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Pets First Monthly
March 2023
IT’S TIME TO GO OUTSIDE! Outdoor Safety Tips for Your Furry Friends
When you step outside in the morning this month, you may hear the chirping of the birds as they fly from tree to tree. You can see flowers sprouting from the ground and trees slowly blooming. The air is a tad warmer when you step onto your porch — perhaps you only need a light jacket instead of a huge winter coat. These sightings give you the hint that spring is quickly approaching and warmer weather is ahead of us. How exciting! As the snow melts and the grass begins to turn green, our pets will likely want to spend most of their time outdoors. Getting fresh air and roaming outside is one of the best ways to make sure that your furry friends get around 30 minutes to an hour of exercise each day. However, to ensure the safety of your pets, there are a few things you need to consider before letting your dogs and cats outside. Before you take your pet on a walk, run, hike, or let them roam your yard, please put the proper ID and rabies tags on their collars. Identification is important because it informs others that the cat or dog belongs to someone, and people can contact you since your name and number will be on the tag. But some of us may have pets who have mastered the art of removing their collars. For our four-legged friends who dislike collars, microchips are an excellent option. These rice-size chips are implanted between your pet’s shoulder blades. All veterinary clinics and hospitals have devices to detect and collect contact information from the microchip.
Now that your pet’s identification is squared away, the second thing you should do is have your animals updated on their flea and tick preventatives. As the weather gets warmer and our pets spend more time outside, they have a higher chance of getting fleas and ticks. You can either apply topical or oral treatment on your furry friends. There are a few different options: Bravecto is a chewy tablet given to your pets every 12 weeks. Or you can purchase Revolution, a topical solution that is applied once a month. Contact our office, and we can provide more information on which product will be best for you and your pet.
Bringing some of your animal’s favorite toys outside and playing with them is a great way to bond. You can also teach them new tricks or perform obedience training with them — just be sure you have lots of treats! Some of us like to bring our pets on adventures. If that’s the case, we have tons of great parks you can take your furry friends to. We have some parks in town, like Noelridge Park, Lowe Park, and Fay Clark Memorial Park. If you don’t mind going out of town, you can also visit Pleasant Creek, Palisades Park, and Pinicon Ridge Park. We have three fantastic dog parks for those who want to stay local and take their dog to nearby areas: Dave Wright Family Dog Park, K9 Acres, and Cheyenne Dog Park. No matter where your adventures take you, please bring along some waste bags, water, bowls, toys, and — of course — treats!
Once you’ve taken all the preventive measures, it’s time to get outside and enjoy the fresh air with your animals! For dogs and cats, it’s best to keep them on a leash or harness if you’re walking, running, or hiking with them. It’s also best to train your animals to come when you call; if you like to let your pets roam your yard unsupervised, this training is a must.
What are you waiting for? It’s time to go outside. Happy spring, everyone.
www.PetersenPetHospital.com
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Thank you,
We’ll Miss You!
If you’ve set foot in our office, then you know Dr. Eike. She’s an incredible veterinarian who loves every single furry friend she sees. She took the best care of our patients and ensured they were happy and healthy when they went home with their owners. In fact, Dr. Eike was known as our cat whisperer because she seems to communicate with her feline friends to help identify what areas needed to be observed. I honestly believe there’s nothing Dr. Eike can’t do! We’re so fortunate because we’ve had the honor of having Dr. Eike work with us for 6 years. But now, she is moving on to other endeavors. While we will miss her and her bubbly personality, we can’t wait to see what she does in the future.
Our Fabulous Vet Tech Briana is a registered veterinary technician at Petersen Pet Hospital. She grew up in eastern Iowa on her family farm, sparking her love for animals. Upon high school graduation, she enrolled in the veterinary technician program at Kirkwood and graduated in 2017. As a technician, Briana’s favorite roles are performing dental cleanings, assisting with surgical procedures, and of course, snuggling all the patients, big and small! Briana has completed Fear Free Certification and has been a certified member since 2018. This means she is trained to make your pet’s visit as comfortable and stress-free as possible. Briana currently resides in Cedar Rapids with her cat, Ranger. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her friends and family, spending time outdoors, and spoiling her cat. Meet Briana
Thank you, Dr. Eike, for everything you’ve done for Petersen Pet Hospital and all of our furry friends! All of us will miss you so much.
St. Patrick’s Day Frozen Dog Treats Inspired by BeaglesAndBargains.com
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Contact us! 319-743-0554
, Dr. Eike!
