All Paws Pet Kennel

01/11/2024

Why is it ALWAYS a husky?
Dog’s snack run triggers alarm

King the husky breaks out of shelter kennel

Julia Gomez

USA TODAY

A rescue dog broke out of his kennel for a midnight snack, set off the security alarm and was busted by the police.

King, a husky brought into the Lost Our Home Pet Rescue in Tempe, Arizona, escaped his kennel and made a mess in their office.

The dog was brought into the shelter for a few hours before he escaped, said Jodi Polanski, the founder and CEO of the shelter.

Once the escape artist leaves his pen, he tries freeing his fellow canine comrades so they can join him in his escapade.

He then bites the handle of the door that leads to the office and pulls it open. Once inside alone, he finds the mother lode hidden on top of shelves in the office.

The video then shows him jumping onto the furniture, grabbing the plastic containers, opening them and tearing apart plastic bags filled with food. King then proceeds to, well, eat like a king.

But, unfortunately for the pup, his all-you-can-eat party is cut short when an officer shows up. In his escape attempt, King set off the shelter’s alarm sometime between midnight and 1 a.m., which alerted police.

The officer, who asked to remain anonymous, put the kibble thief away and picked up the aftermath the fugitive left behind, earning him the nickname Mr. Clean.

'Not only does this officer handle the situation like a pro, but he even cleaned the mess,' says the voiceover of the video posted by the shelter to its YouTube channel. 'He did not have to do that.'

The shelter’s video explains that the officer was able to get inside because Tempe police have 24-hour access to the shelter due to a partnership. Police can drop off any pets in need.

King is by far the cutest renegade, and his adorable antics made the shelter go viral.

The escape attempt was made back in November; however, the shelter didn’t release the footage until recently. The video was made for a fundraiser the shelter hosts every December called 'Sit, Stay, Brunch,' said Polanski. They use it to raise money for the upcoming year.

'We like to have fun,' she said. 'So we opened the event with this video.'

Since then, King has been adopted. The pet rescue currently has 52 dogs and cats up for adoption.

01/06/2024

The Death of Miles

A letter to Dr. Alan Coren, owner and veterinarian at West Hills Animal Hospital, Huntington, Long Island.

Dear Alan,

I wanted to write to thank you properly and personally for your compassion and care for Miles through his life and up to his last moments when Miles died on the blanket you had spread out for us in exam room two. Miles’ debilitating renal failure was a death sentence, and thankfully his suffering is now over.

As Miles turned cold in my arms and entered a breathless eternal sleep, I was utterly unprepared for the flood of tears and grief I felt at his death. I still find myself instinctively moving my feet under my desk expecting to slip them under Miles’ head.

I bury people, and I know that grief at the death of a pet is not the same as the grief at the death of a person, but it is still grief. It is still deep and raw and real and shattering to our admittedly irrational expectations that we will never be separated from those we love.

I tell people I counsel through their grief to try to give thanks for their grief because grief is the only true measure of love. Buddhists teach that the first Noble Truth is that suffering (dukkah) arises from our attachments to the beings of the world. Unlike Buddhists, I do not seek the removal of attachment (tanhakaya). I am happy to be a mess of tears now because I was, and my family was, loved by Miles unconditionally, and I savor this grief as my way to repay the gift of unconditional love.

I also understand the bewilderment and impatience of those who have never loved an animal. Many of them openly or privately harbor condescending thoughts about pet lovers who often seem to inappropriately lavish love on creatures with four legs that they cannot find the spiritual generosity to lavish on creatures with two.

I think the issue is spiritual proximity. We mourn what we are closest to. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn wrote, 'What seems to us more important, more painful, and more unendurable is really not what is more important, more painful and more unendurable, but merely that which is closer to home.

Everything distant which for all its moans and muffled cries, its ruined lives and millions of victims, that does not threaten to come rolling up to our threshold today, we consider endurable and of tolerable dimensions.'

