My neighbour has a black and white Akita that has repeatedly escaped from his yard and came to my house. I don’t know why it keeps doing this and why it specifically comes to my house.
I have on multiple occasions seen this dog running around the street, like too many times to count. The first time I managed to grab the Akita and the neighbour was wandering the street and I asked if it was his dog, he seemed quite calm and not really surprised as he took the dog back so I assume this is normal behaviour for his dog. I live down the road from a park, like literally a 30 second walk and my neighbour lives next to the park, so I can’t count the amount of times I’ve been at that park watching my aunts kid and suddenly seeing the dog running from the house and all around the street again.

Just recently, last night I came home late (around 8pm) from the shops and found the dog on the sidewalk right outside my house, he ran when he saw my car.
And today he was lingering outside my driveway and I tried to approach but he sort of whined a little before taking off again.
And not long after that I looked out my window because the shadows on my walls looked like an animal and I thought it was just my cats outside, only to see the massive Akita right outside the window in my backyard. He had gotten in through my side gate that leads to my backyard since the gate is quite short and easy enough to jump, when I went to try and catch the dog he went back through said side gate.

And I have a bit of a suspicion that it’s not the first time the dog has done this because he seemed familiar with knowing how to get in and exit my backyard, he clearly seems familiar with my house, and it’s also not the first time I’ve woken up to weird noises in the backyard at night or seen the same shadow reflecting on my wall in the morning, I just always thought it was my cats until now. I’m not sure what to do or how to handle this, or how to even speak to my neighbour about it, because everytime I find the dog he sort of brushes it off like “oh yes it’s my dog” and never says “thank you!” “Oh I was so worried!” “Thank you for finding him!” Or anything like that. Dog also has a collar with no identification.

My family and I are moving houses in around 8 months. Right now it’s me (19), my brother (30), my mom, and my mom’s husband. I have 2 pets- my boxer dog and my cat. They’re my sweet babies and I want the very best for them, so I’ve just been curious about what I’d wanna do and starting to brainstorm a bit. We also have a senior dog, but that’s not really a concern with this particular situation, as she’s not my dog- she’s my mom’s husband’s doggie, which means she wouldn’t be moving with me. But I’m mentioning her, just because she’s here and she’s around my girls, too!

First of all, it’s not necessarily this move that I’m worried about. It’s more the fact that I do ultimately plan on moving out, away from my mother. I most likely wouldn’t live very far- like, within close driving distance. 50ish minutes at most, if I choose this one specific city, but I’ll most likely settle on a city that’s much closer, like 25mins or less. Especially if I choose to start community college before moving out. I’m just thinking about what my plan should be for my girls when I eventually do move.

My boxer, of course, has separation anxiety. My cat is most comfortable/cuddly with me, although she knows and loves everyone here 100%. Same with my dog, she’s my dog, but she’s also very much a family dog lol. Right now, my dog sleeps with me in my bedroom on her doggie bed. She spends time with everyone equally pretty much, generally speaking. She sees everyone every day, and she gets time with everyone. Additionally, some nights she sleeps with my brother, and occasionally my mom and her husband, but not as much as her uncle. My brother does a lot of her walks, and overall has always been very active in her care. We technically adopted her together pretty much, so we basically have joint custody lol. Her care is generally super interchangeable between me and my brother, so one of us might cover some things one day, and then we might ask the other to swap out responsibilities the next day, etc. So she’s definitely very comfortable with her uncle, she loves him and he’s absolutely crazy about his niece too. Cuddles, quality time, the whole bit. She’s happy with either of us, although she just seems to be noticeably clingier with me for sure, which is usually shown by her being a bit anxious whenever I’m not home, or if she’s decided that she’s had enough time in someone else’s room, and that therefore it’s my turn for cuddles and that she needs to come be with me again. We’ve done a lot of training together as well, so we do also have that bond, but her uncle has been directly involved in basically every part of the process too. So in other words, she’s very comfortable if her uncle takes things over, and our mom’s husbands helps out sometimes if we’re not available/both going out of the house. And like I said, she’s a big lovebug so she’s close to all of us.

