Petfinder Blog

Michelle Obama tells PEOPLE magazine the First Family has settled on a breed and date for their long-promised dog adoption.

The Associated Press reports:

The family wants a rescue Portuguese Water Dog who is the appropriate age and match.

"Temperamentally they're supposed to be pretty good," Mrs. Obama said. "From the size perspective, they're sort of middle of the road -- it's not small, but it's not a huge dog. And the folks that we know who own them have raved about them. So that's where we're leaning." (Read the full story.)

This breed is not common in shelters -- there are only two adoptable Portuguese water dog mixes listed on Petfinder right now (Wema, who'd had a major PR effort behind her, has already been adopted from the Martin County Humane Society in Fairmont, MN).

The Obamas' situation is common among adopters: They know what kind of dog they want and when they want it. But the reality is, their ideal dog may simply not be available in a shelter by their deadline -- and if the right dog IS there, the adoption process might not fit their timetable.

Okay, I'm a little late to blogging about this, but our own VP of shelter outreach, Kim Saunders, continued her media blitz promoting the Petfinder.com Adopted Dog Bible with an appearance on The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet (watch the video).

This was one of my favorite media spots because Kim was able to not only promote responsible pet adoption, but also to show
off some wonderful dogs whom the average adopter might not think to seek out:

• Rocky, a 10-year-old pit bull at NYC's Picasso Veterinary Fund
  
• Deke, a blind, senior shepherd mix, also at Picasso Veterinary Fund
• Higgins, a St. Bernard-mix puppy who was hit by a car and is being cared for and given veterinary cary by Companion Critters in Clark, NJ
• Valentina, a young beagle the Humane Society of NY (okay, she's the type of dog EVERYONE seems to be looking for -- but it's always good to let people know they CAN find a purebred dog at a shelter)
  

NPR recently aired a piece about how many horses are ending up in shelters these days because of the economy.

Some rescues have received more than 300. One horse they mentioned was abandoned, tied to a utility pole.

The commentator said that horses may be inexpensive to acquire these days, but, the piece warned, it takes a chunk of money to keep one in food and to pay for vet bills.

Still, there's a great need right now for people who have the means. The piece concluded that there are simply too many horses -- and that people shouldn't breed them when so many need homes. Sound familiar?

(There are currently more than 2,500 adoptable horses waiting for their forever homes on Petfinder.)

Update: Thanks to the commenter who pointed out this great post on the Best Friends Network's Stop BSL blog, which lists ways to speak out against this policy.

Original post: Breed-specific legislation has now extended its ugly reach to the military.

Good News for Pets writes about a new memo banning "aggressive or potentially aggressive" dogs, including pit bulls, rottweilers, Doberman pinschers, chows and wolf hybrids from military housing as of Feb. 1, 2009.

You can see copies of the memo on the Web sites for Fort Riley, Kansas, and Army Hawaii Family Housing, to name just two examples.

How sad that our government is rewarding our brave servicemen and women by taking their beloved family pets from them. As Good News for Pets points out:

According to the ruling, dogs of any type who currently live on base can be grandfathered in. However, [Lynette] Lynde [a pit owner whose husband is an Afghanistan vet] points out that families are frequently being asked to re-locate. When they do, they can no longer bring their banned dogs with them. Similarly, new enlistees must leave their dogs at home if they're indentified as a banned breed.

Making the ban even more upsetting: Not so long ago, pit bulls were considered the embodiment of the American military spirit for their bravery and loyalty.

Wow! California legislators have been looking at adding a tax of about 9% on veterinary services to fix their budgetary crisis. That would make veterinary care for pets even further out of reach for a lot of people. It's hard enough for them to scrape together money for vaccinations with the way the economy is.

The budget puts veterinary care for our pet companions in the same category as playing golf or getting a piece of furniture repaired, services to which they're also proposing a sales and use tax.

