Take Your Dog to Work Day began in 1999 to celebrate the human-canine bond and to promote animal adoption. Today, thousands of businesses across the country welcome their employees’ furry friends for a fun (and hopefully productive!) day.

Participating businesses can register with Pet Sitters International (who founded the event) and download a Participant Action Pack, which contains a sample “dogs at work” policy and tips for planning the event, along with other resources to ensure that the day is a success.

So, have some fun this Friday! Take your furry friend to work and introduce them to your co-workers.

And if you do,we’d love to hear about it! Post a picture on our Richmond Pet Lovers Facebook page, and tell us how your pets day at the office went.

Proceeds from the tournament and benefit go to support Companions in Crisis, FETCH a Cure’s program that provides financial assistance to families that cannot afford the life-saving treatments and medication for their pets that have been diagnosed with cancer. Last year’s Pets on Parade event, which drew about 300 two-legged and 50 four-legged attendees, raised more $100,000.  Event guests will have the chance to meet some very special animals that are currently battling cancer – Companions in Crisis recipients, Twizzler, Aida, Shaler, and Kasey (all featured in the Pets in Parade posters & invitations).

You and your pups can cheer on our Richmond’s Flying Squirrels next Wednesday, May 18th during “Bark in the Park” at the Diamond and RichmondPetLovers.com is giving away two FREE pairs of Diamond Club tickets to a few lucky fans!

To win, complete our on-line scavenger hunt.

How to enter

1. Navigate to the Richmond Pet Directory
2. Using the directory, find:
   - an exotic animal veterinarian
   - a pet-friendly winery
   - a cat-specific rescue group
   - one pet-friendly travel accommodation
   and
   - a pet-friendly meteorologist (I promise there’s one!)
3. “Like” us on Facebook and leave your scavenger hunt findings on our wall

The winners will be announced this Friday at noon. Good luck (and happy hunting)!

The winner will receive a Custom Portrait Session with Wolfgang Jasper/Howldog Photography (located in Stony Point Fashion Park) for their pet (humans can also be included in the session if you’d like – after all it is a love story!). This prize, valued at $725, includes:

• A Planning and Design Appointment about a week before the session
• A full Custom Portrait Session
• A “View and Choose” appointment to pick your favorite image
• A 11×14 custom print, mounted and lacquered for optimal presentation
• 25% discount on custom framing

The winner will be announced on February 28th, so all entries need to be submitted by midnight on February 21st.

Author Kat Hurst and her little one

By Kathryn (Kat) Hurst

I can’t believe it has been a week. A week since my little girl has passed away. Tears fall on my laptop keys as I write. I can still smell evidence of her. I still feel the overheated warmth of her skin next to mine. There were no warning signs of her illness… she simply just stopped existing.

She was only four years old.

I’ve asked God why…why was she taken from me? Why was I given this gift for only a short time? I long for her loving gaze. Her daddy, beyond heart broken, is sullen, quiet.

Oddly, the house doesn’t feel so much like a home. There are fewer words these days. Before, there was “Mia, leave your brother alone!” and, “Mia, are you ready for a snack?” and, “Mia, look how sweet you look!” Now there is silence. The chaos of Mia has disappeared. Her toys are no longer all over the front room. I continue to look for them to avoid tripping, but they are put away now ─ hidden to avoid sudden attacks of heart break and sorrow.

So now my husband and I must carry on and wonder what do we do now? How do we explain what has happened to her brother who is clearly confused? Do we bring another life into the household? If so, when? How do we grieve without appearing to be unreasonable and unusual?

See, my Mia was not a carefree little toddler, but rather a clumsy, chunky little tabby that chose us at a local animal shelter almost one year ago to the day. It was love at first sight and now she is gone.

Is it crazy to have these emotions over a small little being with fur? Should grief only be reserved for “real” children of “real” parents? The pain feels real. I listen to stories from friends with real children and I want to join the conversation. Sometimes I do. They look at me like I’m crazy. I say, “Yes, my children have jealousy issues too!” and “Yes, getting them to eat breakfast is such a challenge!”

