Ticks dogging your pet? Here's what to do

They're every pet owner's nightmare: ticks.

In South Florida, where heat and humidity are a year-round occurrence, the pesky little critters thrive in backyards.

They live in overgrown lawns, shrubbery and bushes just waiting to attack dogs -- and sometimes cats.

But fear not; there are ways to protect your animals from disease-carrying ticks.

''It's up to the pet-owning public to be constantly vigilant of the presence of external parasites, such as ticks and fleas,'' said Dr. James Dee, a veterinarian at Hollywood Animal Hospital.

The American Veterinary Medical Association suggests that at-risk pets be treated with preventive products.

Among the most well-known treatments are Advantix, Revolution and Frontline.

Pit bulls are not pets

Make no mistake about it, Pit bulls are not pets. Whoever wants to can fool themselves and call those animals pets, but they are not and never will be.

Pit bulls are traditionally bred to be vicious fighters and they have been known to maul, to maim and to kill.

In Britain, The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 makes the ownership of Pit bulls illegal. The Government had intended seek the destruction of the more than 10,000 American pit bull terriers in that country but instead, owners of dogs bred for fighting were required to have them neutered, obtain a permit, hold third party insurance, and keep their dogs muzzled and on a leash in public.

The dogs were outlawed in many regions of the United States.

Twenty years ago the breed was categorized by the Bahamas Humane Society as a "time bomb" waiting to explode in New Providence.

Kaufman County May Ban Exotic Animals

For years, Kaufman County has cultivated a reputation as something of a haven for exotic wild animals and their owners, a place where elephants, monkeys and big cats might be as at home on the range as cattle, pigs and dogs.

But after a tiger mauling and the discovery of dead and mangled livestock, this East Texas gateway is reconsidering its historically relaxed approach to regulating exotic -- and some say dangerous -- animals.

While more than 70 percent of Texas counties prohibit keeping dangerous wild animals as pets, Kaufman County is among the few in the state that lets its 89,000 residents keep a giraffe or bear with the right paperwork. .

Pet owners worry about drug safety

Authorities and pet owners are beginning to raise serious questions about the safety and effectiveness of animal medicines, mirroring worries over human drugs like the painkiller Vioxx.

Tested on just a couple hundred animals, a drug meant for pets is less apt than a human one to show all its failings until it reaches the market, veterinarians say. More than 700 drugs have been approved for pets, but many others are used legally without explicit approval for animals.

Most pet drugs were first developed for people. But each species of animal — even varying breeds — may react differently to the same drug.

Further, animals can't say if a drug makes them feel bad.

"I can't tell until you see something physical," said Laurryn Simpson of Commerce Township, Mich., who founded the Web site dogsadversereactions.com

Animal Shelter Push Bill Banning Exotic Pets

If owning a bear or lion sounds better to you than a dog or cat you better hurry, lawmakers in Iowa are looking to make owning these types of animals illegal.

Animal shelters across Iowa are pushing for a new law that would make it illegal for Iowans to own or possess many "dangerous animals."

Over the years the Iowa Animal Rescue League has been asked to find homes for the once-cuddly wild pets, but due to the increase in numbers it's becoming harder and harder to find them homes.

Maria Tiller of the Black Hawk County Animal Control says, "It's a public safety issue. Some of the animals are escaping which causes a threat to the residents in the area."

Many cities including Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, and Iowa City already have ordinances banning people from owning these types of animals.