A story with no words

 Since my last post I've been hoping for something positive to post about humans and our dogs. I think I found it.

Dog Parks and Guns don't mix

Attention Shoreline citizens, Shoredog.org, Shoreline Mayor and City Council

Each Shoreline Dog Park should be a "NO WEAPONS ZONE"

Leave your weapons in the car, better yet, at home.

> Our dogs are unarmed <

Quail Run, MD - An off duty Federal policeman shot and killed an off-leash Husky in a dog park. This man had his German Shepard on-leash and claimed the (properly off-leash) Husky was posing a danger to him, his wife and his on-leash dog. Witnesses reported rough play by the Husky and Shepard, but nothing more sinister than that. The tragic part is the owner of the German Shepard was armed with his service pistol, loaded with hollow point bullets and chose to fire a round into the Husky's hind quarters rather than break up this undesirable behavior with less lethal methods. All of us dog park regulars are always prepared to break up squabbles using non-lethal methods. It's not that hard folks.

Lady and I are regular dog park visitors. In the short time I've had Lady, we have been to probably 15 different dog parks all over the western U.S. This really hits home, because Lady greets everyone in whatever dog park she is playing in. That means if she was in Maryland that fateful day, it could of just as easily happened to her. I have encountered more clueless and irresponsible dog owners than I care to count. On a good day, they are a nuisance....ARMED.....they could be deadly. It's not the dog's fault. Dogs feed off of their human's energy and can misbehave. If a dog is not socialized, get some proper training before taking them to a park....on-leash or off. Our off-leash dogs are not there as fodder for your unsocialized dog or to show your dog who's boss (yea, that really happened to us in Arizona). 

Lady doesn't care what baggage you bring into the park, she greets everyone. On two occasions she has had to stick up for herself when accosted, but those kind of situations were resolved safely and quickly without gun-play. Guns are not the problem here, it's the people (law enforcement or not) that carry deadly weapons into a dog park and the bad decisions that can be made when emotions and ignorance supersede common sense.

Read the on-going story of the shooting in a dog park in Maryland - Link below

Charges filed in dog park shooting - Baltimore Sun, Aug.18th

Better yet, just Google "justice for bear bear"

Please, no deadly weapons should be allowed in our parks

Lady thanks you

Wordless Wednesday

Golden Oldies

I've been searching for inspiration for my next post. While catching up with Scout and Freyja's blog, I saw this wonderful short video. Wanted to pass this on to anyone who has not seen it yet and encourage all of you to look into the Shelter Pet Project. This particular video shows us how senior dogs have so much to offer. It is so true - Lady is living proof. She has blessed all of our lives for over 2 years. Lucky us.

Did you know that you are my dog now?

Did somebody say "Orvis" ?

Who doesn't love a store that produces such incredible catalogs. Just ask my brother. It's like moths to the flame. Besides, it gives me an excuse to post another Golden Image.

Wednesday to ponder

I can't seem to get the tragic story of Bear-Bear out of my mind tonight. For those of you who don't know about this horrible tragedy, here is the Baltimore Sun story covering the sad details.

Dog shot in dog park - Baltimore Sun

This Husky was known to our bloggy friends who confirm the description of Bear-Bear as a good boy who only played "Husky rough" and did not deserve this fate.

I keep thinking about how much time Lady and I spend in the dog parks and how friendly, but fearless she is. A year ago we were in a new park in Goodyear, AZ when she went to greet a large Pit-Boxer mix on-leash with his owner. The dog immediately attacked her and she stood up and defended herself. The owner reeled the dog in before it could escalate, so good for him. For the next 15 minutes the poor dog snarled and strained the leash to "get at" every dog that approached. Later the owner asked me if he could have the dogs meet and tangle again so that (and I quote) "Lady can put him down and show him who's boss". I was stunned, refused - then got angry at his ignorance and chased him out of the park. Makes me wonder what went down in Maryland.

To this day, I watch other people's dogs VERY closely to see what level of socialization they have achieved. I stay as close as possible to "The Queen of greeting at the dog park", 'cause you never know what kind of baggage dogs and owners are bringing into the park. Be careful out there....please.

