My Friendly Pets

For those who are Broadway bound (and I speak of this as it is the night of the Tony awards), you might want to check out the play called “The Wiz” which will open with a new cast. Ashanti will assume the role of Dorothy and the other very important cast member will be the dog who plays Toto. This very special pooch was a rescue dog named Nigel that was found online by Bill Berloni as he browsed the website of the Northeast Arkansas Humane Society. Berloni is the famous Broadway animal trainer who also gets credit for rescuing “Sandy”, the dog that played in the original Broadway production of “Annie” over 30 years ago.

For Nigel, Berloni’s rescue would change the course of his life. The dog was born about 20 months ago in Arkansas. The 15 pound pup was abandoned on the street and finally found safety and haven at the Northeast Arkansas Humane Society. The rest, as they say, is history!!!

According to Ashanti, she had requested that her dog, a teacup Yorkie named Mimi be used as the dog for Toto. However, after second thought Ashanti agreed that Mimi would probably cause more trouble as listening to someone besides herself would be difficult.

For those interested in checking out “The Wiz”, and seeing Nigel and Ashanti in action, the production will run at the New York City Center from June 12th - July 5th. Both Ashanti and Nigel hosted a “There’s No Place Like Home” Adoption Day on May 30th, also at the City Center was to showcase the work of the New York Humane Society and provide patrons with pooches available for adoption!!!

Major Steven Hutchison at 60 is the oldest casualty of the war in Iraq. He was killed on May 10th of this year by a roadside bomb. However, the spirit of Major Hutchison will live on through his dog Laia, who he named after Princess Leia from Star Wars. Hutchison was a big Star Wars fan and even called his unit “Team Force”.

He had another love while in Iraq. and that was Laia. The dog was placed in his vehicle by another unit when they were moving out and told to abandon the dog. They couldn’t do it nor could Major Hutchison. Hutchison wrote and signed a memo authorizing the dog as a member of the unit and requesting it get shots from the base’s vet. He then took in the pup, letting her sleep in his bed and sometimes ride with him to meet Iraqi counterparts. Soldiers are not supposed to adopt pets, however, this soldier defied those orders and truly loved Laia.

Upon his death, the soldiers in Hutchison’s unit wanted to honor his memory and send Laia to the U.S., so the dog could have the quality of life that the Major would have wanted for her. Friends of Hutchison contacted Operation Baghdad Pups and coordinated the travel for this dog to come “home”. While Richard Hutchison will never see his brother again, he was so happy to see the dog arrive that had been so much a part of his brother’s life. The brother said, “Even though Steve’s not here, I know how much Steve loved the dog. You can kind of feel Steve through the dog. I can see something that he loved over here. I can see it here licking us.”

Laia arrived on Monday and will ultimately have a permanent home with another member of “Team Force” Richard Hutchison will visit the dog often, knowing this was an animal his brother truly loved.

I have written several entries about cancer in dogs and the lack of treatment that is often available. I had even mentioned the case of my dog, Ziggy and how how a tumor on his leg had metasisized and ultimately caused his death.

Well, the FDA has recently approved the first drug to be used to treat canine cancer. This is an amazing feat, because up until this point the only treatment for canine cancer was with drugs that had been tested and used on humans. Veterinarians are only allowed to use human treatments on dogs in very controlled situations, otherwise it violates federal law.

The new drug, called Palladia is manufactured by Pfzier Animal Health, Inc. It is to be used on the type of canine cancer that accounts for about one in five cases of canine skin tumors.

“This cancer drug approval for dogs is an important step forward for veterinary medicine,” as stated by Bernadette Dunham, who is the director of the FDA’s center for veterinary medicine. Dunham continued by saying the following, “Prior to this approval, veterinarians had to rely on human oncology drugs, without knowledge of how safe or effective they would be for dogs, Today’s approval offers dog owners, in consultation with their veterinarian, an option for treatment of their dog’s cancer.”

This is truly the beginning of something wonderful for dogs and their owners. Very often the treatments for canine cancer were rare or nonexistent. This offers promise and hope. Cancer in dogs is becoming more prevelant in dogs, just as it is in humans. In many cases, similar environmental factors contribute to the increase in these cases.

