My wish and prayer for You and all the pets this new year are-

For all Pets to stay Healthy and Happy
For good and healthy Food for all Fur babies
For all of us -good health and happiness-We need it.
For us all to stay friends forever.
For a safe world for all.
That We all meet one day.
That We find joy in our hearts again.
That We never forget what happened.
That We find peace knowing our babies at the bridge are happy, and not ever to have them die in vain.
that We fight the fight forever.
And that We all know love and tolerance.
Love to all,
From My whole gang

My cats took a look at the resolutions and thought I was from another planet. They're still laughing.

To all My "Family" at Itchmo---------------------And all their pets----------------


Happy New Year

http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/12/24/candy-canes-germs.html

 Candy Canes Fight Germs, Settle Stomachs

"Most of the (effective) species are really from the family Lamiaceae, or mint family," Pavel Kloucek, a scientist at the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, told Discovery News.

Kloucek and his team analyzed several essential oils to see how well they could, in vapor form, kill the bacteria responsible for Listeria, Staph, E. coli, and Salmonella infections, and more.

While peppermint's germ-killing powers have been previously documented, the new study is the first to report the antimicrobial activity of two other mint family members -- Mentha villosa and Faassen's catnip -- along with another non-mint herb, bluebeard.

Essential oils for horseradish, garlic, hyssop, basil, marjoram, oregano, winter savory, and three types of thyme also showed potent bacteria-busting abilities.

The findings have been accepted for publication in the journal Food Control.


A New Use for an Old Favorite | Discovery News Video  Dec. 24, 2008 -- New studies on peppermint, the key flavoring in traditional candy canes, reveal the herb may do everything from kill germs to treat digestive troubles.

Some researchers now advise consumers to eat a tablespoon or more of fresh peppermint, and other green herbs, daily.

Peppermint oil, found in most candy canes, also appears to have health benefits. A recent British Medical Journal study, led by McMaster University researcher Alex Ford, concludes that peppermint oil should be the first line of defense against irritable bowel syndrome, a condition characterized by abdominal pain and irregular bowels that affects between 5 to 20 percent of the population.

Peppermint oil, and other potent essential oils, may even one day be wafted in their vapor form over food to prevent the growth of bacteria.



"Most of the (effective) species are really from the family Lamiaceae, or mint family," Pavel Kloucek, a scientist at the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, told Discovery News.

Kloucek and his team analyzed several essential oils to see how well they could, in vapor form, kill the bacteria responsible for Listeria, Staph, E. coli, and Salmonella infections, and more.

While peppermint's germ-killing powers have been previously documented, the new study is the first to report the antimicrobial activity of two other mint family members -- Mentha villosa and Faassen's catnip -- along with another non-mint herb, bluebeard.

Essential oils for horseradish, garlic, hyssop, basil, marjoram, oregano, winter savory, and three types of thyme also showed potent bacteria-busting abilities.

The findings have been accepted for publication in the journal Food Control.

Please go to the link and read the whole thing. this would be great to put on our food, not pesticides.
 

I think I'll try it. I had some cheese tonight, and it didn't taste very good.

I have to say also- I am very proud of you

That looks wonderful. what a great job. It also looks yummy. When do we come to dinner?

If they could just try a shot of B-12, it would get Her to eat.
I have a magazine i think that also sells B-12. It's such a tiny amount, they don't even feel it.

Oh, those kitties are so adorable. and they look so content.
now that mention it, yes, thank god Xmas is over. Looks like the kitties think so too?

Please eat, Thunder Girl. We all love you. those gels are great for the cats.

Glad to hear molly is getting better. And it's true. when We aren't happy, they aren't happy, and then the opposite.

So sad to hear this. My prayers go out to the both of them. May they get through this as best they can.
Yes, I hate Cancer, too.

I know. I love happy endings.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081227/ap_on_re_ca/na_canada_horse_rescue


Volunteers spend a week on horse rescue in Canada
       Two frostbitten, emaciated horses were recovering inside a warm barn on Saturday thanks to volunteers who spent the week before Christmas digging the animals out of snow in the mountains of northeastern British Columbia.

Birgit Stutz said Saturday the rescuers cheered when they finally finished digging a half-mile escape route through the snow for the animals. The horses had been abandoned by a hunter and faced almost certain death.

Stutz said the horses eagerly accepted being bridled and seemed to know they were safe as volunteers led them on a seven-hour hike down the mountain in freezing temperatures on Tuesday.

Stutz said about 40 or 50 people took part in the rescue over the course of a week.

"It was a big effort," Stutz said in a telephone interview.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20081226/cm_csm/ycook

 San Francisco – Within hours of former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack's nomination last week as Agriculture secretary, websites were humming with well-documented critiques of his affinity for genetically engineered crops, agribusiness giant Monsanto, heavily polluting factory farms, and other Big Farm interests.

Some critics expressed outrage, others surprise, especially since they had mounted a vigorous, 55,000-plus strong online petition to persuade President-elect Barack Obama to nominate someone more progressive who would promote sustainable food and farming.

The need for sweeping change could not be clearer when it comes to our food: At taxpayer expense, current policy subsidizes large corporate farms and destructive industrial agriculture, which rob the countryside of economic diversity and precious environmental resources, such as water and topsoil.

These same subsidies, and anemic regulatory enforcement, encourage an increasingly monopolized food system, and a "cheap food" policy that lards us with fatty, processed foods – the cost of which is ultimately dear, more than $100 billion annually for obesity and diet-related diseases. Today's food system also generates a sizable portion of America's greenhouse gases, and rests on fast-dwindling and volatile oil supplies.