This is Moby, a 7-month-old pit bull that I just adopted from the Buster Foundation.

This pictures doesn’t really show his goofiness, but it does show how long his legs are.  This is one lanky teenage dog!  It’ll be fun to watch him grow.

He’s got an amazing temperament.  Nothing bothers him and he wants to be friends with everyone - dogs, cats, and humans (and other species, too, I’m sure, but we haven’t come across them yet).  He’s already fitting in perfectly with the rest of the pack. 

I’ll see how he does in training classes, but he could be a candidate for therapy dog work…in all my, um, spare time.

Doesn’t Indy look happy?

Well, he’d be even happier if he had a home of his own.  He’s been moved to Michigan Humane Society’s Rochester Hills shelter, so if you know of anyone looking for a slightly older gentleman, tell them to check him out.

He really is a good dog.

 Remember that kitten who I said had the biggest feet I’d ever seen on a female?  Well, Turns out that she was a he after all (never occurred to me to check!)

They opted not to go from Susie to Boy Named Sue; I think they went with a more standard boy name like Sammy or something like that.  He was adopted and I’m sure he’s busy raising hell in his new home.

So, I found the dog that’s right for me.

Now I’m waiting to see if my application is approved.  I have every reason to think that it will be, but until the dotted line is signed (and the dog is on my doorstep), there’s always that twinge of worry that something will go wrong.  That I won’t be chosen.

How does this carry through the agent metaphor?  Perfectly.  I’ve gone from being the one in control - discriminating from among so many candidates - to making an offer.  Once the offer is out there, the control bounces back to the other side. The agent has gotten excited about the project, but now it’s up to the author to decide if it’s really going to happen.  Just like it’s up to the rescuer now if they’re going to accept my offer of adoption.  It’s up to them to decide whether I really am the right one out of all the potential people out there who might make an offer.

So, now I wait…

And hopefully I’ll have good news to post soon.

I’ve been thinking about adopting a dog lately.  The girls are getting older and it was tough losing Wild Bill a few months ago, so it might be nice to have a young animal in the house.  I have a general idea of what I want - a young male, most likely a pit bull or a large mixed breed, but maybe a German Shepherd or Rottweiler.  He needs to have the right temperament to fit in with the other animals in my house and my lifestyle.  The other dogs need to approve (especially Juno).

Since I’ve spent a lot of time in rescue, it’s not as if I don’t know where to find a young male dog.  I know lots of people in the rescue community.  Heck, if I really wanted to, it would probably be pretty easy to drive down the “right” streets and have one cross my path.  Even though I have some criteria in my mind, I know that it can’t be just any young male dog (even if my dogs like him).  I also know that the right dog might end up being smaller or older than I’m envisioning, maybe even another female in the end.  I’m keeping an eye out, but it might be awhile before I actually adopt.

There are many wonderful and worthy candidates out there.  But it has to be the right match for me. I’ll know it’s the right one when I see it.

Starting to sound familiar to you querying authors out there?

Hearing things like “Your book is wonderful, but I didn’t fall in love…” and other various assurances that you have talent and a great voice and a viable hook - but you’re not getting any offers - is like being the adorable, friendly puppy that people keep passing up.  Anyone who has worked in a shelter or rescue has seen dogs that were perfect, but for unknown reasons, took a long time to get adopted.

It’s a big commitment to bring a new animal home.  Sure, there are any number of dogs that would fit into my household that I would care about and probably end up loving as much as the others…but when you think about living with the dog for 10+ years and all the time and money it takes to care for them, you want to be sure about it.  Especially when there are so many out there who need a home.  You can’t adopt every one that crosses your path or you wouldn’t do any of them justice.

I imagine that this is how agents (and editors) feel.

There’s a lot of promise and a lot of need kenneled up in the slush pile, but there’s only so much that any one person can take on, so it has to feel Right.  As frustrating as it can be to get passed up by agents, they can’t take you in just because you’re cute or seem to get along with their other books.  They need to feel that conviction that they’ll still love your book when it has to go out in the middle of the night or when it eats their shoes. 

