39. Enriching Feline Lives and Understanding Pet Behavior

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00:00:00:04 - 00:00:14:17
Voice Over
Pets add life. Your guide to the latest in pet trends, products and the joy of the human animal bond with Kristen Levine and Chris Bonifati powered by the American Pet Products Association and Dog TV.

00:00:14:19 - 00:00:28:19
Chris
All right, everybody, welcome to another edition of the Pal podcast. I am Chris Bonifati joined, as always by the exceptional and extraordinary Kristen Levine. Kristen, how are you doing today?

00:00:28:21 - 00:00:32:04
Kristen
I'm doing great. I'm doing great. But you sound a little sniffly.

00:00:32:06 - 00:00:46:06
Chris
Yeah, I it's November, it's finally gotten cold here. Like we had a lot of warm weather in October in the beginning of November. And last night we finally got below freezing and it's hit me full on.

00:00:46:11 - 00:00:47:06
Kristen
Hit you hard.

00:00:47:08 - 00:01:05:21
Chris
Yeah. Dear listeners, don't you worry about little old Chris. I've got plenty of Sudafed in me. I've had my caffeine. I had a nice buttered roll for breakfast so nothing can stop me. I'm honestly unstoppable. You give me a buttered roll, caffeine and Sudafed and I can make. I can make the magic happen. That way.

00:01:05:23 - 00:01:08:01
Kristen
Butter girl. That sounds delicious.

00:01:08:02 - 00:01:27:00
Chris
Yeah, it's very, very, you know, metro New York of me to go to the gas station and get a butter and roll and and distrust it because I feel like. I feel like when you're in New York and, like, metro area, saying you get your breakfast from a gas station is normal. But if I said that to somebody from Texas, they'd be like, are you insane?

00:01:27:02 - 00:01:29:04
Chris
Are you. Are you insane?

00:01:29:06 - 00:01:29:17
Kristen
It's true.

00:01:29:17 - 00:01:45:15
Chris
Just his way of life up here. Still haven't gotten a haircut either. For everybody watching us on YouTube, I've decided to let the flow go. So if you're not watching us on YouTube, you should be, because it's the best way to take the show. And if you're not watching us on YouTube or dog TV, you're not getting the full.

00:01:45:17 - 00:01:49:18
Kristen
Are you going to the man bun? Are you going for making it? Let it grow long enough for a man bun?

00:01:49:20 - 00:02:03:10
Chris
I think the I think the man bun is I think I'm too old for it. I think I think, you know, I think I think both the man bun in and of itself is past its prime, and I think I'm past my prime.

00:02:03:12 - 00:02:10:19
Kristen
If that makes me think of something. Isn't November, isn't that a month where guys grow beards or something or.

00:02:10:19 - 00:02:30:08
Chris
Correct. Yeah. Yeah, I actually do, participate in Movember, the Movember Foundation for, men's physical and mental health. So that's why the curly mustache always comes back around November. Every year I go places and people ask about it, and then I can make them give me money for mental health.

00:02:30:10 - 00:02:31:10
Kristen
Oh, so many spots.

00:02:31:10 - 00:02:46:19
Chris
Now, which is great. So, hey, listen, dudes out there, if you're listening, it is Men's Health Month, so go to the doctor. You're supposed to go once a year. You might as well go November. Go have them check you out. If you're not feeling right, talk to somebody. Just say, hey, I'm not feeling right. Hey, because it could be nothing.

00:02:46:19 - 00:02:54:23
Chris
It could be something. So, that's my soapbox, but let's get on to why we're here today, right? We've got we've got a share, a different story.

00:02:55:01 - 00:03:05:06
Kristen
We do, we do. And I just want to quickly mention that November is also and I'm surprised we haven't brought it up until middle of November at the time of this recording. But it's also senior Pet month.

00:03:05:08 - 00:03:08:14
Chris
So, Oh, I've got a senior pet.

00:03:08:16 - 00:03:15:09
Kristen
I know you do. I want to I was going to ask you if you've done anything special to celebrate, the distinguished Miss Tiger.

00:03:15:11 - 00:03:35:15
Chris
I don't know, but she has been on my nerves lately. Okay. That much she has been. So she was. She was pretty sick recently. And she wasn't eating, but she's come around entirely. And now she's putting weight on, and she will not leave me alone. She wants to be fat. She. It's like she's young again. She wants to just keep on eating and eating and eating.

00:03:35:15 - 00:03:59:08
Chris
And she has figured out that the best way to get her my attention is to get on the bed that's behind where I usually sit to work, and then stretch out onto my chair and just start eyeing the back of my head and my shoulder. And she knows that I just can't concentrate. She does that for about a minute or so, and then she gets whatever she wants.

00:03:59:08 - 00:04:01:07
Chris
Because I'm a sucker.

00:04:01:09 - 00:04:03:23
Kristen
You are a sucker. Well, I'm glad to hear she's feeling much better.

00:04:04:01 - 00:04:25:12
Chris
She is. She is. It's always scary when your older pet gets sick. But that's why we have the whole month of November to celebrate. That's right. So we've got a great show today. We've got, we've got, as always, we're bringing you two awesome stories, two excellent guests, two fantastic product recommendations. And at the end of the show, we're going to answer two questions from you.

00:04:25:12 - 00:04:41:16
Chris
Our wonderful audience. So I believe that takes care of housekeeping formalities and, just general debauchery. And we can go ahead and get into this week's episode of the pow pow, pow.

00:04:41:18 - 00:04:46:20
Voice Over
Kristen and Chris present story time.

00:04:46:22 - 00:05:07:12
Kristen
Okay, I'm going to kick off story time, Chris. And my story is about National Senior Pet Month, which is also known as Adopt a Senior Pet Month. And I'm going to talk a little bit about some of the benefits to adopting a senior pet. But I first wanted to share, a little story about one of my favorite, nonprofit organizations.

00:05:07:12 - 00:05:31:09
Kristen
And it's called Gray Muzzle. And Gray Muzzle is an organization that improves the lives of at risk senior dogs. And they do that by funding, providing funding and resources to animal shelters, rescue groups, and sanctuaries, that have senior dogs. So, I've been a fan. I just learned that there in Raleigh, North Carolina, I didn't know where they were located.

00:05:31:09 - 00:05:53:20
Kristen
But, you know, that's close enough for me to hop in the car and go visit one day. So I think you're going to do that. But I just wanted to to also mention that, senior dogs, when they end up in shelters, their chance of getting adopted is not obviously not as great as a younger dog. They say one statistic, I can't say statistic.

00:05:53:22 - 00:06:16:01
Kristen
One number, states that just over 50% of senior pets in shelters actually find homes. I personally thought that was a little high. I hope it's 50% at least. And so it's really important that senior dogs get highlighted as senior cats too. And I'm great muzzles just for senior dogs. But obviously adopting senior cast is important as well.

