PitBulls Rock

Below is fab Posting from a PitBull advocate whom I admire. She gave me permission to post this, a listserve message she shared.
Thanks Lynn L!

Yesterday I had to take my cat to the vet and we stopped by Petsmart after. While shopping, yes he was in a carrier, we ran into one of the national *animal supply store* Trainers and her GSD client and the dog's owners and started chatting. Even though the national *animal supply store* trainer handles all breeds, she quickly let it be known that GSDs are her breed of choice. I had on a PBRC shirt so she started asking me about pit bulls. I quickly realized she was getting into a "competition" over the breeds.

She first asked if pit bulls could do search work. I replied, "of course - there are two pit bulls named Cheyenne and Dakota that are top in their field"

Regrouping, she stammered and said, "Oh, I meant search - like Narcotics and bombs"

Me: "of course, Popsicle made the biggest drug find in US history and he's a pit bull!"

It then became like a canine version of Password.

Her: "Schnuzund" Me: "Whitehead - just won the national championship"

Her: "Agility" Me: Wallace the Pit Bull - Purina Ultimate K9 Champion

Her: Flyball" Me: Pumble

Her: Dock dogs Me: Morgan (RIP sweety)

Her: Police K9 Me: Neville

Her: Therapy dogs Me: Murphy

Her: Assistance dogs Me: Pit bulls are increasingly being used as all types of assistance dogs. In addition to the traditional roles as sight or hearing dogs, they have also proved that their strong physical build as well as even temperament makes them the ideal breed for people who need the actually physical support that the dogs can provide. We then discussed a local case where a legally blind soldier with a prothestic was kicked out of a restaurant because of his seeing eye/physical support pit bull assistance dog. It wasn't because the dog was a pit bull but the young employee didn't think any dogs could be in the pizza joint due to health codes.

Her: Well, I don't think they'd be very good at any kind of search work since they aren't scent hunters.

Me: What a pit bull lacks in olafactory, they make up for in tenacity. You take a breed that used to be bred and trained to fight to their own death and now show them that their goal is to find that cocaine or that lost toddler and they just won't quit until they do.

Her: Hmmm, I guess I'd seen them in these jobs more than I had ever really thought about. I still love my GSDs but I'll give you kudos for all the great pit bulls out there too!

Me: That's all we ever ask :)!

Boo Hoo maybe Cranial Cruciate Ligament Blues

Hi It’s me. I just had a bath. It is in the 90’s here. Boy did that feel good.

Last weekend I was at my last PIT ED 1 class with BAD RAP, and all of sudden I could not walk on my right rear leg.

Vet said right stifle (knee) and hip joints were having a problem for sure, and sent me home to rest and come back if I didn’t get better in a few days. i didn’t so he put me out and took x-rays.

They are not entirely sure yet, what I have going on.

I am a young fella and not overweight. I sure like to romp around and RUN. I really don’t like this having-to-hang-out- on -my-new bed-all-day action, except for a few potty breaks, on leash only, where I limp around. I am getting better but if i walk too much. The limp returns.

I like my crate OK, but would rather not have to be in there too, when nobody is home. Fortunately, that is not too often. Usually I have the run of the house, since I am well behaved.

Now it looks like I was born with some bad hips too, so we shall see....

I have been taking Rimadyl pills ( my mom sure was proud of the way I just chomped them up but don’t tell her, they taste great, unlike those other pills she had to put peanut butter around, to get me to take them, when I had to have surgery for the foxtail in my paw awhile ago).

Anyway, boy was I messed up from those pills, Mr Smushy Stoned Dog, but they made it easier to just loll around and chew my Nylabone and hang with my black Kong.

I miss my mom; she is on vacation. I hear she is worried sick about my knee injury.

I will be a good boy.....

National Shame

This is a video aided appeal to all dog owners to spay and neuter their pets. PRONTO.

When I recently went to a shelter for a training group orientation, I had to look straight ahead as I walked down the hall with the dogs on either side. I happened to glance at the last door and saw of course the most adoraBull young pibble...I was in tears throughout the meeting.

The estimates of 5-10 million unwanted animals Put To Sleep each year, is a shameful tragedy, beyond imagination.

The below video makes it perfectly clear. No more imagining.

Every pet owner needs to see this.

The lastest comment I received, when I offered a young man to help with a neutering, was that he is such a good dog, I want to breed him once( so he could then have one of his puppies when he died). Any information about fate of the other 9 or so puppies, and their potential offspring....was blocked. 8-(

I so admire those who work at shelters.

TISSUE WARNING_ get out a whole box for this...

Pit Bull Blues

This is so cute and so true! ENJOY!

Family Portraits

(Pre neutering) Booker on the left, Juanita and Konaloni. These are the family dogs, the girls are my son’s. Due to circumstances beyond my control (poor crate design and obviously determined dogs)...... there was a litter.

Booker was adopted by me when that occurred. And immediately altered......He is such a love, headed to a therapy and possibly a service dog “job”. He could then be at work with me at times. We are in the BAD RAP pipeline with training. His most challenging aspect is that he is easily distracted by other dogs and humans- he wants to play.

Kona was the mama. She is blue fawn. Below is the only one (Buckertte was her puppy name since Bucker was his name at the time) that had B’s coloring. She lives with a dog trainer who adores her, and has the happy go lucky nature of her daddy dog. She lives at a beach. Lucky her!



I helped out my son, who lives 30 minutes away, during this time, and suffered greatly when 3 pups were determined to be bilaterally deaf. One found an experienced home, 2 were PTS tearfully in my arms. My son did carefully screen new owners and has made sure they all received and continue to receive good care. I can only hope all were altered.

I am hoping no more litters will occur but my son has not taken what I adamantly believe to be the appropriate steps, and I have to keep up the vigil. Dang!

Beach Bums

Yesterday I took Booker to the beach- Muir Beach.

Our first time, tho it was obvious he had been a beach dog before from the excitement as we turned onto Hiway 1- he KNEW.

He frolicked in the waves, jumping over the waves, swam a bit at times and chomped on the seaweed attached to the rocks.

I had him leashed up to avoid accidents with other dogs but we did nice introductions to a few other dog owners with dog friendly pooches, so he got to run around with a few new pals at times.

We were alone on the beach and started to hear this odd yelping, sounded like a dog in some kind of hysterical fit. I looked over at the cliff, expecting to see a dog smashed on the rocks, having fallen off the cliffs. The weird noise continued, and off we went to investigate.

Low and behold, a young seal had beached him/herself.

Knowing this is a wild animal and one must let it be alone, not let be alarmed by a dog or human, we walked away quickly. I did not see any sign of injury but there was an orange tag on it’s tail- a-ha! Has had human contact! Well, he started to follow us down the beach, I was snapping cell phone pictures as we walked away and the darn thing broke into quite the gallop, BOY CAN THEY MOVE! We had to run!

For the life of me, I think he wanted to play!. Of course Booker was ready for more playtime and happily pranced back an invitation to play....which may have alarmed the seal into an attack/ pursuit.

We attempted to steer his pursuit into the water but he turned around and headed up to the warm sand. Still moving at quite a clip. I assessed he could not be very sick or injured with that much energy!

A quick call to the Marine Mammal center confirmed my suspicions, - young animal not old enough to have learned to fear humans. Very common for them to go ashore to sun themselves. I learned they only vocalize, like we heard as he was coming in, when they are excited/happy.

Wow. I had seen them in the water when I was swimming there before, when they kept their distance but not in the middle of our old sunning spot!

I spent the remainder of the day reminding folks strolling by, to keep WIDE away from the wild animal.

He lolled in the sun, tossing sand about in play, and was still there when we left at 4pm.

BAD RAP

This is a nice Video of BAD RAP and the Vicks dogs. See their website for details.

Vicks and Bad Rap

Below find a link to the west coast group called BAD RAP
Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pitbulls
and what they have done for a group a dogs.

Now that the gag order has been lifted ( last defendant sentenced in Virginia) the story is revealed.
The videos/slideshows are very touching as well.
Bad Rap Timeline: The Michael Vick Dogs

B S L

Fennel Chomper

Here’s our d0g Booker; ordinarily very well behaved.

He has this thing for fennel plants. They break apart easily (since they are dry now).Actually some are fresh too but are soft; he just chews them a bit and spits them out too. Like I used to do as a kid!

He is allowed ONE plant per walk in this open space, where we can safely let him run off leash).

Notice he obeyed the leave it command when he chomped into a harder limb (scotch broom),