Dogs - They Are Man's Best Friend - But Are We Theirs?
Man started domesticating dogs more than 10,000 years ago as companions, protectors and to help them work.
Dog ownership in the US has topped more than 70 million dogs. More than half of dog owners consider their dogs to be members of the family.
Expenditures for pets, including vet care, food, pet supplies and anything else pet related, is well over $40 billion dollars, some figures putting it as high as around $45 billion, and rising every year regardless of the economy.
Yes, we as Americans, love our pets, our canine companions especially. But what happens when that love turns to indifference or worse.
Abuse, neglect, cruelty... the crimes against our canine companions are beyond horrifying.
Sometimes even worse is the punishment, of the lack thereof, against the abusers which too often amounts to no more than a 'slap on the wrist.'
The only way for this to change is for people to be made aware, to see, to hear and to really understand.
And something else that people need to understand, people who neglect and abuse animals often do the same to people. This is for those who actually have the temerity to say, "it's just a dog."
Dogs are a very intelligent creatures, the live, they breathe and they feel. They are loyal and offer us companionship and unconditional love. How can we do less than that for them?
The Pact of Fire - A Lakota Legend
When the world was created, First Man and First Woman struggled to stay alive and warm through the first winter. First Dog struggled also.
Deep in the winter, First Dog gave birth to her pups. Each night, she huddled in the brush of the forest, longingly watching the fire which kept First Man and First Woman warm.
First Winter was severe, so cold that First Dog dared not leave her pups to search for food to fill her own belly, fearing that her pups would freeze to death in her absence. She curled around them, but the wind was bitter. Her belly shrank with hunger, and soon she had no milk. The smallest pup perished, and First Dog felt her own life draining away as she struggled to care for the remaining pups. Fearing for the fate of the others, she knew she had no choice but to approach the fire and ask First Woman and First Man to share their food and the fire's warmth.
Slowly, she crept to the fire and spoke to First Woman who was heavy with child. "I am a mother", said First Dog, "and soon you will be a mother too. I want my little ones to survive, just as you will want your little one to survive. So I will ask you to make a pact."
First Woman and First Man listened. "I am about to die. Take my pups. You will raise them and call them Dog. They will be your guardians. They will alert you to danger, keep you warm, guard your camp, and even lay down their life to protect your life and the lives of your children. They will be companions to you and all your generations, never leaving your side, as long as Mankind shall survive. In return, you will share your food and the warmth of your fire. You will treat my children with love and kindness, and tend to them if they become ill, just as if they were born from your own belly. And if they are in pain, you will take a sharp knife to their throat and end their misery. In exchange for this, you will have the loyalty of my children and their offspring until the end of time."
First Man and First Woman agreed. First Dog went to her nest in the brush, and with the last of her strength, one by one, she brought her pups to the fire. As she did so, First Woman gave birth to First Child, wrapped her in Rabbit skins, and nestled First Child among the pups by the fireside. First Dog lay down by the fire, licked her pups, then walked away to die under the stars.
Before she disappeared into the darkness, she turned and spoke once more to First Man, "My children will honor the pact for all generations. But if Man breaks this pact, if you or your children's children deny even one Dog food, warmth, a kind word or a merciful end, your generations will be plagued with war, hunger, and disease, and so shall this remain until the pact is honored again by all Mankind." With this, First Dog entered the night and returned in spirit to the Creator.
Dog ownership in the US has topped more than 70 million dogs. More than half of dog owners consider their dogs to be members of the family.
Expenditures for pets, including vet care, food, pet supplies and anything else pet related, is well over $40 billion dollars, some figures putting it as high as around $45 billion, and rising every year regardless of the economy.
Yes, we as Americans, love our pets, our canine companions especially. But what happens when that love turns to indifference or worse.
Abuse, neglect, cruelty... the crimes against our canine companions are beyond horrifying.
Sometimes even worse is the punishment, of the lack thereof, against the abusers which too often amounts to no more than a 'slap on the wrist.'
The only way for this to change is for people to be made aware, to see, to hear and to really understand.