00:06:16:03 - 00:06:38:05
Kristen
And, so I just thought if you're looking for a way to support senior pets, obviously you can adopt one, but if you can't adopt, you can certainly volunteer at a local shelter. You can support the Gray Muzzle Organization with a donation, and just join their mailing list. They put out a great newsletter, they share stories about their seniors, and it's always really uplifting.

00:06:38:07 - 00:06:56:19
Kristen
And then I wanted to leave you all with a few, of the benefits of adopting a senior pet, because, let's face it, most people, when they when they want to adopt a pet, they go looking for either a puppy or, you know, maybe an adult dog or cat that's maybe a year old or so. But, senior pets are typically calmer.

00:06:56:21 - 00:07:18:07
Kristen
They already have their personalities established. So kind of what you see is what you get with the senior pet. Also, many of them are already house trained, or they might even know some basic commands from their previous home. And this, this month of November, most shelters and rescues will have discounts on senior pet adoptions.

00:07:18:07 - 00:07:40:14
Kristen
So that's a way to save money. And, they they're more content with the quiet, laid back lifestyle. They don't typically need as much exercise as a younger dog or cat. So if you're, you know, looking for kind of a chill pet, senior adopting a senior pet might be the way to go. So that's what I wanted to share with you all.

00:07:40:14 - 00:07:45:11
Kristen
Not really a story, but more of a just an opportunity to get on my senior pet soapbox.

00:07:45:13 - 00:08:01:20
Chris
I think it was a story I think that counts. Forgot to up. I mean, Tiger didn't come into my life until she was 19. So, yeah, she's she's my wife's high hope. She's my wife's childhood cat. She got her in the fourth grade.

00:08:01:22 - 00:08:02:16
Kristen
A three.

00:08:02:18 - 00:08:35:01
Chris
And. Yeah, Tiger and I, didn't didn't share a living environment together until two years ago. So. And it was, it was very rewarding to have, a very relaxed and calming presence, in my home. So I would recommend it for anybody who may be thinking about it. Go ahead and, pull the trigger, go to go to the shelter and see, who you might be able to help out.

00:08:35:03 - 00:08:40:11
Chris
As always, Christian, I'm going to completely foil your story with. Okay, something ridiculous I.

00:08:40:11 - 00:08:43:09
Kristen
Found we always have a completely opposite vibe. No.

00:08:43:11 - 00:09:11:16
Chris
We're. It's so strange, but, like, sometimes you gotta, we gotta, we gotta. That's why we have to. Hosts on this show wouldn't be the same person, but I. So unfortunately it was. I found this on Reddit. Okay. Which of course Chris's is Reddit for those of you who don't know, Reddit is essentially a, like a like a posting board for the internet where people can post stuff, but this post has since been deleted, so I'm sorry I'm not going to be able to link to it, but I have.

00:09:11:20 - 00:09:38:12
Chris
I had it saved in book bookmarked, because it was so ridiculous. Essentially this person had to unburied their cat because their cat is an outdoor cat and got outside and the cat found its way into like a groundhog tunnel and wound up, like three feet underground and lost.

00:09:38:16 - 00:09:39:15
Kristen
Oh my gosh.

00:09:39:15 - 00:09:46:18
Chris
They were outside and heard the meows coming from underground.

00:09:46:20 - 00:09:48:13
Kristen
And they had to literally.

00:09:48:15 - 00:10:05:09
Chris
Dig and get to this cat. So the cat was really only missing, for a few hours. They took the cat to the vet. The cat was completely fine, obviously frazzled, and shocked at the experience. But I'm so upset that it's, deleted because there.

00:10:05:09 - 00:10:07:00
Kristen
Why was it deleted?

00:10:07:02 - 00:10:33:05
Chris
It's because if anybody here uses Reddit, they know that the the moderators of Reddit are just tyrants. They're just the worst people. And because it the way Reddit works, there's like subreddits they call them. And because this post didn't fit in perfectly with what this subreddit was about, you got deleted. But there is this picture of this cat and just the face sticking up out of the ground, and I'm like, this is this is ridiculous.

00:10:33:05 - 00:10:55:09
Chris
And the guy was saying he's like, yeah, you know, we have a ground hog problem on our property. And we've given up on trying to do anything about it. And I guess, you know, cats, there are cats that like to dig. I know that's typically like a a dog thing that people associate with dogs. But cats like caves and tunnels just as much as as anybody else.

00:10:55:09 - 00:11:02:14
Chris
So, this cat found their way into a network of tunnels, got lost, and just started screaming.

00:11:02:19 - 00:11:19:05
Kristen
Oh, I'm really glad you brought up that story, because we have had a groundhog problem earlier, you know, this summer. And the holes that they dig are about the size that definitely a cat could get into. And you know, we all know cats like cozy spaces. So I'm glad that you share that with me. That's something. I'll have to be on the lookout.

00:11:19:05 - 00:11:28:21
Kristen
I don't have a cat right now, but we do have a couple of, neighborhood cats, that people have that are indoor outdoor. So I'm going to. I'm gonna put the warning signs out for that.

00:11:28:23 - 00:11:40:21
Chris
Yeah. Yes. And if you hear a meow coming from below them. No, it is not the devil trying to tempt you. It may be your cats, so start digging

00:11:40:23 - 00:11:45:21
Voice Over
Beyond the leash, exploring the untold stories of pet passion and professionals.

00:11:45:23 - 00:11:57:19
Chris
All right. We are thrilled to welcome Cynthia Cuomo's, the founder of Cardio Space is a company dedicated to creating safe and beautiful outdoor enclosures or patios for cats.

00:11:57:19 - 00:12:22:19
Chris
And I'm sure all of our listeners have seen these all over the internet. But over the past decade, Cynthia has combined her expertise as a feng shui consultant, designer and cat lover to enrich the lives of cats and protect wildlife. If, inspired by her own tabby, Serena, Cynthia has pioneered a movement that provides cats with safe outdoor experiences while giving peace of mind to cat parents everywhere.

00:12:22:21 - 00:12:49:23
Chris
And in addition to all of that, Cynthia is a fantastic advocate for your pets. And November, as we mentioned, at the top of the show, is Senior Pet Month. So, Cynthia, welcome to the show. And let's just jump right into it. And I want to ask, what, inspired you to create, cardio spaces and kind of not just do that as a hobby or an interest, but to turn it into an entire business?

00:12:50:01 - 00:13:12:19
Cynthia
Well, it's been quite a journey, I will say. I'm sure you know, I'm very passionate about design, nature and animals. And, I was never a cat person until a cat meandered into my yard one day. And, as it turns out, I ended up having joint custody of her. Until I became a cat cat parent, officially.

00:13:12:21 - 00:13:31:07
Cynthia
And, so she was an indoor outdoor cat. I didn't think anything of safety at that point because she was street smart. But years later, when she passed, and I adopted a new kitten. The mama protective mama bear in me came out, and, there was no way I was going to let this cat roam freely.