You can call the Governor's office at 916-445-2841 to protest it. When you call, select your language choice, then press 5, which will take you right to hot topics. Next press 1 to select the issue of extending the sales tax to veterinary services, and then press 2 to oppose this proposal.

For more information about the measure and how to take action to oppose it, visit the California Veterinary Medical Association's Web site.

I had the immense pleasure of meeting Dick Schnell, animal control officer at the Minot, N.D., police department, a few years ago when we did an Adoption Options workshop in Fargo.

He had trading cards for the school kids and described his job primarily as "taking dogs home after payday benders." A scuba diver, Dick supplements his income as an ACO by diving for golf balls in the water hazards at the local golf club. So I got a kick out of seeing him mentioned in this story:

Dog Uses Snow Bank to Climb On Roof
MINOT, N.D. - Minot police say they get lots of calls about animals but this one was different. A caller reported a dog on the roof of a house. Animal control officer Dick Schnell said the snow in the back yard of the dog's owner's home apparently was high enough for the dog to walk up onto the roof Tuesday.

The dog, which appeared to be a border collie mix, seemed perfectly content to be there.

"A neighbor from across the street called us and said, 'You're not going to believe this,' " Schnell said.

I'm not a huge fan of the Westminster Dog Show, but I couldn't help being pleased that 10-year-old Sussex spaniel Stump won Best in Show this year.

The Sussex spaniel is a pretty exotic breed -- there are only three adoptable Sussex spaniel mixes listed on Petfinder -- but there are thousands of dogs age 10 and older waiting for their forever homes in shelters and foster care right now.

Many people overlook senior dogs (and other senior pets) when they're looking to adopt because they worry their time with the pet will be too short and the inevitable goodbye too painful.

My dog Champ didn't actually participate in my wedding, but we did put a little plastic toy pit bull that looked just like him on our cake with the bride and groom figurine.

But we want to know: Was your dog (or other pet) in your wedding? Or are you planning a wedding and planning to include your pet? Send your story and pics to me at "blog (at) petfinder.com" -- or post them in the comments here. (Here's how to post a photo in the comments.)

We're thrilled to announce that Victoria Stilwell, internationally renowned dog trainer and star of the Animal Planet hit It's Me or the Dog, has offered to help one lucky Petfinder pup get adopted.

We've invited Petfinder shelter and rescue group members to send us a description of one of their adoptable dogs who has a behavior issue that could benefit from Victoria's advice.

We'll select finalists, and visitors will be able to vote for their favorite on Petfinder.com from March 4-22. The dog with the most votes will be announced on Petfinder.com beginning March 25.

The winning dog will get a complimentary telephone consultation with Victoria -- and best of all, when the dog is adopted, his or her new family will also have the chance to speak with Victoria to assist with the pup's transition into the new home.

We will detail the advice and progress here on the Petfinder blog so that more people and pets will benefit from Victoria's positive, reward-based training advice. We're huge fans of Victoria, a longtime pet-rescue advocate, and are delighted that she's lending her expertise to one of our adoptable pets. May the best (worst?) dog win!

I've got some great tips on how to make your own pet toys, but first, a very exciting announcement: Rachael Ray's Nutrish has pledged one pound of dog food to homeless pets for each card received on Dogfessions, Dogvice, Pugfessions/ Pugvice, and Bullyvice/ Bullyfessions!

The goal is to give THREE TONS of food to both Best Friends Animal Sanctuary and Sabbath Memorial Dog Rescue -- we need 6,000 cards! Please send in your cards today!

Now for this week's topic: Toys!

You know the old cliche that kids would rather play with the cardboard box than the expensive toy that came in it? The same holds true for pets. There are plenty of fun things around the house that you can turn into easy pet entertainment.

For cats: Ball up some used (but clean) tin foil and toss it around - even more fun, put a pinch of catnip inside the ball and watch your cat go nuts. Tape up a cardboard box and cut a cat-sized hole into it - toss in some catnip and you've got a cat condo that's good for at least a few days of fun.

