A Furry Vacation

06/24/2024

Pet owners…

PLEASE check the temperature of water bowls. Hot water isn’t helpful. Try filling a food storage container with water & freeze it, then pop it out to float a large ice block in pet bowls to keep it cooler longer. It still needs to be refilled a couple of times each day with new ice, but it helps.

Remember outside cats, rabbits, ALL animals are suffering in the heat. They need shade and cool water. Be careful that the shade doesn’t disappear as the day goes on.

Pavement is too hot for paws!
Check your bird bath water temperature and nectar temperature in hummingbird feeders.

Make ice cube nectar to float in feeders with your regular nectar.

Our pets depend on us…

Dog houses are typically HOT inside, so that doesn’t provide the relief you may think it does. Add a thermometer to your dog house.

Thank you, FRIENDS! ❤️🐾🐾❤️

05/12/2024

Happy Mothers Day to all the fur mommas and the non furry mommas out there! This is for you!

04/22/2024

Hello! I'm sorry I have been down and out a bit since my spinal surgery but we are in the process of getting everything updated and working again! Thank you so much for your understanding :)

10/22/2023

Hey guys! Just wanted to let everyone know that I am having to have spinal surgery so I am going to be out of comission for the next few weeks. I was trying to send out a Facebook message blast but I have been locked out of my Facebook messenger. :( if you need to get ahold of me please send me a text message at 770-891-1502.

10/15/2023

Happy Vet Tech Appreciate Week to all the WONDERFUL techs out there that get their buttons kicked each week! Our fur babies wouldn't be here without every one of you! :)

09/05/2023

For anyone who has been trying to get ahold of me for the last day or 2, please know I'm not ignoring you.. ive been coming in and out of this state of fog/fever/deliria.. I tested positive for covid yesterday and it's majorly torn me down... It's been a long time since I've been this sick. My Facebook messenger isn't working well right now so if you need me shoot me a text at 770-891-1502 :)

08/27/2023

💜💜🐾💖💖

07/14/2023

Hi guys!! Facebook has been acting weird this week and not letting me check or even look at my messages. If you need to get in touch with me please TEXT me! :) I get a lot of junk and spam calls so it's much easier to get in touch with me via text or email :)

Send a message to learn more

07/04/2023

Happy 4th everyone!!

06/29/2023

Please protect your babies this summer!! Today is the hottest day of the year so far 💜🐾

06/11/2023

There was a cat, Jenny, who was one of the Titanic’s cat. She had her kittens onboard in Belfast. But when they got to the stop before heading to New York, she took her kittens off the boat and did not get back on.
You can read about her below...or by googling cat on Titanic.
Perhaps, that’s what this picture by artist Celia Pike, is of...Jenny and her babies watching the last sailing of the Titanic.

Artist: Celia Pike

"The Titanic Cat - Jenny's Story
In the wee hours of the morning between April 14th and April 15th 1912 the queen of the White Star Line, the unsinkable Titanic, did indeed sink into the icy waters of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Newfoundland. Countless human and animal lives were lost, but what about Jenny, the Titanic cat?

As the story goes …
Jenny was brought aboard the Titanic from her sister ship, the Olympia, to act as mascot and to help with the rodent control. She lived in the underbelly of the ship (or the kitchen depending on which story you read) and was tended to by a stoker named Jim Mulholland. He would frequently sneak table scraps for her.

Work was difficult to find in those days and Jim Mulholland had been temporary help on the Titanic during the ship’s sailing trials from the Irish Sea to Southampton. When he was offered a full time position for the Titanic’s maiden voyage to New York he was thrilled to have the employment.

During those sailing trials, about a week before the Titanic moored in Southampton, Jenny presented Jim and the Titanic with a litter of kittens. Jim made Jenny a comfortable spot where she could tend to her kittens. Looking after the mama cat and her kittens broke the monotony of Jim’s work. Jenny seemed content with her warm spot by the furnaces, her babies and her kitchen scraps from Jim.

However, as soon as the ship docked at Southampton Jenny had a good look at her surroundings and promptly started picking her kittens up by the scruff of their necks and moving them, one by one, down the gangplank and off the ship.

Jim watched her curiously and decided that this cat must know something that no one else knows!

He promptly packed his meagre belongings and departed the ship himself.

Truth or Titanic legend? Some other reports have Jenny and her kittens perishing with the Titanic, but the cat lover in me … I like Jim Mulholland’s story so I vote truth!

Years later the Irish Times ran Jenny’s story after a reporter spoke to an elderly man who related the tale. Was he Jim Mulholland himself or just someone with whom Jim shared his story? We may never know. A Daily Mirror edition from April of 1912 ran an article with the headline “Clever Mother Cat Saves Her Kittens from the Titanic” accompanied with the following picture. Is this Jenny’s litter? Again, we may never know."

