These tips can help quiet a howling dog
Heloise
Dear Readers: Does your dog howl? This can be cute, but your pet is trying to tell you something. Maybe it is lonely, bored, anxious, scared or ill.
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has some cures:
• If your dog is howling because of a siren, the howling will stop when the siren stops.
• If howling is a sudden onset, a trip to the doctor is in order.
• If your pet howls just to get your attention, don’t give it — no eye contact, no touch, no speaking and no scolding.
• Reward your dog for being calm and quiet, and make sure you spend enough time with your pet. — Heloise
Dear Heloise: I spray cooking oil on my lawn mower blades to keep grass from sticking to them. I don’t use motor oil — it can kill my grass if it drips off. — Dan W. in Tennessee
Dear Heloise: For those who serve hot dogs and those who like to eat them, place the preferred condiments in the bun before adding the hot dog. No more condiments falling out, or messy hands. — Dorothy M., Canton
Dear Heloise: With mosquito season in full swing, I treat an itch with a dab of toothache numbing gel. It takes the itch right out.
— Bev C., Colorado Springs, Colo.
Dear Heloise: Those mermaid swim tails that are popular right now? They can be dangerous, inhibiting movement in the water.
Parental supervision is necessary, at the very least. And the parent should be no more than an arm’s length away. — Ron R. in Michigan
Dear Heloise: Hundreds of people a year die of carbon monoxide poisoning, most of which is preventable. Since this gas is colorless and has no odor, it goes undetected from household items such as gas fireplaces, furnaces that run on oil, generators and appliances that use gas, such as a water heater or stove. The symptoms include a feeling of weakness, dizziness, headache, nausea, breathing difficulties and mental confusion. Left untreated, carbon monoxide can cause brain damage and death.
To prevent carbon monoxide poisoning, purchase a carbon monoxide detector, usually found in a hardware store or home store. Battery-operated or plugged into an outlet, it may save your life. While you’re at it, get one for an elderly person, too.
— William and Roxanne, Spokane, Wash.
Dear Heloise: I have a long wand to which a soapinfused scrubbing pad is attached to clean my toilet. After use, you just push a small lever and the pad can be ejected into the trash. I recently bought a second wand, and I use it with the soap scrubbers to scrub my bathtub. I can’t bend over my tub as I did when I was younger, and this works like a charm. To tell them apart, I painted the bathtub wand with a wide ring of red nail polish. — Norha in Michigan
Heloise answers letters only in her King Features Syndicate column. Write her at P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 782795000 or send a fax to 1-210-HELOISE.