It seemed only fair -- given our lunch stop in George W. Bush's hometown yesterday -- that Ace and I stop in Bill Clinton's hometown of Hope, Arkansas, today.

In honor of the 42nd president we chowed down on some footlong chili cheese dogs at the Sonic, a drive-in restaurant across the street from Clinton's first boyhood home.

The home and non-profit museum, operated by the Clinton Birthplace Foundation, normally doesn't allow dogs, but the curator on duty yesterday (who has five dogs and 14 cats) was agreeable to letting Ace on the grounds for a quick photo in front of Clinton's home.

Ace sniffed around, laid down on the wooden front porch for a bit and, uh, left a little liquid reminder of himself behind before we left. It seems Ace, like hope, springs eternal.

We stopped for the night in Forrest City, Ark. In the past nine days, Ace has slept seven different places.  He's got to be getting a little confused -- and wondering just where home is nowadays.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 9:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

On the outskirts of George W. Bush's hometown, Ace got a lesson in a couple of Texas traditions.

He met his first tumbleweed -- and didn't care much for it at all, especially when the wind made it come to life and inch along the pavement.

Ace jumped back and decided to have nothing more to do with it.

He also had his first taste of Texas barbecue, entirely different from the North Carolina barbecue with which he is already familar.

Here at KD's -- a huge cinder block warehouse with wonderful smells wafting out -- I saved a couple of bites of meat from my sandwich for Ace.

He wolfed them down, then licked the empty Styrofoam box for another ten minutes.

This was in Odessa, just down the road from Midland, whose welcome signs tout the city as George W. Bush's hometown.

It's not the most scenic part of Texas, mostly oil wells and -- new since the last time I passed through -- windmills.

We got as far as Abilene today, and opted for another La Quinta Inn (Spanish for "We allow dogs and don't charge you extra for them.") It's also Spanish for "free wireless internet," and lots of other things, according to their ad campaign.

There's still a long way to go -- and a lot of Texas to go -- but Ace is holding up well, and I've cleared a big enough hole in the luggage pile that there's no longer a wall between us, and I can see him when he sits up.

Mostly, though, he's sleeping.

Driving through Texas does that to you.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

We're zipping through Texas today and -- Texas being Texas -- most likely tomorrow, too.

We'll be sure and keep our eyes open for these two good old boys and their seemingly amazing horse, Patches.

Actually, I'm only guessing they're from Texas. For all I know, they could be Oklahomans.

So far, we've seen a lot of dogs sticking their heads out the windows, and riding in the back of pick-up trucks, but no horses in convertibles.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

This old girl is April -- the same one mentioned in the attempted Christmas poem below.

She belonged to a homeless man who lived with her in his car. Realizing she deserved better, he turned her into a local animal shelter, which -- since local animal shelters often have trouble adopting older pets out -- turned her over to Best Friends Animal Society, the Kanab, Utah animal sanctuary we'll be featuring here, off and on, for the next week.

April lives in an octagonal stucco building who residents are all up in years.

At Best Friends, April is available for adoption. But should that not happen, she will live her life out there, as many other animals do.

For a look at some of them, check out this Best Friends video.

Best Friends calls itself the country's largest pet sanctuary -- both in terms of the number of pets, 1,500, and the size of its spread. It sits on 33,000 magnificent acres in Southern Utah and its rocky red hills were once used to film Westerns.

Best Friends has 400 employees, assisted by about 4,500 more people who volunteer there every year -- some of whom are visiting the area on vacation.

We'll be writing more about the organization in the days ahead -- as time permits during our continuing road trip east.

Ace and I left Phoenix today and made it as far as Las Cruces, New Mexico. Tomorrow, we start pushing through Texas.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 10:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

T’was the night before Christmas and all through the sanctuary
Not a creature was stirring, not even a canary

Paw stockings were hung next to kennels with care
By the staff of Best Friends, an organization quite rare

The dogs all were nestled all snug in their beds
While visions of milk bones danced in their heads

The cats in their houses; the birds in their nests
Had just settled down for a long winter’s rest

The donkeys were dozing; the horses asleep
Not even the pot- bellied pigs made a peep.

