ohmidog!

Rush Limbark. Meatwad. Sir Lix Alot.

Those are just a few of the favorite unusual dog names encountered by Veterinary Pet Insurance during its annual survey to find out the most popular dog names.

“We’ve been tracking the most common pet names for years,” says Curtis Steinhoff, spokesperson for Veterinary Pet Insurance. But the real fun comes in finding the one-of-a-kind names, like Peanut Wigglebutt, Spatula and Admiral Toot.

“Some of (the names) are very self-explanatory, and some of them, well, we’re not really sure where they came from,” Steinhoff told Seattle TV station KOMO.

The company’s list of dog (and cat) names, and the stories behind them can be found on the website, wackydognames.com.

“Rush Limbark,” for instance, is said to grow calm when he hears the talk show host’s voice. ”Sophie Touch and Pee,” gets so excited when she’s petted that … well, you can figure it out.

A California woman, apparently weary of her neighbor’s barking dog, kidnapped a white Maltese named Spike, drove him 15 miles away and abandoned him, police say.

Diane M. Brown, 42, an officer at a San Diego County correctional facility, was arrested on suspicion of felony possession of stolen property, according to police in Hemet.

Brown had filed multiple noise complaints about Spike with Riverside County Animal Services, according to the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

On the day Spike went missing, Brown was spotted unloading the dog from the trunk of her car outside a water district building in the town of Beaumont, Animal Services Sgt. Lesley Huennekens said. A surveillance camera captured Brown when she returned to the scene to remove to dog’s collar.

Two water district employees took Spike to a veterinarian, who located the dog’s owners by scanning a tracking chip embedded under the animal’s skin. The dog was unharmed.

After 44 years as a supporter and backer of the Crufts dog show in Britain, the Pedigree pet food company has withdrawn its sponsorship, according to a United Press International report.

A statement from Pedigree’s parent company, Mars UK, said Pedigree would no longer offer nearly $2.4 million in funding to the annual dog show, whose future is now in doubt amidst allegations of animal mistreatment.

Allegations that the prestigious dog show promotes breeding techniques that lead to disease and deformity in purebred dogs were brought to light in a BBC documentary earlier this year. Subsequently, several animal welfare groups and others have opted to to withdraw support and decline to participate in the upcoming show, which is sponsored by Britain’s Kennel Club.

“After careful consideration, Pedigree has decided to withdraw its sponsorship of Crufts,” the company said. “The Pedigree brand has evolved and we are prioritizing initiatives that support the broadest possible community of dog owners such as our successful program the Pedigree Adoption Drive, and our online service for breeders, pedigreedirect.co.uk.”

Texas likes to tout its bigness, but, here in College Station, Saturday was a day to celebrate a breed that never rises more than a few inches from the ground — the low but not lowly dachsund.

Being in College Station, home of Texas A&M, for some book-related research, I found myself with some time on my hands Saturday, so I grabbed the camera and headed over to a local park where the Brazos County Animal Shelter’s “Wiener Fest” was being held.

It was just the second year for the event, but you couldn’t tell it from the huge crowd that turned out — most of them with their dogs, a surprising number with their dachsunds. Wiener Fest organizer Judy LeUnes said the event is based on a similar one held in Buda, Texas, south of Austin.

One reason dachsunds might be so popular in these parts, or so I’m told, is that this, College Station, as the name implies, is a college town, where a lot of students and others live in small apartments, making the dimunitive breed a popular pet.

Hundreds of them turned out for the festival, and most of them took part in the races. (They were up to the 35th heat when I finally left.) But there were dogs of all shapes and sizes, as you can see in the slideshow above, including one whose owner deemed him big enough to give a toddler a ride.

While the races were the highlight, the event also included a costume contest, agility demonstrations, music and, of course, barbecue.

The race heats were divided by age and sex, and there was one race for handicapped contestants — between two blind dachsunds and one, named Flip, who has no use of his hind legs.

Flip (you can see him in the slideshow) is owned by Jackie and Chris Curfman, who found him on the streets of Dallas when he was about eight months old. When he was 4, Flip jumped off their bed and herniated a disk, putting pressure on his spinal cord, causing him to lose function of his hind legs. He gets around (as he did in the race) via a wheeled contraption whose frame is made of PVC pipe.

Flip won his race, which just goes to show you, no matter how close to the ground you might be, no matter whether you’re propelled by paws or wheels, no matter whether you’re saddled with a moniker like “wiener,” one can — even in Texas — still stand tall.

Canadians are a bland and slow-witted people, prone to swilling beer, wearing plaid and playing ice hockey.

Eh?

Of course that’s not true, but then neither is this: Pit bulls are dangerous and unpredictable dogs that have the potential to attack without warning.

That’s what the Ontario Court of Appeal said Friday in a decision upholding the province’s ban on pit bulls, enacted in 2005. It prohibits the breeding, sale and ownership of pit bulls and requires they be muzzled when in public.

The Appeal Court ruled Friday that the ban on the breed does not violate any constitutional rights.

“The total ban on pit bulls is not ‘arbitrary’ or ‘grossly disproportionate’ in light of the evidence that pit bulls have a tendency to be unpredictable and that even apparently docile pit bulls may attack without warning or provocation,” the judges said in their decision Friday.

Then they all put on their tuques, went to an ice hockey game and drank Molsons. Not really. The point is, you’d think a high court in a country so sensitive to negative stereotyping would give a little more thought and study to an issue rather just relying on stereotypes — namely the bogus one that all pit bulls are prone to unprovoked violence.

Yes, there are violent pit bulls (generally the fault of their owner) — just as there are nasty poodles and slow-witted Canadians, but blanket indictments based on perception aren’t progress. They’re the opposite — a step backwards. They get us nowhere. 