And something else that people need to understand, people who neglect and abuse animals often do the same to people. This is for those who actually have the temerity to say, "it's just a dog."
Dogs are a very intelligent creatures, the live, they breathe and they feel. They are loyal and offer us companionship and unconditional love. How can we do less than that for them?
The Pact of Fire - A Lakota Legend
When the world was created, First Man and First Woman struggled to stay alive and warm through the first winter. First Dog struggled also.
Deep in the winter, First Dog gave birth to her pups. Each night, she huddled in the brush of the forest, longingly watching the fire which kept First Man and First Woman warm.
First Winter was severe, so cold that First Dog dared not leave her pups to search for food to fill her own belly, fearing that her pups would freeze to death in her absence. She curled around them, but the wind was bitter. Her belly shrank with hunger, and soon she had no milk. The smallest pup perished, and First Dog felt her own life draining away as she struggled to care for the remaining pups. Fearing for the fate of the others, she knew she had no choice but to approach the fire and ask First Woman and First Man to share their food and the fire's warmth.
Slowly, she crept to the fire and spoke to First Woman who was heavy with child. "I am a mother", said First Dog, "and soon you will be a mother too. I want my little ones to survive, just as you will want your little one to survive. So I will ask you to make a pact."
First Woman and First Man listened. "I am about to die. Take my pups. You will raise them and call them Dog. They will be your guardians. They will alert you to danger, keep you warm, guard your camp, and even lay down their life to protect your life and the lives of your children. They will be companions to you and all your generations, never leaving your side, as long as Mankind shall survive. In return, you will share your food and the warmth of your fire. You will treat my children with love and kindness, and tend to them if they become ill, just as if they were born from your own belly. And if they are in pain, you will take a sharp knife to their throat and end their misery. In exchange for this, you will have the loyalty of my children and their offspring until the end of time."
First Man and First Woman agreed. First Dog went to her nest in the brush, and with the last of her strength, one by one, she brought her pups to the fire. As she did so, First Woman gave birth to First Child, wrapped her in Rabbit skins, and nestled First Child among the pups by the fireside. First Dog lay down by the fire, licked her pups, then walked away to die under the stars.
Before she disappeared into the darkness, she turned and spoke once more to First Man, "My children will honor the pact for all generations. But if Man breaks this pact, if you or your children's children deny even one Dog food, warmth, a kind word or a merciful end, your generations will be plagued with war, hunger, and disease, and so shall this remain until the pact is honored again by all Mankind." With this, First Dog entered the night and returned in spirit to the Creator.
Let's Start with Some Good Dog Stuff
For now let's just have some fun, talk about positive dog stories, keep it upbeat and enjoy.
As someone who spends a large part of their time as an advocate for our canine companions, I know how important it is just to love my dogs, have fun with them, to laugh and play.
There's plenty of time to get into the heavy stuff... and if you love dogs and have the heart for it, we can share that journey together too... but not just now...
As someone who spends a large part of their time as an advocate for our canine companions, I know how important it is just to love my dogs, have fun with them, to laugh and play.
There's plenty of time to get into the heavy stuff... and if you love dogs and have the heart for it, we can share that journey together too... but not just now...
Thing Our Dogs Teach Us About Love
Our dogs love totally, completely and unconditionally. Not only that, there are many lesson we can learn from our wonderful canine companions, about love and about life. Here's just a few...- Love comes with responsibility. Love takes time and effort. When someone loves you and counts on you, you have to be there to do your part. Sometimes this means putting their needs ahead of your own.
- Play is important. Love is fun. Love is great. Sure, there's responsibility, but part of that responsibility is to play, play, play and enjoy each other's company.
- Poop happens. Yep, sometimes some not-very-sweet stuff ends up where you wish it hadn't, but that's okay. It's just part of the whole package. Clean it up and get back to the good stuff. Learn to forgive and forget.
- Don't take love for granted. Surprises and little gifts for no reason other than to show love are good.
- It's important to spend time together. You don't always have to be doing something special.
- Sometimes it's just really nice to sit in the same room and do nothing together. There can be a lot of comfort in that.
