Pets & Animals — How-To Videos, Articles, & Inspiration « Pets & Animals

How To: Are There Bedbugs in Your Library Books? Here's How to Spot and Destroy Those Bloodsuckers!

Of all the places you'd think to check for bed bugs, I doubt that library books would be at the top of your list. As odd as it sounds, though, libraries and library books are some of the most common places for bed bug infestations. Libraries all over the country have reported bed bug problems this summer, and some have even had to temporarily close to take care of the problem. But before you vow to never set foot inside a library again, here's a little primer on how to check your books for be...

News: World's Smallest Aquarium

How small is Russian artist Anatoly Konenko's microminiature aquarium? Well, for starters, it holds just two tablespoons of water. Not that you could ever fill it with a spoon, of course! The force would tear the décor to bits. Konenko favors a syringe for that particular task.

How To: Make a homemade cat trap

Needing to trip the feral cat population in your neighborhood. Well, it's time to make a trap, fill it with cats, and shut your trap. This good how to shows a trap you can build yourself, and the necessary tequinique to catch those cats.

How To: Train Your Pet Rat to Play Basketball

Train your pet rat to shoot hoops! This rat training instructional video demonstrates the steps you need to teach your pet rat this fun trick. All you need is a "basketball hoop", rat treats, a ping pong ball and an inquisitive pet rat.

How To: Give subcutaneous fluids to a rabbit

Sub-q fluids should only be administered to an animal under the instruction of a veterinarian, but some pets, like rabbits, will need to receive them at home, when the veterinarian is not around. Proper procedure should be followed to ensure that the subcutaneous fluids are reaching the rabbit, and that the bunny doesn't get hurt from malpractice. Watch this video veterinary tutorial and learn how to give Sub-Q fluids to a pet rabbit.

How To: Find Your Lost Cat

When your cat goes missing, chances are it's just chilling in a cozy spot under the couch, or maybe even hiding from you. So it's okay to not freak out just yet. Cats love to hide as if they're spiders, and even their hiding spots are similar. You can find them in corners, on the refrigerator, and according to my roommate, even the dryer hose is fair game.

How To: Perform passive range of motion (PROM) exercises on your dog's hind legs

Stretching isn't just good for humans, it's a great way to keep animals loose and healthy, especially dogs who have suffered bone deformities, muscle aches or arthritis. This video will show you how to give your dog passive range of motion (PROM) exercises on its hind legs. Perform these exercises daily if your dog has recently had orthopedic surgery or suffers from arthritis. Doing so helps maintain flexibility, reduce stiffness and increase blood flow to painful joints. For more information...

How To: Identify a mustang horse

This video is a tutorial on how to identify a mustang horse breed. The instructor begins by saying that it is not easy to identify a mustang horse because of the cross breeding characteristics of mustangs. The mustang shown in the video is larger then an average mustang. The instructor shows the mustangs white brand and all the different meanings along with age tagged along with the horse. The mustang is known for having feet that are larger then most other horse species. The most important s...

How To: Make Dog Bows with Ribbon & Elastic Bands

So, basically I was looking around on the internet trying to find out how to make more intricate bows, and found nothing but a whole lot of very confusing instructional posts with no pictures or videos. Here you'll learn how to make cute little bows for your pets, in 6 simple steps! I'm still learning myself, but I'm hoping this could help others!

How To: Care for an Iguana Without a Cage

First of all, I would like you all to meet my good friend Iggy. There he is, in all his scaly reptilian glory. As you can see, he spends a lot more time on top of his cage than inside of it. You see, Iggy here doesn't deal well AT ALL with confinement. I don't know if it's possible for a lizard to be claustrophobic, but if it is possible, then Iggy definitely is. When his previous owner gave him to me, I tried to keep him in the cage, but I quickly realized that it was a bad idea. When confin...

How To: Deactivate (i.e. Calm Down) Your Crazy Cat in Seconds Using This Simple Trick

Cats. Whether you love 'em or hate 'em, you've got to admit—they've got minds of their own. While this makes them incredibly entertaining at times, it can also cause tons of issues for their owners. Trying to "train" a cat is usually an exercise in futility.

How To: Handle and restrain a rabbit for injections

This Animal Welfare Foundation three-part video tutorial is from expert veterinary staff demonstrating the correct procedures for handling small mammals for clinical examination and medication. Its aim is to show that the primary consideration should be for the the welfare of the animal. This video guide will show you practical animal handling for a rabbit.

How To: Handle and restrain a guinea pig for injections

This Animal Welfare Foundation two-part video tutorial is from expert veterinary staff demonstrating the correct procedures for handling small mammals for clinical examination and medication. Its aim is to show that the primary consideration should be for the the welfare of the animal. This video guide will show you practical animal handling for a guinea pig.

