My dear friend Bess and I the day before Easter. She is currently going through chemotherapy, and is one of the most inspirational and energetic women I know.
On Wednesday, she will be modeling in the Nicole Miller Design for a Cure Fashion Show at K Street Lounge in Washington, DC from 6:30pm - 9:30pm. Please come out and show your support!
You are cordially invited to an evening of couture and compassion. Come join us for the exclusive premiere of Nicole Miller's fashion line in DC. All ticket proceeds will go toward the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. D*C*: Design for a Cure boasts a collaboration through the Nicole Miller Fashion House and Glenda Fu's Woman of the Year Campaign to bring you an innovative catwalk experience melded with inspiring stories of blood can...cer survivors. You are not just supporting the cause, you are supporting hope.
- $50 for General Admission - $75 for Open Bar Cocktail Hour and Hors D'Oeuvres - $100 for VIP: Premiere Seating, Private VIP Cocktail Hour with Open Bar and Hors D'Oeuvres, Specialty Nicole Miller Giftbag
**All ticket proceeds will go toward the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society***
Some of you may have heard me speak of my dear friend Bess at some point in time, or perhaps you have even met her. Bess was my roommate in college, and our lives continuously cross paths. She was one of the first people to meet my sweet Milly when I adopted her, and weeks after getting Hush, Bess was welcomed to the pack when the little 12 week old puppy peed on her. Poor Bess was in church clothes at the time, but being the kind of girl she is, she just laughed it off, and said I was buying her coffee that afternoon.
We have that type of friendship where you can go forever without speaking, and then call the other one up and say, "I need somewhere to stay, can I crash on your sofa for a month?" We've been there for each other through so much over the years... she slept in my living room for a month in exchange for walking Milly, and she welcomed Milly and I into her apartment when my ex-boyfriend and I broke up.
Of course, college tends to have some crazy drama associated with it, so about a year ago when Bess moved to DC I was thrilled! Finally, we could have an adult relationship, and spend quality time together on a regular basis. And we did, church every Sunday, movies, dinners, wine, happy hours, cultural events, car shows, you name it... we did it! Well, you could imagine my shock in March when I got a phone call from Bess explaining she has Stage 4 Acute Lymphatic Leukemia. She explained she was going to fight it, she would get better, and all would be grande.
Fast forward, and she's doing great with chemotherapy! She is literally kicking cancer in the ass! I don't usually swear, but in this case, I have no shame. That is exactly what she is doing! She is an inspiration to me, beautiful on the inside and out. Kind, funny, and energetic. She has the most incredible outlook on life.
Bess has always been absolutely obsessed with fashion, so when I sent her the info for the Nicole Miller Design for a Cure Fashion Show at K Street Lounge, and my phone immediatley rang I was not surprised in the least. She wanted to know right then and there if I would commit to going with her, and the next thing I knew, I had a call that she had contacted the host committee, and would now be modeling in the show! So, tomorrow night, I will happily be perched as close to the stage as possible, supporting her in her first ever modeling debut at the Nicole Miller Design For A Cure fashion show! I am so proud of her. I encourage you all to buy tickets and attend! This will be a great event. If you're interested in getting tickets, comment and I will post a coupon code.
You've probably been wondering where I've gone, and why I haven't updated the blog in a while. I just haven't felt like doing much of anything lately. My mind and body are drained, and I'm just going through the motions of life right now.
Last week, I received a call that my dear friend Anna had died, very suddenly and unexpectedly. She was only 27 years old, and she has been a part of my life and my group of friends since I was in middle school. I hopped in the car, and headed to South Carolina for her viewing and funeral, and I'm still numb from the whole experience.
Anna was filled with love, life, humor and pure joy! She put more living into her 27 years than most people put into their entire lives. With a smile always on her face, Anna bounded through life, spreading laughter all around her. She always had some PG-13 joke or comment to make, and her humor and happiness was contagious to all around her. Her Facebook statuses were the funniest I have ever read. Always random, but hilarious. Those alone would make an incredible book!
