Have you checked out Maine's new dog newspaper yet? The second edition of the Downeast Dog News is out and available free at these locations.

Pick one up!

You can also subscribe and have it delivered right to your door.

The Downeast Dog News goals are to:

-Provide local dog news and information.
-Encourage and support dog-friendly businesses and Maine-made pet products and services.
-Cultivate a community of responsible dog ownership.
-Support animal welfare causes.

You can also submit your dog news, stories and rescue information right on line.

Congratulations and best of luck to publisher Holly Sherburne. I sincerely hope your paper is a huge success and I look forward to meeting you at:

Take Your Dog to Work Day
Congress Square
Friday June 23rd, 4pm-7pm

Holly will be there in person passing out lots of free papers.

In clear violation of Denver's Pitbull laws, a Texas man visiting his in laws house with his 3 dozen Pitbulls, was caught after neighbors complained about barking. He was in Denver for a few days while his new house was being completed in another town.

He may face up to 90 days in jail for each dog, as well as a $999. fine for each dog. His in laws are in legal hot water as well.

Now as you all know, I love dogs, but I can't imagine showing up for a visit with more than a few dogs to anyone's house, anywhere, anytime or for any reason. The man claims he did not know about the ordinance, but I think he would have to live under a rock not to know about Denver's greatly publicized Pit Bull ban. Every Pit owner I know has followed Denver's ban very carefully.

He also claims the dogs are show dogs. Anyone believe that? They don't look like any show dogs I have ever seen.

Read the rest of the stupidity and watch the video here

Meet Chuck.

Chuck is a Lab puppy belonging to NEADS, New England Assistance Dogs and here he is enjoying his

giant graduation biscuit!

Chuck just finished my 6 week manners class and jumped right into the next ongoing level class. Soon he will have his AKC Canine Good Citizen. He is welcome to continue to come to class at no charge for as long as his puppy raiser Karen has him. It is very important for future service dogs to get out and about as much as possible and Karen is making sure of that!

Well done Chuck and Karen!!!

Watch for Chuck and 5 other Neads pups along with many other local dogs at the annual Memorial Day Old Orchard Beach Parade Monday the 29th @ 1:00 PM.

Not sure if I will be walking in the parade just yet.

Welcome to Maine Fontana!

Fontana, a stray hound mix, adopted his owner Julie, from Raymond Maine while she was hiking on the Appalachian trail. The dog first ventured near her campsite on the Fontana Dam in North Carolina. A storm was brewing off in the distance and he was skittish at first, but soon warmed up to Julie and her friend.
They all hiked together for 70 miles with Fontana's nose glued to Julie's thigh much of the time.
Julie and her friend shared their food with the dog and Fontana hiked and feasted on lots of turkey jerky.
When she reached her ultimate destination the dog was turned over to animal control where he was vetted and cared for. Julie knew all along that she wanted to keep the dog, but first she had to wait three days to see if any one claimed him. She had no way to fly him him back and as soon as she got home, she and her husband turned right back around and drove 16 hours straight back through to adopt him in Newport, TN.
It took them another 19 hours of driving north to get Fontana home to Maine.

Fontana will be coming to class on Saturday and I will post more on him soon.

Fontana relaxing in the car on the trip up to his new home in Maine.

Thanks to Julie for the pictures.
I am looking forward to meeting you both!!!

The rain finally let up yesterday and we took a quick trip to the beach.

Do you know which one?

The first person to post the correct location in the comment section wins a MaineToday.com Frisbee.

I have opted not to take my new camera out in the rain, so instead I thought we could change the rules for contest number three, while at the same time provide a bit of a diversion from all this foul weather.

The winner will receive a Maine.today.com Frisbee and please include your email address so I can contact you for a mailing address.

Contest #3's winner will be awarded to the most clever "Where's Charlee" answer, and not the first person to post.

Captions, poems, chants, limericks, songs, Haiku's and the like are encouraged to help us all get back to the sunshine.
Extra credit may be awarded if you make me laugh out loud. You do NOT have to guess where the tree is!

All you out of staters, this is your big chance! You may enter more than once.

Comments for contest #3 will be accepted until Friday @ 12:00 noon.

Last year when A Dog's Life Blog was getting ready to launch, Maine Today asked for a picture of me with my dog to use in the heading. After looking through old photos, it didn't take long to realize that I would need to have a new photo taken. Several friends suggested that I hire a photographer and have the photo done right. Mom to three kids, I had in my possession a coupon for a free photo and free sitting from The Picture People. The Picture People will shoot people and pet portraits at the Maine Mall by appointment , but only before business hours and on some nights. Charlee has been there several times with the kids for holiday pictures and they did a great job.

