“I think breeds of dogs and breeds of men are quite a bit alike. If you think it’s insulting that I compare people and with animals, well, if you knew how I love animals, you would understand that coming from me, this is a compliment.”
– Zsa Zsa Gabor
Heska Corporation has announced the winners of its 2012 Inspiration in Action awards. They are:
Grand prize winner ($25,000) – Peter Emily International Veterinary Dental Foundation
Second place ($10,000) – Kindred Canines in Motion
Third place ($5,000) – Christian Veterinary Mission (a veterinary shuttle for the Navajo Nation)
Congratulations to the winners and to Heska Corporation for giving back to the community!
The Greyhound Protection League in New Zealand claims that there are over 10,000 greyhounds unaccounted for in the country at present, with a further one thousand unaccounted for annually. You can sign a petition that requests that the relevant Ministers use their statutory powers to conduct an independent investigation into New Zealand’s greyhound racing industry, and that this information be made publicly available.
By signing this petition, you ask for an independent investigation that makes public:
*Private rehoming can typically fall into two categories: household pets or breeding stock for pig hunting. As the welfare implications of greyhounds as pig hunting stock may be significantly different than those of a household pet, it would be prudent to define whether a “private adoption” is for the purpose of hunting stock or pet.
Interested? SIGN HERE.
Posted in animal welfare, dog breeds
Tagged Greyhound, Greyhound Protection League, greyhounds as pets, investigation, New Zealand, pig hunting
I often have dog hair on my sweaters. But dog hair sweaters?
Yes – it’s true. You can have a sweater (jumper) made of dog hair. Dog hair is a natural fibre and, after washing and spinning, it can be made into yarn for knitting of garments. Once washed, it doesn’t retain a dog odor.
For some dog lovers, having garments made from their dog’s fur is a novel way of re-using the hair. Many find it a consolation when their dog passes to have a garment made from their dog’s hair.
These photos of people wearing dog hair sweaters were taken by photographer Erwan Fichou in his series entitled Dogwool.
If you’re interested in finding out how you can collect and use your dog’s hair, the woman to speak to is Kendall Crolius. She’s the author of Knitting With Dog Hair.
This YouTube video takes you through the sweater-making process.
Like the book says…if you’re interested, stop vacuuming and starting knitting! (I’m not really sure I want to get into this particular hobby)
Posted in Dogs
Tagged crafts, dog hair sweaters, erwan fichou, Kendall Crolius, knitting, knitting with dog hair, photographer, spinning, sustainability
Most of my regular readers know that I work as a canine massage therapist and helping elderly dogs and those recovering from injuries is very rewarding for me. Many of my clients use massage for their dogs as a way of staving off the need for non-steroidal inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), or at least to keep the dosages of these drugs as low as possible.
So here’s a wee story of something that happened to me this week.
I was working on a dog who I have been seeing for 18 months. He’s a lovely Labrador and he is starting to have the aches and pains of old age. With a regular 5-weekly regime of massage, he’s been pain free.
Because I know this boy well, I could pick up that he was tight through his hind legs – a muscle called the biceps femoris. When I said ‘he’s tight down here’ to his owner, she replied, ‘I didn’t want to say anything…I wanted to see if you’d notice.’
This happens fairly often. Some people like to test me to see if I actually know what I’m doing (some owners remain doubtful about complementary therapies) but most of the time it is because owners doubt if the changes they observe are real. When you live with someone with a chronic health condition and see them on a daily basis, it is often hard to pick up changes in their condition.
In this case, it was the latter. This lady wasn’t confident that she was really seeing her dog running stiffly. He was tight, but was moving freely when he left after his massage.
Success for the week!
What’s the lesson here? It’s unrealistic to expect a massage therapist to ‘solve’ a dog’s problem in a single visit. Dogs have to get used to the therapist and massage is a new experience for them. So, the first visit is usually a time when they aren’t as relaxed because they are uncertain.
Because I keep notes on every massage session, I can refer back to these to track a dog’s condition. This is no different than what your vet does. When I am familiar with a dog and their unique characteristics, I’m much better able to pick up changes and act swiftly to help.
Please consider your dog’s therapist as a member of your healthcare team and part of your dog’s preventative healthcare regime. It’s much better than the ‘ambulance at the bottom of the cliff.’
