My buddy Rox is a blogger!!

Everyone, take some time to check out my buddy Rox's new blog: Sgt. Rox Barks!

He's a military Min Pin living on base in Germany, while his human dad is serving in Iraq.

Great start Rox! Can't wait to see how your blog unfolds!!

Update: Rottie doing better!

His name is Cyrus. I blogged a few days ago that he was rescued from a locked SUV where his stupid owner had left him in extreme heat temperatures.

According to the Toronto Humane Society, he's fighting his way back to health!

Much to our surprise – and pleasure – Cyrus is fighting his way through this. After two days of intravenous fluids and some TLC, Cyrus seems much healthier than expected. While he is still spending his time quietly recuperating, he is able to stand up unassisted, walk (albeit slowly) and is aware of and interested in his surroundings. But he isn’t out of the woods yet.

The owner, a Toronto man, has been charged with animal cruelty and could face up to six months in jail for the alleged offense. I've already heard from many of you that would like to do much worse...but what I suggest is visiting or writing to your local government to help pass legislation that will stiffen penalties for animal cruelty.

Currently in Ontario AK's Bill: Justice for Animal Victims of Abuse is lobbying for support. It needs your help! AK was a 6-month old Sheppard mix found with his ears cut off by the owners who wanted it to "look meaner". Visit www.gov.on.ca and click on contacts to contact your local MPP.

According to the Ontario SPCA, despite his traumatizing ordeal, AK has maintained a happy and loving demeanor. He suffered no internal damage to his ears, and his wounds have since healed. Shelter staff have received many adoption applications and are in the process of selecting AK's adoptive family.

If convicted of any of the seven Criminal Code charges laid, the court has the ability to sentence Salman to six months in jail, and/or a $2,000 fine. In addition, the Criminal Code allows the court to prohibit animal cruelty offenders from having custody of an animal for a period of two years. PLEASE! If you live in Ontario...we need the power of the paw to illicit change!!

[source + photo credit] [AK photo credit]

Dog Eared Book Review: From Bagdad, With Love

From Baghdad, With Love: A Marine, the War, and a Dog Named Lava by Lt. Col. Jay Kopelman & Melinda Roth.

If you are looking for a great summer read, this is the book for you! The story of US Marine Lt. Col. Jay Kopelman's quest to save the little puppy his unit, the Lava Dogs find in war torn Fallujah is heart warming and nerve wracking all at the same time. Dealing with the realities of war, then having a stray puppy win his heart, Kopelman contacts everyone he can think of to help him get the puppy, they named Lava, out of the country and safely to the US.

With help from a variety of sources, including reporters, execs at Iams and a Kennel owner specializing in military trained dogs, the race is on to get Lava off base, seen by a vet for his vaccinations, looked after safely when he's deployed out of Fallujah.

It is an inside look at one Marines experience with war and how saving a puppy helps bring purpose to his mission. The reality is grim for most strays the Marines come across in Iraq and something connects Lava and Kopelman—he just can't let the unthinkable happen.

Watch this pawesome video on Lava's story below:

We've been "Simpsonized"!!!

My human's are active on Facebook, and there's a new application that creates a likeness of you to a Simpson's character. But what about me?? Well my human got creative in photoshop and this is what she came up with...(Matt Groenig, please don't sue...it's all in good fun!) What do you think??

Cute Video: Min Pin vs. Manchester Terrier

So we always get confused for Min Pins...and I found this hilarious video on YouTube of Chubbs the Min Pin vs. Guinness the Toy Manchester Terrier. Enjoy!

Stupid Human! Dog Rescued After Being Locked in Car

Grrrrrr....this kind of news makes my blood boil!!! Some idiot was arrested here in Toronto yesterday after neighbours called Animal Services because his 110lb Rottwieller was locked in his car with the windows rolled up. They reported it was over 70ºC in the car!!

The Cruelty Investigator was sure the dog was near death and didn't have time to wait for the owners to return. So without hesitating, he broke open the window to reach the limp animal.

Officials say it's too soon to know if the animal suffered brain damage and they'll be watching him carefully for at least the next week. But so far, the signs are better than they'd dared to hope.

PLEASE! PLEASE! For the sake of your pet, don't leave them in a car, especially without the windows rolled down! If it's too hot for you, it'll be way too hot for them!

The owner will be charged with Animal Cruelty, which often only results in a fine being charged, or serving a small sentence of 3 months or less in jail. Grrrr...the good thing is they are also banned from owning a dog for a number of years too.

