Dog Whisperer special "Inside Puppy Mills", Friday, May 8th

NEWS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dog Whisperer Cesar Millan Teams Up With
Animal Welfare Group ‘Last Chance for Animals’
To Rescue and Rehabilitate Dogs from Factory-Style Kennels

Cesar Gets Firsthand Look Inside Puppy Mills in Special Episode

Dog Whisperer: Inside Puppy Mills Premieres Friday, May 8 at 9 p.m. ET/PT


(WASHINGTON, D.C. — APRIL 15, 2009) Every year, more than one million purebred and “designer” dogs are born and bred into puppy mills — often packed in tiny wire cages, neglected, dehydrated, dirty and chronically sick, with little or no human interaction or affection — and then sold legally to pet stores throughout the country. Now, in a powerful new Dog Whisperer episode, Cesar Millan goes undercover to witness the horrors of puppy mills firsthand and works to rehabilitate dogs who have never known a world outside their overcrowded cages, or learned how to interact with humans.

Premiering Friday, May 8, at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on the National Geographic Channel, Dog Whisperer: Inside Puppy Mills exposes inhumane conditions at these factory-like breeding operations, as Cesar joins an undercover mission with the animal welfare organization Last Chance for Animals (LCA). With hidden cameras, LCA operatives spot-check several Los Angeles County kennels — essentially dog-breeding facilities that may be exceeding legal capacity limits. After negotiating with the owners of one of these kennels, the team, including Cesar, is able to rescue 11 dogs considered worthless by breeders — a small start in their hope to save as many dogs as possible from these conditions. The team members then learn from Cesar as he teaches them how to rehabilitate the traumatized dogs from the moment they are taken out of their cages. “We are from two different points of rescuing,” Cesar says of LCA. “They do the physical rescue, I do the psychological rescue. So together it’s a team, it’s a good pack.” Entertainer Sharon Osbourne even adopts one of the rescued pups!

Dogs bred at puppy mills can typically exhibit hyper or nervous behavior, acting fearful, obsessive or aggressive. Cesar has seen this behavior frequently during his career, but he has never seen the factory-style breeding grounds and caged conditions that cause it. For the first time, he’ll find out what it’s like inside the kennel facilities, how these dogs are living and who’s running the operations.

“It takes of a lot of concentration not to judge [puppy mill owners] when you know they’re doing something wrong. But in order for me to help and influence them, I have to see what they’re doing,” he says. “I saw a dog that was blind. I saw many dogs in one kennel. I felt a lot of frustration; I felt a lot of confusion … definitely aggression … a lot of anxiety.”

LCA has done amazing work investigating and uncovering overcrowding and deplorable conditions at local breeding kennels. Earlier in the year, after one of LCA’s investigations, World Kennels in Lancaster, Calif., was ordered to release 75 dogs and puppies to local shelters. The following day, World Kennels agreed to discreetly release another 40 dogs to LCA. Among these dogs were Sophie, a 5-year-old Pekingese, and Lovey, a 6-year-old Yorkshire terrier. LCA volunteer Kim Sill offered to foster the two dogs but was unprepared for the problems they displayed. Kim believed she was the first human outside the kennels to have contact with Sophie. From day one, Sophie has been aggressive to every person she comes in contact with, except for Kim, to whom she is very attached. Lovey, on the other hand, has no problems with people, except that she obsessively licks them.

Cesar quickly identifies Sophie’s aggression issues and corrects Kim’s response to them, showing her how to improve Sophie’s behavior around strangers. Within minutes, Sophie is calmer than Kim has ever seen. Then, Cesar works with Lovey to teach her to calm her nonstop affection. Lovey’s obsession might seem sweet at first, but it quickly becomes burdensome. With Cesar’s help, LCA learns how they can go one step further in their puppy mill rescue efforts and give the dogs a normal, happy life.

“When you bring a dog into your life, please do your homework and don’t buy a dog from a puppy mill. Visit a local shelter or rescue group instead,” Cesar says.

For more information and exclusive clips, visit www.natgeotv.com/dogwhisperer.

About Last Chance for Animals
Last Chance for Animals is a national, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating animal exploitation through education, investigations and legislation. LCA's work advocates conscious and informed lifestyle decisions, and the organization is committed to disseminating truthful information about societal animal abuse to improve the treatment of animals.

About Dog Whisperer
Each episode of Dog Whisperer follows dog behavior specialist Cesar Millan as he goes directly into the homes of dog owners — without any prior information about the dog’s case — and documents the remarkable transformations that take place under Cesar’s calm, assertive guidance.

