ohmidog!

The first national monument paying tribute to military dogs will be unveiled in California in two months before going on tour on the way to its final destination – Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio.

The U.S. Military Working Dog Teams National Monument will honor dogs that have served in combat since World War II.

While there are other sculpted memorials to military dogs, this one is the first to be proclaimed a national monument, according to the Associated Press.

The project was spearheaded by John Burnam, a 65-year-old veteran military dog handler and author of ”Dog Tags of Courage” and  “A Soldier’s Best Friend.”

It was a reader who suggested a monument, and Burnam saw that as an idea worth pushing.

“I wanted to give something back to these animals that have done so much and asked for so little, except for food and water and the love of their handlers,” said Burnam, who received the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

In 2004, Burnam and two other veterans formed the John Burnam Monument Foundation Inc. In 2007, Rep. Walter B. Jones, R-N.C., introduced legislation authorizing establishment of the monument. Passed unanimously by Congress, it was signed the next year by President George W. Bush, then amended and signed by President Barack Obama.

Burnam designed the monument, which depicts a handler and four dogs — a Doberman, German shepherd, Labrador retriever and Belgian Malinois.

The silicon bronze handler stands more than 9 feet tall and weighs 1,500 pounds. Each dog is about 5 feet tall and weighs 550 pounds. The sculptor, Paula Slater, says she has spent thousands of hours on the project.

Primary funding for the project is being supplied by Natural Balance Pet Foods Inc. To raise funds for the monument and its maintenance, Natural Balance created a jerky treat sold by Petco. Maddie’s Fund, a pet rescue foundation, also signed on as a corporate sponsor.

A floral replica of the sculpture, in the form of a float, will be part of the Tournament of Roses parade in Pasadena on Jan. 1, and among those riding on it will be  Burnam, dogs and handlers from every military service branch.

The monument will then go on temporary display next to the float at Victory Park. After that, it will hit the road, headed for Lackland Air Force Base, where most of the nation’s military dogs are trained.

(Photos: At top, a model of the U.S. Working Dogs Teams National Monument, courtesy of John Burnam Monument Foundation; above left, handler John Burnam and sculptor Paula Slater stand with the military dog handler that will be part of the monument, courtesy of Natural Balance)

About four months ago, I gave Petside.com a hard time for choosing Dallas as the second-most dog friendly city in America — this just after the Big D bestowed the key to the city on Michael Vick.

My point — and I did have one — was that a city’s dog friendliness is, or should be, based on more than mathematical formulas that tally how many groomers, pet boutiques, veterinarians, etc., it has per capita.

Now, along comes Dog Fancy magazine with its picks — based on similar criteria — for the five dog-friendliest cities in 2011.

Among them: Santa Cruz, Calif., which for 33 years has banned dogs from part of its downtown area.

True, the ban — finally — has been lifted, conditionally, effective this week. And true, there are other very dog-friendly parts of Santa Cruz, including some beaches, and plenty of fine services as well. But a city that has banned dogs from its main drag for three decades being chosen as among the dog-friendliest in the nation?

Were I one of the other cities vying for the honor, I’d have a bone to pick with that.

The world’s most widely read dog magazine, as Dog Fancy calls itself, named Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, the winner of the 2011 DogTown USA competition, saluting it as America’s most dog-friendly city.

While we couldn’t agree more with Dog Fancy’s top choice last year — Provincetown, Mass., as we showed you during our travels, is indeed highly dog friendly — we have some trouble with this year’s selections.

The other three cities in the top five were Bend, Oregon; Knoxville, Tenn.; and Doylestown, Pa., where, earlier this month, a dog was found to have been given poisoned hot dogs and shot 32 times — allegedly by his owner, the golf course superintendent — while tied to fence of the Doylestown Country Club.

The acts of one deranged person shouldn’t blow a city’s chance at being proclaimed “dog-friendliest,” but we do think the number of animal cruelty cases that surface in a city should be a small part of any formula assessing dog friendliness.

The criteria used to select winners in the Dog Fancy contest — sponsored by Natural Balance Pet Foods and Wahl Clipper – include the amount of dog-friendly open spaces and dog parks, veterinarians, pet supply stores and other services, events celebrating dogs and their owners, and municipal laws that support and protect pets.

“Journalist Barbara Walters has saluted Coeur d’Alene as one of her favorite cities, calling it a little slice of heaven,” Dog Fancy Editor Ernie Slone said in announcing the results — though, Barbara being human, what the heck that has to do with anything I don’t know.

“What we discovered is that whether a dog likes a place to run and hike, loves to mingle downtown, or needs a new home, dogs and their owners have it made in Coeur d’Alene, a little slice of dog heaven.”

Slone traveled to Coeur d’Alene to present $5,000 to the Kootenai County Dog Park Association. Additionally, Natural Balance Pet Foods will donate 1,000 pet food meals to Kootenai Humane Society on behalf of Coeur d’Alene, and 500 pet food meals to each of the regional winners.

Given all that, I don’t want to totally disrespect these lists and the organizations that put them together, but I will suggest that they are not as much about truth or reality as they are about politics, public relations and sales.