One thousand five hundred pets call this home
This big spread in Utah, in Angel Canyon

Cast away or mistreated, their backgrounds are varied
But many came here from places less merry

There are cats that were hoarded and dogs used for fighting
And horses gone lame, their best days behind them

Surrendered or dumped or seized from bad masters,
Some displaced by hurricanes and other disasters

There’s April, a dog, I’m happy to’ve met her
Whose poor homeless owner thought she deserved better

There’s Angel a horse, a miniature one
Who got hit by a trailer that broke most her bones

Jack’s a most handsome pot-bellied pig
Who seemed quite excited to show off his digs

He has pig eyes that twinkle and a giant pot belly
That shakes when he walks like a bowl full of jelly

There’s also Trixie and Kona, and Marmaduke and Judah
There’s Mr. Hope, Zeke, and Bill and Luna

Volunteers on vacation come from far and from near
To help with the chores and spread cheer all year

They walk, feed and groom; they clean out the coops,
And they scoop away, scoop away, scoop away poop

It’s heartening to know that for each Michael Vick
There’a a thousand-fold more folks who treat dogs like St. Nick

At Best Friends it’s Christmas for pets all year round
From cathouse to horse pen, to what they call Dogtown

It’s a non-profit group, and it runs on donations.
It’s for no more homeless pets, no more euthanasia

Santa comes and he goes, and some doubt he is real
In world that is troubled, some lose their zeal

But pets are warm in their beds on this Christmas Eve
It’s places like Best Friends that make you believe

Posted by John Woestendiek at 12:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

The road to the Grand Canyon's North Rim was closed (thanks to the two readers who wrote to point that out) so Ace instead explored the majestic wonders of Zion National Park in southern Utah.

Zion allows dogs on leashes, and one trail is specified as dog-friendly. Hiking along that one, we ran into four other dogs, including a black lab named Finn, whose owner was visiting from Los Angeles to spend Christmas doing volunteer work at Best Friends Animal Society, outside Kanab.

Ace took a chilly dip in the Virgin River before we hopped back in the car. Unlike the Grand Canyon, you can drive right through the middle of Zion, and in some cases through the middle of the rocks.

We saw some magnificent rock formations, in hues of cinammon, salmon and sweet potato orange, some smothered in snow that melted like marshmallow topping.

Ace now has three national parks under his belt (collar?), leading me to wonder if we should try and see them all. In the afternoon we drove on to Cameron, Ariz. Tomorrow it's on to Phoenix where Christmas will be anything but white. Here's wishing you a merry one.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 10:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Ace had to spend the morning in the motel during my visit to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary -- with 1,500 dogs, cats and other animals already they don't really need any additional four-legged visitors -- so by the time I got back he was raring to go.

At Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, about 20 miles outside Kanab, we found an excellent place to work off the energy he'd accumulated after being cooped up in the car for two days.

The park is a huge expanse of gigantic of coral colored sand, eroded from exposed Navajo sandstone and whipped into mountainous dunes by high desert winds.

Coupled with sheer cliffs that grow a deeper red as the sun goes down, it was as if every direction I turned was a photo out of Arizona Highways -- even though this is Utah.

To Ace, it was a giant playground, and he got an intense workout running up and down the dunes until he wore himself out and laid down, sphinx-like, in the sand.

Was he on his leash -- as park rules require -- all the time he was there? Let's just say he maybe accidentally got off once or twice.

If the setting looks familiar, it may be because it was used as the location for filming "The Greatest Story Ever Told." Producers chose the site because they thought it resembled Egypt.

As for my visit to Best Friends, stay tuned. You can read about it here all next week.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 10:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Whipped by snow and howling winds as we crossed Utah, we pulled into Kanab after dark, grabbed a quick dinner and hunkered down for the night.

Ace got plastered with snow at every stop we made during the day, and he seemed happy to stay inside at the hotel, after jumping up on the counter and meeting Lily, the front desk clerk's coonhound.

Other than that, Aces's high point of the day was probably when I returned to the car after lunch at Denny's near Salt Lake City.  I had "Moons Over My Hammy" -- a meal that takes away all your dignity when you order it, but more than makes up for it in cholesterol.

It was more than I could eat, so Ace got a quarter moon.

Once in southern Utah, we saw some beautiful stretches of countryside, especially around Bryce Canyon, where the setting sun turned the bluffs -- about the only thing not blanketed in white -- a deep pink.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 11:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

We encountered this plastic beast in a gas station parking lot in Fillmore, Utah -- and despite a strong urge to straddle it, I managed to heed the warning sign.

I'm assuming it was OK to photograph the beast, because there was no sign stating otherwise.