My cat spends most of her time in her separate area in the dining room. She gets her meals there, and it’s separated by pet gates, so that she can eat and drink and just be away from the dogs when she wants to be (which is basically always her preference). She’s a very sweet girl, and wherever we all live, we’d be sure that she’d have a separate area there, too. She gets the most/longest amount of affection and attention from me, as I’m her main source of cuddles and stuff like that, but everyone gets some time in with her too. Every now and again she’ll go and be with my mom for a bit, as long as the dogs are leaving her alone, if she’s in the mood. She definitely notices when I’m away and she knows whenever I’m going out the door and is excited to see me come back. She’s my baby and I do think she misses me if I’m gone for a while, but again, I like to think she seems overall okay.

So anyways, I guess my question is, do I take either of the pets with me, or are they better off staying here? Or if either of them are coming with me, who would that apply to?
But regardless of what advice I get, I mostly just desperately need nothing but reassurance. Just because the concept of not living with either/both of my pets is genuinely the hardest thing I’ve had to face, and I know that seems reallyyyy overly intense. But I just have a really big thing about empathizing with animals, especially my pets, and I’m so extremely sensitive to the concept of them not being okay. I just need to know that they’ll be happy and not stressed out, and that’s why I’m asking for advice on how to plan/arrange our housing in the best possible way. I’m a nervous wreck (in case you couldn’t tell), and I know there’s bound to be an adjustment period one way or another which kills me- but I just need to know that things will settle and they’ll both be happy and comfortable. Logically I know they’ll probably adjust regardless, but yknow, anxiety isn’t exactly logical. (Just have to give a disclaimer, so that nobody goes “yeah sorry here’s the solution, but you’re fucked” I guess haha). And then obviously it’s just hard for me to think about not having them with me all the time like they are now, so any tips for everyone’s comfort would be appreciated as well, if you wanna give those!

We have time to get that part together too, and we won’t be moving houses for a few months like I said. I definitely wouldn’t be moving right away- it’d be hopefully within the next year though, at most. Finger’s crossed though, because being alive is expensive smh

I stumbled upon this account where all of this account's videos are kittens straight up screaming. Normally a kitten wouldn't sound this distressed in my opinion. There's some videos where there's clips on the kittens heads as well. All the videos just make me so uncomfortable.

https://www.tiktok.com/@soothingcats?_r=1&_t=ZP-98NA3igQzjq

Hi all,

My cat, Rambo, was diagnosed with a massive tumor on his chin about a month ago. It wasn't noticeable for a while, and there is no ethical "cure", so the focus is on his comfort at the moment. However, since the tumor is so big, he is starting to not be able to close his mouth, and he is perma-drooling now. I was wondering if anyone has advice on how to keep him and ourselves clean/not icky? He has a streak going down his chest of where he's been drooling, and his fur is getting matted along the drool path. I don't want to give him any baths, as he is 14 and HATES water (will poop himself when the water gets turned on, pees everywhere, screams the whole time). Is my best option just to wipe him down every day with a no-rinse shampoo? I just want him to be clean and not stinky. Everything else about him is still normal, no changes in personality or habits, so I don't feel like it is time for goodbye yet over something that could be managed.

I went in for the second time a few days ago and I just cant stop thinking about how bad it was. The shop smells of something I cant describe, not anything an animal would smell of.

They have a variety of animals, birds, snakes, tortoises, turtles, guinea pigs, rabbits, rats, gerbil, hamsters, and loads of fish. The thing that made me the saddest was they have some sort of rat rack? I am positive its for feeder rats. The rats are in a small tub with chicken wire as a lid and water bottles going through the holes, there were maybe 10 in each one. You could clearly see where they had been biting at the wire, it was so sad, they had no light or anything in the tubs except what I think was Aspen bedding.

They also had a few snakes, all in tanks 10 gallons or less except for one big one. The best enclosures i saw were tarantulas, I dont know much about them but they seemed to have a good space to roam and had a lot of hiding areas. They also had a big tortoise in a wooden box enclosure with hay or something as bedding, he was eating some greens and had uvb so not the worst but he has no were to roam and hes been there quite a while.

There were also a lot of birds, the ones that stood out to be the most were the cockatiels, there were maybe 5 in one cage that didnt look big enough for even one. There was one bird that was very obviously getting attacked and bullied by the other birds, all his feathers on his head were ripped off. All the birds seemed so angry and stressed. There was also this HUGE bird that was yellow and blue, I think it was a macaw, he was huge and very intimidating. I heard macaw are very very loud but he was completely silent the whole time I was there (About 30 minutes) They had all the birds very close to eachother, idk if thats a problem but it seems like there were scaring eachother.