I mourn the dead victims of the wars and famines that are eating away the hope of the world, but I cannot and will not feel embarrassed at feeling bereft because of the death of my dog. I know. I know that they are not on the same moral level, but I remain convinced that the ability to cry for one tutors the tears for the other.

Alan, I know that you help families move through the grief of the death of a pet as often as I help families move through the grief of the death of a person. I know they need my steady soul to make it through the valley of the shadow. I just wanted you to know how much I needed you and how much I love you and thank you. You were a rabbi to a rabbi, and you were the steady soul of caring for a very good dog whom I loved more than I ever understood until this sad but healing moment.

God bless you, Marc.

01/03/2024

HOW TO GIVE A CAT A PILL

Pick cat up and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby. Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cat's mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop pill into mouth.Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.

Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa.Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process.

Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away.

Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm holding rear paws tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right forefinger. Hold mouth shut for a count of ten.

Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call spouse from garden.

Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, hold front and rear paws. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cat's throat vigorously.

Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered figurines and vases from hearth and set to one side for gluing later. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with head just visible from below armpit. Put pill in end of drinking straw, force mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.

Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans, drink 1 beer to take taste away. Apply Band-Aid to spouse's forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap.

Retrieve cat from neighbour's shed. Get another pill. Open another beer. Place cat in cupboard and close door onto neck to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.

Fetch screwdriver from garage and put cupboard door back on hinges. Drink beer. Fetch bottle of scotch. Pour shot, drink. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus jab.Apply whiskey compress to cheek to disinfect. Toss back another shot. Throw t-shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom.

Ring fire brigade to retrieve the fu***ng cat from tree across the road. Apologise to neighbour who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil wrap.

Tie the little bastard's front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table, find heavy duty pruning gloves from shed. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of fillet steak. Be rough about it. Hold head vertically and pour 2 pints of water down throat to wash it down.

Consume remainder of Scotch. Get spouse to drive you to the emergency room, sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye. Call furniture shop on way home to order new table.

Arrange for RSPCA to collect mutant cat from hell and ring local pet shop to see if they have any hamsters.> > > HOW TO GIVE A DOG A PILL

Wrap it in bacon.

01/03/2024

Hmmmmm

12/22/2023

12/22/2023

Get your kids reading

Dear Readers: For the past 14 years, I have devoted one December column entirely to the idea of giving books to children on Christmas morning (or whatever wintertime holiday you celebrate).

I was first inspired by a sweet story I read about historian David McCullough’s childhood, where he and his three brothers would wake up on Christmas morning to a wrapped book, left by Santa on the foot of their beds.

I communicated with Mr. McCullough, and from his home in Massachusetts he confirmed the story and generously gave me permission to use his childhood tradition to encourage families to start their holiday by unwrapping a book — and reading together.

That’s the origin story of “A Book on Every Bed,” and in the years I’ve published this appeal (to give books to children, and to start your holiday by reading together), it has grown into a literacy campaign. Schools, libraries, bookstores, churches and community centers have picked up this idea and are helping families to bring books into their households during the holiday season.

My own literacy story starts with my mother, Jane, who, despite some rough circumstances during my childhood, showed her four children that books and literature would always illuminate the way toward better things. She was the person who said to me, “When you have a book, you’re never alone.”

One of my favorite memories of my mother involved catching her reading “Anna Karenina” while seated in the crowded bleachers during a noisy high school basketball game. (Final score: Tolstoy 1, basketball, 0).

I was allowed to get lost in the stacks of our tiny local library, eventually discovering the books that would change my life: The “Childhood of Famous Americans” series (currently published by Simon and Schuster). I plowed through these biographies with the hunger of a young person desperate to read about “real” people who overcame their own childhood challenges and went on to lead extraordinary lives.

Over the years when approaching some of my own literary heroes, they have spontaneously chosen to tell a story about the special book in childhood that unlocked literature’s secrets for them. Like me, they were lucky enough to have at least one adult in their lives who gave them the gift of literacy. Below are edited versions of some of these stories:

Jacqueline Woodson wrote: “My mother wanted us to read constantly but didn’t have the money to buy us ‘piles of books.’

