The DogCast Radio blog

If you think you have trouble stopping your dog escaping, check out this canine escape artist! I love the point when she is halfway out and suddenly seems to realise how long a way it is down to the ground. I also love the two dogs waving her off at the end. Cute, but I bet it's annoying to have to deal with!

Take care,

Julie x

I watched the weather forecast this morning which informed me that the morning would be dry but by the afternoon heavy rain would set in. So I decided to switch my day around and walk the dogs in the morning to avoid getting wet. (Remember me not wanting to get wet later in the story.)

A few weeks ago we added two kittens to our growing menagerie. This was something we did with full commitment, but some trepidation as we obviously already have two dogs, plus Anthony is allergic to some cats. However, having made the decision to take them in, we were determined to make it work. You can hear more details in this weekend's show about how the canines and felines have settled down together, but as shown in the photos they are now perfectly happy and relaxed in each other's company.

If you're looking for a Christmas present with a doggy theme, how about Speaking for Spot? You'll please the dog lover you give the gift to, and you be doing a good turn to their dog - empowering their owner with the knowledge they need to make the right decisions. Here's more information from author Dr Nancy Kay:

Just had this in connnection with Discover Dogs, which is on the 14th and 15th of November at Earls Court in London:

DOGS HELP FACEBOOK GENERATION TO FIND REAL LIFE PUPPY LOVE

Following the lead of Davina McCall dogs help one in twenty to find love and one in three to make new friends but many still agree with Cheryl Cole that their dog is the ‘only one that they can trust’

UPDATE:You can find out about the 2010 shows at www.stlpetexpo.com/
If you have a service that dog owners should know about, check out the opportunities at Pet Expos in 2010:
Nearly 10,000 people (and their pets!) attended the 2009 St. Louis Pet Expo on Saturday, October 24.
A great  time was had by all!
Here are some comments by our exhibitors:

In the UK the fifth of November is bonfire night. This may be fun for humans, but for many dogs the loud firework noises make it miserable to say the least. Luckily neither of our dogs are bothered by fireworks, but I know some dogs become quite unhappy, and some can become frantic. There are various remedies you can give, and I've just received this email with some novel advice for keeping your canine cheery: (If you can come up with any other suggestions, do let us know)

More dogg less bark this firework season

Buddy and I are going on a Rally course on Sunday. It's a sport I've researched for articles, but never actually taken part in before. Although it's established in America, it's very new to the UK, and we're lucky to have a course going on so close to us. As I understand it in the easier level the dog can stay on lead, which is a comfort when you have a friendly Labrador whose mission in life seems to be to meet and greet as many people and dogs as he possibly can. But what are the behaviours that we have to carry out as we work our way around the course? I have to say that while I'm excited, I'm now getting a little nervous too.

So I've been investigating online, and here's the findings of my in depth research so far: some of it we'll be able to manage, some of it we might well make a mess of. So it should be a fun day, and at least we'll give some of the other participants a good laugh.

The point is that we can have a go, and we can enjoy the experience knowing that's it's doing both of us a lot of good and strengthening our bond. I learned last year while trying out a lot of canine activities and sports (and leaving my comfort zone a long way behind) that I've wasted a lot of time standing at the edges of arenas and rings, watching someone else and their dog performing or competing, thinking, "One day Buddy and I will try that." But for so long we just didn't get around to it. Until last year, when we both learned a lot - and had a lot of fun in the process.

I have to admit that I don't think Buddy and I will ever be as good as Clarissa Bergeman (the handler in the video above) and her dog, but I suspect we're not on our own in that. The important thing is that we can try it out and see if it suits us. It will be an adventure. We may not put in the best performance, but as the saying goes, I know I'll be bringing home the best dog. The real challenge is to make it so pleasant and fun that Buddy thinks he's bringing home the best human. Fingers crossed!

Take care,

Julie x

I posted yesterday about my belief that our dogs would not want us to be miserable and dogless after they have passed over. One of my Facebook and Twitter friends Jenny Prevel replied with her experiences of loss and moving on, and a beautiful poem that expresses what a dog's feelings about the subject might be:

The Legacy

I heard from Ted Kerasote, author of Merle's Door yesterday. If you haven't read Merle's Door yet you have missed out on probably the best dog book in the world. You can hear an interview with Ted about his book in Episode 64 of DogCast Radio. It is an interweaving of Merle's biography with fascinating research, all permeated by the love story of Ted and Merle.