Our cat, Heather, has small-cell lymphoma requiring pilling of prednisolone twice a day and a chemo pill four days out of 21. The first pred was purchased from the vet, 60 pills for $20.70 plus tax. I decided to check PetMeds and the cost for 100 pills, including shipping, was $26.00. I placed my order on a Friday and on the following Monday got an email from PetMeds saying they hadn't received the script from the vet yet. Called the vet and they told me they hadn't received a request from PetMeds. So called PetMeds and they said they would re-send the FAX. The next day, Tuesday, I called the vet and finally they said it had been FAXed back to PetMeds. But, by then, I needed some pred to tide me over until the PetMeds pills arrived and asked for 12. Went to pick them up on Wed. and the cost was $20,70 (plus tax). I asked how many - was told 30. I then asked for just 12 and was told the price was the same. So, then I said, give me 60 as I paid that for 60 last time. Then I was told that they could only dispense 30 as the vet was on vacation (there are 8 vets total in the clinic) and no other vet could prescribe. So, I called PetMeds and they overnighted the 100 pills to me and I told the vet's office to forget it. I can only figure out that they have just one price for the pills, up to 60. Anyway, I'm a big fan of PetMeds now. And the chemo pill has to be bought at a pharmacy. RiteAid wanted $33 for 4 pills. Costco's price was 1/2 the cost. So, check around. We found, with a cat who had CRF (now deceased) that lactated ringers were $24 for 12 at Costco and the vet charged $14 for one.

Joann, hate to disappoint... I have a stunning kitchen with beautiful appliances but haven't a clue how to cook. I have no basic cooking skills and really very little desire to cook. My mother hated cooking and was terrible at it so that I was never taught anything. The only thing I did in the kitchen as a child was wash dishes, make coffee in a percolator and try to find my mother's meatloaf recipe so I could toss it away! :-) I figure if I spent a day learning the basics with the right person, a love for the art of cooking might rub off on me.

It's kind of a weird horticultural thing to make these distinctions :-) Most are happy to just call them whatever they are comfortable with.............a fruit or berry or a veggie. And the vast majority of the population will know exactly what you are talking about. But if you want to get technical and stump your friends, tomatoes and grapes are botanically berries :-))

Plllog, that raspberry jam is still safe to can, the raspberries are your acidic ingredients. Those may be canned in nothing but water. The sugar does stretch out the amount of time the product keeps without degrading in quality, but it's not necessary for preservation of fruits. The zucchini pickles? That depends on your vinegar/brine. Some pickles are fermented and have nothing added at all, like sauerkraut. Botulism is a concern with low acid ingredients, like meat and vegetables. If your jam molds or spoils, throw it away. (shrug) In addition, the spores can be disabled by boiling the product for 10 minutes, which is not a problem for something like home canned soup, which has already been pressure canned for periods of time. The latest year that I have information for is 2017: :Foodborne botulism cases were reported from California (n=15) and Alaska (n=4). Among the 15 toxin type A foodborne botulism cases in California, 10 were from an outbreak linked to nacho cheese at a convenience store, two were from an outbreak linked to an herbal deer antler tea, one was from a suspected soup with bulging lid but was not available testing, and two were not linked to a known food source. (1) Among the four toxin type E foodborne botulism cases in Alaska, three were from an outbreak linked to seal blubber with seal oil, and one was linked to dried herring in seal oil (Table 2a). The median age of patients was 42 years (range: 14–85 years); 11 were men. Three deaths were reported." You can note that 10 of those 19 cases were from convenience store nacho cheese and two more were from an herbal tea. A few years ago there were cases from commercially sold carrot juice and some from baked potatoes wrapped in foil and left to sit on a restaurant counter. A few more were from garlic/herbs left in olive oil at room temperature for periods of time. As L says, the chances of making yourself sick from properly canned food is much smaller than it is from eating out. Especially convenience store nachos, apparently! Annie