Quite possibly, the only thing preventing me from becoming
that “crazy dog lady” who collects all manner of canine figurine and
memorabilia is my reverence for all things beautiful.And while there is really nothing wrong with a whimsical tchotchke on a
shelf, it starts to get out of control if you already possess an embroidered
pillow, a blanket, a refrigerator magnet, and, well, Google “tacky dog
gifts” and prepare to have your mind blown by the selection! The item above will haunt me for many nights to come.
But while there certainly ARE the “Bad” and the “Ugly” there
is also quite a bit of “Good”.Gone are the days when “dog décor” was strictly relegated to the eccentric - today it is modern,
playful, and, dare I say….chic.
If you don't like any of this stuff, you might be a cat person!
Jonathan Adler Designs
Greyhound statue - Kelly Werstler Designs
Accent lamp - nakeddecor.com
Osborne and Little - "Best In Show" wallpaper
Accent pillow - nakeddecor.com
Custom made with your pet's name - Bow Wow Pet Beds @ etsy.com
A doggie bed need not cramp your modern aesthetic - thepremiumpet.com
This ain't no Dogs Playing Pool - "Dog Looking Up" - By Jane O'Hara (janeohara.com)
"Two Dogs Sleeping" - By Jane O'Hara (janeohara.com)
FIDO stands for Fantastic Innovations for Dog Owners, and, yes, I just made that up. The winner this inaugural year, by a landslide, is The Doody Dangler. The inventor, Tim Campbell, may never win a Nobel but he will eternally have my gratitude. If you have a dog, and you have poop (if you have a dog and no poop then please contact me immediately), you HAVE TO HAVE A DOODY DANGLER.
Yes, it IS what you think it is and does what you think it does. It dangles doody. It dangles a bag of #2 from your leash so you don't have to carry it! No one who follows Hairy Poppins would ever leave their bag laying around for someone else to throw away - that is tacky, nasty, and wrong and makes all of us dog lovers/owners look bad. Right? Right. But holding it on an hour-long (or 10 minute) walk is terribly unpleasant. For the price of a latte you will never have to do this again. Get one for every dog owner you know. They will love you for it.
Although this happened back in the summer of 2011 I thought it made sense to highlight it on the eve of the eve of the New Year. It is, after all, about new beginnings.
If you are like me, the typical New Year resolutions revolve around goals like exercising, flossing daily, being kinder to people, drinking more water. Nothing wrong with that - I'm all for self-improvement. The reality, though, is that most of us won't keep these promises to ourselves past President's Day. Perhaps the reason these good plans go to waste is because, ultimately, how much do they really matter? The world won't come to an end if I use my exercise ball as a door jam. My dentist won't be happy my flossing has fallen by the wayside but, well, at least I brush. As for being kind to strangers...maybe just not being UNKIND is good enough.
Want to really keep a resolution? I have an idea... Don't make it about yourself. Frankly, I'm sick of me! Open yourself up and widen your concern. Resolve to take a moment to stop and talk with your elderly neighbor instead of pretending you are on your cell phone. Commit to finding a volunteer opportunity. Plan on saving all your change for a year and giving it to a charity. Or, as in the video below, promise to help one innocent animal see the sun for the first time. Step outside yourself and into the footsteps (or paw prints) of someone else.
Here is to a happy and healthy 2012 for all of us.
Tearjerker Alert: Former Lab Beagles See the Sun for the First Time
By TERRI POUS
Dog videos never fail to conjure up some sort of emotion. And this one really brings the waterworks. The above footage shows male beagles that were rescued from a California university animal testing lab seeing sunlight and stepping on grass for the first time.
The rescue mission, which happened in June, was recently followed by a much larger one from a lab in Spain. The group that undertook the cause, Animal Rescue Media Education (ARME), rescued a total of 72 dogs in the most recent effort, 32 of them having already been adopted in Europe, according to NBC Los Angeles.
ARME’s Beagle Freedom Project spokesman Gary Smith told the station that the beagles, all between ages 4 and 7, had lived in cages their entire lives.
Unfortunately, beagles’ notoriously obedient dispositions makes them ideal for experimentation. According to the Beagle Freedom Project’s website, they are the breed of choice for lab testing of pharmaceutical, household, and cosmetic products due to their ability to adapt to life in a cage and the fact that they are relatively inexpensive to feed.
When the beagles are no longer needed for research, some labs contact organizations such as ARME, who then work to find good homes for the dogs.
This heartbreaking (that soundtrack!) video was filmed back in June, when the organization brought nine beagles to Los Angeles to get a second chance at life. We dare you not to be moved by that first beagle’s initial tentative steps and soulful eyes.
ARME is a non-profit advocacy group and 501(c)(3) organization funded by tax-deductible contributions. Information on how to make a donation or adopt a beagle is available on the organization’s website.
