Category: People

Delivering a new purpose in life.

Such a precious relationship!

Very frequently when I connect with dog lovers I make it clear that if they have any stories that they would like to share with you good people that they don’t hesitate to submit something. I am always blown away by these submissions. Indeed, there are two being offered to you dear readers this week.

So the first is from Maria Matthews and without any further delay from me, here it is.

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How an amazing Collie pup gave me a new purpose in life.

By Maria Matthews, 28th August 2016.

I was redundant, sitting at home, days divided between housekeeping, writing and walking Bob our dog who was then 7 years of age.

The trouble was I hate cleaning a house, and Bob an Norwegian elk-hound is allergic to being energetic.

My husband mentioned he would love to find a husky and as I was at home I agreed; I was 51 years of age and didn’t hold out much hope of finding work. Our search took us to a well known dogs rescue centre. They suggested we needed to build up our walls, as a husky needs a secure environment, plus the home and us would have to be inspected. We agreed, went home and made the necessary changes. When we returned we discovered there was one hiccup in the plan, a dog taken from the centre had to be housed indoors. We couldn’t agree to it, as Bob loves being outdoors.

I pointed this out and stressed that the backdoor is always open, but it was useless for they wouldn’t budge. The internet is a terrific place and google, God Bless him, suggested loads of places but when I rang there was no husky available. Until I contacted a lady in Easky, County Sligo (the Western side of Ireland) and she informed me she had twenty dogs for re-homing.

So on a sunny Saturday morning we, including Bob, set off. He wasn’t impressed with spending more than half an hour in the car and refused to lie down. We joked that he was watching the road, noting the sign posts, etc., in case he needed to make his own way back. However to cut a long story short, none of the twenty dogs liked him or he them. “We do have one other option,” she paused. “We have a collie cross husky who is extremely active, but she is still a pup.”

We decided to meet the pup.This time when the gate opened there was a pause of maybe thirty seconds while this tiny pup, with the biggest ears ever seen, inspected us. Then she raced into the compound, ran around Bob, jumped over him, turned about, and then ducked under him. He responded by diving down, front paws on the ground and joining in the game.

An hour later we left, with Bob snuggling up to his new companion in the back. She snored for most of the way home and once there took control of his bed, his life and everyone’s hearts.

However, we discovered a downside to having a clever pup. She loved balls, would do anything to find one, and learned how to open gates, upend the laundry basket and sneak socks and other pieces of underwear out into the garden.

She needed a job. We tried agility, and she excelled at it, but the class was too crowded for her and a distance away from the house. Then I stumbled on an article about dogs that search for people who are lost.

I began by hiding her ball. She loved this game. I made contact with Irish Search Dogs and a local man who agreed to meet with me. He was bowled over by her ability. She quickly began learning how to find people. Our new weekly regime included a drive to County Cork at 6 am on Sunday mornings, a drive of three-and-a-half hours there and another three-and-a-half back home. All for a training session of fifteen to twenty minutes. I needed to find someone closer to home. After much searching I met Fred Quinn a dog trainer of 40 years who agreed to take a look at her.

He was impressed but decided our training methods needed adjusting. And she loved it. We searched: woods; water; urban areas; for our hidden helpers. It became a challenge to think of new places to hide. So we used cars, car boots, trees, dried out ditches, derelict sheds, wheelie bins, massive drainage pipes under the roads, and on one occasion a huge hollowed out hole in the ground with shrubs, etc., covering the opening. And on each occasion she found our volunteer missing body. Then we upped her training further and began using dead scent.

At each change in her training she took it with a big wag of her tail.

She continues to love it. Three years ago we met with a group who recover and rescue people from the rivers and lakes in the County. They were intrigued with her and asked us to join their group. Now it was my turn to train, I learnt how to cox a boat, took more first aid courses, learnt how to walk a river bed, swam in the river Boyne on a star-filled night, learned how to cross a weir safely and feed a boat across it by rope. I think Ellie viewed my training sceptically as she sat on the boat and watched with interest.

When we are on call out, we are a team. We have worked through rain, snow, freezing temperatures even having a picnic in a wood on the top of a hillside during a snow storm and all through it this medium-sized dog was urging me to get up and move again. She knows she has a job to do and is eager to complete it.

In the past two years she has helped in nine recoveries. People wonder why we do it and I suppose now the answer simply is, because she has this great ability or gift and it would be a shame not to make use of it. However, the greatest gift she has given me are the friendships I have gained and the extra life-skills made during the past few years. It is probably down to all of this extra or new found confidence that I have a blog site, two books published and a great amount of energy.

And I thank my four legged friend, my dear Ellie, for bringing me on so many adventures.

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Not only is this a wonderful story but it is yet another insight into the precious relationship that so many of us humans have with our dogs. Beautiful!

I’m also going to close by including a little of what was in Maria’s covering email.

Ellie has been working now as a search and recovery dog for the past three years and more than proven her worth to all around us.
I would love to think other people might read it and consider doing something with their own dog even if it was only to bring them on visits to elderly relatives as I have noticed that my own father and mother-in-law get comfort from Bob’s visits to them.
Many times I stop and ponder about these very strange times we are now living in. How they have the potential to be most unsettling.
Then just as many times I know that while I have my darling Jeannie in my life and so many dogs who make me feel so special to them those strange times ‘out there’ are, to me, like water off a duck’s back.
Maria’s story just reinforced that feeling in me and I bet I’m not the only one affected in that way by Maria’s words!

