Four Muddy Paws - A Self-Service Dog Wash and Healthy Pet Market | St. Louis, MO | Edwardsville, IL

Gentle Leader Recall

admin — Mon, 14 May 2012 20:47:58 +0000

Premier is recalling Gentle Leaders sold from August 2011 to May 10, 2012 for an issue where the quick release neck strap will inadvertently release. Please click on the link below for instructions on how to test your product and what to do if your product is affected.

More information on the Gentle Leader return

Pet Health Nutrition & Behavior: Animal Adventures on the Radio WGNU 920 AM

admin — Mon, 14 May 2012 20:11:31 +0000

Here’s a re-broadcast of the May 11 Animal Adventures Radio Show with host Paul Flotron on WGNU 920 AM. The show features Four Muddy Paws co=founder Jeff Jensen as one of the guests speaking on Animal Health, Wellness & Nutrition. It’s a great discussion informing listeners about the steps to take for having a healthy & happy pet.

Here’s the link to the May 11, 2012 broadcast

Summer Bath Pass – 2012

admin — Sat, 12 May 2012 15:00:04 +0000

Get your Summer Bath Pass!
For only $39 you get UNLIMITED BATHS from Memorial Day to Labor Day!

Already a WAG Club member? That’s easy…we’ll just code your card for the Summer Bath Pass and you’re ready to go. Not signed up for the WAG Club yet? That’s easy too….just see one of our team members and we’ll get you enrolled in this FREE program!

ps: since this is such a great value when you’re signed up for the Summer Bath Pass your washes will not count toward your Free bath during this period. Also, one summer bath pass per dog!

Pet Health & Wellness Festival & Micro Chip Clinic @ Lafayette Square – Saturday, May 12

admin — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:55:18 +0000

Join us on Saturday, May 12 for our Health and Wellness Festival & Micro Chip Clinic @ our Lafayette Square shop! 11 AM – 3 PM

This is the event you’ve been waiting for! Our biggest event of the season!

A Micro-Chip-A-Thon with Gateway Pet Guardians – only $20 to help you find you pet in case they’re ever lost. 100% of the proceeds benefit Gateway Pet Guardians! Vet Techs from Hillside Animal Hospital will be on-hand too.
Pet Adoptions with Gateway Pet Guardians, Dent County Animal Welfare Society and more!
Learn about natural and holistic diet options for your dog and cat – plus get free samples to try first!
Meet the Experts from Primal Pet Foods, Natura Pet Products, Bravo! Raw Diets, Stella & Chewy’s, Orijen & Acana, Nature’s Variety, Hound & Gatos, Fromm Family Foods, Sojo’s, Petcurean Pet Foods and more!
Learn how nutritional supplements can help your dog and cat with many of their health concerns
Have your dog sample delicious treats! Take some home for your cat!
Ask The Trainer Sessions – learn how a positive approach to training works! We’ll have clicker training demo sessions throughout the day with trainers from The Greater St Louis Training Club. Got a perplexing training question? This team will help you get on the right positive training track!
Meet the team from OpSpot and learn more about their Spay/Neuter Waggin’ – tour this great mobile facility to help with low cost spaying & neutering around the Bi-State area.
Nail Trims only $10
Win fun prizes like free food and toys!
We’ll have other EXCLUSIVE SAVINGS on dog and cat foods too!
Plus fun activities for the kids including decorating a fresh-baked treat bone for your dog!

This is going to be a fun event you’ll not want to miss.

Location Information:

This is too big for just our shop so we’re spreading out.

The Nutrition Experts, Ask The Trainer, Games and Treat Decorating will be on the Fountain Plaza in Lafayette Square just across the street from Four Muddy Paws. (by SqWires Restaurant)

The Micro Chip Clinic and Adoptions will be on the patio at our shop.

Recall Information

admin — Sat, 05 May 2012 00:21:06 +0000

We’re sure you’ve heard in the news and read our posts on Facebook and our newsletter about the recent recalls with pet foods manufactured in one of the Diamond Pet Foods manufacturing facilities in South Carolina.

Diamond Pet Foods, along with several other brands of dog food, issued a voluntary recall of several batches of dog food. These foods were all produced during a limited time frame at the Diamond manufacturing plant in Gaston, SC. These foods were distributed primarily (exclusively) on the East Coast.