What is it with all the signs? From diarrhea in the pool (see previous entry) to "All dogs must be on leash" it seems there's nowhere where somebody isn't telling us what to do or not do.

It's as if we can't be trusted to know how to properly behave. A couple of hours after the bear who mustn't be mounted, I pulled over to take a photo at a closed-for-the-season motel. There was another sign, in the shape of a squatting dog with the words "Don't go here" on it.

We didn't.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Another tale is coming to a close; it's time to leave Missoula, Montana.

And that is not easy.

You see, I've fallen in love. Let me tell you about her.

She's a natural beauty -- breathtaking, in fact -- and though she's seen some tough times, been ravaged over the years by greedy and thoughtless men, she is still mostly pure and in large part untainted.

Her beauty is riveting, but it's her spirit and attitude that make me think that I might want to be with her forever.

She is easy going, free of pretensions, tough, determined, plain-talking, for the most part, a country girl.

Yes, she is vast -- huge, in fact, but, as they say, that just means there's more of her to love.

By now you've figured out I'm talking about Montana (the state, not Hannah).

Now Missoula and Montana are two entirely different things, Missoula being the state's liberal, cultural, intellectual oasis -- but one where there's no pressure to drink from it if you don't want to.

Missoula is also the dog-friendliest place I've ever lived -- one where you aren't constantly reminded to put your dog on a leash, where people don't give you puckered-mouth looks of disapproval if your dog is acting like a dog.

I've never seen a town so crazy about dogs -- and that's a good thing. I think there's probably a high correlation between how well a town treats its dogs and how well it treats its people.

Here's a perfect example.

So thank you Missoula, for having Ace and me and making us so comfortable.

And thank you, Montana, for capturing my soul.

They call it the Treasure State.

And that I will.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Ace and I are heading home to Baltimore, starting tomorrow, and once again you're invited along for the ride -- this time a considerably longer ride than on the way to Montana.

We'll start off heading directly south from Missoula, with our first day of driving ending in Pocatello, Idaho. Why Pocatello? Because we like the name. From there, we're headed to Best Friends, the animal sanctuary in Kanab, Utah, where we'll visit for a day before heading on to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

After that, we'll spend Christmas in the Phoenix area, home to a father and brother (of me, not Ace). After Christmas, we'll press on through Texas, bound for Alabama, home of my son. (If you're wondering why we're taking such a southerly route, well, that, as they say, is another blog entry. I'll explain later.)

After that, Ace and I will push on to North Carolina to visit a couple of days with my mother before one more day of driving to reach Baltimore somewhere around 2008.

All told, it will be 3,866 miles, and about 54 hours of driving -- or so Mapquest tells me. Please feel free to join us. The more the merrier. To make following along easier, here's a handy key to the map above. 

A:Missoula, Montana

B. Pocatello, Idaho

C. Kanab, Utah, home of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

D. Cameron, Arizona, after a trip to the Grand Canyon's North Rim

E. Phoenix

F. El Paso

G. Dallas

H. Florence, Alabama

I. Winston-Salem, N.C.

J. Baltimore

,

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Just a little item from the "What if ..." department.

What if those fines to be collected by the NFL against five Atlanta Falcons players after they showed support for disgraced quarterback Michael Vick were passed on to a worthy dog-related cause?

I'm not sure what the NFL normally does with its fine money, but what if it -- and maybe a little extra -- was forked over to, say, one of the organizations caring for Vick's former dogs?

Go down two entries to find the list, if that helps.

The five Falcons' displays came during the Falcons nationally televised loss to the New Orleans Saints last Monday.

Tight end Alge Crumpler, cornerbacks DeAngelo Hall and Chris Houston and wide receiver Roddy White were fined $10,000 each. Hall and Crumpler wore black eye strips with writing on them supporting Vick. Hall also carried a poster supporting Vick which he taped to the back of the bench where players sit. White wore a "Free Mike Vick" shirt underneath his jersey, which he showed after scoring a touchdown. Wide receiver Joe Horn was fined $7,500 for pulling up White's jersey.

It has not been made clear exactly what Houston did to violate the code.

Vick was sentenced to 23 months in jail on federal dogfighting charges Monday.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

If you're not checking out our readers' comments section, you could be missing some fine ideas -- like Anne's proposal for what to do with former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick's former estate in Surry County, Va.

