Pet Fire Safety Tips

We recently posted a great article on our other blog.  Visit the Pet Auto Safety Blog for great information on how to prepare for a home fire emergency with your pets.

Answers to the “How Well Do You Know the AKC Dog Breeds?” Post

Did you know some of the answers from the post earlier this week?  Was it hard to find the answers to the ones you didn’t know?  I hope it was just hard enough to be fun.

1) Which AKC breed looks like a Cocker Spaniel but has wavy hair, wider ears, and only comes as a liver or dark chocolate color? American Water Spaniel

2) Which AKC breed was first discovered among the native Inuit people? Alaskan Malamute

3) Which AKC breed is the Pit Bull? American Staffordshire Terrier

4) Which AKC breed was developed in Boston? Boston Terrier – duh!

5) Which AKC breed appears to have history in both Europe and Australia but is generally considered an American breed? Australian Shepherd

6) Which AKC breed is the smallest of the Spaniel breeds? Cocker Spaniel

7) Which AKC breed is good at trailing any animal, but specializes in raccoons and opossums? Hint – it was the first hound of its type to be  registered with the AKC. Black and Tan Coonhound

8 ) George Washington bred English Foxhounds to help develope which AKC American breed? American Foxhound

9) Which AKC hound comes in various brindle shades, never a solid color? Plott Hound

10) Which AKC breed is the only American breed in the Toy group? Toy Fox Terrier

11) Which AKC breed looks like a chocolate lab (or can be as light as the color of straw) but has yellowish-colored or amber-colored eyes? Chesapeake Bay Retriever

12) Which AKC breed originated in the midwestern United States? American Water Spaniel

13) Which AKC spitz breed earned its popularity in the circus? American Eskimo Dog

14) Which AKC breed is named for its hunting ability of the woodcock? Cocker Spaniel

15) Which AKC breed can have blue and/or brown eyes, can have a naturally bobbed tail, and is never a solid color? Australian Shepherd

Bonus Question) What do all these breeds have in common? They are American!

How Well Do You Know the AKC Dog Breeds?

We have put together a fun trivia game on dog breeds.  It is moderately difficult but you won’t have to be super-smart to know the answers to these questions.  The answers will be posted later this week.

1) Which AKC breed looks like a Cocker Spaniel but has wavy hair, wider ears, and only comes as a liver or dark chocolate color?

2) Which AKC breed was first discovered among the native Inuit people?

3) Which AKC breed is the Pit Bull?

4) Which AKC breed was developed in Boston?

5) Which AKC breed appears to have history in both Europe and Australia but is generally considered an American breed?

6) Which AKC breed is the smallest of the Spaniel breeds?

7) Which AKC breed is good at trailing any animal, but specializes in raccoons and opossums? Hint – it was the first hound of its type to be registered with the AKC.

8 ) George Washington bred English Foxhounds to help develope which AKC American breed?

9) Which AKC hound comes in various brindle shades, never a solid color?

10) Which AKC breed is the only American breed in the Toy group?

11) Which AKC breed looks like a chocolate lab (or can be as light as the color of straw) but has yellowish-colored or amber-colored eyes?

12) Which AKC breed originated in the midwestern United States?

13) Which AKC spitz breed earned its popularity in the circus?

14) Which AKC breed is named for its hunting ability of the woodcock?

15) Which AKC breed can have blue and/or brown eyes, can have a naturally bobbed tail, and is never a solid color?

Bonus Question) What do all these breeds have in common?

Visit the AKC website for information on dog breeds or use Wiki.

Small Puppy is a Big Hero

NBC Washington posted a recent story about a puppy who saved his owner from fire. Coco is a 4 month old Chihuahua puppy who rides with his owner on his big truck. They were sleeping in the cab when Coco woke his owner with a lot of barking. The cabin was filled with smoke and both dog and owner escaped. The smoke could have suffocated them while they slept, but Coco’s keen senses told him to wake up and make a lot of noise.

Both dog and owner are receiving medical attention and Coco’s situation is critical. Coco’s vet bills could be over $2,000. To read more on this story and learn how you can help the owner pay this little hero’s vet bills, visit NBC Washington’s website at http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local-beat/Puppy-Saves-Owner-From-Fire-83076302.html

Above photo courtesy of NBC Washington

If Oprah Can Adopt a Dog, So Can You!

Why buy a purebred puppy when you can adopt? Oprah did. She was on a waiting list, but she wanted a purebred dog so she waited. And just in time for your 56th birthday, two puppies with her requested breed came available and she adopted both. Sunny and Lauren are the most adorable 14 week old Springer Spaniels. They were adopted from PAWS Chicago which is a no-kill shelter. After showing her support against puppy mills on her show, we are glad to hear that Oprah takes her message home. Thanks, Oprah!

Information and above photo courtesy of 

http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Oprahs-New-Dogs

DOG is GOD Spelled Backwards – Cute Dog Photo

Check out this cute dog photo from ihasahotdog.com:

Maya, My Labrador Retriever, is the Most Popular Dog Ever!

 

Maya, the Labrador Retriever

Per the AKC Registration list, Labrador Retrievers are the most popular dog. And they have been the most popular dog for years now. What about the mutt? (But, then again, doesn’t it seem that almost every mutt is a lab mix?) My dog, Maya, is a Labrador Retriever while my other dog, Sephi, is a Lab/Chow/Shepherd mix. To read more about Labrador Retrievers, visit http://www.squidoo.com/aboutlabradorretrievers.

While the Labrador Retriever is the most popular dog in America, the German Shepherd came second, and the Yorkie third. Following these are the remaining top ten – Golden Retriever (4), Beagle (5), Boxer (6), Bulldog (7), Dachshund (8), Poodle (9), and Shih Tzu (10). The AKC has also listed the most popular dog breeds by major US cities. To read more on the AKC statistics, visit http://www.akc.org/reg/dogreg_stats.cfm.

Watch the Puppy Bowl VI – Sunday, February 7th 3-5PM E/P on Animal Planet

Shelter dogs are on the run! With a plush squeaky toy or other dog toy in their mouth they are running for a touchdown on the miniature puppy play field. There will be tackles as puppies rough and tumble and fight for the toy. Penalties or time outs will be called if the game gets too rough or if a puppy pottys on the field. There will also be offense, defence, first downs, instant replays, and more.

Last year, the National Anthem was sung by a talented parrot named Pepper. Was that for real? I think it was. Will she sing again this year? Not if she was adopted and I hope she was.

The Kitty Half-time-Show will be featured again with kittens having a blast with balls of yarn, toys which look like, mice, balls with bells inside, or other fun kitty toys. This year will feature a bunny cheerleaders! I can’t wait to see that.

This year’s puppy line up includes twenty adorable puppies who look ready to play: Bandit, a sweet-looking Border Collie mix; another puppy named Bandit who is a Husky mix; Blaze, an Australian Shepherd mix; Carson, a perky little German Shepherd mix; blue-eyed Chamomile, a Boxer mix; Chloe, a yellow Lab mix; Duncan the Beagle; Naome, an interesting mix of Akita, Lab, and Boxer; Jumby, a spunky looking Pomeranian; Addison, a cute little Yorkie/Maltese mix; Coco, a Boxer mix; and more. Check out the puppy line up and review the Puppy Bowl from previous years at http://animal.discovery.com/tv/puppy-bowl/puppy-bowl.html.  Read about Puppy Bowl VI at http://animal.discovery.com/tv/puppy-bowl/about.html.

This show isn’t just for entertainment. It helps  educate the public about homeless pets. Don’t forget to watch this year’s Puppy Bowl VI on Sunday, February 7th, 3-3PM Eastern/Pacific time on Animal Planet. And don’t forget to donate to your local animal shelter and ADOPT a dog rather than buy.

Basset Hounds are Adorable and Great Family Dogs

Don’t be fooled by those sad-looking eyes and droopy face. Basset Hounds are happy-go-lucky dogs. They are very affectionate and great with people and children. Basset Hounds are also very easy to take care of. They require little exercise and minimal grooming. About the only thing to be concerned about when it comes to regular car is their nails. You must keep them cut, especially if the Basset Hound is primarily indoors. You also have wipe their faces on a regular basis as they tend to drool. To read more information about Basset Hounds, check out this article for “Great Information on Basset Hounds” from PetAutoSafetyBlog.com.

Also, if you are thinking about getting a Basset Hound, consider adopting one instead. Dogs, even purebred dogs, are given up to shelters all the time, often for something as simple as the family moving or the family just not having time to care for a dog. Contact your local shelter and ask if they have any Basset Hounds for adoption. If not, ask if they know of any Basset Hound rescue groups. A rescue group generally keeps the animals in their own home until adopted. This means that they will know a lot more about the personality of their dogs and they will be able to help you get a Basset Hound right for your family. A Basset Hound rescue group will insist the dog is fixed before it is adopted, but that is what you want anyway. No need to breed more dogs. There are already millions of homeless dogs living in shelters right now.

Great Website Promotes Adopting a Dog Instead of Buying a Dog

Check out this great website called Muttigrees.org. We love this site. Not only do they have a lot of great information, but they also promote adopting a mixed breed dog instead of buying a pure bred dog. There are millions of puppies being brought into this world and not enough homes for them all. So millions of dogs are being euthanized each year. And sadly, many of the dogs being euthanized are mutts.

Unless you research your breeder, you could be buying your dog from a puppy mill or from an irresponsible backyard breeder. Both types of breeders are likely to breed without doing background health checks on the parents and could be inadvertently breeding more dogs with inherited health problems. Worse than this, is how the dogs in the puppy mills could be living. While you may be buying a puppy and giving it a good home, its mom could still be living in a tiny cage and giving birth to more puppies which may or may not end up living in good homes. It is very sad and it has got to stop. So please, adopt a dog or do thorough research on the breeder before you buy a dog. If America stops buying dogs, puppy mills will go out of business and back yard breeders are less likely to breed their dogs in order to make a fast buck.

Join the Muttigrees Club like we have and support adoption of all dogs – mutts and purebreds alike.