Lucky Dog Blog

Melamine strikes again

If you haven't heard the news, it looks like Chinese food manufacturers didn't learn their lesson last year.  This time the issue is with baby formula of all things.

Here's the brief overview.  Last year you remember that approximately 4000 dogs and cats fell victim to foods containing melamine tainted wheat gluten.  Wheat gluten is used in some products to boost the protein content with a cheaper source of protein from grain and stick the food together.  Melamine is typically used in making plastics, which truthfully isn't really that good for you either especially if you heat it up.  You can read more about the problems with melamine plates here.  Melamine can be used for dog and cat dishes, as well, so if you heat up Muffin's food before serving, please do it in a glass or microwave safe plastic.  Melamine also registers as a protein when tested because of the nitrogen content so it is used illegally to boost the protein content of wheat gluten.  Protein in wheat fluctuates and prices for wheat and wheat gluten are often based on protein content.  So in essence they are risking lives for money.

Melamine cause kidney damage and so far 4 children in China have died and more than 6200 children have developed kidney stones.  For reports direct from China, you can read about it on The China Daily website.  It is always interesting to see China's take on the situation and compare it to our media sources.  The west has been accused of China bashing and I have to agree; our media sometimes makes more of a soap opera out of stories than they need to.  In this case, the reports have been pretty consistent.

No baby formula products are sold in North America because they don't meet North American standards for baby food.

It is hard to believe that even though the Chinese food manufacturers knew the damage caused by melamine in pet food, they continued to hide melamine in food sources.  And they laughed at me when I insisted in including an ethics section when I taught in Nanjing. 

meet Sadie

Remember the horrible article in the Free Press this summer about the beagles and cocker spaniels rescued from the puppy mill in Woodlands (there is no other word for it because this guy was NOT a breeder)?  And remember how the wonderful people at Diamond Edge Grooming fixed up countless dogs on their own time and money?  Well Sadie was one of those dogs and Brenda at It's Raining Cats and Dogs adopted her.

Sadie was deemed un-adoptable due, no doubt, to her age and physical condition.  She is about 5 or 6 years old and was only used for breeding mass numbers of litters (they think 10) judging by the condition of her poor little body.  She had untreated glaucoma which was treated by removing her eye after her rescue.  She looks like she is about 10 lbs too skinny (maybe less - I'm such a bad judge of weight) and her hair is still growing back around her neck where she was likely restrained in her little cage.  GRRRR... people like the Woodlands guy make me so mad.  Oh - and how can I forget, she was de-barked.  I will not go into the description on how that happens but you can ask Brenda when you go down to visit.  It's not nice at all.

But now she is well fed, loved, and free to roam.  Way to go Brenda for taking on sweet little Sadie.  Sadie is joining the other two store dogs Jamie,

and Stanley.

I think they are starting to warm up to their new sister.

Go check out Sadie at It's Raining Cats and Dogs new location at B-620 Academy Road, near Keneston.  And while your at it, pick up some packaged or BULK (only place in town with bulk) Lucky Dog Biscuits.

And give Sadie a big scratch behind her velvety long ears.  She's already looking so much better than when she first arrived at the store.

Thanks Brenda for showing that "un-adoptables" are most definitely adoptable.

Eco Challenge

Wow - where did the summer go?  We have been busy enjoying the sun and keeping Lucky Dog ticking along.  We obviously haven't been attending to the blog so thank-you to everyone who still checks in from time to time. 

Over the summer I have stepped up the efforts around here to become a little more earth friendly.  You've seen post about the quest for the perfect poo bag and the Norwex way of cleaning.  We also extend this to Lucky Dog Biscuits by using recycled cardboard and biodegradable soy inks for the packaging and by incorporating many Canadian grown products such as Saskatoon berries, flax and oats.  But still, there is always more to do.  So I made up some Eco goals for 2008 and posted them on the fridge for everyone to see (and to hold me accountable).

These goals are added to some things that I've already incorporated at home such as hanging laundry to dry (my neighbours think I'm nuts) and composting.  Composting, by the way, is huge.  Approximately 50% of landfill is made up of compostable organic matter - food, paper, leaves, etc.  That's sad because when organic matter composts in landfill it creates methane due to lack of oxygen.  And methane is the worst greenhouse gas around.  If you want to learn more about composting go here.  As you can see on my list, my number one pet peeve at the moment is plastic - plastic water bottles, plastic bags, plastic toys, blech... In my summer web surfing, I came across a stunning article about a plastic soup brewing in the Pacific Ocean called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The Patch is a collection of plastic accumulating in the ocean estimated to be twice the size of Texas.  Some articles estimate that it is even bigger.  I was STUNNED.  I love the ocean.  And I've seen plastic water bottles wedged in coral 50 ft below the surface when SCUBA diving.  But twice the size of Texas - yoiks!  I realize some things have to be stored in plastic because it is liquid.  And truthfully, products shipped in plastic weigh less therefore use less fossil fuels.  I try to limit my plastic to #1 and #2 plastics which are easy to recycle and be reused into something new.  For instance, the carpet in my newly renoed bedroom is made from recycled pop bottles. How cool is that? 