00:13:31:09 - 00:13:49:08
Cynthia
So I transformed my backyard patio into a patio and one day I was sitting in there with a cup of tea and my cat on my lap, and I was like, wow. You know, I water fountain and plants. And, it was like an outdoor sanctuary for me as much as it was for her. And I thought, you know what?

00:13:49:08 - 00:14:07:17
Cynthia
I could create these for people. So flash of inspiration, patio spaces. I then joined my local master builders association. I got my contractor's license, and I started, working with a team of carpenters, designing and building patios.

00:14:07:19 - 00:14:25:07
Kristen
That is so cool. And, you know, as Chris mentioned in your intro, you have a background in feng shui. You are a designer and and now obviously the cardio queen. How has that your previous experience in those fields shaped what you're doing now with career spaces?

00:14:25:09 - 00:14:52:17
Cynthia
Home is such an important space, for humans and for pets. And I love design and a lot of the catalogs that, you know, ten years ago were just wire cages. And when I created mine, that was more like a she shed for both me and my, you know, and and the esthetics are very important and especially, you know, people have homes and gardens and we want to make sure that it complements the home.

00:14:52:21 - 00:15:16:01
Cynthia
So that was my, my big, driving force was to make them attractive. And dogs have it a little bit easier because a fenced back yard will contain a dog. They could also go on walks with, you know, a leash. And they're, they're humans. But cats, they can easily scale a fence and, you know, they want fresh air just as much as dogs do.

00:15:16:01 - 00:15:28:04
Cynthia
So I believe a harmonious home supports all family members, including our pets, and they are family members. As pet lovers know, you know, they're a wonderful, joyful addition to our lives.

00:15:28:06 - 00:15:43:14
Chris
Absolutely. And speaking of wonderful, joyful additions to our lives as a fellow cat owner, I need to ask you about your cat, Serena, and how, they may have played a role in the creation of cardio spaces.

00:15:43:16 - 00:16:03:04
Cynthia
Yes, I have a very special kitty. In fact, it was five months after my neighbor's cat, who I, you know, became cat mom, too. After she passed that I had a dream and. And the dream, I saw the face of the little orange tabby meowing at me urgently. And when I awoke in the dream, I was like, that's my next cat.

00:16:03:04 - 00:16:21:17
Cynthia
You know I need to find her. So I started calling every cat shelter in the Seattle area, and they told me that female orange tabbies are rare. They're usually born as male. And if you're going to adopt kittens, you have to dot two. And I was like, I knew it was only one. Well, anyway, long story short, I found her.

00:16:21:19 - 00:16:42:16
Cynthia
And, it was really out of a desire to keep her safe that I created my first cacio. She is now our chief feline officer and quality assurance expert. She has taught jazz for carry out. And, so she's a big part of patio spaces. It's really she's my inspiration. And I love her dearly.

00:16:42:18 - 00:16:48:18
Chris
For cat ears and two titles. She is she's. Yeah. For herself. Yeah.

00:16:48:20 - 00:16:49:12
Cynthia
Yes.

00:16:49:12 - 00:17:11:17
Kristen
That's awesome. It wasn't for for our cat. Listening cat lover audience. Who might be interested in building or creating cardio for their cat. What types of careers do you, offer? And I know you have plans on your website, right? What? What are. Give us an idea of the range of types of patios that you recommend.

00:17:11:18 - 00:17:36:01
Cynthia
Cat ears can be custom, and really, the sky's the limit. With them, we build custom patios here in Seattle, so, you know, they're all very custom. However, we have DIY plans that range from something very small and simple, like a window box or a narrow, like maybe a three foot by six foot tall cardio that can be nestled right up against the house.

00:17:36:03 - 00:18:02:18
Cynthia
That is popular because the cats can enter the patio directly through a window or a door, you know, a cat door and send me a cat drawing them. So, but there's larger ones that are, detached, attached away from the house with cat tunnels. So it really depends on, you know, how much space do you have and how is the cat going to access the patio and cat doors are wonderful.

00:18:02:18 - 00:18:12:23
Cynthia
That for that, like I say, they can be installed in a, in a window, a wall, a door, to allow that access.

00:18:13:01 - 00:18:21:05
Chris
So we're coming up here on it nearly. Or maybe we're past ten years of patio spaces, which is incredible.

00:18:21:05 - 00:18:22:01
Kristen
But gradually.

00:18:22:06 - 00:18:34:15
Chris
As as we know, you got to keep looking forward. So, what's the future hold for for patio spaces, and your plans to keep enriching the lives of cats and their owners?

00:18:34:17 - 00:19:14:04
Cynthia
Well, my vision is that every cat will have safe outdoor access. And I think for me, you know, being able to be on your show, you know, is a great way to spread the word. And I want to continue to be an advocate and an educator in that arena, but also on a grassroots level. Every neighborhood forum is posting lost deceased cats or coyotes in the neighborhood, and I think every listener could post when they see something about, you know, those issues, just to say, hey, have you considered a patio and start to spread the the word on more of a grassroots level?

00:19:14:06 - 00:19:18:21
Cynthia
So that's, some great ways to do that.

00:19:18:23 - 00:19:24:01
Kristen
Yeah. And one thing we haven't mentioned yet is how, the carriers also protect wildlife.

00:19:24:03 - 00:19:53:02
Cynthia
Yes. Very important. Patios benefit cats in so many ways. Protects them from predators, poisons, pesticides, vehicles. I've had clients whose cats have been locked in a neighbor's garage while they went on vacation, and they've been locked in a garage for ten days. Firemen no longer rescue, cats from trees. So, patios are going to keep cats safe.

00:19:53:04 - 00:20:05:14
Cynthia
They can enjoy the wind in their whiskers. They can get exercise. They can take a cat that's in the sun. And when they're big enough, humans can. I can enjoy them as well, because fresh air and nature's good for us, too.

00:20:05:16 - 00:20:06:10
Chris
Absolutely.

00:20:06:10 - 00:20:07:06
Cynthia
Shared spaces.

00:20:07:11 - 00:20:26:13
Chris
Yeah. And so it is, senior pet month in November. And I'm just curious if you have any experiences with a senior pet, if a senior pets come into your life, you know, when it was late in their life and, any sort of impactful stories you may have in that sort of vein?

00:20:26:17 - 00:20:52:03
Cynthia
Absolutely. I think mobility is probably the biggest challenge. You know, we want to stay on top of the vets in contact with the vets, but mobility is the hardest one. And creating ramps for your pets, whether it's to the bed or out in the patio. But last year, I had the opportunity to foster a 100 pound Australian shepherd named Jake and, it was it was an end of life situation.

00:20:52:04 - 00:21:15:05
Cynthia
I knew our time was limited, but I started out by, you know, putting down rugs, slip free rugs on my floor so that he could move. He had trouble getting up and down the stairs and, a ramp was not a possibility. Was too steep. So I actually built a dog elevator that was called Gigi's Paws Express. It was.