Vick has begun his 23-month sentence for dogfighting, and his house (pictured to the right in an AP photo) is on the auction block.

Anne (a regular Mutts reader) wrote: "There's enough infrastructure there that you could easily construct warm, comfortable buildings for dogs of all shapes and sizes. There's lots of outdoor, woodsy space. Large areas could be fenced off so that dogs could run and play in wooded areas.

Anne continued: "There's a building that could be adapted as- -- oh, maybe a veterinary clinic. I've always envisioned a large building with easy-to-clean floors and runs opening off it so that dogs could either be sociable together or have a quiet area according to their needs. I'd add a large heavy-duty washer and dryer for their bedding...a place to mix up their food...a bathing and grooming area...every amenity they might enjoy.

"...There would be plenty of indoor and outdoor space to introduce prospective adoptive families to the dogs in a comfortable, natural way. It's so pleasant to imagine a place of such dark horror for dogs being turned into a place of peace and safety for them -- a sort of a five-star rescue facility. I'll have to get busy and win that Powerball. Sigh."

Five stars and a wag of the tail, to Anne for her creative, if unfunded, idea. To see her full comments, and others, click here.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (11)
        

Three of the 47 remaining American Pit Bull Terriers in the Michael Vick civil forfeiture are alive, well and living in Baltimore.

The dogs were taken in by Recycled Love, a rescue organization operated by Baltimore's Sallyann Jennings.

Recycled Love is one of eight organizations that a federal judge approved to receive the dogs.

Many are expected to be eligible for future adoption by the public.

The other seven organizations where Vick's pit bulls have been placed, according to WXIA-TV in Atlanta are:

Best Friends Animal Society, Kanab, Utah (22 dogs); BAD RAP, Oakland, Calif. (10 dogs);
Richmond Animal League, Richmond, VA (4 dogs); Georgia S.P.C.A. Suwanee, GA.; (3 dogs);
SPCA of Monterey County, CALIF.; (3 dogs); Animal Rescue of Tidewater, Chesapeake, Va..; (1 dog); and Our Pack, Inc. (1 dog).

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

Pets of Bel Air, the Los Angeles pet shop investigated by the Humane Society of the United States issued this response yesterday to the allegations it was buying puppies from puppy mills:

Dear Customers, Friends and Neighbors,

We are horrified by the recent video released by the Humane Society of the United States showing footage of puppy mills. We do not condone puppy mills; we would never knowingly buy a dog from a puppy mill; and we are appalled by the possibility that this may have happened. We are investigating all of our sources so that we continue to nurture the finest and most reputable dogs from the best breeders, a practice that we’ve held central to our business since we opened nine years ago.

To the best of our knowledge, our beautiful puppies purchased out-of-state are from USDA approved pet breeders. We rely on our governmental agency to be sure that these breeders are inspected. All of our puppies are given health checks by our store veterinarian when they become part of our family and before joining their new families. Our puppies are all sold with a health warranty, and are not available to go home to their new families until they have been cleared by a veterinarian.

It has been brought to our attention that our permit to sell animals has expired and we have remedied this issue. The permit fee went inadvertently unpaid due to a clerical error. Upon completion of an inspection by Animal Services, which is scheduled for Thursday, Pets of Bel Air will reopen.

Pets of Bel Air has been a trusted neighborhood business for many years. Every employee at Pets of Bel Air is an animal lover, as evidenced by the care and love we show our puppies and kittens each day; the healthy environment we provide; and the respect we show each of you. We continue to be a community pet store you can trust.

Thank you for your continued support.

Pets of Bel Air

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (16)
        

What do Britney Spears, Paris Hilton, Denise Richards, Demi Moore and Robin Williams have in common -- outside of being wealthy celebrities, of course?

All are among the clientele of Los Angeles' upscale Pets of Bel Air, a chi chi pet boutique that provides grooming services and sells pets -- some of them, the Humane Society of the United States says, from puppy mills.

An undercover investigation by HSUS -- a non-profit agency that is (pardon my language) kicking some major butt of late, and doing a fine job of telling the world about it -- found that employees of the Beverly Hills store are encouraged to lie to customers about their animals' origins and medical condition.

The investigation took place earlier this year, and is part of an ongoing campaign by HSUS against puppy mills that has included undercover investigations, public awareness campaigns, lawsuits and the legislative process.

