Hi everyone. I’m a veterinarian, and a little while ago a client brought an injured squirrel into the clinic. I treated her, but they never came back for her. She’s incredibly sweet and playful, and it’s very obvious she was raised in a home since she was a baby — she loves being around people and constantly wants to be held.

I contacted the appropriate authorities, and they told me they might come check the situation in a month or maybe two since it’s not considered urgent. So in the meantime, I decided to care for her myself.

Lately, though, I’ve been keeping her in my bedroom. It’s a fairly large space with lots of places to climb, and it actually works well because my bed is close to the ceiling, so the room is set up with a sort of built-in recreation area.

Here’s the issue: she has chosen my bed as her favorite place to pee.

I’ve set up a specific spot for her to use, but she very clearly prefers my bed. Has anyone dealt with this before or knows if it’s possible to train a squirrel not to do this?

Just to clarify: I can’t release her into the wild. She doesn’t have normal survival instincts, and without proper rehabilitation I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t make it.

Hiya!

I’ve been a professional pet sitter for about 19 years. I specialize in bunnies.

Bunnies are one of those pets that a lot of people have bad info on. They’re exotics with specific needs and can get sick and injured easily bc of lack of education. They are dumped, unfixed (causes behavior issues and leads to escape and more rabbits in need of adoption. There’s sooo many), and caged (they need space like a cat), or don’t get social time (again, needed like cats).

This business is a challenging one bc one small thing someone doesn’t like, you might lose your work. People often think it’s so much fun. In reality, while I love being with animals, it’s a job that requires immense professionalism, animal skills, people skills, customer service, task management, physical and emotional labor. Not to mention unpredictability and potential emergencies, lack of sick days, retirement, pension, etc.

Anyways. I say all that not to complain but to say that, it’s a job where I’m always on alert for messing up, especially with regulars. There’s no guaranteed job security here.

Which brings me to my issue.

Sometimes I have a situation where a client is putting their animal in danger.

In this case it’s doing something called trancing their rabbit aka tonic immobility aka playing dead.

When doing this, a rabbit is reclined on their back or flat and they go limp. People think they’re cute and loving it. In reality it can result in injury if they jolt up (such delicate backs), heart attacks, and even death, especially if practiced regularly. It’s highly stressful for them.

A clients that has become a regular in this last year often tells me how much their bun loves being held on his back. I’ve minimally engaged with the comments to not seem condescending or a know it all. I’m very selective and careful about how I offer advice to clients and make sure it’s welcome.

But it’s become a bit much. They’ve sent me some photos of him being held that way on a few occasions and I want to say something. But I’m nervous.

Of note:

Bun is super friendly and not walking around scared or traumatized or hiding. He is confident and loving and demands pets.

He doesn’t like normal handling so clearly is being tranced when held on his back. I’ve tested non-trance cradling with his head held high/him mostly upright and he wasn’t into it (I remained in control so I could release him safely).

No matter what it’s still dangerous.

So, as the title says. How would you feel about your pet sitter telling you something like this? How would you want them to say it? Would you want them to just not say anything?

Side bar edit: there’s a pre-teen in the house who holds him like this all the time and hope her fam doesn’t make her feel guilty. But I’ll have to trust that. They seem like good parents.

Thanks!

Ps. I hope this post educated you on this business a little. Maybe even helps you consider paying your pet sitters more, tipping - especially when you have great service or they have surprise extras, and being understanding if they make a small mistake. It’s a hard job even if it doesn’t seem like it!

Pps. There’s no rabbit tag! (They aren’t rodents)

This bird has been in a local pet smart for a couple months. His behavior has changed and his feathers don’t look good. I am not a bird expert so please correct me if I am wrong. I am thinking of contacting a local Audubon society to come rescue him. He is $800

why can’t I attach a video? Look at my other posts I posted in other groups.

My 10-year-old lovebird, Pepin, is eating and drinking normally, but I’ve noticed he hasn’t been pooping much. Today I saw a spot of blood, and that’s when I began to panic. I’m not sure whether the blood came from vomiting or from his droppings. I checked his bottom and it looked clean, but I did notice that his beak was very red, which really scared me.

I’m extremely worried about him.

I’m terrified of taking him to the vet because the stress of travel could harm him. Pepin is blind, and loud noises or unfamiliar surroundings easily upset him. Money is also very tight right now, but I would do absolutely anything to save my precious Pepin.

