Hello all, not much going on in life right now. Work is going great, getting bills payed on time and spending time with family and friends. Really theres nothing to write about unless its about things iv learned at Petsmart.

A couple of things iv learned about birds is that any bird, especially wild birds, can carry a virus called Sysicosis. If its transferred to humans its known as Chlamydia. Its even known as "Bird Chlamydia". Its transferred from bird to bird by secretion of the nasal cavity, feces, and eyes. It is also transferable through the air from bird to bird as feather dust. So for birds its highly contagious. As for its probability for humans catching it im not really sure. But its easy to look up on the interwebs so check it out if your interested in learning more.

Next on the list is Golden Retrievers. I love Golden Retrievers, they are very friendly pets and are very beautiful dogs. Every now and then we will have an adoption agency specifically for Golden Retrievers set up in the store, and everyone that has Goldens will show up with their Goldens. Ok not everyone but you catch my drift. Anyway, there was a Golden that had apparently been severly injured when its owner let it run around the neighborhood. It got into someones yard and that, "someone", whoever it was, didn't like it to much so they shot the Golden with a shotgun. The Golden had been parallized from the shotgun spread hitting its spine and was left for dead. Someone called the rescue and they actually managed to save the Golden. Though it was parallized in its hind legs, a doggy wheel chair was made that allowed it to use is front legs to pull itself as its back legs dangled off the back end, and it still had room to use the bathroom. So, while at work and talking to the adoption center about the fantastic pet, they would through it a tennis ball and he would chase after the ball, with great efficiency i might add, and return it to its owner. It was great to watch him overcome his condition and still live an energetic life.

On a sad note about Retrievers, it is almost ingrained in their DNA to get some form of cancer in their life, I don't know if its due to alot of inbreeding throughout the years or what the case may be but alot of Golden's will eventually get cancer, and other Retrievers as well.

Last but not least, its not a pet but actually it pertains to the food you give your pets. There are companies from China that supposedly have been putting ingredients in their treats that have been killing pets. I'm not sure if the ingredient is really that toxic or just some pet parents don't know when to stop feeding their pets and they get to much of a bad ingredient. I do know that the majority of our customers are switching to American made foods and treats because the ones coming from China are detrimental to pet health.

As for the American foods and treats, it doesn't necessarily make them entirely safe either. Though in my opinion they are better then the ones made in China. But, some american foods will have an ingredient called "Propylene Glycol", which is the bittering agent in antifreeze. There are plenty of holistic foods and treats that do not have this ingredient and that are much healthier for pets.

So in my opinion stay with the American made foods and treats, and away from anything that has Propylene Glycol.

Be very cautious of any wild bird, or any wild animal for that matter. They're just like people, you never know what they may have lol.

And as for the Golden Retreiver's don't be afraid of getting one as a pet. Its not a guarantee that they will get cancer, its just that the probability may be higher then others so its well worth looking into. And with a healthy lifestyle and proper nutrition, they will live long and fruitful lives, as they make great pets and offer a lifetime of companionship. :3