A dog that paints is pretty amazing. But a blind one that paints is even more eye-popping. Hallie is a long-haired dachsund who learned to paint before she went blind from a retinal disorder. Though she gave up the brush briefly after losing her sight, she’s back at her easel using her paws to help her aim on the canvas. Read her whole story here and see her masterpieces here.
Seems the Queen of England’s royal dog pack of 6 Corgis got in a dog fight with some canine guests at Balmoral Castle this past weekend. Princess Beatrice’s Norfolk Terrier emerged with a badly cut ear. With nine dogs total running around the castle, we just hope that each one has proper sleeping accommodations, preferably far away from one another.
There are some new stats on whether cats or dogs are more beloved in the U.S. As it turns out, pet ownership in general has declined by about 9 million in the past 5 years. But here’s where picking the most popular pet gets a bit sticky. You see, dogs rule when it comes to the number of households they’re in (36.5%) rather than felines (30.4%.) But, because cat households tend to include more than one, cats outnumber dogs 74 million to 70 million. That latter bit is news you might want to deliver to your dog while its sitting or laying down.
Get the full story and photo credit here.
With temperatures soaring into the triple digits in some areas of the country, it’s important to remember that your dog needs help keeping cool during these “dog days.” Be sure to keep plenty of water on hand and even carry a portable water bowl for walks. Provide lighter-weight bedding in lieu of thick mattresses that can trap and amplify a dog’s own heat. And never, ever leave your dog inside a parked car. It takes only minutes for the temperature inside a closed car to hit 120 degrees and higher.
These and other great tips can be found here.
Squirrels, cars, cats—now you can add laser pointer beams to the things dogs love to chase. But why do they so doggedly pursue the litte red dots these office tools project onto walls and floors? Seems the flighty motion triggers the predatory hunter in them. Dogs will chase laser lights endlessly, which might be fun for humans to watch, but is eventually really frustrating for them if they don’t come up with some reward for their efforts. A good way to have laser pointer fun with them is to hide treats in corners and under tables and let the laser pointer fall on those items during your play.
The musical Annie is about to be revived again and the producers have been busy announcing the cast, including the lucky dog who will play Sandy. And we mean lucky; Sunny was a mutt in a Houston dog shelter and she was about to be put down when the casting crew found her and scooped her up. We’re betting Sunny will be a scene-stealer.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kate-kelly/why-a-dog-is-a-mans-or-wo_b_1684582.html
Move over Westminster Dog Show, there’s a new canine competition that’s beginning to pick up fans in fast order. Dock jumping is an emerging dog tournament that expects entrants to display their athletic skills via leaps off a dock and into a lake. Challenges include trying for the highest jump, longest jump and fastest retrieving of an object from the water. If a dog competes in all three events, it’s eligible for an Iron Dog award. After all the jumping, we expect the competitors really must sleep like dogs.
