Wackiest Pet Names of 2010

For many pet owners, the names 'Max' and 'Bailey' may sound mundane and  simply boring. In order to pay homage to those who take pride in their pets’ unconventional names, Veterinary Pet Insurance set out for the third year in a row to find the 50 most unusual dog and cat names in the United States.

VPI employees selected the most unusual dog names from the company’s database of more than 470,000 insured pets, and narrowed them down by voting for the 50 most unusual names in each category.

Some of the funny names for dogs included: Pickle Von Corndog, Bettie Poops and Virginia Woof!

Wacky cat names were Bing Clawsby, Cleocatra and Chairman Meow.

Does your pet have a funny name?
Share it with PetLynx EZBits followers!
Comment below or send us an email.

Read more funny pet names HERE.

Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor

A Happy Holiday HomeSafe Story

Max, our 13-year-old Shepherd/Husky-cross, ran away from home on December 17th. The last time we saw him, he was running toward the bush behind our home. My partner and I followed what we thought were Max's tracks through the fields and bush for two hours without setting eyes on our dog.

Our search was was very frustrating. We eventually become separated ... and, miles from home, I fell in the frozen field and sustain a knee injury. I was driven home by a kind woman whose backyard I finally found myself in.

As soon I returned home I posted a missing dog report on PetLynx. Then, I spent a very long, very sad weekend thinking that old Max  -- who's sight and hearing are very poor -- had either frozen to death or may have been attacked by coyotes.

My partner never gave up hope that Max would find his way home. Eventually, he did .... but not on his own!

A school teacher had spotted Max walking down the middle of the highway, being dodged and honked at by passing traffic. She loaded him into her car and took him to the Dundas Animal Hospital were they sheltered him and searched for his owner. They found our report on Petlynx and called me Monday morning.

We are so grateful to ...
the woman who drove me home when I hurt my leg,
the teacher who rescued Max off the highway,
the people at Dundas Animal Clinic who cared for Max,
and the people at PetLynx for helping Max get home ... safe!

You are all truly Christmas angels and we cannot thank you enough!!!!

        Merry Christmas

        Susan and Max

Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor

Happy, Healthy Cat Photo Contest!

At PetLynx Corporation we know that cats are much-loved and valued members of your family. So we want to share this good news about an exciting new photo contest!

America’s Golden Girl Betty White is joining forces with Sergeant’s® Pet Care Products and Morris Animal Foundation for the Happy, Healthy Cat Photo Contest.

The contest celebrates Morris Animal Foundation’s annual campaign to bring attention to feline health and features the wide range of products from Sergeant’s Pet Care that promote happier, healthier  lives for cats.

The contest runs October 26 to December 15, 2010. Enter at: sergeants.com

Tips to Keep Dogs HomeSafe

It is good to know what to do when you lose your dog ... but it is better to do your best to prevent your pet from getting lost in the first place!

Here are some valuable tips from PetLynx Corporation and the American Kennel Club:

Concerned About Pet Overpopulation?

Consider "Fixing 'em while they're young"

At PetLynx Corporation we are committed to ensuring all pets have HomeSafe homes. That's why we want to share this importance resource addressing the topic of pediatric spaying and neutering of puppies and kittens. This could very well be a big part of the solution to North America's homeless pet overpopulation problem!

PetSmart Charities has an educational video that will help reduce homeless pet overpopulation by training veterinarians on how to perform spay/neuter surgeries on puppies and kittens as small as two pounds and as young as 6-8 weeks old.

Every Home Needs a Harvey!

This creative video may be promoting the power of television advertising ...

but at PetLynx Corporation we felt it does double-duty by promoting adoptions from animal shelters!

Too bad every 'Harvey' can't get this kind of promotion ...

so that all homeless companion animals could be HomeSafe!

Find out how you can help a homeless animal this year!

Check out Iams Homes4the Holidays.