Kathleen at work with Zara (another happy customer) copyright June Blackwood
Doctoral research by evolutionary biologist Kathryn Lord at the University of Massachusetts Amherst suggests that different behaviors between puppies and wolves are related to their critical period of socialization, when they have their first sensory experiences.
Lord studied responses of seven wolf pups and 43 dogs to both familiar and new smells, sounds and visual stimuli, tested them weekly, and found they did develop their senses at the same time. Whilst puppies and wolves have a critical four-week period for socialization, the difference is in the timing.
Wolf and dog pups begin walking and exploring without fear when the socialization window is open and they will retain familiarity throughout their lives with those things they contact. After the window closes, new sights, sounds and smells will elicit a fear response.
By making observations, Ms Lord confirmed that both wolf pups and dogs develop the sense of smell at age two weeks, hearing at four weeks and vision by age six weeks on average.
The difference in timing of the socialization period is stunning. Dogs begin the socialization period at four weeks, while wolves begin at two weeks. This, says Lord, is the reason for different paths of development.
When wolf pups start to discover their world, they are still blind and deaf at age two weeks. “No one knew this about wolves, that when they begin exploring they’re blind and deaf and rely primarily on smell at this stage, so this is very exciting,” says Lord.
Dog pups only begin to explore and walk after all three senses, smell, hearing and sight, are functioning. Overall, “It’s quite startling how different dogs and wolves are from each other at that early age, given how close they are genetically. A litter of dog puppies at two weeks are just basically little puddles, unable to get up or walk around. But wolf pups are exploring actively, walking strongly with good coordination and starting to be able to climb up little steps and hills.”
Details of this research are published in the journal Ethology.
Posted in research
Tagged Amherst, Ethology, puppies, socialisation, socialization, University of Massachusetts, wolves
When someone says something is a ‘dog’s breakfast’ – it’s not usually a compliment.
That’s because the term means any kind of mixture or smorgasbord of cast-off foods that was cobbled together and fed to the dog. This could have been items that were destined for the garbage, or perhaps a meal that was going to be fed to the humans in the household, but went badly wrong.
Well, in our household, the dog’s breakfast is cooked specifically for her. Today, it was cranberry treats – our newest recipe. (Like many dogs, Daisy’s main meal is in the evening – but a little something in the morning keeps her blood glucose levels where they should be and ensures she feels like the rest of the family.)
Daisy’s breakfast this morning was Cranberry Treats, a wheat-free recipe and the newest from Canine Catering
The dog won’t be Bo…it’ll be this (not so little) fellow:
Independence, a dog balloon proudly wearing a Canine Companions assistance dog vest, will appear in the parade on January 21st.
Independence will be the mascot for Canine Companions for Independence on their float in the 57th Presidential Inaugural Parade on Monday, January 21st.
Canine Companions will have 132 marchers from 14 states, with nationwide participation including assistance dog teams, volunteer puppy raisers, National Board Members and staff.
“Canine Companions is honored to be chosen to participate in the Presidential Inaugural Parade. We’re grateful to be able to share in this historic day and to share our mission of serving people with disabilities worldwide,” says CEO Corey Hudson.
Canine Companions was one of 60 organizations chosen from over 2,800 applications. The theme of the parade is “Our People, Our Future”
Now, I wonder where Bo will be?
I love dog people. I mean – true dog people. And for that reason, I love doing business with companies that are managed by dog people.
Take D-Fa, for example. We’re having a very hot summer here in Christchurch and Daisy really needs her cool collar. Unfortunately, the ice pack insert has lost some of its fluid and is no longer working as well. I contacted D-Fa and they said they’d send me a replacement pack for only $5.00.
Well, the pack has arrived (Daisy is very happy). And I’m happy because I got good service from them but also a nice note:
Hope this finds you well. Sorry you didn’t have these for the screamingly hot day in Christchurch yesterday, but here they are now (hope it doesn’t start to snow as a result).
Thanks and let us know if there is anything else we can do for you.
Cheers and give your dog a hug from us.
I’ve previously endorsed Cool Collars and recommend them to my clients, particularly those that own elderly dogs. I’m also a fan of their Float Doggy flotation vests.
Thanks D-Fa…from a satisfied dog person (customer)
Tagged cool collar, D-Fa, elderly dogs, Float Doggy, flotation vest, flotation vests, hug
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