A collection of freely available dog photos on the ‘net’
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Aren’t they gorgeous!
Perhaps a few more next week.
Year: 2020
The power of touch!
I am speaking of a recent BBC Radio 4 program, but …
… this loving Corgi seems to have got the message.
There has been a series on BBC Radio 4 about the Anatomy of Touch. This is a small extract from the website that accompanied the program.
Touch is a crucial part of our lives. The right kind of touch can reduce pain, soothe our stress and convey emotion faster than words. It’s a sense that you can’t turn off and we should not underestimate its power.
It’s also a sense that has taken on a new resonance during the pandemic, now that we have to keep our distance and haven’t hugged friends or family we don’t live with for more than half a year.
But this is a post about a Corgi that hugs every dog he meets!
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Loving Corgi Hugs Every Dog He Meets On His Walks
“He’s the biggest sweetheart” ❤️️
By Lily Feinn
Published on 10/1/2020
Wallace understands that times are tough, and the loving corgi knows how to make things better — with a big hug. Well, as big as his little arms can go.
When Noah Raminick is walking Wallace, he can expect to stop every time Wallace spots another pup. The year-old corgi loves to play and won’t let another dog walk by without giving him an embrace.
“He’s the biggest sweetheart,” Raminick, Wallace’s brother, told The Dodo. “He’s always very happy to be around people and other dogs. He loves to give face kisses to people and when he sees another dog, he’s always the one to initiate a play session.”
When it comes to large dogs, the low-bodied pup shows no fear and will stand on his hind legs to get the best possible angle for his hug. Wallace’s best friend Daisy is a Great Dane, but the corgi knows that size doesn’t matter.
“They always hug when they see each other,” Raminick said. “And one of her paws weighs as much as Wallace’s entire body.”
With smaller dogs, Wallace makes sure to play gently, so he doesn’t spook his new friend. Wallace won’t go in for the hug until he sniffs out whether the other dog is OK with it first.
“The thing I find interesting with his hugging is that he wasn’t trained to do that at all,” Raminick said. “I think it comes down to him being really excited about playing with another dog.”
Wallace makes sure to spread the love when he’s with his human family, too. “His favorite things are morning and evening cuddles, playing fetch and me chasing him around the house,” Raminick said. “I don’t think Wallace has any dislikes.”
Wallace’s family is happy for their pup to continue spreading the love to the dogs and people in his neighborhood, adding a little more joy to everyone’s day.
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Back to that Touch website to close:
The three most common words used to describe touch are: “comforting”, “warm” and “love”
People from 112 different countries took part in the Touch Test and it’s striking that “comforting” and “warm” were among the three most common words that people used in every region of the world.
Wallace has the message!
Twelve on twelve!
A look, courtesy of my daughter, at Sarah Nicolls’s 12 Years project.
Again, this is not about dogs, well not in a direct way. But, indirectly, it affects all of us, young and old, and, inevitably, it affects our dear dogs.
I’m writing this in response to something that came my way as an email sent from my daughter’s company, SOUND UK. The company holds to the view that: Sound UK produces extraordinary musical encounters for all.
Sarah Nicolls has her own website and on her About page this is what she presents.
My name is Sarah Nicolls. I am a visual artist who makes pictures with language, books with pictures, prints with type, and animations with words. I combine image, visual narrative, and time in prints, books, and ephemera that are often research-based. I am interested in urbanization, local history, climate change, the history of science and technology, alternative economies, found language, and the history of publishing. I have written a collection of self-help aphorisms, I publish a series of informational pamphlets, and I organize a range of participatory walks and programs around the series.
My recent books include an examination of the history of greenhouses, and a study of the stories we tell ourselves about disappearing islands, both real and imagined. My limited edition artist books are in the collections of the Brooklyn Museum, Stanford, UCLA, and the University of Pennsylvania, among others.
For twelve years, I ran the studio programs at the Center for Book Arts in NYC, organizing classes, public programs, readings, and talks, coordinating publications, running residency programs, and teaching interns. I learned everything I know about letterpress and bookmaking while I was there. Now I teach at Pratt Institute and Parsons School of Design, and work on a variety of projects.
