The Poodle (and Dog) Blog

O Canada, great show!!

To my friends and readers in Canada,

What a magnificent show you put on for the world. For that brief time we could come together and see the best the world has to offer.

We are again reminded how lucky we are to have neighbors like you.

There were times during the games when those of us in the lower 48 were secretly rooting for that Maple Leaf team. We don’t call it lack of patriotism, we call it Olympic Spirit. 

Hockey is not part of my athletic culture, but every four years I regret that it wasn’t. 

Through several Winter Olympics I’ve gone from making fun of curling, to becoming quite involved in watching it…although I haven’t quite mastered the rules and strategies.

As exciting as it was in the opening ceremonies to watch the USA and Canada make their entrance, the most touching part of any Olympics to me is when a country that we’ve never heard of makes an entrance with three, two, or even one athlete with the flag held proudly.

We have heard that the pricks officials from the IOC are going to reprimand the Canadian women’s hockey team for their celebration. We look forward to the tar and feathering which would follow.

YouTube phenomena: Dogs singing along with the theme from “Law and Order”

Knuckles the Jack Russell Terrier and Logan the Poodle don’t seem to have a lot in common, but both are among a growing number of dogs on YouTube singing (actually howling) along with the theme from “Law and Order.”

I auditioned several dogs for this post and Knuckles and Logan are my choices for most melodious. You may want to turn down the volume because I use “melodious” very loosely.

According to his owner the first time Knuckles saw the show he started howling along and every time he hears the song his ears perk up, he whimpers, lifts his head and sings along with a full-blown howl.

"He's not the brightest dog in the world, but he has this one talent," said his owner, Daniel Serna of Los Angeles. "It's just a funny thing he'll do and he'll do it for a room full of people."

Dog experts weighed in with theories about why the dogs react so strongly to this song in a story in the New York Post. No one can tell for sure whether they are enjoying the song or protesting it.

The composer, Mike Post, who has won many Emmys for TV compositions, is quite happy about the whole thing.

I can't believe it. This is the craziest thing I've ever seen in my life. They're not running away from it, they're singing along with it. If somebody notices my music and appreciates it, I'm happy -- and if those are very happy canines, I'm happy. I'm flattered -- I never figured dogs would be humming along with my tunes. This is a first.

Yeah, well, maybe the dogs love it. Maybe they hate it. Maybe… maybe they’re trying to warn us of something evil.

Or maybe they’re just messing with us.

I love Johnny Weir and why Peta should be euthanized

Olympic figure skater, Johnny Weir, is one of my favorite athletes/ performers. He is electrifying to watch.

Johnny hears a different drummer from the one most of us march to.

Some of the poopheads more traditional judges have been known to penalize him for his lack of convention and various controversies. In the Olympics his technical scores put him in bronze medal contention, but subjective scores put him in sixth place.

And while most male skaters wear costumes that look like wet suits or a cliché from a child’s tale, this is the costume that Johnny wore in the free skate at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships.

It’s the white wisps of fur from a long dead fox that has Peta’s panties in a bunch. They continued to harass, threaten, and send hate mail to him and his costume designer because, you know, a never-ending succession of self-righteous D-list Peta bimbos would rather go naked than be ignored wear fur in a self-serving photo shoot--unless, of course, they are offered money to wear fur, in which case all bets are off.

Unfortunately, the media eats up everything the Peta terrorists do, seldom showing them as they really are. I would like to see the sentence “Peta kills 97% of the pets entrusted to them” added to every story about them.

They insist on forcing their views on everyone else. Their cruel and stupid antics trivialize important issues of animal welfare.

They attract dim bulbs who “wuv their widdle doggies” and don’t realize that Peta loves to turn doggies into popsicles to store in the giant walk-in freezer in their Virginia headquarters. And they can’t wait to advocate euthanasia for fighting dogs, even tiny puppies.

All of the Olympic skaters wear boots made of leather. Rather than picking on one vulnerable young athlete who was living his Olympic dream, why don’t they try terrorizing the hockey team?

Now that might be as much fun as taking on a motorcycle club.

Jack Russell rats out his owner to the police

We know that dogs are intelligent and resourceful, but there are some nuances of human behavior that they don’t get. Like this one.

When police officers in Germany called at a flat of a man they had been sent to arrest, they were greeted by an acquaintance holding a dog. The acquaintance had no idea where the owner was.

But when the dog was set down, he led police directly to a 3 feet by 2 ½ foot cupboard where he stood expectantly with his tail wagging.

Officers found the suspect, 52, “hunched up inside.”

Police did not release the name of the man or the dog and would say only that he was not wanted for a capital offense.

Richocet--From service dog to SURFice dog

A story of a service dog dropout who found an important place in the lives of special people.