“To have a brand-new book to open at night — it’s crisp unbroken binding, the scent of its pages, the soft rush of air and excitement that comes with turning them — this is my dream for every child.

“A pile of books begins with one. And like a child, it grows.”

LeVar Burton: “Literacy is the birthright of every human being, even in this digital age. I simply want our children to read!”

Dr. Carla Hayden: “Literacy is the ticket to learning, opportunity and empowerment. It’s important that children see themselves in the books they read. Marguerite de Angeli’s ‘Bright April’ allowed me to see myself in a book — a young girl who was a brownie with pigtails — and it inspired me that anything was possible.”

Brad Meltzer: “Growing up, my family didn’t have a ton of money. But my grandmother had one of the most powerful objects in existence: a library card. I still remember her taking me to the public library in Brooklyn, New York.

“It was a day that made my world bigger and immeasurably better. And the best part were the new friends my librarian introduced me to, like Judy Blume and Agatha Christie. ‘Superfudge’ was the first book I ever coveted. But it was Blume’s ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret’ that rocked my socks. No one understood why I was reading it. But I was a boy trying to figure out how girls worked.

“From there, Judy Blume taught me one of the greatest lessons in life — that you must love yourself for who you are.”

Ask Amy: A woman tells her daughter ‘you owe me grandchildren’
Last Christmas, working with the Children’s Reading Connection, (childrensreadingconnection.org), a national literacy campaign based in Ithaca, N.Y., I received the thrill of my own career as a reader and writer by giving each child, teacher and staff member of the rural primary school of my childhood books of their own to take home.

Watching these children clutch their new books tightly was a joy and a reminder that literacy really starts with a human connection.

I hope that readers will be similarly inspired to spread this joy.

12/11/2023

Now we're talking Christmas

12/07/2023

not pet related but good info!!

The Dark Patterns Tip Line is a platform people can use to submit deceptive designs they encounter in everyday digital products and services.

12/02/2023

Does your dog ignore commands? Is he a troublemaker? Is he, in fact, the very antithesis of a good boy? According to a team of scientists in Finland, he might just be the canine equivalent of a frustrated genius.

Katriina Tiira, from the University of Helsinki, is overseeing one of the largest investigations of canine cognitive ability.

The work is in progress, but having assessed about 5,000 dogs for traits such as logical reasoning and problem solving she has noticed a pattern. “Intelligent dogs are not nicer pets,” she said. In fact, those that scored highly for cognitive sharpness were frequently a nuisance at home. “Many people come to the test and they say, ‘I have huge problems in my daily life with this dog’ — and often the dog is at the high end of the cognitive results.”

The dogs involved have frequently been working breeds such as collies and malinois, which have long had a reputation for thriving on mental and physical stimulation. “The [top cognitive performers] are often very active, independent and impulsive dogs. They are a lot to handle,” Tiira said.

The research has been carried out through a company called SmartDog, founded by Tiira. It offers people in Finland the chance to have their dogs assessed and see where they rank for cognitive ability among all those included. So far some 5,000 owners have paid as much as £175 each to take part. She says she would like to bring the service to the UK.

The dogs attend a 90-minute session that includes ten tests, designed to gauge traits such as short-term memory, problem solving, logical reasoning, impulsiveness and independence.

Tiira and her team recently published a study in the journal Scientific Reports, published by Nature, which drew on data from about 1,000 dogs. One aim was to see if there were clear differences between different breeds.

The malinois and border collie, both originally bred for herding, did tend to score highly in some of the “cleverness” tests. However, there was often very little to choose between the 13 breeds that were included.

Instead, Tiira believes that the results are more useful in shedding light on an individual pet’s personality. At home a dog might seem to find it hard to understand commands. The tests might show that it performs very well in cognitive tests, but that it also scores highly for independence.