Cats Comfort Breast Cancer Patients

People and Pets HomeSafe

When the words "pink" and "cat" are used in the same sentence, it's usually referring to a kitten's nose. But this October, "thinking pink" and talking about cats takes on a whole new meaning, thanks to the folks at Purina Cat Chow!

Recognizing the remarkable bond between cats and breast cancer patients, this October, Purina Cat Chow is making a contribution to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation for every specially-marked product sold. The target goal is $100,000. 

According to Susan Molenda, vice president of marketing for Nestle Purina PetCare, "The support and comfort cats provide during these difficult times reinforces the important role pets play in our lives and to society, and we are pleased to lend our support to this worthy cause."  

2010 Summit Speaker Synopsis Part VIII

The International Summit for Urban Animal Strategies Presents:

HomeSafe™, Bringing Voluntary Compliance to our Industry

Presenter: Larry Evans, PetLynx Corporation

The companion animal industry has focused on developing a more ‘responsible pet parent’ for at least the past four years. This activity has established an awareness level that can now serve as the foundation for an acceleration phase within our industry. The pet parents we serve have already shown  they are willing to be responsible in other areas of their lives.

This presentation discusses the broader concept of ‘compliance’ and seeks to understand it in the context of the entire industry.  We will seek to illuminate the need for consensus in the definition of compliance and to examine voluntary compliance as the best/only approach for the pets and people we serve in our communities.

The Dog is Fine ... But Beware of the Driver!

At PetLynx, our goal is to help get (and keep) pets HomeSafe ... and we were surprised to learn that a recent study revealed that 2/3 of dog owners admit to engaging in distracting activities with their dogs while driving!

Dogs are wonderful companions and can be fun to bring along for a car ride. However, this can mean added distractions for the driver. A recent survey conducted by the American Auto Association (AAA) asked dog owners how often they drive with their dog and about their habits behind the wheel.

The survey found that drivers not only love to bring Fido along, but they also often engage in risky behaviors when man's best friend is along for the ride.

PetLynx 101: How do I reduce the administrative workload of my lost and found department?

Need help? Call PetLynx!

The PetLynx AnimalTRACS system was designed to help make life easier for our Authorized Service Providers (ASCs) .... as well as get more pets HomeSafe!

Here are some simple things you can do to make PetLynx work for you:

PetLynx 101: Why should pet families pre-register before adopting?

Bet ya can't pick just one!

Adopting a new animal companion is exciting! But it can also be intimidating and overwhelming .... even for those of us who have been through it before!

There is a lot of emotion involved in that first week and, because of this, new pet families often lose sight of some of the responsibilities that come with their new bundle of joy. This distraction is reason enough to encourage pet families to pre-register with PetLynx  before they get to the shelter.

PetLynx 101: What is DataSketch™?

Is this cat black and white ... or white and black?

Considering that any two people will likely not describe an animal the same way, many companion animals without current, traceable identification are never reunited with their guardians because animal shelters are not able to make a match.

To help solve this age-old problem, PetLynx created DataSketch™.

DataSketch™ reduces the number of possible descriptors and colors for a pet to a defined number. By reducing the descriptors we have increased the possibility that people will describe the animal in a similar fashion. By filling in the information, users actually 'paint a picture' of a lost or found pet ... rather than draw conclusions about its breed, coat pattern and colour.

An animal's DataSketch™ is compared to other sketches and 'scored' during the AutoMatch™ process. Those matches with the highest scores are then presented to both parties as the most likely matches.

The PetLynx DataSketch™ system ... it's web-based technology that works for pets, people and communities!

Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor

PetLynx Announces New HomeSafe Initiative

At the April 2010 Canadian Regional Summits for Urban Animal Strategies an exciting new initiative to make pet insurance protection available to the pet families of the 14 million+ dogs and cats in Canada was announced.

Under this new initiative, called HomeSafe™, Western Financial Insurance Company (WFIC) and PetLynx Corporation will develop health insurance benefits for the new on-line HomeSafe™ portal.