Dusk to Dawn Commitment!

The love that exists between so many humans and so many dogs!

Yesterday, after I had returned from my morning bike ride with our local group of friends, Brandy was incredibly pleased to see me. To the extent that he crouched down, his head and front legs on the hardwood floor, his rear hips still up in the air, so to speak (Jean said that this posture is called a play bow), and everything about him signaling that he wanted to play with me.

I could not resist adopting a similar physical position and then we both rolled onto our backs with our heads locked together ‘cheek to cheek’ in the most exquisite and intimate bond between dog and human.

Such gorgeous events produce a loyalty and affection from me (and, I suspect, from Brandy too) that would mean that there would be no limit within me if I had to protect and save Brandy from harm.

Countless numbers of you dear readers will know precisely what I feel and how I expressed it.

Thus the example of others showing not the slightest hesitation in rescuing a dog trapped underground both makes sense and makes us feel so proud. Here it is reproduced from a recent Care2 posting.

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Firefighters Dig Until Dawn to Rescue Underground Dog

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By: Laura S. August 14, 2016 About Laura
Could it be that when you name a dog “Tiger” you can expect him to be especially territorial? Well, perhaps that’s why this dog in Gulfport, Miss., decided to race down the street in pursuit of a neighborhood cat. Only problem is, there’s something just as dangerous as quicksand in the concrete “jungle” and it swallowed poor Tiger just as quickly.

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Tiger fell deep into a concrete culvert pipe near the intersection of Mississippi Avenue and Tyler Street around 9 p.m. one evening, and it wasn’t until residents exhausted their own resources that they decided to call for help at around 3 a.m. the next morning.

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Gulfport Fire Department Battalion Chief Chris Henderson, along with seven other firefighters and a pair of workers from the public works department, began working together to extricate the dog.

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It was a tedious rescue because the pipe was far too narrow for any rescue worker to fit through, so the team had to cut their way through the pipe.

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“We counted the joints in the pipe to estimate the distance, then walked off the distance on the top above the ground,” Henderson told the local ABC News affiliate.

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The firefighters dug down and then drilled holes to locate Tiger before bringing in a concrete saw to cut through the pipe and reach him.

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By 7 a.m. Tiger was pulled to safety and reunited with his guardian who planned to take him to the veterinarian as a precautionary measure although the dog appeared unharmed.

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(All the photographs are Credit: Chris Henderson of Gulfport Fire Department / Facebook)

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Nothing further to add from me!

The harmonious order of things!

The wisdom of balance.

Let me start off with a quote:

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Thomas Merton was an author who was born January 31st, 1915 and died on December 10th, 1968.

As part of the process of slowing down the progress of Parkinson’s Disease Jean is participating in three therapy sessions each week at the Outpatient’s Clinic at our local Three Rivers Hospital. One of the those sessions is physical therapy. I sat in on the initial introductory session and was fascinated by how much emphasis was placed on Jean’s ability to balance properly (and she was very good – better than me at times). Apparently a decline in one’s balance is an indicator of the brain not functioning as it should.

Psychologically and emotionally maintaining “an even keel” is vital to dealing with the countless ‘events’ that come our way every day.

I have been a follower of Val Boyco’s blog Find Your Middle Ground for some time and frequently read posts that reach out to me way beyond the words on the screen. As it was with a post published last Thursday: Steps to Find your Middle Ground.

It is republished here with Val’s very kind permission.

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Steps to Find your Middle Ground

Posted on August 18, 2016 by Val Boyko

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This list is for all the list people out there. Enjoy the steps I have discovered in finding my own middle ground and living life in balance 💛

    • Notice! Take time to pause and be aware of the incredible gift of life that you share with others and with nature. Wake up to the little things. Wake up to your self. Wake up to it all. This is called living mindfully. Become a keen observer.
    • Accept that life has ups and downs. Really! Some one told us when were little that life should be a breeze. This is called wishful thinking. Be grateful for the highs and graceful in the lows. This is called living life well.
    • Become present. Stop lamenting the past or worrying about tomorrow. Living is in each moment. Now. Take a deep breath. Then another. Notice you are still here… not there.
    • Get to know yourself. Take that first scary step of self-discovery. Turn off the tv. Sit for a while. Journal about what comes up. Have a meaningful conversation. Listen more to others. Listen more to yourself.
    • Let go of judgments. We think that judging others or ourselves makes us feel strong. Judgments come from fear of not being in control and having things go our way. Our way is not the way. There is nothing wrong, so stop trying to be right. Stop comparing, criticizing and start letting others be. Let yourself be.
    • Realize that you are not your thinking. You are the one who is aware of your thoughts. You are awareness within a physical body, with an imaginative and fearful ego-mind that creates stories. Your thinking is not the truth about who you are or the world around you.
    • Find the peace within. Beyond the next breath and the next thought there is a deep reservoir of peace waiting to be stepped into. This cool refreshing stillness has always been there and will always be there for us to access. To connect to this wondrous pool becomes our practice… whether it’s in mindfulness meditation, yoga, sitting in nature, or while commuting on the train, realize that you too can find your own middle ground.