00:21:15:06 - 00:21:38:18
Cynthia
It had a little carriage, and he would walk out and go in and drop down, and he was able to go out for his walks. So, you know, depending on the size of the dog, I think the biggest thing is, you know, if their spirit is still there, but they can't move around, you know, how can we make it easier for them if it's small enough, we can lift them up to the bed or take them outside.

00:21:38:18 - 00:22:00:20
Cynthia
But this was one solution. And it was it was, a joy. And also, you know, it was, emotionally hard, time as well, but it's sacred time when, when whether it's, you know, your parents or your pets, when they reach their golden years and they're starting to get into end of life, they need extra attention.

00:22:00:20 - 00:22:07:20
Cynthia
And it was a blessing. And it was an honor, really, to be able to make his life comfortable right to the very end.

00:22:07:22 - 00:22:30:10
Kristen
Well, that's a wonderful story. And I was also thinking about senior cats, how a cardio space is such a wonderful way for an older cat who might have arthritis. Or just not be as active as they used to be, to enjoy the fresh air and watch the birds and the bugs and and then things like that. And so you offer custom built cardio spaces as well as the DIY plans.

00:22:30:10 - 00:22:46:19
Kristen
I want to make sure everybody knows your website. It's Cardio spaces.com. And, Cynthia, thank you so much for being with us today. I think you deserve an award for your contribution to amazing spaces for our feline companions.

00:22:46:21 - 00:22:49:14
Cynthia
Thank you. Paws up to everybody.

00:22:49:16 - 00:22:52:00
Kristen
And likewise.

00:22:52:01 - 00:22:54:13
Voice Over
Pets add life.

00:22:54:15 - 00:23:14:12
Chris
What what a fantastic guest. What? She was so. Yeah, knowledgeable and natural. And, I think it's, I think cardio spaces are awesome. I think if you're if you're thinking about it, I mean, just give it a give. Do some research. That's all we're asking, you know, have to invest. It may not be right for you, but head on over to the website, watch some of the videos.

00:23:14:14 - 00:23:35:08
Chris
You know, they just figure it out. I, I I'm, I'm just so impressed with the whole concept. I wish I was saying it a little break down afterwards. Tiger doesn't go on outside anywhere. She doesn't desire it. It's not in. You know, it's just not something she desires. But maybe when it becomes time for us to move to another cat, who knows?

00:23:35:10 - 00:23:42:02
Chris
Who knows, we can build a little something on our on our back deck so that they can enjoy some outdoor spaces.

00:23:42:04 - 00:23:58:15
Kristen
All right, Chris, so our next guest is one that we had the opportunity to talk with at Super Zoo. So, and this is a really fun interview. And, she's a really cool veterinarian that you must follow on social media. So let's get to know her better.

00:23:58:17 - 00:24:22:13
Chris
We're joined now by Doctor Annie Valeska, who brings over 20 years of animal behavior experience to her role as a principal scientist on Purina Pet Behavior Team. After a variety of undergraduate research experiences at Canyon College, Doctor Annie received her PhD in animal behavior from the University of California, Davis then went on to serve as the postdoctoral behavior research fellow at Disney's Animal Kingdom.

00:24:22:13 - 00:24:41:03
Chris
So cool. That is really. Since joining period in 2013, Doctor Annie has gotten used, gotten to use her expertise to serve as the voice of the pet, ensuring that the needs of cats and dogs are kept top of mind in all of its products and outreach efforts. Doctor Laska, thank you so much.

00:24:41:05 - 00:24:42:06
Kristen
Welcome.

00:24:42:09 - 00:24:43:17
Dr. Annie Valuska
My pleasure.

00:24:43:19 - 00:24:45:18
Kristen
What a fabulous career you have.

00:24:46:00 - 00:24:48:08
Dr. Annie Valuska
I have the best job in the world. You must love it.

00:24:48:10 - 00:24:54:07
Kristen
Yes, you must love it. Tell us about how you got here. Like what? What led you? Did you know when you were a little girl that you wanted to work with.

00:24:54:07 - 00:25:00:20
Dr. Annie Valuska
Animals, and I did. Yeah. When I was really little, I thought that meant I could be a veterinarian or a zookeeper.

00:25:00:22 - 00:25:03:00
Kristen
And those are the only two things you get.

00:25:03:00 - 00:25:04:13
Chris
Two up, two choices.

00:25:04:15 - 00:25:26:13
Dr. Annie Valuska
And so by the by the time I got to college, I had ruled out both of those as career options. So I went to school for English, and I figured I would just have pets or foster those kinds of things. So, I might have. On my very first day on campus, they had a science luncheon for incoming freshmen, and I did not particularly like science.

00:25:26:13 - 00:25:45:11
Dr. Annie Valuska
I didn't think I was very good at it, but I wanted to go and get some free food and meet people. You. Right. And the very last seat in the room was filled by a man named Bob mock, who sat at my table and introduced himself as a professor of animal behavior. And I thought, well, that sounds really cool.

00:25:45:12 - 00:25:55:12
Dr. Annie Valuska
And so I stayed after, like the nerd that I am and talk to him. And that was it. He was my mentor all through college. So that put me on the path to a career in animal behavior. Yeah.

00:25:55:17 - 00:26:10:05
Chris
I have to ask about the Animal Kingdom thing. Because every time my wife and I go to Disney, we always go to Animal Kingdom and we do the safari. And I'm not a big zoo person because I really don't like that. But the way Animal Kingdom handles it, with all the free roaming space and all the research they do.

00:26:10:06 - 00:26:13:03
Chris
So what was your role like there and how do you help those animals?

00:26:13:06 - 00:26:30:10
Dr. Annie Valuska
Yeah. So my role, was the behavior research fellow, and I really was there to try to solve any problems that came up in terms of the animal well-being. So it was a really interesting two years, one day you might be working with baboons, the next you might be working with Mary Starks.

00:26:30:10 - 00:26:34:16
Chris
I feel that I feel like I work with baboons.

00:26:34:18 - 00:26:55:03
Dr. Annie Valuska
And so it was. Yeah, it was it was really interesting. I will say there's a big contrast between what I was doing at Disney and what I'm doing now at Purina, because you think about it, cats and dogs, we've been co evolving with them for thousands and thousands of years. And I am still one of 500 scientists at the company learning more about them and how to meet their needs every day, every single day.

00:26:55:03 - 00:27:13:00
Dr. Annie Valuska
So we have a lot of information about cats and dogs. And we're we're still learning about how to take the best care of them. At Disney, there isn't as much knowledge out there on what a marabou stork needs in captivity. And so it was a it was a more challenging job. But it was it was really, really fun.

00:27:13:01 - 00:27:21:12
Kristen
We're going to get into talking to you about your social media account, which is really exciting and has really taken off. But I first wanted to ask you, what is your typical day like today at Purina?

00:27:21:16 - 00:27:26:12
Dr. Annie Valuska
Oh, there's no easy. That's part of the fun, typical day.

00:27:26:13 - 00:27:29:04
Chris
So what is a typical day?