OK, so I don’t have to worry about my child choosing the wrong college or life mate. And I’m pretty sure my sweet Toby will not grow up to be a mass murderer, but like so many mothers I know, I have moments of guilt and worry. I watch poop habits like a fecal-holic. I monitor every mood swing as if it might be a sign of illness. I find myself asking Toby crazy questions like “How was your day today my love?” It’s not uncommon for me to say to my husband “You are not going to believe what your son did today.”

Clearly you cannot define me as a traditional mother as I have chosen to nurture a furry being rather than a human form. I will outlive most of my children; a fact I now realize and accept.

Perhaps that makes me a mother of a different kind.

Dear Mia, my sweet little daddy’s girl, we loved you with all our hearts. See you on the other side little Pia Pie, along with the rest of the Hurst clan.

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED FROM MY PETS:

•Love unconditionally – If you find something you are truly passionate about, it doesn’t feel at all like work.

•Sometimes poop happens – on the carpet or in the boardroom, it’s not about what happens as much as how you deal it. If you handle the situation with tact and diplomacy, it will be remembered.

•Dogged determination – there is a reason this has become a cliché. Most good things in life are worth working really hard for.

WHAT I LEARNED FROM MY KIDS:

•Hold onto recess – We all need an outlet in our lives. Letting off steam allows us to be even more productive and focused when it counts, so strive for balance in your work and home life.

•If you don’t have anything nice to say – don’t say anything at all. By all means, do not put it in an email.

•Believe in yourself – remember when your mom told you that you could be an astronaut? She was right. Surround yourself with positive people who support you unconditionally. Throw in a few realists, just for good measure. Then go for it and take a chance. We are generally our own biggest hurdle.

As you can imagine, I could go on all day. But take a moment and soak in the meaningfulness that both children and pets add to your life – they make us the best versions of ourselves.

Krista Nixon,Senior Brand Manager
Premier Pet Products

“We adopted Paco from the SPCA 7 years ago, wanting to find our American bulldog a play mate. He immediately grabbed my heart. He had a great personality, very energetic and gave our bulldog some extra spunk as well. He was wonderful with our kids, he loved to play with them, lie on the floor and let them crawl all over him. “

Paco was exceedingly patient, says Shanna, “He never once seemed to mind my son tugging on his ears or my daughter laying on him with her blanket. He loved to snuggle with you and would pull his blanket over him on his dog bed at night to be under the covers, which was another one of his favorite things to do.”

At Paco’s yearly check up they found a lymph node that was inflamed and immediately thought it was lymphoma, the biopsy came back negative, so the Sonniers were over joyed and thankful. They took Paco back in a week later to have the stitches removed from the biopsy and the vet determined Paco punctured his saliva gland by chewing on stick, which made the lymph node inflamed from an infection. The vet gave Paco a clean bill of health and said there would be no alarm for concern.

“The next day I noticed Paco was having a hard time coming up the stairs and was very unstable on his feet. I called the vet immediately and took him in, it was determined Paco had a seizure. Later that evening Paco suffered another seizure. They ran test and could not come up with why he was having them. They told me to take him home and Paco should be better by morning.”

Unfortunately, the next morning Paco still could not function was not able to walk well and appeared to be in a state he could not recover from. The Sonniers took Paco to their regular vet; they sedated him, and determined he had a lesion on his brain, caused from the seizures the night before, something he would not be able to recover from.

Sadly the Sonniers had to put him down that evening.

Shanna’s children took it hard; especially her older daughter. To ease the pain, they took helium balloons outside and released them, sending them up to “Paco, in doggy heaven.” It was comforting—even for the adults.

Thank you for this sweet idea, and for being a great Richmond mom—to pets and kiddos alike—Shanna.