It’s a commitment for the lifetime of your book…and as tempting as it is to want to shout “Just give me a home!  It’ll all work out!”, you really do want to be loved.  No one wants to be the book that is taken in only to be chained up in the yard and forgotten.  (Not that I’d ever do that with a dog, but work with me here on the broader metaphor.)

So, for all of you stray books out there, I hope your forever home finds you soon.  And for the homeless dogs, I am taking you into consideration. 

Maybe we’ll find a match soon.

Indy got his bandage off from his ACL surgery…hopefully the staples will be coming out soon.

I hope he doesn’t have too much of a hard time getting adopted since he’s an older dog and one of those big black dogs that people pass over.  He’s a really nice dog and has managed to be rather silly even while restricted to his crate.  He knows how to relax, but he also has a lot of energy, so he has plenty of good years left.  I do agree with the humane society’s assessment that he’s better off without cats (Enigma, Ophelia and Jebby concur!).

Little Miss Olive seems to have finally kicked her bladder infection and it appears that it was just an infection, not bladder cancer.  I’m perfectly happy if she continues on for quite awhile pretending that she doesn’t have mammary cancer!

Juno’s new food has been working really well for her sensitive tummy!

Turtle’s increased thyroid medication dosage helped her find her waistline!

Last, but not least…Sierra’s allergies are laying low.

Good Dogs!

It’s not just lead and it’s not just China…and it’s not just human toys.

Toxins in children’s toys have been all over the news.  Various independent organizations have begun testing pet toys, too.  Some of them (unfortunately, some of my dogs’ favorites!) are full of lead!

Why should we care?

Obviously, we’re concerned about our pets.  More pets are dying of cancer now than ever before.  Pet toys are made to be chewed on, which means a more direct ingestion of any toxins.  But this is also a potential risk to the humans in the house, too.  The toys are handled by family members (sometimes inadvertently chewed on by children, too) and as they’re broken down, whatever is in the materials becomes part of the household dust that we inhale. Not a pretty picture for anyone involved.

Hopefully we’ll all be hearing more about this soon as the pet toy manufacturers come clean (or are forced clean) and give us safer alternatives!

I thought I’d take a minute to weigh-in on this story, mostly because just about everything I’ve heard/read involves a whole lot of conclusion jumping. (The link above goes to the official show site where you can read Ellen’s blog and find her updates.  Choosing this link was not choosing a side, it’s just one that was easy to find and straight to one of the sources).

It seems like people are either coming out and attacking Ellen for her irresponsible behavior around this dog, or going after the rescue (and by extension, all rescues) for taking the dog away. But there are a whole lot of unknowns.

1) The Cats - supposedly the dog was given away because it was not a good match for the cats.

Rescue Concerns: I assume they knew about the cats.  I’d hope they even did a home visit where they saw the dog interact with the cats. Was Ellen educated on acclimating her resident pets with a new dog? If someone is going to give a dog away within a week, usually something comes up in conversation to let you know they’re very worried about everyone getting along.

Ellen Concerns: A week is rarely enough time to know if animals are going to get used to each other, especially when dealing with cats.  If the dog tried to kill one of the cats or the cats were having kitty panic attacks, then it’s understandable.  Otherwise, it’s common to need at least 2-4 weeks of controlled interactions to let everyone settle in.

2) The Transaction - Ellen paid something like $800, which in some sources said was supposed to include training, but did not include neuter.

Rescue Concerns: The dog was adopted out unneutered? And it wasn’t followed up on within a week to make sure it was neutered (at which time they would have learned about the problems)? I don’t have a problem with the amount of money.  I don’t know a single rescue that doesn’t lose money on their dogs, so if you have an adopter that is able and willing to pay more, then there’s nothing wrong about that…but to not even neuter the dog?

Ellen Concerns: I don’t know what the expectations were for the training, but I’m not a big fan of doggie boot camp, where the owners aren’t involved.  Most dogs do not listen equally to everyone they come across - for some even small voice inflections will throw them off, for others, they need someone who has established guidelines and hierarchy with them. I think sending a dog off to be trained can help them get a sense of basic commands, but you still need to learn how to be a trainer yourself.  You need to practice with the dog and expect to have to get the rules straight all over again once they’re home.  I’m not sure how much this was a factor, but for any future adoption/training deals, there needs to be realistic expectations.

