You can run with the big dogs or sit on the porch and bark.
– Wallace Arnold
July 27th marked the launch of the US Postal Service’s newest stamp bearing the image of a dog.
The Owney stamp features the image of Owney, a mixed breed dog that was drawn to the US mail and followed it onto mail wagons, subsequently traveling across the United States collecting tags from each of his stops. Owney lived at the Albany, New York, post office but would regularly sleep among empty mail bags and travel with them to locations across the United States.
Workers thought Owney was a good luck charm because, in an age of many train accidents, Owney’s trains were never involved in one.
The dog died in 1897 and his body was sent to a taxidermist for preservation. Since 1993, Owney has been on display at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Postal Museum in Washington DC, which hosted the launch of the new stamp. The tags Owney collected have also been preserved.
Read more about the Owney and the launch of the new stamp on this page.
Posted in Dogs
Tagged commemorative, Dog, mail, National Postal Museum, Owney, Smithsonian Institutions, stamp, US Mail, US Postal Service, Washington DC
The Three Bears Lodge is situated at the SW Nisqually entrance to Mt Rainier National Park amongst old growth cedar and douglas fir trees and it is dog-friendly, where two dog-friendly cabins can be booked. If you and your family are the outdoors types, then heading to the Pacific Northwest for your vacation is a great idea.
There is a charge of $20 per dog per day and cabin amenities include:
The lodge has a large fenced area where your dog can exercise safely and the Nisqually River is about a two minute walk from the cabin, offering trails for long walks.
What a great opportunity for you and your dog to enjoy the fresh air and outdoors together.
The dogs of Urban Search and Rescue played a special part in the initial emergency response after Christchurch’s 6.3 magnitude earthquake on 22 February 2011. Here is the special edition of Pawprint, the newsletter of the NZ USAR Search Dog Association. This newsletter provides the best detail yet of how the earthquake event unfolded and the role of the dog teams in searching for survivors.
Pawprint special earthquake edition
Learn more about the NZ USAR Search Dog Association on their website.
I’m pleased to say that Canine Catering Ltd was one of the many small businesses and individuals which donated funds to the USAR Search Dog Association as part of the SBS Marathon.
Please join me in again thanking the hard work of the NZ USAR search dog teams and particularly to Cairo who is special massage customer (funded by his handler, Janelle).
Posted in Dogs
Tagged Christchurch earthquake, earthquake, NZ USAR, Pawprints, Search Dog Association, urban search and rescue, USAR
The Kimpton Hotel chain based in the United States regularly makes it onto the list of Fortune magazine’s 100 Best Companies to Work For list.
Why?
Well one reason that distinguishes this employer apart from others is that they offer a benefit programme that includes pet insurance at reduced rates. The hotel chain has chosen Pet Assure as its insurance provider.
“At Kimpton, we respect and care for all canine companions,” said Steve Pinetti, senior vice president of sales and marketing at Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants. “We want to make sure every member of the Kimpton family is well taken care of, and that includes making sure our pets are safe and happy.”
copyright Kimpton Hotels
The Kimpton chain offers pet packages at each of its locations; these pet packages include gourmet dog treats, dog walking and dog massage services.
This video was sent to me by a customer. I think it is great and something that so many dog owners can relate to.
Enjoy!
PrintingforLess.com (PFL) is a Montana-based printing business that is also a dog-friendly. Their press release for this year’s Take Your Dog to Work Day proudly stated:
Here at PrintingForLess.com, we get to bring our dogs to work on a daily basis. We’ve found having office dogs helps with staff morale, builds camaraderie among employees, stimulates creativity and decreases employee absenteeism.
I’m a huge supporter of the pet-friendly workplace for all of the reasons stated above. I recently heard a Chief Executive say that he uses statistics on frequency of employee sick leave as a measure of whether the employees are engaged with the business or not. Many businesses with pet-friendly workplaces, like PFL, report that employee absenteeism decreases after the pet-friendly workplace is instituted. That’s good news for employees, employers, customers, and the dogs!
Here’s a video (courtesy of YouTube) of Bodie performing tricks in the offices at PFL:
When you take a look at the PFL website, you can see that the company has a pretty special culture, and the dog-friendly workplace policy is only one part of that. Watch the PFL culture video on their website.
Well done PrintingforLess.com!
In May, I featured an item about the pet relief area at the Maui airport.
Did you know that in 2008, the US Department of Transportation passed a law called the Air Carrier Accessibility Act? This Act requires airports to have relief facilities available to service dogs.
Many airports have since realised the value of catering to their customers who are traveling with their dogs and opened up these facilities not only to service dogs but all dogs. One airport that is leading the way is the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. This airport has pet parks at all three of its passenger terminals. They are:
If you are traveling through Phoenix, remember that the Airport offers these facilities and, if you’re not, here’s a great video of the Airport’s pet parks for you to enjoy:
Posted in dog care, dog-friendly accommodation, Dogs, dogs and holidays
Tagged airport, Bone Yard, dog parks, Paw Pad, Pet Patch, pet relief areas, Phoenix, Sky Harbor
The folks behind the Paw Justice campaign have come up with another creative way to help raise funds for education about animal abuse in New Zealand.
For $25.00, you can enter two photos of your dog in the Paw Justice 2012 calendar competition. If you want to enter more photos, you can pay an additional $5.00 for each additional group of two photos submitted.
The grand prize winner will see their pet:
All entrants will receive a copy of the Paw Justice 2012 calendar.
What are you waiting for? Just click on the Paw Justice logo above and it will take you directly to the photo competition page. Good luck!
Posted in animal welfare, Dogs
Tagged calendar competition, dogs, Paw Justice, photos
Bedmaker Sleepyhead has released the results of New Zealand’s largest sleep survey. The survey aimed to assess the sleeping habits of New Zealanders, primarily to make the connection between bedding and quality sleep.
The survey found that 60% of New Zealanders share their bed with a partner every night, 12% of us share our beds with our dogs or cats.
So, if you sleep with your dog – you are not alone!
(One of the benefits not mentioned in the survey is that your dog is an excellent bed warmer on cold winter nights. Whereas a hot water bottle or wheat bag will cool down overnight, your warm and furry dog maintains your bed at a constant temperature.)
Posted in dog ownership, Dogs, statistics and surveys
Tagged dogs in bed, sleep survey, Sleephead
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