About 2,500 of the nation's 9,000 pet stores sell puppies, and the HSUS estimates 2 million to 4 million puppy mill puppies are sold annually in the United States.

The HSUS released details of the investigation -- and the video above -- yesterday.

According to the agency, employees have routinely deceived customers by falsely claiming that all puppies sold at the celebrity-frequented store are raised by private breeders and that the store doesn’t buy from puppy mills.

In fact, HSUS investigators uncovered evidence that many of the puppies sold there did come from puppy mills - factory-like operations where the dogs are kept in barren cages and treated like production machines. The operations that supplied Pets of Bel Air with puppies are located in the Midwest.

The HSUS reviewed records documenting that at least 28 commercial breeders in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma have supplied Pets of Bel Air with puppies. HSUS undercover investigators also visited five of the suppliers that store management insisted are “private breeders” and not “puppy mills.” Each of those five locations, investigators discovered, are actually mass-breeding operations that house 100 to 300 dogs.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

The dog above may look like he's being lazy. But actually, he's soaking in knowledge (and helping kids with their reading at the same time.)

That's Dirk, lead mutt at Karma Dogs, the non-profit organization in Baltimore that uses shelter and rescue dogs in therapy, reading and children's safety programs.

One of those programs is HEARTS -- Help Encourage All Readers to Succeed -- which will kick off another round of reading-to-the-dogs sessions at Towson and North Point libraries on Jan. 1.

The thinking behind the program is this: Dogs don't judge and criticize young readers when they make mistakes. When a child is more confident, they can learn more easily and are comfortable asking questions. Since dogs don't laugh or put pressure on a child the way their peers might, children are able to increase their vocabulary and become better readers in a safe and comfortable environment.

Ace and I took part in the program last year, and you can either read the story or watch the video about it -- or perhaps even both -- HERE.

If you are interested in volunteering, or volunteering along with your dog, Karma Dogs will hold its next evaluation Jan. 14 at 7p.m. at St. Margaret's Church, 1834 Joppa Road, Parkville.

To learn more email evaluations@karmadogs.org.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Michael Vick was sentenced Monday to up to 23 months in prison for running a dogfighting operation.

That's more than either of his two co-defendants, and U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson said the longer stretch was because Vick was "less than truthful" about the dogfighting ring and his involvement in it.

"I'm not convinced you've fully accepted responsibility," Hudson told Vick, who arrived in court in a black-and-white striped prison uniform. He voluntarily surrendered Nov. 19 to get an early start on his sentence.

Despite a public apology and participation in an animal sensitivity training course, Vick was denied an "acceptance of responsibility" credit that would have reduced his sentence, the Associated Press reported.

To see a full version of the AP story click here.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland’s Love of Dog Bakery has made Montana’s Rolling Dog Ranch its charity of the month and is donating 5 percent of its December proceeds to the animal sanctuary.

The animal sanctuary was featured on this blog last month. If you missed those posts, clicking HERE will take you there.

Among those who did see them were Julie and Rob Newman, proprietors of Love of Dog Bakery, located in Laurel, Md.

“We at Love of Dog Bakery have so much to be grateful for, and we felt that supporting such an amazing organization which gives so selflessly to these wonderful animals was the perfect way to express that,” they said in their newsletter this month. Love of Dog Bakery picks a new animal charity to donate a share of proceeds to every month.

Rolling Dog Ranch rescues physically disabled animals -- dogs and horses, mostly -- and cares for them on their ranch in Ovando. Among its residents for life are blind dogs, cats, and horses, deaf dogs, dogs with muscular dystrophy, dogs with autoimmune deficiencies, and dogs with neurological disorders such as cerebellar hypoplasia.

As the most loyal of you readers may recall, my dog Ace is also raising money for Rolling Dog Ranch. With every rental of the movie about him, "Hey, Mister, What Kind of Dog is That?" a few bucks is being forwarded to the ranch by Crystal Video, in Missoula.

By now, I suspect rentals of the movie have raised enough to buy a large bag of dog food for the ranch (unless they use the really expensive kind).

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Days before Michael Vick's sentencing on dog fighting charges, an open house at his former house on Moonlight Road in Surry County Va., was drawing a stream of curious visitors this weekend.

The estate is scheduled to be sold at auction next week by the real estate developer who bought the 4,600-square-foot-house and surrounding 15-acre spread.

