Monday 7.27.09
Birthdays today include wrestler Triple H, a real beast, he is 39, Peggy Fleming is 60, her swan like grace gets her a mention today, for sure.  Our pet pic goes to Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod turns 33, he recently settled a five-year-old dispute with a carpet installer who claims A-Rod's dog bit him. His German Shepard Gypsy died a few years back and he still is looking for a new dog.


Tuesday 7.28.09
Garfield's Jim Davis is our pet pic, he turns 63 and has done for cats what Charles Schulz did for dogs!  Sally Struthers is 60, Jackie O would have been 79 today.

Wednesday 7.29.09     Wanya Morris of Boyz II Men turns 35, not a boy anymore! Julian "Nip/Tuck" McMahon is 40 and our pet pic - here he is holding a dog - not his, for a celebrity event.  His dog connection, besides often playing one, is he was married to Brooke - Dog Eat Dog-  Burns.

Politicos Marilyn Quayle and Elizabeth Dole also celebrate today – and Benito Mussolini was born today too! Ironic, isn’t it?!

Thursday7.30.09                                                                                                                          Hilary Swank is 34  She and her boyfriend/agent John Campisi went to the Valley Animal Shelter to adopt a dog, here's our pet pic.  Vivica A. Fox 44, obviously a pet favorite, Lisa Kudrow is 45 honorable mention for her work in Hotel for Dogs, Laurence 'Fish'burne is 47, also an animal name!

Friday 7.31.09 Superman Dean Cain is 42 and our pet pic today, here he is buying super quantities of Nutro Max (a personal favorite of my dog, Sam),JK Rowling is 43 and gets an honorable mention for all the wild and woolly animals in her books and movies!,  Lurch, Ted Cassidy was also born today. He died at 46, we mention him today, because he looked more animal than human!

Saturday 8.1.09                                                                                                                                         Coolio is 45 today & our pet pic.  Here he is with his dog Simba, Honorable mentions to Jerry Garcia, who would have been 66, clearly he had animal magnetism.  Counting 'Crows' Adam Duritz is 44, Tom Leykis is 52 a real radio dog. Also born on this day, whale of an author Herman Melville –

Sunday 8.2.09                                                                                                                            SNL’s Victoria Jackson is 49, Terminator 2’s Edward Furlong is 31 and our pet pick for his work in Pet Sematary 2, how about when his wife's head turns into a barking dog!  OJ Judge Lance Ito turns 58 - if only he'd paid more attention to the wail of Nicole's dog.  Also born on this day Peter Otoole, Carroll O’Connor & Myrna Loy.

It’s July, it’s hot and sitting here in my air conditioned office, I’m watching my dog Sam sleep on the couch. He knows it’s too hot to do anything else. He knows, that for awhile, he’s better off just sleeping until things cool down. Sometimes that is the best plan.

These are indeed ‘the dog days of summer’ – one of those oft used phrases that people spout without really thinking about what it means or how the phrase came to be and if there is any literal connection with its proverbial one. Turns out there is – ancient Romans named this time of year ‘the dog days’. They named it so because Canis Major (big dog) Sirius, aka dog star, rises and sets with the sun during late July and believed it created heat adding to that of the sun’s - giving us 40 or so days of hot and steamy weather.

And so it bears repeating some good sense summer pet tips. Firstly, secondly and thirdly, water! Make sure your pet has water. I’ve noticed that my dog’s bowl is emptier sooner and also evaporates more quickly, so I keep two bowls around the house instead of just one. Also, I keep a couple water bottles in my car so that if something should happen while I’m driving around with him, I have enough for both of us. On that note, don’t leave them in the car NO MATTER WHAT. Even a few minutes is too long.

Travelling with your pets is getting easier these days, too – so many places accept pets, and there are plenty of dog day cares, summer camps, and pet resorts, so make use of them. Also, more and more places let you bring your pets inside, like the home improvement stores, and pet stores, as well as pet-friendly busineses.

Finally, just like everything, use common sense. If it’s too hot for you, maybe you should follow your dog’s lead and just lay down on the couch and take a nap – sometimes that’s all you can do!

Although summer heat has nothing to do with Sirius and all to do with the tilt of the earth toward the sun, I always like to know how things get their name. Now you know, too!

Hope you all have a great 4th of July Holiday. I always enjoy the fireworks, especially the ones at the Dog Park, that's why we write Dog Park Dirt! Feel Free to send us your contributions. Remember to keep your pet safe during any firework events - they are very sensitive to the noise. If you are traveling - enjoy the holiday and have some fun with your pet, there are so many great pet travel networks. Check MyPetLikes for more info and also Twitter and of course Google. Finally, we hope you enjoy the Special July 4th Slide Show, these are not for human consumption!!! My dog would never wear a get up like that. Send us your dogs in costume so that we can feature them.

Finally, look for more fun in July with our member contest. Beginning today, for every person you refer that signs up gets you both entered into the drawing. So you can get many, many entries. Prizes include a FURminator worth over $50.00 from our friends at Value Pet Supplies, a really cool Charm for your pet's collar from Big Paw Designs, and a custom blanket from Barking Dog Blankets.