Let’s hope this is the beginning of more medications and treatments to help the pups we love.

Thanks to a new airline specifically meant for pets, your dog could soon be traveling in style. PetAirways will launch its business July 14th by serving 5 cities with its animal friendly travel flights. Dogs will not be considered passengers, but “pawsengers” and will no longer have to travel in the cargo area of the planes. For many dogs, traveling in the cargo department can be traumatizing. Often, the temperatures aren’t regulated and air isn’t circulated properly. Dogs become frightened and this can result in behavioral or psychological problems for the dog.

Alysa Binder and husband, Dan Wiesel knew there was a need for this type of service when they experienced the situation first hand. When moving from California to Florida, they transported their dog by plane and she flew in the cargo area, as most dogs do. The dog didn’t react well and the couple didn’t like a member of their family being treated like a piece of luggage.

The five cities that will be served by PetAirways initially will be Los Angeles, New York, Denver, Washington D.C. and Chicago. While owners will not be allowed to fly with their dogs, have no fear. Owners drop their dogs off for their flight and then go on their own flight to the specific destination. While on board, the dogs will be housed in safe and secure kennels in the open cabin of the plane. The dogs are never left alone and if flights are delayed, the dogs are taken out for walks if nature calls. They may spend time in the pet lounge before the flight takes off and get snacks and food at that time, but there is little eating on the flight, as they don’t want the dog’s stomach to be upset.

The cost is relatively reasonable with prices from $149.00 - $250.00 one way and is well worth the price. To get more detail on this service, click here!!

I apologize for being absent for a couple of days. My father is a WW II vet and is 87 years old. He truly wanted to visit the WW II memorial in Washington DC and this weekend (Friday to Monday), my family, including my brother and his children took him to see this wonderful tribute. There was limited internet access, so unfortunately, I was unable to blog over the weeken. However, I am back now and ready to give you an update on my last entry.

I know many of you were probably sickened to learn of the latest puppy mill raid. However, rest assured that many of these dogs are now being cared for and socialized so that they will eventually find a forever home. 30 of the rescued dogs and puppies are now located at the Lynwood PAWS Shelter. The Seattle Humane Society has picked up another 90 dogs and have taken them to their shelter to be treated medically and emotionally. Unfortunately, many shelters today are filled to capacity due to the economic conditions and it takes a lot of work to find room for these forgotten souls. However, the National Humane Society will do all it can to insure that these dogs are medically treated and able to to to homes where there are people that will love and care for them. According to one volunteer, Tracie Trocano who has opened up her home for some of these dogs, “I will love them and care for them and hopefully get them socialized.” Probably the best help that can be given is in the form of cash donations to help care for these animals. Currently there are still about 200 dogs at the Benton County Fairgrounds. Let’s hope for more miracles.

In one of the worst cases of animal abuse, as stated by U.S. Humane Society officials, 400 dogs were taken from a puppy mill today including 3 newborn puppies. This occured in Benton County, located in Kennewick, Washington.

According to Benton County Sheriff, Larry Taylor, “The conditions were not only shocking, but also heartbreaking to veteran deputies.” A 66 year old woman named Ella Stewart was arrested on May 12th after officers went to a neighbor’s home on an unrelated call. The animals couldn’t be moved at that time due to the inability of placement for the animals. It took time to get a vet and animal rescue organizations to help with this effort. All of the dogs will need medical treatment. They have now been placed in emergency kennels at the Benton County Fairgrounds.

Some of the dogs were living in boxes, shopping carts and cages that were caked with urine and feces. Many of the dogs were malnourished and had urine burns and overgrown nails. What can possess a person to subject animals to these horrible conditions? If convicted, it is said that Stewart would only get 90 days in jail and a $1000 fine for these crimes. How can that be possible. The suffering that these animals had to endure would have been horrible. Many had probably never seen daylight and I’m sure they were not given the proper shots that all dogs are supposed to have. So for the people that may have eventually adopted or bought any of these dogs, even if they were well enough to go would probably have to spend thousands of dollars to get these dogs healthy!!!

