ohmidog!

Ahhh fall, my favorite season — that time of year when even old dogs get a little more spring in their step.  The coolness of yesterday morning was invigorating. Ace, upon stepping outside and taking in a whiff of the crispness in the air, was raring to go.

On our morning trip to the park, we drove the four blocks because my illegally parked car had to be moved anyway. We walked an extra loop around the path and veered into the grass to chase each other a little bit. We were both stepping a little more lively than usual.

My lively steps included one into a pile of dog poop, which I didn’t notice until enclosed in the car on the way home, by which time I had smeared both brake and gas pedal with it as well.

Not wanting to track it inside, I left my shoes outside, at the foot of the steps of my humble Formstone rowhouse, figuring I’d probably throw them away, anyway. They started losing their integrity three months ago — the body of the shoe having lost contact with the sole, resulting in a floppy thwack as I walked and a tendency to take in moisture.

I cleaned by brake and gas pedals, then spent a few hours at the computer before stepping back outside in my socks to find the shoes were gone. Someone had stolen my poopy shoes — my falling apart, probably even stinky before I stepped in poop, not long for the world, anyway, poopy shoes.

I didn’t feel all that violated — given that shoes were going to be thrown away. I took only a moment’s pleasure in the thought that the thief probably didn’t get around the corner before realizing his ill gotten booty was was contaminated with poopy. Perhaps, I thought, he even realized it immediately, but decided, once cleaned up, they might serve him well for a while. Maybe it’s a reflection of how hard times have gotten for some.

So as I don my new sneakers — quite spiffy and only $20 at Wal-Mart — here is my wish for the poopy shoe thief: I hope they — after a good cleaning and a little glue — bring you warmth and happiness throughout the season.

California dogs hit the surf in Huntington Beach over the weekend for a new charity event called the Surf City Surf Dog Competition. Here (after the obligatory advertisement — how better to sell gasoline than with a dancing dog?) is a news report on the event.

Jessica Simpson, having given up the search for her Malti-poo, says on her Twitter page that she doesn’t appreciate the false information her loved ones have received from pranksters claiming Daisy is alive.

The five-year-old dog was taken by a coyote last month.

“People  have been contacting my family and friends saying that Daisy has been found. Untrue. People are so cruel. please respect her memory.”

Daisy was a gift from ex-husband Nick Lachey. The dog was dragged from its back yard in Los Angeles  by a coyote in mid-September.

Simpson, who was recently in Morocco filming her VH1 reality show, The Price of Beauty, has more than 1.6 million followers on Twitter, where she regularly posts her doings, thoughts and epiphanies, including this recent dispatch:

“On my last day in Morocco i have finally learned it is spelled with 2 c’s and not and 2 r’s. i am a dweb!! i mean REALLY?!?!”

If fears of triggering asthma are keeping you from getting a dog, you might want to reconsider.

University of Arizona researchers say having a dog in the home at the time of a child’s birth may actually decrease his or her chance of developing asthma. And the National Institutes of Health think it’s worth almost a million dollars to find out for sure.

Serrine Lau and a team of researchers at the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy have received a two-year, $937,000 challenge grant to study the issue.

“Several longitudinal studies have shown that exposure to certain domestic animals, for example, indoor dogs, during a person’s early life (even possibly before he or she is born) is associated with strong protection against asthma and asthma-related conditions later in life,” Lau said.

“The purpose of our research is to learn more about the biological mechanisms responsible for the protective effects of dog exposure. Conceivably, this could be a step toward someday leveraging these mechanisms for treatment or even preventive purposes.”

The team hypothesizes that exposure to dogs at an early age creates a “signature” (either the presence or the modification of a protein) in a child’s blood.

By comparing the signatures of children known to have been exposed to dogs at an early age with the signatures of children known not to have been exposed to dogs, and by noting the presence or absence of asthma in the children, the team hopes to learn more about how children exposed to dogs at an early age are protected from asthma.

(Photo: Courtesy of University of Arizona)