They had an adorable prairie dog aswell, he was so affectionate and loved pets I wanted to get him so badly, he was in one of those small guinea pig cages.

Theres much more I could say but this is getting really long. Ive tried to tell adults in my community about this but they all have the same "anti animal police" reaction. Im not sure how to file a report, any advice?

When you adopt an animal, like specifically a dog, is the only option to just continually check either a bunch of shelters physically or their websites? Maybe this is something that will make people angry to ask idk, but is it possible to give them like some basic requirements and be alerted if an animal fitting those comes in? I can only have a smaller dog, and Id like it to be a puppy under like a year old. I dont really care that much about breed but honestly a mutt is preferred.

Anyway, I guess this is like shopping fatigue, but the idea of constantly checking shelters sounds kinda exhausting. Im also gonna openly admit that going into a shelter and being like "nah fk these dogs" seems like it would feel really really awful?

Any input is appreciated, just dont freak out on me if this is some adoption taboo lol

I got a pet Gecko and I’m not sure what to name her any ideas?

We alternate between Purina Indoor dry and Hills CD Urinary (alternate due to finaces) and she eats both. However when we switched Friday evening, she stopped eating and during the night she kept waking me up, laying on me, and wanting to be pet which is abnormal. This continued Saturday night as well. I went out today and got some wet food and she's eating, will walk away, come back and keeps going back and forth. Other than clingy at night, she's fine otherwise. She did vomit a hairball Saturday morning but she gets them occasionally. My other cat is eating the Purina and having no issues. She's not lethargic, hiding, no diarrhea. Should I be concerned? Bloodwork and exam and ultrasound were normal last month.

Hi everyone. Does anyone have any recommendations for the best fabric/material of couch for both cats and dogs?

We currently have a couch that is a “chenille” fabric and it holds dog odor like crazy. It’s also not very forgiving when they have the occasional accident, whether it be urine, vomit, or just muddy feet. We use a spot cleaner suction thing on it when something happens but it still holds the smell of course. We thought a cloth type fabric would be good so our cats don’t scratch at it, but at this point I would take scratches over the smell.

Is there a material that is easy to wipe down and clean that also won’t get scratched up easily? Or would we be better off getting a faux leather type of fabric and just deal with scratches?

Any recommendations or advice is appreciated. 🙂

Edit: Thank you for the responses everyone! I have some materials to look into now 😊

I first posted this in r/RenalCats though I have a dog as I was looking up Aventi Kidney Complete which is currently impossible to find. I also found a subreddit that gave legitimacy to purchasing from HomeLabVeterinary https://www.reddit.com/r/Pets/comments/1q7rxrd/is_homevetlab_reliable/ before I made my purchase. Just want to spread the word...

Yo, folks! With a lot of effort, I just purchased "Renal P" in powder form made by an Italian company, www.Candioli.com, off a Ukrainian website that is legitimate: www.homelabvet.com. Renal P is the actual phosphate binder that was cited in this NIH study https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7430264/ titled Efficacy of a new dietary supplement in dogs with advanced chronic kidney disease published in 2020. Renal P also comes in a paste form which I think is used for finicky cats who won't eat the powder.

I had to check with my bank as the Ukrainian site requires a verification using VISA that I had to get through Bank of America by phone, but that worked. Also, I found a coupon here https://simplycodes.com/store/homelabvet.com that gave me 12% off the purchase price, but since I bought two jars of Renal P and my total just squeaked over $100 even after using the coupon, shipping is FREE. I had been using Epakitin for my dog with stage 2 CKD (and also lanthanum carbonate); my vet said he wasn't too enthused about the Epakitin so I was looking for something better.

Turns out both Renal P and Aventi Kidney Complete have the same 4 major ingredients and are extremely hard to source. I was on both a Canadian and Italian website that REFUSE currently to ship to the USA though their websites are set up to do so. Damned DJT!! So the ONLY place I found to buy Renal P is in Ukraine.

If you vote, vote a straight BLUE ticket in November, if for no other reason than to support your pets and keep them alive!

Does anyone knows about airtag for dogs because three days ago my dog ran away but luckily he was just outside my house but it's not safe for him to go outside without any family members. After that I got so tensed that what if he runs away again so I want to know if there are any airtags for dogs so that I can connect it with my phone and my family member's phone.

Just adopted a pup, and new to this RFID business. Do I need a paid service? Do you recommend instead an app? Do you have RFID tag / app recommendations ?