A part from being a wonderful friend to every human that knew her, Anna was an animal lover, and such a giver. To her, Lola and Baxter were like children. With no children, Anna and her husband welcomed their two dogs into their family, and loved them as much, if not more, than they would have loved their own offspring had they had children. Her obituary highlighted her furchildren, "Survivors include her husband, Doug; cherished family pets, Lola and Baxter..." Which some may find strange, but those who knew Anna, knew that she would want them included, because for her, they were family.
Baxter and Lola on a joy ride with Anna!
Anna was a giver. Just days before her death, she cut off 12 inches of hair and donated it to Locks of Love. She was passionate about breast cancer research and helping homeless animals. In Anna's memory, donations can be made to The Humane Society, 121 Humane Ln, Columbia, SC 29209 or to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, 301 Halton Rd, Greenville, SC 2960.
I encourage all of my readers to take a look at this article. I am linking it, but I will also copy and paste it. For a long time, I thought the Humane Society of the United States was an organization that ran animal shelters - that's what the name sounds like, and that's what their commercials make them out to be. I am extremely committed to ending homelessness of animals, and I care deeply about this cause. I believe in pet ownership, and through proper transportation and information dissemination that we can end the plight of so many animals in shelters. I do not believe, however, that the Humane Society of the United States shares my views on pet ownership. In fact, HSUS President Wayne Pacelle has spoken out AGAINST pet ownership. The Humane Society of the United States main goal seems to be lobbying for legislation that TAKES AWAY pet owner rights, and completely ends any animal agriculture, regulates meat and dairy consumption to the point of elimination, and creates a vegan society. I bet you didn't know that!
"Community Conversation: Donate to local animal shelters," by Mary Kistner is one of many articles I have read and come to appreciate as I learn more about the Humane Society of the United States. You can access it through this link. Or, below, I have copy and pasted the article. You can learn more about the true agenda of the Humane Society of the United States by visiting HumaneWatch.org.
*Please note, everything written below this line of text is by Mary Kistner.
Community Conversation: Donate to local animal shelters By: Mary Kistner
The Humane Society of the the United States claims to be the largest animal protection organization in the country. Its website states that 11 million Americans, or one in every 289, donates to HSUS.
An examination of HSUS's 2008 tax return reveals that the group collected more than $86 million in contributions. The report from the Center for Consumer Freedom (www.consumer freedom.com/) shows that of those funds, $24 million went to raise more money, in other words, 28 cents of every dollar HSUS collects goes to raising more funds.
Another $30.9 million went to employee salaries, with 41 HSUS employees making more than $100,000 annually. Based on Center for Consumer Freedom research, only $450,000 — just one half of 1 percent of its total budget — went to organizations that provide hands-on care to dogs and cats.
HSUS is a humane society in name only — it operates no pet shelters or adoption facilities. HSUS funds no research on farm animal care, despite the fact that they claim that this is a problem. HSUS is not your local shelter and does not support your local shelter in any way.
The true agenda of HSUS is to eliminate all animal agriculture, end all meat and milk consumption and create a vegan society. They also want to end hunting, fishing and pet ownership, believing that animals should be viewed from afar and left to go back to their wild state. They pursue this goal by pouring millions of your donated dollars into lobbying for laws the incrementally restrict farming methods, pet breeding and pet ownership. These laws are designed to make farming or animal ownership so expensive or restrictive that they eventually drive people out of business or give up on pet ownership or pet breeding.
Mandatory spay/neuter law proposals are flooding the country. Wayne Pacelle, CEO of HSUS has stated "We have no ethical obligation to preserve the different breeds of livestock produced through selective breeding ... one generation and out. We have no problem with the extinction of domestic animals. They are creations of human selective breeding." If these laws are passed, where will the pets and service animals come from? Animal Rights groups such as HSUS, PETA, etc. don't really care as they don't believe that animals should be in servitude to humans. Please note that there is a vast difference between animal welfare and animal rights We all support humane animal care , and there are already laws against cruel and inhumane animal treatment. Each state has such laws and doesn't need an outside organization such as HSUS coming in and telling farmers, hunters, dog breeders and others how to care for their animals.
