Dogs and the fine art of freeloading
It occurs to me – tooling down the highway tends to make things occur to me – that in my current journey, with my dog, across America, mooching off friends and family and, given the opportunity,...
View ArticleWhy just 1 day to take dog to work?
Every day should be “Take Your Dog to Work Day.” At least that’s my thinking — and it’s the view of the Humane Society of the United States, as well. HSUS is encouraging dogs in the workplace programs,...
View ArticleIn praise of the dogged American worker
Some of you might remember Darcy — the too cute to strangle Boston terrier for whom I’ve served as babysitter while her mom and dad were away. Twice, I took Darcy into my home for multi-day stays,...
View ArticleFiguring out the magic behind therapy dogs
Milo is a boy. Chad is a dog. Together, they are an anecdote — one used to start off this New York Times story, but more importantly one that shows the tremendous, and not fully understood, therapeutic...
View ArticleWomen’s shelter makes room for dogs
Sometimes breaking the rules leads to better rules. The Rose Brooks Center for women took in a domestic violence victim and her dog, departing from their standard no-dogs policy after hearing the...
View ArticleDogs lower blood pressure, dammit
A couple of Psychology Today bloggers are arguing over whether dogs can indeed soothe the savage breast — or at least help keep the heart that’s ticking inside of it from imploding. We’re not a...
View ArticleFor a healthy baby, get a dog, or two
This may be a hard pill to swallow for all those worrywarts warning us about zoonotic diseases, but having a dog living inside the home apparently makes for a healthier infant. A new study reported...
View ArticleThe good, bad and ugly of doggie treadmills
Leave it to us humans to introduce dogs to the joys of working hard and getting nowhere. The American Pet Products Association (APPA) reports that about 3 million dogs across the country were using...
View ArticleVA drops study of — and funding for — therapy dog programs for vets with PTSD
The Department of Veterans Affairs has dropped its support of pairing service dogs with veterans diagnosed with PTSD — even before completing a three-year study mandated by Congress. After enrolling...
View ArticleTake two dogs and call me in the morning
Call it an “aha” moment for the AHA: The American Heart Association has finally, officially, recognized that dogs are good for the ticker. Last week, the organization issued a statement saying enough...
View ArticleIzzy (or isn’t he?) getting surgery
Izzy, the retired Longmont, Colorado police dog in need of surgery, will be getting it — thanks to an outpouring of help from residents in the community and beyond. A drive started by the local...
View ArticleCrime drops, and they thank dog for that
To the numerous benefits of dog parks, add this one: a drop in crime. The city of Gahanna, Ohio is crediting the presence of a dog park with decreasing the number of people loitering or otherwise up to...
View ArticleWondering where the Greenies went?
If you’re not noticing Greenies on your store shelves these days, that’s because their maker, Nutro Products, Inc., has restricted those selling them to veterinary hospitals and pet specialty...
View ArticleNo food stamps for dog, appeals court rules
A Pennsylvania appeals court ruled Tuesday against a Bucks County man who had sought food stamps to help feed his dog. James Douris, 55, a disabled and unemployed veteran who lives in the Philadelphia...
View ArticleThe K-9 kiss-off: Friends with no benefits
Izzy was a police dog in Longmont, Colorado until an on-the-job injury led to his retirement. Now, more than two years later, he’s in need of surgery — related to that injury — that could cost $6,000....
View ArticleThe poodle who pays for my Obama Care
Oftentimes, when to pursue your own dreams and interests you stop working for “THE Man” — as I did six years ago — you end up, unfortunately, without “THE Salary” and without “THE Benefits.” That — the...
View ArticleShut up and pet me: Study says dogs prefer petting over anything you might...
Less talk, more petting — that’s what your dog wants, according to a new study. Based on tests with dozens of dogs — some from homes, some from shelters — researchers found that, when it comes to...
View ArticleKiss me, you dog (I need the probiotics)
Before you wipe off that next dog kiss — not that too many ohmidog! readers are the sort that do that — you might want to think about this: Some of those doggy bacteria that dog-disliking alarmists and...
View ArticleSome recommended reading: “Dog Medicine: How My Dog Saved Me From Myself”
Seems that hardly a month goes by that we’re not reading about — and duly reporting on — some new scientific study showing how dogs, for us humans, are good medicine. Whether its lowering our blood...
View ArticleTwo hearts beating as one? Study suggests, with dogs and owners, it’s almost...
Even though this may be more marketing than science, we can’t help but like the results of this experiment in Australia. Researchers, in an experiment funded by Pedigree, found that not only do our...
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