Maybe I don’t get involved enough, but I don’t think there are this many dog-centered activities here in Canton. I received this e-mail from friend-of-the-blog Cynthia, who is involved in an organization known as St. Almo’s. They have some great ideas here!
Tuesday’s Top Ten: Ways to help black shelter dogs
I posted last Friday about Black Dog Syndrome: the lower adoption rate shelters see for black dogs than for lightered-colored ones. Here (reprinted from Black Pearl Dogs) is a list of 10 ways you can help.
1) Spay and neuter your pets. Urge those around you to do the same.
2) If you can adopt, please consider adopting a black dog who is waiting just for you. *”Many beautiful black dogs are overlooked—and, sadly, euthanized in disproportionate numbers”.
3) Sponsor a black dog or open your heart and home to foster care for a black dog (if you can’t adopt), in a rescue or shelter so they can open their doors to another black dog on death row without worry of finances.
4) If you can’t sponsor or foster, make posters for a black dog you find in a shelter or rescue to **advertise** their need of a home on community bulletin boards, vet offices, pet stores, your work office board, the company newsletter, the school paper. Gain permission from the sponsoring rescue or shelter first. Include the Blackpearldogs webpage address as part of the advertisement so interested people can understand more fully the plight this waiting BlackPearl faces. See one womans brilliant work
5) Go past your apprehensions and stretch yourself: walk a black-dog-in-waiting in a park and advertise to all that s/he needs a home. They will appreciate that you left your comfort zone so they could (hopefully) enter into one.
6) Volunteer to take them to obedience classes to attain skills that will make them more adoptable to the average family or teach them an endearing human greeting (like sit and shake).
7) Share this webpage address to let all dog lovers know how wonderful and in need a black dog is in today’s’ canine adoption community. We at Contrary to Ordinary are not a rescue facility. We know there are many cogs to make the wheel turn and we are fullfilling our niche of being an educational platform to get the word out so those gifted with other talents (ie foster care, transportation, fund raising, placement and adoption matching) can fulfill their niches to help the waiting black dogs out there.
8) Start your own rescue…just for black dogs rescued off euthanasia row. They can be found easily and it can be done just one dog at a time. Be inspired by the Starfish Story and Stop the Killing .
9) Click on “Free To A Good Home” and read Brutus’s story. Help a black dog (or any dog for that matter ) avoid this fate. Prepare your own rescue aids using the tools found here at Sun Bears Squad.
10) For those with savvy or flair: coordinate a “Tux and Tails” event for your local shelters or rescues. Gather up all the black coated critters waiting to find their forever heart and “do the bubbles” to make all fresh and clean. Add a tux (red or white) bow tie or a snappy collar (Bison Designs has brillant ones) and provide these waiting pearlies the opportunity to “run way” their stuff and become available for folks to appreciate them out of a dimly lit kennel run. You could even go as elaborate as every hour have a “walk” set to music with cards read that share what they already know: sit, down, off, fetch. I am guessing some of the pearlies would even do a demonstration of what they have to offer. Have a table set up to take applications or to donate financially to support these waiting pearls.
**The image that you make….i.e. the picture that you take….. may be the key to his or her being adopted by the right person. Black dogs are in desperate need of great photos in shelter listings. Practice using tips from “Photographing a Black Dog” to get your technique down before applying to help all the shelter animals have a better photographic chance to meet their future forever person.
Cutest Dog Contest
All American Pet Brands is hosting a cutest dog contest on their Web site. This has been going on since August, but I just found it. Entries are already closed, but you can have input into the final winner!
They’re also giving away a Nano mp3 player to one lucky voter each day.
Danny, the beagle pup pictured here has my vote. Who’s your favorite?
Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!
Dog Poetry
A sweet story from Black Pearl Dogs.
~ My Heart Has A Tail ~
I made a discovery, just today
Something so amazing in every way.
It was when you bounded towards my face,
Kissing and wriggling all over the place.
And I held you very close to me,
Experiencing euphoria, endlessly.
