Help Michigan Pets

Unlike last week, this week's list of urgent pets in Michigan is extremely long.

The good news is that two adoptions were reported. Peanut the black lab was adopted just in time to save him from being euthanized, and Marley the yellow lab also found a home. Congratulations and best wishes to Peanut and Marley!

Now for pets in need this week:

The shelter in Beulah is still hoping to find homes for Russian blue cat Natashia, border collie/lab mix Tispy, and husky/lab mix Noah.

Sweet, pretty Tisha the pittie is still in Ionia, and she's far from alone. Beagle mix Binky is a terrific boy who's great with other pets. Jessa is a young tabby/DSH mix, Blair is a black DSH, and Jay is a cute DSH/tabby boy about 3 months old.

As always, there are many cats available in Midland. I'd love to be able to say more about them, but these poor things are assigned Ref ID numbers instead of names, and there's just not much information available.

Poor, sweet Bruno is trying so hard to be patient. He really needs to find a home, and he doesn't want to share it with any cats! He's at the shelter in Mount Pleasant, which is also listing senior cats Boo and Punky, who are both in a foster home and hoping to be adopted together.

In Prudenville, Plott hound mix Charlie is still at the top of the euth list due to his extended stay at the shelter. Please give this sweet guy the life he deserves!

The shelter in Wyandotte has a lot of urgent cats this week. Prada is still there, and she has lots of company. Isaac is a very cuddly black British shorthair/domestic shorthair mix who's been at the shelter for almost a year! Black DSH Albert loves attention, and he's great with other cats. Millie is a tiny, cute, and chatty black and white DLH/tuxedo mix. Koda is a terrific buff and white DLH/bobtail mix with lots of personality. Sunny is a cute and curious 7-month-old black DSH girl. DLH/tuxedo mix Lamb is very sweet and pretty. Gray DSH/tabby mix Cheetah is a nice boy who's new at the shelter.

Continuing with Wyandotte, brown DSH/tabby mix Kai is very polite. He loves attention but will wait his turn. Lizzie is a sweet, talkative tuxedo/DSH girl. Crispin is a quirky 6-year-old DSH/tabby whose "family" decided to get rid of him. Black DSH Solomon longs for a nice home where he can love and be loved.

Chip and Salsa are FIV-positive DSH/tabby babies at the Wyandotte shelter. Menka is a very sweet Oriental shorthair/exotic shorthair mix who lost an eye at some point in his life, but he doesn't let it get to him; he's a real ladies' man. DLH/tuxedo mix Kamora is a diamond in the rough. Martini is also a DLH/tuxedo mix, and he's tiny; he has FIV and feline leukemia.

There are three dogs currently on the list at Howell/Livingston County. All three were surrendered by their owners. Rambo is a tiny chihuahua/miniature pinscher mix who only has until September 30. Louie is a GSD mix, and Bailey is a chocolate lab.

There are also quite a few cats in Livingston County. Most are strays, and the one at the top of the list is scheduled to be euthanized on September 29. Keep in mind that "Last Date Available" is another way to say their euthanization date; these are listed in chronological order.

As always, if you're interested in any of these animals, please contact the shelter.

If you have a dog, you'll probably need to administer some type of medicine at some point. In many cases, it's possible to use an over-the-counter (OTC) medicine you've already purchased for yourself.

Dog lover Kenzy England has done her research, and her article will help you figure out whether it's safe to treat your dog with products primarily intended for people. This guide gives details on which OTC people meds are safe for dogs, and it includes dosage instructions.

Unfortunately, not every ailment can be treated with OTC human medicines, so it's important to know when to contact your vet for something appropriate.

It's a fairly short list this week, compared to most weeks, but there are some pets in dire need of help.

Peanut is scheduled to die today (September 20). He's a black lab who's great with kids but needs a home without other dogs or cats. If you can help him, please contact the shelter at Southgate immediately!

Plott hound mix Charlie has been at the Prudenville shelter a long time and has moved to the top of the euth list. He's a very sweet guy who deserves a chance!

Natashia is still waiting for a forever home. She's a beautiful Russian blue cat at the shelter in Beulah. At the same shelter, Tispy the border collie/lab mix and Noah the husky/lab mix are also hoping someone will come along to save them.

Handsome pit bull/boxer mix Troy is still stuck at the shelter in Ionia, along with Tisha, a pretty and sweet pittie girl.

The employees and volunteers at the shelter in Midland still have more cats than they can reasonably handle.

This is so discouraging. Poor Bruno the hound still hasn't found a forever (cat-free) home so he can get out of the shelter in Mount Pleasant.

Senior cats Boo and Punky are still in a foster home but would love to find a permanent place to retire, preferably together. These cuddly, affectionate cats are both front-declawed. For more information, check the Mount Pleasant shelter's page.

Linus is a tiger/Hemingway polydactyl mix cat at the shelter in West Olive. He's a very friendly boy.

Prada the black DSH cat is still at the shelter in Wyandotte.