Friday Funnies

We might have to make this a regular feature. Starting with these well thought out restaurant names. Real life is always so much funnier than fiction. Click on the link....

No way I'm eating there!


and......

Backwards baseball caps, dumb-ass fashion that just won't die

A hanging....and passing on knowledge

OK, now that I've got your attention. Yea, this is an odd post title, but let me explain. Twelve years ago I was walking though the shops accross the street from the Coeur d'Alene Resort when I looked up and saw a very large rug that was displayed as a hanging piece. Just the fact the subject was Golden Retrievers had me reaching for my Visa card, but the mama dog looked just like Solo. She was Sunny's....er ah ....main squeeze for two litters of wonderful puppies including: Toby, Cosmo and Ellie. The information tag that came with the rug was missing for....well, 12 years. I found it today scrumming through file drawers and such. The rug is currently hanging in the guest room here in Seattle. I always imagined she was teaching her puppies all sorts of cool things....passing on that priceless K9 knowledge (the comic below).

Golden Images

Weekend with Buddy

Pretty uneventful summer camp for Lady and Buddy this weekend. Dog park visits, lots of snoofling and a shot of energy for Lady. It was a pleasure finally getting to know a full grown Buddy. Last time Buddy was here with one of the Goldens it was 3 years ago when Devo was also 10 years old (just like Lady is today). A good time was had by all. The dog park pictures didn't turn out that good, it was just too difficult to chase them around on 3 fenced acres. Besides, it was late in the day and the shadows required flash, so many of the pictures had that demon eye look and were "action blurry". Buddy's report card this time was pretty easy: he is a good boy who needs more practice walking on the leash, greeting people and to break the habit of door dashing. Look forward to seeing him again. Lady really loves the company and that "Buddy energy". He gives her wings!

Oh yea, one more thing: Buddy is half Lab and half Flat Coated Retriever (his Mom). I guess the big Lab was the first one over the fence.

Happy faces, beautiful day

Dog park investigation - can't even imagine what they found

Lady with her bully

Buddy enjoys his chewy

Buddy's trainer entices with freeze dried liver - YUM

Countdown to Buddy

Cousin Buddy is coming over to spend a few days this weekend. He and Lady get along fine, but they don't see each other that often. We thought they should socialize a little last weekend because Buddy is coming to Lady's house. This will be a first - "another dog in her house". Cousin Buddy is an energetic 3 year old Lab and Lady is pretty laid back (not to mention 10 years old), so this should be interesting. Here are some pictures from last weekend.

The handsome Cousin Buddy

Everybody loves Lady !!

Friday follow-up

....back to Wednesday's posting:

Lady can attest that, YES this does happen occasionally

In a fire hydrant galaxy - far, far away

OK, so THIS is different !!  :8-)

Kitty Wednesday

Squirrels, cats, possums, raccoons - all of them (in the eyes of my Goldens) are "kitties" and need to be chased! Occasionally caught, but never harmed. I always thought these two pieces represent what might be going on in a dog's world.

Get a load of the face on the Golden defendant in the cartoon below. Doesn't that just say it all?

Photo Bliss

This post is a step up from the normal photos appearing on this blog. On Sunday, our friend and talented amateur photographer Michael O'Dell took a few shots of Lady. He has taken some of my favorite pictures of Cosmo, Devo and now Lady. He has been a good and generous friend, delighting in the dogs as much as we do. The cropping and presentation are mine, but the original photos are courtesy of Michael.

Lady 2010

Lady 2010

Lady 2010

KT, Devo and Cosmo - Farragut State Park, North Idaho - Michael O'Dell 2002

Devo, just 2 months before he passed - Michael O'Dell 2007

Mount Saint Helens 360

A departure from the usual self indulgent dog post, here is a very cool site that lets you experience a 360 degree view from the mountain:

Mount Saint Helens 360

Oops, sorry - couldn't resist

Happy Birthday USA

How it all started:
The Charters of Freedom, The Declaration


For this and other beautiful Golden Retriever pieces, click on the link below:
Debbie Stonebraker Art

Golden Images part 2