This blog is my way of helping people get their feet wet.

Photo by Larry Hobbell
Photo by Larry Hobbell

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Now go and read that quote again by Thomas Merton.

Life’s Lottery!

A traumatic accident to Casey is very professionally dealt with.

Our nine dogs are divided into two groups. One group lives in the kitchen/dining-room area (Casey, Paloma and Ruby) and the other dogs in the living-room/bedroom area (Pharaoh, Sweeny, Pedy, Oliver, Cleo and Brandy).

These two groups are separated by a gate, as seen here with Pharaoh resting on his bed and Casey at ease just on the other ‘kitchen’ side.

P1160402Both Jean and I go between the two areas via the gate many times daily.

Last Sunday evening, as Jean was going to the kitchen, Casey stuck his head through one of the vertical spaces in the gate and must have become stuck albeit what then happened was upon us in a flash. For Brandy grabbed the left-hand side of Casey’s face with his own jaw and the two dogs were locked together. It was a bit of a struggle to separate Brandy from Casey and when we took a look at Casey’s face it was clear that there was a laceration along his lower, left-hand lip. However, he did not appear to be in pain and we all proceeded to bed.

On the Monday morning after I had returned from my bike ride with a local group of neighbours I queried with Jean whether or not we should just check that Casey wasn’t too badly injured despite the fact that Casey was showing no signs of discomfort. Nevertheless, his wound was not a pretty sight and a quick call to our neighbour Jim Goodbrod, who is also a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM), resulted in Jim saying to bring Casey round to his place then and there.

We are glad that we did for Jim quickly discovered that the laceration was not only to Casey’s lower lip but that much of his gum below the gum line along Casey’s teeth had been torn away exposing the jaw bone. Jim said that this required specialist attention and had no hesitation in recommending Southern Oregon Veterinary Speciality Center (SOVSC) in Medford, about 40 miles to the South. Jim went inside his house and made an appointment for us to take Casey to SOVSC for 2pm that afternoon.

P1160385We had previously been to SOVSC with Hazel and were impressed with their level of expertise and experience and the fact that they were open twenty-four hours every day of the week!

By the time we arrived Casey had been allocated to be seen by Dr. Adam Reiss, DVM, and very soon after arrival we were shown into a side room awaiting Dr. Reiss’s medical assistant.

P1160382Dr. Reiss then arrived and explained that Casey’s lip and gum would require suturing under a general anesthetic but that they could fit it in that afternoon albeit Casey would not be ‘back on his feet’ until 6pm at the earliest. Of course, we agreed and shortly thereafter Casey quietly and calmly was led away by Dr. Reiss’s assistant.

Jean and I then went the short distance to the centre of Medford, did a bit of shopping, had an early dinner and returned to SOVSC shortly before 6pm.

While we were waiting for news I was interested to read a prominently displayed sign setting out what constituted a veterinary specialist. (I’ve included the image at a larger size to make it easier for you to read it.)

P1160388Clearly there is more to caring for one’s pet than meets the eye.

Indeed, SOVSC’s web site introduces readers in this fashion:

At Southern Oregon Veterinary Specialty Center, we understand the special bond between a pet and their human family. Our team of highly trained doctors, certified technicians and support staff partner with your family veterinarian to provide specialized diagnostics, surgery and emergency care for your pet upon a referral or emergency basis. Our clinic is staffed 24 hours-a-day, 7 days a week, to receive emergency cases and to monitor our critical care patients. The clinic’s board-certified veterinary specialists and staff are committed to providing exceptional compassionate care utilizing state-of-the-art technology and treatments.

The relationships we have with partner veterinarians are vital to the success of treating your pet. We will keep them apprised of the patient’s status to provide a smooth and cohesive experience.

Jim Goodbrod speaks highly of the Center.

P1160387Dr. Reiss duly came out to speak with us and explained that all had gone well although Casey was still groggy but back on his feet. Despite the smiling face Dr. Reiss looked pretty tired. Not surprising when one reflects that the time was well past 6pm.

In an earlier conversation with some of the staff it was reported that, on average, some thirty animals were seen every day!

That’s commitment to the cause in any language!

Then it wasn’t long before our dear Casey was being led back into the front waiting area.

P1160389To be followed moments later by the assistant (apologies for not making a note of her name) setting out the details of how Casey had to be cared for over the coming hours and days.

P1160391The verbal guidance was supported by extensive notes.

Then it was a case of yours truly paying for all the services that had been provided for Casey and time to go home.

The car was rearranged to give room for Casey to sit on the rear seats with Jean next to him. I took the opportunity to take a photograph of the two of them that showed clearly the extent of the suture and the drain that had been inserted into Casey’s mouth.

P1160394It was beyond me to comprehend how Casey was so nonchalent to what in any human’s experience would have been hurting big time.

An hour later we were all home and getting dogs, cats and horses fed a lot later than normal.

Miracle of miracles Casey made it comfortably through the night and the following photograph was taken a little after 9:30 am yesterday morning.P1160400Well done all involved!

Thank you to Jim and all the doctors and staff at SOVSC but the biggest thank you of them all must go to Casey!!