Before you write out that check, please be aware of what will happen to your donation. If your intention is to help shelter animals directly, please donate to any one of Sheboygan County's shelters, or to the breed rescue of your choice.
And finally, a suggestion to animal welfare groups that really do care for the animals: Make sure the public understands that your primary goal is animal welfare and that you do not receive funds from HSUS, PETA, ASPCA or other such organizations and that you count on local donations to keep things going. A recent study showed that over 70 percent of people donating to HSUS did so thinking it would trickle down to their local shelters. The public is very confused over the similar Humane Society names.
In an effort to ease the overcrowded population of Chihuahuas in California, Virgin America flew 15 Chihuahuas from San Francisco to New York this week.
West Coast shelters, inundated with Chihuahuas, have been searching for help from shelters on the East Coast, where Chihuahuas are few and far between, and there is a high demand for the pint sized pooches. Cooperation and teamwork between shelters to transport and relocate dogs is a common practice to facilitate more adoptions.
Influenced by red carpet Chihuahua toting celebrities, like Paris Hilton and Hillary Duff, and movies like Beverly HillsChihuahua, irresponsible breeders and puppy mills realized they could profit off of this celebrity trend. The irresponsible breeding and media attention the little dogs received have contributed to the high volume of Chihuahuas in West Coast shelters, and the struggling economy has not helped, dog experts have noted. Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mixes have become the most common dog in California shelters, even outnumbering the Pit Bull.
With a veterinarian escort, the Chihuahuas were scheduled to arrive at JFK airport where they will be picked up by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), which will work to find the dogs foster families and adoptive homes on the East Coast.
To garner more support, and raise awareness to the plight of homeless animals, Virgin America’s Facebook page documented the flight, complete with photos and videos posted mid-air!
It’s not just California shelters that are flooded with Chihuahuas. In Phoenix, Arizona the pocket pet trend has caught on and Maricopa County Animal Care and Control shelters are packed to the gills with Chihuahuas. In December, the shelters were forced to have a $36 weekend Chihuahua special following a two month period where the shelters received 821 Chihuahuas, 230 more than the year before, according to the Associated Press.
As soon as the holidays have ended, Christmas or Hanukah has come and gone, the New Year has just begun, people head back at work, kids go back to school, and shelters are bombarded with owner surrenders of puppies, kittens, dogs and cats. The weeks following Christmas are the busiest time of year for most shelters in the United States, because people quickly realize the soft, cute, cuddly puppy they picked up for a quick smile on Christmas morning is now peeing on the floor, attacking the Christmas tree, and requires a lot more time and effort than anticipated.
Almost always, giving an animal as a gift for Christmas Hanukkah, Valentines Day, Easter or any other holiday is not a good idea, and usually results in the animal being turned in to a local humane society’s animal shelter. The financial and time commitments necessary for raising a puppy are so great that often the recipient of a gifted puppy or dog will become so overwhelmed they will feel they must rehome it, take it to a shelter, or in the worst case illegally “dump” or turn out the animal onto the streets.
Puppies chew things! They’ll chew up furniture, rugs, even molding on the walls! They’ll chew mom’s shoes (only the most expensive ones), your child’s toys, and dad’s briefcase complete with important work documents. It’s hard for families, especially those with young children, to have the patience for puppy behavior. Puppies are of course attracted to your holiday decorations too – shiny balls on a tree, strange new scents, fatty foods that can make your puppy sick that are tempting to give a begging puppy. After the holidays end many families realize they just don’t have the time and patience to commit to a puppy.