The Associated Press reported that visitors were seemingly impressed with the house, which underwent a $50,000 sprucing up , and that they didn't say much as they wandered through the backyard compound of kennels and outbuildings where the pit bulls were kept.

Vick, the suspended NFL star, faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced Monday for his role in the dogfighting conspiracy

You can find a version of the full story HERE.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 8:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

So it's not exactly the top of the mountain, and the mountain isn't exactly Mt. Everest -- but we made it to the "M."

That's the big white letter behind us, pretty much invisible in the snow.

I truly don't think I would have made it without Ace. He literally tugged me up the steeper parts and his enthusiasm, coupled with my fear of failure, helped propel me to the top of Missoula's Mount Sentinel.

We spent about 20 minutes at the top -- even though the wind was whipping us with crystalized snow. I sat down, enjoyed the birds-eye view of the campus and town, and caught my breath. Ace jumped about, burrowed in the snow and wanted to play.

He made the trip down mostly unleashed, except for a couple of times when I had him pull me on my back like a sled. Call it John-joring.

Ace, during our soon to end four-month stay in Missoula has become a true trail hound. After his initial hiking overdose -- at one point he outright refused to go on a hike -- he can't get enough of it.

And since Missoula is pretty easy going about its leash laws -- I've yet to run into a self-appointed leash-Nazi here -- his hikes are usually mostly unleashed.

He likes to take the lead, and I tend to lag behind. Every few minutes, on the trail, Ace stops, turns his head and looks back to make sure I'm still there.

I love it when he does that.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Ace and I gave the sport of "canicross" a try last weekend -- scaling Missoula's Mount Sentinel -- and as you can see it took us a while get the rhythm of it.

Climbing up the the giant "M" on top of the mountain was on my "100 things to do before I leave Montana" list -- maybe 10 of which I have accomplished -- and, with time running out, we were forced to zig-zag our way to the top through six or so inches of snow and ice.

The "M" on the west face of the mountain is a local landmark, and has been since 1908 when the trail was forged and students toted stones to the top to shape the symbol of the University of Montana, which lies at the bottom of the mountain.

A concrete "M" marks the mountain now, and the path to it is a rigourous one. Though less than a mile, it's a 620 foot gain in elevation and includes 11 switchbacks. Trudging through the snow, I was whipped after half of them. With Ace hitched to my belt though, he helped tug me closer.

About halfway, though Ace was still raring to go, I was nearly ready to give up. After a long rest though, I pressed on, slowly, stepping to the side to let those health buffs who jog up and down the trail daily pass us by -- and silently cursing them as they did.

Did we make it to the top? Tune in tomorrow to find out.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maybe you can’t have a woman in every port, but you may soon be able to have a dog in every major city.

FLEXPETZ – that’s their corporate logo to the right -- describes itself on its web site as “a unique concept for dog lovers who are unable to own a full-time doggy pal, but miss spending time with a canine friend.”

Through the “shared dog ownership concept,” members can “spend from just a few hours to a number of days with each of our dogs,” which the web site adds are available in varied sizes to “ensure compatibility with our member's individual lifestyles and unique circumstances.”

All the rental dogs have been through obedience training, and some are certified therapy dogs, the web site says.

So far, the company -- based in Delaware, of all places -- has established rent-a-pooch operations in only New York, Los Angeles and San Diego, but has plans to open new locations soon, including Washington, Boston, Chicago, Tokyo and London.

“Just imagine visiting New York, Chicago, Paris or London and strolling through the city and parks with a FLEXPETZ dog!” the web site says. For $100, and another $50 a month, you can become a member, eligible to pick up a dog in any city that FLEXPETZ is in.

Need a German Shepherd to stroll through Central Park? A Boston Terrier to romp around with at Boston Common? An Afghan to parade down Hollywood’s Walk of Fame? A cuddly prop to impress the babes? A furry accessory to punctuate your fashion statement?

Even if this company puts a premium on screening clients, I still struggle a bit with the concept. I'm all for spreading the joy dogs can bring humans, but forking over money to spend a few happy hours with a dog seems a little like -- I'm going to coin a term now -- "dogstitution."

Among the dogs now available for rental at various locations are Nixon, a energetic miniature Pinscher whose owners were planning to drop him off at a shelter, and Jackpot, an abandoned lab that the company spent $2,000 in veterinary fees on for stomach problems, the web site says.

On the plus side, FLEXPETZ dogs are often adopted from shelters and rescue organizations. On the not-so-plus side, it just seems a little weird to rent out dogs as if they were Dodge Neons or beachfront condos.