Life’s Lottery: For humans and animals alike!

Just takes one’s breath away.

The incredible story of one stray dog and a desert racer.

This has been widely reported in many other places but, nonetheless, seemed a perfect fit for a blog called Learning from Dogs!

This is the story of a stray dog that took a liking to a runner participating in the 2016 Gobi March 4 Deserts race in China. I first saw the story when it was carried on the Care2 Causes site.

How hard are you willing to work to improve your position in life? For one stray dog, the answer is: pretty darn hard.

During the 2016 Gobi March 4 Deserts race in China, extreme runner Dion Leonard from Scotland was racing through the rugged terrain of the Tian Shan mountain range. That’s when a stray female pooch (eventually and aptly named) Gobi started following him.

The runner figured that she’d tire out eventually. She was a small dog, so keeping up with a life-sized human (who is an extreme jogger) probably didn’t seem likely. But amazingly, the little dog kept up.

That Care2 report linked to the UK’s Independent Newspaper who opened the story thus:

Man who befriended stray dog during extreme desert marathon launches reunion appeal

The dog ran alongside Dion Leonard for 124 kilometres

May Bulman Tuesday 2 August 2016

Mr Leonard hopes to be reunited with the dog who ran with him during the 250 kilometre race in the Gobi desert 4Deserts.com / Omni Cai
Mr Leonard hopes to be reunited with the dog who ran with him during the 250 kilometre race in the Gobi desert 4Deserts.com / Omni Cai

An extreme marathon runner has launched an appeal to be reunited with a stray dog with whom he formed an “unbreakable bond” during a 250-kilometre (155 mile) race in the Gobi desert in China.

Dion Leonard, 41, hopes to raise the funds that will allow him to be reunited with the dog, named Gobi, who joined him during the annual 4 Deserts Race Series in March.

Gobi began running alongside the 101 competitors as they ran through the Tian Shan mountain range. Despite her small size the dog managed to run half of the race.

Later on in that Independent article it is reported:

Mr Leonard set up the crowdfunding page to raise funds towards organising for Gobi to be transported from China to live with him in Scotland.

The process will take up to four months and cost £5,000, with the dog having to be medically checked and quarantined before she can be cleared for entry.

A simple mouse click then takes the reader to that Crowdfunding page where the headline then shows that already over £19,000 has been raised.

90358That page explains:

Gobi, a friendly stray dog joined 101 other competitors running 250km over the Tian Shan Mountains down to the Black Gobi Desert during a 6 stage 7 day self sufficiency foot race. Gobi ran 4 stages including the final 10km stage to the finish line, showing unique strength and stamina for a little dog to keep up with the runners in such grueling conditions.

90358-0742f368adef57f7a59875929a05e67dEveryone from the competitors, volunteers and race crew fell in love with this little dog that captured all our hearts. Gobi took a shine to me and over the week we developed an unbreakable bond as I shared my sleeping space, food/water and ultimately our companionship. 

Now let’s hear from Dion.

Time and time again our wonderful dogs inspire us to reach out; to never say never!

We are what we think of most!

A republication of a recent post from Val Boyko.

Yesterday, Val published a post over on her blog Find Your Middle Ground that really ‘spoke’ to me. That’s not to imply, by the way, that her other posts don’t very often reach out to me and, undoubtedly, to many others.

Val’s post was called The Depths of our Relationships and explored the different levels of relationships that we have with others in and around our lives.

Instinctively most people would regard us humans as far more complex than our animal companions. As the old Devon (South-West England) expression goes, “There’s now’t so queer as folk.”

Yet, once we have really got to know a dog there will be many who will see behind those fabulous eyes a sense of a depth of character, a soul comes to mind, that suggests that the brain of the dog offers a canine psychological complexity most of us don’t allow for.

To support that proposition just look at the eyes of Pharaoh in this photograph going back to June, 2007.

Pharaohjun2007However, today I am  republishing Val’s recent post and I do so with great pleasure.

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The Depths of our Relationships

Posted on August 8, 2016 by

masksI read an interesting article some time ago by coach Michael Neill on how there are different levels in our relationships with others. I’m not talking about literal closeness, for example a brother is closer than a colleague at work, but more about our ability to truly connect in an authentic way with another person.

Have you noticed that you can feel a deep connection almost immediately with a stranger? Or feel like a member of your family is hiding behind a mask and being superficial? … That’s what I am talking about.

Surface Level – How we pretend to be 

On the surface, people present themselves to the world in whatever ways they would like to be seen. They may be clever or cynical, light and cheerful or intellectual and deep. This is our persona or the “mask” of our personality, often revealing our fears, judgments, and insecurities in the very attempt to hide them.

Whether we enjoy or dislike someone’s personality is fairly arbitrary – an accidental coming together of our own innocently acquired preferences and prejudices from a young age.

But like it or not, at some point the mask slips and we see through to…

One Level Deep – The selfish self

Underneath the masks of personality, we’re continually navigating the world through a swirl of thought. Because we feel that thinking is coming at us from the outside world, we tend to see our actions, as one of my clients once put it, as being ‘the only sane response to an insane world’.
This is how we justify our ambition and ruthlessness; our cruelty to ourselves and others. After all, if it wasn’t a dog eat dog world out there, who would ever want to eat a dog?

