brownbearcreative

Brown Bear Creative Wins Silver at CADC Awards Show

Brown Bear Creative — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:56:45 GMT

Brown Bear Creative was honored by the Connecticut Art Directors Club (CADC) at their 34^th Annual Award Show held on June 18 at the Mystic Aquarium. A Silver Award was presented to the firm for the design, development, and photography of the running website, Jog New London County (www.jognewlondon.com).

The website showcases running routes and races in Southeastern Connecticut and features a clean design, custom-drawn maps, scenic photos, and an integrated Wordpress blog.

Brown Bear Creative is a web and graphic design firm based in New London that specializes in search engine optimization and content management systems. For more information, visit www.brownbearcreative.com or call 860-440-6150.

For the full list of winners at the 2009 CADC Award Show, visit www.cadc.org/awards2009.

Jog New London County Gets Makeover

Brown Bear Creative — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 01:10:58 GMT

Jog New London County (jognewlondon.com), an online resource for joggers in the area, has undergone a makeover. Brown Bear Creative, a New London, CT web design firm, has redesigned the website to better showcase the scenic qualities of Southeastern Connecticut.

The new site design features a light, airy feel and prominently displays photos of New London County landmarks in the masthead.

The new site also highlights ten upcoming races on the homepage and provides a full list of events on the races page. All the race listings are housed in a database and editable via a Content Management System (CMS). Outdated races automatically disappear from the website. In this way, race listings stay fresh, current, and easily accessible.

Brown Bear also improved the site's usability by including a search function at the top of every page.

For more information, visit Brown Bear Creative (www.brownbearcreative.com) or Jog New London County (www.jognewlondon.com).

Haslam Fiberglass Repair Launches Shiny New Website

Brown Bear Creative — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 21:00:43 GMT

Haslam Fiberglass Repair, LLC of East Haddam, CT has over 35 years in the heating and plumbing business, specializing in the repair of bathtubs, showers, sinks and boats. But up until now, they didn't have a strong online presence showcasing their work.

Now people can log on to www.haslamfiberglass.com to learn about Haslam's repair services, view stunning before and after photos, and read customer testimonials. Designed and developed by Brown Bear Creative, a New London web/graphic design firm, the site is well-optimized for search engines, and Haslam Fiberglass has experienced an influx of new customers since the site's launch a few weeks ago.

According to Dick Haslam, owner of Haslam Fiberglass Repair, LLC, “We've been very busy lately. The site has already paid for itself!”

To learn more, visit www.haslamfiberglass.com or www.brownbearcreative.com.

February is "Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month"

Brown Bear Creative — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 03:20:38 GMT

by Abi Cushman, co-editor of MyHouseRabbit.com

If you are uninitiated to the world of bunnies, you may not realize that February is “Adopt a Rescued Rabbit Month.” So in the spirit of spreading awareness, here are a few benefits of adopting a pet rabbit from a rescue or shelter.

But before you get too excited about getting a rabbit, it should be noted that although rabbits make wonderful indoor companions (who can be easily litter trained), they are not low maintenance pets. Rabbits require the same amount of care and attention as cats or dogs, and they can live around 10 years or more. But if you and your family are willing to make the commitment, read on!

Shelters and rescues are continually overrun with abandoned rabbits, and they are likely to have rabbits of varying sizes, breeds, and ages. So, if you were looking specifically for a young mini lop, you will probably find a good candidate at the local shelter. But you might also surprise yourself and fall in love with an older mixed-breed rabbit once you start looking.

Adopting from a rescue is also very convenient. Volunteers at rescues take the time to acclimate rabbits to living in apartments and houses. In this way, the time it would take to train the rabbit yourself is cut down considerably. For example, rescue volunteers litter box train the rabbits as they come in. So although a rabbit may take a little while to adjust to living in a new home, you will not have to litter train your new bunny from scratch.

Furthermore, because a lot of rescued rabbits live in foster homes, many are accustomed to living in households with children and other pets. If your household situation is similar, adopting a rabbit who is already comfortable in that environment makes the transition easier for both you and the rabbit.

If you were interested in having multiple pet rabbits, you may be able to adopt a bonded pair or trio. This saves you the time and effort of bonding the rabbits yourself. Adopting a bonded pair or trio is ideal if you work full time because the rabbits can entertain each other while you're gone.

In addition to saving a lot of time and effort, adopting a rabbit from a rescue also saves you money on vet bills. Rabbit rescues usually have partnerships with local vets, and rabbits will be spayed or neutered upon reaching sexual maturity. You can adopt a rabbit after he or she has recovered from the surgery, and you won't have to worry about paying for the procedure yourself.

Moreover, some rabbits suffer from health conditions of varying severity. One common affliction is malocclusion, a condition where the rabbit's teeth are not aligned properly, and the rabbit is unable to wear down his/her teeth. When you adopt from a rescue, all the rabbits will be checked and treated for malocclusion as well as other afflictions. If the rabbit has an chronic health issue, the rescue will alert potential owners of the condition, so only those willing and able to provide special care will adopt the bunny.

