Problem: Article: Whether you want to be serious, formal, funny, or silly, including a quotation is always a great way to personalize a birthday invitation. Quotations, poems, and other creative customizations can go anywhere you like on the invitation, but they're a good way to open or close the invitation. Some famous quotations about age include: "Middle age is when your age starts to show around your middle!" Bob Hope "Age is strictly a case of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter!" George Bernard Shaw "Wrinkles should merely indicate where the smiles have been." Mark Twain Poems can be in any mood or tone you like (such as funny, or serious), they can help set the mood or theme for your party, and they can help you convey some of the important information you need to tell guests. Examples of poems include: Funny: "A surprise is in store, Karen's not so young anymore, come see for yourself on April third, but don't forget: mum's the word!" Serious: "Another year has passed, it sure has been great, please join us at the mast, as we join to celebrate, we'll have a merry time, be at the boat for nine." Cute: "I'm turning one, won't it be fun, come see my cake, and the mess I will make!" Everyone likes a good laugh, and this can be especially helpful with people who don't particularly like birthdays. You can include a funny quotation, poem, joke, or just say something humorous. You can try out something like: "Karen's turning 39again!" "Age is not important unless you're a cheese." Helen Hayes What goes up and never comes down? Your age!
Summary: Include a quotation. Write a poem. Say something witty or funny.

Problem: Article: Educate yourself so you can teach your puppy properly and avoid common training mistakes. There are many methods of dog training and some will work better for you and your pet than others. Each dog is unique, as is the trainer, so learning the basics of dog behavior and basic dog training will provide you with the proper foundation for understanding the process of training your pet. No one method is "perfect," so your research will help you decide what approach to start. There methods of dog training based on only positive training techniques, versus techniques which balance positive and negative reinforcement. You may even try a method and find that you are not getting the results you want and decide to try another. An experienced dog trainer will be able to help you troubleshoot roadblocks. Read dog training books. Some good training books to consider are "Don't Shoot the Dog" by Karen Pryor, "Getting Started: Clicker Training for Dogs" by Karen Pryor, "The Power of Positive Dog Training" by Pat Miller, "25 Stupid Mistakes Dog Owners Make" by Janine Adams, and "The Mentally Sound Dog: How to Shape, Train and Change Canine Behavior" by Gail I. Clark. Watch videos of training techniques. There are a lot of dog training videos on the internet, so make sure that the videos you choose are made by experts in dog training. Know what will be required of you before adopting a German Shepherd. While there are many similarities in how to care for dogs in general, German Shepherds are working dogs, which means they need a lot of exercise and mental stimulation. Understand that having a German Shepherd will require a lot of your time and patience. Go to dog shows and watch how owners and trainers interact with their dogs, as well as paying attention to how German Shepherds respond to stimuli and commands. Visit dog trainers and ask if you can watch a few classes. You will learn a lot watching other people when you don't have a dog of your own. See if you like the way the trainer works with the people and the dogs. You and your dog will learn better if you have a good learning relationship with your trainer. The Association of Professional Dog Trainers website is an excellent reference and place to start looking for a dog trainer to coach you and your pup.
Summary: Learn about dog training in general. Learn about the unique attributes of the German Shepherd breed. Talk to German Shepherd owners and trainers.

Problem: Article: Always wash your hands before handling your book. Oil, dirt, and debris on your hands can cause a lot of damage to the cover and pages. These kinds of stains will build up and can't be removed. No matter how careful you are, spills are a possibility when you are eating or drinking. Keep your book away from food and beverages to keep it safe from stains. A large enough spill could damage the pages enough to make them unreadable. Never pull your book out of a bookshelf by the top of the spine, which can crack or tear over time. Instead, gently push back the two books surrounding it and grab the middle of its spine to remove it. If the book is stuck tightly between other books, gently push it from behind to help remove it. Never fold over the corners of pages to mark them, which will cause permanent damage. Marking your page by laying the book open flat or placing a large object between the pages (e.g. a large pen) will also damage the pages and spine. While you are reading your book, use a flat bookmark to keep track of your place.
Summary: Touch your book with clean hands. Avoid eating or drinking while reading your book. Remove your book from the shelf by the middle of the spine. Use a flat bookmark to mark your place.

Problem: Article: Quakers are a smaller breed of parrot, but because of their active nature, they do best with a roomy cage. An 18" x 18" x 18" cage should probably be the minimum size for your bird, but also consider safety and security features. Quaker parrots are known for being escape artists, so make sure the bars on the cage are not too far apart, nor at the same time narrow enough that a curious quaker can get its head stuck between them. -inch spacing between bars is a good reference point. Likewise, to counteract their curiosity and escapability, choose a gate that swings open (not a guillotine-style gate that a quaker may be able to lift up only to have it become a trap). Quakers have been known to figure out how to unlatch a gate, so consider a lock as well. A repetitive daily diet of bird food pellets not only lacks the diversity to provide proper nutrition, it may also cause boredom (and thus a lack of eating) in birds like quakers. Make the pellets part of the diet, but also mix in a variety of fruits and vegetables, and occasional seeds and nuts. Avoid feeding birds avocados, however, as this can be toxic to them; also skip chocolate, caffeine, and alcohol. Birds are messy there is no way around it. In addition to droppings, quakers will strew food scraps, destroyed toys, and bits of anything else they can get their beaks on throughout the cage and on your floor. Give the cage a quick cleanup daily, removing large bits of junk and replacing the newspaper liner (you may want to subscribe to a daily paper if you're going to be a bird owner). Each week, give the cage a more thorough cleaning, scrubbing down the bars and such. You may want to place the cage over an easier-to-clean floor surface, such as tile or hardwood rather than carpet. Take your quaker for annual checks (and more as warranted) by a veterinarian, preferably one with a bird specialization. Beak, claw, and feather health should be areas of particular focus for you and your vet, as problems in these areas are often indicators of larger issues. Quakers may be more susceptible to fatty liver disease, so don't let your bird become overweight. Limiting seeds and other high-fat foods may be necessary. Talk to your vet if you are concerned. Feather plucking is another disorder that can be common among quakers, and can have physical or behavioral causes. A good avian vet can help you with this issue as well.
Summary:
Buy the right cage. Provide a diverse diet. Expect messes and frequent cleaning. Find a good vet.