Archive for the 'Pet Stories' Category

Are There More Right-Pawed Dogs Than Left-Pawed Dogs?

A southpaw is what they used to call a left-handed pitcher in baseball and believe it or not, just like us humans where some of us are born right-handed and others left-handed, a dog can be either left pawed or right pawed. I always thought that was a funny way to describe a left-hander because when I hear "paw" I think of a dog, but baseball is a weird game anyway.

It has been well documented that some dogs will twirl when they get excited, especially the smaller ones like Yorkies or Pomeranian's. Which direction they twirl in, we suspect, has to do with the "handedness" of a dog. A right pawed dog would twirl in a clockwise direction and a left pawed dog would twirl in a counterclockwise spin. I got this bit of dog lore from Clay Thompson's column in the Arizona Republic although he does say he is only guessing when he responds to a reader with a question about twirling dogs. I think it's a reasonable explanation as to why some dogs twirl in a certain direction and others go the opposite way.

Of course once you think you have figured it out along comes a dog that spins in both directions, sort of ambigdogerous, which in baseball, means a switch hitter. (more…)

How Much is Too Much?

Hard question to answer, especially if you found yourself in a situation similar to mine, that of having owned a dog for one day before he was  stricken with an almost fatal illness. It almost cost him his life and me money I didn't have. That's when you have to look within yourself, you know it's the right thing to do, that of giving a dog or cat a shot at a good life. But if the money isn't there what can you do?

The vet took one look at my dog's condition and his first words were "since you just adopted this dog yesterday, fortunately you have not had a chance to bond with this dog so we will prepare to put him down". I was agast, What was that you just said? 'Doc, this dog had me at woof, do what you need to do to save him.'

This was a question that I was reading about in a waiting room at the dentists office, just a month before I adopted my dog. This guy they were doing a story about had a cat that was blind and needed more work, surgery and care requiring thousands of dollars, all this  on a pet that was already 14 years old. I wondered then what I would do in a situation like that and since I didn't own a dog or a pet then, the clinical decision I arrived at would surprise me later.

He didn't hesitate to do what it took for that cat because #1, he loved it and #2 he could afford it. What about those of us who can't afford it, what would you do?

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Mattel Toys has introduced a cool little gadget that will have your dog paying for himself in no time at all. Not that we need payback from our dogs, at least not in cash anyway, their unconditional love is worth every dime we spend on dog food, as is every penny spent on dog accessories and vet bills. But wouldn't it be cool if ol Fido (in my case, Duke) himself could contribute toward the family bottom line?

Do you have any doubt for one minute that if your dog thought he could make you some cash, he wouldn't?, man, they LOVE us! Well, now they can really show their appreciation by using social media the way it was supposed to be used – showing the lazy among us how making money online is so easy that a dog can do it.

This new toy called Puppy Tweets may just be a way for your dog to make money online! Those crazy Mattel toy scientists have spent way too much time on Twitter, I guess it was inevitable that they come up with Puppy Tweets, social media for dogs.

Next thing you know there will be Barkbook, MyCrate, Digger and a whole bunch of others. Soon to be followed by other sorts of canine social media engines such as; Microbarking, Barkcasts and free dlog platforms like Dogger and Wordpaw.  I think my dog would say that Delicious speaks for itself.

This could be the next big thing! But wait! Puppy Tweets havn't even been released yet! But there is good news:  through an exclusive online offer available only by PetPx.com, you can now pre-order your Puppy Tweets. Be the first to have your dog Tweeting on Twitter. And as a special incentive for the 30th commenter to this post PetPx is offering a FREE Puppy Tweeter. But why wait?, pre-order your very own Puppy Tweeter today at PetPx and it will be shipped to you before the general public can get it's hands on it! (more…)

I love you Daddy!

I like cats as much as the next person but, WOW! is all I can say about this cat! I don't know the story behind this picture, I ran into it on Stumbleupon, which by the way is a really cool app,  if you haven't tried it yet, give it a go.

Cats have always been a favorite of mine, I just love that they don't seem to give a darn. My Mom used to say. "a dog will come back to you if you call him, a cat will tell you to take a number and they'll get back to you!"

Image via Wikipedia

Where do you suppose they keep the litter box for this rather large white tiger?

You heard right, monkey's best friend, not man's. At least in this particular case anyway, a case of love at first sight in the animal kingdom, and the incredible true story of a dog's bond with a orangutan.

This is one of the most heart-warming animal relationship stories I have seen. A hungry stray dog discovers the true meaning of friendship with a playful little orangutan. Any pet owner will find it fascinating, but it appeals especially to dog lovers, just like me!

I can just imagine my dog Duke, an 80 lb chocolate lab all snuggled up in the soft, hairy arms of an orangutan, would he prefer the monkey to man? What about your dog?