Your Dog Breed's Chances to Win

Here's a great article that I thought I would pass on...hope you find it interesting! –Kim

See the Odds Your Favorite Breed has of Winning Westminster

Forty-eight of the top 50 show dogs competed recently at the 134 annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Several sources rank the dogs. We'll list two today.

First off, what does Vegas say? For the fourth year, Wynn Casino has posted odds. There's no wagering, and it's by breed – not on individual dogs, which some news sources are erroneously reporting. Don't believe them!

The top 10:

1. Scottish Terrier (8/1) (Is Scottie Sadie the best?)
2. Doberman Pinscher (14/1)
3. Golden Retriever (15/1)
4. Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen (16/1) and Puli (16/1)
5. (tie at 4)
6. Toy Poodle (18/1)
7. Boxer (22/1)
8. Bulldog (25/1)
9. Fox Terrier (smooth, 28/1)
10. Pointer (German wirehaired, 30/1).

The complete list (PDF) is here. The Labrador Retriever, the most popular dog in the USA based on numbered of registered dogs, is 15th (55/1).

Come back later for input from a higher authority on these dogs. Check out the video above with David Frei, who explains why some breeds may be favored, and read the Q&A with the Westminster co-host here.

You also have the chance to vote here for your favorite breed out of the American Kennel Club's top 10 list for this year. Or if, like many of us, you're more for mutts than dogs named Muffy, check out our rescue stories – many from your fellow readers.

Source: http://content.usatoday.com/communities/pawprintpost/post/2010/02/see-the-odds-your-favorite-breed-has-of-winning-westminster/1
©2010 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.

Remembering 9/11

Here's an incredible story that I thought I would pass on...hope you find it inspiring! –Kim

Faithful Dog Leads Blind Man 70 Floors Down WTC Just Before Tower Collapses

September 14, 2001

NEW YORK CITY – In the aftershock of the worst terrorist gambit ever to hit the USA, we learn that the greatest inspiration can be found in the words, images and televised coverage of the American peoples' patriotic strength. But now, pan the cameras down a bit, and you'll find, just as heartening, the Nation's dogs also upholding this great spirit of gallantry.

If you don't believe me, listen to this:

New York resident Omar Eduardo Rivera was unfortunate enough to find himself on the 71st floor of the World Trade Center North Tower when the hijacked airliner struck the building 25 floors above him. Mr. Rivera, a computer technician who is blind, was in his office with his guide dog "Dorado" lying under the desk at the time.

According to a Contra Costa Times report, Mr. Rivera described how he unleashed his faithful friend, so that the dog might escape. But despite the chaos and the crowds of fleeing people, the four-year-old Labrador Retriever suppressed any selfish instinct for survival and instead stayed by the man's side and guided him to safety.

Mr. Rivera describes the drama:

"I stood up and I could hear how pieces of glass were flying around and falling. I could feel the smoke filling up my lungs and the heat was just unbearable.

"Not having any sight I knew I wouldn't be able to run down the stairs and through all the obstacles like other people. I was resigned to dying and decided to free Dorado to give him a chance of escape. It wasn't fair that we should both die in that hell.

"I thought I was lost forever – the noise and the heat were terrifying – but I had to give Dorado the chance of escape. So I unclipped his lead, ruffled his head, gave him a nudge and ordered Dorado to go.

"I hoped he would be able to quickly run down the stairs without me and get to safety. I thought he'd be so scared, he'd run. Everything was in chaos. Glass was shattering around my head and people were rushing past down the stairs."

At that point, Dorado was swept away by the rush of people fleeing down the stairs, and Mr. Rivera found himself on his own for several minutes amid the pandemonium. But then the unexpected occurred, in the form of a familiar, fuzzy nudge from knee-high.

Mr. Rivera explains, "He returned to my side a few minutes later and guided me down 70 flights and out into the street; it was amazing. It was then I knew for certain he loved me just as much as I loved him. He was prepared to die in the hope he might save my life."

Inside the egress stairwell, they found some additional assistance from a co-worker. "I took hold of her arm. She went down on my right side and the dog on my left," says Mr. Rivera.

The narrow stairwell was extremely crowded, and confusion exacerbated the situation. "People were pushing and shoving past me. Everywhere there was a sense of terror."

But according to the man, order gradually prevailed: "...most people behaved quite prudently and grasped what was happening, so we walked down in an orderly fashion, but it was slow going. It was slow going because there were so many people struggling to get out but Dorado kept nudging me down step-by-step."

It took more than an hour for Dorado, Mr. Rivera and his co-worker to descend those 70 flights of stairs. Not long after they had reached the ground and gotten to safety, the tower collapsed.

Says Mr. Rivera, "I owe my life to Dorado – my companion and best friend."

Source: Dogs in the News
Copyright © 2001 Canine Nation

Help Stop Animal Cruelty

Dogs Used as Shark Bait

Sun Online
By Ian Hepburn
28 Sept 2005

Stray dogs are being skewered on hooks and dragged behind boats as live shark bait, The Sun News shockingly revealed.

The cruel practice takes place on French-controlled Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, where Prince William spent two holidays.

A six-month-old labrador pup was recently found ALIVE with a huge double hook through its snout – like the dog above – and another through a leg (see picture below).

The pup was found in a coastal creek and is thought to have somehow freed itself from a fishing line.

But other dogs and kittens have been chomped up and swallowed by sharks.

