Mail Bag - The Old Man and the Dog

I got this in my email and thought I'd share. It was a good read. It's been in circulation for a while so if you've already read it, I apologize. I can't seem to find the original source location for it so if anyone knows, please pass that on so we can ensure credit is given where it is due. It is a story with religious references so hopefully no one is offended.

The Old Man and the Dog by

Blog Updates - Blogroll Added

Just thought I'd let you all know that I have decided to open up a blogroll for non-animal related blogs. Previously, I had limited my blogroll to animal related blogs only but that's somewhat limiting.




If you would like me to add your blog to this list, please leave a comment and let me know. I do ask that you post a reciprocal link back from your blog (that means you put a link to my blog

News Reel - 29 new dog parks

Dogs and their owners from Toronto are happy this week. Check out this headline published in the Toronto Star earlier this week ... City approves 29 new dog parks. There are still 24 others that dog owners would like to see designated off leash (including High Park), but that is a great start! I would love to see dogs off leash everywhere, but you and I know that most dog owners don't teach their

Featured Rescue - Jester the Yorkshire Terrier / Papillion mix

Today’s Featured Rescue is a really cool looking dog! Check out Jester. He’s around 1 year old and is assumed to be a Yorkshire Terrier/Papillion mix. Isn’t he the coolest looking dog?



I love the write ups that Ann and Petes Foster Home for Animal Alliance does, but I really hate trying to figure out what it all means. I wish they would include a small checklist that includes something like

Stop talking and listen to what your dog isn't saying

Many people I know talk a lot to their dog. Most of these have full conversations with their dog without even realizing it. They ask questions and opinions of the dog. They tell them what they are going to do, they discuss crossword puzzles, what tv show to watch.










I have found that when they are so busy talking to their dog, they miss many opportunities to communicate. Sometimes we just

TrainPetDog - 2010 Dog Blog Award

I tried something new today. I have registered this blog for the TrainPetDog.com 2010 Dog Blog Award.



My readers can vote by coming to http://www.trainpetdog.com/ and entering the voting code in the voting box and clicking on the Submit button.



The Voting code for Dogs Deserve Freedom is 3U744.



In order for this blog to make it to round two, it MUST have at least 50 votes before

Featured Rescue - Black Dog Monday

I've blogged in the past about Black Dog Syndrome; in a nutshell, some people decided to do some research to prove that black dogs aren't adopted very often and in a shelter/rescue environment are euthanized more often than any other colour of dog (though anyone who works or volunteers regularly at a shelter could tell you that).



Because of this, I have been toying with the idea of making a

Foster Update

Ok, so I'm the worst person for posting pictures. I just can't seem to get my act together when it comes to this sort of thing. This is why today I have focused on posting pictures of our current foster dog. This is Lady. She was described as a Border Collie mix (which was why we went down to see her). As you can see from the photos, while she may have some BC in there, it certainly is not her

Study: Dogs Also Suffer From Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Here's a really interesting article. Study: Dogs Also Suffer From Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. If you want to read all the crazy science mumbojumbo, click here to see the study which was published in Molecular Psychiatry. Below are some interesting highlights:



"Scientists have identified a gene in Dobermans that makes the dog suseptible to obsessive compulsive disorder." While this may not

Featured Rescue - Dixie the Bluetick Coonhound

I've always had a soft spot for Blueticks and Redbones ... I blame this on being forced to read "Where the Red Fern Grows" when I was in school. It was a great book, but a heartbreaker for the dog-lover. I also had a friend whose father hunted - he always had 4 Redbones on hand (this may have also contributed). Generally, 3 were trained at all times and the fourth was his up and coming pup. The

Product Review - K9 KlearUp

Ok, so about 6 months ago the dog blog world was inundated with posts about K9 KlearUp. Like many other bloggers out there, I received a free sample. I was asked to write a review about the product and potentially sell it through my blog and receive "affiliate" fees. I told the marketing guy that I would test it extensively before posting about this product and that my review may go either way,

News Reeel - Update on Aussie Breeder

Here's a bit of news for you; an update about the Australian Shepherd breeder I featured on Friday ... following is the link to the article Mason-area breeder guilty in animal cruelty case below are some excerpts.



The jury found Joan Skillman, 73, of Aurelius Township "guilty of 6 (out of 11) misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty or abandonment ... She faces up to 93 days in jail, fines and up

Featured Rescue - the Australian Shepherd

In honour of all those poor dogs who were living in squalor (the ones mentioned in Friday's News Reel), I decided to post an Australian Shepherd today for the Featured Rescue. This is Sherlock. He is an adult male Aussie. He likes other dogs but doesn't get along so well with cats. Not sure where the name came from ... the shelter didn't list that in the Petfinder ad. Sherlock is located in

News Reel - Animal Cruelty Case goes to Jury

Sorry for posting two news reels in a row, but I want to share this one. To read the entire article, click here, Animal cruelty case goes to jury. Ok, if the jury doesn't decide this lady is guilty and put her in jail I'm going to throw a fit.