00:27:29:06 - 00:27:59:21
Dr. Annie Valuska
So I do a lot of education. You know that's part of my role on social media. But I also get to do it with the other scientists and marketers. And really, like I said in my bio, serve as the voice of the pet and help the other people at Purina understand that consumer and what their needs are. And just, you know, how cats and dogs see the world, experience the world, and help translate those insights to them so that it makes it into our products and outreach efforts and ensures that pet well-being is really being kept top of mind there.

00:28:00:02 - 00:28:13:11
Chris
Absolutely. And so now let's go to the fun stuff. Your channel, Annie knows animals, I've heard, was like a quick viral success. What's what's that like where you start something probably out of passion and interest and have it become successful?

00:28:13:12 - 00:28:15:03
Dr. Annie Valuska
I mean, it's it's kind of crazy.

00:28:15:03 - 00:28:18:16
Kristen
I and we're talking about TikTok and Instagram, right? Yes.

00:28:18:17 - 00:28:31:10
Dr. Annie Valuska
Okay. I'm, I'm bigger on TikTok than Instagram. Instagram was. That was a rough, rough launch. Yeah. It's like the wild West over there. Oh, yeah. I feel like it took a minute for the algorithm to find my.

00:28:31:10 - 00:28:34:20
Chris
It takes all of my power now to read our comments.

00:28:34:22 - 00:28:55:20
Dr. Annie Valuska
I read the comments, and on TikTok and now Instagram. For the most part, they truly are really positive. People are sharing that they have a better relationship with their pet than they did before. They found my account, which I love to hear but was a little rough on Instagram. In the beginning. I had one commenter say to me, I actually have this embroidered on a pillow now.

00:28:55:22 - 00:28:57:00
Chris
As you said.

00:28:57:02 - 00:28:58:00
Kristen
What is it?

00:28:58:02 - 00:29:04:16
Dr. Annie Valuska
Get off your high horse, curly Sue.

00:29:04:18 - 00:29:09:13
Chris
Oh, miss, the 1930s called. They want their installed back, and.

00:29:09:15 - 00:29:11:04
Dr. Annie Valuska
I died, so I guess.

00:29:11:06 - 00:29:18:04
Kristen
That is classic. I love that, so talk to us about, what what content resonates most with your followers?

00:29:18:06 - 00:29:36:21
Dr. Annie Valuska
Cat content. Really? For sure. Yes. And I keep trying to make dog videos. I know just as much about dogs. You know, it really is important. Dogs are misunderstood, too. But, it's the cat videos that really take off, and I. I love that because there just there isn't as much out there about cats. There's not as much, much research.

00:29:36:21 - 00:29:41:06
Dr. Annie Valuska
There's not as much easy access to people that know about cats.

00:29:41:07 - 00:29:43:06
Kristen
It's not as many products for cats either.

00:29:43:08 - 00:29:51:19
Dr. Annie Valuska
Yeah. So it's it's definitely the cat videos. And people seem to really like cats misbehaving. Yes. It's biting somebody or. Yeah. Yeah.

00:29:51:22 - 00:30:16:02
Chris
You love that. I'm your number one consumer right here. I mean, we had a guy on the show previously who makes, like, a feature film out of cat videos, and he says he watches 15,000 of them a year. And I said, those are rookie numbers. We got to get those cameras. Yeah. But as a cat data, I want to know what's like your headline piece of advice for for cat behavior and how to manage a cat who may be misbehaving.

00:30:16:04 - 00:30:30:11
Dr. Annie Valuska
So I would say the the too long didn't read version is if your cat is doing something that you don't like, it's probably your fault. Yeah.

00:30:30:12 - 00:30:36:14
Chris
That's great. We don't need to delve any further into my fault, I love it. I don't think we need to do that on this podcast.

00:30:36:16 - 00:30:39:08
Kristen
Same thing with your wife. If she's doing so, she always know what your.

00:30:39:08 - 00:30:41:07
Chris
Faults and I'll get it from her. Don't worry about.

00:30:41:07 - 00:31:05:22
Dr. Annie Valuska
That. But you know, cats are very misunderstood and people see them as a low maintenance dog, right? And they think that they can just get this cat. And as long as they have a litter box cat is going to be fine. And, cats really benefit from routine and exercise and play and interaction with people. And chances are there's not enough of at least one of those things happening around the cat that is actively causing problems.

00:31:05:22 - 00:31:11:07
Kristen
I was going to ask you, what is the number one mistake you think that cat parents make with their cats?

00:31:11:07 - 00:31:22:14
Dr. Annie Valuska
Not enough. Play, not enough playing. You know, they they might throw some toys out into a room. And it's the same toys that stay there forever. Yeah. And they think that that's enough.

00:31:22:14 - 00:31:30:00
Kristen
And they're expecting the cat to play with the toy as opposed to I assume you would, encourage interactive play with play with your cat.

00:31:30:00 - 00:31:48:23
Dr. Annie Valuska
Absolutely. You know, cats evolved to hunt in order to get their food. And we have taken that hunting experience away from them. They are now, you know, fed out of a bowl. And when you don't replace the hunt, then you end up with a cat that has a lot of extra energy. Yeah. If you don't give it an outlet, they're going to find what might not be what you.

00:31:48:23 - 00:32:08:11
Chris
Might probably be or furniture in some capacity. Your furniture. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. There's a lot of great stuff out there too, with some of these toys that are just more interactive, more engaging. But yeah, I think there's just not enough people out there who feel like they need to play with their cat. You ask a dog owner like if you were to pull them, hey, do you need to play with your dog?

00:32:08:11 - 00:32:16:23
Chris
And most of them would say yes. Yeah, most people say they're cat. They're fine. Right. But I don't think cats have a good a positive way of expressing their frustration.

00:32:17:00 - 00:32:18:18
Kristen
Let's meet cats need better publicists.

00:32:18:20 - 00:32:21:15
Chris
Yeah. They do. We got to get our cats a PR person.

00:32:21:19 - 00:32:24:10
Dr. Annie Valuska
Yeah. I joke in my videos that I am cat PR there.

00:32:24:10 - 00:32:32:17
Chris
Okay, great. There we go. If you are in the room with us, it's your fault, people. It's your fault. It's not the cat's fault.

00:32:32:18 - 00:32:37:04
Kristen
I'm curious. Doctor Velasco. When did you start the accounts on social?

00:32:37:04 - 00:32:39:07
Dr. Annie Valuska
I started in September of last year.

00:32:39:11 - 00:32:45:04
Kristen
Okay. And then when did you know that it was starting? It was really taking off.

00:32:45:06 - 00:32:56:15
Dr. Annie Valuska
I still don't feel like that. But it wasn't too long. It was, I don't know, maybe my fourth video that went over a million views. Yeah. That's.

00:32:56:17 - 00:32:58:07
Kristen
That's incredible.

00:32:58:09 - 00:33:01:10
Chris
That's. It gets a couple of views. Yeah. That's pretty it's a pretty high number.