On a lighter note, we also increased our garden size to grow some veggies at home.

Cucumber plants, in case anyone hasn't experienced this, need a LOT of room and produce a ton of cucumbers.  I have my own little Greek salad in this garden - tomatoes, cucumbers and basil.  Also featured are marigolds to keep the bugs away and some pathetic beets that I won't be trying next year.

So what about you?  Do you have any Eco Goals that you would like to share?  Any tips or horror stories to shock the world into action?  Please share. 

I'm off to deliver some biscuits and to visit a recently rescued cocker spaniel from this story at the beginning of the summer.  She is happily hanging out at It's Raining Cats and Dogs in Winnipeg.  I'll share pictures of this sweetie and tell her story next week.  Happy Friday.

125 years of Goodness

Happy 125th Anniversary St. John Ambulance.  That's a lot of years of caring for people.  And that 125 years is just in Canada. The history dates back even further to the days in Jerusalem 900 years ago when a hospital was built to care for sick pilgrams.  No I don't have an amazing memory databank of random facts -  I read their website here.

The reason I tell you this is that we have been involved in helping St. John Ambulance raise money in Manitoba for their Therapy Dog program.  You can read about that here if you haven't already.

A couple of weekends ago, the Manitoba St. John group (and let me tell you I am practicing restraint by not calling it St. Johns although it naturally flows off the tongue that way) held a BBQ to thank the volunteers - canine and human - for the countless hours spent in the community meeting with people and lifting spirits with a little puppy love.  There were some Lucky Dog Biscuits for all of the hard working pups to munch on and some hamburgers and hot dogs for their people.

Here are a couple pictures of the fantastic volunteers.  Thank-you for spending your time making our community a better place.  Keep up the good work St. John Ambulance.  We are proud to be a part of your efforts.

flyin'

A while back we participated in an event in Winnipeg for a local flyball club called the Flyball Fanatics.  They had a fantastic event showcasing the fastest fly pug in North America - Cujo.

I love the look on his face.

WHeeeee.....

I didn't get a chance to make it out but it looks like everyone had fun.  And the photographer took some great shots.

I love the last picture. My picture would just be a blur of dog but then again, I just use a little point and shoot Canon so I really can't expect miracles.

I can't really tell you a lot about the Flyball World but there are a number of websites that will help you find a club in your area. Check out the main flyball website here for more info.  And congratulations to all the flydogs.

No dog tails here...

Did you try filling out the dog psychology survey? Pretty interesting..or intense depending on your take. Unfortunately, the survey is just that, a lot of questions without a lot of answers unless you are into dog psychology.

But everyone isn't neccessarily a dog psychologist so questions like " Does your dog push his ears back?" or " Does your dog make you feel bossed around?" don't really give you a lot of insight into your dog personality unless there's an explanation. No we are not board certified dog doctors of the mind however we have a lot of experience and even more resources so lets see...

When dogs hold their ears back, kind of flipped back so the inside of the ear is facing you, usually along with a wagging tail and a bit of a crouched position, it's a sign of submission and respect. When my brother's Mastiff does it, he calls it scoops..like "Oh look, Hudson is giving you "scoops"". And it's pretty cute when this bouncing ball of 150lb Mastiff does settle down and give you this position. It is such a nice, clear communication that the dog digs you.

"Does your dog make you feel bossed around?" Well that came closer to the end of the survey. A good friend of mine talked to me after she filled out the survey and asked, what the heck is that about?! Kal's dog Crash is a super amazing dog so it's no surprise he doesn't make you feel bossed around. But when your dog vies for dominance, doesn't listen and does whatever, regardless of what you tell them, you get the message pretty fast that they think they are the one dictating what goes in the house.

Kal was also a little freaked out because Crash (boxer above) doesn't have a tail. How can you properly answer these questions (of which a good 30% were) "does your dog hold their tail like this?" questions?! Good point. And in NO WAY is Crash showing you his inner ninga by bearing his teeth..he does however look like he'd like to grab that flashy camera and see if it squeals..

I've finished Ruben's so I need to refill on b/coffee for the next half hour to do Calvin's survey...and do some more digging on dog psychology.

Have a great day!
Bonnie

Thanks for your replys...

