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Goldendoodle

Despite all the buzz about “hypoallergenic dogs” since the Obamas indicated they may get one, there are no breeds that are truly free of potential allergens, some medical experts say.

“I don’t think there is such a thing as a hypoallergenic dog,” allergy and asthma expert Corinna Bowser (really, BOWSER!) of Havertown, Pa. told WebMD.

While there are countless websites devoted to “hypoallergenic dogs,” the Obamas could find it difficult to find one to which their older daughter, Malia, won’t have an allergic reaction.

Bowser explains that the major allergen in dogs is a protein found in dog serum, and dogs excrete that allergen in sweat and shed it from their skin. “It also gets secreted into the saliva, and possibly a little bit in the urine,” Bowser says.

Since all dogs have that protein, no dog is completely allergy-free, according to Bowser.

She said a German study, published this year, tracked allergies among people exposed to various dog breeds and found that factors related to individual dogs seem to influence the “allergenicity” more than breed or gender.

Breeds commonly cited as hypoallergenic include the poodle, (and several poodle hybrids, like the goldendoodle), Bichon Frise, Maltese, Yorkshire Terrier, Portugese Water Dog, Schnauzer, West Highland Terrier, Basenji, Airedale Terrier, and our good friend, the Xoloitzcuintli.

Smaller dogs, and short-haired breeds might be less risky, Bowser said. “Hair length could have something to do with how it spreads in the house,” she said, explaining that shorter dog hairs may not stick as much as long hair to furniture, clothes, and other surfaces.

Bowser went on to say that if she was the Obama family doctor, “I would say it’s probably better not to get a dog.”

“Of course, now he made the promise and he kind of has to,” she said. Bowser recommends that before they get a dog of their own the Obama family dog-sit to see how Malia’s allergies fare, and set some rules about how they’ll handle any allergy issues.

Between the shaky economy and track closings, greyhound rescue organizations are hard-pressed to find enough homes for the growing number of dogs exiting the racing industry.

The weakened economy has led some prospective owners to back out of their adoption plans, and led some who have adopted greyhounds to return them.

“There have been a lot of stress-related returns with people losing their houses or their jobs and more adoption groups are reporting new adoptions are down,” said Michael McCann, president of The Greyhound Project Inc., a Boston-based nonprofit that provides support and information to greyhound adoption organizations and the public.

McCann blamed the economy primarily, but the Massachusetts ban on greyhound racing — voters approved a referendum that will lead to the closing of two tracks there by Jan. 1, 2010 — is a big factor, too.

“With some tracks having several hundred dogs, they have to go somewhere,” McCann said. “Some of them can go to other tracks, but many of them are ending up needing to be adopted.”

Many of the estimated 300 adoption groups nationwide are seeing increases in returns of adopted greyhounds and declines in new adoptions, according to an Associated Press report.

The problem is compounded by more racetracks closing — at least seasonally — in the face of increased competition from casino gambling and the general economic slowdown, McCann said.

McCann said the problem is not confined to the continental United States. The recent closure of a racetrack in Guam left about 150 dogs needing homes, and animal rescue officials have been contacting U.S. groups for help.

“They may have to be destroyed if there is no place else to go,” McCann said.

Greyhound Rescue, Inc. places greyhounds in Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia and Washington D.C.

Other greyhound rescue groups include the Greyhound Project Inc,Triangle Greyhound Society, Queen City Greyhounds, or Greyhound Friends Inc.

(Photo: Courtesy of Greyhound Rescue, Inc.)

With no formal yoga training (or doga training) Neuman the pit bull seems to have mastered the downward dog, and even incorporates a wall into his routine.

He is up for adoption and living in a shelter in California — or at least he was when this video was posted.

“This is one of those adoptions that really makes us tingle,” write Steve Smith and Alayne Marker, friends of ohmidog! (you can find them in our blogroll) and proprietors of Rolling Dog Ranch, an animal sanctuary in Montana.

Rolling Dog Ranch, which I paid a visit to last fall, isn’t so much a temporary shelter for animals as it is a permanent home. Generally, the chronically sick, disabled, discarded and unwanted animals that end up there live out their lives on the 160 grassy acres near Ovando, Montana.

But every once in a while, caring folks adopt one, or, in this case, two.

When Cristene and Duane J. from Hauser Lake, Idaho (pictured above), came out to the ranch last month to adopt three-legged Kasha, they also met — and fell in love with — blind Shep. Back home with Kasha, they couldn’t stop thinking about Shep, a little German Shepherd from Afghanistan. 