For dogs: Put a couple of old tennis balls into a old (but clean) sock that you don't want any more. Tie the sock at the top and you've got a brand new toy! To entice your dog to use it, put some kibble or another smelly treat at the bottom of the sock before you tie it.

Have your own money-saving pet tips? Share them here! 

Check out the new Disney DVD, Space Buddies, in stores tomorrow (Feb. 3). If you buy the DVD, you're in for a treat: a full page about Petfinder in the DVD insert. And if you go to the Space Buddies Web site, you'll find a link to Petfinder.

Disney understands how much kids love animals, and is dedicated to promoting a message of pet adoption along with its animal-themed entertainment. Space Buddies features adorable talking golden retriever puppies on an intergalactic adventure -- and if your kids fall in love with the pups, there are more than 2,500 adoptable golden retrievers and golden retriever mixes listed on Petfinder!

February is Adopt-a-Rescued-Rabbit Month, which gives me a great excuse to give some press to one of the many non-dog-or-cat species available for adoption on Petfinder.

In fact, we've got more than 6,300 adoptable rabbits waiting for their forever homes in shelters and rescue groups around the country.

I have some friends with pet rabbits, and they are adorable, affectionate, funny and full of personality. They're also NOT low-maintenance pets! As House Rabbit Society president Kathleen Wilsbach says:

The ideal "rabbit person," in addition to being calm, patient and eager to get to know a rabbit on his own terms, must be willing to rabbit-proof an appropriate exercise area in the home to prevent damage from chewing.

Already have a rabbit or are thinking of getting one? Check out this great blog, The Rabbit Advocate, by Mary Lempert, a rabbit behavior consultant to the Boston MSPCA. She gives warm, thoughtful and uncritical advice to readers with questions about everything from a bunny with runny eyes to a woman whose male newfoundland dwarf has an unnatural attraction to her bunny slippers. Mary's goal is to keep rabbits out of shelters by educating their caregivers -- something we here at Petfinder are all about.

UPDATE:
Hi all, those puppies (and kittens) sure were cute. I don't know which puppies came from which shelters, but a full list of the shelters who provided animals can be found here.

Just click the link to go to that group's Petfinder homepage, then click on "our pet list" or some such link.

Many of the puppies and kittens have probably been adopted (Puppy Bowl was filmed a few weeks ago), but PLEASE DON'T GIVE UP! There are THOUSANDS of adorable puppies and kittens waiting to be adopted on Petfinder, so please keep looking to find your own MVP (most valuable pet)!--Emily

ORIGINAL POST:
I am sooooo excited for Super Bowl Sunday this year -- not because I'm a football fan, but because Animal Planet is once again counter-programming with its famous Puppy Bowl ... and this year, ALL the puppy players (as well as the kittens in the halftime show) are adoptable pets from Petfinder shelters and rescue groups!

Puppy Bowl V kicks off on Feb. 1 at 3 p.m. EST. Visit AnimalPlanet.com's Puppy Bowl page, where you can:

• see the full list of shelters and rescue groups who provided the puppies and kittens;
  
• meet Pepper the Parrot, the ambassador for Petfinder member group Phoenix Landing, who will open the game by singing the National Anthem;
  
• check out adorable portraits of all the puppy players.

For those of you who fans of both football AND adoptable pets, check out these Super Bowl star namesakes who are available for adoption on Petfinder:

• Polamalu (named after Steelers' strong safety Troy Polamalu) at W. PA Humane Society in Pittsburgh;
• JJ (like Cardinals' running back JJ Arrington) at Wilson County Humane Society in Wilson, NC;
• Willie (as in Steelers' running back Willie Parker) at Elmsford (NY) Animal Shelter;
• Lap-loving Larry (think Cardinals' wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald) at Earth Angels in Bronx, NY;

And of course, while Bruce Springsteen will be singing at the Super Bowl halftime show, Toms River (NJ) Township Animal Facility has its own star in Boss the "very friendly" rottweiler mix!