I also do illustration and design work for individuals and institutions. Do you have an interesting project in mind? Contact me here, I welcome commissions and collaborations.
Well back to Sound UK. This is Sarah.
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“What she does should be happening every week of the year” The Guardian
Acclaimed pianist and composer Sarah Nicolls’ new Inside-Out Piano project 12 Years was inspired by the 2018 IPCC Special Report saying we had just 12 years to radically change our behaviour to save the planet. Starting on the second anniversary of the report, 8 October, Sarah launches 12 nights of online performances.
With her striking vertical grand piano, Nicolls combines original music and recorded speech in an absorbing performance. Piano melodies and textures interweave with phone calls between three fictional characters challenging each other to either worry less or do more. We hear from environmental experts, survivors escaping from a wildfire and a glacier melting, eloquent speeches from Greta Thunberg and finally the sound of hope emerging. There is humour and humanity as well as time for reflection.
On selected nights leading climate scientists will also join Sarah for exclusive post-show discussions online, specifically to talk about what we can all do.
See list of speakers below.
“This should be prescribed viewing/watching/listening for anyone even remotely concerned with the welfare of our planet.” Ciaran Ryan, Galway Jazz Festival
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Plus, if you would care to listen to a track on Sarah playing her piano, then feel free:
I’m bound to say that I am reasonably hopeful of living another twelve years but, at the same time, reasonably expectant that life could become very interesting indeed!
Pigs Ears Dog Treats – A recall.
Once again, something that should be taken notice of.
This was recently notified to all concerned in Dog Food Advisor.
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Deadly Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Pig Ears Dog Treats
October 1, 2020 — The Public Health Agency of Canada is alerting consumers it is investigating a deadly outbreak of Salmonella infections occurring in British Columbia, Alberta, and Yukon.
Based on investigation findings to date, exposure to pig ear dog treats has been identified as a likely source of the outbreak.
Some of the individuals who became sick reported feeding their dog Paws Up!and Western Family brands of pig ear dog treats before their illnesses occurred.
These brands are sold at Canadian Tire and Save-On-Foods.
The outbreak investigation is ongoing and it is possible that additional products may be identified.
On September 29, 2020, the supplying company, Masters Best Friend, voluntarily issued a Notice of Stop Sale for Paws Up! and Western Family brands of pig ear dog treats.
These products were sold nationwide in Canada.
Investigation Summary
As of September 29, 2020, there are eight confirmed cases of Salmonella typhimurium illness in the following provinces: British Columbia (5), Alberta (2), and Yukon (1).
Individuals became sick between late February and early August 2020. Three individuals have been hospitalized. In addition, one individual has died.
Individuals who became ill are between 7 and 95 years of age. The illnesses are distributed equally among men (50%) and women (50%).
It is possible that more recent illnesses may be reported in the outbreak because there is a period of time between when a person becomes ill and when the illness is reported to public health officials.
For this outbreak, the illness reporting period is between four and seven weeks.
What to Do?
Given this, do not feed your dog any Paws Up! or Western Family brand pig ear dog treats.
Always wash your hands right after handling dog treats, and ensure that all areas the treats have come in contact with are properly cleaned and sanitized.
This outbreak is a reminder of the importance of safely handling all pet treats, including pig ears and pet food.
These products can be contaminated with bacteria that can make you and others sick if proper handling and cleaning practices are not followed. If contaminated, pet treats and pet food can also make your pets sick. Ill pets can spread bacteria, like Salmonella, to individuals they are in contact with even if they do not show any signs of illness.
For more information on the affected products, please contact Masters Best Friend.
Although products are no longer available for purchase in stores, they may still be in consumer homes.
U.S. citizens can report complaints about FDA-regulated pet food products by calling the consumer complaint coordinator in your area.
Or go to the FDA’s “Report a Pet Food Complaint” page.
Canadians can report any health or safety incidents related to the use of this product by filling out the Consumer Product Incident Report Form.
Get Lifesaving Recall Alerts by Email
Get free dog food recall alerts sent to you by email. Subscribe to The Dog Food Advisor’s emergency recall notification system.
There’s no cost. No spam. Cancel any time.