When we see through someone’s “nice person” or “tough guy” mask, we often see only as far as this level. And it’s difficult for most of us to feel warmly towards someone who is seemingly only out for their own self-aggrandizement or self-preservation.

Until, that is, we see through to…

Two Levels Deep – Doing the best we can as we’re all in this together

There is a quote often attributed to Philo of Alexandria that we should “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” This is not only true in the physical world, where our bodies begin to decay long before our thoughts are ready to let go, but also in our innate psychology.

Every human being I know wants to love and be loved; to be happy more and suffer less; and to feel like in some way their life had meaning and value. How they go about achieving these aims is a product of their level of understanding and experience of the world.

It’s easy to love people “two levels deep”, because we see ourselves reflected in them. We all have a natural compassion for the suffering of others and an abiding conscience which ensures that while we may at times act in ways that are harmful to ourselves and others, we do it in spite of and not because of who we are at core.

Loving people at this level doesn’t mean we have to live with them or let them get away with murder, literally or figuratively. It just means that we don’t get so upset by their humanness or carried away by our own delusions that we can escape the human condition.

While seeing through to people’s innate humanity makes for richer and more wholesome relationships, there is a level beyond even that which takes us past the illusion of separation which allows us to play judge and jury to our fellow humans…

soul-connection2Three Levels Deep – Who we are before the fact of thought

Who are you before thought comes into the equation? Mystics throughout time have described our essential nature as being made of spirit – a name for the invisible life force that makes up the visible world of form.

It’s difficult to even talk about “loving someone” at this level because rather than two or seven or even seven billion separate people, there is simply the presence of Love with a capital “L” – and as we dissolve and surrender into that Love, we fulfill the age-old proverb that “we are that which we seek”.

We are one in shared consciousness and spirit.”

p.s. This makes me think about how that pesky neighbor, or annoying colleague and Donald Trump appear one level deep for many of us.

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Val concluded her post with the proverb “we are that which we seek”. I used a very similar idea as the title to today’s post, “We are what we think of most!“. I am clear in my own mind that those two sayings are opposite sides of the same coin.

All of which reinforces in spades the benefits that flow from open and honest self-awareness.

If only for the wonderful quality of a deep sleep that results from that self-awareness.

I rest my case!

Loving our dogs

even our deaf dogs!

Another day yesterday where my creative juices had evaporated; if that’s what creative juices do!

But that doesn’t devalue the following article in the slightest! An article that was recently read on the Care2 blogsite and is republished here for your pleasure.

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Prisoners Care for Deaf Dogs Displaced by Wildfire

3185692.large By: Laura Goldman  August 3, 2016

About Laura

The so-called Sand Fire that burned for over a week near Los Angeles didn’t only threaten wildlife sanctuaries. Soon after the wildfire started on July 22, Mark and Lisa Tipton, owners of Deaf Dog Rescue of America (DDRA), a non-profit organization that rescues, trains and rehomes hearing-impaired dogs, decided it was better to be safe than sorry. They evacuated the rescue ranch’s nearly 50 residents.

“It was no small feat to assemble crates, pack them into trucks and trailers, and load the dogs,” Lisa wrote on the DDRA Facebook page. “Backbreaking and stressful. We have wonderful paid kennel staff here which is why we were able to evacuate the dogs so smoothly. Nobody got bitten, no loose dogs, no drugs were used. They stayed with us in our time of need and they were rock stars.”

The Tiptons were eventually able to find a temporary home for the dogs at the California state prison in Lancaster, which invited them to bring the dogs there. Mark happens to operate the Karma Rescue Paws for Life dog-training program for the prison’s inmates. It is California’s first and only dog program in a high-security prison. Many of the participants are serving life sentences.

In this program, dogs rescued from high-kill shelters around Los Angeles County live full-time with the participating inmates. Over a 12-week period, the inmates learn how to train the dogs for Canine Good Citizen certification. This certification helps the dogs become more adoptable and, in turn, helps save more dogs from shelters. The inmates benefit by learning real-world skills and giving back to society by helping these dogs get another chance at life.

“Paws for Life restored my faith in humanity that I’m a person, that I matter,” inmate trainer Jon Grobman told KABC. “It gave me the opportunity to care for something, love something.”

In the two years the program has been offered at the Lancaster prison, 75 former death-row dogs have found forever homes.

‘They Were Thriving Under Their Care’

 After the Tiptons dropped off the dogs, they returned to the DDRA ranch to check on the fire, get some sleep and gather up more supplies for the dogs.

“The dogs were bewildered and watched us walk out the gates,” Lisa wrote on Facebook. “The looks on their faces made me cry when things quieted down and I had time to think about it. I have to admit that I felt guilty leaving them there.”

The couple returned to the prison the next morning with food for the dogs – which, along with the feelings of guilt, wasn’t necessary.

“The inmates had handled breakfast beautifully,” Lisa wrote. “They were getting the dogs out for exercise and cleaning their runs… I have never, ever seen anyone clean up dog poop with such glee.”

Nor had she ever seen the dogs so comfortable around strangers. “[They] were thriving under their care,” Lisa wrote, “and had wagging tales and smiles on their faces.”