Puppies bark! They bark a lot. They whine. They cry. If you like peace and quiet this will surely get on your nerves! When you’re trying to focus on writing a letter or studying for something they will bark. If you’re working from home they seem to wait for your turn to speak on an important conference call before being exceptionally noisy. There will be many long nights, especially in the beginning, where your puppy whimpers through the night because he is scared and lonely without his mother and littermates. If you have to get up early for work you’ll have all sorts of stressful emotions when you come down stairs to a pile of poop or a pee, have to walk your puppy who then wants to play, and have to rework your entire schedule around this new animal. If you gave the puppy to your children to teach them to be responsible, they might soon get bored with the puppy after a few morning walks before the school bus arrives in chilly, wet weather.
Puppies don’t come potty trained – you need to train them! It can be very difficult to potty train a puppy or dog, and many people are not prepared for this process. Potty training relies on keeping a very strict schedule, especially in the beginning, with specific feeding times, play time, and walk times. Even when watched closely a new puppy will manage to squat and pee or poop on your new carpet, furniture, and even your mattress or bedding! You can not quickly potty train a puppy. It is a major commitment that needs to be worked on daily – you need to continue potty training when your stressed, when your child is sick you still need to stick to the schedule, and when all you want to do is sleep in on Saturday morning your whining puppy will remind you sleep is no longer a luxury in your life.
Puppies grow up quickly! They become dogs that slobber, shed, jump on people, require training and attention, chew your shoes, and dig in your flower bed. They might knock a small child over, and may even bite! If not trained properly a big dog can be very dangerous, especially around children. Training is an extra cost, often requiring going to obedience classes, and is a large time commitment for the owner who will need to practice with the dog between classes. It is best to start obedience classes as soon as you get a puppy by enrolling in puppy kindergarten.
The truth behind Christmas puppy classifieds!It is never a good idea to give an animal as a gift, and often times people are led astray by unscrupulous breeders after a quick buck that list “Christmas Puppies” in the classified sections of the newspaper. A responsible breeder, knowing how hectic the holidays are and the high turnover rate of gifted puppies, would never plan a litter with puppies available to go home over Christmas. Instead, the Christmas Puppy ads you see are often for-profit breeders who cut corners in health and nutrition of their dogs and puppies to make some extra holiday cash. Breeding responsibly is expensive – costly health clearances must be done on both parents (performed by board certified orthopedists, cardiologists, ophthalmologists, etc. and not just a general bill of health from your vet), dogs should not be bred until they are at least two years old, vet bills for both parents and puppies, high quality food for mother and her litter, the cost of a whelping box, add in an unforeseen cesarean section and often times a breeder loses money on a litter – and most responsible breeders barely break even.
There’s no such thing as a free puppy! If you’re reading this and still want a Christmas puppy you might be thinking, “Well, I’ll just get a mutt that’s free.” You must know there is no such thing as a free puppy. The cheapest part of owning a dog is the initial cost – whether it is “free”, purchased from a breeder, or the adoption fee. The first year and last year or two of a dog’s life are the most expensive. A puppy requires shots that equate to numerous vet visits in the first year alone. In many areas you will also be required to register your dog with the county or city and purchase a dog license. If you rent you’ll either need to pay a monthly pet fee or put down a hefty pet deposit – usually a few hundred dollars. You will need to spay or neuter your puppy, there are low costs spay/neuter clinics that are about $100, but if you use your regular vet for this procedure expect to possibly pay up to $400 for a spay. If your puppy gets sick it will be another trip to the vet, and costly medications to treat your puppy. Puppies often require special diets if they have any health problems, and these can be costly. The less glamorous side of puppy ownership includes fleas, ticks, common parasites or worms, mites and other nuisances that are expensive to get rid of. Then of course you’ll need supplies for your puppy – food, bowls, collars and leashes, a crate, training classes, a bed, heartworm preventative given monthly, flea and tick preventative, brushes and shampoos for grooming, ear cleaning supplies, nail clippers or a Dremel, treats, and plenty of toys to keep your puppy occupied so it is not destructive in your house.
