Paw Print
Champions of the Heart.Passions and Impressions... all things canine, feline, equine and more.
Senator Ted Kennedy
I have never been a huge Kennedy clan fan, although I’ve always felt incredibly sympathetic to the magnitude of tragedy one family has had to endure. One of the haunting visions engraved in my memory is Caroline and John Jr. at their father’s burial, still heart-wrenching. Then, of course, the sudden death of John Jr.—wow—enough already! Now, Ted Kennedy, the patriarch. He’s fortunate the seizure provided warning and a diagnosis. I sincerely hope the setback brings out the “lion” in him and he beats it, or at least lives another 10 good years on the water.
Why would I be writing in a pet blog about Senator Kennedy and a brain tumor?
Well, not knowing much about him other than his political views and recognizing his strength as patriarch for the Kennedy clan, I have been touched this week in seeing more of his human side ... his wife, and his two beautiful Portuguese water dogs that he appears to take with him every opportunity he can. I’ve seen photos of the dogs with him at work, at home and of course, Ted’s and the dogs’ real passion, on the water, sailing.
I’m pleased to see a man, certainly with a history of personal success and far more than his share of tragedy, have such love and compassion for his dogs; I wish you well, Senator Kennedy!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 05/23/08 at 06:56 AM
Ed Norris Animal Talk
I happened to be in the car Friday afternoon and somehow my radio was on the Ed Norris show, I’d always enjoyed listening to he and Maynard mid-day so I listened for a while. The topic also happened to be one of interest to me other than a lot of explanation on the making of foie gras - disgusting!
Anyway, the theme from callers and the hosts was basically human vs. animal and human vs. PETA.
I came in as the discussion was in play and I’m assuming the unfortunate demise of Eight Belles last weekend sparked some of the dialogue but what I did hear Ed say that always upsets me was “a dog is just a dog.” I do understand the difference between a canine and a human but I have to say there are a lot of canines that have earned the right and respect of their owners and community to be treated as well as humans which is not something we can say about all humans. Ed also stated, “I love my dog, but if my dog bit my son the dog would be fertilizing my lawn,” really Ed? Under any circumstance, like maybe your son was mistreating the dog? I understand that animals can turn and become aggressive but that is generally not the choice they make on their own without some provoking - again, NOT the same with the human race. And why discuss human vs. animal; why not human and animal supporting each other?
Ed, please pick on O’Malley all you want, but give the animals a break.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 05/12/08 at 01:18 AM
Caller ID…Woof Woof
There’s a woman that I’ve met many times in the neighborhood when walking my boys that I knew dog sat, let dogs out during the day while their owners were at work, etc. and we chatted this past weekend while my dog played with the two black labs and beagle she was sitting. She referred to someone in the neighborhood and of course the only way I could source that person was to ask if they had a dog since I know all of the dogs names, but very few of their owners names—once I have the dog name I know who they are, where they live, etc. She laughed about my lack of human connection and went on to tell me that she has her cellphone programmed so that when one of her human customers calls her it’s the dog or cat photo that appears on the phone and it barks or meows! How cute is that? Not sure about the bark and meow, but I love that the dog and/or the cat photo is used as the caller ID.
If I needed help watching my boys and cat I would definitely call someone like Hope; her work is her passion, not just a job.
Comments (0)Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 05/10/08 at 12:45 AM
Eight Belles
I worked at the Sun for ten years beginning in the mid-eighties and each year I spent an entire weekend entertaining out-of-town customers Preakness weekend, beginning with Black Eye Susan Day on Friday. It was enjoyable spending time at Pimlico and in Corporate Village (the more civilized part of the infield) and watching the beautiful horses run, although I was always pleased when the last customer headed home Sunday afternoon. Somewhere, somehow, since I left the Sun in 1995 I have developed a fear of WATCHING horse racing, either at My Lady’s Manor race or Shawan Downs. I saw at least one horse go down and kinda like eating fish—once I get a bone I’m DONE. The last time I saw a horse go down was at Shawan Downs and it was the LAST race I’ve been able to watch live. A horse down instantly zaps the sport and fun out of it for me, so I no longer choose to watch. Last night when I was reading the trailer on the news and saw that the favorite Big Brown won the Derby and the filly Eight Belles came in second, but had to be euthanized, I had the same experience I’m sure anyone that actually watched the race had, happy and then immediately devastated. After a restless night this morning I HAD to read the details; what could have gone wrong? How does this happen?... Why?...Why?...Why? How does a horse run a great race and then break down when galloping off? Of course I did not know this filly, the owner, the trainer or the jockey, but I do know it’s tragic. My heart breaks over all of the above; Larry Jones, Eight Belles’ trainer, left his seat in the stands to go down to the track and celebrate his filly’s finish only to find out she had to be euthanized; that’s tough stuff even if you don’t have a racing phobia. Eight Belles’ jockey, Gabriel Saez, only 20 years old, said “Mr. Larry, they had to put her down,” then immediately left the track without changing his silks. Jones somehow mustered the strength to say, “She ran the race of her life. She went out in glory.”
It’s difficult to say whether Eight Belles was better off than Barbaro, who fought for his life for eight months before being euthanized. It’s absolutely not hard to say that it’s very sad.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 05/04/08 at 05:12 PM
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