This trait can be revealed through what’s known as the “unsolvable task”.

The dogs are first shown that they can retrieve food from a box. Then, they are then presented with a version of the box that cannot be opened. Golden retrievers and English cocker spaniels were some of the breeds that were most likely to look towards their owner, a gesture that could be interpreted as an appeal for help. The malinois was the least likely.

“The owner thinks their dog is stupid, but actually they just want to solve every problem by themselves,” Tiira said. “It’s actually not a bad trait at all, but you need to understand your dog and what motivates them.”

12/02/2023

Pugs make a dog’s dinner of health
Jack Malvern
Saturday January 28 2023, 12.01am GMT, The Times
Health
Pugs are 3.1 times as likely as crossbred dogs to be overweight
Pugs are 3.1 times as likely as crossbred dogs to be overweight
ALAMY
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There are few moments of delight so unfettered as a dog being served his dinner, but which breed loves eating the most.

A study by the Royal Veterinary College suggests that although golden retrievers and beagles are among breeds likely to eat too much, the pug has the most insatiable appetite relative to its ability to burn off energy.

Research into 22,333 dogs that were seen by British vets in 2016 indicated that pugs were 3.1 times as likely as crossbred dogs to be overweight.

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Beagles were 2.7 times as likely, followed by golden retrievers (2.6), English springer spaniels (2), border terriers and labrador retrievers (both 1.7), Cavalier King Charles spaniels (1.5) and cocker spaniels (1.3).

Obesity was even more likely in neutered dogs, who have a tendency for “increased food seeking and decreased physical activity”.

Some breeds were more resistant to obesity. German shepherds and shih-tzus were between 1.7 and 2 times less likely to be overweight than crossbred dogs.

Worse news for pugs is that the fat exacerbates the breathing problems caused by their flat faces, as well as increasing the risk of arthritis, heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers.

The Kennel Club responded by changing its description of the “pug breed standard” to say they should be “cobby”, meaning thickset, but that “substance must not be confused with obesity, which is highly undesirable”.

Dr Dan O’Neill, who led the research into obesity in pugs and is chairman of the Brachycephalic Working Group of vets, animal welfare organisations, scientists and dog breed clubs, said: “Many individuals in several dog breeds, including pugs, have a high impulse to overeat embedded in their genes, but development of obesity in pugs is not inevitable, it depends on their access to food.

“Pug owners have the power to improve their dog’s health and welfare by keeping them lean and fit. The research is clear that obesity is the runaway top disorder in pugs and as people turn their attention to their own healthy new year’s resolutions, it is an opportune time to remember that we can also make a resolution to do something that will improve the quality of life for our dogs too. We hope these clear messages will bring about change away from the harmful perception that pugs should be chubby. No dog should ever be obese.

11/29/2023

this is cool

Explore this post and more from the oddlysatisfying community

11/25/2023

Shout out to the Alachua County Sheriffs office. They came to the door @ 7 because they had found a dog. They said a brown pitbull, obviously well taken care of. Animal Control was on the way but wanted to check to make sure it wasn't one of mine. How thoughtful!! A Hero!!

11/25/2023

Explore this post and more from the oddlysatisfying community

11/24/2023

(Editor’s Note: President George Washington issued the following proclamation on Oct. 3, 1789).

By the President of the United States of America, a Proclamation.

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor– and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be — That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks–for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation–for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his Providence which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war–for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed–for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted–for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions– to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually–to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed–to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord–To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and us–and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.

Go: Washington

11/23/2023

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!! Much to be grateful for!!

Here is some Thanksgiving history

NFL

UNIQUE TRADITION

Why the Cowboys and Lions play games on Thanksgiving every season

Jim Reineking

USA TODAY

The NFL on Thanksgiving Day has featured some memorable moments, from Clint Longley leading a Cowboys comeback in 1974 and a national TV showcase for the incomparable Barry Sanders to the infamous Butt Fumble in 2012 and Leon Lett’s blunder in 1993.

