Lap Dog

. . .but, I wanted a little lap dog. That’s like wanting a lap cat. There is nothing inherent in a dog’s size that MAKES them want to be a lap dog. I know a lot of Golden Retrievers, Pit Bulls, and Great Danes who are wonderfully, huge lap dogs. I also know lots of Yorkies and Maltese who will avoid your reach because they aren’t interested in always being nestled on your lap.

I imagine that there are a lot of little dogs released to shelters or going from home to home because they aren’t lap dogs. And, there are probably cats given away because they are considered too needy when what you wanted was an independent pet who didn’t care if you were around.

If you want a lap dog and yours doesn’t quite fit that characterization, relax and give it time. Don’t grab at them or chase them down. Let them be and when they come to you, praise them, but don’t reach out. Let them get close to you on their own.

If you keep grabbing at them they will approach with caution and stay just far enough away that you can’t possibly get them. Believe me, they learn very quickly that your next move will be an attempt to convince them that they really ARE a lap dog but haven’t yet experienced the joy of being smothered by you. If given time and patience, your dog may decide that being near you isn’t so bad.

The moral of the story – if you don’t have the dog you want, want the one you have!

Pit Bull Fighting

My name is Olive. I’m a Staffordshire Bull Terrier. You can see how nice I look. I’m even smiling in this picture. It wasn’t always this way. I was part of a Pit Bull fighting ring. Here’s how my life started. . .

They took me from my Mom too young. I was scared. Then, I got pregnant. I can still hear the men’s voices and they are yelling. The other dogs around me are filled with fear that turns to rage. They are fighting again. I’m glad that this time they “used” another dog to get them stirred up.

On a good day, I’m left in this tiny pen listening to dogs fighting and men yelling. I let the fear fill me and I sit and shake. Why me?

On a bad day? I hear someone say, get her. She’ll get the other dogs to fight. They toss me into the pen. The first dog seems to really hate me. I have to defend myself, and as much as it makes me uncomfortable, it’s instinct. I need to protect my unborn pups. I don’t know if I’m relieved or scared even more when the other dog held to the side is released. It means that now I’ll get removed until next time.

Finally, I was able to escape, and I ran away. I wanted to run and to keep running to get away from how I felt. On one paw, I wanted to keep running so that I could feel safe, and yet I was too scared to be alone. I didn’t know what to do. I met some nice people who took me into their home. I was beat up and covered in sores from mange. I listen for the yelling and the other dogs fighting, but so far that hasn’t happened. Yet. I will always wonder if it’ll happen again.

That was seven years ago. Since then, I’ve been living in a love-filled home with other nice dogs. Without words, I can only show what I’m feeling. Even after all these years, I have moments where I panic. I want to run and run just to get away from the feeling that is buried deep inside me. It’s buried in the place that makes my tail wag – or in this case, not wag.

There are a lot of moments where I forget what happened. I’m joyful and my tail can’t stop from moving. Other days, I sit and stare and want to hide. I hear my “Mom” talking with people about me. She has loved me and kept me safe but she knows. She knows and can see that some times I’m lost.

The abuse I experienced from the dog fights will not leave me. I have new memories to put in their place, but some days that’s not so easy. I remember. It’s not a memory in my mind. It’s a memory in my soul. It’s consuming.

I hope there are big people who can stop dog fighting. Perhaps Oprah can do a show to bring more awareness to how horrible it is for us. Maybe some day the people who think this is a sport, will be able to feel in their hearts what I feel. If they do, they will never forget it. Nor will I.

Significance of Dog Names

I find dog names interesting. Some fit the dogs perfectly and some – not so much. Some are named after their appearance as in Scruffy. Some are named after their coloring as in Taffy or after their markings as in Spot.

Some have names that are always followed by an inquisitive “oh, that’s an interesting name. What does it mean?” It could mean “I needed something clever so that my dog would know it’s greatness.” Or, sometimes it is something of interest but certainly not to the dog. =)

Some are named based on their stature or physical size like Goliath. Some for the personality that their people hope they have as in Zorro or Zena. Some are given human names like Mikey or Sam. You’ll have to ask them about that.

I don’t think the name is all that important because let’s face it, we could call them anything and given enough repetition they’d respond. It often seems that the name isn’t as significant as the tone used when saying it. It’s important to remember that. (Tone will be a topic for another post.)

The truth is, I think we pick names for our dogs because we don’t think we can consistently spell or say mujulickylululoveypuppy. That’s their “real” name.

What’s your dog’s REAL name?

Why Spay or Neuter Your Dog

One BIG reason:

Stop Puppy Mills

PUPPY MILLS ARE A TRAGEDY! It’s beyond horrible that these places exist at all. Thanks to Oprah and Lisa Ling for the investigative report exposing these farms, thousands are aware. Now, we can’t act like we don’t know that they exist. TODAY.

The ONLY way for this to stop is for us to NEVER buy a puppy from a store or a pet shop. Reputable breeders would not let their dogs be sold by someone else. They care about their dogs and the homes that they go to.

When buying a dog, don’t be embarrassed to ask a lot of questions. If the seller loves their dog, they will welcome your inquiries. You owe it to the dog and yourself.

It’s challenging not to justify buying this adorable, sweet, innocent puppy from the store because we know that it’s most likely from a puppy mill and we are going to “save” it. We may save one, but there are hundreds of other dogs that will suffer and die needlessly so we can “save” one.

What a lot of people don’t realize is that not only may their new $1500 “rescued” puppy be ill and traumatized, chances are housebreaking may be more than a challenge. These dogs pee and poop where they stand. It’s like putting them in jail without a bathroom. They have no choice. We have a choice. . .

The stores need to suffer the financial consequence of no one buying their pups and then the breeders will be put out of business.

And, if by some magical six degrees of separation this note gets to Lisa Ling, there are a couple of stores where I live that are almost guaranteed to be selling LOTS of puppy mill pups. Thanks to everyone who works to shut down the mills.

For more information:

http://stoppuppymills.org/

http://www2.oprah.com/world/global/slide/200804/global_20080404_101.jhtml