You'll find it all on mypetmug.com

"Man is a dog's idea of what God should be."
- Holbrook Jackson

Father's Day used to be one of my favorite holidays - the consummate Daddy's Girl, I had a special bond with my Dad and loved celebrating 'his' day! Lots of great memories there. My Dad has since passed and I've spent the last several years since trying to ignore this holiday. That's until we adopted our dog Sam. You see, our dog Sam has quickly become the child we never had. I think of my husband and how much he loves him, our kid, our little bundle of joy, the center of the universe! Since he's come along I've started celebrating Father's Day again!! I like to get a special Father's Day card from the dog. My husband's eyes light up when he reads it. It gives me the chance to remind my husband how special he is and how much I know that little kid loves him! It's just another one of those surprising ways you find a pet enriches your life!

So this Sunday, take some time to honor your pet's Dad! A card from the dog -(You can find these where most cards are sold) or just make your own. You can also make out special coupons (see MyPetNews) for gifts for Dad from the dog! How about baking some real cookies for Dad, in the shape of dog treats, he just might think the Dog made them! Get creative, have some fun and don't forget the Dads in your pet's life! I'll end it with another great quote - put this on a nice plaque, frame or write it inside a card - what Dad wouldn't love it?

I talk to him when I'm lonesome like,
and I'm sure he understands.
When he looks at me so attentively,
and gently licks my hands;
Then he rubs his nose on my tailored clothes,
but I never say naught thereat,
For the good Lord knows I can buy more clothes,
but never a friend like that!"

- W. Dayton Wedgefarth

To the best of my memory, I've never had an overweight dog. But then, I've never owned a Beagle before, or rather a Beagle mix, such as my dog Lola, who is mostly Beagle. The first of this year Lola turned three, and it was about that time I noticed she had developed some pudge in her mid-section, and was it any wonder? This dog is a relentless foodie! She sits in front of the cupboard where I keep her dog treats and whines for a biscuit or chewie, and as she whines with her chocolate eyes fixed on me, guilt sets in and I cave into her begging. So next thing I know, my lovable moocher is overweight , although thankfully not yet obese. What's an owner of a Beagle with an insatiable appetite to do? Well, in this case it was to take up brisk walking for about 40 minutes to an hour in an effort to melt the fat, and to my delight, it seems to have worked. She has dropped most of the weight with just a little bit more to go. And, I've benefited as well. My legs are better toned, I've lost about 5 unwanted pounds, and my energy level has improved somewhat.
A dog as a pet can bring many contributions to a person's life, one of them being that they have a tendency to get you out of the house. As a rule, a dog won't let you ignore their needs. They have a way of begging, whining, or just being a nuisance to the point that, if you're human at all, you can't possibly disregard them. Dogs are born with an enthusiasm for life and with energy to match. It behooves us, their caretakers, to provide them an outlet for play and exercise. So, for the dog's sake as well as your own, get out of the house, walk around the block, go to the dog park, walk the track around the football field-wherever you feel inclined, and get yourself and your dog moving. I can assure you, you'll both live longer and be happier. Now, that's what I call love.

So there we were talking and walking around the park like we do most every night. It’s always nice to catch up with friends for us and our dogs! We were talking about this great movie (ca. 1993) The Bear, when we see a tiny puff of what looked like fur or feathers right in our path. It was a tiny, and I mean tiny baby quail. The chick looked like it hatched less than a couple of days ago. Somehow, it managed to stumble from the desert through the chain link fence and into our midst. Its tiny eyes were open and the expression on its face was a mildly sad, yet somewhat earnest look of innocence. No sooner did we spot it than, Sabrina ‘the savior’ scooped it up and held up to chest, like a real mama chick. As we all marveled at this tiny chick surviving a bunch of dogs, desert, & destiny it was time to think about what to do now. The group consensus was to get it to the Humane Society and ‘the bird lady’ a woman in town known to take in injured and homeless Avians. After several phone calls and information it was now time to decide who could take it overnight and get it to the vet & bird lady in the morning, since, no one takes wildlife situations on after hours or something like that! Thank goodness our friend Jackie was there, because if ever there was an advocate for animals, she’s the chick. Now she was the chick with the chick. She took care of it all night, getting up at 3 in the morning to check on the chick. Good news for all, the chick was delivered to the vet this morning and on its way to recovery and reintroduction into the world!

Whenever a group of people and in this case dogs, get together, over time they will start to form their own sub groups – cliques really. I knew people did it, but I see the dogs doing it too. Just yesterday, while taking my afternoon constitutional around the park, I noticed several cliques. There’s the Bijon Beauties, (their owners all have short curly hair, too!) they like to all hang out together and frolic amongst themselves, clearly they like the way they look! The Poodle Pack, they sit next to or on top of their owners who all sit on the benches, really couldn’t they do that at home? The Yapping Yorkies hang near their owners and really don’t care about other dogs. In the middle, mixing it up are all the mutts, my dog falls into that category, except we like to call it a Designer Dog! Anyway, they seem to have the most fun, because they are a little bit of everything they seem to find something in common with every dog, something we should all try to do, don’t you think?

