Leader's net provides amusing dog stories, as well as health notes, health and healing tips, fun stuff and quotes:

A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead. He remembered dying, and that the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them.

After a while, they came to a high, white, stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight. When he was standing before it, he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother of pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold.

He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side. When he was close enough, he called out, "Excuse me, where are we?"

"This is Heaven, sir," the man answered.

"Wow! Would you happen to have some water?" the man asked.

"Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up." The man gestured, and the gate began to open. 

"Can my friend," gesturing toward his dog, "come in, too?" the traveler asked.

 "I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets."

 The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way he had been going with his dog.  After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road that led through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence.  As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book. 

"Excuse me!" he called to the reader. "Do you have any water?" 

"Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there." The man pointed to a place that couldn't be seen from outside the gate. "Come on in." 

"How about my friend here?" the traveler gestured to the dog. 

"There should be a bowl by the pump." They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveler filled the bowl and took a long drink himself, then he gave some to the dog.

When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree waiting for them.  "What do you call this place?" the traveler asked.

"This is Heaven," was the answer.

"Well, that's confusing," the traveler said..."The man down the road said that was Heaven, too?"

"Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope That's Hell."

"Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?"

"No. I can see how you might think so, but we're just happy that they screen out the folks who'll leave their best friends behind." [Leader's Net]

 DerShockwave says there are dog pictures at Dive into Mark. A whole album of fluffy dog awaits you at:  [dive into Mark]

Wuff! Wuff! [DerShockwave]

The most dangerous animal in the world is.... hint, think tiny... and in the news... too easy... you guessed it, the mosquito. CNN has published the definitive article on dangerous animals (Animal enemies: myth versus reality) and has  refreshing insight into why dog attacks occur:

'From 1979 to 1996, dog bites killed 340 people in the United States, with most of the fatalities involving children 14 and younger, according to the Centers for Disease Control. While Rottweilers and pit bulls were responsible for more than half of those deaths, experts stress that it's not fair to condemn a breed for what's usually the sin of its owner. Dozens of breeds, from dachshunds to Yorkshire terriers have caused deaths. Most dog attacks, said Dr. Randall Lockwood, an animal behavior expert, are predictable and preventable, the result of an owner's failure to properly raise, train, socialize and supervise an animal. 'Getting a dog as an offensive or defensive weapon is a lot like having a loaded handgun in the nightstand...' Usually a child, a family member, or a neighbor is the one who gets harmed. In his studies of more than 300 fatal dog attacks over the past 25 years, he says just one was a burglar.' [by Marsha Watson of CNN.com]

Take the What obscure animal are you test.... What Obscure Animal are you?  [these links gleefully found at The Presurfer's Lair]  To find out everything about everything go HERE
What Obscure Animal are you?

SPCA launches luxury animal shelter VA 'Spacious living accommodations with modern European-style furnishings. Classical music piped into every room. A spa area with professional groomers. The new shelter for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals [Richmond, VA] is set to open October 19, offering fur blow-dryers and music digitally altered to remove the ultrahigh and low notes that are so stressful to canine ears...' The idea is to create an animal shelter which will attract and keep people coming back... [Yahoo News] (absolutely a great idea... the District of Columbia's Washington Animal Rescue League has an attractive shelter which makes it easy to return again and again...)

Vet students raise $30K to help homeless animals WI 'Approximately 800 registrants and almost as many dogs of almost every breed gave homeless animals a new 'leash' on life by participating in the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine's 19th annual Dog Jog Sept. 22 at the west end of the UW campus...' [The Times Plus]

Canine Freestyle Federation teaches dogs to dance In preparation for the Canine Freestyle Annual show, Capital Dog Training doggy dancers in Silver Spring, Maryland, cut the rug to toons like "Salty Dog Swing," "Disco Doggy Dance," "Dance Our Tails Off," "Mighty Dancing Dogs" and "I Left My Paws in San Francisco." An event for dogs and their human partners, the Canine Freestyle Federation's eighth annual show will take place on Saturday at Lee District Park in Alexandria. About 20 exhibitors from across the country will perform at this weekend's show. For more information, go to the Canine Freestyle website. Light on their paws, 'doggy dancers' cut rug [Washington Times]

('Mary Beth Sweetland, director of research and investigations at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals in Norfolk, said the event sounds more like 'doggy dressage,' which she despises, because it unnatural for a dog to dance.' She hasn't met my dog who dances on both legs when he sees a squirrel... he even does pirouettes.)