00:33:01:12 - 00:33:04:06
Kristen
Doesn't feel like she's made it yet. Yeah. That is, that.

00:33:04:06 - 00:33:09:05
Chris
Is take a million views right now right into the camera. I'll take a million views. I'll take a million views right now.

00:33:09:10 - 00:33:24:12
Dr. Annie Valuska
But it was a video of a cat biting somebody. And the headline of that video was cats are So Unpredictable. And I came in and said, oh, they're not here. And all the signs the cats gave that the cat came in. He was about to bite. So it's you know, and that resonated with, with.

00:33:24:12 - 00:33:34:01
Kristen
Yeah. Interesting. So what do you think? The dog we talked a little bit about this, but your dog content. Why do you think it's not caught on this quickly?

00:33:34:01 - 00:33:51:15
Dr. Annie Valuska
I think part of it is that the market is a little more saturated. There are a lot of other dog experts, trainers and veterinarians that talk a lot about dogs. And so, yeah, I don't think the algorithm is rewarding that kind of content. That makes sense. I also think part of it is that and there are studies to back this up.

00:33:51:15 - 00:34:06:12
Dr. Annie Valuska
I've talked about them in some videos. Dog people think they know dogs really, really well. Yeah, yeah that's true. The science says that they don't that non dog owners are actually better at reading dog body language than dog owners are. But I think that is that is part of the problem.

00:34:06:13 - 00:34:09:02
Chris
How long do you go to school for animal behavior.

00:34:09:04 - 00:34:09:20
Dr. Annie Valuska
A long time.

00:34:09:23 - 00:34:21:03
Chris
So until you have as many years and university as the good doctor over here, you're not an expert. So maybe you should do a little or humble yourself and do a little learning so you can take better care of your pet and and follow.

00:34:21:03 - 00:34:28:10
Kristen
And he knows animals. Do you have any, content coming up we can tease here on the show that I know.

00:34:28:12 - 00:34:38:03
Dr. Annie Valuska
Okay, okay. I get at this point I just get tagged a million times in something and that's what I make a video about. So it'll probably be a cat biting somebody. Okay, there you go.

00:34:38:08 - 00:34:47:12
Chris
I look forward to it. Oh, Doctor Liska, thank you so much for joining us on the podcast today. Your wealth of information. I'm sure, you've got a new follower.

00:34:47:15 - 00:34:49:20
Kristen
Absolutely. Me too. Me too.

00:34:49:22 - 00:34:51:09
Chris
And we can't wait to see what you do next.

00:34:51:11 - 00:34:52:12
Dr. Annie Valuska
Thank you. It is a pleasure.

00:34:52:15 - 00:34:58:17
Kristen
Yes. Pleasure to meet you, curly Sue.

00:34:58:19 - 00:35:22:05
Chris
First of all, staring at a younger version of myself. Even it just being, like, a few weeks. Strange. Second of all, And he's awesome. The social media is that that that that whole, like, being a veterinary must be so cool. Like, I mean, all those different animals that she's worked with, and it's found this home up here, you know, to really help us with, cats and dogs.

00:35:22:07 - 00:35:26:23
Kristen
Awesome. Yeah. I will forever remember her as curly Sue, though I'm not going to remember anymore.

00:35:27:00 - 00:35:44:16
Chris
I it's that insult has worked its way into my vernacular and it's it's become poison. So, yes, if you see, if you see me on the streets. Yes. No, I might tell you to get off your high horse, curly Sue. Might happen.

00:35:44:18 - 00:35:50:20
Voice Over
The product of the week.

00:35:50:22 - 00:36:19:00
Chris
All right, Kristen, my product of the week. It's tough to do that with a cold. Comes from a company. We decided it's pronounced packaging. And, it's no surprise I'm allergic to cats. And especially when I get a little sick, it triggers, like, my allergies, like, tenfold. Like, I get really sensitive to everything, because the immune system is not working properly, yada yada, yada.

00:36:19:02 - 00:36:37:13
Chris
At plus, it's now cold out. And typically the way I deal with cat allergies is I turn on a fan and open a window, and that is no longer an option. It's too cold for that. So I started hunting around. I'm like, I need a solution. So I ordered this product. It's not here yet, so I haven't been able to try it.

00:36:37:13 - 00:37:00:21
Chris
But, from everything I read, this is a great scientific approach to dealing with your cat allergies. So this product comes from a company called packaging, and it's a spray that you spray on your room. And essentially attacks, I'm going to get I'm going to get sciency here because they get sciency, which is why when people explain things using chemistry, I'm like, yeah, of course that works.

00:37:00:21 - 00:37:35:06
Chris
So that's the allergen is called fel d1 in their saliva and dandruff. And that's what causes typical allergic reactions. So they engineer proteins called nanobodies that can bind to and neutralize these cat allergens. So then you just spray this on the air, and the surfaces that you're using, they say about every three days, and they say that up to 98% of the allergens are neutralized.

00:37:35:08 - 00:37:35:14
Chris
That's.

00:37:35:20 - 00:37:37:17
Kristen
So it's like a run spray. Like a room.

00:37:37:17 - 00:37:59:06
Chris
Spray. It comes in like a spray bottle. It looks like it comes in a and a spray bottle, and then it looks like they have a refill, which I think is really great, you know, and environmentally sound. So you're not, you know, constantly reusing those nozzles. And it looks like they also sell it as getting even more sustainable, a, concentrated powder.

00:37:59:12 - 00:38:26:20
Chris
And then you mix that with water and then you. That's your spray bottle. So, you know, a scientific approach to, to dealing with allergy is nice, sustainable practices. I have not, received it yet. Because I try to order directly from folks, websites whenever I can. Yeah. So I was not able to get that Amazon Prime six hour delivery.

00:38:26:20 - 00:38:28:04
Kristen
And you know.

00:38:28:06 - 00:38:29:00
Chris
What? You know what?

00:38:29:01 - 00:38:35:11
Kristen
I want an update. I want an update when you do get it and try it. I'd love to know if that really works. Is that's pretty revolutionary.

00:38:35:15 - 00:38:55:19
Chris
Yes. And especially with this time of year with the cat, sort of growing in their winter coat, they, she's shedding a lot right now. Yeah. And she's getting, she's getting it everywhere and I can find and I said at the top the show she's been a pain in the butt lately. So she's following me everywhere.

00:38:55:19 - 00:39:00:11
Chris
I get up to go to a different room. She's following me because she thinks I might be getting a snack. I'm like, oh.

00:39:00:12 - 00:39:02:03
Kristen
She's probably intentionally shedding.

00:39:02:03 - 00:39:20:22
Chris
More. Yeah, there's no there's no slices of land O'Lakes American cheese in here. She goes insane for Land of Lakes. And I know somebody's probably listening to go, you shouldn't feed your cat. She's she's 21. She gets a little bit of cheese. The cat could have a small little bit of land of lakes. American cheese as a treat.