The hugely popular series has grown into a pop culture phenomenon, including parodies on “South Park” and “Saturday Night Live”; references on popular shows including “Jeopardy!” and Bravo’s hit series “Work Out”; appearances on “Oprah,” “Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “Martha Stewart,” “Today Show,” “The View” and “Live with Regis and Kelly”; and a guest star role for Cesar on the hit series “Ghost Whisperer.”

The series celebrated its landmark 100th episode in September 2008 with a grand reunion of many of the past guests — and their dogs. The second and third seasons of Dog Whisperer each received nominations for the Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Reality Program.

About Cesar Millan
With more than 20 years of experience working with canines, Cesar has been called a “Dr. Phil for dogs,” and for good reason. He has a unique gift of rehabilitating dogs and training their owners. His talent with dogs first developed on his grandfather’s farm in Mexico. Now, at his Dog Psychology Center in Los Angeles, he receives as many as 100 calls a week from owners desperate for help and confronting a crisis with their beloved pets. He is their emergency responder, and often their last resort. Often, the dogs Cesar works with are “red zone cases” that trainers or veterinarians have told the owners to put down. Cesar believes every dog deserves a chance at rehabilitation before such drastic measures should even be considered. His pack of dogs at the center are largely dogs no one thought should be left alive — and they now live in harmony as part of Cesar’s pack, and make frequent appearances on the show.

Millan was made an honorary member of the International Association of Canine Professionals and was presented The Michael Landon Award for Inspiration to Youth Through Television at the 28th Young Artist Awards.

Cesar’s most recent book, “A Member of the Family,” released in October 2008, is his third New York Times best seller. Other things Cesar include: the first three seasons of Dog Whisperer are available on DVD; Cesar and his wife Ilusion have founded the nonprofit Cesar and Ilusion Millan Foundation, providing financial support and rehabilitation expertise to shelters throughout the United States; Cesar has an exclusive product line available at Petco; and he is giving online seminars, “Sessions with Cesar,” an interactive coaching course. More information can be found at www.cesarmillaninc.com.

Dog Whisperer is produced by MPH Entertainment and Emery/Sumner Productions for National Geographic Channel. Executive producers for MPH Entertainment are Jim Milio, Melissa Jo Peltier and Mark Hufnail. Sheila Possner Emery and Kay Bachman Sumner are producers. This special episode was coordinated by Dog Whisperer co-producer Christina Lublin. For the National Geographic Channel, senior executive producer for season four is Char Serwa; senior vice president of production is Michael Cascio and executive vice president of content is Steve Burns.

# # #

National Geographic Channel
Based at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C., the National Geographic Channel (NGC) is a joint venture between National Geographic Ventures (NGV) and Fox Cable Networks (FCN). Since launching in January 2001, NGC initially earned some of the fastest distribution growth in the history of cable and more recently the fastest ratings growth in television. The network celebrated its fifth anniversary January 2006 with the launch of NGC HD which provides the spectacular imagery that National Geographic is known for in stunning high-definition. NGC has carriage with all of the nation's major cable and satellite television providers, making it currently available in nearly 70 million homes. For more information, please visit www.natgeotv.com.


MEDIA CONTACTS:
Chris Albert, National Geographic Channel, 202-912-6526, CAlbert@natgeochannel.com
Photos: Lauren Jones, National Geographic Channel, 202-912-6708, ljones@ngs.org
NGC-516-041509

Subaru announces sponsorship of the ASPCA

Animal Magnetism: Subaru Announces Sponsorship of the ASPCA
Cherry Hill, NJ, March 23, 2009 -- Subaru of America, Inc. today announced the Company's inaugural sponsorship of the nation's oldest humane organization, the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). A key component of the sponsorship includes Subaru's support of three 'Go Orange for Animals' festivals in celebration of April's Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month. The festivals, which will include mobile adoptions and opportunities to get advice on pet care from animal behaviorists, will take place in three cities across the country - New York, N.Y. (Union Square Park, April 7, 2009); Austin, Texas (Zilker Park, April 18, 2009) and Los Angeles, Calif. (Venice Beach, April 25, 2009).

"We're very happy to sponsor the good work of the ASPCA, especially since many Subaru owners are also pet owners," said Tim Mahoney, senior vice president and chief marketing officer, Subaru of America, Inc. "Subaru has a long history of supporting organizations that are good stewards of our environment - including our animal friends - so this sponsorship is a terrific fit with our ideals as a company. In fact, earlier this year, the ASPCA was one of five charities which shared in a donation of more than $4.6 million by Subaru of America, the results of our 2008 year-end "Share the Love" marketing campaign in which our buyers were able to designate a $250 gift from Subaru to one of the charities."

