Dogs With Jobs: Assistance Dogs

Assistance dogs are those animals who give differently-abled people the chance to be more independent in daily living.  The three main classes of assistance dogs are guide dogs for the visually impaired, hearing dogs for the hearing impaired, and service dogs for those with physical or mental / cognitive limitations. Most assistance dogs are donated [...]

Scent Hounds

With the recent announcement of a new Guinness World Record for the “longest ears on a living dog”, it seems like a good time to talk about scent hounds. Harbor, an 8-year old Black-and-Tan Coonhound, lives with Jennifer Wert in Boulder, Colorado.  He was recently recognized as the living dog with the longest ears, in [...]

2011 National Dog Show Round Up

This year’s National Dog Show featured nearly 2,000 dogs from 150 breeds.  As it has been since 1933, the national show was hosted by the Kennel Club of Philadelphia, an affiliate of the American Kennel Club. Presented by Purina, the show was actually held on November 19th and 20that the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in [...]

Six New Breeds Showcased at the National Dog Show

The newest breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club made their national television debuts with the Purina National Dog Show hosted by the Kennel Club of Philadelphia.  From this NBC Sports page, you can see videos of each breed’s individual judging, as well as the Best in Group and Best in Show contests. Where breed [...]

Straight Poop’s Annual Holiday Gift-Giving Guide

Now that Thanksgiving is over, the official shopping season for Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa is open.  Herewith, our annual guide to gifts for the dogs and dog lovers on your list. Toys  The most recent push in plush dog toys is to make them stuffing-free.  I’m not sure whether people just got tired of cleaning [...]

Breed Specific Legislation

If you’ve been watching the doggies.com blog lately, you know that activists are working hard to stop officials in Detroit from euthanizing a stray dog simply because he is a Pit Bull.  Stories abound in the media about dogs being banned or put down because of breed specific legislation.  What about it?  Should municipalities have [...]

Hero Dogs

On November 11th at 8 pm Eastern, Hallmark Channel will be televising the first ever American Humane Association Hero Dog Awards.  With over 750 entries in eight categories, competition was fierce.  Although the winner was chosen in October, we’ll never tell.  What we will share, however, are short descriptions of the finalists, chosen by 400,000 [...]

Cleaning Up After Your Dog

If you have a dog in your house, you know there are many messes that will have to be cleaned up sooner or later.  Here’s a roundup of some of the products you may find useful. Shedding The best defense against shedding is a good offense.  Bathing and grooming your dog often will cut down [...]

The Dreaded Dog Warden: Working with Animal Control

Do you have a dog who wanders off of your property?  Having a good relationship with the local dog warden might just help you avoid having to pay hefty fines or having to go through the hassle of picking up your dog at the animal control office rather than having them bring the dog back [...]

Dogs in the Courtroom

Imagine if you or one of your loved ones had been the victim of a crime.  Wouldn’t you love to have your dog with you as your case traveled through the legal system?  Although the Courthouse Dogs program doesn’t allow you to bring your own dog to the courthouse, it does provide a dog to [...]

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