The Perks of PetLynx for Pet Families

Whether they operate as part of a municipality or are non-profit agencies, animal shelters are busy places! While it can be a challenge, it is important that adoption staff and volunteers using PetLynx take a few minutes to explain the "perks" of registration that is part of the pet adoption package given to each new pet family.

Ten Ways to Increase Blog Readership

More blog traffic means more eyeballs. More eyeballs means more opportunity to promote your message of responsible pet ownership, funding requests and more. To help you make the most of your website and/or blog, the good folks at BlogPaws shared this important information with us:

10 Ways to Get Qualified "Eyeballs" to your website or blog

ONE: Write something relevant and focused. Don't ramble.

TWO: Use keywords.

 

THREE: Use bolded text to tell both search engines and readers that this content is important.

FOUR: Create an editorial calendar for your site or blog. On a blog, use your connections and your industry readings to create content that will educate, inform, or entertain your readers. On a website, pull in RSS feeds of relevant content that updates daily. Add editorial comments to keep readers engaged.

FIVE: Link, link, link. First - link out to good content. Second, be proactive and ask industry partners to link back to you.

SIX: Use Twitter and Facebook proactively. Be sure to keep your readers in mind when you RT on Twitter or share content on your Facebook page.

SEVEN: Use humor. It doesn't matter what you do or what you sell - humor always brightens the day

EIGHT: Interview a colleague, business partner or author - someone with insight into your business. Ask them to "tweet" about the interview and thank you on their blog. Paying it forward.

NINE: Ask questions. Ask your readers about their lives, their work, their challenges. Offer to answer questions once a week...if necessary, create the first few questions yourself.

TEN: Think about tomorrow. Think about the future. Don't forget those folks who are up and coming - today's kids. They have cash. They have interest. They are net-savvy. Create content that may appeal to them - without marketing to them. For information on how to be kid-friendly, check out the Walt Disney site's privacy statement.

Check out the other Blogs hosted by PetLynx:

HomeSafe:  Good news from people who help lost pets get HomeSafe!

The Summit  for Urban Animal Strategies: Promoting community collaboration for industry thought leaders.

InfoStream: Information for companion animal industry stakeholders

Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor

Blogs About Dogs and Cats to Encourage Industry Collaboration

Did you know that in addition to this blog, PetLynx hosts three other blogs? Each one focuses on a specific target audience but all provide the latest news and information on developments that affect you in the day-to-day administration of your pet-related business or association.

We encourage you to check out any (or all!) of our blogs, subscribe to those of most interest to you and submit comments. Feel free to link to our blogs on your own site to deliver relevant content to your readers.

We believe that information sharing and industry collaboration are the missing pieces of the puzzle that will ultimately result in healthier communities for pets and people.

By continuously striving to increase pet registrations and add more community service providers, PetLynx™ is fulfilling its mandate to lessen the burden on animal shelters, rescue agencies and municipal agencies across Canada, while helping pets get back home… where they can be healthy, happy and safe.

Here's what PetLynx Blogs have to offer you:

HomeSafe™

Good news from people who help lost pets get HomeSafe™!

The HomeSafe™ blog provides pet families and community partners with lost and found pet-related stories of gratitude and inspiration, as well as general information related to lost and found pets, pet safety and how to better utilize the PetLynx utility. 

http://petlynxhomesafe.blogspot.com/

EZBits™

Tips and tools for creating a healthy community for pets and people

The EZBits™ blog is targeted to PetLynx™ Authorized Service Centers (ASCs), brand associates and community partners. In addition to providing tips and tools on how to better utilize the ShelterLynx™ and AnimalTRACS™ utilities, we also post information of general interest to the animal industry. We know you are all busy people, so we post stories with educational value for you to use in planning and program development or to share with your colleagues. http://petlynxezbits.blogspot.com/

Summit for Urban Animal Strategies™

Building healthy communities for pets and people and recognizing those who achieve success

The Summit™ blog is a forum for executive thought leaders to advance the state of the art in Urban Animal Strategies. In addition to providing news and information about upcoming National and Regional Summits, this blog provides insight into the North American Urban Animal Survey and other management-level information.

http://animalsummits.blogspot.com/

InfoStream™

Providing the companion animal industry with proven business services.