Now that we have some more information we wanted to keep you informed of the latest details as they become available. Please continue to refer to our Facebook page and our website with the latest information.

We’ve detailed below what we’ve learned, the pet foods involved and we have many alternative options for you if you’re looking to change your pet’s food.

How many people are sick?
As of May 3, at least 14 people in the U.S. were infected with the same strain of Salmonella Infantis that was found in samples of dry dog food produced by Diamond Pet Foods’ manufacturing plant in Gaston, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Five of the U.S. outbreak victims required hospitalization. Canada reportsone outbreak-related case in Quebec.

However, most foodborne illnesses occur in individuals who are not part of recognized outbreaks because they have not sought medical care or submitted a specimen for laboratory testing, so likely there are more people sick in this outbreak. For every confirmed case of Salmonella poisoning in an outbreak, the CDC estimates 29 others go unreported.

How can humans get sick from dry dog food?

People who handle contaminated dog food or touch an infected dog, especially if they don’t wash their hands afterward, can ingest the bacteria and get sick.

How many pets are sick?

We don’t know. As of May 8, Laura Alvey, spokeswoman for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Center for Veterinary Medicine, said there had been no confirmed cases of pet illness linked to the recalled dog food. In order to confirm an outbreak-related case of Salmonella in a dog, a vet would have to submit a pet’s stool specimen for laboratory testing, which typically isn’t done.

Asked how many complaints of pet illness the FDA has received, Alvey said the agency can’t yet reveal that.

“The complaints come in from all around the country so we have to ensure that the numbers are correctly tallied and compiled (weed out duplicates, incomplete records, etc.) and they’re being consistently reported.”

Diamond has recalled a number of their own brands as well as other formulas manufactured in this facility.

There are NO Brands carried at Four Muddy Paws that are directly a part of this recall and have tested positive for salmonella.
Four Muddy Paws has NEVER carried any of the brands (specific batch and production numbers) that have tested positive for salmonella.

Some brands (Canidae, Solid Gold and Taste of the Wild) carried at Four Muddy Paws are part of this voluntary precautionary recall.Although, none of these products (specific batch and prodution numbers) carried in our stores were on the recall list and none of these foods have tested positive for Salmonella. They are doing this under an abundance of caution. Consequently there are production shortages in these brands and our inventory levels will be sporadic for the next 2-3 months. These brands will experience out of stocks but we’ll do out best to secure as much inventory as we’re able.

Here are links with more information for each brand:

We understand that some families may want to switch their pet food brand. We can help you find the right food for your pets whether it’s a raw fresh food diet or a high quality dry or canned food diet.

A Healthy Digestive System is Key to Dog and Cat Health

admin — Tue, 01 May 2012 15:00:34 +0000

Did you know that the digestive system plays a major role in your overall health? The immune system is directly affected by the health of our digestive system. You can help strengthen your pet’s overall health by making sure they have a healthy gut by getting the appropriate levels of prebiotis, probiotics and digestive enzyme in their system.

Prebiotics are any ingredient that supports or helps a probiotic or other friendly bacteria already in the gut resulting in less pathogens, improved mineral absorption and improved fecal odor (e.g. better smelling poop!).

Probiotics are any kind of microbe, live or dead, whole or in part, that when fed has beneficial effects on the animal. There are thousands of varieties of probiotics.

Digestive Enzymes are specific proteins that break down carbohydrates, fats, proteins in the body.

They all help to regulate the digestive system and help with both diarrhea and constipation, plus they help work on fresher breath, and can help to reduce the overabundance of yeast In the body often resulting in yeast infections, ear infections and smelly ears. This is often the case for a pet on a diet that has a lot of fractionated grains like corn-gluten, wheat-gluten, rice-gluten, etc.

Because they strengthen the immune system they can also be helpful for pets with a food allergy, environmental allergy, gastroenteritis, arthritis, poor coat condition, inflammatory bowel disease (IBS) and coprophagia (for pet’s that eat their own or another animal’s feces).

They are also given before, during and after a round of antibiotics to ensure proper gut health. Unfortunately antibiotics kill the good and the bad bacteria in the gut.

In addition they have been shown to reduce pain after exercise or soft tissue trauma and even help with dry flaky skin conditions and improved energy levels.