Like human babies dogs are not just little lumps of clay that we can mold to fit what we want from them. Each dog has a personality that is unique. When they don’t fit into our dreams of the life we want them to lead, it’s up to us to find a direction for their lives.

This video has had almost two million viewers. Even if you’ve seen it before, it is worth watching again.

Family dog saves lost little girl

Victoria Bensch, a three year old Arizona toddler, wandered away from her home on Thursday afternoon and got lost in the surrounding mountains. As search parties looked for her, the night time temperatures dipped below freezing.

Finally she was spotted 15 hours after she vanished by a helicopter pilot. Cuddled next to her was her lifetime companion, Blue, a Queensland Heeler.

According to a spokesman for the County Sheriff’s Office, “The dog kept her alert, warm and gave her companionship throughout a very cold night.”

The pilot and medic saw the girl and the dog in a dry creek bed.

"She wasn't moving when we first came upon her," Uhl said. "She was kind of just looking face-down on the ground." The dog was protective of the child at first, but when the girl smiled, the dog relaxed.

"I think once the dog realized we were there to help them out, he was very excited," Uhl said. "When it was time to go, he jumped right into the helicopter and was ready to go."

She was taken to Phoenix Children's Hospital and treated for mild frostbite.

Of course we’ll never know, but it would be interesting to find out whose idea it might have been to go on this grand adventure, the child’s or the dog’s.

Thanks to Denny

Dog takes bullets for his family and survives the attack

Although some people would like to ban both, here’s a convincing case for keeping a guard dog and a gun in the home, especially in areas where law enforcement has been cut.

A woman who lives outside Conneaut in Ashtabula County, Ohio credits her German Shepherd, Sirius, with saving her family.

When Sirius began barking she let him out and was surprised to hear gunfire. Sirius was shot in the chest and muzzle. As he lay wounded she hid her baby daughter in a laundry basket and alerted her fiancé who grabbed his gun just as the gunman kicked in the front door of the home.

Not surprisingly the gunman fled when the shooting started and was last seen fleeing in a white four door Buick.

The veterinarian who treated Sirius was amazed that he survived.

Ms. Pryor who had just cashed a tax refund check believes she was followed home. "The economy is bad, people are getting desperate, they know that the sheriff's (deputies) are laid off," Pryor commented.

 

Humane Society of the United States introduces their own vegan dog food made in…where?

Their contributions must be down as more and more people are learning (through the internet) what the true nature of the Humane Society of the United States really is.

Rather than being “humane” the main purpose of this multi-million $$ animal rights organization is to impose their beliefs on the rest of us by lobbying for laws that fit their agenda. And their agenda is not usually friendly to dogs, cats or people who love them.

HSUS is not connected to local humane societies. They are PETA in shirts and ties.

At any rate they have come out with their own dog food, a vegan dog food, manufactured in…wait for it…Uruguay. Yes, the one in South America. See map.

They have convinced several pet store chains to carry the food. But before you rush out to switch your carnivorous best friend to an all veggie diet made in a country we’ve barely heard of, you may want to check out some of these sites to find out what it is you are buying for your dog.

You can find an analysis at Terrierman and here and here and here  and here and many other places.

Can tiny (or pink) dogs be service dogs?

Two recent cases focus on the American with Disabilities Act provision for service dogs. Both bring up some issues that need to be addressed.

A tiny Pink Poodle was barred from a Denny’s restaurant in Bakersfield, California because the manager insisted that they accept only service dogs wearing a vest.

Her owner, Roni Hoggins, says that Pebbles can tell when she is going to have a seizure and “alerts somebody.” She has a prescription that shows she is able to have the dog with her.

Denny’s corporation offered an apology saying that "Denny's should have accepted the fact that the customer indicated the dog was a service animal."

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act businesses are allowed to ask only two questions: Is that a service animal and how does the animal help you? A vest is not necessary to establish the dog as a service animal.

However, as sympathetic as I am to people needing service dogs, I have to ask why dye a Poodle pink when obviously people are not going to take her seriously as a professional working dog?

Poodles have enough problems being taken seriously without being made to look ridiculous. Isn’t the owner just asking for a confrontation?

In a different case the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal recently dismissed a case in which a disabled man insisted his tiny Chihuahua was a service dog and he claimed he was illegally asked to leave a business because of his dog.

Alex Allarie filed the complaint against Keith and Leslie Rouble, the owners of the Granary Bulk and Natural Foods, after he and his tiny dog, Dee-O-Gee, were asked to leave the store in August 2008.

The tribunal ruled that his being asked to leave had nothing to do with the dog and everything to do with his obnoxious, belligerent behavior from time he came into the store. Any customer, with a dog or not, would have been asked to leave in this situation, according to their ruling.

He would have been compensated by the owners if the ruling had gone in his favor. He says he is going to appeal.

Allerie seems to think he won the doggie lottery.

Some days you’re the dog…

Some days you're the fire hydrant.