The Poodle (and Dog) Blog

Yorkie Doodle Dandy—Yorkshire Terrier hero of WW II

You probably don’t think of a four pound Yorkshire Terrier as being a war dog. In fact some people don’t think of the Yorkie, the second most popular dog of 2007, as being anything more than a fashion accessory.

But Bill Wynne, a World War II veteran from Mansfield, Ohio, and his whole squadron would disagree with you.

Wynne, 85, flew more than a dozen missions in the South Pacific as a reconnaissance photographer flying over Japanese held territory. And Smoky was right there with him.

They found each other when Smoky crawled out of a foxhole in New Guinea. The sergeant who found her didn’t like dogs, so Wynne bought her for two Australian pounds, enough for the sergeant to get back into his poker game.

Wynne named her Smoky after his hometown Cleveland, famous for the smoke in the air. Smoky became the mascot of his unit, the 26th Photo Reconnaissance Squadron of the Fifth Air Force.

When Wynne came down with a fever and was hospitalized, everyone realized the therapeutic value of the tiny dog making the rounds in the hospital. “The wounded soldiers just loved her, “ Wynne said.” She was a wonderful morale booster.”

During her service years she earned eight campaign ribbons and the deep respect of the 26th. Her finest hour came at an airfield in the Philippines. A communications line had to be laid under the airfield runway. The only choice seemed to be to tear up the field. “But that would have exposed 40 war planes to enemy attack,” Wynne said.

Then it was Smoky to the rescue. They attached a feeder line to her collar and coaxed her into pulling the line through a 70-foot long, eight-inch wide culvert under the runway. It was frightening and dangerous, but Smoky made the trip and landed in Wynne’s waiting arms.

At one time Smoky saved Wynne’s life by warning him of incoming shells and guiding him to safety away from incoming fire that killed eight men standing next to them.

The picture above of Smoky in Wynne’s helmet was featured in an armed forces newspaper story of the time.

She did give birth to two pups along the way.

“She lost her Good Conduct Medal over that,” Wynne said.

During the war Smoky learned to do a lot of doggie tricks and after the war Wynne and Smoky returned to Cleveland where they performed in nightclubs and hospitals and appeared at dog shows.

She is buried in an ammunition box in the Metroparks Rocky River Reservation. On top of the monument is a sculpture of little Smoky sitting in Wynne’s combat helmet.

Today Wynne has two Yorkies, Habie who is 14 and Smoky Too.

You can bet these Yorkies will never be carried in a purse.

More on Bill Wynne and Smoky the war dog from the Mansfield News Journal

The dog scooter—warm weather dog sledding

Dogs need and love exercise. A leisurely stroll at human pace isn’t enough for most big dogs. People and dogs who live in non snow climates can enjoy dog sports with the Dog Scooter.

To propel the scooter, all the dog needs to do is go forward, which they love to do. The scooter is light with low rolling resistance and no downward drag on the dog. To be part of a team, the human can also kick to provide forward momentum.

Instead of having the dog out in front as in dog sledding, which requires a lot of specialized training and is not suitable for most settings, with the Dog Scooter the human is in control of steering and braking. Braking is similar to pulling back on a leash.

The scooter has a lot of built in safety features, which allows it to be enjoyed by older children and older adults.

The scooters are custom built depending on the dog’s weight and measurements by ordering from the website. You can even add attachments for a second and third dog.

Prices are reasonable and in line with other sports and hobbies. You won’t have to travel long distances to use the dog Scooter and no special equipment or clothing is needed.

My dogs are a little uh...vertically and horizontally challenged for this, but it does look like fun. Have any of you gone dog scootering?

More information is on their website, including tips for beginning the sport.

Time will make a difference

Be nice to others because...

One day, you may not be the "BIG DOG." Just the old dog. Thanks to Denny

Liver and cheese joke

Politically incorrect Ed thinks I’ve been too serious and it’s time for a dog joke. So he sent this one:

Three handsome male dogs are walking down the street when they see a beautiful, enticing, female Poodle. The three male dogs fall all over themselves in an effort to be the one to reach her first, but end up arriving in front of her at the same time.

The males are speechless before her beauty, slobbering on themselves and hoping for just a glance from her in return. Aware of her charms and her obvious effect on the three suitors, she decides to be kind and tells them “The first one who can use the words “liver” and “cheese” together in an imaginative, intelligent sentence can go out with me.”

The sturdy, muscular black Lab speaks up quickly and says “I love liver and cheese.”

“Oh, how childish,” said the Poodle. “That shows no imagination or intelligence whatsoever.”

She turned to the tall, shiny Golden Retriever and said “How well can you do?” “Ummmm…I HATE liver and cheese,” blurts the Golden Retriever.

“My, my,” said the Poodle. “I guess it’s hopeless. That’s just as dumb as the Lab’s sentence.”

She then turns to the last of the three dogs and says, “How about you, little guy?” The last of the three, tiny in stature but big in finesse, is a little Chihuahua. He gives her a smile, a sly wink, turns to the Golden Retriever and the Lab and says…

“Liver alone. Cheese mine.”

Ka Chink

Taco Bell Chihuahua—the real story

The Taco Bell Chihuahua went from starring in everyone’s favorite commercials, to becoming an American icon of the 1990’s, to sudden unemployment with internet rumors of her untimely death.

The little brown Chihuahua-with-attitude named Gidget made “Yo Quiero Taco Bell” a familiar phrase across the land. Some people thought she was a boy dog, but actually a male voice was dubbed. [cough]

The commercials were amusing and charming. In one she chided an expensive restaurant for not having a Taco Bell value menu. In another she was trying to lure Godzilla into a box using tacos. In another, wearing a little beret, she shouted, “Viva Gorditas” as the crowd cheered.

