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Posts Tagged ‘Dog Stories with Happy Endings’

Should dogs be vegetarians or vegans?

July 24th, 2009 No comments

On Tuesday, July 22nd, little Gidget, the Chihuahua that Taco Bell made famous, died at 15 of a stroke  and people all over the world are mourning her passing.  And I feel that same sadness.  But what about the animals that were killed to make the Taco Bell food that Gidget was made to help sell?  Do we mourn for them?  Well of course not.  Apparently “farm animals” don’t count as real animals with souls and personalities so it’s OK to eat them.  And the fact that many companies use animals to help sell other animals that are to be eaten as food is just plain wrong.  When I see billboards of  cows trying to sell chickens as a more desirable food, I get so angry.

But what about feeding meat to our dogs?  Is it really necessary?  I think about this question frequently especially since there’s now raw meat involved when I feed my dogs.  I see blood and ground up organs and I am so aware that an animal died so I could feed this food to my dog.   I know there are people who feed their dogs a vegetarian diet and there’s vegetarian dog food that I could switch to.    In a study of vegan and vegetarian dogs, these dogs were healthier and had less chronic health problems than they did when they were fed meat.  Also, the dogs who were on a vegan diet did better than the ones on a vegetarian diet.

Making the decision to switch is a big one and I need to do more research to make sure I can provide healthy vegan food to my dogs.  What do you think we should be feeding our dogs?

On a lighter note, these two Taco Bell toys are available to buy at happydogsplay.com.

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$5.99 at happydogsplay.com

$12.99 at happydogsplay.com

$12.99 at happydogsplay.com

How dogs change everything

July 4th, 2009 No comments

When I first met Donna, she was clearly a cat person. She humored me about my dog fanaticism but I could tell that she really didn’t get it. That is, until she got her first Pomeranian puppy, Max. Donna’s life soon revolved around Max: she would only go on vacation if she could bring him along; she made little costumes for him for Halloween and Mardi Gras; she had professional photos taken of Max that she used on her Christmas cards; and she set up a video camera at home so she could see what Max was doing while she was at work. Then she got another puppy, CC and there’s no looking back. She officially lives in the Land of Dog with the rest of us and loves every minute of it.

Donna was the first person to send in photos of her dogs and so here they are. Max is orange and CC is chocolate & white.

Two beautiful Pomerainians from Folsom, LA

Two beautiful Pomeranians from Folsom, LA

The Pomeranians on vacation.

The Pomeranians on vacation.

“Just keep on walking.”

May 9th, 2009 No comments

Just keep on walking

My little helper

April 18th, 2009 No comments

I have been taking pictures of various gift baskets out in my yard and the other day, I realized that I had a little helper.  This is just one of those moments that we share with our dogs that make us love them even more (if that's possible).

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Jasmine, the Greyhound with a Big Heart

April 8th, 2009 No comments

Jasmine  In 2003, police in Warwickshire , England, opened a garden shed and found a  whimpering, cowering dog.  She had been locked in the shed and abandoned.  She was dirty and malnourished and had clearly been abused. In an act of  kindness, the police took the dog, who was a Greyhound female, to the  nearby  Nuneaton Warwickshire Wildlife Sanctuary, run by a man named Geoff  Grewcock and known as a willing haven for animals abandoned, orphaned or  otherwise in need.  

 Geoff and the other sanctuary staff went to work with two aims: to restore the  dog to full health and to win her trust. It took several weeks, but eventually  both goals were achieved. They named her Jasmine and they started to think  about finding her an adoptive home but Jasmine had other ideas. No one  remembers now how it began, but she started welcoming all animal arrivals at  the sanctuary. It wouldn't matter if it was a puppy, a fox cub, a rabbit or, any  other lost or hurting animal, Jasmine would peer into the box or cage and,  where possible, deliver a welcoming lick.  "We had two puppies that had been abandoned by a nearby railway line. One was a Lakeland Terrier cross and another was a Jack Russell Doberman cross. They were tiny when they arrived at the centre and Jasmine approached them and grabbed one by the scruff of the neck in her mouth and put him on the settee. Then she fetched the other one and sat down with them, cuddling them."

"But she is like that with all of our animals, even the rabbits. Image003She takes all the stress out of them and it helps them to not only feel close to her but to settle into their new surroundings.  She has done the same with the fox and badger cubs, she licks the rabbits and guinea pigs and even lets the birds perch on the bridge of her nose," said Geoff.  Jasmine, the timid, abused, deserted waif, became the animal sanctuary's resident surrogate mother, a role for which she might have been born. The list of orphaned and abandoned youngsters she has cared for comprises five fox cubs, four badger cubs, 15 chicks, eight guinea pigs, two stray puppies and 15 rabbits.

Image005  And one roe deer fawn. Tiny Bramble, 11 weeks old,  was  found semi-conscious in a field. Upon arrival at the  sanctuary, Jasmine cuddled up to her to keep her warm,  and then went into the full foster mum role. Jasmine  the  greyhound showers Bramble the Roe deer with  affection  and makes sure that nothing is matted.  "They  are  inseparable," says Geoff. "Bramble walks between  her  legs and they keep kissing each other. They walk  together round the sanctuary. It's a real treat to see  them. Jasmine will continue to care for Bramble until  she  is old enough to be returned to woodland life.  When that  happens, Jasmine will not be lonely.  She  will be too busy  showering love and affection of the  next orphan or victim  of abuse.


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Happiest Dog of the Month: Sophie Tucker

April 6th, 2009 No comments



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SYDNEY (AFP) – A pet dog that fell overboard in rough seas off Australia has been reunited with her owners after surviving alone on an island for four months, reports said. Sophie Tucker, apparently named after a late US entertainer, fell overboard as Jan Griffith and her family sailed through choppy waters off the northeast Queensland coast in November. The dog was believed to have drowned and Griffith said the family  was devastated. But out of sight of the family, Sophie Tucker was swimming doggedly and finally made it to St Bees Island, five  nautical miles away, and began the sort of life popularized by the TV reality show "Survivor."

She was returned to her family last week when Griffith contacted rangers who had captured a dog that had been living off feral goats on the largely uninhabited island, in the faint hope it might be their long-lost pet.

When the Griffiths met the rangers' boat bringing the dog to the mainland they found that it was indeed Sophie Tucker on board. "We called the dog and she started whimpering and banging the cage and they let her out and she just about flattened us," Griffith told the national AAP news agency. "She wriggled around like a mad thing. She surprised us all. She was a house dog and look what she's done, she's swum over five nautical miles, she's managed to live off the land all on her own," Griffiths said.  "We wish she could talk, we truly do."