Eva LaRue and Omar Miller, stars of TV’s “CSI: Miami” are teaming with Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Pet Foods, PETCO™ and independent pet stores to celebrate National Guide Dog Month in September.

The goal is to  raise money and awareness for guide dog organizations across the country.

“We want people to realize that this is more than just a fundraiser for a good cause,” said Miller. “This is really about empowering the visually impaired with the life-changing gift of a guide dog. Guide dogs and training are provided at no cost to qualified applicants who are blind or visually impaired. With 10 million visually impaired people in the U.S., the demand for guide dogs continues to grow.”

“Every seven minutes someone in America becomes blind or visually impaired,” said LaRue. “Guide dogs are heroes, providing safe mobility, loving companionship and restoring confidence to their handlers.”

You can see the public service announcement they made here.

Throughout September, pet owners can visit any of PETCO’s locations as well as select independent retailers of Natural Balance to help support National Guide Dog Month.

Shoppers can purchase specially marked bags of Natural Balance to donate $1 of the purchase price to participating guide dog schools.

Petco shoppers can also “round up” their purchases at the register or make donations directly online at  www.petco.com.

Recipients of the money raised will include: Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., Guide Dogs of the Desert, Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation, Inc., Southeastern Guide Dogs, Leader Dogs for the Blind, The Seeing Eye, Inc., Freedom Guide Dogs for the Blind, Inc., Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind, Guiding Eyes for the Blind and Guide Dogs of Texas, Inc.

Natural Balance Pet Foods, Inc. is recalling its Sweet Potato & Chicken Dry Dog Food, with the “Best By” date of June 17, 2011, because it has the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella.

No illnesses have been reported, and the voluntary recall is based on “an isolated instance,” in which a product sample with the above “Best By” had a positive result for Salmonella in a random test conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The product, sold in 5-lb. and 28-lb. bags, was originally manufactured on December 17, 2009,  Natural Balance, based in Pacoima, California, said in a press release. The company was formed by actor Dick Van Patten and partners, and is sold under his name.

Salmonella can affect animals and there is a risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products. People handling dry pet food can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with surfaces exposed to this product.

Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, the company advises you contact your veterinarian.

Recalled products were distributed in pet specialty stores in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Here’s some video of the snowboarding bulldogs from yesterday’s Tournament of Roses Parade.

Tyson and Tillman and three others snowboarded down the float, billed as the longest single chassis float ever.

Last year, Tyson and Tillman, skateboarded on the Natural Balance float. For this year’s parade, they made the switch to snowboards.

Thousands lined up to watch yesterday’s parade, the 121st. The theme was “A Cut Above the Rest,” and it was led by Chesley Sullenberger, the pilot who landed a stricken jetliner on New York’s Hudson River.

Scott MacIntyre is no longer in the running for “American Idol,” but the blind contestant did win a surprise gift from Paula Abdul last week — a guide dog.

Abdul presented a guide dog to MacIntyre at a Guide Dogs of America event on Friday as part of the official kick-off of  National Guide Dog Month.

MacIntyre had been told he was at the ceremony to perform, but instead Abdul informed him that he would be receiving a guide dog after his upcoming tour, according to a press release.

Abdul, Natural Balance Pet Foods, Petco and independent pet stores nationwide are teaming to raise funds and awareness for guide dogs, with hopes of raising more than $2 million during May.

“Being part of this important cause is truly special and very close to my heart,” said Abdul. “Most people have no idea how much time and money it takes to train these beautiful animals to give such a precious gift to those who need it most. It can take more than two years and $40,000 to properly train a guide dog. Together, we can help guide dog schools provide more of these life-changing partners to people who are blind.”

Throughout the month of May, PETCO’s more than 950 locations nationwide and many independent pet stores will be selling specially marked bags of Natural Balance dog food with Paula Abdul’s picture on them, and donating 50 cents of the purchase price to participating guide dog schools.

PETCO shoppers can also “round up” their purchases at the register to donate the difference to the cause, or make donations directly online at PETCO.com.

“Having Paula Abdul, a huge animal lover, as our spokesperson will help us get the message out to raise money to match people who are visually impaired and in need of these amazing guide dogs”, said Dick Van Patten of Natural Balance Pet Foods.

American Idol judge — and Chihuahua owner (times four) — Paula Abdul has signed up to help raise money for guide dog programs.

Abdul will be helping Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance, Petco, and independent pet stores raise awareness and money for guide dog organizations across the country, according to Dogchannel.com.

Her role involves getting the word out to the public about the time and effort that goes into training a potential guide dog puppy — an18 to 20 months process, followed by another six months in formal guide dog training school. After about six months of school, the dog gets matched with a blind person. For 28 days, more training takes place at the guide dog facility so the person can learn how to handle their dog.

Learning about the amount of time and money it takes to train these dogs inspired her to join the nonprofit side of raising awareness so that more guide dogs are made available. Abdul said. “I have always been amazed at how it transforms people’s lives.”

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.