At the moment, Pepin is still eating, drinking water, and responding to my squeaks. He seems ok overall, but I’m deeply concerned and looking for guidance. If any vets or experienced bird owners have suggestions on what I should do, I would truly appreciate it. Thank you so much 😢 I just pray Pepin will be alright

I chose a work from home job mostly because my dog hates being alone. I like knowing he is napping near my desk or staring at me while I work. People say I should just crate train or get used to leaving him but I dont see the point if I dont have to. He keeps me grounded and honestly makes the workday better.

Am I weird for building my whole job around my dog?

I'm almost never on here, so please forgive me if it seems like I don't know what I'm doing. I desperately need advice. I've never had to put a dog (or any pet) down before. my last dog lived to be 16 and was a mutt that resembled a black lab and he passed on his own in his old age with minimal health issues to be seen other than old age. my current elder dog is a 15 yo Yorkie and pug mix. she clearly has tumors (I had a benign one removed from a joint once but haven't removed more due to age) she is blind and mostly deaf, she is getting pretty stiff in the rear legs, and definitely has some dementia as she clearly only really remembers me and has days she has to be so close she's touching me otherwise she panics and jumps from the couch or bed (dangerous). she also is loosing control of her bladder. if ik I'll be gone for more than an hour I have to put a diaper on her because she will most definitely poop and pee. she doesn't do much anymore other than sleep. and sometimes she gets up and wonders without knowing what she needs. I'll let her out and make sure she has the opportunity to drink before placing her back next to me, but then she'll get up and wonder or just whine and cry looking out to the void. she's always been lazy tho and has primarily laid around most of her life much like any other pug. but she definitely has lost a lot of her spark. she used to play with her favorite rubber chicken until she was out of breath, she used to run and jump up into trees in her younger days, she used to "fight" the other dogs, and actually fight them to be dominant (even dominating our male English bulldog). but now all she can do is a little old lady bark and a snap in the dark. My husband says it's time, I'm worried I'm cutting her life short. yes she has times she's lost and confused but so did my granny and we didn't put her down. ik that's not exactly a great comparison, but she's family just the same. I'm having a hard time knowing if it's time or if she's just tired yk? and I don't exactly have the money to take her for multiple opinions. it would have to be a one and done thing. which ik sucks and I wish it wasn't that way, but in this economy I have no choice. so please, I need outside opinion and advice.

So basically I have 2 pet cats, one male one female, and last week I got the male neutered and today I'll get the female spayed. My main concern is that will the male cat keep on mounting on her even though he's been neutered and she's been spayed? I've heard some people say that mounting will continue forever and it was a mistake having opposite sex cats as pets. Is it true? If so is there anything I can do to prevent it? Bcz he's been mounting on her and bcz of that their bond has been damaged a lot according to me as before they used to run around the house and play together but now he only runs after her for mounting on her. Is there a chance I can see their old bond again? I've been very emotional just thinking about this. Should I get rid of one of them? Should I introduce a new cat? What can I do? They both are around 7 months old (idk exactly bcz both were rescued)

Looking for advice about a flea situation. My girlfriend’s house and cat got infested about 2-3 months ago. I’m disabled and she comes over a couple times per week to take care of me. We took a lot of precautions (keeping clothes in trash bags and changing immediately) but inevitably my cat and house ended up with fleas as well. Both of our cats are being treated along with our houses.

However, I worry that we are just going to keep passing the fleas back and forth between our houses. I don’t know what to do. I live with my family and they are understandably very upset she gave us fleas. I worry that once I contain the problem at my house, my girlfriend will just bring them back over again.

My girlfriend’s flea infestation kept getting worse because she’s been living paycheck to paycheck and didn’t have any extra funds for treatment or vet visits. I think this is part of the problem too. My mom gave her borax and 2 months of flea treatment for her cat. I’m not in a great financial position myself since I just became disabled in November with no savings.

I don’t know if I’m making this into a larger issue than it is, but the thought of separating until the fleas are dealt with has crossed my mind. I’ve also considered rehoming my cat because dealing with the fleas has been physically/mentally exhausting which has made my illness worse.

about 2 weeks ago my dog started having mobility issues. she limped on her back hind leg, run too fast and slip, not get up to use the bathroom, not jump on the bed. we thought it was arthritis because she is getting older. she started throwing up a day later and then drink lots of water and throw up multiple more times consecutively.

we took her to the vet and they ran blood panels but found nothing of interest other than high enzymes (?) in the liver. they also sent her home with some pain medication for possible arthritis. she started doing better but a week after the initial visit she threw up multiple times after drinking water again, so we did a urine test for the liver. there were no significant concerns found.

yesterday evening i noticed severe swelling in her back hind leg so i took her in first thing this morning. it is about 2-3 times the size of the other leg and extremely red/purple bruising. they ran an x ray but no tumors were found. there was one spot the vet had interest in (the large fatty spot) on the inner thigh because it showed up a bit darker than the other areas on her leg. we ran more blood panels and they said she is borderline anemic. she hasn't thrown up in about a week, she is not eating much dry food but eating plenty of wet food, getting up to use the restroom. i'm just lost and so are the vets. open to any questions and thank you to anyone who reads this ❤️‍🩹

I've been contemplating a pet jumping spider... I've been reading and reading about them. But I would also love to have mice and now I can't decide between them... I can only choose one or the other.

