ohmidog!

An 11-year-old dog named Chandi dazzled the judges with her dancing on an episode of “Britain’s got Talent” that aired Saturday.

And her owner wasn’t bad, either.

A piano and violin teacher named Tina and her rescue dog Chandi performed a dance — Chandi with a sore on her leg, no less — that led to a standing ovation from the audience and the judges.

For more information on the duo, you can check out Tina and Chandi’s 
website. You can learn more about dancing with dogs at the World Canine Freestyle Organization.

Maryland SPCA officials say the turnout for yesterday’s March for the Animals rivaled that of last year’s, with thousands showing up to walk their dogs and raise money for the SPCA’s shelter and other programs.

Not all walkers had dogs, as the Baltmore Sun’s Jill Rosen reported on her blog “Unleashed.”

Diane Bateman marched with a picture of her beloved beagle Molly pinned to her chest. The dog died six years ago at 14. While she was alive, she never missed a chance to joing the march, Bateman said.

“It’s a nice way to still do something with Molly and to support a great cause,” Bateman said.

Thousands of others showed up at Baltimore’s Druid Hill Park for the event, which is the SPCA’s largest annual fundraiser.

SPCA Executive Director Aileen Gabbey said that, though figures weren’t available, the event might have drawn more people than last year’s, when an estimated 5,000 showed up, bringing in more than $360,000.

(Photo: Baltimore Sun “Unleashed”)

Sure we had way too much snow this winter — though these two probably wouldn’t think so.

Here’s how yellow Labs keep their coats clean and have big fun at the same time.

A quick update on my former temporary cat Miley, now heading to Oklahoma with her new owner, Kitty, a truck driver who saw the ohmidog! video and offered to provide a home for the Baltimore street cat:

“Miley is settling in real well. She is still not sure about Chuzzle. When he gets to close she hisses and growls and runs to her food dish and starts eating her food, almost like she is afraid that Chuzzle is going to eat it.”

This does not surprise me. Miley, in the three months I kept her after taking her in, liked her food early and often – maybe a result of her time foraging on the street.

As soon as I got out of bed in the morning, she’d approach and give a prolonged meow, which didn’t sound like “meow” at all; really more of a wail that continued until breakfast was served. Between the wailing and blocking my path when I tried to walk, she trained me to fill her bowl first thing in the morning.

Annoying as that was, yes, I still miss my unofficial foster cat some. I still stumble out of bed some mornings and, in my pre-coffee haze, head for the cat food.

I’m sure Miley and Chuzzle will work things out, with help from Kitty, who should be arriving back home in Oklahoma soon. Her message was relayed by her husband, who said Kitty reports Miley is a “wonderful cat.”

“I’m looking forward to getting her home with me,” he said.

Granted, you can find plenty of singing dogs on YouTube. Granted, not all of them appear to be enjoying their performance. And granted, not all of them are ready for American Idol.

But Sierra, shown here with her rendition of “Love Me Tender,” is a dog that “really likes to sing” — especially this particular song, according to her owner, Adam Yamada-Hanff, a 21-year-old community college student. (That’s him on saxophone.)

Besides, she’s a Baltimore dog.

There are some songs Sierra doesn’t like (“Sierra is a Doggie Diva!” Adam says). But “Love Me Tender” is one of her favorites, and Adam’s.

“The lyrics are very fitting for dogs,” he said.

Sierra is an English Shepherd, almost 2 years old. Adam is trying to figure out a way to use her singing talents to help out animal shelters and rescue groups. “A singing dog will definitely encourage some donations,” he said.

Adam grew up with a dog named Roger — that’s them to the left –  a stray that, though he died several years ago, Adam and his family still think about often.

A $6,000 reward is now being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the youngsters observed throwing rocks and bricks at a pit bull puppy on Easter Sunday in Baltimore.

The puppy, who was tied up at the time, was taken to Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS), where — now named Christy — she is recovering.

The dog was treated for numerous injuries after the incident, which was witnessed by a citizen who alerted authorities. The witness tried to stop the youngsters from pelting the dog, which was tied up on the 3700 block of Greenspring Avenue near the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School. When he approached, the youths began throwing rocks and bricks at him, but he was still able to rescue the dog.

When Christy arrived at BARCS she had a swollen snout,  and wounds to a paw and her ears and hemorrhages in both eyes. Dr. Sherry Seibel, Veterinarian at BARCS, said that Christy is doing well, “Her symptoms are resolving. The swelling is going down and all of her wounds are healing. She is the sweetest dog, and a very forgiving soul.”

BARCS officials say there has been an outpouring of concern from the community in response to the incident. The Snyder Foundation for Animals is offering $1,000 in reward money, the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is offering $2,500, and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is offering $2,500.

This case is under active investigation by the Baltimore City Bureau of Animal Control. Anyone with information about the case is urged to contact them at 410 396-4698. All tips are confidential. Informants must be 18 years or older to be eligible for the reward.

 
The First Dog has completed his first year in office, and, as far as we can tell,  he has performed his duties (that’s duties, with a “T”) admirably.

Bo has been cute, playful and photogenic, and he has made the Obamas, who can come across as a little robotic at times, appear a little more down to earth and, though they live in that big white house, a little more like the rest of us.

(You can view a nice Washington Post photo gallery of Bo — it comes up after the annoying advertisement – here.)