This was a no brainer.

I got on the phone and made my appointment for the next day.

Charlee and I arrived clean and spruced at 9 AM sharp. In attendance at the mall that morning were various folks on their way to work, a good sized cleaning crew, and the usual huge contingent of folks walking the mall for exercise. No one was surprised to see a dog, but I did get tired explaining that I was not a woman with 7 cats.

The first time it happened I was sitting outside the Picture People waiting for them to open, when several well meaning folks stopped over to visit, admire the dog, chit-chat and tell me about the woman who had been sitting in the same exact bench as me the day before. Apparently she had numerous crates, filled with cats, and when time for her photo shoot arrived, there were so many curious onlookers gawking through the window, that people could barely get a glimpse of the woman with seven cats having her portrait taken.
"Oh no"! I told the nice old mall walker lady, "not me, I am not a 7 cat lady, I need to have pictures taken for work".
"Sure you do honey," she said as she patted my back and walked on.

That mall walker woman was one in a line of many who stopped by to recant the previous day's cat woman and tell me just how fascinating the process had been to watch. I in turn retold the story of how I once saw a photographer shoot 11 ferrets in a basket at a pet store. The photographer had a lot of helpers, and the finished product was amazing. All the ferrets looked as though they had been lounging the day away, when in fact the whole thing had been one big blur of fast ferrets and faster hands.

The walker contingent all assured me that they would come back to see how my picture was coming along and wave hello in the window. I just smiled and wanted to run away with my tail tucked, but I needed my picture so I forced myself to stay. No picture, no blog.

I thought long and hard (again) about submitting the above photo in which my brother photo shopped my head with my dogs, but too many people told me it was scary and looked more like Invasion of the Body Snatchers than a dog trainer getting inside a dog's brain.
Not wanting to scare people away before they even clicked the blog link, I forced myself to stay and wait for my turn.

Finally the manager arrived and we went in. I explain to him that I had called on the phone and I needed a release form that says I can use the picture for promotional purposes. He replies, "don't be nervous, we have lots of people who come in and have portraits with there pets, just yesterday I shot a woman with her seven cats, and last month we had a 4H group bring in a pony".
"No kidding"! I exclaimed.
We both agreed that a pony in a mall was much more exciting then me, my dog and the woman with 7 cats put together.
"That is really great" I reply, "but really, I love my dog and all but REALLY this photo is for work". He nods his head in disbelief and goes to get the release form, while recanting the last weeks pet visitors. Woman with 7 cats, woman with 10 cats, woman with 4 cats, woman with 6 cats. No, I stop him, I am NOT the woman with 7 cats-I don't even have any cats and I am allergic to cats.

I ask him to use the back room for the shoot, but he insists that he has to shoot me in the front window. In no time there was 20 or so of my new best senior citizen walking friends waving to me outside the big window and waiting patiently for my photo shoot to begin and I am now officially mortified. See-

In the end, I didn't have to use this picture, because we had the good sense to use my logo dog, but I say again...
I am not the woman with 7 cats seen
here...
I am allergic to cats and the only one I have is this ninja kitty. Really!

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Don't forget this is Kitten season. Many local shelters are holding Kitten Showers next weekend to raise much needed funds and awareness.
May 21st in Westbrook at the Animal Refuge League

and
May 2oth at the Kennebunkport Shelter

Pet Casting Call: A nationwide search is happening now through May 29
for a new "spokesdog" for Old Navy stores. In the late 90s, Old Navy
featured its beloved pooch, Magic, and now they want to find a new
Magic to star in their holiday 2006 advertising campaign and make
history. U.S. and Canadian dog owners can enter photos of their dogs
and a personality profile at www.oldnavy.com/magic or attend one of
four casting call events in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago and
New York City. Then a panel of celebrity judges including Katherine
Heigl (Grey's Anatomy), Alfre Woodard (Desperate Housewives), Malcolm
David Kelley (Lost), Kristin Chenoweth (The West Wing and RV), Betty
White (The Golden Girls) and dog trainer Andrea Arden will select six
dog finalists who will be showcased in more than 950 Old Navy stores.
From June 23 through July 7, people can vote for their favorite dog
star.

I received this photo this morning in an email from a friend who would rather not be identified as a sender of pug pornography over the web. I apologize if I am breaking any copyright laws, but this was just too funny not to share.
If any one knows the history of this photo, please come forward!

Now that you have seen the dirty pugs, check out this clean one.