A quilt, and some links

A dog quilt - let me show you it. [Click for bigger.] Detail from a little display-type quilt I made a few years back, with crate-label copies on muslin. Cotton muslin, not the presidential kind. [He was brilliant at Notre Dame, wasn't he? Our Prez (mostly) rocks.]

If only I had a bit more time/more money, I'd build up an awesome collection of citrus crate labels with dogs on them. And I'd make more quilts.

Meanwhile, back on the intertubes:

Via Twitter, Maddie's Fund offers a link to a terrific pdf of a Powerpoint called Providing Care for Treatable Dogs and Cats. Sensible, helpful, inspiring guidelines covering everything from breed ID to... well, here's slide #2:

Our Ultimate Goal

*Increase number of adoptions, lives saved, and minimize length of stay
*Includes:

• Intake procedures/plans
• Provision of basic physical and mental health requirements
• Re-assessment of medical/behavioral health
• Treatment of existing medical and behavior problems

86 slides well worth reading, and the whole time I was saying to myself, thank God for our great local pound... I'm so spoiled by the local folks that news reports of shelter horrors elsewhere just baffle me.

As if shelter cruelties weren't bad enough in and of themselves, they're additional fodder for proponents of the "new vegan freedom narrative." Spotted Dog Farm over at Pit Bull Patriarchy is familiar with the ideology, and she's horrified:

It bothers me to think that the eventual goal of these abolitionists is that domestic animal populations and breeds would die out. Only animals that could survive in the wild would continue. And I don't know what would become of self-domesticating animals like dogs under this scenario. To think of dogs being cast out of human society is approaching the realm of the bad sci-fi novel. But stranger things have happened, are happening. Not that history is ever a justification, but we've evolved together for a long, long time. Who would we be without each other?

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OMG, it's Smoky on the cover of Bay Woof! OK, not really, but a cute little doppelganger. Donna at the Bad Rap blog sez:

This is the 'Ejicate the Landlord' article I've been meaning to write but haven't gotten around to. Authored by attorney Elaine Lee, who specializes in landlord-tenant law among other things. In Bay Woof this month. Thank you Bay Woof!

While the Net is filled with great info for scoring pet friendly rentals, we really should be working just as hard to show landlords why responsible pet owners make some of the most mature, committed and long term residents.

Visit the Bad Rap blog for more about finding and managing dog-friendly rentals.

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Last but not least, Dr. Sophia Yin reminds us that 1) it's Dog Bite Prevention Week, and 2) Experts Say Dominance-Based Dog Training Techniques Made Popular by Television Can Contribute to Dog Bites. She quotes Meghan Herron, DVM:

“Studies on canine aggression in the last decade have shown that canine aggression and other behavior problems are more frequently a result of fear (self-defense) or underlying anxiety problems. Aversive techniques can elicit an aggressive response in dogs because they can increase the fear and arousal in the dog, especially in those that are already defensive.”

The whole post - and much more - over at AskDrYin.com.