The only treat I’ve had time to bake in the last five years is chocolate chip cookies with Nestle’s refrigerated dough. So when I contemplated my next column topic, and my niece Melina said, “I would like to read about making dog biscuits,” I almost blew it off. Then I did some research.  When I entered “homemade dog or cat treats” in Google, the results totaled 268,000. I posted a query for recipes to friends on Facebook and received five enthusiastic responses in five minutes.  I texted Melina: “Want to make dog biscuits tomorrow?” My Basenjis Kona and Chloe served as our in-house panel of …

I had the opportunity to go on a ride along with Senior Animal Control Officer Debbie Dawson. Animal control is a part of the Edmonds Police Department. While I generally knew what purpose Animal Control serves for a city, it was still an eye opening experience. Edmonds has two very involved Animal Control officers. Debbie Dawson has been with the department since 1986, and is the current board president of the National Animal Control Association (NACA). Tabatha Shoemake has been with the city for a little over two years. Along with Dawson, Shoemake has been instrumental in encouraging animal…

After talking about MRIs, acupuncture, inflammatory infectious central nervous system diseases, and everything in between with Dr. Karen Kline, DVM, one of two neurologists at the VCA Veterinary Specialty Center of Seattle (VCS), she ended our interview with what she considered most important: “We deal with people and emotions in emergency situations and help people feel better.” This emphasis on pet owners surprised me after our long discussion centered on the pets themselves. She acknowledged that the focus at VCS is all about companion animal care and service, but pointed out this goes …

Adix's Bed and Bath for Dogs and Cats plays a key role for animals and their owners in more than one north Puget Sound city. Both Edmonds and Mountlake Terrace have a contract with Adix's Bed and Bath for Dogs and Cats in Edmonds to house strays that are picked up by animal control. When animals are taken in, those without identification are held up to 72 hours. Owners of pets with identification (collar or microchip) are given 10 days to reclaim them. Owners are responsible for any fines associated with a loose animal, which means two stops: First, paying fines at the police department, and …

 As one of the pet columnists for the new Edmonds Patch, I'd like to introduce myself. My husband and I have shown and raised barkless Basenjis (African hounds) for 22 years. We started out as a one-Basenji family and our maximum, so far, is a five-Basenji family. We are currently holding at three. Due to our active household, we also know the best local places to buy second-hand furniture (my favorite was the store on Hwy 99 just south of 196th that sold used hotel furniture, but they closed last week, so I'm on the hunt).  We've worn out five steam cleaners for carpets (generally the …

Swedish/Edmonds has some rising stars.  Therapy pups Shug (pronounced like the beginning of the word sugar) and Teddy have been showing off the hospital in a very unique way: from a canine perspective.   Steve Kaiser, Director of Marketing, Communications and Public Relations for Swedish/Edmonds, was inspired by a video he saw on YouTube where a person strapped a camera on his cat's head to see what the cat did all day while he was at work.  That video wasn't particularly exciting, but Kaiser realized he could capture more action by employing the same method with the dogs visiting Swedish/…