Few pet owners are laughing all the way to the vet and to the bank A friend of mine asked if he should get a second dog. 'A second dog will definitely improve your cash flow and balance your books. Your cash will definitely flow (out of your account) and you won't have to worry about making more money than you spend...'

The July issue of Consumer Reports, a non-profit consumer research firm, devotes 5 pages of advice on how to cut your pet care expenses and lists 20 ways to cut vet costs. We haven't begun to cut our pet bills, but with two dogs instead of one, we know we must.

One bit of advice listed by Consumer Reports was:

Check prices for shot and spay/neuter services at a humane society or SPCA, which can be less expensive than a vet. Some also provide free or low-cost services to low-income and senior-citizen pet owners.[Consumer Reports, July 2003]

While this seems like good advice on the surface, it also points up an ethical conflict of interest. The Humane Society and the SPCA are both non-profit and enjoy some financial rewards (the least of which is tax-exempt status). Why should a non-profit be allowed compete with veterinarians for the very services they provide at a higher cost (to them). This doesn't seem ethical or fair. Isn't there a better way for the Humane Society and SPCA to stay afloat. How do hardworking veterinarians feel about the threat to their businesses bottom-line, especially when they often donate services to the Humane Society and SPCA?

Woofstalk festival: 'human' names for canine companions latest pet trend Canada 'The most popular dog names in the United States were Max, Jake, Buddy, Maggie and Molly..'  [Toronto Star] (when are they going to start naming people after dogs... like Snoop doggy dog... )

People are so wacky...

New product: dog appeasing perfume AZ We bought this product a few weeks ago; I have NO idea if it works or not; humans cannot smell the doggy perfume. Products like these will sell because some people will do just about anything for their dogs... Meanwhile, both our dog are stretched out on the floor, snoozing and obviously comatose from the soothing pheromes wafting through the air... 

'D.A.P. (dog appeasing pheromone), synthetic pheromone developed by veterinarians, that the Farnam officials say controls and manages pet behavior associated with anxiety, fear, stress or phobias. The pheromones are released into the animal's environment through a diffuser that plugs into an electrical outlet, delivering pheromones 24 hours a day for approximately 30 days...' [Phoenix Business Journal]

Parents jailed for having home full of dog feces The worst case of not picking up dog poop ever... [Indy Star]

Woman steals dog, dyes its hair, clips tail to hide its identify UK [Norfolk Now]

Brevard woman saves dog, survives attack by 80-pound python FL [South Florida Sun-Sentinel] (unbelievable but true)

To Bite or Not To Bite: Study find dog bites 1.3 times higher for whites than minorities in Montgomery County, Maryland [Best Practices Review] The Police Assessment Resource Center abstract follows:

Canine Apprehensions in a Large, Suburban Police Department by Edward Hickey and Peter Hoffman examines canine-related data from 1993 through 1998 from the Montgomery County Police Department. The department had a 'find and bite' policy which required officers to announce their affiliation and their intention to release a canine on resisting suspects. Of the 15,031 canine deployments in the six-year period, 1,179 resulted in apprehensions. Of those apprehended, 14 percent were bitten, 9 percent received medical attention and 5 percent received hospital treatment. The bite ratio was 1.3 times higher for white suspects than minorities. Canine officers sustained nine injuries, with a rate of .76. The authors recommend that police managers utilize canine deployment and bite statistics to determine whether to amend canine tactics or deployment procedures and to allay community concerns following a publicized injury caused by a canine apprehension. 547  Journal of Criminal Justice 1 (2002) (this revives the theory of the racist dog... )

It's a dog eat dog world: Study profiles Denmark dog breeds for dominance aggression, shooting phobia, interdog dominance aggression, and separation anxiety...  Dogs in the capital area of Copenhagen had higher dog on dog aggression than dogs living in other parts of the country. Younger owners too had more dog on dog aggression problems than older owners. Dogs with higher incidence of dog on dog aggression included:  "Belgian Sheepdogs, Dachshunds, Dalmatians, German Shepherds, Hovawarts, Pinschers, Rottweilers, Scent dogs and Spitz dogs. Dogs with training were less likely to have 'shooting phobia.' Dogs with higher incidence of shooting phobia included: "Poodles, retrieving/flushing dogs, Sheepdogs, Spitz dogs and terriers." [Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Volume 58, Issues 1-2 , 30 April 2003 , Pages 85-100 via Science Direct]

Police: Son Shot at Dog, Hit Mother [WPVI.com] (One dog and his human defender definitely have a reason for 'shooting phobia.')

 

Dog rescued from 5 mile swim out to sea UK When Solomon, a golden retriever, decided to swim to the Isle of Wight from a south beach, his owner had to phone for emergency rescuers (two RNLI boats) to save him. The crew found him five miles out to sea...

 "He's normally such a well-behaved dog but he seemed to be on a mission and didn't look back once. One of the lifeboat crew members joked that he must have spotted a cat on the Isle of Wight and decided to give chase" [Horse and Hound Online]

Redheads of the canine world: Nova Scotia's Tollers Canada One of the latest additions to the American Kennel Club (AKC), the red hunting dog known as the Toller, the smallest of retrievers, remains one of the most jovial, intelligent and outgoing dogs of the Canine World. When the Toller dog joins the ranks of the AKC, the number of registered breeds will grow to 150... [Halifax Daily News]