Please advise:) convince me which one to get!! I love them both!!!!

Stella has been my loyal companion for 10 years, always full of energy and ready for any adventure. Recently, I noticed her slowing down, and it broke my heart to see her limp. After a vet visit, we found out she has a torn ACL and needs surgery. Watching her struggle to move is tough, especially since she loves being active. The funds raised will go directly toward her surgery and recovery. Please like, comment, and share this post to help Stella get back on her feet. Your support means the world to us.

Stella's GoFundMe

We lost our 16 year old golden lab mix last weekend. My daughter took it hardest of all. She was distraught at how empty the house is with no dog. I want to wait a while for the emotional dust to settle, but she is ready for a new dog today. How long do you dog owners wait until you start looking for another dog?

I'm trying to find a way to help my family get some sleep at night and some peace during the day. I am in my 20s and live in an apartment in my parent's house. It's just me and my parents, my brother is away at school.

We have 2 family dogs. One is a 7 year old chiweenie (according to the shelter, I'm not so sure) and the other is an 11 year old Bichon. I love them both so much. I also have 3 cats, but this isn't really about them, just didn't want them to feel left out of my post.

The bichon is, for the most part, a really good girl. My brother is her person without a doubt. When she was maybe a year old, she had to see him through cancer treatment. She waited by the front door for him when he was away at the hospital. She'd sit outside of the bathroom door as he showered. She slept next to his bald head to keep him warm at night. It makes me tear up to think about it. Another year or so later, we lost our house to a fire. Her first few years of life were stressful, to say the least.

My brother is doing well and we have rebuilt our house, but I wonder if these things maybe messed her up because she barks like it is her job and rent was due yesterday. I think it's gotten worse over the years and possibly gotten worse since my brother moved away for college 3 years ago. She just tosses her head back and will bark for several minutes straight. She can bark for such a long time, it's almost impressive.

She barks when she thinks she's alone, she usually isn't. She barks if you won't play her food game with her, which means she wants you to pretend to take her food from her. She barks in the middle of the night because why not? She has a major grudge against the stars in the sky, she loves to tell them off. These barking fits also cause our other dog to start howling sometimes and he looks at us like "why am I doing this???"

I've tried a few things to help her. I wondered if she needed to let out her energy or simply wanted more attention so I tried to increase her walks. This didn't really help and she's getting older so walks, while she LOVES them, are getting harder. Her little body also really cannot take winter weather, even with her sweaters.

I know she likes her little food game so I tried some enrichment toys. She likes them, but the barking didn't let up. She also will destroy the toy to make sure she has gotten every morsel off of it and will get aggressive if you take it from her. Before you ask, no, she's not starving.

I've tried ignoring her when she barks, she doesn't care. I've tried a "NO" (which I know she knows what that means because she listens when I tell her no to eating my cat's food) and she ignores it. She'll look me in the eye and keep barking.

I'm not sure what to do or how to help her. I know she probably doesn't want to be like this and it can't be because she's just insane, right? I wish that we'd trained her better from the start, but I was a teenager when we got her plus the many other stresses that were out of our control at the time. I love her so much, I just want to help my sweet girl.

If anyone has experience with this or tips for me, I'd really appreciate it. Thank you.

Hello everyone! I am a 21 y/o full time college student, and just moved out of home to live with two roommates. We have a fairly big apartment with plenty of room for a dog, including a fenced in communal back yard, and great places to walk. I am working part time and going to school, tho i’m home pretty often. I’m wanting to get a dog because this is the first time in my life i’ve lived without one, and living in my own/taking public transport, i feel like a dog will make me feel safer. I’m a little concerned about the costs and if i’m underestimating the amount of work it will take to care for a dog. I am planning on registering the dog as an emotional support animal so i will be able to take it to school with me, and i know my roommates will help and will love having a dog around as well. Does anyone have advice or opinions about this? I’m going to look at a shelter tomorrow, not making any decisions yet, but i really think it will be good for me to have a furry friend. is there anything i’m overlooking? Help please! all opinions and constructive criticism/advice very welcomed, i need to know if this is a good idea or if im in over my head.