Keep these poor animals in your thoughts and prayers!!!

So, many people really hate this aspect of dog ownership…c’mon, you know what it is!!! No one likes to pick up poop after their dog. We have pooper scoopers; we put it in little baggies; we shovel and throw it over our fences. It definitely is not a fun part of pet ownership. It is the nasty part.

Well, in Linden, Michigan, Curt Fournier and his fiancee, Victoria Januszewski didn’t like the job of handling their dogs poop any more than you or I. So after two years of research, they came up with an invention known as the Powerloo, which is a flushable toilet,that sits outside, just below ground level and taps into sewer lines.

Simply put, Fournier says the following, “Vicki and I were getting tired of cleaning up the mess left by our two dogs and thought that being able to flush it down a toilet in the backyard would make things easier.” The company, GreenDog, LLC. started by both Fournier and Januszewski will launch this product next month and expects to make about 500 of them in the first year.

This serves as an eco-friendly device because dog waste that is carried around, thrown in water areas can contaminate water sources and infect humans and other animals. It is also better than the alternative of picking up the poop and putting in a bag or other holder and carrying it inside to your toilet.

So, how much does the unit cost? Well, it may be a bit pricey to flush your poop at about $1000 for the Powerloo, but I know plenty of dog owners who would think that it is a cheap price to dispose of the poo without any of the mess!!!

I have highlighted the role of dogs as companions in many entries and even spoke about the many dogs that servicemen have befriended and brought home from Iraq. However, I felt on this Memorial Day, it would be proper to honor those dogs who have served all branches of the military and many of whom have lost their lives doing so.

The first dogs used in military service was in World War I. In World War II, the dogs walked combat patrols and could sniff out the enemy at about 1000 yards, which was long before the U.S. soldiers would be aware of them. Abiout 1500 dogs were used in the Korean conflict, primarily for guard duty and in Vietnam, more than 4000 dogs were used to counter the enemy and officially 281 of those dogs were killed in action.

Today, many of the military dogs are still used for guard duty. However, their duties have expanded as well to include mine sniffing, enemy location and tending to the wounded. Dogs are a vital part of the military forces in our fight against terrorism. Simply having a dog by a soldier’s side is a strong deterent to an enemy fighter. Somehow a growling and snarling dog is more scary and intimidating than a soldier who is armed.

Most training for these military service dogs is completed at the Defense Department’s Military Working Dog Program that is housed at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. There are approximately 2300 military working dogs currently serving. Most of the dogs today are being trained as sentries and bomb sniffers. The numbers are growing based on the need to increase and win our fight against terror. Prior to 9/11/2001, only about 200 dogs per year were being trained. Since 9/11, about 500+ dogs per year are being trained.

So when you say your moment of silence today for the those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, say a little extra prayer for their 4 legged counter parts. They deserve it.!!!

There have been a couple of interesting dog stories that I wanted to share with you. First, a dog in Chicago recently ran away when he was playing with his handler in their back yard. It seems the skies were getting stormy over Chicago and a thunderstorm was overhead. Some large claps of thunder bellowed over head and the German Shepard named Bear was gone in a flash, jumping over a wooden fence to flee from the impending noise. Now dogs frightened of thunder is not uncommon. However, the interesting part of this story is that Bear is a police dog with the Chicago Police Department. Bear was missing for three days until we was spotted by a citizen who called police. When the dog saw the police cruiser, he recognized the car and hopped right in. When microchipped later, it was determined that this was actually Bear. My curiosity regarding this story is about the sound thunder makes. If Bear is so frightened of thunder, how does he react to gunfire? Wouldn’t this be the same type of sound?

The next story is about a dog named Dancer who now answers to Fern. Dancer disappeared from owner, Alison Murphy about 8 years ago from Austin, Texas. The other day Murphy got a call from the Humane Society. It appears that Dancer showed up in a neighborhood and a musician who lived there brought the dog to the Humane Society to determine if the dog had a microchip. The dog did and that’s when Murphy was called. The dog was definitely Dancer, but no longer answered to that name. She only answered to Fern. We don’t know where Dancer/Fern has been for 8 years and why she suddenly appeared. We only know that she is home at last.