Why is a Puppy a Bad Christmas Present??
There are numerous reasons pets given as holiday presents rarely stay in their new home. The following reasons demonstrate why puppies and kittens make terrible Christmas gifts.
It’s the most wonderful hectic time of year. There are many stresses during the holiday season – buying gifts, traveling to see relatives or preparing for out-of-town guests, decorating the house, attending parties, wrapping up end of the year responsibilities at the office, planning meals, entertaining… the list goes on. The hectic aspects of the holiday season make it very challenging to care for and bond with a new pet. The success of a puppy often is connected to the owner following a strict schedule involving plenty of attention, training, care and love. It is very difficult to accommodate a puppy’s needs with the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and the result is a puppy’s whose needs were ignored resulting in a puppy with behavioral problems, and a stressed, frustrated and overwhelmed owner realizing they bit of more than they could chew.
Bonding with a new puppy is an important step for owner and pet – there must be a connection there for it to work.All puppies are cute, and it might seem like a wonderful idea to surprise your significant other, parent, sibling, child or spouse with an adorable, cuddly puppy you selected for them, but this should be avoided at all costs. Selecting a puppy that is right for a person is as individual a decision as selecting your spouse – one person’s spouse might be great for them, but you know would be a terrible match for you – you probably don’t want an arranged marriage where you have no say, so would you want a lifetime commitment of a dog where you didn’t take into account your wants and needs? A pet owner should personally select, or select with the guidance of a breeder, their new furry family member to ensure the owner and pet’s personalities do not clash. When I decided to adopt Milly there was a strong underlying attraction I had for her – there were plenty of other dog’s at the shelter that day, but there was a reason I was attracted to Milly. That initial attraction was a critical step in our bonding process, and enabled me to happily open my home and heart to Milly for the rest of her life. Adopting or purchasing a puppy is a very personal process, and it must be done by the new pet owner to ensure happiness of animal and human alike.
Timing is everything – is it really the right time for a new pet?I’m constantly saying “I’d love to get a puppy!” I make this desire clear to my boyfriend multiple times a day, but I haven’t come home with a dog on my many visits to the shelter in the three years we’ve been dating, and the reason isn’t because there wasn’t a puppy or dog I felt a connection to. Just because I want a puppy or second dog, I know the timing needs to be perfect. To give a puppy or dog to a person as a gift is like thrusting a major life commitment on a person that may not be ready. The receiver of the puppy will most likely be put in an uncomfortable situation where they logically know the time is not right for a pet, but they are now holding a cute puppy with a great personality, and the new owner might be compelled and somewhat guilted into keeping the puppy, or accepting the gift. The emotional aspects of holding a puppy, the soft fur, the little paws, the cute personality can easily tug at the new owner’s heart strings and soon they’ve lost touch with the sensible, logical reality that states, “I don’t have the money to afford vet bills on a puppy,” “I don’t have time to train a puppy,” or “I travel too much to give the puppy a good life.” This situation is unfair to both puppy and human, and is a great reason not to gift a puppy.
Alternatives to Giving a Dog or Puppy as a Christmas Gift:
It’s never a good idea to give a living animal as a holiday or birthday gift, but there are instances when you know someone in your life truly desires to own an animal, is ready for the commitment, and you want to give the gift of lifelong animal companionship to that special human in your life. If you are 100 percent sure the person is ready for a pet you can use some of these creative alternatives to giving a live animal as the gift, and ensure your loved one receives the animal they so desire.
Head to your local pet supply store and pick up some basic puppy or dog supplies and/or a gift certificate to the pet supply store. You might want to start with a collar and leash (make sure they’re exchangeable, because you won’t know the size), a few puppy toys and chews, maybe even a dog bed – put these items in a box and wrap them and put them under the tree.