There are four dogs currently on the urgent list in White Cloud. Shadow the black lab is the happiest guy ever! Marley is a nice yellow lab boy, Emmitt is a terrific hound, and Emma is a very nice pittie girl. They all need help by 9/24.

Howell/Livingston County has several dogs and cats on the urgent list. "Last Date Available" is another way to say their euthanization date; these are listed in chronological order.

The good news for this week is that Dino, the sweet, goofy black lab/Karelian bear dog mix, found a forever home.

As always, if you're interested in any of these animals, please contact the shelter.

Have you seen Pedigree's new commercial? It's promoting their new Healthy Longevity Food, and as always, it's a good one.

Pedigree is running a promotion featuring this new formula, and this post is part of it. I'm not getting paid for it, but shelter dogs will benefit.

The sad fact is that about four million dogs find themselves in animal shelters and rescues every year in the United States. While they wait for their forever homes, Pedigree would like to help them. That's where we bloggers come in.

For every blog post about the Pedigree Adoption Drive that is published through Sunday, September 19, Pedigree will donate a 20-pound bag of their new Healthy Longevity Food for Dogs to a shelter. That's right; a shelter somewhere in the U.S. will receive 20 pounds of dog food because of this post. Isn't that great?

If you'd like to help, you can do the same thing. To make sure your blog post counts, include the following bullets and add the direct link to your post to the Blog Hop below. (Bulleted info courtesy of Boulder Dog)

* Each year, more than 4 million dogs end up in shelters and breed rescue organizations. Pedigree created The PEDIGREE Adoption Drive to help shine a spotlight on the plight of these homeless dogs.

* This year the PEDIGREE Adoption Drive is raising awareness for homeless dogs by donating a bowl of food to shelter dogs for everyone who becomes a "Fan" or "Likes" the PEDIGREE Adoption Drive on Facebook. So far more than 1 million bowls have been donated.

* Special for BlogPaws West: For each blog that posts about the PEDIGREE Adoption Drive through September 19, PEDIGREE will donate a bag of its new Healthy Longevity Food for Dogs to shelters nationwide. It's simple: Write a post, help a dog.

* Thursday, September 16 through Sunday, September 19, the Pedigree BlogPaws bloggers will host a Blog Hop to help raise awareness for the "Write a post, help a dog" effort.

Include the hashtag #dogsrule somewhere in the post; you should also use it as a tag or label. You'll also need to link to the Pedigree Adoption Drive Facebook fan page within your post. When you're ready to promote your post, tweet it using #dogsrule.

That's all there is to it! Just follow the guidelines, and a shelter will get a 20-pound bag of dog food.

If your blog has a pet theme, this will be easy. If not, you might have trouble fitting a post about the Pedigree Adoption Drive into your blog's theme, but please try. Somewhere in the U.S., an animal shelter and the dogs housed therein will be grateful that you did.

It's a fairly short list of urgent pets this week compared to most weeks. There were also some adoptions and rescues.

Natashia is a beautiful Russian blue cat hoping someone will take her home from the shelter in Beulah. Chandler the Australian shepherd/Afghan hound mix is still waiting for a new home.

In Ionia, handsome pit bull/boxer mix Troy would love a forever home. Spunk and Spook are handsome 5-month-old brothers with lots of toes! They're DLH/Hemingway polydactyl mixes. Sweet mama cat Elsa and her babies are still waiting for a foster home. Tabby/DSH mix Gail is also still hoping for a nice home.

The shelter in Midland is a great place to find a terrific companion. Lots of cats are waiting for someone to help them. New this week are a very friendly orange tabby guy and a stunning DLH mama kitty and her two babies. In addition, there are several cats held over from last week's urgent list.

Poor Bruno the hound is going to get a complex! He's such a great guy! There must be someone out there who can give him a nice cat-free home and get him out of the shelter in Mount Pleasant.

Senior cats Boo and Punky need help! They're in a foster home now; their owner had to surrender them due to health reasons. However, they'd really like to find a nice retirement home together. They're very affectionate and cuddly. Boo is a 12-year-old silver/gray stubby-tailed tabby with medium-length hair and gorgeous green eyes. Punky has long orange hair. They've both been declawed on their front paws. Check the Mount Pleasant shelter's page for more information; they're the ones providing the listing.

Sweet, goofy black lab/Karelian bear dog mix Dino still needs a forever home. He's at the shelter in Wyandotte, along with Haskell, a large gray tabby/DSH mix who is FIV positive, and Prada, a black DSH cat hoping for a better life.

Two dogs are on the urgent list in White Cloud. Dunkin is a friendly chocolate lab about 8 months old. Gunner is a young pit bull held over from before. They both need to be saved by 9/10.

Don't forget to check the listings for Howell/Livingston County. They have several dogs and cats on the urgent list. "Last Date Available" is another way to say their euthanization date; these are listed in chronological order.

Now for the good news. China was adopted, and with her sweet, loving nature, it's no wonder! Chomper and Cesar are two more terrific dogs who also went to their forever homes this week. Senior cats Ollie and Stan were rescued by Basil's Buddies.