Puggles: Designer Dogs or Overhyped Mutts?

OK! OK! Before any doggy or anybody goes ballistic please know that one of my very best friends is a Puggle. I would do nothing to besmirch his bloodline, personality or behavior (BOL !!!). Koly is a very smart Puggle and he's funny and I'm sure he is worth every penny his humans paid for him!


That being said and now that I have that disclosure out of the way, I found this article posted on Squidoo debating this Puggle quandry very interesting. 
Oh you can catch His Kolyness' blog  by clicking here.

The power of focusing on what you want.....

There is a saying that you get what you focus on.  Little Benjamin Benson proved that after focusing on his little white dog Caesar for over a year. A horrific car accident killed his Dad and little sister and put Benjamin in the Intensive Care unit of the hospital. Caesar was in the vehicle with them. Although only 18 months old he would point to pictures and say Caesar over and over again. Read how this story, from the Quay County Sun, turns out for Benjamin, his Mom and sisters. 

MUTT health vs. Pure Bred health - Who's the winner? You decide!

One of the reason we love our mutts is that they are almost always more healthy than their purebred cousins. Dogs that have been bred for generations to have certain attributes have that bloodline, but those attributes usually have to do with hair, size, and other factors, not the overall health of the dog.  

Mutts, be they designer cross-breeds or just dogs of unknown or unclear origin, are far less often afflicted with hip problems, anxiety, etc. We are not alone in noticing this. We saw this story recently on MSNBC, which talks about the whole phenomenon of designer dogs, including some of the big celebrities among both human and dogs. One line, especially, caught our interest.

“You’d think that the AKC is all for dogs being healthy, but they’re not,” says (Alana) Snook, who now breeds puggles and cavachons. “All they care about is their registration fees. AKC makes a lot of money off breeders.” Since she began breeding designer dogs, Snook says, “our AKC fees have probably gone down to one-fourth of what they used to be.”... but because there are so many additional 'breeds' that have been approved by the AKC they are actually making more money by bringing on as many 'designer breeds' as possible.  What's next we wonder. . . a Rusuggierard*? Now that's a picture of health and fun! BOL!

So if the organization that's in charge of the breed purity isn't worried about health, then who is?  That's the great part about mutts, but just one of the things. We love our mutts, and even if they get to be famous and have YouTube videos and more, we still think that they are loveable without all of that, and just because they are dogs. When you take a dog to a dog park, the owners all want to know what breed a dog is, but the dogs just want to play. They never stop to ask each other about breeding.

One other thing we know is that mutt health, and all dog health, is important and we hope you'll keep checking out MUTTeringsAndThings to find out about all things mutt.


*(Russian Wolfhound, Puggle, Terrier, Shepard mix)

Friday's Famous MUTT - a National Treasure

MUTTS.  You never know what they are going to become because their genetic makeup is so questionable. This story, from the Washington Post, will warm your heart because in the late 1800's a stray mutt wandered into a post office created a job for himself and and the rest is history. Owney now resides in the National Postal Museum in Washington DC and Owney's heartwarming story can be read here.

How to Prevent Heat Stroke in Pets

Happy Monday everyone. It's been sooooooo hot (How hot has it been Reba?).... well it's been sooooo hot that I haven't had the energy to bark in my blog for days and days.  I've been one tired doggy. So I thought this article might benefit us all during this very HOT summer.  Take care!  REBA

For pets that are sensitive to heat, the steamy summer months are not only uncomfortable, they are also the time when the risk of fatal heatstroke is highest. Thousands of pets die needlessly every summer from over-exposure to heat.

Heatstroke is an emergency that needs medical attention as soon as possible. Even before you take your pet to the vet, however, you need to start cooling her body down by putting her in a tub of cool water, for example, or by applying wet towels or ice packs to her body, says Susan G. Synn, D.V. M., a veterinarian in Atlanta. When you are in the car, turn the air conditioner on high and get to the vet as quickly as you can.

For signs, causes and solutions this article from Care2 offers life saving information for you and your pet click here.

PS. For all of my furends pawrents who are gardening, and you know who you are, pleeeeze do it early in the morning or at dusk b/c if you don't take care of yourself you can't take care of us.

Teaching your Dog to Swim

We found this article interesting and helpful and perfect for the summer season. Guess it captured our attention because it includes the doggy paddle stroke and our company name is Doggy Paddle Products!  It  has some really good information on how different dogs relate to the water. There are sinkers and swimmers. Which is your dog? Can you convert a sinker to a swimmer?  Check it out! here!

My $20 Allowance -

My Mom gives me an allowance of $20 a month for keeping her happy. I keep it in my special saving place until I need to spend some of it. So I was wondering about the best way to spend my $20.  This is what I found.  Some good ideas huh?  http://bit.ly/qnUtjS