NFL games on Thanksgiving have been a tradition since the league’s inception in 1920 (there were six games that first season!).

This season will feature three games: the Detroit Lions hosting the Green Bay Packers Buffalo Bills (12:30 p.m. ET, FOX); the Dallas Cowboys hosting the Washington Commanders (4:30 p.m. ET, CBS); and the Seattle Seahawks hosting the San Francisco 49ers (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC) to cap off the heaping helping of football action.

A third prime-time game was added in 2006, and includes teams other than the Lions and Cowboys, who each will play their traditional Thanksgiving home games.

Why do the Lions always play on Thanksgiving?

Watching the Detroit Lions lose on Thanksgiving Day has become a holiday tradition unlike any other. The Lions have lost their last six Thanksgiving Day games, and sport a 3744-2 all-time record on Turkey Day. However, that trend could end this year as the Lions are off to their best start since 1962.

If you have often found yourself cursing the fact that the Lions always play on Thanksgiving, you can blame George A. Richards. In 1934, Richards purchased the Portsmouth (Ohio) Spartans for the sum of $8,000 and moved the team to Detroit, renaming the team the Lions (inspired by the local baseball team, the Tigers).

While football on Thanksgiving was a normal thing for the NFL since its inception, it was Richards who took it to another level. Richards was a radio executive, and used his connections to negotiate a deal with NBC to broadcast a Thanksgiving game nationally on its 94-station network. Richards also convinced Chicago Bears owner/coach George Halas to be the Lions’ opponent, suggesting the game would give the still-fledgling NFL vital exposure. The game was a massive success; a Detroit-record crowd attended the game while listeners across the U.S. enjoyed the gridiron action over the airwaves. A new great American tradition was born.

With the exception of 1939-44 during World War II, the Lions have hosted a Thanksgiving Day game every year since 1934. The first nationally televised game was in 1953, when the Lions defeated the Green Bay Packers en route to winning a second consecutive NFL championship.

A year after that initial Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit, the Lions collected the first NFL title in team history. Detroit would win three more championships in the 1950s before enduring a title drought that Detroit does not enjoy to this day.

Despite the lack of on-field success for the Lions, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell only briefly hinted back in 2009 at altering the Thanksgiving Day schedule so more teams could host games on the holiday.

Why do the Cowboys always play on Thanksgiving?

By the mid-1960s, the NFL was well on its way to becoming the entertainment behemoth it is today.

Television networks, eager to satisfy the sporting appetites of audiences, worked with the NFL to add a second Thanksgiving Day game for the 1966 season.

Dallas Cowboys team president Tex Schramm shrewdly volunteered his team to play in a Thanksgiving game, so long as Dallas would host the game each year.

That decision — as well as the team’s long run of success from the mid-60s well into the 1980s — profoundly contributed to its “America’s Team” moniker.

With the exception of two seasons since 1966 — in 1975 and 1977 when the St. Louis Cardinals hosted a Thanksgiving Day game — the Cowboys have hosted a game on the holiday, always scheduled after the Detroit Lions’ annual game. Unlike the Lions, the Cowboys enjoy success on Thanksgiving, posting a 32-22-1 all-time record on the holiday.

11/22/2023

Record crowds expected to travel for Thanksgiving

David Koenig

ASSOCIATED PRESS

DALLAS – Despite inflation and memories of past holiday travel meltdowns, millions of people are expected to hit airports and highways in record numbers over the Thanksgiving break.

The busiest days to fly will be Tuesday and Wednesday as well as the Sunday after Thanksgiving. The Transportation Security Administration expects to screen 2.6 million passengers on Tuesday and 2.7 million passengers on Wednesday. Sunday will draw the largest crowds with an estimated 2.9 million passengers, which would narrowly eclipse a record set on June 30.