This lady is 73 years old and had 70 dogs!! That's just stupidity. They were, of course, all covered with mud, urine and feces after having lived 9

News Reel - Born to be a Hero

This news article is a little late in posting but I thought I'd share it anyway. There's an 18 month old Golden Retriever who protected his young owner (11 year old boy, Austin) from being attacked by a cougar.



(I'm talking about the four legged, furry kind with pointy teeth ... not the two legged, scantily clad kind in stilettos.)



Born to be a hero: Why Angel saved the day



Check out the

Featured Rescue - Abby the Basset Hound

I have a soft spot for hound dogs. Not sure why. Possibly because when I was younger I was given a Beagle mix? What a good dog ...



I know a lot of people who actually can't stand hounds, which to me is a real shame. They are quite trainable if you alter your training style to accomodate the hound's instictual drives. I have found that many trainers don't do this. It sets the dog and owner up

Pets as Gifts ... After the Dust Settles

You will find time and time again that rescues and SPCA's are always publishing the same message about not giving pets out as gifts. Sometimes you even find blog entries like this one about it (or this one, or this one). This message is published time and time again but the unfortunate reality is that the people who give pets as presents aren't necessarily the ones reading it. I have heard of

The Shelter Pet Project - PSA 2

So now that I know how to embed video into my blog, I'm all over that! So much fun when you find something new. Check this one out ... it's pretty neat to watch. I like how they designed these PSA's ... wish there were more. It's not your usual where they use pictures of neglected and abused animals. I love the different take on it!

Puppy Mill Information - Mill Dog Manifesto

We all know that Puppy Mills are bad for a multitude of reasons (which I'm not getting into today) ... but what happens to those dogs when a Mill is shut down? Where do all those dogs go? I always shudder when I see a Newspaper article that says something along the lines of "100 starving sled dogs have been seized" or "800 small dogs seized from filthy Arizona home". Who is going to take that

Featured Rescue - Ben the Border Collie mix

Ok, ok ... Today's Featured Rescue is a bit different and I'll explain why. Someone asked how come I never feature Canadian dogs because a lot of the dogs I post are from the USA. You know what? This is a GREAT question. I'm sorry she deleted the comment. It is very true and there are a few reasons to my answer.



First, I run a search on Petfinder based on breed and I usually try to find a dog

CL ~ A Letter from an Animal Control Officer

Below is a Letter from an Animal Control Officer. A good read. It is the other side of the Kill Shelter / Control Officer topic.


I am your animal control officer. I am not the dreaded "dogcatcher” or the “murderer” I’ve been called.



It is not I who allows your pet to roam the streets, to contact diseases from other free-roaming animals, to be hit by passing motorist or poisoned by rotting

Featured Rescue - Sophia the Dalmation

Today is the first Featured Rescue post of the New Year! Yikes! I would like to post more of these this year ...



Today's feature is a 12 year old female Dalmation named Sophia. It makes me sad when I see these older animals looking for new homes ... I always wonder how they ended up there? Anyway, Sophia sounds like a nice lady who is starting to show her age. She reportedly gets along well

Top Entrecard Droppers

Find below my list for the top entrecard droppers in the last 31 days. Thank you to everyone who drops by and special thanks go out to those who comment! I'm playing with some of the widget you can add to see if I can put something on there about commenting ...




Cornymans Money-Blog, everything about financial independence
CAP News
The Way I See It
vanillaseven.com
Frelia's Random Thoughts

Press Release - Hartz donates food and toys to shelters

I got this in my email and thought I would share. Sometimes good things happen out of the blue for shelters. Hartz really picked a great time to do this.




HARTZ SHELTER DONATION PROGRAM PLEDGE OF $3,000,000FULLFILLED

HARTZ RECEIVES $1,000,000 WORTH OF SHELTER NOMINATIONSIN TEN DAYS

SECAUCUS, N.J., December 23, 2010 - - Entering the holiday season, The Hartz Mountain Corporation, the leading

Returning from Hiatus

Happy New Year everyone!






After taking a much-needed break from everything computer related, I am ready to get rolling again with blogging. Where to begin?? Hmmm ... I have pictures to share with you all but they are still on the camera. I will be taking them off tonight. I do have some pics from December that I have posted. I will post some of my fosters in the next few days.







I am