Well, here it is a holiday weekend and I bet you wouldn’t think I would have much to tell, but on this Saturday I thought I’d offer you a few little tidbits of doggie data and info!!!

Earlier this month in Jasper, Florida, the sixteen month old pit bull owned by Michael and Deana Stewart gave birth to 20 puppies…that’s right, 20!!! That litter is only second to the record setting 24 pup litter according to the Guiness World Record.

The dad dog, also owned by the Stewarts is a thirteen month old king corso. The Stewarts have 2 boys as well and state, “I’ve got two boys and the dogs are just perfect with them. They do real well, so we figured what we would do is have puppies off of them because they’re beautiful.”

Deana has had to provide round the clock care for the pups as Dixie, the mom, can’t do it all alone. With the help of her family, they have bottle fed and cleaned the pups!! This week the puppies just started opening their eyes and moving around. Within a few short weeks, the Stewart house will be in full puppy chaos. So what are the Stewarts going to do with all of those dogs? Although Michael says he would love to keep them all, it would be unrealistic to do so. He has no problem with having the dogs adopted out, as long as they go to good homes.

In December of last year, a three year old Dalmation in England, named button gave birth to 18 puppies. These are adorable as well..but we hear Button is quite tired!!!

Many people think that Americans are the people that most loves their pets, cats or dogs. However, Australia is also known for their love of pets. According to PetNet, a website promoting responsible pet ownership, Australia has one of the highest number of pet owners in the world. Some 80 percent of Australians currently keep a pet or have had a pet at some stage in their life.

Out of this love for pets, comes a new website that touts the luxuries for the Aussies that love their pets!! The online pet luxury store called www.petpalace.com/au was started about eight weeks ago and if it is any indication of future business, these past eight weeks show that the future will definitely be bright. According to marketing director, Diane Costa, “We’ve been inundated. People are looking for ways to make themselves feel good that doesn’t cost very much and our items don’t cost a lot.” But they do promise to pamper your pet.

Plush dog beds are available in various colors and fabrics. There are doggie socks with no slip soles as well as a pink camouflage dog floating device.

So how did Costa come up with this money making idea? She was cleaning out her closets of doggie things, put them online and they sold for A$2000. The items went quickly that got Costa believing that there must be a market for these items. She was right. However, she believed that her market would be people without children or empty nesters, when in actuality, her clientele are people from all backgrounds, ages and economic groups.

It is never a bad time to pamper your dog…take a look a the website above and enjoy!!!

I don’t know how many times I have said that the entry being written with Michael Vick in it will be the last. I just can’t stand giving the man a voice through my entries. However, then I realize that if I don’t keep talking about what he did, many would forget. He could even play pro-football again, and if so, many may choose to ignore the horrible crimes for which he was accused and convicted.

Michael Vick was convicted of running a dog fighting ring and many of the dogs from his Bad Newz Kennels suffered greatly. Some had to be euthanized because of the severity of their injuries.

Well, Michael Vick is out of jail as of today and will be returning to Hampton, Virginia to serve out the two months of his sentence in home confinement. He has severe financial problems and will begin working a $10.00 an hour construction job. A far cry from the millions he made with the NFL. He will have a tougher time in the court of public opinion where many are still angry about Vick’s active participation in these activities and the killing of several dogs by his own hands.

The Humane Society of the United States said Vick met its president recently in prison and wants to work on a program aimed at eradicating dogfighting among urban teens. According to Vick, he has seen the error of his ways and is truly remorseful about the crimes he has committed and the suffering he has caused to many animals. However, I have to wonder, is he saying that because he truly believes it, or is it what he thinks we all want to hear? Time will tell. In the meantime, the picture above is one of Vick’s victims that is now in the process of being rehabilitated and loved!!!

Just when you think you have seen it all in regards to reality shows, a new one pops up that you can’t believe. Well, if it involved dogs, you know you’d find it here.

