Happy Thanksgiving to all the humans and their pets!

Update on Swing flu and animals


Pit Bulls and Parolees This is a new show on NatGeo channel. Finally, a professional who deals with pit bulls and loves them and all their quirks admitted out loud:
Some pit bulls are dog-aggressive because of owner handling and training. Other pit bulls are dog-aggressive because of breeding and genetics.
While I personally have nothing against pit bulls, I am wary of them because of the very unfortunate fact that they have, as a group, been overbred, bred to use for fighting, and otherwise maltreated.

Up until now, I've always heard professionals in the dog world "blame the owner" for pit bulls' aggression. When there are kind, loving, concerned people who have a dog that suddenly becomes aggressive to another dog, that's a slap in the face. Then, when you think that dogs with the most dog aggression have been SELECTED to breed for generations -- even if you get a dog from a supposedly nonaggressive lineage, those genes may be lurking. It is simply a fact, no matter how beloved pit bulls are to their owners, that the majority of dog and people injuries come from a few breeds. The Centers for Disease Control published this synopsis: At the top of the list, pit bull types, Rottweiler, German Shepherd dog. Surprises? Great Dane and St. Bernard are on this list.

For balance, check out what the American Veterinary Association has to say about Dog Bite Prevention

Does this mean we should ban all pit bulls? Not in my opinion. It simply means that caution is warranted when ALL dogs are together in large bunches, and in particular when more than 2 pit bulls are together, and especially when dogs that are NOT neutered encounter one another.

One other very important point on dog aggression: Small yappy dogs may become targets of larger dog aggression when they incessantly bark in very high pitch. Other dogs may interpret the noise as "prey" and be incited to attack. It is as important for small-dog owners to control and monitor their dogs' actions in a group setting as it is for large-dog owners. Comments to this post welcome.

Carmichael Dog Park Society 2009 Fund Raiser
Christmas Biscuits in a package personalized with your dog’s name and special message. Order now until December 5th. For $10 (plus 50 cents handling per box) your favorite dog gets a package of fun cookie shapes: mixes of bones, dog houses, hearts, fire hydrants, puppies. All hand-made from safe and healthy ingredients. The box sports a tag with the lucky dog's name and one of two greetings that you select while ordering. Pickup date is December 12, 2009 from 10am until 2pm, at the Veterans Hall in Carmichael Park. We will send you an e-mail reminder.
FOR THE PRINT AND MAIL ORDER FORM: Go to top of page. select Holiday Biscuits 2009, click and follow directions.

To order here via PayPal, continue reading: You can easily select the greeting you want for each dog on the pulldown arrow below, then type in that dog's name as you want it to appear. For each box ordered, you will see your Shopping Cart. If you want more boxes for that dog, change the quantity there. For more boxes for another dog, choose Continue Shopping. You can order on someone's behalf; just be sure to put that in the Notes section during checkout, especially if that person will be picking up separately from you. You can also choose to Donate in $10 increments and chose to donate in a beloved pet's name.
ORDER AND PAY HERE SECURELY USING PAYPAL RIGHT HERE!

Greeting on Gift Tag

Holiday Treats for Has Been a Good Dog All Year Additional donations in $10 increments

Dog's name

For questions about the Christmas Biscuits, contact Claudia Downs, claudiadowns@comcast.net. For questions about the website order form(s), contact Chip and Dale's mom (Ellen) at puppix@pacbell.net.

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Formal volunteer occasions have died down for the moment. Volunteers are always welcome, and always needed. Please contact the web administrators or a Board Member to offer your services.
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FDA report purchasing pet drugs online Heartworm and NSAIDs (arthritis drugs) are the most dangerous drugs to give without a veterinarian physically examining your pet. Is it worth the couple of bucks you save buying "without a prescription?" Read the article by clicking on the link.

Foodborne illness in dogs? Tips for safety.

Doggy diet concerns? Many thanks to Maureen Goff who researched and found further information on doggy diets. Click on the green link to read the lengthy report, dated 2007, but appears to be the most current. It is very hard to find objective, scientific information about pet foods and a great many articles are written by pet food sellers or manufacturers. If they cite research and sources, follow the trail to see if they are from disinterested parties. There are some regulatory agencies to whom concerns should be directed. Click on the green links to go directly to their updated websites.

AAFCO Pet Food Committee
David Syverson, Chair
Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Dairy and Food Inspection Division
625 Robert Street North
St. Paul, MN 55155-2538
www.aafco.org

FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine
Sharon Benz
7500 Standish Place
Rockville, MD 20855
301-594-1728
http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/default.htm

Pet Food Institute
2025 M Street, NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20036
202-367-1120
Fax 202-367-2120

Other places for professional or scientific information:
Questions? Call UC Davis’ Nutrition Support Service
There is currently no charge to animal owners for general telephone consultations to have questions answered. Professional consultations for specific medical complaints include
taking a comprehensive medical history and producing special diets using computer software to determine relative amounts of dietary ingredients. The Nutrition Support Service can be reached through the VMTH Small Animal Clinic, (530) 752-1393.

Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) has guidelines for animal nutrition. See above for address and contacts.

Dog food analysis demystified: One important statement from this list: There are no legal and scientific definitions for the terms "premium," "super premium," "quality," or "natural."


We rely on human beings to monitor their animal's waste. Please use the covered containers. An otherwise nice day at the park can become very unpleasant when dog waste is dumped into open containers. It stinks, draws flies, spreads disease, and gives naysayers a reason to complain about the dog park. If you miss where your dog went, be a pal and pick up the pile you almost stepped in.

Getting your newsletter? There are usually a few black and white copies of the newsletter in the literature boxes at the dog park, but they go fast. To ensure you get your copy -- and a color one at that -- simply pay your dues for the Carmichael Dog Park Society of only $15 yearly. Magically, a color copy of the newsletter will show up in your email each month.

Carmichael Dog Park, also called the Canine Corral, is located within Carmichael Park at 5750 Grant Avenue and is Carmichael's first off-leash dog park, maintained and operated by Carmichael Dog Park Society (CDPS) in conjunction and cooperation with the Carmichael Recreation and Park District (CR&PD). Please note: ALL dogs visiting the actual dog park are required to have current vaccinations, especially rabies. Talk to your vet about getting Bordetella shots (kennel cough) to protect your dog when mingling with large numbers of strangers. We highly recommend your dogs be spayed or neutered.

Watch this box for any information that is considered urgent, timely, of importance or interest to the entire dog park community. This way you don't have to look all over the website -- it'll be right here.

All the above photos are viewed in thumbnail size. Just click on them to see full size, with all the details hard to see in the smaller sizes. There are many, many more photos than appear on the website. The space is limited here, and many of the shots are near-duplicates, just slight variations in pose or facial expression -- lovely to owners (and photographers), boring to the rest of the world.

Here are the links to the rest of the photos in May and June, 2009. All photos may be downloaded for personal use. Click on the links. If any problems, contact Chip and Dale's mom.

August 6, 2009

July 22 (sorry you'll have to slog through flowers to get to the dogs . . .)

July 3, 2009

June 14, 2009, Big and Little Sides of park, too.

June 14, Big and Little Dog sides of dog park:

Great Dane and large dog meetup, June 7:

May 31, 2009 second set

May 31, 2009 general, mostly large dog side: