Posts Tagged ‘dogs’
Chihuahua blown away by 70-mph winds reunited with owners
Tinker Bell has been reunited with her owners after a 70-mph gust of wind picked up the six-pound Chihuahua and tossed her out of sight. Dorothy and Lavern Utley credit a pet psychic for guiding them on Monday to a wooded area nearly a mile from where 8-month-old Tinker Bell had been last seen. The brown long-haired dog was dirty and hungry but otherwise OK.
The Utleys, of Rochester, had set up an outdoor display Saturday at a flea market in Waterford Township, 25 miles northwest of Detroit. Tinker Bell was standing on their platform trailer when she was swept away.
Dorothy Utley tells The Detroit News that her cherished pet “just went wild” upon seeing her.
Read more: Blown-away Chihuahua reunited with owners
Tupperware parties but for pets: It’s ‘Pupperware’ time!
First there was Tupperware parties. Now there’s the “pupperware” party.
The concept is pretty much the same as Tupperware or almost any other product sold at home parties. Someone hosts a party and invites his or her friends and family to check out a product line. Only with these parties, the guest list doesn’t have to be limited to humans. Canine companions welcome!
The Pet Party is being offered by Shure Pets, a national pet product company based in Chicago.
Spending money on our household animals is at an all-time high. We may be in a recession, but we’re not cutting back on pampering our pets, according to figures from the American Pet Products Association. The group’s most recent statistics show that consumers in the United States spent $43.2 billion on their pets in 2008, up from $41.2 billion in 2007.
Laura Macklin, sales and training director for the Pet Party, recently held a pupperware party at her west suburban home.
“We even had a 10-week-old puppy come to visit, and we gave her a spa treatment. We put spritzer on her, brushed her all out, put paw balm on her paws and made her look really pretty,” Macklin said.
Guests at Macklin’s Pet Party were shown Shure Pets’ lineup of products including Paramount Paw Balm, the Ulti-Mutt Candy Bar, Devine Canine and Feline Breath Mints. There also were a variety of collars and leashes to choose from, as well as beds for cats and dogs. Other products being touted include organic catnip, a variety of shampoos and conditioners and dog treats.
Read more: Tupperware parties but for pets: It’s ‘Pupperware’ time!
Dogs help children learn to read [Video]
Burgh, a Bernese Mountain dog, is assisting in the Tailwaggin’ Tutors program.
“When it’s time for the kids to read, they sit down, she sits down next to them and she listens,” said Carol Vernon, a library employee.
It doesn’t even matter that all the stories sound the same to Burgh.
“(The children are) breaking out of their shell,” said Chris Bohrer, the dog’s owner. “They’re not so afraid to be around either a dog or an adult and they generally start reading louder and louder.”
The program has made for positive results.
“I just think because you’re training and reading to at least somebody before you read to an actual real person,” said Tommy Fanning of the Reading To Dogs program. “Whether it’s getting over shyness or just getting confidence in their ability to read aloud, or whether it’s actually improving their reading, I hear about it from the parents.”
The children are going from beginning readers to chapter books in a matter of weeks.
“However you can get them to love reading or enjoy reading, I think it’s a wonderful thing,” said Janel Fanning, the mother of one of the students in the program.
Read more and watch this story: Dogs Helping Children Learn To Read
Dog mows lawn and can play piano
Hope, a white German Shepherd, is a dab paw around the garden as he shows off his skills with the Flymo at his home in Sutton Coldfield.
The four-year-old, who was the winner of National Pet Month in April 2008, can also play the piano, claim organizers of a new talent show.
His winning exploits are just an example of the skills being sought by the organizers of the inaugural Britain’s Most Talented Pet.
The competition, run by The Ultimate Pet Show, is calling for entrants with sparkle – horses that sing, dogs that dance and cats that juggle.
Twelve finalists will be selected to appear at the show at the NEC Birmingham on May 2.
Read more: Hope the white German Shepherd takes a spin round the lawn
Prisoners train service dogs for the disabled [Video]
Opening and closing a door can be a difficult task for someone in a wheelchair, but service dogs can do it with ease. The dogs are rescued from shelters and are given a chance to help those with disabilities.
They are trained by specially selected inmates at the Washington Corrections Center for Women.
The residents learn job skills and a lot more.
Teamwork is probably one of the biggest things I hope they take out of here. “That will help them in any job as well as returning to their families and community,” said Beth Rivard, with the Purdy Prison Pet Partnership.
Heather Opel hopes to open up a dog grooming shop and train service dogs on the side when she gets out in 15 years.
“It makes me feel really good about myself,” she said. “I feel like I’m giving back to the community because I’m helping a dog to go out there and help somebody else.”
The service dogs are free to those with disabilities; they would normally cost 41,500 to 420,000 each.
Read more and watch that story: Female prisonerd train service dogs
Shelter puppy has “Mickey Mouse” spot
Look at this little guy! Perhaps he was trying to find his way to Disney World! This little puppy has a black spot, and it looks just like the Mickey Mouse ears. They couldn’t be better, even if they were drawn by Walt Disney himself.
See more pictures and find out how to adopt this little guy: Puppy found in St. Pete has “Mickey” Spot!