00:39:21:00 - 00:39:29:16
Chris
And and then I'm curious as to why she's bothering me all the time. It's because I'm giving her snacks whenever I go to the refrigerator, but,

00:39:29:18 - 00:39:33:18
Kristen
Yeah, it's it's. You've trained her to do that, so you can actually trained me.

00:39:33:20 - 00:39:42:16
Chris
She has trained me to do that. True. But, hey, if I can make it through the winter months a little less sniffly, I'll consider this a win.

00:39:42:18 - 00:39:47:11
Kristen
Yeah. So you said packaging is the name of the company. Is that the name of the product, too? Yeah.

00:39:47:16 - 00:39:56:20
Chris
And the link will be in our description here, but that's cool. You can find their products at packaging, which is P a C again.com.

00:39:56:22 - 00:40:21:21
Kristen
Okay. Cool. All right. Well what an update. All right. So my product of the week is something I have been using all week. I'm super excited to tell you guys about it. Now unfortunately this this is called the Pet Stain Eraser by Bissell. And unfortunately and I think I mentioned this on last week's show, tulip, had a bout with gastroenteritis, about a week and a half, two weeks ago now.

00:40:21:23 - 00:40:42:05
Kristen
And so unfortunately, she was having accidents in the home, both front end accidents and back end accidents, you know what I mean? And I before we moved here to North Carolina, I had a Bissell spot by pet, which is this amazing little carpet cleaner for pet stains. And I don't know what happened to it. I don't know if I just I it didn't make it in the move.

00:40:42:07 - 00:41:05:03
Kristen
So I was scrambling around to figure out how to get these, these stains up. And I went online and found this, this really cool handheld, pet seine racer. And all you do is super lightweight. You just charge it up. You put your your stain formula in the back here. You, let's see you. Could you just turn it on and it will.

00:41:05:03 - 00:41:30:07
Kristen
Suction. Well, first of all, it sprays this little sprayer. I know this is probably hard to show, but this little sprayer will spray the solution onto your carpet. Obviously, you have to pick up the mess first, as much of it as you can. And then, this little guy here is a suction, the suction area. And it also has a little brush which you can take on or off depending on whether or not you're gonna, you know, agitate it into the carpet.

00:41:30:09 - 00:41:59:19
Kristen
This thing works great. And I even took some before and after pictures because, you know, I wanted to, like, showcase it on the blog. So I'm really happy with it. It was 89 bucks. It was, you know, definitely a great purchase. I think every pet owner needs to have some kind of tool for when those when those front and back end accidents happen from time to time, whether it's you know, an illness or just, you know, maybe you stayed gone too long and didn't let the dog out in time.

00:41:59:21 - 00:42:07:15
Kristen
But yeah, that's that's my tip. And, I dropped I'll drop an Amazon link into the, into the show notes.

00:42:07:17 - 00:42:10:12
Chris
Aren't vacuums amazing?

00:42:10:14 - 00:42:24:00
Kristen
What do we do without them? Oh, and besides, every every, every, every purchase you make of a Bissell pet cleaning product saves pets lives because they have the Bissell Pet Foundation. They donate a portion of the proceeds to that.

00:42:24:02 - 00:42:32:09
Chris
I think we had someone from the Bissell Pet Foundation on the show early on in the Pal podcast history.

00:42:32:11 - 00:42:34:22
Kristen
Yeah, we may have done that.

00:42:35:00 - 00:42:40:18
Chris
Maybe. If not, I don't think we'll have them in the future. I feel like we did.

00:42:40:19 - 00:42:43:04
Kristen
I really feel like okay for that. So we have to look back.

00:42:43:04 - 00:43:11:09
Chris
For those of you taking notes at home, because I know we have listeners out there who, exist primarily to correct Chris on the internet. Go ahead and correct me if I'm wrong. If we've had a guest from the Bissell Foundation. But that's great. I mean, I have a, a Dyson version of the the same thing, and that kind of stuff is a lifesaver because that we have a carpeted second floor.

00:43:11:11 - 00:43:15:00
Chris
And the cat seems to go out of her way when she's sick to to go out.

00:43:15:06 - 00:43:16:13
Kristen
To find the carpet.

00:43:16:15 - 00:43:28:00
Chris
Yeah, I suppose it's just more comfortable. I mean, if you're going to throw up, you might as well be comfortable without it. So, Well, that's great. Good recommendation. Kristen.

00:43:28:01 - 00:43:29:07
Kristen
Thank you.

00:43:29:09 - 00:43:32:01
Voice Over
Q and A's.

00:43:32:03 - 00:43:45:19
Kristen
Our other favorite part of the show, which is where we answer two questions from two guests. And I usually toss the cat questions to you, Chris. So do you mind if I do? Do you mind if I do that again this week?

00:43:45:21 - 00:43:48:09
Chris
Yeah. Go ahead.

00:43:48:11 - 00:44:13:03
Kristen
All right. So this. Oh, let me find it first. Let it go. Here it is. Okay. So this question came in from Lisa and Lisa's in Portland. Portland, Oregon. That is she says I know mental stimulation is important for cats, but my indoor cat seems uninterested in most toys. What are some effective ways to keep her mentally engaged and happy?

00:44:13:05 - 00:44:45:02
Chris
So I hear most toys. And I think there's this misconception. It's almost like, like the new wave of parenting and like the tablet kids like, you don't just give the cat the toy and expect them to play with it like it's it's a two, it's a two player game. It's like a two. It's like an activity. So I you can't just put, like, a little mouse on the ground and expect the cat to go nuts over it.

00:44:45:02 - 00:45:16:12
Chris
Like, what you really need to be doing is activating their predator instinct in some capacity. So, like, the cat ones are great, but you got to move it around or, you know, some type of, you know, they have those, like, long ribbons that you pull across the ground or even there are some automatic versions. You know, I've talked about a couple of products in product of the week where, it's like a ball that you put on the ground and you turn it on and it starts sort of bouncing around erratically.

00:45:16:14 - 00:45:38:14
Chris
Those are the things that are going to get a cat excited. Now, that said, if the cat is genuinely not interested in any of that, you could just have a lazy cat. They exist. They're real. And if you bring them to the vet and the vet's like they're at a healthy weight, you know, they seem everything seems to be okay.

00:45:38:15 - 00:46:10:10
Chris
Maybe your cat just doesn't care. Maybe your cat is just just a couch surfer, a couch potato, wants to walk dog TV all day, surf Netflix like that, and that's fine. But it's important that you give them the opportunities for these enrichments, and, and, I'll leave you on this as well. Some cats are incredibly food motivated, so they may have, at a younger age, played with toys and then not gotten anything out of it because the predator instinct is, if I kill this thing, I'm going to eat, right?

00:46:10:12 - 00:46:29:00
Chris
So you may need to find like treat puzzles or other type of food based enrichment activities where they're going to do the thing and then they're going to get something out of it at the end. And that might trigger some stuff in their brain, to participate in the future.

