Humans.  Seriously sometimes I look at you and really wonder about you.  You honestly do some very strange things.  Take for example this thing called the Indianapolis 500.  It’s a big auto race in the US.  It was held this past weekend.  And LOADS of people go to watch it.  And watch in on TV too.  They watch cars go around a track.  Around.  And around.  200 times.  200 times.  I mean who thought of that:  Let’s drive around and around – for 500 miles.  Won’t that be interesting?!  If I went around in circles 200 times, I would be taken to the Vet for medication.

And this thing called the Stanley Cup.  The hockey championship.  Does the hockey season EVER end?  I mean, I THINK when hockey began 1000 years ago, it was a winter sport.  WINTER.  Well guess what?  Humans are STILL playing – and it’s the end of MAY.  This hockey season will end, they will take a break for a few weeks and the pre-season will begin.  I don’t get it.

And the salaries that you pay professional athletes.  Holy moly.    The people who make some of the greatest salaries on earth get paid for playing games.  Really. Yes we dogs can play sports too.  But I’m thinking the biggest prizes are NOT in the multi-million dollar range.  We generally win a 50 cent ribbon.   Seriously.  I wish I could get someone to pay me for retrieving a ball.  Just THINK of all the biscuits I could buy….

So those are my observations for today.  And humans think they are smarter than us canines.  I’m not so sure….

©  Linda Wozniak

It’s that time of the year.  Summer is almost officially here.  It’s the time of year when the temperatures get hot.  And humans need to be reminded NOT to leave their dogs in cars.  Really.  Anyone who needs to be reminded probably shouldn’t even be owned by a dog.

Do you know that on a 78 degree day, the temperatures in a car can go to 100 – 120 degrees in less than 15 minutes?!  A dog can quickly suffer heatstroke – or even worse – can die.

One of the large shopping malls in our area hires “Pet Patrol” staff.  These people walk around the parking lots and check for pets in cars.  I think it’s a BRILLIANT idea.   Many areas are beginning to impose fines on owners if their dogs are left in a hot car – and owners can be charged with animal cruelty.  

If you see a dog who appears to be in distress, you can call the police.  If it looks like time is running out, you should probably attempt to break a window.  The best bet is a side window – as the front window is made differently and is stronger.  Look for a heavy object like a rock, or brick or piece of cement.  Some videos on-line show how to break a window with a piece of ceramic from a spark plug – but my question is: Who has the hammer handy to break the spark plug?  And if you DO have a hammer, why not use THAT on the window?  The point is, you may have to break that window – and using your hands alone will be pretty impossible.

Another thing about summer heat – we dogs like to ride with our heads out a car window.  While it may look cute and it will give us an interesting hairdo, keep in mind that we can get things in our eyes while riding like this.  So it’s not really advisable.  I SUPPOSE we can do it if we like to wear goggles….  Count me out.

And lastly, don’t allow us dogs to ride loose in the back of an open truck. In some areas, people can be issued a ticket for this dangerous practice.   If Velcro dog is even in the back seat of the car, my human has to use the child locks on the automatic windows – as he figured out how to open them.  Obviously, for long drives, we use a crate!

So those are my summer suggestions.  It’s not quite summer on the calendar – but not to soon to consider these safety issues.  Really -these suggestions are not for MY regular blog readers – as you are smart enough to know this stuff.  But maybe you can pass it on to those people who are owned by dogs – but probably should have sea monkeys instead…

Have a good one!

©  Linda Wozniak

So on Saturday morning around 4 AM, Frodo and I woke up.  I jumped off the bed (where we dogs are not allowed to sleep) – and Frodo was standing on the alert  in the bedroom doorway.  We woke my human up – because when we move suddenly, it either signifies that someone is going to be sick – or we have heard something.  My human looked at us and we showed no signs of making the dreaded urky-gurky sound (that telltale sound that someone is going to be sick) and she heard nothing else unusual.  And we were not barking so it didn’t appear whatever we heard was particularly ominous like a rabbit – or rustling leaves.   So she rolled over and went back to sleep.  Only to be awakened about a half hour later by something she heard this time herself.  Thunder.  