It was only a couple of weeks before they emailed to say they wanted Shep, too. Recently, they took him home as well.

Shep is a former resident of the only animal shelter in Afghanistan. In May, he made it to Rolling Dog Ranch.

“Shep is a tiny thing for a German Shepherd, a result no doubt of chronic malnutrition when he was in the womb and then a puppy,” Smith writes in the latest ranch newsletter. ”Although the shelter in Kabul had been feeding him for the couple of months they had him before he came to us, he was still terribly thin when he arrived — so we can imagine how emaciated he was originally.” 

Cristene and Duane now have two RDR dogs at their home in northern Idaho, which includes 50 acres of fields, wetlands, forest, three acres of fenced lawn, and a lake for swimming.

Rolling Dog Ranch rescues and shelters disabled animals, giving every resident — be they blind dogs, blind horses, deaf dogs, blind cats, or animals with neurological and orthopedic disabilities — a second chance.

“Although these animals may have disabilities, they do not consider themselves handicapped. They just want to get on with life and enjoy themselves,” the Rolling Dog Ranch website says. And based on my visit last year, that seems to be exactly what they’re doing.

Here’s a slide show I put together then:

(Top photo: courtesy of Rolling Dog Ranch)

Whether George W. Bush is leaving the White House in disgrace is a matter best left for the political pundits — a group I am proud to say I don’t belong to — but as for his dog Barney, it seems he is definitely going out on a low note.

In addition to nipping a television journalist (good boy, Barney) this month, it has been revealed that, back in September, there was another biting incident — this one involving a public relations director (attaboy!).

Heather Walker, the public relations director for the Boston Celtics basketball team, has revealed how America’s First Dog bit her wrist and drew blood after she tried to pat him during a White House ceremony honoring the team’s 17th NBA championship.

“I walked into the White House and in the first area you walk into, there are Miss Beazley and Barney,”  Walker said. “They were sitting on this Oriental rug, and I just reached down to pat Barney and he attacked me.”

Both Miss Beazley and Barney are Scottish terriers.

Walker, who had her wrist wrapped with a bandage by a Boston Celtics trainer, spoke about her ordeal on Friday, just days after Barney bit Reuters television reporter John Decker’s finger when he reached down to pat the seemingly docile hound.

Walker said she had wanted to keep the Sept. 19 incident under wraps, but her hometown newspaper, The Salem (Mass.) News, reported it Friday, according to the Associated Press. 

Barney, despite starring in several White House Christmas videos and having his own official website, isn’t likely to go down as one of the most beloved first pets.

Karl Rove once described him as “a lump,” while former Russian president, Vladimir Putin, who owns a black labrador called Koni, is said to have remarked that such a small dog was unfitting for a world leader, the London Telegraph reports.

(Photo from www.barney.gov)

Not only will Santa Claus be in South Baltimore’s Riverside Park this Saturday — but you and/or your pet can have your photo taken with him.

How do I know this? Because I was roped into filling the Santa suit — either because of my joviality, my sprouting white beard, or, more likely, a certain part of my anatomy that is increasingly shaking like a bowlful of jelly.

From 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. Saturday, your pooch, or cat, or pet of any sort (no highly poisonous snakes, please) can have their photo taken with Santa for the low, low price of $5.

The photo will then be made available to you online, where you can download it, or upload it, or whatever it is you do to get it. You can also turn it into a Christmas card. Your options, like the joys of the season, are limitless.

In addition to the photos with Santa, the event will included raffles, gift sale, free gift wrapping, dog and cat treats, and stuff to eat and drink.

The theme of the day is a South Baltimore Christmas (old school), so don’t be surprised if you see a pink flamingo or two, some highly tacky decorations, or Santa himself sneaking in a smoke between photo shoots. We also guarantee that somebody, at some point, will call you “hon.”

If  South Baltimore kitsch is not your bag, you can wait two weeks for the more traditional Photos with Santa event — to be held at Federal Hill Park, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Dec. 6. That will be staffed by a Santa to be named later.

Both events are fundraisers for the Franky Fund at BARCS (Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter), which provides emergency medical care for sick and injured animals that might otherwise be euthanized.