And once we start leasing animals, how far away are we from rent-a-kid?

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Patty Cooper’s best friend “Earl” weighs 125 pounds (about the same as my dog) and is 32 inches tall (about two inches taller than Ace), and her request to have him move into her two-bedroom apartment so he can help her get around has been denied by her landlord.

Before you start thinking her landlord is an ass, you should know her pet is a horse.

Cooper, 50, who lives in Vermont, sought permission to bring her 1-year-old mini horse from the farm where he now stays to her apartment so that he can help her cope with her Celiac disease

Cooper’s bones are brittle from osteoporosis and she says Earl can help her when she falls or needs help getting into her wheelchair, according to an Associated Press story. With the horse as a roommate, she thinks she can remain independent.

Cooper filed a complaint with the Vermont Human Rights Commission after her landlord rejected her request to keep the animal, according to The Associated Press.

The agency that owns the apartment complex in Waitsfield refused admittance to Earl, citing concern about horse droppings, hay storage and lack of grazing space, the AP said.

Cooper says she built a four-by-six stall in her dining room for Earl, who she believes can be house-trained.

Cooper had considered buying a dog, but ultimately chose Earl for his longer life span and diet of gluten-free oats. Celiac disease has been linked to a severe intolerance to gluten. A decision is expected soon on the case.

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Once again, I’m facing weight discrimination.

Not in regards to my own poundage – actually, I may have lost a few during my sabbatical in Montana -- but my trusty mutt Ace, 125 pounds when we arrived in Montana, is probably about 130 now.

It’s a good weight for him, and he’s still fit, but it makes things even more problematic as I Google, and Craigslist, and Apartment.com my way across the Internet in search of living quarters for us upon our return to Baltimore.

In doing so, these are the words that keep jumping out at me: “No dogs,”

And the somehow even more insulting ones: “No dogs over 50 pounds.”

I actually get angry when I see that second one. Some of the biggest dogs are also some of the gentlest and least destructive dogs, and it’s exactly that kind of gross generalization -- big dogs are trouble -- that this blog, since it’s inception, has sought to expose as the utter folly that it is.

Did I just say utter folly?

In that case, here’s an even utterer folly, and a more enraging one: Landlords that ban renters whose dogs are of a particular breed. Argggghhh!

For example, visit Peoplewithpets.com -- a web site that’s supposed to help one find dog-friendly housing, and you might encounter the following: You click on a complex near Whitemarsh that looks somewhat livable and affordable and purports to be dog-friendly -- only to be greeted with the news that having a dog will cost you an additional $150 deposit and an additional $30 a month rent.

Then, reading further, you find that the landlord bans “pit bulls, Rottweilers, chows, Dobermans, or any other known to be aggressive dog.”

That’s “breedism.” That’s “doggie profiling.” Landlords have a right to decide whether to accept pets and which kinds they might permit -- and there's nothing I can do about it, at least until my plan to create a DCLU (Dog Civil Liberties Union) gets off the ground.

Meanwhile, as Ace is part rottie, part chow, it looks like he won’t be living in Whitemarsh.

(Like he wanted to anyway.)

On apartments.com, they break dogs down into those under 25 pounds and those over 25 pounds, which it considers “large.” A 30-pound dog isn’t a large dog any more than a 500- square- foot apartment is a large apartment.

Of course, adding to my anger, is the fact that I can’t afford anything, especially given the budget I’ve placed myself under in hopes of finally ridding myself of credit card debt.

I’ve done some math (always dangerous) and the way I figure it, if I limit myself to $800 a month, and live in even utterer frugality than I now do, I could have my debt paid off in two years. It would only take six months to pay it off if I went homeless, and avoided not just rent but electric, cable and Internet bills.

Then there’s always the liveaboard fantasy, where Ace and I would pay a small fee to camp out in somebody’s docked boat. Having a few liveaboard friends, though, I know the reality is somewhat less romantic than the fantasy, especially in winter. Besides, Ace doesn’t like water more than knee-high.

I’ve considered touting myself as a house-sitter and Ace as a home protection system, but even though he’s a 130-pound Chow-Rottweiler, he’s not nearly fierce enough -- contrary to what those landlords in Whitemarsh might assume.

But then we all know what they say about those Whitemarshans. 

Posted by John Woestendiek at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)