Thursday, December 30, 2004 at 11:29:57 AM by Edward Knittel
The recent and unfortunate natural disaster in the Indian Ocean on 26 December 2004 -- the 9.0 earthquake which caused the tsunami -- has strengthened the belief that animals must possess something of a "sixth sense". The fact that over 100,000 people lost their lives and countless others remain injured while no signs of any significant loss to the lives of animals cannot be easily explained.
Of course, as pet owners many of us have observed our animal friends behaving "differently" before a disaster. Dogs will bark, birds will take flight, and animals like horses and elephants will begin to stampede away from the source of the danger.
"Wildlife seem to be able to pick up certain phenomenon, especially birds... there are many reports of birds detecting impending disasters," said Clive Walker, who has written several books on African wildlife.
However, none of this can be studied or proven since it's impossible for scientists to create a natural disaster. But the notion is an enduring one which the evidence on the battered coasts is likely to add to.
More information from Yahoo! News
Thursday, December 23, 2004 at 9:01:26 AM by Daniel Rubenstein
Dear Pawtracker Users
Last night we released Version 1.9.2. Please review the following list of the updates, enhancements and bug fixes for this release:
Totals corrected in revenue report for other services
Run card, grooming report, pet info report crash on DOB null fixed
Removed unnecessary duplicate print icons in boarding reservation to prevent confusion
Removed Master Stats report
Removed counters from start page due to inaccuracy
Refresh appointments, transactions etc... on refresh click min date range is selected
Reformatted run occupancy summary report to prevent overflow
Points history view, moves to refund screen now when package is refunded
Corrected Point packages history view error
Optimized Wait list grid for better performance
Optimized In House grid for better performance
Optimized History Grid for better performance
Optimized Appointments Grid for better performance
Inactive packages print error corrected
Added Pet Counters report
Added Other Income Chart of Account which can be used for Other Service codes
KennelSource staff will be working everyday through the holiday season to support you. You may reach us toll free at 800-610-9054 or by email at support at kennelsource dot com We are looking forward to helping you succeed during this very busy time of year.
More information from Pawtracker?
Tuesday, December 21, 2004 at 5:15:30 PM by Edward Knittel
Every year the weekly news magazine of science examines and reports on some of their most popular stories of the year. Well what do you know, what of their most popular stories has to do with dog breeds. On May 22, 2004 their article entitled "Breeds Apart: Purebred dogs defined by DNA differences" reported on the most thorough DNA analysis yet of purebred dogs.The study suggests that canine breeds, typically defined by physical features and family history, can also be discerned genetically with great accuracy.
At a DNA level, breeds are a very real concept. Every poodle is more closely related to a poodle than it is to a dog of any other breed," says Elaine Ostrander of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. In the May 21 Science, she and her colleagues describe their analysis of DNA from 85 dog breeds.
And so, by studying the inbreeding of dogs which in turn create breed-specific problems, such as deafness and osteoporosis, scientist hope to learn how those similar problems afflict people. By comparing closely related breeds that differ in their prevalence of diseases, researchers are now tracking down genes responsible for many illnesses.
Now that's something to be hopeful about.
More information from Science News
Monday, December 20, 2004 at 3:57:57 PM by Edward Knittel
Not everything we read has to be sad and gloomy. Sometimes the stories we find can enlightening and entertaining. And in the case of syndicated humor columnist, Dave Barry, they can even be quite funny. His column for December 19th, 2004 should get a good chuckle out of any dog owner.
I'm trying to convince my wife that we need a dog. I grew up with dogs, and am comfortable with their ways. If we're visiting someone's home, and I suddenly experience a sensation of humid warmth, and I look down and see that my right arm has disappeared up to the elbow inside the mouth of a dog the size of a medium horse, I am not alarmed. I know that this is simply how a large, friendly dog says: ''Greetings! You have a pleasing salty taste!''
I invite you to check it out and laugh along with us. And hopefully Dave's wife will some day let him get that dog he's always wanted.