Nebraska dog has West Nile Virus "The number of animal cases of West Nile virus in Nebraska continues to rise and now includes a 5-year-old golden retriever a local veterinarian said. The dog recovered from the West Nile virus within two days of being treated with fluids and antibiotics said Gering veterinarian Jerry Upp." [Lincoln Journal Star] 

Related: Mosquito plague worst since World War I 'Mosquitoes haven't caused this much trouble in Illinois since World War I. Ten more cases of West Nile virus Monday made it the worst mosquito-caused epidemic in Illinois since malaria sickened at least 2,300 state residents in 1917 and killed 108. The West Nile case count stood at 583, surpassing the 578 people sickened by St. Louis encephalitis in 1975.' [Chicago Sun Times]

Yesterday, Washington DC area residents learned Malaria has returned to the area. Loudon County has confirmed cases of malaria and infected mosquitoes. Testing is now underway in Montgomery County, Maryland to determine if Malaria has spread to its mosquito population as well. [Newsday Health]

Scientists spend a bundle to learn what most people know already...  Pets + People Equals Relaxation NY 'Married couples asked to endure mental tests (such as timed serial subtraction) and physical pain (plunging a hand into ice water) were more relaxed in front of their dogs and cats than in front of their spouses, according to a recent study... According to the current issue of Psychosomatic Medicine, pet owners had lower heart rates and blood pressure before the tests and a quicker recovery after. Pet owners also had the lowest cardiovascular stress when performing the tests in front of their pets.' Well, now it's official. Your dog is your therapist and a better one than your spouse... [Knight Rider News]

Drug detector dogs tune up sniffers with  retraining  Detector dogs require brush up classes to maintain their specialized skills. Detective Carl Nielson of the Tracy Police Department helps dog maintain their keen tracking skills with special practice sessions. 'The initial training for both the drug dogs and the patrol dogs is a 200-hour course. Nielsen just does maintenance training...' Detective tunes up drug dogs CA [Tri-Valley Herald]

To the pooper scooper,  poop smells like money... $20,000 a month is nothing to sneeze at and that's easy to make, Sir Scoop says. When doody calls, Sir Scoop answers 'A whole cottage industry of scoopers has emerged around the country in recent years, from Scoopity Doo Dog in Oceanside, Calif., to Yucko's in Missouri to Clean Scoop in Philadelphia. This year, the pooper scoopers started a trade association called Association of Professional Animal Waste Specialists, or aPAWS. They have a chat board on the Internet and have published a book on 'how to start your own low-cost, high-profit dog waste removal service.' ' [Philadelphia Inquirer]

The origin of dogs has more scientists doubting the 'notion of man taming the savage wolf, securing a steady hunting companion and night watchman...' Guess what? Man didn't create the dog from wolves... no, the breeds we know probably came from a more cooperative and  friendlier ancestor to begin with... 'With the National Human Genome Research Institute's recent announcement of plans to decipher the complete set of genes, or genome, of the dog, researchers are hoping to clear up some lingering questions about the origin of the family mutt...' Scientists dogged by dog's origin [USA Today]

Last month (August 30), Dog News pointed out  Unravelling the mystery: the origin of dogs? CA  'Until a few decades ago there was a scientific debate about the of dogs: ... 'It is now established that the wolf (Canis lupus) is the only ancestor, and that dogs have been around for at least 14,000 years.' But just how that happened has been debated for years. A new theory seems to hold promise: 'that dogs were not domesticated from wolves as we know them today, but from an ancestral wolf that, unlike its wild cousin, adapted to an emerging habitat niche -- early human settlements...'  [San Francisco Examiner]
 Fox, Coyote, Wolf , and other Dog Skulls from Skulls Unlimited | The Gray Wolf Origin Myth | Wolf Clan Origin Myth | http://hotcakencyclopedia.com/ho.DogThatBecamePanther.html">The Dog that became a Panther | The Dogs of the Chief's Son |