The event’s sponsors include ohmidog!, Camp Bow Wow, Dogma, Lucky Lucy’s Canine Cafe, Chesapeake Veterinary Surgical Specialists, K-9 Kraving Raw Diet Dog Food, Bill’s Portable Welding, Baltimore Guide,  Firehouse Coffee Co. at the Canton Firehouse, Austin Grill, The Sweet Shop, UTZ, Steve’s Lunch, Amy’s Boutique, Federal Hill Wine & Spirits, M&L Discount Liquors, and Susan Harrington Designs.

For more information, click here.

For information about other dog-friendly events, including Locust Point Dog Park’s pet photo with Santa event (featuring city council member Ed Reisinger as St. Nick), visit the ohmidog! “doggie doings” page.

     If you’ve got a mystery mutt — like this one, named Fergus — here’s your chance to unravel a piece of his or her identity.
     Here’s how it works.
     Send in a photo of your mutt, along with your best guess as to what breeds he or she might be made up of, his or her name, where he or she came from, and why you want to know what he or she is a mix of — all in 100 words or less.
     A winner will be chosen based on the photo, the essay, and the capricious whims of our panel of anonymous, non-purebred judges.
    At that point, we’ll arrange for the test (a $125 value) to be administered by Baltimore veterinarian Johnny Slaughter, who will draw the blood at your home (he’s a mobile veterinarian). That will also be at no charge to the contest winner. The contest is limited to Maryland residents.
     When the results come in from Mars Veterinary, makers of the new Wisdom Panel Mixed Breed Analysis, we’ll report them here.

By sending in a photo of your dog, you are consenting to it, and your comments, possibly appearing on the ohmidog! website.

Send all entries to muttsblog@verizon.net, with the words “mutts contest” in the subject line.

If you win, you — like the owners of Fergus — will finally know what your mutt’s made up of; in Fergus’ case, in case you’re wondering, it’s Great Pyrenees, English Setter, Dalmatian, Doberman and Jack Russell Terrrier.

(This is a re-post of an earlier item … Deadline for entries is Nov. 30)

(Photo: Wisdompanel.com)

Despite an army of goofily advancing golden retrievers pups, this family cat seems to be taking the new arrivals in stride — and letting them know who’s boss.

Texas officials have begun making arrests in an investigation into what authorities describe as one of the largest dogfighting rings in the country.

Eight people were arrested and 187 dogs were seized Friday — all part of what was called a sophisticated dogfighting ring involving a network of bettors and fight organizers throughout eastern Texas.

According to the New York Times, 55 people were indicted after an undercover investigation that lasted 17 months. Officials said the network’s dogfights drew crowds of up to 100 people, who placed tens of thousands of dollars in wagers on a single fight.

“This was a large-scale, highly organized operation,” said Lisa Block, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Public Safety.

It was not uncommon for a gambler to put $500 to $1,000 down on the matches, which took place several times a month in secluded parts of Harris County, law enforcement officials said.

Ring members invited only people they knew to the fights, but undercover agents from the state police infiltrated the group to gather evidence and even managed to videotape some of the matches, officials said. The investigation started after troopers received a tip from someone in another state about the fights.

Most of the dogs seized were pit bull mixes.

During raids to seize the animals, state troopers also found firearms, marijuana, cocaine and stolen property, the authorities said. But the indictments charged the defendants only with engaging in dogfights, a felony that carries up to two years in prison, or misdemeanor charges of being a spectator at a dogfight, which carries up to a year in jail, the Times reported.

Two renowned (at least on Youtube) skateboarding bulldogs — Tillman (above) and Tyson (below) will be taking part in the Rose Bowl Parade.

The dogs will be skateboarding on a track built around the Natural Balance float, which features a 15-foot long skateboard and a 16-foot tall bulldog made of flowers.

Now that’s entertainment.

The float is being sponsored by Natural Balance, the premium pet food line founded by Dick Van Patten and his son, Jimmy Van Patten.

This is the first time Natural Balance has participated in the annual Rose Parade. The custom made track encircling the float is being built by skate track designer Aaron Spohn. Tyson and Tillman will be accompanied on the float by Van Patten and his son.

In conjunction with the float, Natural Balance has announced a competition for the World’s Most Amazing Dog Contest. Dog owners all over the country are being asked to submit a video or photo of their dog which will be uploaded to the Natural Balance website and voted on by fans. The winner and their dog will join Tyson and Tillman on the Natural Balance float in the 2009 Rose Parade on January 1.

The winning submission will be chosen November 30th.

Visit the Natural Balance website for more information.