My Pet World: Dogs sometimes bark to communicate with their owners

Cathy M. Rosenthal, Tribune Content Agency on Aug 18, 2021

If the request is outside the scope of her bathroom habits and you know she doesn’t need to go out or you don’t want her to go out for whatever reason, begin training her with a phrase, like, “not now.” Simply say the phrase and ignore the barking. When she stops barking, call her to you (you will need to work on the “come” command as well), ask her to sit and then give her a treat. If she doesn’t stop barking, walk over to her, stand in front of her, step toward her, and point your arm over her head and say, “not now.” This will require her to turn and walk in the other direction, which immediately stops the barking. With training, she will learn what “not now” means and will stop barking when you say it. Then give her a puzzle toy to keep her busy.

Dear Cathy,

I have five kittens; two are feral. The two feral kittens are like termites. They eat everything. They grab from the table constantly. They act as if they haven't eaten ever. They break into bread and cheese packages. Is something wrong with them? – Heidi, Saint James, New York

Dear Heidi,

Feral cats learn to scrounge for their food or catch live prey and they may have developed some aggressive eating habits. If that is the case, keep your food in the house secure when you can’t be around to supervise until they learn they will get more than enough food from you.

But I wonder if they may have tapeworms. I am sure they didn’t have flea protection on the street and fleas are a major cause of tapeworms. Tapeworms eat the nutrients found in their host’s intestines, so your kittens may be malnourished right now, and could even be losing weight.

Tapeworms are obvious, so check their stools for the segmented worms. Whether you find any or not, I would get these felines checked out by a veterinarian.

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(Cathy M. Rosenthal is a longtime animal advocate, author, columnist and pet expert who has more than 25 years in the animal welfare field. Send your pet questions, stories and tips to cathy@petpundit.com. Please include your name, city, and state. You can follow her @cathymrosenthal.)