Thankfully, DDRA survived the Sand Fire. All the dogs returned to their home July 30.

“Can pretty much guarantee that when they are all safely in their kennels snoring,” Lisa wrote, “I’m going to melt into a huge puddle of tears from sheer thankfulness and relief.”

For more information about the rescue, visit the Deaf Dog Rescue of America website.

L.A. Detention Center May Get an Animal Shelter

Coincidentally, while the inmates at the Lancaster prison were caring for the displaced deaf dogs, L.A. County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich proposed that, to help with overcrowding in animal shelters, a new one should be built at the Pitchess Detention Center in Castaic.

In his proposal, Antonovich cited successful prison programs similar to Lancaster’s Paws for Life.

“Such a program could be a cost-effective and progressive way to integrate the needed care of animals with positive benefits to our inmates,” he wrote.

The feasibility of such a shelter is being analyzed by county animal welfare officials and the sheriff’s department. A report on their findings is expected later this month.

Photo credit: YouTube

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While one reads such accounts of how dogs are loved there’s a part of me that remains optimistic about the future.

Celebrating old connections.

A great catch-up from many years ago.

A few weeks ago I had a comment left on a blogpost, “Hello Paul.. all the very best ex, 1234 lol“. The comment had been left by a Martin Lowe. That won’t mean anything to anyone until I explain that I have a pilot’s log book and the very first entry reads:

March 3rd, 1984/Cessna FA152/G-BGAF/Capt. M. Lowe/P u/t/IPSWICH – LOCAL/1325 Departure/1355 Arrival/ 0:30 mins dual/ Ex 4,5.

That was my very first flight in a powered aircraft and my instructor was Martin Lowe of the Suffolk Aero Club based at Ipswich Airport in Suffolk, England.

Yesterday, Martin and I had a great catch-up over the phone and I’m republishing an earlier post of mine as a way of saying how fabulous it was to remake contact with Martin once again.

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Keeping a balance on one’s state of mind.

Don’t know about you but I find that it is all too easy to get wound up by so much that is going on in this crazy world. That’s not to marginalise the threats to society that are all around us and there are some powerful writers out there who work so hard to inform the world as to the truth of those threats. (As an aside, one of my favourite authors is this context is Patrice Ayme, just see this recent Post of his as an example of his depth of analysis.)

But my dear friend of over 40 years, Dan Gomez, recently sent me a link to a video of the 10 most extreme airports in the world. That stirred some memories from my own flying days.

First settle back and enjoy 7 minutes of reasons why you don’t want to think about flying! 😉

The YouTube video has this information, which I republish below,

Pictures and videos of the top 10 most extreme airports in the world!

San Diego: Busy airspace lots of buildings on approach
Madeira: Difficult approach and did have a short runway
Eagle Vail: High altitude, short runway & mountainous approach & departure
Courchevel: Short runway, bumpy runway, high altitude
Kai Tak: Difficult approch, fly through tall buildings, short runway
Gibraltar: Short runway, building on approach, winds from the Gibraltar rock
St Maarten: Short runway, has to fly over the beach with alot of people on there, steep takeoff because of mountains
St Barts: Short runway, has to dive.
St Barts: To land, the low approach on that hill thingy
Toncontin: Difficult approach, short runway
Lukla, short runway, only was cemented a few years ago, no go around, if land too low you land into a cliff

First song: La Perla by Kobojsarna

Second song: Feel It – Explicit Album Version by Three 6 Mafia vs Tiesto with Sean Kingston and Flo Rida

Now to a personal recollection.

I was a private pilot for many years, first learning to fly at the Suffolk Aero Club at Ipswich Airport in Suffolk, England. My first lesson was on the 3rd March, 1984!

Some twenty years later, on the 13th August 2004 to be exact, I was checked out to land at Courchevel Airport in an aircraft type known as a TB20, a French-built aircraft. Here’s the page from my log book with the necessary authorisation stamp affixed.

Cleared to land at Courchevel, LFLJ!

The following year, 19th July, 2005, I added my wonderful Piper Super Cub to that authorisation. (See here for a part picture of the aircraft.)

So thanks to YouTube as someone has uploaded a film of a light aircraft operating into Courchevel. It really is rather thrilling!

Finally, back to Dan. Here’s his recollections included in the email that he sent with that first film.

Just found this. I’ve landed at two of these. Eagle Vail was a piece of cake compared to Toncontin as Marty and Bruce know. BAE146 and small Boeing jets. I flew in and out of Toncontin 5 times in the 90’s and had no idea it was as scary as it was. That is to say, I knew it was scary because my palms sweated and heartbeat was about 140 but when I look at it now I go “what was I thinking?”

Take offs were like Orange County, Full brake power straight up. The big difference was you were shuttling along the runway and then down the runway and finally, up the runway to get the wheels up.

One time, on a connecting flight from Medellin, we taxied in, were boarded by military police with drug dogs who sniffed their way through the aisle. Bags were searched while everyone waited in intense heat. It took about 2 hours, three time longer than necessary. Then the interior was fumigated with everyone aboard. All the big machine guns too. Nobody said a word!

There’s one thing about flying a light aircraft, especially into ‘interesting’ airfields, you don’t have a moment to worry about the state of the world!