This last February the Pyrotechnics Convention was in town as it is every year. The blasting off of fireworks goes on for an entire week with a finale at the end. The fireworks are really a site to behold. Being a convention, the pyrotechies bring with them the best and brightest of the fireworks industry, and we Havasu residents get free admission to the nightly shows. As any dog owner knows, fireworks are no friend of the canine. While we humans hear the fireworks as a mere ka-boom, a dog's ears are hearing atomic bombs drop. Some pet owners who were thinking ahead had their vets give them sedatives for their dogs, especially those who live near the outskirts of town where the fireworks were taking place.

Lake Havasu's pet owners had just welcomed in a newly constructed dog park around the first of January, 2009. The park is situated about two miles away from the site where the fireworks were being set off and tested. It was about 4:10 in the afternoon and because the February weather was crisp and perfect, the dog park was literally packed full of dogs playing and frolicking as usual with their owners watching on and enjoying the winter in the desert. It was at this moment that a round of 15 to 20 rockets exploded in the sky one right after the other, in broad daylight. What happened then could only be described as pure pandemonium. Dogs began running in circles, jumping the 4 foot high fence, colliding with people and other dogs, and even defecating on themselves. To say that the dogs were scared is almost an understatement. Terrorized might be a better fit. There were a few dogs that received mild injuries and were ultimately alright, but one particular dog caught in the mayhem would end up having irreversible damage done to his body, and that dog's name was Dylan, an Irish Wolfhound who was fondly referred to as, The Gentle Giant.

When I first saw Dylan and his owner Bill, I couldn't help but stare at them. We were at an event called, Dogs' Day in the Park. I was there with my Beagle, Lola meandering from booth to booth when I saw this pony-sized dog walking down the sidewalk. I knew it was an Irish Wolfhound from pictures I had seen, but this was my first real glimpse at the live version. This dog was huge! His hair was grayish and scruffy. He had long legs, and eyes that looked almost human, and I learned, his name was Dylan. Dylan's owner Bill had grayish hair, a bit of a scruffy beard, and he too had long legs. Never before had I seen a dog and his owner look so much alike. Eventually, I got to know Bill and Dylan when they visited the temporary dog park, which was a sectioned off piece of a baseball field, and when the new park was finished, Bill and Dylan were frequent visitors there.

When the unexpected explosion of fireworks went off that afternoon last February, neither Bill, nor any of us dog park regulars, could have known that it would be Dylan's last visit to this beautiful new park that we dog owners had so eagerly, yet patiently, been waiting for. As the dogs tried to dodge the sound of the thunderous sky, Dylan, whose long legs were not meant to sprint or make sudden dashes, tore ligaments in three of his legs that were almost beyond repair, and injured his two front knees as well. The cry of pain that came from Dylan still haunts the minds of those who were there to help Bill lift Dylan into his car to get him to the vet. As it was, Bill learned that the cost to attempt a repair on Dylan would be phenomenal enough, but the worse of it was that Dylan would have to be in three very confining leg casts for up to three months with no guarantee that he would ever be the same, and that the recovery would be painful. Regretfully, Bill made the decision to put Dylan down. He couldn't see him suffer more than he already had.

Many of the dog park regulars were mad at the city for not posting warnings of possible firework blasts during daylight hours, but Bill handled it like a gentleman. He simply went to the next City Council meeting and explained to the council that he would not want anyone else to suffer the loss of a pet the way he did, and could they please make sure to post warning signs at the dog park next year so as to alert dog owners who might not otherwise be aware of possible fireworks going off during daylight hours.

One month after the incident, Bill got another Irish Wolfhound from the same breeder he got Dylan from. Bill named him Tonka. There will never be another Dylan, that gentle giant we grew to love, but we know that Tonka will grow in our hearts the same as Dylan had.

Situated in a conspicuous spot of the chain link fence at the dog park is a metal plaque that fellow dog lover and advocate, Christine Durenberger had made to the memory of Dylan. On the plaque, Dylan is referred to as, "The Peacemaker." Indeed, he was.

Sybilla & Sabrina

After watching American Idol & DWTS, I couldn’t help but think about the Underdog and how uplifting it is when the Underdog triumphs. I like rooting for the Underdog (heck I was an LA Rams fan back in the late 80s and we were always the underdog, so I have some experience here). It seems like we make a lot of dog references to describe people and their personalities, like the one you root for - the underdog - and conversely the popular favorite - the top dog. A person who shows off is a hot dog; a leader or popular person is the big dog; your feet are also your dogs, sometimes your feet may be dog tired. When something good happens you are a lucky dog, or you may say, "Hot Diggety Dog!" and not so good -sick as a dog, dog tired, dog eat dog , dog it, or going to the dogs. A person who is not so nice is said to be a dirty dog, meaner than junkyard dog, or gives a dog a bad name. Uncommonly stubborn people are said to be like a dog with a bone, or bulldogs. The dog may often be your scapegoat, as in the dog ate my homework, blame it on the dog, hair of the dog that bit you. There are wise sayings and expressions with dogs, like let sleeping dogs lie, a barking dog never bites and you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, for instance. I wonder if dogs have people references and if they do what are they saying about me?

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