The RSPCA plans to petition the French government, demanding an end to the hideous torture.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article101695.ece
© 2005 News Group Newspapers Ltd.

NOTE: For a much more detailed story, visit: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/10/1019_051019_dog_shark.html

---

ONLINE POLLS: We are against dogs being used as shark bait!

• http://www.petitiononline.com/13by3/
• http://www.experienceproject.com/petitions/Stop-Using-Live-Dogs-As-Shark-Bait/1853815378

Lab Lovers

This was submitted by a friend....thought you would enjoy these! –Kim

You Might Be a Lab Owner if...

• You regularly clean out 50 tennis balls from under the couch.
• All of your trash cans are bungy-corded.
• Your gate is bungy-corded to prevent your labby from popping the latch again.
• You have a BIG supply of bungy cords (and baby gates) for all lab occasions.
• Every piece of clothing you own, the sofa, the bed and anything soft has lab fur all over it.
• You regularly find big paw prints on your kitchen counters.
• Every squeaky and fleece toy are missing their squeakers and stuffing.
• You have broken or mangled at least one finger (or toe) because of your rambunctious lab.
• You have to buy a bigger bed to accommodate the new lab.
• You have to buy an extra pillow to accommodate the new lab.
• You buy an SUV to take your lab and his labby friends for frequent trips to the lake/river/ocean.
• Your backyard looks similar to an archaeological dig, complete with the dinosaur bones.
• Your floor is covered with dog drool and/or pools of water from sloppy drinking labs.
• You buy pizza, so you can give the pizza bones (crusts) to your lab.
• You wait until the last minute to get dressed to avoid your lab's paw prints, drool and fur.
• You have every land and water retrieval toy known to man (and lab).
• Your yard is full of brightly colored Frisbee pieces.
• You buy socks more often than the average person to replace what your labby has eaten.
• You NEVER have dirty mouths and faces.
• Your lips are constantly chapped from labby kisses.
• You can never find a full set of shoes, because your labby has moved them all over the house.
• You have doggie beds covering the floor, instead of area rugs.
• You have to keep an extra keyboard for your computer around, because labby drool clogs the keys.
• You clean out your fish pond for the season, and the first thing you dredge up is a black Kong!!!
• Every time you take a shower, your labby joins you!
• You can never throw anything away, because your labby RETRIEVES it.
• Your car is covered with sheets, lab fur, lab drool, and there is often a distinct aroma of "wet labby" that those car air fresheners can't disguise!
• Your alarm clock is a firm nudge by a wet labby nose (who wants to eat first and go out later!).
• Your mailbox is overflowing with dog catalogs, and the UPS man knows your house from bringing all the boxes of dog goodies ordered from the catalogs!
• You regularly find your labby's "hidden treasures" buried under the sofa cushions, bed pillows, the couch and behind the TV!
• You have a child-proof lock on your fridge, because not only can your lab open it, but takes the best leftovers for himself!
• You have permanent bruises on your legs at exactly the height of your lab's tail!
• Your husband and you sit on the floor to watch TV because one lab is sprawled out full length on the couch, another on the love seat and one lab is sitting in the recliner!
• You are the only people who stand outside in -35 degree weather to throw a dummy for a dummy-obsessed lab with snow up to your butt (or 100 degree weather so they can swim all day and all night)!
• You are the only person who has dummies in their dish drainer with clean dishes!
• Your furniture is the latest fashion statement in sheets and dog hair!
• You don't even think about throwing away that favorite toy that they have destroyed while they are looking, unless you are prepared for the "staredown"!
• You put all of your shoes, remote controls, hats, gloves and anything else small in closets or on shelves to hide them from "Jaws"!
• You specifically buy organic baby carrots at the store for your new favorite snack and his too!
• You put more effort into preparing your labs meals than you do your own.
• You give him his bag of new toys in the car on the way home from the pet store, and all he wants is the crumbs from the biscuits given to him by the cashier!
• At least one load of laundry a week is your lab's: his blankets, pillow cases, towels, and of course, all those muddy, drooled-on fleece toys he loves so much!
• Your Christmas tree has an "ornament-free wag zone."
• You regularly clean his tennis balls in your dish washer.
• Your labs do the pre-wash cycle, instead of the dishwasher, saving on your electric bill.
• The couch you placed in front of your living room window can't accommodate the human household members, because the lab has commandeered it for keeping updated on outside activities.
• All wires and cables are tacked to your walls and ceilings rather than the floors!
• No matter how hard you try, you can't paint or cook without fur included.
• You step out of the shower and never have to dry your legs below the knee.
• You come home and find a warm spot on the sofa or bed, even when they know it's a lab-free zone.
• You have difficulty putting your shoes/nylons/socks on, because of "help".
• You can't have "private time" in the bathroom!
• You never have a neatly stacked woodpile, because your lab keeps retrieving the logs!
• You find fur inside your nylons, including the new pair you just bought from the store.
• Your labby continues to bring you tennis balls to throw, even when you are on the toilet.
• You find lab slime in the birdbath and birdseed in the land mines during poop patrol.
• You need less covers in the winter because your labs keep you warm in bed.
• The windows in your house and car are all adorned in art by lab drool and lab noses (I like to call it "nose art").

Submitted by:
Kelli Rosell Fisher and "The Fisher Labradorks"
Mid-Florida Retriever Rescue, Inc.
www.mid-floridaretrieverrescue.org