There are those who say the White House could be reaping more benefits from Bo, but in our opinion, it’s not about what your dog can do for you, but about what you can do for your dog.

The Obamas held off on getting a dog until they were settled in the White House. Obama was, in fact, the first pet-less president ever elected — a fact some say cost him pet-lover support during the campaign.

Once in office, the family’s scientific — some might say emotionless — approach to getting a dog, one they could be assured wouldn’t trigger their daughter’s allergies, and the fact they didn’t get a dog in need of rescue, may have taken away some of the moment’s charm as well, but not much.

All of this was studied by Diana C. Mutz — yes, Mutz –  the Samuel A. Stouffer Professor of Political Science at the University of Pennsylvania who, according to Daniel Rubin in a recent Philadelphia Inquirer column, studied the electoral appeal of Barack Obama in the fall.

Her conclusion, says Rubin: “Dude could have used a dog.”

All of Obama’s pre-election talk about how they were going to get a dog underscored the fact that the presidential contender did not have one, according to Mutz’s research.

Mutz says Obama was the first pet-less elected president (Chester Alan Arthur, the 21st president, didn’t have one, but he was appointed after James Garfield was shot.)

More than 400 pets have occupied the White House, she says, and dog lovers represent a huge chunk of the electorate, with about half of U.S. households owning dogs (Republicans more so than Democrats, by 6 percent.)

Mutz, who has two dogs, three cats and runs an animal rescue out of her home, concluded that  the probability of voting for Obama went down 16 percent if one owned a dog.

Quite possibly, she says, dog owners identify with other dog owners, and  a sort of projection occurs where dog owners prefer the more “doglike” candidate.

I know I do; and by doglike, I mean honest.

As much as Bo — a Portuguese water dog that was a gift to the First Family from the late Ted Kennedy — might have helped in the campaign, the Obama family getting a dog then would have smacked of exploitation. I respect the fact they waited, and that, in the year since his arrival, he has not been overly-foisted on the public.

So keep up the good work, Bo, and just be a dog.

 (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

The Maryland SPCA’s March for the Animals — a 1.5 mile fundraising walk and more — takes place this Sunday, April 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Druid Hill Park in Baltimore.

The organization’s largest fundraising event attracts thousands of walkers and their dogs each year — and helps make it possible for the SPCA to continue its work, which last year saw 3,200 pets adopted and 9,700 spayed or neutered.

(Sorry to say ohmidog! won’t have a booth this year, so those who patronized Ace’s Kissing Booth and Dog Breath Emporium last year — shown in the video above — will just have to wait til next year for another smooch.)

In addition to the walk, activities at the event will include pet contests, an agility course, training classes, pet demonstrations, pet-friendly vendors, adoptable animals and entertainment.

Individual walkers can register online thru April 16. Walk up registration starts at 9:00 a.m. the day of the event.

All of the money raised goes toward the SPCA’s adoption center, pet owner education, and the care of lost and homeless animals

For the complete schedule, keep reading.

Read more »

Animal welfare advocates who noticed the sudden disappearance of 80 dogs from a privately run, city-owned shelter in Ferris, Texas, are disturbed with the shelter management’s refusal to say where the dogs ended up.

Domestic Animal Rescue Emergency Shelter Services (DARESS), a nonprofit that had been contracted with to operate the city owned shelter, began taking in dogs in November.

The manager of the organization says workers took the dogs to an Indian reservation. But he won’t say where, according to the Dallas Morning News.

“Every one of those dogs are happy, healthy, well-fed, watered, taken care of, loved and not abandoned any longer,” shelter manager James “Soaring Eagle” Vonda said. “Every Native American wants to have a dog and a cat because it relates to their spirit guide.” 

Vonda declined to give the location of the reservation, saying that revealing it might also disclose the location of a shelter he runs for victims of domestic violence.

The city of Ferris has since terminated its contract with DARESS, under which the city didn’t pay DARESS anything but did agree to make $5,000 in improvements to the shelter. The nonprofit was to make its revenue by adopting out animals.

Under the contract, after 72 hours of being held at the shelter, all animals became the property of DARESS.

“We can do what we want to do with them … we’re certainly not going to kill them,” said Vonda, whose nonprofit is based in Leonard in Fannin County, north of Collin County. “We’re going to take them to someone who will care for them for the rest of their life.”

The animal shelter is now back in the city’s control.

It’s not the first controversy involving the animal shelter in Ferris. In December 2008, the former city manager allowed Ferris police officers to shoot feral dogs on sight. Last summer, the city ordered all the animals in the shelter to be euthanized if they weren’t adopted within 15 days.

Two dogs trapped inside a Colorado mine shaft since Monday managed to escape on their own.

Christy Huffman told KRDO that her border collie and Chihuahua escaped from her home Monday, along with a third dog who is still missing.

The two who ended up in the mine pit at the Cripple Creek and Victor Gold Mine in Teller County got out and are now in the care of the local animal control office.

Rescue crews had been trying to reach the animals since Tuesday, and Animal control officers Wednesday tried coaxing the dogs out of the mine shaft with food, treats and water, but had no success.

CC&V Gold Mine spokesperson Jane Mannon says the dogs were able to make their way out of the mine on their own.

Sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Mikel Baker said officials were worried about  sending a search-and-rescue team down the 500-foot Ironclad Mine because the ground is unstable.

The dogs’ owners have been cited for letting their dogs run loose.