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Pets

Water-friendly collars and tags

Somewhere deep in Skylar’s DNA there must be a champion Labrador retriever, because she can’t get enough of the water. Most of her collars — some leather, some with crystals, some made of ribbon — simply aren’t meant to get wet; same goes for the jangling tags she wears on our walks or out for […]

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Pets

Hear Doggy ultrasonic toys

I must admit I was skeptical when Steve and I came upon Hear Doggy ultrasonic toys at Pet Food Express — until I squeezed one from behind my back and Skylar and Blue started cocking their heads from side to side though we heard nothing. Hear Doggy says their toys are made with “a squeaker […]

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The Adventures of Skylar Grey

Chapter 12: Beach baby

Jazzy never had any interest in fetching unless I threw her toy in the ocean. She swam like a champ, using her tail as a rudder to keep her big butt from sinking below the surface. People were always amused: “I didn’t think pit bulls liked to swim,” they’d say.

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Pets

Marcy Schaaf: Founder and executive director, SaveABunny

How did you get involved with bunny rescue? I found a rabbit while walking my dog. I knew virtually nothing about rabbits except that this particular rabbit was not a wild rabbit (she was white and brown). Many people don’t know that wild rabbits and domestic rabbits are not even the same species. They can’t […]

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The Adventures of Skylar Grey

Chapter 13: There’s no psychiatrist like a puppy licking your face

Steve and I met while I was the community manager for a company called eFrenzy during the first San Francisco tech boom. I say first because, as we learned in 2000, what goes up must come down — especially when it’s valued at 100 times earnings. Like most dot coms then (and now), eFrenzy had […]

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The Adventures of Skylar Grey

Chapter 14: Of Chillows, children and Chihuahuas

Jazzy had a big, bold personality with an independent streak a mile wide. She loved children more than any dog I’ve ever known. If she saw a group of them playing in the park, she would drag me over so she could say hi. The first time I brought her to Fort Funston, she took […]

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Pets

Treat your pet to homemade chicken chicharrones

I always buy chicken with the bones and the skin — first, because it’s more cost effective, and second, because the bones and skin impart so much flavor and moisture as the chicken cooks. I like Mary’s air-chilled chicken, available at Whole Foods and other better markets and butcher shops, and it does make a […]