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Now the chances of this being a problem in the US or East of the Atlantic are minimal.
But that’s no reason not to publish this and, please, feel free to share it in turn.
What a brilliant idea!
This is a wonderful, innovative way to look after dogs.
It’s not that often that something comes along that is wonderfully refreshing, both as an idea and in practice. I am speaking of a way of housing shelter dogs.
It’s the work of Austin Pets Alive and I’m not surprised in the slightest to read from their website:
Austin Pets Alive! is not your average animal shelter. We pioneer innovative lifesaving programs designed to save the animals most at risk of euthanasia.
They are in Texas.
But back to the article which appeared on the Treehugger website.
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This Rescue is Building Tiny Homes for Shelter Dogs
They offer a calm alternative to the chaos of shelter life.
By Mary Jo DiLonardo, October 1st, 2020
Austin Pets Alive!
The shelter environment can be incredibly overwhelming for any dog. There are strange sights, smells, and sounds, and the presence of unfamiliar animals and people can be constantly changing. Some pets adapt more quickly than others, while some struggle with the frenetic surroundings.
One animal shelter in Texas is building tiny houses as a solution for those anxious dogs that need a calmer place to stay. The non-profit rescue is creating two small cabins on their shelter grounds complete with heating and air conditioning, dog-friendly furniture, and their own private yards. The cabins will also provide workspaces for staff and volunteers.
The tiny homes should be ready for their first guests later this month.
“The idea is to provide more of a home-like environment for the unique population of dogs Austin Pets Alive! cares for as the safety net for shelter animals who need us most — a place for decompression, training, and quality-of-life purposes,” Director of Operations Stephanie Bilbro tells Treehugger. “It seemed like the best opportunity for the investment, and also has the benefit of being a project that can be repeated as many times as we want!”
Having tiny homes for some of the shelter’s canine residents was a long-time dream of the rescue’s executive director, veterinarian Ellen Jefferson. The rescue put together a committee of staff and volunteers in 2019 to assess the facility and see what improvement could be made.
They decided to build the tiny homes “as a way to provide a better quality of life for some of our longest-stay or most behaviorally challenged dogs”, Bilbro says.
The cabins will house one dog at a time and they will remain there for the rest of their stay until they find a foster or adoptive home. The cabins will primarily be used for dogs who are overstimulated by the standard kennel environment.
“Overstimulation can lead not only to higher stress in the animal, but can actually be dangerous for a handler, or other animals, if you have a dog who expresses stress by showing impulsive or aggressive behaviors,” Bilbro says.
“Overstimulation is also a big barrier to successful training or behavior modification, so it can be difficult to make progress with dogs like this in a kennel or shelter environment. The cabins will ideally provide a quiet and low-stimulation place for the dogs to decompress and relax in a way that will help our staff and volunteers get through to them easier.”
The rescue is relying on donations to keep saving lives and trying out innovations like these, Bilbro says. When the pandemic first started, the rescue increased its intakes so smaller and more rural shelters that were temporarily closing wouldn’t have to euthanize animals.
The first dogs should be moving into their tiny houses soon. And maybe they won’t be staying long.
“We also hope that the ‘home-like’ environment of the cabins will help us learn a little more about how a dog would act in a home, which could tell us more about what kind of foster or adopter they need for our matchmakers to match them with their forever families,” Bilbro says.
“Would they be calm or anxious, would they be destructive or tidy, are they possibly housetrained, will they let people come into their space without conflict? These are things we would hope to learn from a foster home but without needing to find a foster who is willing to take on a challenging dog, or a dog we don’t know a lot about.”
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I have nothing to do with neither Treehugger nor Austin Pets Alive.
However, I was so impressed with the way they operated that we made a very small donation. So, if there’s anybody else out there who can afford some money then this is the link to donate.
I just donated to Austin Pets Alive!, an organization that serves the animals most at-risk through innovative programs that address the animals’ needs. I’m proud to support a mission that believes that animal shelters should do just that – provide every animal the chance to find their forever home!
“Provide every animal the chance to find their forever home.“
It doesn’t get any better for our lovely dogs than that.
Learning from Dogs 