What's New @ Animal Designs May2003
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1. What's New
2. Pet Journals
3. Featured Item
4. What To Do When Your Pet is Lost
5. Drawing and Fun Stuff
6. Comments-Questions-Suggestions
7. How to Unsubscribe

>>>>>> A HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL <<<<<<<<

1) WHAT'S NEW

Looking for those special accessories to complete your bathroom?
Animal Designs now offers a fine porcelain bath accessory set
available in your favorite pet or animal. This beautiful set has a
soapdish and pump, toothbrush holder and cup. Using only the highest
quality transfers to hand decorate each piece, these white bath
accessories will compliment any bathroom decor. To complete the set
is an adorable bud vase and a round jewelry box with lid. To view
these new products, visit www.animaldesigns.com/bath-
accessories.com
As with all of our items, contact us if you want another pet or
animal design. We welcome special orders.

2) PET JOURNALS

According to the weatherman, spring has finally sprung. But
according to the animals in my barn, the local meteorologists are
about thirty days late.
For in mid-March, we had a wealth of births on my farm. To the
point that I started to feel like a nurse in a barnyard maternity
ward each time
I ventured out to feed. The good news is that all arrived safely
and sound. A few minor hitches in my mare's delivery, but
fortunately nothing too complicated or life threatening. This year's
foal, a filly, was born on the 13th of March. She is the thirteenth
that I've bred. An unlucky number for some, but for me, a fortuitous
total. For this young filly is a life changer. Let me explain. I
used to train horses as a "part-time" job. One of those situations
that was supposed to take up only a portion of my life but ended up
consuming it. For ten years, I worked shoulder to shoulder with a
veteran horseman who trained me right along with the horses. He was
a man totally consumed by his trade, as horse trainers tend to be,
and he spent
many hours talking about his passion while we worked. Out of all the
conversations we had over the years, one particular one came to mind,
when this thirteenth foal arrived. For from the minute she fought
her way out of the birth sac and nickered her arrival to the world,
she was special. Not an "owner's pride" special, but a "significant
to theworld" special. To describe her, she is bay in color. For the
uninitiated, that would mean a brown body and a black mane and tail --
the ultimate choice for a horse of her Morgan breeding. Her legs
were longer than her mother's from the first time she stood and the
tops of her ears gently tip in toward one another in graceful
refinement. She has a neck that is long and arched and an athletic
ability to balance her wealth of beauty. But, it's the
characteristic that has slowly revealed itself over the last month
that makes this filly so remarkable. For as her baby fur has shed
out, it is becoming increasingly obvious that she is not going to be
a bay horse, as she originally appeared. But instead, she is black --
deep, dark, coal black. Without a mark of white on her body
anywhere. This color transformation has come as a shock, as I watch
her medium brown color slowly dissolve into an unexpected ebony
tone. Any other black foals born on the farm have had their color
right from the start. But then again, as I stated, this filly is
special. Which brings me back to the remembered conversation with the
old trainer. One that took place in the barn, on a particularly cold
winter morning, while I was grousing about my frozen fingers and
toes. He listened to my whining for a while and then looked me in
the eye and predicted that one day, I would have a horse that would
make me want to get up and go to the barn every morning, no matter
what. I have a funny feeling that with this lucky number thirteen,
that horse has finally arrived.
www.petwarmers.com
We all have stories that we like to tell our friends about our pets,
so send us your favorite "tail", and we will select one each month
to feature in our newsletter.

3) FEATURED ITEM

With spring here and summer not far away, a cotton nightshirt will
help keep you cool. This featured item is made of all cotton,
washable and generously sized for comfort, one size fits all. Select
your favorite from an assortment of animal print designs. Visit the
collection at: http://www.animaldesigns.com/cgi-
sz/webcwrap/szw/st_prod.html?
p_prodid=21&p_catid=2&sid=6Op7@...

4) WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR PET IS LOST

According to a 1997 study of 1000 animal shelters, conducted by the
National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy, approximately
one million dogs and 584,000 cats were taken in as strays.
Unfortunately, for both owners and animals, only 16% of dogs and 2%
of cats were returned to their owners. These statistics are alarming.
Tag Day is a major effort by American Humane to combat these
statistics. We want to educate consumers on the benefits of
identifying their companion animals with ID tags, license tags, micro-
chipping, or tattooing. Identification is your pet's ticket home. If
your pet does become lost, don't delay. Take the following steps to
help bring your companion animal home to safety: *Act fast!! Don't
wait days hoping your pet will come home. The sooner you begin your
search, the better the odds of finding him. *Search your neighborhood
or area where your pet was lost and let people know she's missing.
You may want to offer a reward. Call your pet's name and check any
places she could have become trapped, such as in basements, garages
or under vehicles. A lost pet often will hide during the day, so be
sure to go out again at night with a flashlight and them. Sometimes a
can of food can lure a hungry and scared pet. *Check with your local
shelters every day. Don't just call -- also visit the
shelter to search for your pet. Many animals are difficult to
describe over the phone, and only you really know what your pet looks
like.. *Call all animal control agencies in your town and surrounding
areas. Animal control officers work through the police department and
pick up stray
animals. Call them or check their shelters at least every two days.
*Use your pet's photo to make "lost pet" signs. Put them up in your
neighborhood and in post offices, libraries, pet supply stores,
veterinary offices and grocery stores. Inform your veterinarian and
groomer that your
pet is lost in case they receive a call. *Place ads in local
newspapers and offer a reward in case someone found your untagged pet
and was thinking of keeping her. *Watch the found ads. Respond to any
that might be close to your pet's description. A week of wandering
the streets can make white pets look drab gray, and the ad's
description might not exactly fit. *Call your local radio stations.
Some radio stations will broadcast lost pet information for free.
Give them very detailed information on where your pet was lost, his
description and how to contact you. Tag Day is a national public
awareness campaign that unites thousands of local shelters,
veterinary clinics, animal care and control agencies, and other
humane agencies in the common goal of educating pet owners about the
benefits of tagging their companion animals. To help promote this
event in your community, contact your local shelter to help in their
efforts. Everyone can help by identifying their pet or encouraging
others to do so. An ID tag is you pet's one-way ticket home. Make
every day Tag Day, and join our efforts to increase the number of
animals returned home.
{adapted from http://AmericanHumane.org and
http://AnimalRadioNetwork.com.)

5) DRAWING & FUN STUFF

Congratulations to Kate C.... the winner of the visor for April.
May's drawing is a paw print cell phone cover. After entering your
name, check out the rest of the fun page at
http://www.animaldesigns.com/trivia.htm
Thanks to Patricia B. for submitting this month's photo of Blacky, a
real bundle of soft fur and cuddles.
We would like to honor your Pet next month, so send us a copy of
their photo either by email or snail mail.

6) COMMENTS-QUESTIONS-SUGGESTIONS

A recent question from one of our customer's asks "Can you put a
personalized card with the item as it is a gift for a special
occasion?". Yes, we will be glad to make a card with that special
personalized greeting. Just let us know what you want to say and we
will take care of the rest.

7) HOW TO UNSUBSCRIBE (Sorry to see you go)
If you no longer wish to be on our mailing list or receive any
updates about products, please reply to this email with unsubscribe
in the subject line. You will be removed within 24 hours.

As always, we appreciate your comments, questions and suggestions
and we've provided this link for sharing this newsletter with your
friends. http://www.recommend-it.com/l.z.e?s=620320

All the Best,
Jeanie
Animal Designs
www.animaldesigns.com
1.866.468.1739