When your loved one opens the box they’re reaction will be one of slight confusion “Why did you give me this stuff? I don’t have a dog /puppy.” This is when the gift giver can explain to their loved one that the real gift is a trip to the local animal shelter or to a breeder, all-expenses-paid, to select the new puppy or dog. The gift giver should explain if selecting a breeder that they can take all the time necessary, and a puppy might not be available immediately, but they can select the breeder and get on the waiting list for a litter if need be. This situation is the ideal way to give the gift of a canine companion to a human that is ready for the commitment, because it enables the pet recipient to not only select the right puppy or dog for his or her lifestyle, but it also enables the recipient to prepare his or her life for a puppy, even if that means postponing getting the actual puppy for a few months to prepare the house, acquire the supplies necessary, ensure he or she can take a few days off from work to be with the puppy, and get all finances in order before acquiring the new pet.
Over the past year canines have dominated the cinematic scene – Marley and Me, Bolt, Up, Beverly HillsChihuahua, and Hotel for Dogs all were heavily advertised on television.
I do a lot of babysitting, and some of the families I sit for encourage movie watching as a special treat. I know the children I babysit very well, and always like to screen movies before we watch them, as some of the kiddos get scared very easily even with a G or PG rating. With this in mind, I recently added Hotel for Dogs to my Netflix cue, and here is my review.
The producers really pushed hard with their ad campaign on this one, and with the main characters being played by tween sensations Emma Roberts and Jake T. Austin, this Nickelodeon-produced flick is sure to have children begging to see it or rent it – smaller parts are played by stars like Don Cheadle, Kevin Dillon and Lisa Kudrow.
This is certainly not an amazing cinematic production, but if you have some chores you need to do around the house, put this in the DVD player and you’ll have an 1.5 hours of uninterrupted time on your hands as your kids get carried through the fur of one slap stick routine after another. I’d say it is age appropriate for 6+ year olds (younger with adult supervision and discussion).
The film relies on exceptionally well trained dogs performing adorable tricks and antics to keep the viewer interested, though I found the dogs performance tended to outweigh the human acting. I would say this is a very child/family friendly movie, but parents should know the main characters are an orphaned brother and sister living in foster care, skirting around the law, and there are some references to dead parents – though not overly emotional.
The premise of the movie siblings Andi and Bruce (played by Roberts and Austin) have spent years as orphans bounce from foster parent to foster parent as they fend for themselves in the child welfare program. Somehow managing to keep their family dog hidden from each foster family since their parents’ death, the kids continuously get in trouble with the law. In a what is portrayed as an unsympathetic foster system, a kindhearted case worker named Bernie (Don Cheadle), helps the kids stay together, but with each law broken by the siblings, and each failed foster family, their odds of staying together much longer are dwindling.
Wanting nothing more than to escape from their current foster parents (played by Kudrow and Dillon) Andi and Bruce turn to the streets, where they come up with illegal and immoral ways of making money for dog chow. One night, while running from the police (surprisingly for a crime they did not commit), the duo hide in an abandoned hotel (clearly a very high end one), where two stray dogs happen to be living. After seeing their own dog is happy with these strays, Andi and Bruce decide this would be a great place to temporarily hide their own dog from their foster parents.
One thing leads to another and the siblings enlist their motley crew of friends to collect a variety of dogs off the streets to prevent them from being euthanized by the evil animal control. The Hotel for Dogs is created as a sort of orphanage for the unwanted strays find refuge. Andi, as the motherly sister and Bruce, as the geeky boy with a talent for building gadgets, are a duo capable of cheerfully caring (a term I use loosely) for what seems to be hundreds of dogs. With the Hotel for Dogs up and running, the kids and their friends care for the dogs by using all sorts of gimmicky contraptions – old seats and doors from cars allow dogs to sit with their heads out the window while large fans blow in their faces, automated feeding systems ensure meals while the kids are at school, and a dog bathroom bags the poop and dispenses it into a dumpster all make for not so funny slap-stick comedy that elementary aged kids will lap up. Behind all the dog fur and crazy gadgets, the kids know at any moment, one misstep could mean their separation in the foster system, and all of the dogs sent to the merciless pound.