- Accept each other. Neither of you are perfect. Take the good with the bad, the odd with the commonplace. Love is bigger than the small stuff that gets under your skin.
- Trust and honor love. Don't ever, ever abuse it. Love is the greatest gift you'll ever have, and it's downright criminal to ever do anything wrong or cruel in the name of love.
- Respect each other's boundaries. You both need your own space. You both have your own needs. Neither of you should try to dominate the other.
- Good relationships take work. Once you take on the responsibility of a relationship, you have to be willing to work at it. Sometimes there's nothing you'd like to do more than kick back and take it easy, but you've committed to (for example) going on a walk. Get up and go. It's be well worth the effort.
- Non-verbal communication can speak louder than words.
- Touch, hug, smile, speak softly.
- Separations are tough... but reunions are sweet.
- Everyone wants and needs love.
- Deal with problems when they come up.
- They won't just go away, and problems sure can make love tough.
- Sloppy kisses are great. (Enough said about that one.)
Great Dog Links and Information
- Bill of Rights for Pets
- Strengthen your capacity for providing deeply responsible care for your pets, whose lives are quite literally resting in your hands and heart.
- Dog Writings & Poetry
- A wonderful collection of writings and poetry devoted to our canine companions. You will laugh, you will cry but you will always feel. If not, you don't have a heart. So get your box of tissues and keep them close, you'll be needing them for many of these.
- Dog Humor
- If you need a reason or smile or laugh, there's also plenty of humor to be found right here.
Pups, Don't Eat Golf Balls... or Other Werid Stuff
Advice from Bruti
Hi friends and puppers, Bruti here, momma took a break and let me at the keyboard so I could write about something important to us pups.A friend of mine sent me a story yesterday about a pooch who would eat all kinds of weird stuff and this was right after I read another story about another pooch who was also eating weird stuff... golf balls!
Now, first off, I can't figure out why any dog with a brain in his head is gonna eat something silly like golf balls, I mean, they don't taste all that good but this guy, Oscar is his name, a Labrador pup, sure ate them anyway. And Oscar, he's no silly little puppy either, he's five!!
Seems his owner heard him rattling, yup, a rattling dog, so he took him to the doggie doc (YUCK!) and when they checked him out, the doggie doc could feel something weird. Then they had to do surgery on him and were just amazed... not one or two or even three golf balls.... no.... thirteen golf balls!!!
Here's what the doggie doc said:
Rosyth vet Bob Hesketh said: "It was like a magic trick.
"I opened him up and felt what I thought were two or three golf balls.
"But they just kept coming until we had a bag full.
"I think they must have been in there for several months. One was all black and the shell was swollen.
"It's incredible really. We occasionally find things like bottle corks but this is a bit different." (Daily Record)
Well, luckily Oscar's ok but he's gonna have to eat soft foods for a while and because he cannot control himself like a respectable dog should, he's now gonna have to wear a muzzle for his walks.
And now about this other silly pooch that eats weird stuff. His name is Taffy and he's not much more than a puppy, only 18 months but to make matters worse, he's a Springer like me!! Springers are very smart dogs as I can attest to, can't understand what's wrong with this guy tho. I actually think he's weirder than Oscar maybe.
Ok, now it seems Taffy liked to eat... clothes!! And not just maybe like chewing on one little sock or anything either. Seems like his parents have been keeping track and so far he's munched on 300 socks, 15 pairs of shoes, a key chain for a car and get this, 40... yes 40... pairs of pants!!!
He managed to get everything in and out ok up until that 40th pair of pants and then there was trouble. I'm not sure if these pants are like pants pants or are like underpants kinda pants... the story is outta the UK and they talk pretty funny there.
Anyway, Taffy munches on these pants, which belonged to three year old furless brother, and afterward he's not doing too good so his parents take him to the doggie doc and he also has to get surgery done to him!
So the doc get the pants out and the parents are gonna try even harder although they say that Taffy, silly pup, seems to be able to ferret out stuff to munch on.
Now pup, I think you can see the lesson here. Both these guys ate weird stuff.... both of them had to go to the doggie doc and get surgery done, bet that hurt, and now they are both gonna be kinda on punishments.