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March 3rd, 1984 to August 2nd, 2016 – more than thirty-two years – just like that!

P.S. I had a 15-minute solo flight on April 25th, 1984.

A political diversion.

This essay from George Monbiot just has to be read as widely as possible.

Dear followers of this blog know that from time to time I dip into politics. I do so because something I read strikes me with such force that I want others to read the article or essay. Not infrequently, my ‘dip’ is in the form of republishing an essay from George Monbiot who, long ago, gave me blanket permission to republish his essays. That is the case today.

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Buy The Book

I was inspired to write my book, subsequently self-published last December, because I truly believe that the values that we see in our longest animal companions are values that we, as in our societies, from top to bottom, have to embrace if we are to stand any chance of surviving as a species.

Reflect on the fact that dogs do not lie, they do not set out to deceive or influence others for their own personal gain and they are utterly creatures of integrity.

OK, I can hear some of you thinking that dogs are dogs and humans are humans and it’s just plain daft to link the two in this fashion. My only answer to that is to read the book or, at the very least, download and read the first twenty-five pages (for free). Better still purchase the book and have 50% of my net income donated to the Rogue Valley Humane Society.

On the 28th July, George Monbiot published an essay entitled So Much For Sovereignty. I read the essay and, frankly, was apalled at what George was describing: the background of the UK’s new international trade secretary, Liam Fox, recently appointed by Theresa May.

Read it for yourself and see if you react the same way that I did!

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So Much For Sovereignty

28th July 2016

To this government, “taking back control” means handing Britain to a different set of foreign powers

By George Monbiot, published in the Guardian 27th July 2016

What does it mean to love your country? What does it mean to defend its sovereignty? For some of the leaders of the Brexit campaign, it means reducing the United Kingdom to a franchise of corporate capital, governed from head offices overseas. They will take us out of Europe to deliver us into the arms of other powers.

No one embodies this contradiction as much of the man now charged with determining the scope of our sovereignty: the new international trade secretary, Liam Fox. He explained his enthusiasm for leaving Europe thus: “We’ll be able to make our own laws unhindered by anyone else, and our democratic parliament will not be overruled by a European Court.” But of all the people Theresa May could have appointed to this post, he seems to me the most likely to ensure that our parliament and laws are overruled by foreign bodies.

Dr Fox looks to me like a corporate sleeper cell implanted in government. In 2011, he resigned his post as defence secretary in disgrace, after his extracurricular interests were exposed. He had set up an organisation called Atlantic Bridge, financed in large part by a hedge fund owner. Atlantic Bridge formed a partnership with a corporate lobbying group called the American Legislative Exchange Council, which is funded by tobacco, pharmaceutical and oil companies. Before it was struck off by the Charity Commission, it began assembling a transatlantic conclave of people who wished to see public services privatised and corporations released from regulation.

He allowed a lobbyist to attend his official meetings, without government clearance. He made misleading statements about these meetings, which were later disproved. It seems extraordinary to me that a man with such a past could have been brought back into government, let alone given such a crucial and sensitive role. Most newspapers have brushed his inconvenient history under the political carpet. He is, after all, their man.

At every turn he promotes the millionaire’s agenda, while urging that the social contract which makes this country more or less habitable be ripped apart. He wants “a systematic dismantling of universal benefits … turning them into tax cuts”. He has argued for a three to five-year holiday from capital gains tax. He wants to “freeze public spending for at least three years and probably more” and to deregulate the labour market, making workers easier to fire. He suggests that access to housing benefit should be limited for people under 25.

This is the man who has been put in charge of making new trade agreements. What he wants to do with them is pretty clear. “We need to see a reinvigoration of our transatlantic relationship,” he argues.  “We have a low regulation and low taxation environment which is only likely to improve outside the EU.” Improve, in this context, means becoming yet more hostile to human welfare, social mobility and the defence of the living world.

One of the legitimate complaints against the EU is its determination to drag us into treaties that claim to be about trade but are really about releasing multinational corporations from democratic control. Three of the agreements it is trying to impose – TTIP (the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership), CETA (the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement) and the Trade in Services Agreement – make a mockery of parliamentary sovereignty.

They threaten to reduce to the lowest common denominator the laws protecting us from predatory finance, the exploitation of workers, food adulteration, climate change and environmental destruction. They threaten to force the privatisation of public services. They would allow corporations to sue governments for compensation in offshore tribunals that – unlike the European Court Dr Fox professes to hate – are unaccountable, opaque and wildly imbalanced. The EU has no mandate to strike such agreements: a consultation on the offshore tribunals TTIP proposes attracted 150,000 responses, 97% of which were negative.

Leaving Europe should enable us to leave behind biased, destructive treaties of this kind; we will, after all, have to renegotiate most of our trade agreements. But by putting the Fox in charge of the chicken coop, Theresa May seems determined to replace them with something even worse.

The corporate army is already at the gates. The Republican senator Tom Cotton proposes that Britain should join the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Using the kind of international tribunals that TTIP threatens to impose, NAFTA has undermined labour rights and environmental protection. It has blocked attempts to produce more progressive laws and greatly restricted legislative sovereignty. Whether we formally join NAFTA, or connect to that trading area through TTIP or another such agreement, the results will gravely threaten our sovereignty – unless negotiations are run on an entirely different basis.