As we inch closer to the beginning of spring, nature around us is coming back to life. Soon, the grass and trees will return to their typical green hue if they haven’t already. Luckily, you don’t need to wait until April to see an abundance of green again. On March 17, we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, and people across the country will dress in green to honor the occasion. Certain cities in the U.S. go big for St. Patrick’s Day. If you’ve never attended a St. Patrick’s Day parade or celebration, maybe this is the year. Below you’ll find a few cities with St. Patrick’s Day celebrations worth checking out. Chicago, IL Nobody does St. Patrick’s Day quite like Chicago, Illinois. The entire city gets a makeover! This year, on March 11, Chicago will host its St. Patrick’s Day parade, which includes dyeing the Chicago River a beautiful shade of emerald green. They’ll start tinting the river around 9 a.m., and the color will fade within six hours, so make sure you get there early! Chicago’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade is also one of the biggest in the country. You’ll see floats, Irish step dancers, and much more. New Orleans, LA Once Mardi Gras concludes, all eyes are on St. Patrick’s Day in New Orleans, Louisiana. The city hosts a parade on March 11, and it’s always quite a spectacle. You’ll see the makings of Irish tradition everywhere, including cabbage, onions, and potatoes, so keep your head on a swivel. You can also head to the Irish Channel neighborhood on March 11 to attend an all-day block party. Plenty of green beer will be available at this event, so come ready to celebrate! New London, WI Let’s say you want to do something slightly toned down but still exciting for St. Patrick’s Day. Then, you’ll want to check out New London, Wisconsin, for one of the country’s most unique St. Paddy’s Day celebrations. Leprechauns will change the city signs from New London to New Dublin. The city also puts on an Irish funeral parody in its annual downtown parade. Feeling the Luck of the Irish? Check Out America’s Best St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations
Leafy greens are packed with essential nutrients for dogs, and your pooch will love these green pupsicles for St. Patrick’s Day and all year long.
INGREDIENTS • 2 cups baby spinach • 1 cup water • 2 cups pear, peeled • 1 cup chopped celery DIRECTIONS 1.
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1 tsp fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
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Ice (optional)
Clean and chop fruit and vegetables.
2. In a blender, add spinach and water and blend until smooth. 3. Add all remaining fruit and vegetables. Blend for about 1 minute until smooth. 4. Pour the mixture into a silicone mold or ice cube tray. 5. Freeze for 3 hours or overnight until firm. Pro Tip – You don’t have to wait to enjoy this recipe! You can freeze half of the mixture and the rest can be enjoyed as smoothies right away. If you are making a smoothie, add a bit of ice to the blender before serving and blend just enough to break the ice apart. This will cool down the mixture that you can pour right into your pup’s bowl!
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www.PetersenPetHospital.com
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
1031 Kacena Road Hiawatha, IA 52233 www.PetersenPetHospital.com 319-743-0554
Inside This Issue
Mon–Fri: 8 a.m.–6 p.m. (Closed Fridays from 12:30–2:10 p.m. for team meetings) Sat: 8 a.m.–12 p.m. Sun: Closed
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Places to Take Your Pets This Spring
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Meet Briana! We’ll Miss You, Dr. Eike!
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St. Patrick’s Day Frozen Dog Treats
The Best St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations in America
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Meet Van Gogh, the Painting Dog
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VAN GOGH REINCARNATED? ONE-EARED RESCUE DOG BECOMES MASTER PAINTER
When a one-eared shelter dog in Connecticut struggled to find a new family last year, one of his caretakers had a wild idea: Why not teach him to paint? With help from TikTok and peanut butter, the aptly named Van Gogh became a social media star. “I’d seen TikTok videos of other dogs creating paintings, so why not Van Gogh?” Jaclyn Gartner, the founder of Happily Furever After Rescue, told The Washington Post. “He certainly had the name and the ear for it.” To leverage what she calls Van Gogh’s “fast and creative tongue,” Gartner covered small canvases in dollops of paint, wrapped them in plastic wrap, and slathered them in peanut butter. Then, she presented the treats to the boxer-pit bull mix. He quickly licked the canvases clean, creating his “art” along the way. According to the Post, Van Gogh’s first few paintings flopped — just like the work of the human artist Vincent Van Gogh, who didn’t become famous until after he died in 1890. This star rose
thanks to Jo Van Gogh, the wife of his brother Theo, who advocated for his work after both Theo and Vincent passed away. You could say that Gartner was dog Van Gogh’s Jo because, like the original painter’s, the pup’s art staged a comeback! After his first “art show” drew just two guests, Gartner started auctioning off his paintings online. His abstract work like “Peacock Swirl” and a rendition of human Van Gogh’s “Starry Night” quickly raised more than $3,000 for Happily Furever After Rescue. As his reputation soared on social media, Van Gogh also found his forever home with shelter volunteer Jessica Starowitz. He now spends his days painting and lounging on the couch. You can follow his exploits on Instagram under the handle @officialvgdog.
Contact us! 319-743-0554
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