Finally, rescue volunteers are very knowledgeable. Before leaving you on your own with your new companion, they will make sure you know how to properly care for your house rabbit. Understanding the behavior and needs of your bunny is essential to creating a rewarding, long-term relationship.

For more information on rabbit care and behavior, check out the following resources:

Ready to adopt? Adopt a bunny from one of these local rabbit rescues:

Sweet Binks Rabbit Rescue, Foster, RI
3 Bunnies Rabbit Rescue, East Hartford, CT
The House Rabbit Connection, Springfield, MA

Local Website Recognized by the American Library Association

Brown Bear Creative — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:36:08 GMT

The American Library Association has selected Animal Fact Guide (www.animalfactguide.com), an educational website created by two New London residents, to be included in their Internet guide of Great Web Sites for Kids (www.ala.org/greatsites).

Websites selected for the honor must meet several standards put forth by a committee of children's librarians. They must show commendable quality and encourage young people's interests. According to Karen Lemmons, co-chair of the Great Web Sites for Kids committee, "Great Web Sites for Kids are those considered the best web sites for ages birth to 14, outstanding in both content and conception."

Animal Fact Guide was created by P.A. Smith and Abi Cushman of Brown Bear Creative in August of this year. The site features articles about interesting and endangered animals from around the world and offers fun downloads like kids' coloring pages, word searches, and desktop wallpapers.

Animal Fact Guide will be posted to the ALA's Great Web Sites for Kids site in December or January.

Goodfriends Veterinary Clinic Unleashes New Website

Brown Bear Creative — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:03:59 GMT

Goodfriends Veterinary Clinic of East Lyme has recently launched a new, welcoming website that reflects the caring, dedicated mentality of their practice. The new site, which was created by New London-based web/graphic design firm Brown Bear Creative, showcases photos and descriptions of Goodfriends Veterinary Clinic's staff and facilities so prospective clients know what to expect on their first visit.

For existing clients, the website serves as an invaluable veterinary resource. Clients can log in to Pet Portal, a personalized pet health site that lists their pet's vaccination history, medications, and upcoming appointments. They can also access Goodfriends Veterinary Clinic's online pharmacy, emergency contact information, and a comprehensive database of animal health information.

To learn more, visit www.goodfriendsvet.com or call 860-739-4637.

About Goodfriends Veterinary Clinic

In the Spring of 2008, Dr. Mark Beebe purchased the practice from its original owner, Dr. Jean Lasser. Dr. Beebe hopes to continue the careful and thoughtful service that Goodfriends Veterinary Clinic clients have come to expect.

Brown Bear Creative Receives Award from Web Hosting Search

Brown Bear Creative — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:39:21 GMT

Web Hosting Search (WHS) has awarded Brown Bear Creative with a Web Design Award for 2008. WHS produces reviews and recommendations on various web hosting providers. They also support the design and development community through interviews and article contributions to famous online design magazines.

Currently, Brown Bear Creative is the only design firm in Connecticut to be included in Web Hosting Search's Web Designer Guide. The list is kept short but covers every state in the US and countries around the world. Unlike other guides, WHS has personally contacted all designers to better understand their services and offerings.

Brown Bear Creative is proud to be represented under Connecticut and looks forward to news and projects Web Hosting Search provides.

New Animal Website for Kids, Parents, and Teachers

Brown Bear Creative — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 23:09:46 GMT

Two New London residents have created a fun, educational website about animals called Animal Fact Guide (www.AnimalFactGuide.com). The site provides articles about interesting and endangered animals from around the world. Each article features an animal's physical characteristics, habitat (including a distribution map), diet, breeding patterns, unique traits and behavior, and when applicable, conservation and tips on what the public can do to help.

In addition to wildlife articles, the website also showcases cute animal illustrations and offers fun downloads like kids' coloring pages, word searches, and desktop wallpapers. Teachers also can download educational worksheets relating to wildlife.

Animal Fact Guide came to life when Abi Cushman combined her skills as web designer and animal artist with P.A. Smith's experience in the field of education. Cushman and Smith also manage a website about pet rabbit care and behavior called My House Rabbit.

For more information, visit www.AnimalFactGuide.com.

Town of Canterbury Launches New Website

Brown Bear Creative — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 22:49:00 GMT

The Town of Canterbury has launched a new town website, www.canterbury-ct.org, that provides a wealth of information about the town's offerings.

The website, which was designed and developed by Brown Bear Creative, a New London-based web/graphic design firm, is backed by a user-friendly Content Management System. This allows town departments to easily update their own department and board pages, ensuring the information on the site always stays current and accurate.

Residents can easily download application forms, board meeting agendas, meeting audio files, and information about town events, departments and community groups. The new site also features a dynamic photo montage on the homepage that highlights Canterbury's natural and cultural attractions, a Selectman's Blog, a photo gallery, and a calendar of events.

For more information, visit www.canterbury-ct.org or www.brownbearcreative.com.