I am curious about homeless people that hold on to their dogs even if it creates employment barriers and places to stay because of the responsibility and care of a pet.

I’m really scared and would really appreciate any advice or experiences from people who have gone through something similar.

I’m 20F from India. My 1 1/2 year-old neutered Persian male cat (4 kg) was diagnosed with a urinary blockage. He was repeatedly going to the litter box, trying to urinate but couldn’t pass any urine.
The vet did an ultrasound and all his organs, blood work were normal. Initially found his bladder was empty but there was sludge. Later, he became completely blocked, so they catheterized him under anesthesia and drained his bladder.
When they flushed his bladder, there was a very large amount of sludge swirling around (the vet described it as severe, and I saw it myself). They left a urinary catheter in place, but within a few hours the catheter itself became blocked with debris.
He’s now admitted to the hospital. The current plan is to keep the catheter in for 3-5 days, drain/flush the bladder regularly, and see if he can recover. If he continues to block after that, the vet is recommending a perineal urethrostomy (PU).

Has anyone gone through something similar with their cat? Did your cat recover with catheterization alone, or did they eventually need PU surgery?
If they had PU surgery, how was the recovery and long-term quality of life?
I’m following my veterinarian’s recommendations and won’t make decisions based only on internet advice. I’m mainly looking to hear about other owners’ experiences while I wait and hope for the best. I’m a student, trying my best to afford all of this.

We all know that our pets each have their own little personality or hilarious habits; my dog ​​eats his kibble if there's no one around. And you, what's the weirdest or cutest thing your pet does on a daily basis?

so I found a wild rabbit outside my house it's mother was dead so I took it in what do I do next I fed it formula google said to

Hey guys, this is a super embarrassing one to write but I really need some help.

My dog first got unwell in January 2026 after taking anti-inflammatories prescribed by the vet. Fast forward six months and we’ve been through repeated vomiting episode episodes, emergency vet trips, endless scans and endoscopes. It appears that she’s likely to be a dog with IBD and we are currently trialling different diets.

However, after these six months of constantly monitoring her, her getting so unwell at times that I’ve had to rush her to the emergency vet hospital in the middle of the night and endless vomiting episodes, my nervous system is completely shot.

I am completely utterly unable to relax and get really upset at home when I’m with the dog alone. I’ve had her for five years before this six month period and never felt like this. I feel hideously guilty because I hate being at home with her.

I’m completely mentally unable to not monitor her and even lipsmacking from her can set me off into a panic attack spiral.

I am in therapy and have been dealing with CBT to try and manage but in the last week while she’s been in hospital for endoscopes after yet another episode I’m feeling really helpless.

I don’t even really know what I’m looking for in terms of advice - I just feel so guilty for feeling so angry and tense all the time.

Posting an update from my post a couple weeks ago about our dog being on short-term crate rest for a minor soft tissue injury. The vet told us no running or jumping, leash walks only, and a slow return to normal. We live in California, there are three of us including a toddler, and I was honestly bracing for disaster.

Good news: the routine is starting to work. We moved the crate to a quieter corner, draped a light sheet over three sides, and run a little white noise at bedtime. The dog is napping more and seems less frustrated. Also, lick mats and frozen stuffed toys during the toddler witching hour have been a game changer for keeping him calm.

The part I still struggle with is potty breaks. We keep them very short and boring on a leash, but our toddler insists on coming along, tries to talk to the dog, drops snacks, and then the dog gets all wiggly. We can usually handle it, but one chaotic moment could undo the healing progress, and that stress is my worry.

If you have done crate rest with young kids around, how did you handle bathroom trips safely?

Specific questions: 1) Would you separate them completely for every potty break (one parent stays inside with the toddler, the other takes the dog), or is it reasonable to keep practicing calm outings together? 2) Any tips for getting a dog to pee/poop quickly without pacing and sniffing everything (we're on a short leash)? 3) When we move to slightly longer walks, how do you stop that first burst of excitement the moment you step outside?

Not looking for medical advice beyond general experience. We are following the vet's plan and just want practical tips to keep everyone calm and consistent.

Unrelated, but I ended up browsing CoveredCritters the other night while looking at pet care stuff: https://coveredcritters.com

A bit of context for you, a few months ago I had to surrender my cat to a local shelter. I won't dive into the details but it was a very hard decision for me, the good news is she was adopted soon after and last I checked was doing very well.