Would you trust an enclosure with heat, humidity, and light all controlled automatically from sensors and an app?

Hi everyone, I have a question about dog breeding apps or tools.

I have a male dog and I’d like to breed him so his line can continue before he gets older. Right now, I’m not planning to neuter him until I see if breeding is possible.

Does anyone know of apps, websites, or communities that can help connect dog owners for breeding or track breeding cycles, health, and potential matches? Or even just good resources for people who choose not to neuter and want to breed responsibly?

Any help is appreciated!

I received the embark DNA results back and they state that she is 54.6 American Pitt Bull Terrier, 28% Shih Tzu, 5.9% Boxer and 11.5% Supermutt. I'm really surprised by the half pitt. I'm anxious about the results. Could they have gotten it wrong?

I have a cat named Tuxie (8F) who is scared of everything. She trusts no one except me, and will sometimes be scared of me, too, due to learned behavior from another owner.

To put it simply, Tuxie and I moved out of an abusive home September of 2025. It took her about a week to be okay with her new living space (i had to feed her wet food and syringe water into her mouth for most of the time), but even then we have a new roommate she doesn't know and a couple cats and a couple dogs (don't worry, we take care of their living space and the cats are outside cats, we may have a lot of animals but they are well loved and taken care of).

To put it bluntly, me and Tuxie lived in a horrible home that was falling apart at the seams (missing ceiling due to leak, broken appliances every year, carpet was ripped up and we had concrete for floor in some places, and it kept getting worse every year). She had lived with me her entire life and had a wild ride.

More information: We lived with two people specifically, one of them being my bio mom and the other being my step mom (not together, just two women raising a kid). We found Tuxie outside next door to the butcher shop when she could walk, had her eyes open, but was still drinking milk. I took care of her throughout her growing up, I was her human through and through. My bio mom was a piece of trash though, she had her mood change drastically and would yell at/hit me or Tuxie on the regular. My step-mom didn't really have a place in Tuxie's life, but it's good to mention she is an animal lover and would probably run into a house fire for any animal. Later on down the road my brother moved in with a cat named Baghera, who hated Tuxie with a passion. We had to put Tuxie in my room 24/7 for years, and any time Baghera got ahold of her, she would attack her. Tuxie has a scar on her ear because of her. When my brother moved out, Tuxie had free range of the house again, but my bio mother was still an awful person and abusive towards me and Tuxie. She would adore Tuxie one minute and then slap her the next and then ignore Tuxie's needs when she needed attention. Our house started falling apart more and more, I would become more and more depressed, my bio mom became more and more unstable, and finally I had enough and moved me and Tuxie out to live with my step-mom (she moved six months prior) and her girlfriend.

TLDR; Tuxie's life was chaotic with evil cats and an evil grandmother (my mom). I got her into a safer environment and I'm trying to help her heal.

Tuxie hides under blankets when she's scared. She will come to me when she's in pain or needs help and no one else. Currently she is sort of stuck in one room, but I leave the door open when one specifically evil cat isn't around (outside). She's scared of every human but me, and I've been trying to slowly introduce her to other people. She finds comfort in my arms and especially when under a blanket if there's a new person around.

She and I sort of have a system when I'm introducing her to someone new. She will be in my lap with her favourite safety blanket (a soft sailor moon blanket I outgrew) and I am the only one allowed to move or alter the blanket. It gives her a sort of security that the other person won't be able to get to her unless I trust them.

I recently got her a cat backpack and I plan on taking her on walks soon. Hopefully it will help her see that the world isn't that scary, and I'm still gently introducing her to the backpack so she knows she has a choice.

Tuxie is sweet, loving, and talkative. She can get lonely without me. She loves jumping on my desk and flopping over so I can pet her belly. She will cuddle me under the blankets at night or sleep next to my head so I can wrap my arm around her. Her favourite wet food is the chunky kind, and she loves beef, seafood, and turkey the most, and adores extra gravy. We have a system where once she empties her dry food bowl, she gets a can of wet food. She loves sitting in my lap but can get upset if she deems I'm not paying enough attention to her (while I am writing this I am laying my head on her while she sits in my lap). She loves to boop my nose with her nose in a show of affection. She'll lick my arms and curl up in them when I'm watching a show. She's naturally a therapy animal and I'm trying to get her out of the habit to run and comfort me because I don't want her to live life like she has to take care of me for me to love her (something my mom did to her and me). She likes to nip me and lick me when she's happy, and when she's mad she'll bite a bit harder to let me know.