Andi and Bruce’s story is sweet and heartfelt, and it should be the center of the movie, but their struggle to care for each other and remain a family is all but ignored as the weak adaptation of a Lois Duncan novel does little more than make you laugh at the dogs. The canines really steal the show, and the plot of the movie is brushed over from start to finish. The director, Thor Freudenthal, took an enjoyable break from the computer generated stunts so many animal films rely on, and used real dogs in every scene. There is something to be said for the large cast of canines (over 40 dogs were used in the film) and their amazingly complex stunts. However, all of that training, and those incredible dogs and great camera work were lost with a brushed over plot, and a film that will most likely bore any adult.
While the canine cast is sure to impress, the human cast severely lacks in talent. Clearly cast only for their immense Nickelodeon child fan base, Roberts and Austin were less than stellar, and easily upstaged by the dogs. I’m not sure how Cheadle, Dillon, and Kudrow were convinced to sign on to this film, but the acting talent across the board was lacking and character development was almost non-existent.
There is no drinking or smoking in the movie, consumerism really isn’t an issue (except for all food being Pedigree), and the language is very mild – “stupid” is probably the worst word used in the movie. Sex is a non-issue though there is some flirting and one couple kisses and another girl gives a boy a little peck. The movie relies on some mild slapstick violence and scariness with characters stepping in poop or falling down.
I took issue with a few of the references of foster care being “awful”. It bothers me that the children had no morals when it came to obeying laws. To raise money the siblings do some questionable things – at one point they pawn fake cell phones. The whole issue of being squatters in an abandoned building is brushed over and coated with slapstick comedy. Like many dog movies, this one portrays shelters and dog pounds as cruel, a place where animals go to die after receiving horrifying care, and animal control officers are portrayed as dog-hating Neanderthals.
The film not-so-subtly denounces euthanizing the ever growing stray dog population, but then tries to humor the audience with a pair of strays and their cute, but large litter of puppies. If euthanasia is not the answer, I’m not sure what this film is suggesting is, because they clearly aren’t considering spaying and neutering as a means to control stray animal populations. At one point, the kids break into the pound to “rescue” the dogs, and then later lure the dogs across county lines to “safety” with hot dogs dragging behind a truck. First, I’m pretty sure breaking into a city building and stealing dogs is considered a felony. Second, having 40+ dogs running through busy traffic chasing after some hot dogs is never smart – I don’t even want to know the leash laws that may have been broken. Third, I was bothered by the ease in which the movie portrayed caring for dogs. Not once was vet care mentioned, the children got dog food in questionable ways, stole from their foster parents, and broke numerous laws. The dogs, with their gadget bathroom, never were walked, and had little human interaction – I’m sorry but a catapult throwing tennis balls is no substitution for good care. Lastly, the children have no real repercussions for their actions.
With out spoiling it, the movie concludes with the public realizing how many homeless animals exist, and people rallying behind the children’s efforts to help the dogs. Overall, the movie does have a positive message that young people can make a difference in their communities, and I hope the humor of the dogs outweighs any inclination a child might have to try something similar on their own. If you want to pass the time, and keep your kids occupied, this is a good movie for children. I do suggest you talk to your kids after about the iffy decisions the characters make in this movie, and about over population of homeless animals. It is important to educate children about the responsibilities of pet ownership, which I believe should always be a lifelong commitment.
There is a clear link between animal abuse and domestic violence or violence towards humans. Abuse towards an animal is a major red flag for potential violence towards humans, but what does a pet own person trapped in a domestic violence situation do?
American Humane Pets and Women’s Shelters Program, or PAWS, has realized the need for women’s shelters that allow pets, and is helping to end domestic violence and animal abuse by providing a safe haven for domestic violence victims and their four legged friends.
I encourage you to watch this video and learn more about this amazing program.
My dear friend Bess and I the day before Easter. She is currently going through chemotherapy, and is one of the most inspirational and energetic women I know.
