Prepare your dogs for July Fourth.

The Fourth of July may be an exciting holiday for humans, but our canine counterparts dread the flashing lights and banging noises that they can never understand.

Because dogs can hear at a range of  40 Hz to 60,000 Hz (while humans can only hear 12 Hz to 20,000 Hz, the noises of fireworks and thunder are very terrifying for them.

These frightening sights and sounds drive many dogs from their homes or owners in search of a safe place to hide. When they eventually end up at the local shelter, they displace many dogs that are already there.

In 2009, Salt Lake County Animal Services- 
which usually takes in 5 dogs a day- took in 73 dogs in the days after July 4th.

                                                                                                           

Sometimes the consequences can be worse than a night's stay at the shelter. A few years ago, my boyfriend and I were in the Thousand Islands for July Fourth when a family member's elderly Wheaten terrier named Caramel was let out at dusk to do her business. When no one could find her a little later, no one was concerned because the house we were at was surrounded by water and Caramel wasn't very mobile at this point in her life. Blind and somewhat deaf, she usually bumped into things and stood in corners for long periods of time because they were safer.

Later that night, after the fireworks, we feared that she had gotten lost in the woods nearby and went searching with flashlights. Unable to find her we waited till sunlight.

The next morning, family members circled the islands in boats and climbed through the woods. Finally, a neighbor on a neighboring island said she heard barking. We ran to the reeds where the water met a portion of the wooded island and found her in the water, clinging to some brush. She had yelped not 15 minutes earlier so we jumped in, pulled her out and carried her back to the house where we laid her out in the sun.

Somehow, despite her arthritis and age, she was able to swim to a safe spot and tread water all night, only to die when we got to her. She was bleeding from her nose from exerting so much effort, so we knew she had just recently passed. It was an extremely difficult sight to witness for Caramel's family- whose children had grown up with her.

Later that day we buried her among the wild lilacs, knowing that her time was coming soon but sad that she passed with such stress and anxiety. Other stories include a dog who had a siezure and died during the fireworks, and another who tore up the whole house in panic-causing himself to bleed. (Read here.)


To prevent these kinds of tragedies and the unfortunate influx of family pets to already crowded shelters- please keep your dog somewhere safe and quiet on Monday night.

First of all- do NOT take your pet to the fire works display. It is NOT fun for him or her- trust me, your pet wants to be at home, in the dark- in their crate or under a blanket. My parents' Wheaten terrier even tries to climb into the refrigerator to hide when fireworks or storms are rumbling outside.

DO NOT leave them outside, especially without identification.

DO NOT wait to go to the shelter if your dog is lost. With the large influx of animals, some shelters may not wait as long as it takes you to find your family member.

For more tips on keeping your dog safe, click here.

Thanks for reading---Good luck and enjoy the holiday weekend!

Winnie loves the water- this seems like a pretty safe depth to me!

San Francisco

This past week I took a 3-day trip with my friends to San Francisco. I had never been to the West Coast at all and enjoyed seeing the Pacific for the first time, biking the Golden Gate Bridge, and eating amazing food.

Of course I visited what I consider to be the dogs of the sea-- Sea Lions! They are super social creatures, who love lazing around all day, barking at each other and growling when their sunny sleeps get interrupted.

 

 

As I am an obsessive dog-watcher, I looked out for dogs everywhere we went. I loved watching the dogs romp on the beach and play off-leash at Alamo Square. We came across this lovely girl, Luna- who hammed-it-up on the grass by rolling onto my feet and gently nipping at me to get more affection-- Look at that smile!

We also met bunches of other Golden Retrievers, Labs, French Bulldogs, Collies and other great dogs- Unfortunately, I was sad to find that there weren't many mixed breed dogs or pit mixes around. I figured that this meant that there are fewer unwanted/unplanned litters in SF and therefore, fewer shelter dogs. In New York, pit bulls are everywhere- when I stepped out of the path station I was excited to see not only more dogs, but more mutts and more pitties- I guess I am a little biased against pure-breed dogs because I figure they need less help in this world.

I did run into one Pit bull while in San Fran and happily sat down with his owner, a homeless ex-U.S. marine.

 

San Fran has a surprisingly large homeless population- I've been told because of the nice weather and friendly people. When I met this man and sat next to him- his dog (Tyrell), instantly climbed out of his owner's lap and gave me plenty of kisses. He laid down (belly-up) next to me on the side-walk and enjoyed getting his belly scratched.

Tyrell's owner told me that he gets all the vet care he needs because in SF, it is illegal to turn away an animal in need, just as it is illegal to turn away a person who needs emergency care. This makes it financially possible not only for Tyrell to have a "home" of sorts, but also for his owner to have companionship. He told me that Tyrell is his best friend in the whole world, and inspired him to get off the streets and to buy a van for them to sleep in. Together, they share a sleeping bag. Tyrell even protects his owner at night and has bitten another homeless man who tried to steal their things. It seems like a wild life, but the more I heard about this duo- the more sure I became that they really needed each other- and that neither of them would get by without the other.

Fortunately, due to a law that forces pit bulls to be neutered- Tyrell was neutered at the age of only 2 months to prevent over-population and he cannot contribute to more homeless pets, although the law apparently does not apply to other breeds of dogs. I gave his owner $20 for dog food and wished them luck and was so happy I saw a pit bull before leaving San Fran.

Does anyone know more about the shelter system there and why pit bulls must be neutered so young?

Traveling with Dogs

When traveling with medium or large dogs, you almost always have to drive. (So living in a city without a car and with two pit bulls poses some problems.) Luckily my parents live in the suburbs and are always willing to lend a hand when we need to travel long distances.

Once the dogs are in the car however, they are usually less than perfect. The back of our Hyundai has two loops by the back door that we loop the dogs' leashes around to keep them from jumping into the back seat on trips. This works great for Winnie, she usually doesn't give us any trouble and sits or sleeps in the way-back without voicing her discontent.

But Bruno seems to think he is being abandoned back there- he starts by whining and slowly builds up to a full out scream. (Do any of your dogs do this? Its very strange, I'm going to try to capture it on video, but basically its a frantic high pitched yawn.)

Of course this drives Winnie nuts, and I imagine her saying "Why did you leave me back here with this crazy animal?"

"mom, I am mad at you..."

And the screaming isn't exactly the best sound-track for a 6-hour drive, so I usually jump in the back seat, un-hook his leash, and let him sit with me. Sometimes he calms down and sleeps on my lap (can you say, separation anxiety??), sometimes he jumps in the front seat, leaving me all alone, and curls up next to his dad and pretends to be his "co-pilot."

Sometimes, rather than let Bruno steal the front seat from me, I share it with him. He thinks he is 15 lbs (he is 52) so he cuddles up in my lap and sleeps.

One time he put his face on the ac-vent and slept there for a whole hour:

What do your dogs do on car-trips?