Even during tough times, Americans show no sign of skimping when it comes to taking care of their pets.
Last year, the country spent over $48.3 billion to pamper, feed, and take their four-legged friends to the vet, according this infographic created by the folks at Frugal Dad. That’s nearly $20 billion more than we spent on children’s dental care.
Some more eye-popping statistics include $19 billion shelled out on pet food and $25.5 billion on vet care.
We guess it’s hard to put a price tag on unconditional love.
You think you know what a dog looks like when it dives into a swimming pool to fetch a ball. And then you see these astonishing underwater images by photographer Seth Casteel: It’s a startling frenzy of teeth, jowls, eyes and claws.
The near-weightless conditions, coupled with the drag of the water, do odd things to a dog. Lips go flying. Fur and ears lie flat. Eyelids are peeled back.
Most of all, they reveal the intense determination that dogs bring to having fun.
Casteel—a commercial photographer who has worked for dog toy company Kong, JW Pet Co., Animal Planet, and Nintendo—first started shooting dogs underwater about 18 months ago when he was asked to do a portrait of a King Charles spaniel who wouldn’t stay out of his owner’s pool.
Last week, a selection of the Californian’s images went viral (as they say) and now he’s getting calls from all over the world to do underwater pet portraits.
Sid the Jack Russell Terrier loves playing fetch. So much so that he’s decided not to wait for owner Roland Muldoon to finish lunch at London’s Paddington Basin before he starts a game.
It might sound uncanny, but Muldoon is free to sit on the benches as long as he wants, because this smart little guy has figured out how to nudge the ball down the stairs, chase it, and bring it back all without the help of any playmates.
Not only is this an awesome alternative to being tied to a lamp post, but it’s also an admirable attempt to take a Forever Alone situation and turn it into something adorable.
In 2009 viewers of shows like Tyra or The Today Show were introduced to Willow, a dog who can read, an ability which puts her at a superior intellectual level than most people watching the shows she appeared in. Willow can understand the cards her owner holds up and obey the commands written on them.
But that’s an obvious parlor trick, right? Well, not exactly. It turns out, training a dog how to read is not as hard as you might imagine. Some experts point out that what Willow does isn’t technically reading (in the way that humans read), but she can still recognize the shapes of words and understand what they mean (wait — if that’s not reading, then apparently we’ve been doing it wrong).
Whether you have a dog or other household pet, there’s much more to keeping your furry friend safe and happy than just opening the passenger door. Here are tips to make your long road trip — or even your Sunday drive — problem-free.
1. Get to the vet.
Before a road trip is a good time to take your pet for that overdue visit to the veterinarian. Beyond ensuring your pet’s health, it’s the only way to get a bona fide health certificate. That certificate — and proof of an updated rabies vaccine — is necessary if you board your pet at your destination.
The vet may also test for heartworm and give other vaccinations, including Bordetella, parvo, and even Lyme disease, depending on where you’re headed. Pets traveling to Canada, Mexico, or beyond, require more legal documentation and sometimes a quarantine period. (Check with your veterinarian).
Is your dog the nervous sort? Your vet may also choose to prescribe a sedative (for him, not for you).
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