Archive for December 28, 2009
Monday roundup: Dr. Becker, mail abuse and the end of a dog track
Dr. Marty Becker on GMA: I’ll be watching “Good Morning America” this morning to see Dr. Marty Becker’s appearance, where he’ll be highlighting some of the best veterinary advances and pet products of 2009. You should watch too, since there might be a quiz later. …
No more dog racing in the northeast: This past weekend saw the end of greyhound racing in Massachusetts with the closure of Raynham Park.  What I hadn’t realized until the Boston Globe pointed it out is that with Raynham going dark and the shuttering of Wonderland earlier this year, it also marks the end of dog racing throughout New England.
The end of racing here is part of a national trend, driven by a mix of animal-rights concerns, waning attendance at dog tracks, and new statutes enacted by legislatures and voters.
“I just thank Massachusetts voters for giving greyhounds a second chance,’’ said Christine A. Dorchak, president of GREY2K USA, a national advocacy organization based in Somerville that grew out of a 2000 effort to ban racing in Massachusetts, which lost by a razor-thin margin. “We have finally reached this wonderful day.’’
The last race at Raynham, previously known as Raynham-Taunton Greyhound Park, also marks the end of live dog racing in New England, for now at least….
“People who voted to end dog racing should step forward now and take a dog home,’’ Dorchak said. “This is the happy ending we all worked for, and these dogs make wonderful pets.’’
Just another sign that this sport’s a goner, as Gina pointed out last week in noting the closure of the Phoenix Greyhound Park, which had been in operation since 1954.
Good news if you travel with your furry ones: Motel 6 and Studio 6 have always been pet friendly. Now, according to Take Paws, they’re pet friendlier!
- The one pet per room policy has been removed.
- The weight limit on pets has been lifted.
As for the actual “travel” part of pet travel…: Flying these days is fraught with difficulty, and this past week it became that much worse. Pet Connection’s BFF Dr. Patty Khuly discusses the flying choices we face, and mentions a new, recently launched pet-only airline. If you have experience with Pet Airways, please chime in. I’d love to hear your reviews and impressions.
A year of amazing pet rescues: USA Today made me realize that perhaps we did have some events in 2009 of which we could be proud.  For instance, a terribly injured kitten is taken to a local SPCA center in Tonawanda, NY. From there:
The community opened hearts and wallets when the shelter put out one of its official Yelp for Help pleas to cover medical care for strays, and veterinarians performed the first of what became more than $1,500 in surgeries. A severe respiratory infection spread, and the little kitty — with the help of antibiotics — vanquished that. Sooner than anyone would have expected, the extroverted kitten was being carried through the facility, protective head cone and all, so she could greet one and all.
You didn’t get that Christmas card I sent you? This could well be why. Warning, you are about to chuckle, guffaw or perhaps even snort out loud. Thanks to The Poodle (and Dog) Blog.
I’ll see you again tomorrow with a personal blog post, where you can learn about my longhaired kids. And don’t forget: If you see something good, toss the link in the comments or drop me an e-mail.
Photo credit: Aurora and new parents: Laura Graham
http://www.petconnection.com/blog/2009/12/…
Technorati Tags: dog, veterinarian
For the love of the dog – fwdailynews.com
For the love of the dogfwdailynews.comPawsitively Paradise's “golden rules†for dog training include never getting angry or taking frustration out on a dog and earning the dog's respect through …and more » More: continued here
I am THROUGH warning you, my daughter!
Dogs are amazing, how much they communicate without words. Take this picture from earlier today:
At almost 9 months, Faith thinks she’s Miss All That. Typical adolescent, no respect for her mother at all. Pushes all the limits and all the buttons she can. Doesn’t help that McKenzie is a very easy-going dog and FayBee has all the signs of being the Boss Bitch someday.
But sometimes, even the most good-natured of dog moms have just had it. This morning while they were playing on the back acreage, Faith kept body-slamming her mom. More than a couple muttered warnings from McKenzie went unheeded, and then … FayBee T-boned her mother and knocked her right off her feet.
Oh, I don’t THINK so! said McKenzie, who got up, ran over and read her daughter the riot act. This is as close as those teeth got, and as close as they had to get: Faith got the message, absolutely. Sorry mom!
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A minute later, they were playing again as if nothing ever happened … except that Faith was a lot more respectful of her mother when it came to the body-slams.
Update: After looking through the sequence of images, I found this one of Faith again, a couple minutes later and clearly traumatized … not.
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Amber The Hungarian Vizsla Dog
This is Amber, the 3 year old female Hungarian Vizsla dog from Cambridge, England. Pic sent by Kate & Jenn.
Technorati Tags: dog