The InfoStream™ blog is targeted to our investors, industry partners and executive thought leaders. It provides updates on developments within PetLynx™ Corporation, including performance statistics, new partnerships, and other community collaboration milestones. http://petlynxinfostream.blogspot.com/

PetLynx Announces New HomeSafe Pet Insurance Initiative

23 February 2010

SecuriCan General Insurance Company, Canada's oldest and largest provider of pet health insurance, and PetLynx Corporation, Canada's innovative, cutting-edge provider of information services for the pet industry, are pleased to announce a new initiative for companion animals in Canada.  Under this new collaboration SecuriCan and PetLynx will develop health insurance benefits for the new HomeSafe™ portal and offer pet insurance to all dogs and cats in Canada.

The Urban Animal Surveys conducted for PetLynx Corporation by Ipsos Reid in 2008 and dmrkynetec in 2009 clearly show that health and wellness is a top priority for pet families.  These studies also show higher instances of surrender and euthanasia in communities where health care benefits aren't readily available for companion animals. To reduce or eliminate this situation the parties will work with municipalities, humane societies, veterinarians, breeders, retailers and other service providers in each community to ensure that every pet in the HomeSafe™ program is provided with medical benefits at the moment it reaches its first pet family home.

The HomeSafe™ program will provide a range of products and prices from three of the leading pet insurance brands in Canada.  Pet families will choose the type of medical insurance that best meets their budget and their needs from among these offerings.  Since this coverage will also be registered in the pet's record on the HomeSafe™ national system, those pets requiring emergency intervention will have the shortest path to medical attention in Canada.

There are over 14 million dogs and cats in Canada that require health insurance benefits.  Using the HomeSafe™ program will give pet retailers, pet breeders, humane societies, veterinarians and other providers the ability to ensure the pets they place or service have medical benefits right from the beginning of each new relationship.  In addition, pet families will manage their insurance coverage online using the HomeSafe™ portal where they manage their care profiles, breed information, recovery services, pet pictures and licensing.

'We believe this is the most comprehensive approach to improving health & wellness for companion animals in Canada', said Randy Valpy, President and CEO of SecuriCan General Insurance Company.  We have already paid out more than $103,000,000 in claims which means Canadians can trust us.  Now with PetLynx and the HomeSafe™ program we will take health and wellness to a new level'.

'Health care is one of the highest priorities Canadians have', said Larry R. Evans, President & CEO of PetLynx Corporation.  'Our colleagues across Canada helped us become the largest automated recovery system in just three years.  Together with SecuriCan we will deliver a new level of health and wellness for pets and help Canadian communities become the best place for companion animals in the world.'

SecuriCan will launch this new collaboration in Canada on 19 April 2010, at the PetLynx Regional Summits for Urban Animal Strategies.
 

For more information please contact:

Mika SansonSecuriCan General Insurance Company

204.942.2999 ext 7297
msanson@securican.ca
www.SecuriCan.ca

Cindy Kreutzer
PetLynx Corporation

403.219.1088

cindy.kreutzer@petlynxmail.com

www.petlynx.net

Posted by Terri Perrin, Online Communications Editor

PetLynx Enters Collaboration Agreement with CKC's Apex Publishing

08 January 2010

PetLynx Corporation is pleased to announce an agreement with Apex Publishing Limited, the publisher of “Dogs in Canada” Canada’s premier provider of content for dog owners and breeders. Under the terms of this agreement PetLynx Corporation and Apex Publishing will collaborate to expand the circulation of this magazine to all dog owners in Canada through the PetLynx Subscriptions & Registry Services unit. Pet families who register their dogs in the PetLynx system for recovery services, microchips, tattoos, licenses or other HomeSafe™ Canada initiatives will have the opportunity to subscribe to four special issues targeted toward this Responsible Dog Owners Group [RDOG] at a special discount that is related to their level of compliance. In addition, the two parties will collaborate to provide responsible dog owner content through Apex's micro site and the PetLynx pet family portals. Pet families who normally manage their animal records using PetLynx portals will be able to manage their subscriptions in the same area. “Adding the Dogs in Canada content and micro sites to the HomeSafe™ Canada initiative will not only increase the number of responsible dog owners across Canada, but provide valuable resources across the entire value chain that supports these pet families” said Larry R. Evans, President and CEO of PetLynx Corporation. “I am confident that we will eventually reach every dog owner who is interested in having ready access to Canada’s number one source of information about dogs.” “We are very excited about the opportunity of using the PetLynx relationship with dog owners across Canada to expand our circulation base and improve the services we provide to dog owners through our micro site program,” said Ann McDonagh, Group Publisher, Apex Publishing Limited. “Apex Publishing Limited is a subsidiary of the Canadian Kennel Club, an organization that has serviced the needs of dog owners in Canada for more than 120 years.” For more information please contact: Ann McDonagh, Apex Publishing Limited amcdonagh@dogsincanada.com (416) 798-9778 ext 3410 Larry Evans, PetLynx Corporation larry.evans@petlynxmail.com (403) 921-5900

The Perks of PetLynx (For Pet Families)

Whether they operate as part of a municipality or are non-profit agencies, animal shelters are busy places! While it can be a challenge, it is important that adoption staff and volunteers using PetLynx take a few minutes to explain the "perks" of registration that is part of the pet adoption package given to each new pet family. What's in for me, you might ask? When pet guardians regularly update their PetLynx profile they help animal service providers (that's you!) get lost pets HomeSafe faster! With the PetLynx DataSketch system, lost and found matches can be made using only a physical description. With the quick and easy AutoMatch recovery system, fewer animals are brought to animal shelters... saving valuable time, resources and, ultimately, lives. Benefits of PetLynx for pet families:

• Instant access to pet's ID and medical records 24/7.

• In an emergency, veterinarians, shelter workers and animal control personnel have access to information 24/7.

• Lifetime access to National Automated Pet Recovery Service, should the animal become lost. Includes ability to quickly and easily create and print "Lost Pet" posters.

• DataSketchTM and AutoMatchTM combine to enable real time automated matching of lost and found pets, with or without ID, to help get pets HomeSafeTM!

Pet families should be advised to:

• Upload a new photo of the pet immediately. Update at least annually.

• Update contact info immediately, whenever anything changes. No fee for updating or changing information.

• Double-check pet(s) listing(s) at least once a year, ideally when dog/cat licenses are renewed or when the pet has an annual physical.

• Update medical information. This is especially important as your pet ages or if there has been a change in medication or treatment protocols.

• Update the profile if there has been radical change in your pet's description. (Such as shaving, spaying or neutering.)

Want to know more? Check out our Q & A section. Not a service provider? Want to register your pet with PetLynx? Pre-register your pet for one low lifetime fee

Challenges With Microchip Databases

What is the difference between a microchip database and the PetLynx automated recovery system? There is no doubt that the introduction of the pet identification microchip was (and still is) a phenomenal development for the companion animal industry. It is remarkable how something as small as a grain of rice has had such a significant impact on our ability to return lost companion animals to their owners! That said, the microchip has its limitations. Microchip databases contain basic descriptions and contact information only, and this information is not easily managed by the animal guardian or accessible to someone who has found a lost pet. To discover if a lost pet has a microchip (or not) the person who finds it need to have access to a microchip scanner... and that's not always possible.

PetLynx's automated recovery system is different in that it works with or without identification. Matches are made according to a very basic physical description. Once this information is input into the system, AutoMatchTM actively searches lost and found reports from your community and surrounding Authorized Service Centers to find matches. An automated recovery system is also more user friendly and effective in that it allows users to serve themselves over the Internet, rather than calling in to facilities and organizations and it provides matches automatically, reducing the need for manual searches.