President-Elect Barack Obama has narrowed down his choice for first dog. It’ll either be a Portuguese Water Dog or a Labradoodle. Both hypo-allergenic dogs…or the dogs that will cause the least allergies because they don’t shed.
Even though President-Elect Barack Obama has yet to pick out his own first dog, VP Elect Joe Biden has alreay picked out his new dog – a 3 month old male German Shepherd puppy.
The puppy came from a kennel in suburban Philadelphia. See him here…
Now through December 5, 2008 Purina has a “most unique” dog contest going. Visit www.longliveyourdog.com to vote for the most unique dog. There are cute videos and pix. The grand prize winner gets to go to the premiere in Los Angeles of “Marley & Me” starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston.
And 12 unique dogs are getting the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to have their video incorporated into the bonus section of the 20th Century Fox comedy Marley & Me DVD. In addition, a portion of each of the finalists’ videos will appear during a “National Dog Show” commercial break on NBC.
Gus, the winner of the World’s Ugliest Dog contest has passed away. But his owner took him on a road trip (which he loved) and took him to the hotel where they celebrated his win.
Gus passed away from Cancer.
Read about his lovely passing here…
Speaking of Cancer in Dogs…
One in four dogs die of cancer. It’s the number one cause of death in dogs over 2 years old. A recent news story brought a lot of attention to the disease. There is an organization – Morris Animal Foundation (MAF) that is trying to become the American Cancer Society for dogs.
MAF has a global campaign underway to cure canine cancer, while producing new treatments to help dogs suffering today. MAF has a dedicated canine cancer Web site for dog lovers at www.CureCanineCancer.org.
See the news story on canine cancer here…
We now know that President-elect Barack Obama promised his girls a new puppy to go with them to the White House in January. Some of you also know that Michelle had previously indicated that the dog would come from a shelter. And Barack has said he doesn’t want a little dog.
Lots of folks are weighing in on what kind of dog the new First family should get. What do you think? Go here to add your comment.
The American Kennel Club once again has brought us the most popular dog names. An AKC survey showed that “Bear” is the top male dog name and “Lady” is the top female dog name. Dog owners seem to be choosing names for their dogs as if they were naming their children. More and more people however (or should I say owners) are childless, so it makes sense I suppose to give your dog a child’s name. So many people treat their dogs as children anyway… but that’s another story for another time.
Most Popular Male Dog Names
1. Bear
2. Blue
3. Max/Maximus/Maxwell
4. Duke
5. Buddy
6. Jack
7. Prince
8. King
9. Bailey
10. Rocky
11. Harley
12. Jake
13. Shadow
14. Lucky
15. Hunter
16. Dakota
17. Lou
18. Midnight
19. Cooper
20. Buster
Most Popular Female Dog Names
1. Lady
2. Belle/Bell/Bella
3. Princess
4. Mae/May
5. Rose
6. Daisy
7. Grace/Gracie
8. Baby
9. Molly
10. Maggie
11. Sadie
12. Ann/Annie
13. Star
14. Lily/Lilly
15. Angel
16. Coco/Cocoa
17. Sophie/Sophia
18. Lucy
19. Abby/Abigail
20. Marie
Let’s see, I have had a Lady, a Prince & Princess, a Duke, & who hasn’t had a King? Plus other dog names not in today’s popular lexicon. How ’bout you?
With the new movie “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” coming out, I thought it was the perfect time to point out that Los Angelenos love Chihuahua’s. Just ask Paris Hilton – who has like 12 of them! (My neighbor has two & I used to have 2 as well – at different times.) As a matter of fact, the Chihuahua is the number one breed of dog owners in L.A. There are 59,684 registered Chihuahuas in L.A. County. The next most popular breed is the Labrador with 58,071 registered Labs. Of course, not everyone registers their dogs, so the numbers could be even larger.
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.
Pitbulls, Rottweilers, Dobermans oh my! Just the mention of those breeds sends chills down some people’s spine. They tend to be aggressive breeds no doubt (especially when the owner is irresponsible), but would you believe that the most aggressive breeds are tiny?
The dog taking the number one spot as the most aggressive breed is the Dachschund (or weiner dog). I know as a young kid my sister got bit by one. She was fearless & picked the dog up & bit it right back (on the back)! It avoided her from then on. 
The number two spot is held by the Chihuahua. No surprise there. Practically every chihuahua I’ve ever met shook terribly & snapped at everyone (including their owner). I was bit by a chihuahua but didn’t even realize it because it bit my pant leg. I only noticed it when the owner (who was yakking on her cell phone) apologized & I felt my pant leg being tugged on.
And the number three spot goes to the Jack Russell terrier. A neighbor has one that lunges at everyone who walks by. He’s bitten quite a few people before the owner can yank him back. Come to think of it, that little terror bit my pant leg too!
Dr. James Serpell, a University of Pennsylvania researcher said smaller breeds might be more genetically predisposed towards aggressive behavior than larger dogs. Not to mention the fact that bites from small dogs are rarely reported.
I believe owners of small dogs that bite are irresponsible if they let their dog bite people…even if they only grab someone’s pant leg. What if they bite a small child? Any dog that bites (big or small) needs the problem corrected.
Read more about the dog aggression study here…
The winner of this years 20th annual “World’s Ugliest Dog” contest held at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Petaluma, CA is no surprise…well the breed is no surprise. The winner is a Chinese crested – the ugly, bald pedigree from China. But Gus (the winner) is extra ugly: he’s missing a hind leg, has one eye, & he’s hairless except for a tuft of white hair on the top of his head. Gus came all the way from St. Petersburg, FL to compete for the title. Gus’ owner won $500 and will be flown to New York to appear on “CBS This Morning.” The event will be aired on the Animal Planet network in October. I tell ya, this is a dog only an owner could love! 
