dogNblog

That’s alot of llamas (750) and other beasts.

In today’s Gazette there is an ad for a lost Jack Russell female, 12th & Ave D, and an ad for a found Jack Russell female, 13th & Ave C.  No doubt these ads will hook up.

In the June 2008 edition of BARk magazine there is a great article about the breed, whose name comes from the breed’s “developer”, Reverend John Russell.  He was an ardent fox hunter and the dog’s job was to drive a fox out of it’s underground den (terrier: terra: earth).

After reading the article, I understand better my dad’s arguments against conformation breeders.  The Reverend was after a “type” not a “breed” specifically. And so begins the argument against closing stud books, because once you do that, the inherent ills of inbreeding are begotten.

Please read the attached about the Think Dog Seminar coming to Billings.  Sounds like a great program.

But note, the location is the Women’s Prison, so if you do want to attend, per the application, you are required to provide both your social security number and date of birth, which is a bit unnerving.

The program:

think_dog_brochure_-_billings_9-27-08_final.pdf

The Parade Magazine has an article about choosing a mutt or a purebred dog. You can read the article here.

I like the results of the unscientific poll, whose question was story-related. Of 285 votes, 163 felt a mutt makes a better family pet. Yeah, for shelter pets. I have only purchased one purebred dog in my life. We loved her dearly and she was an excellent family member.  But in terms of dollar value, we didn’t get more dog for our money with a purebred.  Since buying Flossie, we’ve adopted Perle, Henry, Rosie, Lucy and Gordon, and a few cats, and all have given us just as much joy, or heartache.

No matter whether it was purebred dog or mutt however, we chose based on our knowledge of the breed, or general type, and our willingness to take the necessary steps to manage the animal.  In the case of Gordon:  heightening the fence!

One of the links provided on this blog is to Turid Rugaas, a woman who understands animals.  (Big time.)  One of the canine behaviors she talks about is “calming signals.” I’m not sure I understand it well, but it is as though the dog who displays calming signals is a peace-maker.

In the June 2008 edition of BARk magazine, the article “Reigning Cats & Dogs” discusses this peace-maker concept when describing how a situation was handled where a dog and a cheetah were learning to get along. (Hey, don’t try that at home!)

Anyway, to resolve the issue of Sara, the Cheetah, and Lexi, the Anatolian Shepherd, not getting along: “one of the zoo’s trainers recruited her own dog, a Labrador/Setter mix named Riley, to mediate. The pup and cub went to the trainer’s house, where, if they fought, Riley jumped in the middle and barked until peace was restored.”

It’s serious business, how this works. Something few humans understand.

On the lighter side, can you see this mediation technique used in human settings? Mediator as barker?

I am dog-sitting a dog who is an “only.”  She is a retriever-type who spent the first two and a half years of her life pretty much alone, in her backyard.  When the owner’s were moving, they turned her into a shelter.  I adopted her out of the shelter, intent on finding her a home, which I did.  She is the only dog in her new home, but gets to spend more time indoors.

She has an interesting resource guarding tendency: she guards her person.  Not a toy, not her food, her person.  Other people can get close to her person, but if other dogs get close, she’ll get snipy. That is, until you tell her to knock it off.  I haven’t cured her tendency, but around me, anymore, if another dog moves in, she’ll hold her ground, but lick their mouth instead of sniping at them.

When she first came out of the shelter, she spent three weeks with me, and the first time she sniped, she got a time out. She needed a few more before she figured out that behavior would ban her from the pack.  And, she likes to be with the pack!  She wants to be closest to mom, but she does like the other dogs as well.

Her mom tells me that sometimes after a longer visit with us, once she goes home, she is depressed for a few days.  That tells me, she really does like the pack society when she is here.

I guess she’ll just have to come over more often.

Today’s Gazette article about the potbellied pig issue sent me googling, and many of the references described these animals as clean and odor free.

Their life span is 12-18 years and spaying or neutering is recommended.

Ownership isn’t for the uneducated, housing and care are important considering their intelligence: if they are bored….they can be quite destructive.

Probably the most interesting thing I read about them is that many end up abandoned. So, like other domestic pets, if you are thinking about acquiring one, why not consider adopting? Here’s one shelter to consider.

I wish the article described what the city saw as the problem that spurred the ordinance against them. Considering the popularity of these pigs for at least the last 10 years, why outlaw them instead of considering regulations and licensing?

At the state of Wisconsin, when they refer to swine, they parenthetically add: (including potbellied pigs).

At this site, they are referred to as “dwarf swine.”

Over the last few years I’ve seen more advertising of dog walking services. Today’s Gazette has a good size display ad for a company called dogs n sync. The large print states: “Daily dog hikes…because a tired dog is a good dog.”

They have a web address here.  Check them out yourself.

It’s nice to see more and more of these pet-friendly types of services in Billings.  Like the new signage at the Billings Animal Shelter states: Pets are wonderful. Indeed.

Lucy had fun and met new friends at Two Moon Park today.  She is a great trail dog, she sticks close.

This is a good read. Billings has many resources, that, through a perfect storm of collaboration, could build a lasting service dog program in this community.