Everything Dog

The blood of grown men runs cold at its sight. Women faint. Children scream. What cursed thing is this? It’s the dreaded dookie! Ithacans Against Dog Poop My town has gotten complaints for not being dog-friendly. After all, who would ban dogs from an outdoor pedestrian mall or a park on the lakeshore? Ithaca, that’s …

After recovering from being burned in effigy by readers offended by my Modest Puposal (BTW, if you found my post offensive, don’t read the Jonathan Swift piece that inspired it), I’d like to respond to the passionate comments. First off, every comment was made by a fabulous person who really cares about dogs and wants their …

I was excited. I was getting my first dog as an adult and could hardly wait. I dialed the number from the ad: “German Shepherd Rescue of Philadelphia has a handsome, two year old male looking for a home…” I told the woman who answered why I was calling. She started her list of questions …

You can’t read dog blogs for long without coming across discussion of poop. Sometimes they’re funny. And sometimes they’re worrisome. But poop is frequently on the mind of dog people. And then we apologize for finding it funny or a cause for stress. But here’s what’s going on. We think, talk, and write about poop because we …

Honey goes crazy for most people who visit so that meant nothing. Not until out on the street did we see the true strength of our friend’s super power. One after another, dogs stopped in their tracks to say hello to her. An old woman had to wait for her equally old dog to greet …

I had a disgusting revelation recently. I came upon a nearly empty bag of dog treats containing a mixture of crumbs and mouse droppings. Yum. It got me thinking of how dogs and cats fit easily into our lives, in part, because they can learn to defecate in acceptable places. But other animals—rats, mice, birds, …

I hate spending money on myself. But I don’t mind spending it on my dog. I’m cheap but… I have holes in my underwear. But Honey has a new leather leash. I don’t want to pay for a car, gas, or insurance.  But I have a $400 Doggy Ride bicycle cart that Honey won’t ride …

I would love it if every child and adult learned enough about canine body language to dramatically decrease bites. But let’s face it. It ain’t gonna happen. No matter how many PSAs or blog posts abound, people will continue to miss signals that a dog is stressed and may bite. It’s up to us. We …