"We are thrilled to welcome Subaru on board this year as we gear up to celebrate Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month," said Jo Sullivan, Senior Vice President of Development & Communications for the ASPCA. "The outpouring of support we received throughout the 'Share the Love' campaign from the Subaru faithful has shown us how truly dedicated they are to supporting the vital work of the ASPCA, and we hope they will continue their support by pledging to 'go orange' for us this April."

The sponsorship also provides colorfully-wrapped, co-branded Subaru vehicles, local support, and additional events, in six communities (Austin, Texas; Charleston, S.C.; New York, N.Y.; Philadelphia, Pa.; Spokane, Wash.; and Tampa, Fla.). These cities have been selected as part of ASPCA Mission: Orange™ - a focused effort to improve animal welfare and education in these target communities by partnering with regional animal welfare and community organizations.

Beyond the six cities targeted for of ASPCA Mission: Orange, Subaru dealers in communities across the country will have the opportunity to partner with ASPCA-recommended local animal welfare organizations to host Subaru Adoption Days - at an animal shelter, a Subaru dealership, or a local mall or park. The collective goal of the adoption days is to put the spotlight on animal shelters as the best places to adopt, while finding loving homes for adoptable pets.

For more information about the ASPCA's Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month and its 'Go Orange for Animals' campaign, please visit www.ASPCAApril.org.

About Subaru of America, Inc.
Subaru of America, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. of Japan. Headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J., the Company markets and distributes Subaru Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive vehicles, parts and accessories through a network of nearly 600 dealers across the United States. Subaru makes the best-selling All-Wheel Drive car sold in America based on R.L. Polk & Co. new vehicle retail registration statistics calendar year-end 2007. In addition, Subaru boasts the most fuel efficient line-up of all-wheel drive products sold in the market today based on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fuel economy standards. All Subaru products are manufactured in zero-landfill production plants and Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. is the only U.S. automobile production plant to be designated a backyard wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation.

About the ASPCA®
Founded in 1866, the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was the first humane organization established in the Americas, and today has more than one million supporters throughout North America. A 501 [c] [3] not-for-profit corporation, the ASPCA's mission is to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the United States. The ASPCA provides local and national leadership in animal-assisted therapy, animal behavior, animal poison control, anti-cruelty, humane education, legislative services, and shelter outreach. The New York City headquarters houses a full-service, accredited animal hospital, adoption center, and mobile clinic outreach program. The Humane Law Enforcement department enforces New York's animal cruelty laws and is featured on the reality television series "Animal Precinct" on Animal Planet. For more information, please visit www.aspca.org.

PRODUCERS FROM DOG WHISPERER HOLD AUDITIONS

PRODUCERS FROM DOG WHISPERER HOLD AUDITIONS
IN HOUSTON, TEXAS ON SATURDAY, APRIL 25

Don't miss your chance to meet with the producers of Dog Whisperer to audition to be on the show! Be prepared to describe your dog's issue and bring video footage which shows the problem behavior to submit to the producers. Submissions cannot be accepted without a video.

Dog Whisperer is looking for a wide variety of dog problems, including unusual phobias, obsessions, fearful behavior, aggression, or any other unique situations that Cesar could help transform.

Dogs are welcome, but your dog does not need to attend to be considered. For safety reasons, the producers ask that you leave your aggressive dog at home. In order to capture footage of aggression, they recommend keeping the dog on a leash, behind a fence, or in a muzzle. Please do not put yourself or your dog in danger while trying to film the behavior.

SATURDAY, APRIL 25th

10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
PETCO
22511 State Hwy 249,
Houston, TX 77070-1532

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
PETCO
2410 Bay Area Blvd, Ste B,
Houston, TX 77058-1520

Can't make it to the audition? Submit a video application. In the video, we would like you to introduce yourself and your dog. Give us your name, age, and occupation, as well as the dog’s name, age, and breed. Tell us the problems your dog is having and how these issues are affecting your life. Also, let us know what you love about your dog. We would like you to capture at least three instances of your dog’s bad behavior.

For details on how to submit a video or for further information about the auditions, please visit http://www.cesarmillaninc.com/dogwhisperer/submissions.php

National Pet ID week starts today

A few nights ago, I nearly hit a black dog who was darting out in front of cars on a pitch black road in the dark. I sat outside of the closest house and honked my horn for nearly 10 minutes, but no response from anyone. I managed to coax the dog into my car, brought him home where he played with my dogs for an hour, and called the dog officer who promptly came and picked him up. The dog had on a makeshift collar appearing to be made from a cut leash, with the leash clip clipped to a loop in the leash material. Absolutely no ID.