How To: Handle and restrain a gerbil for injections

This Animal Welfare Foundation three-part video tutorial is from expert veterinary staff demonstrating the correct procedures for handling small mammals for clinical examination and medication. Its aim is to show that the primary consideration should be for the the welfare of the animal. This video guide will show you practical animal handling for a gerbil.

How To: Bake a birdie bread for your bird

Your bird will love eating this nutritious snack. Follow along in this bird cooking how-to video to learn how to make birdie bread. Birdie bread is a fun recipe that is great for both you and our pet bird.

How To: Make homemade baby bird food

This is just a quick video on a simple way to make homemade baby bird food, preferably for wild baby birds such as sparrows, starlings, robins, etc. This is a great starter recipe. If you've rescued an orphaned chick or taken one in as a pet, can be tricky to feed, but this simple feed is easy to make from cat food. Watch this video animal care tutorial and learn how to make baby bird food at home.

How To: Scissor the top knot of a poodle

This video slide show tutorial gives a step-by-step guide to scissoring a poodle topknot. 1. After clipping the face against the grain with a close blade, the line is first scissored from the outside corner of the eye to the top of the base of the ear.

How To: Palpate a bovine to check for pregnancy

Suspect that your bovine (bull, cow) is pregnant. Well, there's only one way to be sure. Put on a plastic glove and insert your hand into the rectum, with your fingers together. See how to find out if your cattle is pregnant with help of this video tutorial.

How To: Make a cheap aquarium filter

Aquarium filters can be expensive to replace, but are important for the health and happiness of your aquatic friends. This video tutorial shows you how to keep your pet fish in good condition by making a replacement aquarium filter out of a soda bottle and a few other household supplies.

How To: Make a DIY aquarium background

This is how to make a DIY aquarium or fish tank background. Some people's methods may differ from these, but this is the easiest, most inexpensive way. You may want to listen to the Incubus song "The Warmth" while you are doing it. (Wait--is that Brandon Boyd?)

How To: Make a Chicken Feeder Using a 5 Gallon Bucket - Tutorial

This video will show you how to make a feed bucket for chickens. A 5 gallon bucket holds about 25 LBS of food.

How To: Make a Chicken Waterer Using 5 Gallon Bucket - Easy DIY

This video will show you how to make a long lasting watering bucket using a 5 gallon bucket for chickens.

How To: Raise Baby Chicks for the First Time

Here's a video of how we raised our first batch of baby chicks. This video will explain what they eat, different temperatures to keep them at, and they basics of starting out with your first flock of chickens.

How To: Build a Self-Ventilating Litter Box for Your Cat

One thing the whole Internet can agree with is that cats are cute and (sometimes) cuddly. But what those endless cat videos you find yourself watching for hours on YouTube don't tell you is that cats stink. While cats aren't the source of the smell, owning a cat means a stinky litter box.

News: How to Care for a Stray Kitten

I found a stray kitten outside. I fostered him and then found him a home!

How To: to Set Up a Betta Fish Tank

This is a single Betta male live plant set up that looks awesome ^^

How To: Care for a Gerbil!

Hi! I'm Kasia from CreativePetKeeping and this is my guide to owning gerbils. Hope you enjoy!

News: Funniest Cat Video to Ever Exist

Here is the World's Funniest Cat video!

How To: Entertain Your Dog/Cat

Our dog has tons of energy and always wants to play. However, play time can be exhausting to the humans of the house. We found out a few months ago that the dog loves to play ‘chase the red dot.' Boredom leads to creativity, so we attached a laser pointer to her head with a bandana and small piece of tape. This kept her continuously occupied until we removed it after 20 minutes. I assume you could try this with a cat if you were daring enough – good luck with that. Caution: Laser pointers (ev...

How To: Set Up Your New Hamsters Gage for the First Time What to Do with Food Bedding and Cage

If you're new to hamsters, or bringing your new little friend home for the first time, this video will show you what food to get, what food to buy, or what cage to buy, so that the transition from pet store to your home will be a little easier on the little guy.

How To: Clean a Hamster Cage Easy Way

Here's a pretty easy way to clean a hamster cage. Pretty good kids how-to video to get them to do this job.

News: The Battlefield Where Speed Is Everything

This post is brought to you by the Smithsonian Channel. Video: .

How To: DIY Cat Toys You Can Find at Home

Cat toys can be unnecessarily expensive. Using items you already own, you can provide your cat with new and fun ways to play. Look around, you may have dozens of potential cat toys that will occupy your cat for days to come!

How To: Earn Trust from Your Rabbit

This is about how to make a rabbit become less wary of you and more trustful with you also. I myself have a Dutch that was released by its previous owner, then I rescued it. She never wants to be took out of her cage, but now she doesn't mind as long as I'm gentle and nice.