I really had fun giving folks on local Sacramento TV some tips on pet travel when PETCO sent me to the West coast recently. If only they had asked me something like pet grooming when traveling – I was thinking that while the nice hotels give out sample shampoo and conditioners, it would be so cool if the pet friendly hotels gave out little bottles of Halo’s Cloud Nine Herbal Shampoo!

It is an absolute favorite in our house where all three of my gigantic dogs gets a bath at least twice a month and truly no shampoo comes close to Halo’s for easy rinse-ability, soft skin, and cleaning without being harsh.

Maybe one of the nicer hotel chains like the Four Seasons – which puts out bowls and beds and leashes for their traveling dog guests – could also pop some Cloud Nine Herbal Shampoo in there and people could take advantage of the nice low edges on hotel bathtubs to give their travelling four-leggeds a little bubble bath?

Here’s me, sent to Sacramento by Petco to chat about pet travel issues. You can see it’s pretty fun! Sacramento & Company TV Appearance.

Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and The Cat Bible, guest blogs here every Thursday on healthy, natural choices for pets.

House-training a puppy means house-training you, too. If you follow my simple rules, you’ll have your puppy going where he’s supposed to, and not on the carpet, in no time.

Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and The Cat Bible, guest blogs here every Thursday on healthy, natural choices for pets.

Watch my video hand selected by the Vodpod community.

I received a letter recently from a pet sitter and here is my reply:

Dear Toni: I am trying to recover from my dismay at this veterinarian spouting his own misinformed version of true garbage …

There is no dispute in nutrition for either people or pets that we “are what we eat” and REAL meat or other wholesome protein ingredients and other healthy components of a pet food are key to the wellness of our beloved pets. HALO is completely different from other commercial dry foods. …

Click over to my original blog on “Halo is WAY Different than Other Kibble! (Update)” for the whole story!

Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and The Cat Bible, guest blogs here every Thursday on healthy, natural choices for pets.

I got a comment on one of my daily tips on DOGSTER.COM and wanted to share it with you here…

It’s certainly true that lower quality dog foods can cause adverse skin reactions in dogs, but it isn’t just about an allergy to wheat (which is actually pretty rare in dogs). It’s more likely a reaction to the artificial colors, flavors, chemical preservatives, and generally dubious quality even of the protein source in the food. So you want to switch to a truly natural food free of all that artificial stuff and with the word of the named protein source as the first ingredient (chicken, beef, salmon).

While there are many premium dog foods, I have chosen HALO Purely for Pets kibble for the dry portion of my own dogs’ meals. I have confidence in the integrity of the company and Halo’s commitment to using the highest quality protein sources for their kibble, while avoiding all the cheap fillers and nasty additives present in so many dog foods. .

Click over to my original blog on “Better Quality Dog Food but Flea Prevention, Too” for the whole story!

Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and The Cat Bible, guest blogs here every Thursday on healthy, natural choices for pets.

I am so excited and proud to share a brand new radio show with you, Authors On Animals on Peconic Public Broadcasting. I am sure you’ll enjoy listening to me interviewing all these talented and interesting authors.

You can listen live Monday evening if you’re in the broadcast area for 88.3 or want to listen on the internet to live streaming at www.WLIU.org. But you can also go to www.AuthorsOnAnimals.com and listen there any time or download onto whatever gadget you have and listen when convenient.

Read the Press Release (PDF)

Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and The Cat Bible, guest blogs here every Thursday on healthy, natural choices for pets.