To watch video of this story, click the SOURCE link below.

Here's a link to see what happens when pets are kept in hot situations for too long.
http://www.thepetcenter.com/gen/hs.html

[source + photo credit]

Pop Dog of the Week: Molly

Molly is our POP DOG of the week!! (see sidebar to the right)

She is owned by photographer Jean M. Fogle, who has a new book coming out this Fall called Salty Dogs. It's a book about dogs at the beach, and from the pictures she posts on her blog, it's going to be great!

Look for it on bookshelves at the end of September! Molly is featured throughout the book too!

I'm Endangered!!

According to The Kennel Club in England, the Manchester Terrier is among several native British/Irish dog breeds that are now considered endangered!

Manchester's usually only produce 2-3 puppies per litter, and many breeders only have 1 litter either every year or every other year...so with around 100 puppies being born and registered in a year, we're now an endangered breed.

The Manchester Terrier or Black and Tan Terriers as it was originally known, [dates] back to the 14oo's and is said to be the oldest English Terrier.

The British Manchester Terrier Club is quite active in promoting the breed and hosting Fun Days to have Manchester owners come out for some fun and show the public how great we are! The Kennel Club has even gone as far as creating a Preservation Trust to help ensure these breeds are sustained.

Unfortunately it's more difficult here in North America. We are scattered coast-to-coast and even having a National Specialty dog show for Conformation usually only brings out a handful of Manchesters.

For more info on Manchester's visit both the Canadian and American Manchester Terrier Clubs.

[source] + [source]

Why I Love My Dog Walker

I'd like to take today's post and write about Trish, my dog walker. She comes to see me every Wednesday and takes me out on group walks for a few hours. We go to off leash parks where I run, play socialize and generally have fun. She runs Pooch Pals Dogwalking Service in my town, and like the thousands out there, provides an essential service for us dogs.

When busy humans can't get home during the day, what's a dog to do? Does chewing Coach purses ring a bell??

An old saying rings true to me: a tired dog is a happy dog. Among the obvious health benefits, we are social creatures, who crave interaction with other dogs. Sniff a butt or two, engage in game of chase me!

Walks (outside of the backyard) provide mental stimulation as well. We love to sniff, mark, see who's been here recently...it's all part of who we are.

A walk allows you to practice obedience skills with your dog to increase the reliability of training. Reviewing the basic commands also increases the benefits of a walk because your dog is not simply ambling along, but is performing additional tasks.

Walking your dog is one of the best ways to help prevent behavior problems. At least two walks daily help prevent elimination problems, destructiveness, separation anxiety and other common behavior disorders. If you simply let your dog out in the yard, you lose an opportunity to reinforce desirable behavior.

So if you can't make it home during the day, do your dog a favour, hire them a dog walker. It'll be the best investment you make.
[source]

Rent-A-Pet??

Ok, so my buddy Fritz barked at me with this crazy story, I just had to share! A company called FlexPetz, based out of San Francisco, CA, is offering part-time pet sharing...basically a "rent-a-pet". For the "busy" person who isn't able to care for a dog full time, they can rent hours, or an overnight stay with a dog when it's convenient to them.

WHAT??!! I'm sorry...to me this sounds crazy. How can this kind of instability be good for a dog? They are kept in a cage-free kennel, and then rented out on a per-need basis. As my buddy Fritz said, how weird to wake up to different "owners" all the time.

For an annual fee of $99.95, a monthly payment of $49.95 and a per-visit charge of $39.95 a day, (discounted to $24.95 Sunday through Thursday), animal lovers who enroll in FlexPetz get to spend time with a four-legged companion from the 10-dog crew of Afghan Hounds, Labrador Retrievers and Boston Terriers.

The membership costs cover the expense of training the dogs, boarding them at a cage-free kennel, home or office delivery, collar-sized global positioning devices, veterinary bills and liability insurance. It also pays for the "care kits" - comprised of leashes, bowls, beds and pre-measured food - that accompany each dog on its visits.

Ok...so it's not only a rent-a-pet...but with no real effort on the human side..the dogs come with pre-measured food?? All this for a day or night, then send them back the next day...seems like a lot of work just to "feel" like a real dog owner.

To me, dogs need stability...if people want to spend some time with a dog, they should check with their local animal shelter and volunteer as a dog walker. With the amount of packed shelters out there, it would be a great gift to a dog really in need of exercise and human interaction.

But of course, that's just my opinion. What do you think? I'd love to hear your comments on this!
[source]