A funny signoff for last week from 'Der Shockwave':

From face to face

[Thank God it is Friday ] ;: Wooooocheneeeendeeee... Tomorrow early it goes therefore again to the dog school . I have the alternation after this week urgently necessarily. Update therefore only if other one packs the Saturday Night Fever. [ photo: Gabi] [Der Shockwave] (translated by Google)

Pennsylvania dog fighting ring busted: tip of the iceburg PA  'Kathy Hecker, humane officer for Animal Friends in the Strip District, said the announcement yesterday that state police had infiltrated and broken up a major dogfighting ring in southwestern Pennsylvania only scratches the surface of the problem...' The greater Pittsburgh area is 'a hotbed of dogfighting...' Expert: Region is a hotbed of dogfighting [Pittsburg Post Gazette] 'According to arrest warrants, the dog fighting ring sold pit bulls, training equipment, steroid drugs [to make dogs more aggressive] and surgical supplies, and also trained dogs to fight and organized and promoted fights in western and central Pennsylvania since May 1997...' Six arrested in dog fighting ring [WPVI] Related:  Dog days of crime Pit bulls are a hot item in dog napping cases, so much so that dog nappers will pull up fences, cut chains and remove barricades to get to the dogs: thieves steal them to fight in underground dog fighting rings...

Gregor, of gRadio says Happy Birthday to his 'beast' (an overweight Cairn Terrier that's still cute).

'Cairn owners appear to be a breed unto themselves. This woman mentions more than a few things about her dog Elly that hit a little too close to home for me -- about the behavior of the female owner and of the dog... And yes, Jeff, we do own the movie Best in Show. I think it is what tipped SWMBO toward a terrier, but she won't admit that yet. However, she does sing along to that song, and I've caught her singing that song when the movie *wasn't* playing, so..' '' [gRadio] found via Jeff's Radio Weblog

Ed Cone on dog people:  (and their reactions to puppies...)
'People react to the puppy in different ways. There are benders, who lean down to tousle her fur. There are kneelers, who have to come down to her level to play. And there are cradlers, who can't let it go with a kneel and come up holding the dog in their arms like a baby. I saw a woman in a nice white sweater kneel and cradle the other day--a rainy day, no less. There are also people who don't interact at all with the dog, but the less said of them the better. Today is an office day for Luna. At lunch she and I walked up South Elm to the historical marker across from Blumenthal's that shows where Jefferson Davis held a cabinet meeting while fleeing south ahead of the Yankees in 1865 (there was a story that Confederate gold was buried here, but there are probably stories like that everywhere south of Richmond). Then we drove to Osaka's -- Mark, the co-owner, is a cradler -- and picked up lunch. Luna likes shumai.' [Ed Cone]

John Lawlor likes the Exploding Dog (send a phrase, get a drawing from Sam)
'Some drawings are silly, others profound. All delightful...  Can you see a blog that puts 60 seconds of music to each Exploding Dog drawing? '

 xploding Dog blogs new drawings every day.. [John Lawlor]
 
hi my name is sam,
i draw pictures, from your titles. send me a title, or any thing else you want to talk to me about to: sambrown@explodingdog.com

Bad to the bone: are some dogs natural born killers?  UK Author Justin Hankins demonstrates his distinct prejudice against bull terriers saying, 'if I had to choose, I'd rather be bitten by a miniature poodle than a pit bull terrier." He asserts that certain breeds of dogs are more inclined to aggression, more likely to attack and more likely to cause life-threatening damage. But the 'nub of the problem is people.' 'Chris Laurence, director of veterinary services at the RSPCA, says 'the majority of behaviour is learned', so a well brought-up bull terrier, even of the pit variety, has every chance of being a nice dog...'  Bad to the bone  [Guardian Unlimited] (If a dog has only a chance, the only way to ensure a good outcome is to provide training, supervision and socialization, something many owners are unwilling to do because it takes time, money and involvement... )

The bionic human: how flesh and machine will merge in the future 'Implanted devices could extend human perceptions, giving people superhuman senses. Perhaps you would like the high-frequency hearing of a dog, or the sonar echolocation of a dolphin, or the night vision of an owl? Or even internal wireless Internet access with a mouse controlled by your thoughts...' 'There are now computerized silicon implants for all five senses -- hearing, sight, smell, taste and touch. And the gadgets are amplifying our conscious awareness.' Explore how humans and hybrid robot parts are becoming scientific fact in this fascinating article about state of the art human-machine hybridization...  Smart parts [Globe and Mail] 

Wisconsin: trial ordered for owner of killer dog WI  'A judge set a trial date in April for Wayne Hardy, a man charged with three felonies in a dog attack that killed a 10-year-old girl. Hardy was the owner of six Rottweilers that killed 10-year-old Alicia Clark on Feb. 14, when he left Clark and another 10-year-old girl alone in their home with the dogs...' Man ordered to trial in dog attack [ABC News]

Experts laugh at FBI's choice of bloodhounds in anthrax case MD  'Three bloodhound handlers brought into the anthrax case - who also helped with the Washington-area sniper investigation - use equipment and techniques that are rejected by many [experts] in the field, including both of the major police bloodhound associations... 'I'm extremely skeptical. I don't believe these dogs really do what they claim to do,' said Nichols, who has worked with bloodhounds for 13 years, conducted more than 500 bloodhound searches and testified in court 21 times...  ' FBI's use of bloodhounds in anthrax probe disputed [Baltimore Sun]