As with humans, senior dogs change as they age. Unfortunately for dog lovers, it seems to happen way too fast! One way a dog may be considered to be geriatric is based on weight. Dogs who are 50 pounds and over are considered to be in the geriatric range at the age of 7 years. Dogs 20-50 pounds are thought to be geriatric at 9 years of age and small dogs of less than twenty pounds at 10 years of age. There are several factors to consider in caring for your aging dog.
Enjoy your dog in his golden years!
Central Park is one of our favorite places and plays an important role in Tails Untold’s adventure story. This weekend’s storm was devastating to the park. An estimated 1,000 trees have been lost because of the early snowfall. Because the trees still had most of their leaves, the snow accumulation was very heavy and damaging. If you’re interested in making a donation, Central Park Conservancy has set up a special Halloween Storm fund.
There is a great website called www.loveyourdog.com/tricks.html. I recently visited it with my son. It is published by Janet Walls called “How to love your dog”. It teaches tricks from “high five” to “come” or “speak”. It recommends using praise and small treats. What is unusual is that it includes tips from kids who teach their dogs tricks. I think you will enjoy it!
We love cats and dogs equally at Tails Untold, and even more, we love to hear about cats and dogs who live together. In case we’ve given more attention to dogs so far, here’s a fun test of your knowledge of famous cats from literature, film and TV. From Morris, to Catwoman, to the Cat in the Hat, felines have always made the best characters. See how many questions you can answer correctly!
Dolphin Tale is currently in theaters and I saw it with a few young children. It’s an “inspired by real life” story of a dolphin injured after being caught in a crab trap, who is rescued and nursed back to health. The dolphin, named Winter, loses her tail to infection and although she learns to swim without it, her survival depends on her ability to adapt to a prosthetic tail. The story of the dolphin’s eventual triumph is paralleled by the struggle of injured war veterans to overcome their challenges. Although it’s a film marketed to kids, the story behind Dolphin Tale is compelling to any animal lover, and speaks to the interdependence of humans and animals.
The ASPCA is sponsoring a three-month competition which challenges 49 shelters from 33 states and territories across the United States to increase lives saved in order to win some of the $300,000 in ASPCA prize grants, including a grand prize of $100,000. Shelters have one more month to save more animals for a chance to win much-needed funds.
During the first weeks of the challeng, many shelters stayed open around the clock for 24-hour adoption events, offered unique promotions and discounts on adoption fees, and more.
The shelter with the largest increase in animals saved will win a $100,000 grant. The agency that gets the most community members involved in saving animals will win a $25,000 grant, and those organizations that do the best in their regions will be eligible for between $5,000 and $25,000 in grants.
To locate a 2011 ASPCA $100K Challenge contestant near you, check out challenge.aspcapro.org/challenge/contestants.
Do you know of a shelter or rescue group that is participating in this challenge? Let us know and we’ll feature it on our blog.
The urban dog is a civilized member of society, and likes to frequent sophisticated watering holes where he or she can run, tackle, and drool on her doggie peers. Fortunately, there are places where just this kind of behavior is encouraged, and we’ve put together this list of dog runs in Manhattan. If you know of any others, either official or unofficial, let us know. We’ll feature the boroughs and other dog friendly spots in the area in upcoming blogs.
Carl Schurz Park (2 runs)
Address: East End Avenue to East River from Gracie Square (East 84th Street) to 89th Street
Type: Run
Address: Though there are no enclosed dog runs, there are 23 particularly dog-friendly areas scattered throughout the Park.
Type: Off-Leash
Notes: Please visit Central Park Conservancy’s Dogs in the Park page for park-specific rules and details on dog-friendly areas.
Address: 11th Ave and 22nd Street
Type: Run
Notes: *Please note: this dog run is administered by the Hudson River Park Trust.
More information.
Address: Pike and Monroe streets
Type: Run
Address: Cherry Street and Jackson Street (on the north side of the park building)
Type: Run
Address: West 52nd Street & West 54th Street, between 10th & 11th avenues
Type: Run
Address: East River at 63rd Street
Type: Run
Address: In the sunken circle area only (be tween Delancey and Houston Streets next to tennis courts).
Type: Off-Leash
Address: Dover Street, between Pearl & Water Street
Type: Run
Address: Margaret Corbin Drive
Type: Run
Notes: More information.
Address: 165th Street & Riverside Drive
Type: Off-Leash
Address: Amsterdam and Fort George avenues
Type: Run
Notes: More Information.
Address: Leroy Street at the northeast corner of Pier 40
Type: Run
Notes: More information.
Address: Pier 84 at West 44th Street
Type: Run
Notes: More information.
Address: Dyckman Street and Payson Avenue
Type: Run
Notes: Because Inwood is designated a Forever Wild site, dogs are permitted off leash ONLY in the dog run AND at Dyckman Street & Hudson River (on the south end of the ballfields).
Address: Fort Washington & Haven avenues, West 173rd Street
Type: Run
Address: Madison Avenue to 5th Avenue between East 23rd Street & East 26th Street
Type: Run
Address: Madison Avenue and East 120th Street
Type: Run
Address: Morningside Avenue between 114th and 119th streets
Type: Run
Address: West of FDR Drive, between East 49th & East 51st streets
Type: Run
Address: Except for areas where dogs are expressly prohibited via signage, all areas of the park are off-leash during designated hours.
Type: Off-Leash
Notes: Off-leash hours for the island are before 9:00 a.m. and after 9:00 p.m.
Address: Riverside Drive at West 72nd, West 87th, West 105th
Type: Run
Notes: Dog Owners’ Guide to Riverside Park
Address: 41st & 42nd streets at 1st Avenue
Type: Run
Address: St Nicholas Avenue to St. Nicholas Terrace, West 128th to West 141 streets
Type: Run
Address: Central Park West at West 81st Street
Type: Run
Address: East 112th Street and FDR Drive
Type: Run
Address: 1st Avenue to Avenue B, from East 7th to East 10th streets
Type: Run
Address: 15th Street & Union Square West
Type: Run
Address: 5th Avenue, Waverly Place, West 4th Street, between McDougal & Thompson streets, south side of the park (behind building)
Type: Run
Obey the Rules and Regulations
*In the off-season, the Commissioner may use his discretion to permit dogs in bathing areas/beaches.
One of the most fun things about bringing a pet into your family is choosing the name. There are some people who love the traditional – Spot, Fido and Rover, some who like the popular – Max and Bella and some the outrageous – Sir Broccolli? Ozzy Pawsborne? The last two come from a list of the wackiest pet names compiled by a pet insurance company, and it’s pretty funny to read.
Another method of naming a pet is to come up with something based on the pet’s personality or appearance. Another friend likes to use names of his favorite Italian soccer players: Baggio and Dino are his cats. A tailsuntold favorite is Lucky – he’s the fourth Lucky his owner has had over the years – it’s perfect because it’s gender neutral and Lucky’s owner always feels a little luckier thanks to his dog.
What are your favorite pet names? We would love to start a list and can post your pet’s picture and name on upcoming blogs.
| Name: | Weezie |
| Nickname(s): | The Boss |
| Gender: | female |
| Characteristics: | One eye, white face, very large pointy ears |
| Personality: | stealthy, determined, quiet, funny |
