Saying our thanks

This was in my mail this morning, cute and sad at the same time...




Dear Lord, Thank you for bringing me to Timmy's house and not to Michael Vick's -- AMEN!

Barney leads the way

As this calendar year winds down, Barney is an inspiration in how we might look at the upcoming year to live our lives anew.

An 8-year-old lab mix, Barney was a shelter dog who had little chance of being adopted - he was blind and deaf. Amy Shever, founder and director of the all-volunteer 2nd Chance 4 Pets in Los Gatos, California, received the call for help. Once Barney arrived in her home, he was home, as he instantly became part of the family.

After some time for rehabilitation, touch was used to train Barney. Today, if his rear is tapped, he'll sit. If his front paws are stroked, he will lie down, although "it helps to have some food" while they are doing this. When they go for walks, if there is a step up, Amy will lift up lightly on Barney's leash and he steps up just fine.

Amy said Barney "isn't afraid of anything, [he] always has a smile on his face and uses his heart to see the world around him. His biggest pleasures include long walks, nightly wrestling matches with humans, playing hide-and-seek with dog buddies and extra kibble whenever he can get it.

"You see this dog, and you're just happy."

It's amazing to me how adaptable our pets are regardless of the challenges life gives them, whether they be physical, emotional or both. While many people might think a dog with this level of disability couldn't possibly live a full life, the article puts to rest any concern of that. May we all use Barney as our example of how to look past our limitations and embrace the wholeness of our lives.

Rent a life?

Last Summer, I read an article about Flex Pet, a rent-a-dog service for busy professionals. At the time, I was conflicted about whether this was a good idea or not.

On the one hand, it gives a second chance to shelter animals that might not have a life otherwise. It could give a person, who had not had a dog as a part of their lives before, an idea of what life would be like with a dog. A lot of people adopt dogs, thinking they can be cared for easily, and when they find out otherwise, they land up at the shelter. The owner of the business comes across as a dedicated pet lover, and has several safeguards in place for her charges.

On the other hand, dogs are not commodities, and do best when they have a life of predictability and routine. They also bond to their "alpha" and strive to be with them as a member of the pack. For the renter, they get only restricted view of life with a dog, which can cause significant misunderstanding, maybe even worse than not having had a dog at all.

I can imagine "renting" my Yorkie, Chocolate, for the weekend, and being captivated with his energy, joy, and cuteness. It would take more than a weekend to realize that living with him has other aspects too, and not nearly as endearing as any short visit would reveal. But that's life with a dog (or at least my dog). I love him for everything he brings to my life, but it is a responsibility, one that pays off immeasurably as we share our lives together with the balance of the good, and sometimes, the not so good.

Now Boston.com is revisiting the subject, as Flex Petz plans to move into the Boston area this coming Spring. It covers all the good and bad listed above, but the best quote is also the best solution:

"Why would you need to rent a dog when you could walk a dog in a shelter in your community?" said Gary Patronek, director of animal welfare and protection at the Animal Rescue League of Boston, where dogs that go out on walks with volunteers wear red vests that read, "Available for adoption."

"If you are feeling a little lonely, we are here," Patronek said.

This is the right way to "rent" a pet if that's what you need to do...

Tragedy all around

Today's lead news from San Francisco is the death of one and the mauling of two zoo visitors Christmas evening, just before closing time. The attack was made by a Siberian Tiger, Tatiana, who was killed by police officers as she approached them when they were trying to reach one of the victims. The zoo is closed today as investigators look for possible additional victims, and try to determine how Tatiana escaped her enclosure, which was fortified after she attacked one of the zookeepers almost a year ago.

This story resonates with me for two reasons.

One is that I know the zookeeper who was mauled last year. She is a tremendous woman who has extraordinary talent working with zoo animals. This story brings up the terrifying memories from then and the sadness today that it's not only happened again, but with a fatality. The road to recovery from such an attack is long and arduous. My heart goes out to the families who are enduring the loss and pain from yesterday's attack.

The second reason I keep thinking about this story is that we, as folks who relate to animals, can sometimes make the mistake that all animals are capable of co-existing with us. That is simply not true. An article from the UK outlines the risks of attempting to live with crocodiles, scorpions, poisonous snakes and spiders, etc, etc, that become the reason we visit the emergency room more often than we might otherwise. I'd like to think that such an episode makes people reevaluate the structure of their lives, and if they are endangering themselves and their wild animals, they can make changes now. That allows everyone, two- and four-footed, to live their lives fully and safely.

Merry Christmas

Today, I'm feeling enormous gratitude for the whole host of wonderful people and animals that are my friends and family. One friend, Mike Harding, has the absolutely wackiest animated Santa I've ever seen - check it out at MontaraVentures.

And I hope you have a joyous and blessed Christmas.

Home for the holidays

Today's opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange was rung in by a group of 7 friendly dogs to highlight the advantages of pet adoption during this holiday season. Home 4 the Holidays, sponsored by Iams, is in its 9th year of operation, and claims to be the world's largest pet adoption drive. Their goal is to find homes for almost 500,000 pets before January 3, 2008. Adoption has the added benefit of significantly reducing the number of euthanasias, making a Merry Christmas for all.

Jingle Bell Dog

Since it's only 38 seconds, and Joshua does some cute things as he "sings", it's worth the watch... enjoy...