Pets On A Budget
by Jonni McCoy
www.miserlymoms.com

Getting a family pet can be one of the most rewarding things for a child. The pet provides companionship, entertainment and exercise. But sometimes the wrong pet for the family style and needs can be disastrous.

Many pets require a certain type of care. Some dogs, for example, require more money as well as physical interaction and attention. Without proper attention, they can start to act strangely, chewing up things and sometimes even biting or growling. Some other mammals, especially the small ones, don't demand as much and may be better suited for certain people. The smaller mammals, such as rats, rabbits, hamsters, and guinea pigs, are not only less demanding, but also less expensive to care for. Food can be homemade healthy items such as vegetables, grains and fruit. And vet bills are usually minimal.

How does one decide if they can afford a pet?
When deciding if you can launch into this addition to the family, don't forget to factor in the pet's love it will provide in return. This is something no one can put a price tag on. After deciding what the initial purchase fee will be, the prospective owner must look at food, vet bills, cage (if required), and any accessories that may be needed.

Another consideration is if your family is away from home much. Will pet sitting be a regular expense? A dog can cost $13,000 over it's lifetime. A third of that goes to food, and another third for the vet bills. The other third is spent on training, collars leashes, toys, etc. A cat will cost significantlyless, with small mammals, reptiles and fish trailing behind.

Vet bills can be an expense we forget to plan for. The average family spends between $100 and $350 per year on their pet. Those unexpected expenses like broken legs, etc. are just things we have to plan for.

There are ways to cut some of the routine vet expenses. Here are a few:

• Ask around at pet stores if they host a mobile vaccine clinic in the area. These are usually 75% cheaper than a vet office visit.
• Ask around what vet prices are. They vary greatly.
• Practice good health and hygiene. This preventative measure can save hundreds of dollars.
• Healthy food is one of the most important items pets need. Cheap food may not have the right amount of protein or essential oils that theyneed. Do some research on your pet's needs.
• Get videos from the library on dental cleaning grooming, and clipping at home.
• Get books at the library on simple home remedies for common ailments.

Food can be an overwhelming expense if you have a large and active animal, such as a dog. There are ways to get around this expense if you are creative. These have helped us in the past:

• Buy in bulk quantities at discount pet superstores.
• Avoid buying food from the vet. Their brands are good, but the mark upis high. Excellent quality pet food is available for less at most large pet stores.
• Don't over feed the animal.
• Learn to make some of their food - this is easier than you think. Most recipe are simple and can be made in bulk. That last suggestion may surprise you. When we lived in Nigeria and Pakistan we didn't have the luxury of a supermarket, or canned pet food.
  
  Instead, we made all of our pet's feed. It is simple, healthy and very inexpensive. It sometimes is better food than store-bought pet food.

For dog food, we boiled some meat and a bone with some rice and herbs. We would add some healthy oils (olive oil, etc.) to the mix for the dog's coat and skin.

For a cat, we chopped a few teaspoons of fish, chicken, or egg yolk and mixed it with a tablespoon of cooked rice or oats, a teaspoon of milk or sour cream and a little oil for its coat.

There are several recipe books in the library with various meals to make for pets. You can even make your own dry pet food. Whichever pet you choose, taking care of them shouldn't break the bank.

Good basic feeding and loving care should help them go a long way.

Jonni McCoy and her family live in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She is the author of Miserly Moms, Frugal Families - Making the Most of Your Hard-Earned Money, and Miserly Meals. You can visit her website at www.miserlymoms.com. Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com.

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Are You Addicted toFear? Learn How Not To Be!
Adapted from Dr. Judith Orloff's new book "Emotional Freedom:
Liberate Yourself From Negative Emotions and Transform Your Life"
(Harmony Books, 2009)
By Judith Orloff MD
www.drjudithorloff.com


If you don't make it your business to overcome fear, you better believeit'll try to overcome you. Most people are subservient to this emotionthough they may not know it. I define fear as the emotional response todanger, perceived or real. What underscores fear in all itspermutations is the feeling that you won't be all right.

Emotional Action Step from "Emotional Freedom". Harness Your Biology toQuiet Fear.

To short-circuit fear and turn off your flight-or-flight response,you'll need to train your brain to send chemicals to counteract them.Otherwise, fear and its hormones will make you crazed. In contrast,with a calm biology it's easier to find courage by practicing thecombined techniques below to quiet your system.

To achieve immediate and longer termresults:

• Eliminate caffeine, sugar,and other stimulants--these fuel the fight-or-flight response.
• Avoid people who reinforceyour fear--they are biological irritants; stick close to emotionalnurturers.
• Stay away from violentnewscasts, traffic jams, arguments, or other stress inducers.

Whenyou're in the grip of a fear-driven adrenaline rush, try these quicksolutions.

• Use this ProgressiveRelaxation Technique: In a comfortable position, sitting or lying down,take a few deep breaths while letting your body go as limp as possible.When you're ready, begin by tightening the muscles in your toes...holdto a count of ten... then relax. Enjoy the relief of tension melting.Do the same with flexing your foot muscles, and move slowly throughyour entire body: calves, legs, stomach, back, neck, jaw, face,contracting and releasing each area.
• Immerse yourself in hotwater to relax muscular tension as soon as possible.

