but now it’s time for us all to get back to school and start learning again! I am excited to see you all in your new grades. Are you excited and maybe a little nervous about all the new things ahead? I bet you love to come home from the 1^ST days of school and hug your pups and kitties and tell them all about what you’ve been doing. I think they will miss you if you’ve been able to spend a lot of extra time together over the summer. Be sure and remember to get them the exercise they need before or after school so they won’t get bored, ok?

Remember to spread the word about rocket’s rangers to your new teachers so we can come and visit soon!

I think I’ll have one more nap on the hammock before dinner!!

LOVE FROM YOUR FRIEND,

ROCKET