Story via stayathomekitty.com

06/08/2023

Food for thought :)

05/29/2023

Remembering all the men, women, and animals who have given their lives serving our country! 💜🐾

04/24/2023

Two of our favorite boys "Piper" and "Apollo" enjoying some bird watching today! We love these two!! :)

03/24/2023

Happy National Pup day!! :) give all your puppies a big hug from us here at AFV! 💜🐾

03/23/2023

Next up in my clan is my shy Callie girl. I adopted her from planned pethood when she was under a year old after treating her in my clinic for various injuries from before she was rescued. If you come to my house she will be the one you will never see because of how shy she is. I can't believe that my girl is turning 8 this year! Say hello to my Callie Callie 💜🐾

03/20/2023

I think it's finally time I introduced my own personal crew! Bear with me though... there's a lot of furbabies in our clan here. Up first is my 5 year old Swedish Vallhund River. She is the light and the love of my life. River is a registered ESA and is in the process of being trained to be my service pup. River has been in our lives since she was 6 weeks old! She has moved with me every place that I have gone. She loves to go to the dog park, go camping with her family, go hiking, and LOVES digging in the sand at the beach! (Not the biggest fan of the water though lol) Swedish Vallhunds are Swedish herding dogs. She's a little small for her breed but she has the biggest heart! Her favorite thing in the world is to cover you with kisses 🥰🐾

03/17/2023

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone!! Be safe tonight!!

03/15/2023

Many people think a chubby pet is cute and a lean pet is not being fed enough, but studies show that a pet with a healthy weight lives an average of 3 years longer than an overweight pet. Don't focus on weight - focus on body condition! There is such a thing a feeding to death. Food for thought 💜🐾

03/11/2023

Hello AFV Family!
Stephanie here, with a AFV update! As all of you know, I have been fighting ovarian cancer for over 2 years; and the treatments have only been partially successful. Due to this, I have now been approved for a controlled experimental treatment at Emory Winship Cancer Center in Atlanta and will be moving back home for a couple of months, to give this a try. I will be leaving Michigan at the end of March. AFV will be offering full services until March 21st and Patrick will be offering limited services while I'm gone.
Patrick will be handling these during my absence. These services will be:
Dog walks
Dog/Cat feedings
Litter changes
House checks
Nail trims
So if you need any of these services, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

For my Atlanta AFV family, I will start offering full services in Atlanta starting March 25th. I will be scheduling appointments around my treatment schedule, so if your fur baby needs a nail trim, brush/comb out, meds administered, etc. please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.

As always, we at AFV, will continue to love, pamper and baby your pet, as we do our own.

And last but not least - it is with much sadness that I must report that my amazing friend and business partner Meg, has decided to start her own pet sitting business in the Paw Paw, Michigan area. I wish her all the best but, obviously, she is no longer scheduling or handling any AFV appointments or services. Please contact me directly.

Much love to everyone & please keep me in your prayers!
Steph

03/09/2023

Some exciting updates coming!!! Stay tuned...

03/09/2023

Some kicks and giggles for your Wednesday ;)

03/01/2023

Saw this at the clinic today :) just some food for thought! :)

02/25/2023

While Stephanie and the "A Furry Vacation" business are moving back to Atlanta, Meg will continue pet sitting in Southwest Michigan under a new name Love and Cuddles Pet Sitting. Sad for the change, but happy to continue helping your fur babies! So for Michigan services, please message the new page, text or call Meg or you can email and [email protected]..
I look forward to continuing to help all your fur babies! ❤️

02/24/2023

Due to some health issues we are sad to say that Stephanie is moving back to her home town in Atlanta temporarily for new treatments. Starting March 20th she will be back servicing the northern Atlanta area! For more information on how to book you can either message us here, email us at [email protected] or text her directly!

Everyone please have a wonderful day! :)

02/22/2023

It seems that the procedure of declawing is not widely talked about. Most of us know that means a cat doesn't have their claws, and then we move on. But what if we pause for a second and actually take a look at declawing. Maybe your opinion on it will change.

Declawing a cat is the equivalent of cutting a humans fingertips off at the first knuckle. The declawing procedure is painful for animals, as most of the time it is not a clean cut. Sometimes they take too much of the bone, sometime they don't take enough of the bone. Bone spurs, calcium build up and arthritis can form as they age, causing pain. When they wake up, they are in pain, since you just had the vet mutate each one of their fingers, and they HAVE to walk around on those paws for the rest of their lives. A vet once told me "You know how you feel when you're walking around with a pebble in your shoe all day? That's what a declawed cat feels like for the rest of their lives." Cats hide pain and illness very well, it's part of their survival tactic in the wild, so you won't even know they're in pain until it's so bad they can't hide it anymore, and that's when most people with declawed cats start to see behavorial issues. Not using the litterbox (because the litter will hurt their paws), not jumping up on things or being able to jump down from things (because their paws hurt) or acting out towards their humans (become aggressive because being touched hurts them.) To be blunt- declawing is extremely painful and an inhumane procedure.

https://petangeladoption.com/declawing-alternatives

Shared from Pet Angel Adopt and Rescue.

02/15/2023

Just a little food for thought on this lovely valentines day :)

02/12/2023

02/05/2023

Been terrible at posting daily pics, so here's the last few days with Tyson and Leonard. Love this duo! They're so sweet and funny! They'll be happy to see their family tomorrow, though we'll miss them! ❤️