Happy Puppy Ending
This story about the joyful return of a missing dog five years after it was lost is heartwarming for sure. It also brings to mind something we’ve discussed frequently on Pet Show — pet identification tags and microchips. They are so important. Bo was reunited with his family because he had a microchip. Some claim that microchips may cause cancer, but that hasn’t been widely proven. You may want to speak to your veterinarian. It’s also important to have collars, identification tags and licence tags on dogs and cats in case they get lost. In summertime, that’s often a problem since people and their pets are outside more often. Use of several methods is wise in case one thing fails. That way you can help your furry friend every opportunity to find his way home in the event he gets lost.
- Staff Writer Dawn Marks
Doggy dancing
I’m not sure about what’s going on in Japan.
Dog dancing is apparently the hottest new trend.
The animals bob and weave, duck and trot. It’s kind of interesting to watch – it’s a feat of training talent. But the Japanese aren’t the only ones who are into this – Americans participate in dog dancing, too.
Of my two dogs, I think one of them would be interested, mostly because she’d finally have an excuse to flip out and squirm around. Now she just does it solo.
Do you dog dance? Send us your pictures! Email them to ccoppernoll@oklahoman.com.
- Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Deadline
Last week our cat Deadline died. We’re still going through the grieving process in our family. He became part of our family almost 11 years ago when we found him beside the road and were taken with his pretty grey fur with white markings. We took him back to the house nearby and discovered that he was part of a litter of strays the family there was caring for. During the evening, we discussed what we would name a kitten if we had one and after settling upon the perfect name for a cat owned by a couple of journalists, we decided to go back and get him. He soon became a big source of entertainment for us. He played fetch and often “spoke” to us. He was a really loud and mischevious cat who often ate my plants and slept on the table. But he was so smart and often very sweet. We loved him. In his later years, we called him Old Man much of the time, but he was still quite playful. He tolerated our daughter’s sometimes rough love and all the other pets we brought into his house.
We still haven’t decided how we’ll best memorialize him. Perhaps I’ll make a stone for him to put in the flower bed since he would have loved snacking there or maybe we’ll do the Monday Candle Ceremony for lost pets. Either way, I know we won’t soon forget our little family member.
- Staff Writer Dawn Marks
Good idea? Maybe not.
So here’s an idea for you cat owners. We found this Web site with cat wigs. They come in all kinds of colors and styles and sit nicely on top of kitty heads. They can wear a stylish pink flip or a shocking electric blue number. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think that would happen in my house. I don’t think Cottonball would ever consent to wearing a wig. My biggest question is how do the wigs stay on? Maybe some of you want to give it a try! Good luck.
- Staff Writer Dawn Marks
Ever seen a naked squirrel
This one has vets in England stumped. The bald squirrel’s name is Smoothie. I honestly don’t know what to say about this.
- Staff Writer Bryan Dean
Calling all dogs
I need one of these dogs.
Prison officials in Maryland have trained dogs to find cell phones. Criminals use cell phones to run their illegal operations from within prison walls. Like all kinds of other contraban – drugs, cigarettes, weapons – they’re smuggled inside. These pups are helping to keep the bad stuff out in the digital age.
If only I could train my dogs to do this. I’m notorious for losing my cell phone. This would probably save me an hour each day if one of my dogs could hunt down my phone, or at least point to the area of the house where it is. Right now all they do is watch me hunt in frustration. Those lazy pups.
- Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
Snow leopards born at the Oklahoma City Zoo
Two snow leopard cubs were born at the Oklahoma City Zoo, and the public will be able to see them Aug. 1.
The cubs were born May 19, and zoo officials announced their birth July 10.
The cubs weighed about 2 pounds at birht. They’ve spent the past two months in seclusion with their mother. This was the first litter of snow leopards born at the Oklahoma City Zoo in 16 years.
Listen to a special breaking news edition of Pet Show about the snow leopard births.
Read the full story in The Oklahoman tomorrow, and check NewsOK.com (and The Dog House) on Saturday for photos and videos of the little ones. This is a photo I took two years ago of one of the snow leopards. I promise our photographers will take better pictures.
- Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
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Are pets politically pleasing?
A new AP-Yahoo poll found pet owners favor the candidate who has pets of his own.
The poll shows that pet owners prefer McCain to Obama, 42 to 37 percent. McCain who owns two dogs, two turtles, a cat, a ferret, three parakeets and many saltwater fish. McCain was especially favored by canine folks. Non-pet owners favor Obama to McCain, 48 to 34 pcent. He has no pets.
Since many of us treat our dogs like part of the family, this is not that surprising. We are known to feed them our food, talk to them and let them sleep in our beds, so it seems natural we might identify with a candidate who shares our love for pets.
The election may very well be going to the dogs.
- Staff Writer Monica Albert
The couch isn’t a face towel
A friend of mine sent me this as a forward, and it made me laugh.
It also made me happy to know my dogs aren’t the only ones who rub their faces all over the couch for who knows what reason. Maybe this proves they’re normal? Well, maybe not.
- Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
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Let me give you a list of just some of the things I must remember to be a good dog.
1 . I will not eat the cats’ food before they eat it or after they throw it up.
2. I will not roll on dead seagulls, fish, crabs, etc., just because I like the way they smell.
3. The Litter Box is not a cookie jar.
4. The sofa is not a ‘face towel’.
5. The garbage collector is not stealing our stuff.
6. I will not play tug-of-war with Dad’s underwear when he’s on the toilet.
7. Sticking my nose into someone’s crotch is an unacceptable way of saying “hello”.
8. I don’t need to suddenly stand straight up when I’m under the coffee table.
9. I must shake the rainwater out of my fur before entering the house – not after.
10. I will not come in from outside and immediately drag my butt.
11. I will not sit in the middle of the living room and lick my crotch.
12. The cat is not a ‘squeaky toy’ so when I play with him and he makes that noise, it’s usually not a good thing.
Pet Show – AKC pups and their people
Listen to Pet Show! This week we discussed the AKC 21st Century Dog Owner Study, a research publication put out by the American Kennel Club. It’s an interesting look into the life of owners of AKC registered dogs. We learned all kinds of things, like that AKC owners spend about $30 a month on vitamins for their dogs and that Oklahoma Citians like little dogs (Yorkies are No. 1).
Dawn gave us some great tips for how to handle the loss of a pet. She recently lost one of her beloved cats. Be on the look out for a blog about grieving for your pets from Dawn soon.
Bryan gave us his usual grab bag of crazy pet news:
- - A London receptionist thought a vibration in her bra was a phone. Turns out it was a bat.
- - Weiners are meaner.
- - Speaking of meaner wieners, a mini Dachshund in Illinois ate his owner’s toe.
- - A Kansas boy was bit by a bat. It was a pet bat. He found it and put it in his dog’s cage because the dog catcher doesn’t work on Sundays, his mom said.
- Staff Writer Carrie Coppernoll
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