These are all naturally occurring organisms in a fresh diet but are missing or not at adequate levels in a more processed diet like a dry kibble. They can be added at the end of the food processing but since they are not heat stable as they breakdown too soon in the bag and are not available for your pet to use.

They can be dosed individually but are usually available in a combination of all three. The higher quality digestive supplements will have a higher level of heat-stable probiotics in the billions of colony forming units (CFU’s). Pets typically have no issue with the taste, as the palatability is quite high. They’re just added to your pet’s food on a daily or every few days’ basis depending on your pet’s individual needs.

Custom Pet Portraits

admin — Tue, 01 May 2012 15:00:05 +0000

Sat. May 26& Sun. May 27, 2012 – Lafayette Square

Fri. June 1 & Sat. June 2, 2012 – Edwardsville

Create lasting memories with a professional pet portrait by True Vision One Photography at one of our shops this Spring.

Here’s how it works: For only $20 you receive a sitting that covers four poses/backgrounds of your choice and the first 5×7 with 4 wallets. Plus, if you make an appointment prior to the start of the event you can save $10 off any additional portrait package! You pick out the photos you like the day of the sitting and then the professionally developed photos are back in the store in a few days. Additional products include tote bags, mouse pads, coffee mugs and much more!

Plus we’ll be donating 5% of the event proceeds to our Four Muddy Paws Foundation, our 501 3c, which supports local pet-related charities.

Call today for your appointment (314) 773 – 7297 for Lafayette Square or (618) 692 – 4729 for Edwardsville.

Lafayette Square
Saturday, May 26 10 am – 4 pm
Sunday, May 27 11 am – 6 pm

Edwardsville
Friday, June 1 10 am – 6 pm
Saturday, June 2 10 am – 4 pm

8th Annual Canine de Mayo Celebration – Sat. May 5

admin — Tue, 01 May 2012 14:00:27 +0000

It’s time for Canine de Mayo….Cinco de Mayo is going to the dogs!

Join us on Saturday, May 5 for our 8th Annual Canine de Mayo celebration. Enjoy festive treats and refreshments for both you and your dog. Proceeds benefit the Loosen The Leash.

Loosen the Leash is a wonderful group that brings together kids and dogs at risk. Together through dog training they’re both able to build significant bonds and learn valuable life skills bringing about positive change for everyone.

Come out and help support this wonderful group of dedicated individuals making a difference.

For another fun event benefiting Loosen the Leash, check out our Cocktails on the Patio on Friday evening, May 5.

Create the “Paw-fic” Mother’s Day Card! Saturday, April 28 10 AM – 12 PM

admin — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:30:41 +0000

Mother’s Day is May 13. Get a head start and have your pet help you create your own special Mother’s Day card on Saturday, April 28 at all locations from 10 AM – 12 PM. It’s fun and no-mess too!

Cards are only $2 and 100% of the proceeds will benefit local pet-related charities through our Four Muddy Paws Foundation. This is fun for dogs or cats (or even ferrets or Guinea Pigs too!). No appointment necessary! Make Mother’s Day extra special this year with a keepsake card from your pet!

Cocktails on the Patio – A Benefit for Loosen the Leash – Friday, May 4th 6 PM – 9 PM

admin — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:51:55 +0000

Four Muddy Paws is hosting Cocktails on the Patio on Friday May 4^th from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm with all proceeds benefiting Loosen the Leash , whose mission is to promote positive behavioral changes in at-risk individuals by developing the life skills, compassion and self-confidence gained through rehabilitating, training and grooming rescued dogs.

The cocktail party cost is $25 per person or $40 per couple – 100% benefits Loosen the Leash!

The Cocktail Party will include cocktails, hors d’oeuvre from local restaurants, silent auction, 50/50 cash raffle, sketch artists to create pet portraits, music, visits from some of the pet and youth graduates of the program and much, much more.

Loosen the Leash is a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization that uses the loving bond between people and dogs as a powerful conduit for positive change. Engaging disadvantaged and at-risk youth and adults in the training and care of homeless dogs empower them to take control of their future. As they teach dogs to become better citizens, they teach themselves to be better citizens.

Due to limited space and the other planned activities this is a people-only event!

Please plan on joining us for special evening!