Great magazines for pet lovers

I love magazines, and I wanted to compile a list of my favourite publications about animals and pets.  I started working on this entry on January 25th, believe it or not, and it’s taken me this long to get around to finishing it!  In any case, here are the pet/animal magazines I read regularly:

  • Cat Watch:  This is a small publication, newsletter format, and it’s only a few pages long.  Still, it packs a lot of information into those pages, and it’s all very current and cutting edge.  And useful.  Every issue has at least one article which relates to a pet health or behavioural problem that’s affected us.  There are no advertisements, and each issue can be stored in a three-ring binder for future reference.
  • Whole Dog Journal:  This is another newsletter publication, but it focuses more on natural health and healing.  Lots of very pertinent medical information is included, so it’s not all Bach flower essences and reiki.  They annually publish a very popular guide to dog food which is worth the cost of the entire subscription.  They also have an online-only subscription option, and they’ll send your newsletter via email, in html or pdf, to save trees.
  • Animal Sheltering:  This large magazine is a publication of HSUS.  It won’t suit everyone’s tastes, and it’s geared at workers in the animal rescue/shelter community.  A lot of the articles are over my head, but I still love it for things like the advertisements.  Is that weird, loving a magazine for the ads?!  It’s a great place to find information on animal rescue products like traps, display cages, medical equipment, etc.
  • Best Friends:  You can buy Best Friends magazine at the newsstand, or receive it free with a $25 donation to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.  It’s the best nonprofit publication I’ve ever seen, and is actually cheery.  Yes, instead of horrifying you with terrible stories, it’s full of good stories about happy pet adoptions and interesting animal news from around the world.  I guarantee that every issue contains at least one adorable puppy and/or kitten photo.
  • The Bark:  The Bark is a lifestyle magazine for dog owners.  The articles are very current and up-to-date, featuring trends in the world of dogs.  There’s something in it for every dog owner, whether the dog is a purebred or a mutt, and it also has some neat ads.  The Bark is where I first saw an ad for Merrick pet food, for example.  This would be a great gift magazine for someone who loves their dog, but doesn’t want to get involved with reading veterinary journals or dry articles about pet food nutrition.  The articles are informative but lively, and even a non-dog owner would enjoy them.
  • Companion Parrot Quarterly:  Hands down, the best animal-themed magazine ever produced.  Each issue is absolutely packed with good information, and editor Sally Blanchard fills the magazine with articles by experts on topics like parrot nutrition and behaviour.  Blanchard draws the most amazing illustrations for each issue, too.  I enjoy all the parrot anecdotes which readers submit each month, as well.  This is perhaps the only magazine I permanently hoard, and I’ve kept every single issue I’ve ever received.
  • Veterinary Technician:  I started reading vet tech a couple of years ago, before I ever imagined I could perhaps become a tech myself.  While the scientific information in some articles can be challenging, it’s nevertheless an excellent publication for the pet owner who wants to be very involved and knowledgeable about their pet’s health.  It will also give you insight into some of the challenges of working as a vet tech.  These are very dedicated people who are well-educated but who often don’t earn a whole lot of money, so remember to send your techs a box of chocolates every once in a while.

I still sometimes enjoy an issue of Cat Fancy or Dog Fancy, but the issues become a bit repetitive after you’ve read them for a while.  I used to love Bird Talk, but after two years of subscribing, I noticed that many of the articles started to repeat themselves, and I wasn’t learning anything new.  I also didn’t enjoy the “posters” in each issue.  They were pretty to look at, but what was I supposed to do with them?  I would have rather seen the ink used for more information (or the ink not used and the price reduced).  Still, any of the Fancy Publications magazines make good gifts if you know someone loves a particular type of animal.

Any favourite magazines of yours that I’ve forgotten to mention?

Posted by Leigh-Ann on 02/11 at 02:03 AM

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  1. I have a subscription to Bark..and I too enjoy it very much. But my favourite dog magazine is “Dogs In Canada”.  I don’t have a subscription.. but I often pick it up in the store.

    Posted by Coll  on  02/16  at  11:01 AM
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