Now thankfully, neither of us is really afraid of thunder.  But apparently many dogs are.  And some say that we can detect thunder even before it happens due to changes in barometric pressure.  Perhaps that’s what happened with us the other night.  For dogs who are afraid of thunder, there are a variety of ways that are supposed to relieve their fear including, desensitization training; playing competing sounds (like music) during a storm; allowing the dog to go to a safe, comfortable place, like a crate;  or using something called a Thundershirt.  The Thundershirt is a tight fitting wrap that is supposed to exert pressure on soft tissue, resulting in reduced anxiety.  Even the famous professor of animal science, Dr. Temple Grandin has done some research on the effectiveness of the Thundershirt.  There seems to be some evidence that use of the shirt combined with behavioral modification and use of medication, may reduce heart rate and anxiety.  More detailed outcome studies need to be carried out.

We don’t have Thundershirts because we don’t really need them – but my human wondered if wearing our lycra bodysuits would work similarly to exert pressure and cause a calming effect.  Unfortunately, I think those suits cause the OPPOSITE effect.  We want them to come off – so we go EXTRA crazy. 
  
 All this talk of thunder made me think of a new name for myself.  The God of Thunder was Thor.  I like that name.  I think I’ll now go by Thor from now on.  It’s easier than Balthazar and I like it better than Cocoa.  My human made me include this photo – she said it’s perfect because it looks like I was hit by lightning.  Ha. Ha.  Humans sometimes think they are funny.  But remember, Thor always gets the last laugh…and the last rumble.

Have a good one – I hope your skies are sunny.  And quiet.

©  Linda Wozniak

So this week, the Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in the US.  For the third year in a row it ended in a tie.  Let me tell you – the kids who compete in this event are S-M-A-R-T.   I wonder though, if they ever  had to spell Xoloitzcuintli, the name of the Mexican hairless dog.  Really.  I bet that could be a tie-breaker word.

You know, we dogs can learn to spell.  Really.  Some people think we just learn patterns of sounds – but honestly, we DO learn words like T-R-E-A-T and W-A-L-K.   I couldn’t find any scientific experiments showing that we can spell – so I want my human to start one.  Because she has SO much time on her hands.  If there IS a study going on, I want Velcro dog to be enrolled.  He’s pretty smart – so he would be an excellent subject.

I’m not a great speller myself.   See if you can figure out my dog breed spelling errors:
1.  Chiwawa
2.  Labradoor
3.  Peekinknees
4.  Dashhound
5.  Shit-zoo

The CORRECT spellings are:
1.  CHIHUAHUA
2.  LABRADOR
3.  PEKINGESE
4.  DACHSHUND
5.  SHIH TZU

It’s the weekend and we are looking forward to lots of human time.  A good friend of OURS arrived the other day – and he will be hanging out with us for the summer.  My human thinks he comes to visit her – but we know he REALLY comes to visit us.  And of course, I am his favorite.  Or I think I am.  It’s cool – we have him VERY well trained.  We just stare at him and he gives us treats.  All the time.   ALL the time.  Hmmmmm…..  How do you spell the word M-A-N-I-P-U-L-A-T-E? 

Have a great weekend!

©  Linda Wozniak

So for a change – I have a GOOD news story.  And it happened right here in Nova Scotia.

The other night, a Labrador Retriever by the name of Marley, disappeared from the backyard of her home.  If having a lost dog isn’t bad enough – the family was extra distraught because Marley is the service dog for one very sick little boy.  The boy has a rare brain disorder, and Marley helps to warn the family if he is having seizures or other medical emergencies.  

When Marley went missing, the community went into full alert trying to find her.  Even the police, who don’t generally search for lost dogs, were out looking for Marley – using thermal detection equipment to look for her at night.

The GREAT news – she was found the next day and was returned to her home!   

My human warned me that the community response if I were to go missing would NOT be the same.  She told me I had better NOT get any wild ideas. And let’s face it – if I saw the police coming after me, I would keep on running.