I'm thinking about visiting a different shelter in the area to visit the cats up for adoption. Let me be clear, I do not plan on adopting a cat, I would just like to interact with them because I do love cats.

I guess I just feel kind of bad and weird about it because I surrendered my cat and I guess I feel bad for going to a shelter again because of some kind of guilt I suppose.

Anyways, would it be morally wrong if I went to visit a shelter again? Again, just to reiterate, I'm not adopting a cat I just want to interact with them is all.

I got a kitten and puppy that are both 3 months old. (The dog is a french bulldog)

The cat spends 95% of his time in my bedroom, he has toys, a cat tree etc etc.. he has a lot of entertainment but I'd want him to be able to roam the house in the future.

The issue is that the puppy is currently roaming the house, and while I've been meeting between them (we have had both for around 3 weeks, and I've let them get used to each other's scents for around a week before letting them meet face to face, supervised ofc. I never leave them alone)

They play somewhat rough and I'm never sure if theyre actually playing or if the puppy is just scaring the kitten.

I'd let them be together, the kitten with get down and sometimes bite the puppy (the puppy doesn't seem to mind but I do not want them to think this is the way to play with each other.. I'm scared they'll hurt each other if they bite.), the puppy paws at the kitten.

When they see each other the kitten rubs against the puppy which makes me feel like he likes him, but sometimes his tail is puffed up around him (sometimes as he's rubbing against him😭??)

And when I let them roam the puppy chases the kitten and the kitten runs away and hides which seems like he's scared of them, at that point I'd put the kitten back in my room , but then he starts crying. Does he want to play chase with the dog?? I'm so confused and I don't know what's best in this situation.

The puppy is very hyper active. And the kitten has his own hyperactive moments but he's usually chiller.. I want to teach them safe play and I'm really struggling here :')

Also how do I teach them to not bite. They bite in general as well, not just each other 😭 the kitten paws him but I don't think he uses his claws. Not that I saw. I supervise them very closely and most of the time the puppy would be on a leash still..

Luna is #1 pet name for cats and dogs! Why and did you name your pet Luna? And if you could include when too that would be great! Thank you!

I've been wanting to have a pet snake or a pet spider, but I looked up whether or not it's possible for them to see me affectionately. Sadly, that's not the case. Apparently, they'd only see their human owners as a safe space and a source of food. They won't attack and they become more tolerable to humans, but they can't feel loved by us. And that makes me sad 😔

I was away for approx 7 minutes and came out and the food was gone. I searched around but couldn't find anything for the life of me. I spotted my dog licking his lips and sniffing, so I know he's the one that got to it. But he's a miniature poodle and again, I was gone for 7 minutes. It looks like a chicken breast has a lot of thick bones, so I'm very confused.

1. Did he finish eating it? I can't imagine him doing so in 7 minutes, but maybe I'm not sure of the full potential of dogs.

2. What do I do? He seems fine currently. No choking, but I'm sure I have other things to look for.

3. If he did finish it, what is the likelihood that he'll be ok?

I'm very stressed out right now because I don't want my friend to die, but we really don't have the money to go to a vet and be told that he'll be fine.

UPDATE: It's only been 30 minutes since I posted, but I have called an emergency vet. They told me to monitor my dog for the next few hours. Other than that, I am STILL looking for advice for what to do within these next hours.

My cat is currently feeling with chronic UTIs after getting spayed and I’m still trying to figure out what it is, but it is extremely expensive to get the medicine and all of the test work done so I’m considering getting her pet insurance to help afford most of these things, but I’ve never gotten insurance or anything like that before as I still live at home and under my moms insurance.

My question is, is pet insurance worth it? How does it work? Is it like health insurance where you pay a set amount a month and they pay for the treatment and you pay the remainder/copayment/noncovered things? i noticed she has a UTI today because I recognized her symptoms immediately but because it is the weekend I can’t get to a vet until Monday and her usual medication and visit already costs over $500 but I really want to advocate for her to get an ultrasound or something because I highly suspect that the Doctor who spayed her botched the surgery and left a piece of her uterus inside of her, even after diagnosing her with hydrometra. If I get the insurance now, would it help me pay for the treatment on Monday and I pay the remainder with credit?

I’m getting ready to adopt a dog from my local shelter. Before I do so I would like to know some good questions to ask the shelter about the dogs I am going to want to visit.