3) The Takeback - Ellen gave the dog to her hairdresser, the rescue took it back because they have a no small dogs with small kids policy and Ellen didn’t follow her contract

Rescue Concerns: I understand not wanting people to screw with your contract, but was the end result a good home for the dog? Did they check it out or just take the dog away to prove a point?  Would they have proven the same point whether or not they were dealing with a celebrity? Is the no kids policy (which lots of places have for small dogs) relevant to this particular dog? Finally, how did this all go down? Most rescuers do wonderful work, but I have seen some who have a tendency to get sanctimonious.  Was the situation explained to Ellen and the hairdresser or was it all just confiscation and disparaging remarks? I feel like a little conversation could have gone a long way here…

Ellen Concerns: Yeah, the contract should have been read and followed. Breaking down on the show was probably not the best way to go because it has resulted in a lot of bad feelings toward rescues, which was probably not her intention as an animal lover. Some people claim the whole thing was contrived.  If she was using her celebrity against the rescue group, then that’s as bad as if they were using her celebrity against her in their actions…it should be about the dog.

Which is really the whole point that no one is paying attention to…what was in the best interest of the dog? Sure, I’d be annoyed if someone gave away one of my rescues without telling me.  But the dog had been in the house for two weeks already.  If it was a good home, I’m not sure I’d jump to take the dog away just on principle. As a rescuer, as with most things in life, it’s important to have guidelines and reasons for the decisions that you make.  But it’s also equally important to be prepared to be flexible.  I think everyone in rescue has had people who didn’t look great on paper but turned out to the best homes, and others who had a flawless application, but were horrible pet owners. Dogs are living things, and each one is different, so sometimes there’s only so much you can do to squeeze their needs into a checkbox on a form.

Like I said up front, I don’t think there are enough details out there about this situation, I can only hope that in the rescuer/Ellen/hairdresser triangle, they’re truly keeping the dog’s interests in mind.

Thank you for holding Michael Vick accountable for his actions.  Hopefully the consequences for his misdeeds will be as much of an example to others as his actions on the field were.  It’s not only the dogs and their advocates that thank you, but many others who respect the integrity of professional sports and our legal system.

Next week, I am bringing a stack of books up north with me…

 Marley & Me

The Dog Walker

Crazy for You

Around the Next Corner

Walking in Circles Before Lying Down

I’m excited to catch up on dog fiction, especially because I didn’t know about most of these books (except Marley & Me, of course) until I started actively looking for similar books for my upcoming pitch workshop.  I avoided reading them while I was finishing up my manuscript, but now it’s time to get to know “the competition.”

If you’ve been following the Michael Vick dogfighting case - or even if you’ve just turned on the tv, opened a newspaper, etc. - then you’ve probably seen references to Vick considering a plea deal.  His buddies flipped on him, so it seems he has nowhere to go.

Of course, the big question is: What will his punishment be?  Will he serve time?  (hope so) Will the NFL ever let him play again? (hope not).  Many articles have said that the biggest threat to Vick’s football career is the gambling aspect of dog fighting.  So…if he hadn’t laid bets, then he’d be free to carry on as if the abuse, carnage, and felony had never happened?

I understand that gambling is a big concern to the sport, that they can’t worry about players throwing game results and all of that.  But why can’t the NFL hold up its own Code of Conduct (that has a section on criminal activity)?  Are they so afraid of the sport declining if they held their players to standards (like staying within the law)?  Like it or not, athletes are role models.  The publicity aspect is not kept hidden when you join a professional sports team.  In fact, the more public a figure you are, the more valuable you are for selling tickets and the brand of your team and sport.  I’d like to see the NFL stand on a little moral ground and refuse to keep criminals on a pedestal of fame and fortune.

 Charles Barkley famously said, “Just because I can dunk a basketball doesn’t mean I should raise your kids.”  Fair enough.  But I think the athletes as role models issue goes the other way, too:  Just because you can dunk a basketball (pass a football) doesn’t mean the laws don’t apply to you.