Lawyer Clayton Ruby, who challenged the law, called it a “sad day” in Ontario. “Kind, loving, gentle dogs are being killed across this province for no reason,” he said in a statement, according to the Canadian Press.

“The provincial government should focus their efforts and resources on identifying truly dangerous dogs rather than apprehending and killing dogs that pose no threat at all,” he said.

Ruby said he is considering an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Jean-anne Moors of Banned Aid, a coalition fighting the ban, said the group was “very disappointed” with the ruling.

“I have three so-called pit bull-type dogs who are all legal under the law,” she said. “Everybody’s looking at me as if I’m some kind of criminal when I walk down the streets with my dogs. They have no history of aggression.”

Moors said the law sets a troubling precedent because it’s not just a pit bull issue.

“If a government … can make such an arbitrary decision that a dog is a bad and dangerous dog and seize it under certain circumstances and destroy it … that’s a matter of concern to anybody who has a dog – period.”

“Best In Show” the documentary-style send-up of the dog show crowd, will be shown at the Charles Theatre on Wednesday, Nov. 12th in a benefit for Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS).

Tickets are available for $50, and the ticket price includes movie snacks and drinks. Paper tickets will not be issued, but there will be a master list of guests at the door. The event starts at 6 p.m., with the movie starting at 7 p.m.

To order, send a check (with “movie” written in the memo section) to BARCS, c/o Debbie Cameron, 149 W. Montgomery St., Baltimore, MD 21230. Be sure to include your phone number and e-mail address.

The clip above features one of my favorite lines in the movie: “We could not talk or talk forever, and still find things to not talk about.”

Tomorrow is National Pit Bull Awareness Day, and B-More Dog Inc., a Baltimore-based organization  advocating for responsible dog ownership, is urging its members and pit bull owners everywhere to show off the breed’s good side.

The day was created last year by Bless the Bullys, a pit bull rescue and education organization based in Tennessee, in an effort counter the negative publicity surrounding pit bulls

“This event’s goal is to focus on the pit bulls and their owners who aren’t making the news: Responsible, devoted owners that responsibly care for their dogs and do their best to make sure their dogs are good ambassadors for the breed,” B-More Dog officials said in a press release.

“This year, B-More Dog encourages responsible pit bull owners in the Baltimore area to celebrate National Pit Bull Awareness Day,” they said. “Walk your well-behaved dog in your local park or neighborhood. Find out how to certify your dog as a Canine Good Citizen or seek training advice for your rowdy dog. Talk to your local pet store about putting out fliers that explain the myths vs. the facts about pit bulls.”

B-More Dog (short for Baltimore Dog Owners Guild) was formed to promote responsible dog ownership, and to enhance the relationships of dogs and their owners by fostering responsible care and stewardship. It got its start in the fall of 2007 after a proposal was made to pass breed specific legislation in Baltimore County. 

The proposed law, which would have required all pit bull owners to muzzle their dogs and confine them in locked kennels, was not passed — but those who own and love pit bull type dogs took it as a warning.

“Many of us felt that we needed to do more to help the American pit bull terrier regain its status as a valuable working dog and cherished family pet,” the non-profit organization’s website says.

“Pit bulls and their owners are fighting for their rights and reputations right now. Pit bulls face abuse, neglect, torture, and overbreeding by people who do not have the dogs’ best interests at heart; their owners face negative stereotypes and prejudices, simply because they choose to own pit bulls. 

“We hope that through education, mentoring, and outreach, we can help pit bull owners become better ambassadors for our breed and eventually reduce some of the misunderstandings about pit bulls and the people who love them.”

This one comes from Karen Ngo’s new book, Indognito: A Book of Canines in Costume, published this fall.

Other photos from the book — and many more costume ideas, some less elaborate than this one – can be viewed on her website.

According to her website, Ngo, originally from San Francisco, worked in the fashion industry as a creative director in New York City, while leading a secret life as a dog photographer.

She was also the owner of Scout, the first dog boutique in New York’s East Village, which closed in 2005.

Her dog images have been published in magazines and on calendars and stationery, and in a previous book, Haute Dog. Indognito is published by Little, Brown and Company and can be ordered through Amazon.com.

Ngo resides in Brooklyn with her dogs Martini and Emma.

(Photo from Idognito, by Karen Ngo)

A down-on-his-luck Florida man whose last act in life was to try to save three dogs stranded in a freeway emergency lane, was remembered Wednesday at a donated funeral where he was praised by Houstonians who never met him, and remembered by a daughter who hadn’t seen him in 20 years.

Robert “Bob” Emery, 54, was fatally struck by a motorcycle the night of Sept. 27 as he dashed onto the East Freeway to rescue three dogs stranded against the median.

Alaina Emery, a 25-year-old paralegal student, drove from Pennsylvania to attend her father’s service, the Houston Chronicle reported. About two dozen animal lovers also were there.

She placed a framed wedding photograph of her estranged parents atop Emery’s oak casket.

Emery. after a 13-hour day of clearing brush from Hurricane Ike, was preparing to turn in for the night when he heard about the dogs just yards from his motel. He was struck my a motorcycle as he ran across the freeway. Animal control officers called to the accident later rescued the dogs, and  they were returned to a senior-citizen couple that had been looking for them for days.

During the service at San Jacinto Funeral Home and Memorial Parks, the Rev. Bill Cole called Emery a hero, and sang a solo of the Prayer of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals. Flowers were placed atop a table covered with a blanket emblazoned with drawings of paw prints and bones.

Among those offering hungs to Alaina Emery were the dogs’ owners, who weren’t sure if she would be angry with them, but wanted to thank her.

“It is OK. It is OK,” Emery said quietly as she hugged them. “Take care of those dogs; take care of those dogs.”