Pet News, Tips Are Aplenty and Right At Your Fingertips

Oklahoman, Carrie Coppernoll
Published May 21, 2008

I have to confess: I'm an animal news junkie. Staff Writer Dawn Marks and I started recording the Pet Show podcast more than a year ago and since then, we've added staff writer Bryan Dean to our crew. Every week we talk about the latest animal news, share practical tips and visit with a guest. We've talked with veterinarians, trainers, advocates and even Attorney General Drew Edmondson. As if a weekly broadcast about pets wasn't enough, we started a blog to share even more animal news. The blog, called The Dog House, can be found at blog.newsok.com/thedoghouse. The Dog House is full of tips, photos and weird animal news. We've got everything from cats to cows, mutts to monkeys. But it's not all serious. We have videos of dancing birds and a dog on a water slide. Here are a few of our entries. An entry I wrote Tuesday: The American Kennel Club has added a new breed to its registry: the Dogue de Bordeaux. It's the dog from Turner and Hooch. They're a French mastiff bred for hunting and guarding. They're usually calm, affectionate dogs. The Dogue has become the 158th breed recognized by AKC. I have to say, though, the faces of the Dogue de Bordeaux are so funny. When they're panting, they look hilariously happy. When they aren't panting, they look like a grumpy old man. Anyway, if you're considering getting a Dogue de Bordeaux, please consider skipping the breeder. The Dogue de Bordeaux Society of America has a rescue organization. An entry by Bryan Dean on May 2 included: Believe it or not, Green Pet Week does not refer to snakes or lizards. It is an effort to inform people of the danger to animals caused by toxic chemicals. Pets for the Environment, along with scientists at the Environmental Working Group, recently tested a number of dogs and cats for toxic chemicals. They found animals were contaminated with 48 of 70 industrial chemicals , with the contamination at levels higher than those found in people. Exposure to grease, stain-proof coatings, fire retardants and mercury was far more common and intense among the animals than in humans. An entry by Dawn Marks on May 16 added this: On this week's Tail Tips during Pet Show we discussed traveling with your pets. ... We had great tips from the ASPCA for flying and driving with your animals. Here are the best three tips for flying: •Book a direct flight if possible. •Attach a current photo of your pet to the crate in case he gets out. •Tell every airline employee you encounter that you're traveling with an animal. If you're an animal news junkie like me, go to blog.NewsOK.com/thedoghouse and get it all.