In response to the Philip Green scandal, Theresa May says she wants to “tackle corporate irresponsibility” and “reform capitalism so that it works for everyone not just the privileged few.” We have no idea what she means, but here’s where it should begin. Before her government starts negotiating any new trade treaties, it should open a public consultation about their purpose and scope. The UK’s trading relationships should be debated in parliament and the people of this nation should be allowed to determine how much control over national life our representatives should retain, and how much should be ceded to international agreements and international bodies.

Does this mean a referendum? If we can be trusted to decide whether or not to share our sovereignty with Europe, should we not also be trusted to decide whether or not to share it with transnational capital?

But the Conservative vision of sovereignty is highly selective. People like Dr Fox appear to hate much of what others love about this country: the NHS, our public broadcasters, our social safety net, the protection of the countryside, the notion that power resides in the people, rather than in corporations and their shadowy lobbyists. There are traitors in our midst, who would rip down our most treasured institutions on behalf of the transnational elite and its offshore holdings. This, it seems, is what they mean by taking back control.

http://www.monbiot.com

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Elsewhere on this blog I describe a little of what this blog is about:

The underlying theme of Learning from Dogs is about truth, integrity, honesty and trust in every way.  We use the life of dogs as a metaphor.

Truth, integrity, honesty and trust: Those are the qualities we need in our leaders in so many countries. Not in the future but Now!

Freedom with a capital ‘F’.

Sometimes the most obvious solutions take the longest to find.

I feel a little embarrassed that this introduction may come across as rather self-indulgent; I don’t intend that.

My purpose is to offer an introduction to a recent blogpost from Sue Dreamwalker that explains why her post really ‘spoke’ to me and why it felt important to share Sue’s post with all you good people.

Yesterday morning I left a comment to a Transition Times article, penned by Jennifer Browdy. The article was headed: Hillary Clinton: Holding the Center in These Complex Transition Times, So We Can Do the Essential Work of Creating a Better World.

Subsequently, I left a follow-up to my first comment, replying to a comment from Diane Husic. This is what Diane wrote:

Many of us realize what a critical junction the country faces in this election cycle. As an academic, I am trying to figure out the appropriate role I should play. We need to teach students to be respectful of difference, to be tolerant, to be problem solvers, and to be civically engaged, but we aren’t supposed to use our positions to “force” our political views on them. But given the magnitude of issues confronting the planet and humanity and the importance of having leadership that “gets it” (and displays compassion and empathy), this is a tough balance to try to find.

and this was my reply to Diane:

Diane, as someone who previously has run his own business and then, after selling it in 1986, spent a number of years as a mentor with the Prince’s Youth Business Trust in the UK, I have come to the conclusion that the best role model we adults can offer our ‘students’ is this: “Be the best you can be!” That flows from being fully aware of the person that one is. For self-awareness is the key to understanding oneself and, consequently, of understanding others. Understanding why people think and behave the way they do, for good and bad, is the only effective way of engaging with others and seeking that ‘civic engagement’ so critically important.

Apologies, that paragraph sounds like a damn speech! I didn’t intend it to be so. Plus, my own journey of self-awareness has been a long and tortuous one – but that doesn’t change my view just expressed.

Coincidentally, I have been having some informal chats with Jan Schmuckle: http://www.janconsults.com/home

Her recently released book on the effectiveness of Role Montage in building leadership skills is highly relevant to today’s students. In Jan’s words (and I have no commercial or financial link with Jan):

Role Montage: A Creative New Way to Discover the
Leader Within You is written from Jan’s experience
with her client work and her research. It helps
leaders explore self-awareness and leadership using
the role montage process.

I’ll creep back into my hole!😉

You can see why I offered a warning about coming across as self-indulgent!

But if you have stayed with me so far (and thank you) you will now understand why Sue’s post spoke so clearly to me. Republished here with Sue’s very kind permission.

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Set Yourself Free..

by Sue Dreamwalker. July 28th, 2016.

This morning I switched on the radio and the first record I heard was this one.. It was the very first time I had listened to this recording, never hearing it before.. It made me smile.. Especially when it mentioned taking Calcium and taking care of our knees..  So I decided to YouTube it to listen to again and to my delight found several versions..

Life has been busy within the Dreamwalker’s Domain this last week.. Last night I was so tired I went to bed at 7pm and slept for 12 hours.

Today the Universe thought to allow me to cool  down in the showers of rain,  so I thought I would share about my Busy time in the Sun on my Gardening Blog. And to share what brought such a smile to my face first thing this morning..

I particularly enjoyed the lyrics in the middle of this narrative of the inclusion of Rozalla’s Song Everybody’s Free to Feel Good, which is an old favourite of mine..

 So Go On FEEL GOOD and DANCE.. LAUGH and SING..

And SHARE THE FEEL GOOD FACTOR 

Sending Love and Blessings

Next time I will share with you the village I grew up in as we went  back to see the Well Dressings.. Along with some of my thoughts..

Sue

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Feeling good about ourselves is the result of knowing and liking who we are. The foundation stone of knowing and liking all the many good people we interact with throughout our lives.

And now go and hug a dog!