June 2009

Toronto is home to a lot of festivals over the summer months, but certainly the one that is near and dear to us here at Dogs in Canada is Woofstock. Woofstock celebrates all things dog, so naturally Dogs in Canada is a part of it. This year several of the staff were there to meet, greet, and shake a few paws.

Below we have a gallery of photos taken by one of our (very talented) graphic designers, Kevin Ross Pagcaliwagan, as well as a video that features all the sights and sounds of a day at Woofstock.

To those who came out, thanks for supporting this great event! And to those who didn’t, we hope to see you next year.

To view our video from the event, click here.

Click on a thumbnail below to view our images.

 

Scroll through the rest of our
images by clicking the arrow or numbers

My cat drinks from the toilet. No matter how many different kinds of bowls I’ve tried (metal, ceramic, even one of our ‘people’ bowls) she prefers the toilet. I can change the water every day… heck, I once even tried giving her Evian (collective sigh of relief that she didn’t take to that either) but she likes the toilet water.

Viola thinks a large dog bed is actually the perfect size for a cat.

Occasionally, she’ll drink from one of my water glasses, something I wouldn’t mind so much, but for the fact that she sticks her little head in the toilet several times a day.

So I consulted a few of my cat-savvy friends. It seems that a drinking fountain is the way to go.

My kitchen now has a tiny water fountain in it. It’s the closest thing this apartment will ever get to a ‘water feature.’ But, she drinks from it. Though she still comes running every time she hears the toilet flush.

But being spoiled isn’t exclusive to the cat, Viola, though she has her fair share of toys (okay, a bucket of toys) the dogs in my life outstrip her in the accessories department.

‘Flash’ and ‘Posh’ have more collars than I care to mention (in fact they are known for being collar-horses around the office). Most of them are made by my very-crafty Mom, but I’ve also been known to buy a few.

My hounds have pajamas. Which are endlessly practical because my skinny, desert hounds get cold at night, and as an added bonus they keep them clean and show-ready on a muddy day. They also have about six coats between them, but again, Salukis aren’t made for Canadian winters.

I think my next big purchase will be a ‘pee pad’ for the balcony. Flash turned 12 recently, and while he still thinks he’s a youngster, his bladder acts its age. Living with a dog in an apartment is hard, living with an old dog in an apartment is harder. And as his morning pee break creeps up from 6 a.m. to 5 a.m., I think it may be time to take an elevator ride out of the equation.

Is anyone out there using a pee pad? Any tips (training or otherwise) that you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

So last week after a loooong car ride (more on that later) I decided to unpack and go to a movie, my activity of choice for relaxing.

My choice last night was Up, a latest film from Pixar. Thus far I have loved all of the Pixar movies, and Up did not disappoint.

Something made me very uncomfortable for a big chunk of the film, the depiction of dogs. A pack of extremely well trained dogs play a big role in this movie, complete with collars that allow them to speak English (which was hilarious, and, in my opinion, exactly how most dogs would speak).

There was ‘Dug’ the delightfully dim-witted Golden Retriever, who is quickly won over by the protagonist, and spends his part of the film playing for the good guys.

But the rest of the dogs remain loyal to their maniacal owner. These breeds include a Bulldog, Rottweiler and a particularly cold and nasty ringleader, a Doberman. I know that a plot like this calls for breeds that one would associate with the ‘bad guy.’ But all I could think is ‘Oh great, more fodder for the BSL movement.’ I have met Rotties, Dobes and Bulldogs that are sweet as can be. Actually I have yet to meet one that is anything like the dogs in the movie (well, aside from the fact that they all still go crazy when they hear the word “treat”).

Spoiler alert: in the end, all the dogs are rehabilitated, underlining the point that it is the owner, not the breed, that is largely responsible for aggressive behaviour. And that left me satisfied.

Still, has anyone else seen this movie? Am I being overly sensitive, or were these dogs being typecast for their looks?

My dog is very sick, but he doesn’t know it.

Today, he is beautiful. His black coat shines in the sun. He lounges on the deck. He chases squirrels. He plays with his favourite toy with reckless abandon. He sits on my foot while I make his dinner. He curls up beside me on the couch. He snores loudly and happily while he naps. He does this and all of the other things that make him, him.

Nothing has changed, but everything has changed because last week, a fairly routine visit to the vet yielded something surprising. A very aggressive cancer. Not operable. This isn’t something he can beat; only something he can fight off for a time. Months, I am told.

So Ocho doesn’t know he’s sick, but I do. I watch him constantly. Was that a wince? Does he seem tired today? I think his appetite might be off. Is he losing weight?

He lives in the moment, but I’m living in the future – in the days ahead when I know he’ll know, too, that he’s sick.

Chemotherapy begins today.