Meanwhile, AAA forecasts that 55.4 million Americans will travel at least 50 miles from home between next Wednesday and the Sunday after Thanksgiving, with roads likely to be the most clogged on Wednesday.

The weather could snarl air and road traffic. A storm system was expected to move from the southern Plains to the Northeast on Tuesday and Wednesday. Parts of Maine, Vermont and northern New Hampshire are expected to get 3 to 7 inches of snow between Tuesday night and Wednesday.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said during a news conference Monday that the government has tried to better prepare for holiday travel by hiring more air traffic controllers, opening new air routes along the East Coast and providing grants to airports for snowplows and deicing equipment. He warned travelers to check road conditions and flight times before leaving home.

“Mother Nature, of course, is the X factor in all of this,” he said.

The good news for travelers by plane and car alike: Prices are coming down.

Airfares are averaging $268 per ticket, down 14% from a year ago, according to the travel site Hopper.

Gasoline prices are down about 37 cents a gallon from this time last year. The

national average was $3.29 per gallon on Tuesday, according to AAA, down from $3.66 a year ago.

A survey of GasBuddy users found that despite cheaper pump prices, the number of people planning to take a long driving trip this Thanksgiving hasn’t changed much from last year. Patrick De Haan, an analyst for the price-tracking service, said inflation has cooled but some things like food are still getting more expensive. Consumers are also charging more on credit cards and saving less.

“Sure, they love the falling gas prices, but a lot of Americans spent in other ways this summer and they may not be ready to open their wallets for Thanksgiving travel just yet,” De Haan said.

Jennifer Bonham opted to take the train from New York to Kansas City to spend Thanksgiving with her fiance after checking out flights and finding them “astronomically expensive.”

“My fiance had an idea. He’s like, I wonder if there are trains? So we go to looking and it was honestly the best price that we got. I don’t have any money. I’m a single mom. The cheaper, the better,” said Bonham, while switching trains at Chicago’s Union Station with her teenage daughter.

Thanksgiving marks the start of the holiday travel season, and many still haven’t shaken last December’s nightmare before Christmas, when severe winter storms knocked out thousands of flights and left millions of passengers stranded.

Scott Keyes, founder of the travel site Going, is cautiously optimistic that holiday air travel won’t be the same mess. So far this year, he said, airlines have avoided massive disruptions.

“Everyone understands that airlines can’t control Mother Nature,” Keyes said. “What really irks people are the controllable cancellations – those widespread disruptions because the airline couldn’t get their act together because their system melted down the way Southwest did over Christmas.”

Indeed, Southwest didn’t recover as quickly as other carriers from last year’s storm when its planes, pilots and flight attendants were trapped out of position and its crew-rescheduling system got bogged down. The airline canceled nearly 17,000 flights before fixing the operation. Federal regulators told Southwest recently that it could be fined for failing to help stranded travelers.

Southwest officials say they have since purchased additional deicing trucks and heating equipment and will add staff at cold-weather airports depending on the forecast. The company said it has also updated its crew-scheduling technology.

U.S. airlines as a whole have been better about stranding passengers. Through October, they canceled 38% fewer flights than during the same period in 2022. From June through August – when thunderstorms can snarl air traffic – the rate of cancellations fell 18% compared to 2022.

Even still, consumer complaints about airline service have soared, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. There have been so many complaints, the agency says, that it has only compiled figures through May.

The airlines, in turn, have heaped blame on the Federal Aviation Administration, which they say can’t keep up with the growing air traffic. In fact, the Transportation Department’s inspector general reported this summer that the FAA has made only “limited efforts” to fix a shortage of air traffic controllers, especially at key facilities in New York, Miami and Jacksonville, Florida.

Meanwhile, staffing levels in other parts of the airline industry have largely recovered since shedding tens of thousands of workers early on in the pandemic. Passenger airlines have added more than 140,000 workers – an increase of nearly 40% – according to government figures updated last week. The number of people working in the business is the largest since 2001, when there were many more airlines.