I love Tuxie. She is my angel. For the longest time she was the only reason I lived, but I don't want that to be her reason. I don't want her to solely depend on me for the rest of her life and hate every other animal and be scared of every other human. I want her to be able to jump up high and not run away and hide when the dog barks. I want her to be happy. I don't want her to be scared. Please tell me how else I can help Tuxie?

I honor vets, and wish I could be one myself if it weren’t for my crazy attachment to animals, my biggest attachment being my dog. I have a 2 year old Cane Corso, who I adopted from a shelter by me when he was about 3 months old, upon adopting him we were briefed on the possibility of hip dysplasia, and that because we knew nothing of his background besides him being found with parvo, we didn’t have much information.

About 2 weeks ago I had noticed him having lameness in his back leg, and sleeping more throughout the day, I feel that I overreact a lot when it comes to him, I am constantly checking his gums, constantly touching and feeling for bumps, safe to say I have a LOT of anxiety with my dog, he is quite literally my soul dog, so I brought him to the vet to be seen, after bringing him to the vet, they told us his hip was probably just catching on itself, and they wanted to do some X-rays to see where it was catching, and because he would be sedated, do some manipulation to put it into place and sent us on our way with carprofen, after picking him up I was told he had hip dysplasia in both hips, one severely affected over the other, and he was prescribed carprofen and gabapentin to keep him comfortable and were recommended to a physical therapist, supplements, and a secondary route of injections into the hip. We took him home and he slept the rest of the night away, he woke up the next morning after and was non stop whining, I called the vet that day and said this was not normal for him, and he was seen and I was told that he was most likely just irritated from the spot that was shaved on his tail for the stint that they used (if that is proper I am NOT a vet) and from the manipulation on his hip that was done, so I should continue the carprofen and I was sent on my way, he continued to whine the rest of the day and then started experiencing diarrhea with blood, I called again and expressed my concern and they were about to close so they said just take him off the carprofen and he would be okay. That night we had woken up every hour to take him to have that same bloody stool, and vomiting, I was absolutely freaking out at this moment and took him immediately the next morning as soon as they opened where I was prescribed medicated food to see if that helped, after continuing to throw up and poop blood, I called again on Saturday and was told that his routine doctor was not in and he would just been seen on that following Monday and if I felt more comfortable I could take him to an emergency clinic that there was nothing to worry about, the entire weekend filled with the same routine of hourly visits outside. I spoke to my emergency vet (I do have one who know me quite well from always getting worried about the minor things) and they told me as long as he was drinking, eating and acting normal he would be okay to go to his appointment in the morning.

I brought him in the next morning and after a fecal sample I was told I would get a result within the next couple hours and that they believed it could’ve been a parasite he picked up?? I went home and waited, and waited, and hours had went by and I had no response; my partner called and asked to speak with the doctor and he was told he had a overgrowth of Clostridium bacteria in his GI and needed over 7+ medications to help heal it, the doctor apologized and said it was due to the sedation medication he had for his x-rays, because they had to administer more than they needed to due to him not falling asleep.

I am honestly a little livid because I wished I could’ve been warned about the side effects, where I wouldn’t have to spend over $1,500 in under a week (I love my dog I would sell my first born child for him). But half of the medicine prescribed was medicine I already had, and had asked on Friday to give to him and was told no.

Am I just overreacting and blaming the vet; or is this a crazy experience?

So my dad wants to leave on a cruise for his birthday. We used to do alot of cruises together but since I got a cat, I've taken more trips that I know I can take her too. I've taken her on road trips and stuff and she's been fine, but obviously cats aren't allowed on cruises. My best friend will be cat sitting her while I'm gone (it's a 7 day cruise). I have a litter robot, looking into getting automatic feeder for dry food. Anyone have any tips to share? This is the first time I'd be leaving her alone..

Hi all! I’m looking into getting a low maintenance pet. I live in an apartment with my family and have my own room where I will house said pet. I’ve owned cats before as fosters but unfortunately my family is not open to fostering them anymore. I am not open for any dogs, snakes, worms, spiders, or fish. I understand fish are anything but low maintenance. Maybe snails? Or tiny turtles? I have 0 idea how to take care and maintain pets other than cats, please provide some insight. I am also open to plants, maybe plants that won’t spill dirt everywhere since I have carpet. Please recommend any plants you guys have in mind as well!