Dogs Do The Darnedest Things

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill Saturday that would have banned drivers from holding a pet in their lap while driving. He said the bill was not important enough to pass… it wasn’t high enough priority.

I think that having a pet in your lap while you’re driving around (particularly a small pet) is especially dangerous. Rush Limbaugh the conservative radio talk show host says the bill is stupid and has dubbed it the “Paris Hilton bill” due to her love of pets - dogs in particular.

I say if it’s against the law to talk on your cell phone while you’re driving, or not put your child in a child safety seat, then dog’s should not be allowed to roam free in your vehicle. They are just as much a distraction as a cell phone, as a child, or as someone putting on makeup or texting while they’re driving.

Gov. Arnold recently passed the state budget after over 80 days of stonewalling and he threatened to only pass certain bills. He held true to his word by vetoing 95 bills and signing 114.

Here’s a sad story… a three-day-old baby girl in Youngstown, Ohio was killed by the family’s seven year old dog. It was ruled an accident because the dog apparently thought the baby was a squeaky toy or stuffed animal - which it was used to playing with.

The family left the baby in a baby bed in another room and the Siberian Husky took the baby from the bed and shook it to death, it seems. When the father told the dog to put the baby down, it did, just as it did with all its toys.

When the ambulance arrived the baby still was alive but died en route to the hospital. Ironically the same hospital where she was born three days before.

This goes to show how critically important it is to train your dogs… especially when a new baby is being introduced into the household.

The BBC documentary entitled, “Pedigree Dogs Exposed” claimed that many dogs are bred for beauty rather than health, and that prompted some of the annual Crufts dog show sponsors to pull out.

The claim was that there was inbreeding, which caused health problems in the dogs.

The Kennel Club, which runs Crufts (Britains largest dog show), said it might cut ties with the BBC over what it called the network’s unfair reporting.

Read the full story here…

For the first time in history, a dog will take the witness stand in court. Scooby the dog was the only witness to what really happened when his owner apparently committed suicide 2 years ago by hanging herself in her Paris apartment. The woman’s family insist that she did not hang herself but was murdered.

Scooby was shown a lineup of potential suspects & barked furiously at one. Police want to use that as eveidence but prosecutors say “No way” - that Scoopy can’t remember who did it (if she was murdered) & anything the dog would “testify” in court would be inadmissible.

Read more on the story here…

I watched a new reality type show last night on the National Geographic channel (right after Cesar Milan’s “Dog Whisperer”). The show was called “Dogtown” & it’s about the “Best Friends Animal Sanctuary” (the largest no-kill animal sanctuary in the nation) & the dogs who they rescue from neglectful &/or abusive situations.

Last night’s episode (which I think was a rerun) was about the pit bulls from former football star Michael Vick’s dog fighting ring. One dog in particular was heart-breaking. Cherry was so terrified of people that he cowered in a corner when they came near his pen & he wouldn’t walk - he would lay prone on the ground instead.

A trainer finally broke the ice with Cherry & he learned to trust the trainer. Now, 9 months later, Cherry has turned into a friendly, playful pup that takes walks, plays with toys and doesn’t even mind cats. And now he’s ready to move to a foster home.

It just goes to show that even terribly abused dogs are so forgiving & can learn to trust people again - even though they were their abusers.