These practical changes, whichallow you to take control of your body, can be tremendously effectivein restoring calm. You don't have to be passive while battered byfear. The victim mentality takes many forms. It requires courage toassume control, to say, "I'm going to be responsible for my biologicalself-care." Educating your body how to respond makes you emotionallyfreer.

About Judith Orloff MD
Judith Orloff MD is author ofthe new New York Times bestseller EmotionalFreedom: Liberate Yourself From Negative Emotions and Transform YourLife (Harmony Books, 2009) upon which this article is based. Dr.Orloff synthesizes the pearls of traditional medicine with cutting edgeknowledge of intuition and energy medicine. An Assistant ClinicalProfessor of Psychiatry at UCLA, she passionately believes that thefuture of medicine involves integrating all this wisdom to achieveemotional freedom and total wellness. www.drjudithorloff.com. Permission granted for use onDrLaura.com

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Potty Training 101
Jodie Lynn
parenttoparent.com

I am not a fan of potty training children early. In the ten years I have been helping parents with potty training, I have never known even one who was completely toilet trained when starting before the age of three. This means never having to wear a diaper or pull ups when going to bed or taking a nap -- and the most crucial test of all, waking up dry after 8 to 10 hours of sleep. Those parents that say that their kids are trained usually regress sometimes before the age of five, especially if it has been a stressful and frustrated training.

Spanking, yelling and threatening always backfires. If a parent pulls a power play, the child will become absorbed in the unnecessary battle and become overwhelmed. Stress rises to a new, yet negative level. Unfortunately, for parents, the kids win on this one. They can use potty in the potty or potty in the underwear as a powerful tool resulting in negative retaliation creating major challenges in switching back and forth from potty training, poor eating habits and mood swings.

Using food as a reward is not a way to entice toddlers into becoming potty trained.

In fact, this can lead to harmful eating habits as well as using food for emotional satisfaction.

Here are a few tips that have seemed to work for others.

1. Concentrate on potty training only. Don't make it hard on kids but you will have to watch them almost every minute. Do not go anywhere with them for two weeks unless you can take the potty with you.

2. Use stickers as a reward. Let them pick out the stickers at a store.

3. Wrap up small gifts found as rewards after each time they successfully go to the bathroom. Children love to open presents. Put them inside a big box and let them choose the one they want to open. Rewrap them. That's right. Use them repeatedly. After they begin to get potty trained, tell and show them there are only six presents left and then, "they'll be all gone." Each time you let them open one, say, "Look, there's only 5 more left, but we have stickers," -- or whatever else you'd like to use.

4. Do not use food as a reward. Sweets, candy, or any type of food is not good for a positive reward system at this age. It will only leave them anticipating food as rewards for other accomplishments and could lead to eating disorders later in life.

5. After each successful potty trip, clap and say, "Whoohoo. You are such a big boy/girl! Good job!" Go call someone and share the news. Let the child tell them what a good job that they did. This only reinforces positive experiences for potty training.

6. Make up a calendar with tons of pictures of your child on it. Make the days of the week large squares to have plenty of room for the stickers. Let your child put up a big star each time he/she goes to the potty on that specific day.

7. Put Cheerios in the toilet and let the boys aim at them. Since they are a little more difficult to potty train, there are other incentives on today's market to attract little boys to the potty. Check at your favorite store for such tools.

8. Buy many books during clearance sales. Keep a box of books by the potty. If possible, read a page or two or share a picture book. Read one or two books, if your little one needs to go number two.

9. Monitor food and liquid intake. Take your child to the potty on a schedule. You will have to watch the clock to monitor food and drink intake. Cut out liquids two hours before bedtime and no caffeine -- ever.

10. Ship your precious little one off to grandmas or an aunt's house, if things get too hairy. Sometimes, other folks can potty train our children better than we can. If you have a relative who is willing to help and your kiddo won't "walk the plank" for you, let someone else try. You might be surprised how quickly the job will be completed.

Above all else, let the child show and tell you when he is ready. It may not be the calendar timing you'd like to follow, but the frustration is just not worth the repercussions.

Remember, accidents will occur at the least expected time. Stay cool and anticipate it as part of parenthood#133;this too shall pass.

copy; 2006 Jodie Lynn

Jodie Lynn is an award-winning internationally syndicated family/healthcolumnist and radio personality. Her syndicated column Parent to Parent ( parenttoparent.com) has been successful for over 10 years and appears in newspapers, magazines, newsletters and throughout the Internet. She is a regular contributor to several sites including eDiets.com, MommiesMagazine.com and is the Residential Mom Expert for BabyUniverse.com. Lynn has written two books and contributed to two others, one of which was on Oprah and has appeared on NBC in a three month parenting segment. Her latest best-selling parenting/family book is Mommy-CEO, revised edition. Permission granted to use on DrLaura.com.

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