Look, chewing on stuff is one thing, but just because you chew on something doesn't mean you need to swallow it either! Be a smart pup like me. I learned really early that I could chew on some stuff and not on others, although personally I thought the books tasted really good and momma has sooooo many of them... anyway if we're smart pups, we get good stuff and get to do fun stuff and get lots of playtime.
So pals, be smart, don't eat weird stuff or some doggie doc is gonna have to cut you open like you got a zipper in your tummy and take it away anyway - Advice from Bruti!!
Vicious Dog Attack
This has got to be one of the funniest 'funny dog videos' I have ever seen. We all seen dogs chase their tail and so silly thing but this, I think, tops them all!
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A Dog's Purpose, From a 4 Year-Old
Kids Say the Darndest Things
Y'know, they always that 'kids say the darndest things' and very often those darndest things show an understanding and depth that is nothing short of amazing as the story of one little 4 yr-old shows us.Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a 10-year-old Irish wolfhound named Belker.
The dog's owners, Ron, his wife, Lisa, and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle.
I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.
As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for 4-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.
The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him.
Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on.
Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion.
We sat together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why."
Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation.
He said, "People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life - like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?"
The 4-year-old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."
Interesting the way children figure out the important matters of life, isn't it? Well, it sure shows they're thinking anyway!
How touching and true. If you have the honor of having a dog in your life then you know as well as I do they they have the lessons of love ingrained in them, total and unconditional love.
Dogs Are Heros
Dogs are loyal not only to people but to other dogs. They have, in instances, risked their own loves to try to save another dog. Below is a video which demonstrates just that.
This video is from Chile and shows one dog risking its life to try to drag an imjured companion to safety.
You can read more on this story HERE
This video is from Chile and shows one dog risking its life to try to drag an imjured companion to safety.
You can read more on this story HERE
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Just a Dog
For Those Who Really Believe It's "Just a Dog"
From time to time, people tell me, "lighten up, it's just a dog," or, "that's a lot of money for just a dog." They don't understand the distance traveled, the time spent, or the costs involved for "just a dog."Some of my proudest moments have come about with "just a dog." Many hours have passed and my only company was "just a dog," but I did not once feel slighted.
Some of my saddest moments have been brought about by "just a dog," and in those days of darkness, the gentle touch of "just a dog" gave me comfort and reason to overcome the day.
If you, too, think it's "just a dog," then you will probably understand phrases like "just a friend", "just a sunrise" or "just a promise." "Just a dog" brings into my life the very essence of friendship, trust, and pure unbridled joy. "Just a dog" brings out the compassion and patience that make me a better person.
Because of "just a dog", I will rise early, take long walks and look longingly to the future. So for me and folks like me, it's not "just a dog", but an embodiment of all the hopes and dreams of the future, the fond memories of the past, and the pure joy of the moment. "Just a dog" brings out what's good in me and diverts my thoughts away from myself and the worries of the day.
I hope that someday they can understand that it's not "just a dog", but the thing that gives me humanity and keeps me from being "just a human."
So the next time you hear the phrase "just a dog", just smile, because they "just don't understand."
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AllyVuitton
Dec 3, 2010 @ 5:29 am | delete
- AHHHH, so cute!
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Sep 25, 2010 @ 10:16 am | delete
- The dog human relationship is amazing it works for both sides and it is time tested and will go on for a lion time yet. Great lens :) well done
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Let's Get Serious
Ok, we've gotten some info, had some smiles, had a few laughs, now it's time to get serious.
If you really love dogs, if you really care about their welfare and if you have the heart for it, follow me along for the journey....
Below is the road to follow, there are only a few trails now but they will grow in number in time....c'mon, follow along.... join me...some of it's tough but closing your eyes or tuning your back will not make it go away....
If you really love dogs, if you really care about their welfare and if you have the heart for it, follow me along for the journey....
Below is the road to follow, there are only a few trails now but they will grow in number in time....c'mon, follow along.... join me...some of it's tough but closing your eyes or tuning your back will not make it go away....
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A Dog's Philosopy on Life
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