Category Archives: Pets

Share a funny story about your pet behaving badly

dog bookWe love stories about misbehaving pets. Take for instance the popularity of funny dog clips on YouTube, dog trainer Cesar Millan’s Web site, the Animal Planet TV show “It’s Me or the Dog” or book “Marley & Me” by John Grogan.

We’re collecting funny anecdotes about your pet behaving badly. Here’s one to get you started: When my golden retriever Dakota was a puppy, my husband and I purchased a copy of “Golden Retrievers for Dummies” to read up on the breed and learn more about how to train a golden. During one short unattended period of time, our sweet little pup chewed the edges of the book, but not enough to prevent us from being able to read it. From that experience, we learned that our dog had a sense of humor and was a smart-aleck.

Leave a comment, and we’ll randomly select a participant to win a copy of “The Whole Dog Journal: Handbook of Dog and Puppy Care and Training,” edited by Nancy Kerns  (Lyons Press, $20).

Where does your pet sleep?

sleeping dogDo you let Fido sleep on your futon? Does he have his own puppy pad to sleep on? Or is he an outside-only pooch?

At night, Dakota, the older of my two golden retrievers, will come into my bedroom and growl at me if he is wound up and is still wanting to play. Usually a good pet will settle him down. It also helps me unwind and get ready for a good night’s sleep. One of his favorite places to crash? The bathtub. I think it feels nice and cool to him.If you have any funny stories or animal anecdotes to share about where your pet sleeps, click on “comments.”

Got a dog blog?

dog computerBlogs about pets and “by” pets (OK, really written by their owners who write from their pets’ perspectives) are on the rise.

Does your pet “write” a blog? Or do you have a blog about your dog, cat, hamster or other pet? Click on “comments” to tell us about it.

Do you let your dog watch TV?

happy dogResearch showing music’s calming effect on dogs is sparking pet-friendly CDs and radio, according to a Columbia News Service story in today’s WichiTalk.

When I’m preoccupied or running an errand, I’ll leave the TV on Animal Planet for my two golden retrievers. I’m sure they really don’t “watch” the TV, but I know the animal sounds or occasional dog barks from the TV get their ears to perk up and their tails to wag. My dogs also have been amused by the CD “Songs to Make Dogs Happy” by the Laurel Canyon Animal Company. I picked it up at a book sale for $1 on a whim, and got a kick out of watching my pups react to a couple of the songs.

Do you leave the TV on for your dog? Or do you use other media or sounds to soothe your anxious hounds?

Two Wichita events let you bring along your pooch

woman and puppyFor a change, it might be a good thing Saturday if your date is a real dog.

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, CityArts will host its annual Dog Gone Party, part of its Art Show at the Dog Show. (The event is free.)

And Yappy Days are here again. From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Kansas Coliseum, people and pups can check out dog-related businesses, contests and more. (Admission is $5 a person, free for children 12 and under.)

I pledge allegiance to the pug

Did you catch Tuesday night’s Westminster Dog Show? And if so, were you as outraged as I was that Spuds McKenzie beat out Dermot the pug?

It got me thinking about dog breeds and allegiances we humans seem to form. I have a pug, so I’m a pug person. But I knew that if I’d been watching the dog show with golden retriever owner and WichiTalk editor Lori Buselt (a gorgeous golden also competed in best of show) we’d have had a knock-down over which dog was best.

Are you someone who is also crazy about a particular breed? How far have you gone to demonstrate that loyalty?

Read more of my thoughts on this topic in my column in Thursday’s WichiTalk. Then let me know what you think. As long as you think pugs are best.

— Posted by Denise Neil