In other good news, the Drama King is doing FINE.  F-I-N-E. Honestly, I think he just wanted to go for a drive.  It was raining, and we couldn’t go for a walk – so his emergency clinic visit was a great way to get out of the house.  I must remember that idea.  Mind you – when I had my emergency with the porcupine encounter last fall, my human didn’t take me to the hospital.  I allowed my human to remove them herself.  And I was very tough and stoic.  Hmmmmmmmm.  Perhaps that backfired.  Maybe it DOES pay to be a Drama King…..

Excuse me while I go and squeak.  For no real reason…..

Have a good one!  It’s FRIDAY!!!!!


©  Linda Wozniak

Oh my gosh.   I am rarely angry but I saw something on the Internet the other day that left me steaming. Again.   As I recall, this isn’t the first time I have seen this.  It was a list of the 25 Least Popular Dog Breeds.  And get this – PONs ranked #21 – right between the Komondor and the Norwegian Buhund.  Seriously.  And the reasons why we are undesirable?  We require too much grooming, we are hard to train and we require too much exercise for apartment living.  OK.  I get the grooming thing.  But hello?   Poodles never made the list.  And as for training – show me what to do, and I will NOT forget.  Especially if you give me treats.  My human is embarrassed about how easy it is to train us.  Well at least Velcro dog.  She doesn’t have to do things over and over again.  He gets it.  And as for exercise and apartment living.  First off, we are not exactly the size of a Mastiff.  Who didn’t make the list by the way.    And who says everyone in the world lives in an apartment anyway?!

Frodo is a Drama King.  That’s his new title.

May 24.  On this day in 2001, Sherpa Temba Tsheri, at age 15 became the youngest person to ever scale Mount Everest.  Which got me thinking…has a dog ever made it to the top?

It seems in 2013, there were news reports that a dog by the name of Rupee, made it to the top of the world’s highest summit.  BUT – on closer study, it seems that Rupee, who was rescued from life as a stray in India, made it to the BASE camp of Everest.  Not that climbing to the base camp isn’t remarkable, but let’s face it – it’s not the same as hitting the summit.  Rupee’s owner took him to raise awareness about rescuing strays – and Rupee even had his own assistant in the event that he found the climb to base camp a bit too much.

There are reports of stray dogs reaching the base camp on their own – and also following climbers part way up to the summit.  Those are pretty tough dogs.  I am trying to convince my human that we should try it. JUST kidding.  She cycled 50 KM the other day and the next day we never heard the END of her complaining about her aches and pains.  So I’m thinking Everest is NOT on the Bucket List.  Perhaps we could start with the highest mountain here in Nova Scotia – The Pinnacle which is 1533 ft in elevation.  It ranks as the 9974th highest peak on Canada.  A perfect place for us to start. And then Everest.  With an elevation of 29, 029 ft.  So that’s the plan.  At least it’s MY plan.  Dare to dream?  Right?  It’s all about the journey….

Have a good one!

©  Linda Wozniak

My human is worried that something is wrong with me.  Little does she know that my odd behavior is simply what one calls intermittent reinforcement.

Yesterday morning, we let her sleep in until 5:30.  And that was enough sleep as far as we were concerned.  Especially on a weekend. So just as we were getting ready to go out for our morning constitutional aka bunny hunt, my human got a text from our neighbor – Jackson’s human.  Did we all want to go for a run/walk together?  Sure!  So off we went to meet Jackson.

I’m sure I’ve mentioned before that Jackson behaves.  Yes, he goes in EVERY puddle, pond, body of water he sees, but he’s a Lab, and otherwise he is very well behaved.  So he gets to run free.  And Velcro dog got to run free.  But moi?  Well my human was hesitant as we KNOW I DO have a tendency, ON OCCASION, to go off exploring.  But my human decided to roll the dice and take a chance.  And here is where the intermittent reinforcement comes into play.  Not only did I NOT run off, I didn’t want to leave her side.  It got to the point where she had to keep saying “Go – free – be free – go play.” In fact, I was SO well behaved that she started to wonder if something was wrong with me.  But you see, it is all part of training.  You behave on one walk, and not only do you get extra treats, but the next time you go for a run, you are assured that you will be allowed off leash again.  Trust me- this is part of a bigger plan.  Training humans is SUCH great fun.

Have a super Monday!