Zak George is a dog trainer who has gained immense popularity showing training moves for dogs via YouTube. As a result Animal Planet has signed George up for a new reality show titled, “Fetch Me A Beer”. The show is supposed to show dogs that have been trained in extreme or difficult behaviors. According to George, the show will premiere in October and will show the trainer teaching dogs tricks such as riding a bike and helping a human land a date.

The show is scheduled for 20 episodes with 8 having already been taped. Taping has taken place in both Miami and Boston. Max is the border collie seen above and his owners, Grace and Michael Ham of Brookline, Ma. answered a casting call with Max and he was immediately signed up. The trick they have Max doing, which they say took a great deal of work was to jump off his owner’s back in order to catch a Frisbee in mid air. Later this month, the crew will tape Brumby the Australian Shepherd completing his training with George on learning to bowl with his owner. Yes, bowl.

I really feel kind of wierd about this show. When do we stop making dogs do these tricks simply for our enjoyment? Does the dog enjoy it? Are we simply exploiting the dog because we can? These are all very interesting questions. I didn’t see any type of reference to prizes that could be won based on the dogs performance, but I bet there is something in it for the owner!!! I don’t know if I want to even “stay tuned” for this one!!!!

For those of you who are fans of Oprah, and who isn’t, there was a great show on last week that featured guest, Glenn Close. No, she wasn’t there touting a new movie, or dishing Hollywood dirt. She was talking about a cause that is near and dear to her heart. In a video clip, Close takes us to Fishkill Correctional Facility, which is located about 80 miles north of New York City (and close to me). Here there is a new program in place, called Puppies Behind Bars, where inmates are given 8-week-old puppies and taught to train them to become service dogs for the disabled, including wounded soldiers. The puppies and prisoners are together 24 hours a day. The puppies sleep in crates in the inmates’ cells. Obviously the benefit for those who are disabled or return from war in Iraq permanently injured is phenomenal. These dogs provide a lifeline for these soldiers. But, the other benefit is that those who are being punished for their crimes are actually giving back to society in ways that they never thought possible and the inmates are thriving from it.

According to Michael, an inmate in the program who is incarcerated for robbery in the first degree, this program has meant the world to him. He says, “I’m going to make my family and those around me proud of me again. Joining this program, it helped me to give myself a sense of pride again. To know that by nurturing and raising these dogs to their fullest potential, that I could give back.” The puppies give also. They give many of these inmates something they have never had and that is unconditional love. There are some indepth clips that truly resonate the meaning of this program and I would encourage all to take a look at it. This is what wwe call a “win-win” situation!!!

Check out Glenn Close as she speaks about the program, by clicking here!

Lori Stevens is a savior for many veterans. Why? She provides them with the assistance they need through specially trained dogs that help them through their injuries and become a companion for life. She loves dogs and always has. When she gets a new dog, she like most of us, falls in love with that dog. However, in 18 short months she gives that dog away. And to whom does she give those dogs? As part of the Patriot Paws program, Lori trains these dogs to go to soldiers who have been injured in war. For some soldiers that means having a dog who can now see for them, since they have lost their sight. Or it can be a dog who helps them do everyday things since they no longer have mobility due to the loss of legs or feet. It could be a soldier who has lost arms and can’t turn on their own lights or find it hard to retrieve their prostetics, if it falls or is in another room. In other words, these dogs help these men and women live as close to normal lives as possible.

Patriot Paws, out of Texas has a primary goal to supply disabled veterans with service dogs that will improve the quality of the lives of those who have sacrificed so much for our country. In their mission statement, they say the following:
“Patriot Paws is passionate, committed, and obligated in our goal to train service dogs that will enhance the lives of disabled veterans who have given so much for our nation, and to provide a service for other Americans with mobile disabilities. We are committed to build partnerships with community and state organizations which will allow us to give back to our community while enhancing the lives of all individuals involved.”

That is an incredible goal and one that needs help. It takes about $20,000 to train and prepare these dogs. Lori, founder of this organization has helped more people than humbly she would admit. Currently, there are 18 service personnel on her waiting list and she works one day at a time to make this all happen. Lori, job well done. Check out the website for Patriot Paws, by clicking here