More information from Miami Herald
Friday, December 17, 2004 at 8:34:12 AM by Daniel Rubenstein
Dear Pawtracker Users -
Last night we released Version 1.9.1. Please review the following list of the updates, enhancements and bug fixes for this release:
Released Service Packages report by package
Released Service packages report by client
Removed PawPay option from refund grid
Completed Rebuild totals Utility for Chart of Accounts
Fixed Print problem for point packages
Fixed Invoice Type Display error on Payments summary report
Fixed boarding arrivals report repeat error
Improved Boarding occupancy detail report to show both pets for a grouped appointment
For next week, we anticipate releasing 1.9.2 which will include a more accurate pet counter/pet visits report and grid optimization for better system performance. We appreciate your business and strive each day to make the Pawtracker system meet all of your business needs.
More information from Pawtracker
Monday, December 13, 2004 at 10:36:53 AM by Daniel Rubenstein
Dear Pawtracker Users
Due to some unforeseen errors in the upgrade script last night, we were not able to complete the upgrade to Version 1.9.0. We apologize for any inconvenience to those of you who were waiting for custom modules or reports. We are confident that we have already resolved the problem and will make another attempt to upgrade tonight. In the interim, we are using the additional time that we have today to further improve the release by adding some additional reports such as:
Client Spending Report
Run Occupancy Detail Report
Improvements to Run Occupancy Summary Report (Formerly Run Availability Summary)
Thanks for your patience
More information from Pawtracker
Friday, December 10, 2004 at 7:07:34 PM by Edward Knittel
It's never something that we like to read about or see on the news, but it is unfortunate that some of our beloved friends may pass away at someone's kennel. Sometimes it's just their time. Or, perhaps it's something that just couldn't be prevented. And then, well, then there are other times when things go terribly wrong.
Barkie Bow Wow's Pet Salon and Kennel on Montgomery Crossroad in Savannah received a notice of violation for "humane care" on December 2 from the Georgia Department of Agriculture for the death of a 2-year-old dog.
The inspection report says "Lucy", a Shitzu dog, had a body temperature of 109.5 degrees when veterinarians pronounced her dead on arrival at the Crossroads Animal Hospital.
They say Lucy was left in the dryer for too long and was essentially "fried" in the dryer crate.
The owner of Barkie Bow Wows Pet Salon and Kennel, Barbara Hickson, said her dryers do not use heat. She also said her air conditioning had been broken for some time when this incident occurred which may have caused Lucy to overheat.
Lucy's owners disagree.
It's terrible to hear something like this. When one kennel suffers a loss or a bad bit of press it hurts everyone in the pet care industry.
Many say that these animals are a part of their family: they're like children to them. That's why it's important that we treat them as such by keeping an eye on them and responding to their needs and problems. Failing to do so, well...
More information from WSAV3 - Savannah, GA
Thursday, December 09, 2004 at 7:12:45 PM by Daniel Rubenstein
Dear Pawtracker Users
We are set to release Version 1.9.0 which includes some bug fixes, minor enhancements, and a New Boarding Rate Module on this Sunday, December 9th at 11:00PM. The new module will allow Users to add different rates and rate structures to boarding run types. For example, Users will now be able to add special holiday rates which will supersede any typical flat rate. Or Users may add a tiered boarding rate to allow for charging customers depending on their pet's total length of stay. As usual, you may refer to the help files for information on how to use the new functionality. You may also reach us toll free at 800-610-9054 or email at support@kennelsource.com with any questions.
The following is a list of the updates, enhancements and bug fixes for this release:
Added active / inactive flag for run types
Updated Clients added counter by location only
Enhanced Reservation Notes to include all pet info notes
Deleted "Services" Table - not used
Added date created field to the client export
Fixed error with Pet Export
Fixed Unpost problem with packages
Enhanced Zip code storage to allow for manual city override for zip code entries
Added new Boarding Pricing Module
Fixed Payments summary report to include PawPay transactions
Fixed Point balances view bug
Fixed Revenue report bug to filter packages by location
Fixed bug for disappearing service when added to last day of boarding in wizard
Update search mouse over to include telephone number for clients grid
Updated post and unpost invoice action to update Chart of Account totals on date of service
We appreciate your business and strive each day to make the Pawtracker system meet all of your business needs.
More information from Pawtracker
POST A COMMENT | Posted in National News