It seemed all at once, our hearts became one,
And together we were having so much fun.
When I see you running around,
You don’t need words to make a sound.
I know that you love me very much
With a loyalty no human can touch.
That’s why I believe you’ve become my heart,
And no one earthly force can keep us apart.
We understand each other so very well;
Surely my heart has a tail, can’t you tell?”
~Author Unknown
Do you have a favorite dog poem? Submit it to me: [email protected], and I’ll try to get it posted. Who knows? Maybe we’ll haev a contest if we have a lot of entries!
Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!
Saturday Survey: Who cleans up after your dog?
Continuing on our potty patch theme from last week: we all know dogs were born to make messes, but this time I’m talking specifically about the mess that emits from the back end of his or her body on a daily basis. Who gets the lucky job of cleaning up at your house?
Continue reading Saturday Survey: Who cleans up after your dog?
Black Dog Syndrome
Typically in October, shelters begin worrying about the black cats under their care, with many shelters refusing to place black cats up for adoption until after Halloween. Did you know black dogs are also at risk in shelters? Check out this article from Helium.com telling why black dogs are so hard to place.
If you work in a shelter, the article linked above will give you some ideas to help market your black dogs. Other resources are http://startseeingblackdogs.com/ and http://blackpearldogs.com/, which are dedicated to just this issue.
Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!
Never Leave Your Pit Bull Alone with A Child
If you are an owner of a dog that belongs to a ‘dangerous breed’ category and you also have a child or a visiting small child, please take this as a warning. Don’t leave your dog with a small child unattended under any circumstances! Only one little moment was enough for the following to happen.
Continue reading Never Leave Your Pit Bull Alone with A Child
New Shows from NatGeo TV
I am on the e-mail list for a publicist from the National Geographic channel, and it appears they’ve been busy this summer, lining up new shows for the fall. Here’s a round-up:
Is your dog a rebel without a cause? (Or even with one?)
A new product from Pet Science Labs allows you and your dog to make a statement! Using non-toxic paints in a variety of colors, you simply apply the paint to the soft foam rubber stamp and press it against your dog’s coat. When it starts to fade, or if your dog needs to go to a job interview, simply wipe off the paint with a wet paper towel. Be sure to use light-colored paint on dark-colored dogs, and vice versa.
Please note: this is not a permanent tattoo you can use to ID your dog in the event of theft. This is simply a fun way to allow your dog to express himself at the dog park.
Available stamps include “Say it to the Paw” and “Drama Queen” (perfect for my Beagle). If you’re dog’s a bit on the wild side, you might like “Devil Dog” or “Bad Ass”. How about “Will Work for Food” (shaped like a chicken wing) or “I [heart] New York”? And if you have a breed that is in danger of being banned in your municipality, you may like “Punish the Deed, Not the Breed”.
Each stamp currently sells for $6 and comes with a 3-color paint pot and paint brush. They will also custom-make a stamp for you, if your dog has something unique to say for a special event. Sounds like fun! If you’ve tried them, let us know what you think.
Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!
Interracial Puppies?
As a white mother of a black child, this story from Doncaster, England really caught my eye. What happens when you breed a white female poodle with a black male poodle? In this case, ALL EIGHT of the offspring turned out black, a genetic rarity. Together they make quite a picture!
Sukanto My Fair Lady (otherwise known as Rosie), who lives with John & Carol Marsden, went into labor unexpectedly, and Mrs. Marsden actually got to deliver the first three pups before the breeder got there to take over. Over the course of seven hours, all of the puppies were born healthy and happy. Good thing Mrs. Marsden is a retired nurse!
To keep her strength up while caring for the newborns, Rosie is being treated to a liter of goat’s milk every day from the Stone family farm, just down the road from the Marsdens.
The father is Kertellas on Easy Street at Montravia, but goes by the much less-of-a-mouthful name of Alfie. He lives with Marita Rodgers. No word on what he thought of his octuplets. (Should I say “typical man”?)
Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!