00:46:29:02 - 00:46:36:03
Kristen
Yeah. And I would just add to that, if if all else fails, we just talk to Cynthia. You can just build a cardio for your cat.

00:46:36:05 - 00:46:55:00
Chris
Yeah, just build that cardio. Do it by hand. Make it really nice. Because your cat deserves it. But thank you, Lisa, for the question. And I've got one for you. Kristen. From Mark, your neighbor in Charlotte.

00:46:55:01 - 00:46:58:11
Kristen
My neighbor. Oh, is Charlotte okay? Yeah, that is pretty close.

00:46:58:16 - 00:47:12:00
Chris
Yeah. Mark asks, what monthly preventative should I be giving my pet to ensure they stay healthy? I'd love advice on essentials like flea tick and heartworm prevention.

00:47:12:02 - 00:47:35:10
Kristen
That's a great question Matt. Thank you for that. This is really something that you should talk to your veterinarian about. But you already laid out the questions for the veterinarian because typically the, the important preventative is, are, as you said, flea and tick heartworm and intestinal parasites, which is often combined with the heartworm medication.

00:47:35:12 - 00:47:58:18
Kristen
And but there are some things that would vary, based upon your geographic location and the climate. You know, certain parasites are more prevalent in, in some areas and others, your dog's age and their size. And if there are any local disease risks, there may be, you know, such as Lyme disease, there may be other preventative, that your veterinarian would recommend.

00:47:58:20 - 00:48:34:21
Kristen
And also lifestyle plays into that too, if your dog spends a ton of time outdoors, maybe you go hiking with your dog, versus, you know, having a couch potato at home that could also, impact the decision or the recommendation that your vet has. But I would say this, that once you determine, after talking with your vet about which specific brand of product, they recommend that you be very consistent with it, because I was just talking to, a friend of mine who has a dog who just admittedly, she skipped a few months of treaty of giving her dog the monthly chewable.

00:48:35:01 - 00:48:59:16
Kristen
And lo and behold, she now has fleas in her house. She she only noticed, 1 or 2 fleas on the dog, but they had already. Yeah, yeah. So she's dealing with that now. There are a lot of natural, products that kind of prevent, and kill fleas, ticks, other parasites. I have not used them, so I'm not going to be able to tell you if I think they're effective or not.

00:48:59:16 - 00:49:18:12
Kristen
I do know that they require sometimes daily application. So if you're interested in that, talk to you about about that as well. But, but we over here tulip and I swear by her monthly, flea and tick and her heartworm preventative, which, by the way, we just she's on a new one now. That's every three months for heartworm.

00:49:18:14 - 00:49:23:11
Kristen
So, just make sure you put it on your calendar. That's how I remember.

00:49:23:13 - 00:49:33:16
Chris
Yeah. Tell your tell your Alexa or your Siri to remind you in three months, yell at you. Because I would forget. Yeah, I would easily.

00:49:33:18 - 00:49:43:19
Kristen
Yeah. And you know what else I do? Too little, quick tip is on the box. I usually will write the date that I actually gave it to her. So, you know, the very.

00:49:43:19 - 00:49:45:08
Chris
Responsible of you.

00:49:45:10 - 00:49:49:01
Kristen
Yeah. You know, that's me. That's how I roll. I'm a rule.

00:49:49:01 - 00:50:07:13
Chris
Thank you. Thank you, Mark, for the question. Thank you, Kristen, for your insightful answer. And, hey, I know what you're wondering. You just heard those questions, and you're like, wait, I got a question for Chris and Kristen. Well, you're in luck, but go. Because if you head on over to petsaddlife.org/podcast, scroll on down to the bottom of that page.

00:50:07:13 - 00:50:37:10
Chris
You're going to see a form where you can submit your question. And if you're feeling as brave as Chris during allergy season, you can submit a voice memo and you may actually hear your question played live on these airwaves. So go ahead, be brave. Submit your questions and you'll be hearing from us. But in the meantime, Kristen, I think that brings us to the end of this week's show.

00:50:37:12 - 00:50:39:06
Kristen
That went by so quickly.

00:50:39:07 - 00:50:59:03
Chris
It always does. It always does. I guess. You know what? Let's I'm just going to let's just rant for a little bit, because I feel like the people deserve another minute of our presence, okay, for their for their whether they're listening to this on Tuesday, I imagine most people, they wake up right. This is I'm putting myself. We always say like put yourself in the mind of your your customer.

00:50:59:08 - 00:51:18:11
Chris
They wake up Tuesday morning and it sucks because it's Tuesday. It's the worst day of the week. And they're like, wow, things are really, really rough today. And they get into their car and they turn it on, and then suddenly they hear that pets add life jingle. Their smile brightens, the color returns to their face. They're optimistic. They could see a future.

00:51:18:13 - 00:51:20:08
Chris
They're happy. They can see how.

00:51:20:08 - 00:51:23:18
Kristen
Many people have tuned out now.

00:51:23:20 - 00:51:25:00
Chris
Because they can't make it.

00:51:25:01 - 00:51:27:10
Kristen
It's just you and me talking at this point.

00:51:27:12 - 00:51:36:05
Chris
It's just an empty room and Christmas and talking. But hey, if you are one of those people who wake up every Tuesday and listen to us, thank you so much. If you could do a.

00:51:36:05 - 00:51:36:11
Kristen
Start.

00:51:36:13 - 00:51:55:01
Chris
For the show with a friend, a friend who is a person. Don't share it with your cat or dog. Because Spotify and Apple and iHeart radio, they don't count those as listeners. Okay? We need we need the real. We need the real listeners. So go ahead, share that with a friend. If you're following us on socials, you should be.

00:51:55:01 - 00:52:12:08
Chris
If you're not, you should be. Go ahead and drop a comment in our reels. If you want to see us change something with the show, if you have constructive feedback, just be nice. I'm sensitive. Okay? Let's be positive. I'm a very sensitive boy. So be nice in those comments. If we got something wrong, correct us.

00:52:12:13 - 00:52:31:08
Chris
I love being corrected on the internet. It's my thing, I love it. I love it when strangers on the internet correct me. But in the meantime, we'll be relaxing. I'll be trying to get over this cold. Kristen will be enjoying her last few weeks of warm weather before autumn catches up with her down there in the south.

00:52:31:13 - 00:52:34:05
Chris
What's your temperature at right now, Kristen?

00:52:34:06 - 00:52:41:13
Kristen
Well, when I woke up, it was 42, but it's I think the high today is going to be the low 70s, so that's not too bad.

00:52:41:15 - 00:53:01:22
Chris
That's, that must be nice. I think we've hit our high because the sun appears to already be setting. It's not even noon. And it's set. It's a brisk 40 degrees outside here in Connecticut. So we're in the dog days now. But, hey, listeners, join us next Tuesday. And until then, be kind to yourself.

00:53:01:22 - 00:53:05:08
Chris
Be kind to your animals, and we'll see you in a week's time.

00:53:05:10 - 00:53:05:2
Kristen
Bye bye.