Beagle Kelly was dining out in secret

Dear Heloise: I have a funny story about my late dad’s dog, Kelly, a beagle who was very friendly and lovable, so she made lots of friends when my dad would walk her around the neighborhood.

She had a good appetite, so we had to be sure she ate only low-calorie dog food or she would put on too much weight. But, even with careful monitoring, we noticed that she got heavier and heavier. The vet said there was no medical reason; we just needed to feed her less. Dad cut back her portions, and she got even heavier!

One day, I noticed that Kelly had a note attached to her collar, and I asked Dad where it came from. He had no idea, so we read it together. It said: “Have you noticed Kelly has gotten quite chubby? The reason ... a certain neighbor has been feeding her all sorts of goodies. Thought you’d want to know.”

We tried to figure out how she snuck out of the yard for her daily binges. The next evening, around dinnertime, we followed her, and sure enough, there she went, under the fence and across the street to our neighbor’s kitchen door!

Needless to say, the hole under the fence was fixed, and poor Kelly went back to eating healthy food again. Joanne, San Antonio

Moral of the story? Don’t feed or give treats to a neighbor’s pet — you never know how this might affect the animal’s health. Heloise

Dear Heloise: You know all those things you’re supposed to do once a month? I created a first-of-the-month checklist on my computer, and now on the first of each month, we give the dogs their heartworm pills and put on flea and tick medicine, update the family calendar, check the smoke alarm and carbon-monoxide detector, flip the mattress, check all the fluid levels and tire pressure on the vehicles, run vinegar through the coffeepot, defrag the hard drives on the computers and change the AC/heat filter. Regina Bourland, Little Rock, Ark.

Dear Readers: Maureen Pratt of Wells, Vt., sent a photo of her cat Pete in the middle of a seasonal basket. Maureen says: “I was getting ready to decorate a fall basket arrangement and had everything spread out on the table when Pete [the cat] decided to climb in and lie down. He loves to get into anything: paper bags, boxes and baskets! He wasn’t about to get out, so I decorated him as well. He didn’t care — I finally had to shoo him out.”

Be sure to go to my Web site, www.Heloise.com, and click on Pet on the Week. Heloise

Dear Heloise: Got a big spill on carpet or furniture? Use a puppy potty pad to soak it up. Works like a charm. Kathy, Salem, Ore.

XSend a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000, or you can fax it to (210) HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com.

King Features Syndicate