About a safe weed killer. Charlene, thank you for the comment on Corn Gluten Meal. To read more about this, visit here. Corn Gluten Meal is a preemergent weed killer which means that you can put on your lawn early in the year, before there are weed roots and it will help control weeds. It doesn't effect plants with roots like your grass, it actually acts as more like a fertilizer at that point. COOL! I am totally giving this a try next year...I just have to remember to do it. There was a post by another corn gluten meal user who said her dogs would eat more grass shortly after it was applied...at least you know it's not covered in chemicals if they do.

Kim, I'm so sorry to hear about Cosmo (Cosmo is the pug with a soother in his mouth on our photo contest banner) (yah, I know, it hasn't been around for a while...it's summer!).

And well, heck, it you don't kill the weeds, maybe there's nuthin wrong with a lawn full of yellow flowers.

Have a great day!
Bonnie
Photo: Armin Weigel/EPA

Find your soul mate...?

Dr.  Lucinda Woodward, a professor of psychological sciences and personality researcher at Ball State Uni is dedicated to completing a personality application for your dog, eHarmony style.

So far she's determined that people who deem themselves at "cat people" often consider themselves to have the same personality traits as cats and ditto for "dog people". In a release from the university, Dr Woodward says

"Many people perceive themselves as being either 'cat people' or 'dog people.' These people often think they relate to their pets because they share similar personalities,yet, not all dogs and cats have traditionally perceived personalities. There are friendly cats that want to be around their guardians all the time and dogs that don't crave constant attention."

FU-NNY! I didn't know much about my two dogs before I owned them, except for the generalities of the breed: high energy, high energy, Velcro dog, high energy. I don't know if I'm a velcro dog but I sure wish I had their energy! However, even though Ruben and Calvin are from the same breed, heck, the same parents, they have very different personalities. I am interested to see where this research goes considering it's based on the breed.

The purpose of the research is to eventually provide shelters with ability to match dogs + dog owners using a scientific approach to matching highly compatible singles AKA eHarmony for people + people.

If you've got 30 minutes, get yourself a coffee/tea/coffee and bailey's/gin tonic, whatever floats your boat and fill our a personality survey for your dog. Get in there, be a part of match making history. Okay, it's really not that dramatic but maybe lots of surveys will translate to accurate results and maybe accurate results will translate to solid future dog + dog owner match making and just maybe that will result in less abandoned dogs.

Check it out at www.rate-your-dogs-personality.com

Photo: Dyno from St. John's Ambulance Therapy Dog program. Read Dyno's story here

Safe weed killer?

It's that time of year when your grass gets beaten down, not only by the dogs but by the competing (and often winning) botanicals...weeds.

We aren't too overrun with weeds but a friend asked if there was a product I recommended. I did a bit of research to see if weed management had got with the times and created a dog and kid friendly weed-killer that can be used next to stuff you'd like to keep...like grass. Not so much as it turns out...

Typical man made weed-killers are contain cholorphenols and other semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) that are toxic to human/animal health and environment. Apparently they are as bad as they sound..they are considered carcinogens which potentially cause cancers. According to a environmental engineer specializing in contaminant fate and transport that weighed in on a different post concerning this very subject, weed killer SVOCs seldom decade or break down in less than 10,000 years and exposure us usually through ingestion and inhalation. Yuck! Considering all of our kids( fur or no fur) are pretty close to the ground, some even enjoying a munch on grass (see why your dogs eats grass here), this is good to know! Unfortunately we don't live in one of the new progressive neighborhoods that has banned cosmetic herbicide use, which means are getting enough exposure whenever we head out for a walk. 

If you are spot treating weeds like those that pop up through concrete stone, never fear, you have options. According to the organic gardener and Dr. Quinn the Saskatoon Fruit Man, you can use lots of different stuff like steam, salt, weak organic acids and alcohol. Check out the Organic Gardener to see how to use these different solutions.

But if you're looking for a natural guaranteed harmless weed-killer that won't kill your neighboring plants, it seems your best bet is your hands in sturdy gardening gloves...or at least that's my research tells me. Honesty, I could use a good excuse to go hang out in my yard anyway.

Bonnie

Puppy rescue update

There are people with  big hearts!  Thank-you Manitoba for coming to the aid of these poor pups rescued from a farm near Warren Manitoba.  Four hundred people have volunteered to adopt approximately one hundred dogs.

4-0-0 - Wow

Good work people.  Now since you are in the adopting mood, maybe you can check out some of the other pet shelters around town. 

CTV Winnipeg has an update here or check out their video here.  (it's a much nicer video this time!)

Maybe these pups will soon forget their horrible start and get a nice comfy bed to sleep in tonight.

Thanks Manitoba for coming to their rescue.