Gidget’s image spread to bobble head dogs, posters, and T-shirts, as she became an important figure in American pop culture.

The commercials ran from 1997 to 2000; then suddenly in the middle of her popularity, she was gone from the airwaves. Rumors flew that she had died or gone into rehab for a cocaine addiction and dissolute living. Another rumor was that she offended Mexican activists. (I’m not even going there.)

However, nothing had happened to her and even if it had, animals are easily replaceable in TV and films. Several look-alike understudies could have stepped in.

We all noticed when Darren on “Bewitched” and Roseanne’s daughter were suddenly replaced by different humans. But few noticed when Eddie on “Frazier” was replaced by a younger Jack Russell. And don’t even get me started on the generations of male dogs playing Lassie since the 1940’s.

According to the Taco Bell corporation, as cute and popular as she was, the little dog wasn’t selling tacos so they bounced her as a spokesdog—a corporate decision.

However it seems there was more to it than that…

A lawsuit, filed in 1998 by Joseph Shields and Thomas Rinks, charged the Taco Bell corporation with failing to pay for use of a Chihuahua character they created. They claimed that Taco Bell had failed to pay on a contract after they worked with the chain for a year to develop the talking Chihuahua.

And a jury agreed with them. In 2002, a federal jury awarded Shields and Rinks more than $30 million.

(Bad, Taco Bell! Bad!)

Gidget still got work after the Taco Bell gig (like dogs care about that). She appeared in a Geico commercial seeking employment (but the talking gecko got the part) and she played Bruiser’s mother in Legally Blonde 2.

Even though it’s been years since her stardom, Gidget still has a lot of fans. I have a T-shirt that has an outsize picture of her face on the front with “Here, lizard, lizard, lizard.” And on the back she has a small box to catch Godzilla, “I think I need a bigger box.”

Whenever I wear it I hear people laughing behind my back.

At least I think that’s what they’re laughing about.

Judge rules against victim of boisterous dog

In what is being called a “landmark case for dog owners in Scotland” Judge Lord Malcolm ruled against the £160,000 damages claim by a woman who injured her knee when she was knocked to the ground by a black Labrador.

The judge ruled that Patricia Welsh was “a victim of a pure accident.”

Mrs. Welsh was walking her dog, Cava, when they encountered Neil Brady and his black Lab, Ebony. Both dogs were off leash and came running toward her. Ebony was faster and ran into the side of her leg, knocking her to the ground.

The accident caused severe damage to her knee calling for reconstructive surgery and loss of employment. Ebony was described as lively and boisterous animal, but not aggressive nor vicious.

In his ruling the judge stated that:

"The court must not contribute to the creation of a society bent on litigation which is premised on the illusion that for every misfortune there is a remedy…. Unfortunately for [Mrs. Walsh] for whom I have much sympathy, my conclusion is that reasonable attention to the safety of Mrs. Welsh did not require Mr. Brady to put Ebony on the lead when she and Cava came into view.”

However he warned that his ruling did not give all dog owners the freedom to let their animals off their leads.

The ruling seems to be somewhat counter to the American legal motto, “Where there is blame, there is a claim.” The story

Praying dog increases temple attendance

Conan, a two-year-old Chihuahua, joins in the daily prayers at a Buddhist temple in Japan where he is the pet in residence. Since he joined the prayers, attendance has risen by 30%.

Joei Yoshikuni, the temple priest, said that it took Conan only a few days to imitate the motions of praying.

He would like for Conan to meditate, but “it’s not like we can make him cross his legs.” The story

Doggy love—it defies all logic

It makes no sense.

It is not reasonable, rational, or practical to spend $3500 to bring a mixed breed mongrel home from Iraq.

And yet—what is the price of love?

To Marine Major Brian Dennis, his friends, family and even strangers who donated to make the trip possible for Nubs the dog, it was all worth it to unite them. After being apart for a month, Nubs’ doggy kisses and whimpers left no doubt that he remembered Dennis as they reunited in San Diego last week.

Nubs is a two-year-old German Shepherd-Border Collie mix who had been running wild along an Iraqi border. When he was a puppy, an Iraqi sliced off most of his ears to make him more tough looking. Hence the name “Nubs.”

The bond between Dennis and Nubs grew so strong that when Dennis’ unit moved camp 70 miles away, Nubs somehow tracked him to the new location two days later.

“Once he found us there, it seemed like this was supposed to have happened,” Dennis said. “After he walked all that distance, it seemed like he was supposed to end up in San Diego.”

Because it was against the rules to keep the dogs in camp, friends jumped in to raise the funds to bring Nubs to San Diego. Nubs arrived a month before Dennis got back from a seven month tour.

Among those returning with Dennis was a group of Marines who rescued seven other puppies in Iraq and were reunited with their dogs at the humane society.

So while we might agree that none of these canine crushes would stand the scrutiny of common sense, we might also agree that some things in life should not be ruled strictly by logic.

And isn’t it good that we have dogs to remind us of this?

The story

Shameless exploitation of a dog for entertainment

Happy Easter
From the Poodles, the generic dog,
and the Chihuahua bunny

“The dog ate my…income tax refund check”

“It looked like a shark bite right out of the dollar amount,” Jeff Vogelgesang, a truck driver from Ohio, said.

But it was actually his rambunctious Doberman Nevaeh who got the puppy munchies and ate the $4,100 income tax refund check.

His next step was to report it to the IRS where they had trouble believing him. But after the laughing stopped, they agreed to issue a new check.

The story