I learned today that the owner was found and very grateful. The dog, a 4 or 5 month old puppy, belonged to a person who was visiting a neighbor. This dog could have been killed because he was darting out in front of cars (obviously bored, and trying to entertain himself). He also could have been lost forever, since the owner does not live around here, but was visiting.

National Pet ID Week starts today. Please help us get out the word that pets should always wear an ID. Whether that's a traditional hanging tag, a microchip or some other product or method, everyone should do it. Here's what Dog Whisperer Cesar Millan has to say about National Pet ID Week: http://www.cesarmillaninc.com/newsletter/archive/2009/200904_2.html

I use Boomerang tags. They are inexpensive, hold up to 5 lines of text, and slid onto the dog's collar instead of hanging. Hanging tags can get caught on something, can easily be taken off by a person, and make a lot of noise. I get lots of comments on the Boomerang tags. For more information, visit their web site. www.boomerangtags.com

Take care of your pets, and have a great day

Dog Whisperer tonight: "A Member of the Family"

Tune in to National Geographic Channel tonight at 9:00 p.m. eastern.
for a very special episode of Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan.

"A Member of the Family" is the name of Cesar's latest best-selling
book, and also the title of tonight's episode. This episode features some
of Cesar's cases, both old and new, featuring the process of adopting a dog,
including introducing him/her to a new home the correct way, setting rules, boundaries and limitations, and how to handle the loss of a pet.

Check your local listings, and enjoy the show!

Press Release: Cesar Millan becomes a U.S. citizen!

NEWS

EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL
THURSDAY, MARCH 12, 2009 AT 11:00 AM PST

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL’S DOG WHISPERER CESAR MILLAN BECOMES A U.S. CITIZEN

Popular TV Star and Best-selling Author Sworn in This Morning in Los Angeles

(WASHINGTON, D.C. — MARCH 12, 2009) Cesar Millan — star of the Emmy-nominated National Geographic Channel hit series Dog Whisperer and best-selling author — took the oath today to officially become a U.S. citizen. Cesar, who passed his citizenship test earlier this year, attended the swearing in-ceremony this morning with dozens of others in Montebello, Calif., just north of Los Angeles. Cesar was joined by his wife Ilusion and two sons, Andre and Calvin, who attended to cheer him on (they are already U.S. citizens).

“This is the ultimate culmination of living the American dream,” said Millan. “Becoming an U.S. citizen has been a goal of mine since I first came to this great country. I have much to thank this country for, and all of the success it has afforded me and my family, and now I am proud to be a citizen.”

Millan, who shot to fame in 2003 when his series premiered on the National Geographic Channel, was born in Mexico. He has a special gift for rehabilitating dogs and training their owners. His unique talent with dogs first developed on his grandfather’s farm in Mexico, where he learned at a very young age the importance of respecting Mother Nature. He chronicles his childhood in Mexico and how he crossed the border as a young man in his first best-selling book “Cesar’s Way.” He has been a legal resident of the United States since 2000.

Cesar is currently working on his fourth book, to be released this fall, and starts filming this week for the sixth season of Dog Whisperer.

Dog Whisperer — which celebrated its 100th episode last fall — is a staple of NGC’s Friday night programming. The second and third seasons of Dog Whisperer each received nominations for the Primetime Emmy for Best Reality Series. The show continues to document Cesar’s amazing rehabilitations of problem dogs, and will also include special episodes such as an upcoming look at puppy mills.

About Cesar Millan
With more than 20 years of experience working with canines, Cesar has been called a “Dr. Phil for dogs,” and for good reason. He receives as many as 100 calls a week from owners desperate for help. By the time people call Cesar, they are confronting a crisis with their beloved pets. He is their emergency responder, and often their last resort. Often, the dogs Cesar works with are “red zone cases” that trainers or veterinarians have told the owners to put down. Cesar believes every dog deserves a chance at rehabilitation before such drastic measures should even be considered. His pack of dogs are largely dogs no one thought should be left alive — and they now live in harmony as part of Cesar’s pack, and make frequent appearances on the show.

Millan was made an honorary member of the International Association of Canine Professionals and was presented The Michael Landon Award for Inspiration to Youth Through Television at the 28th Young Artist Awards.

Cesar’s most recent book, "A Member of the Family," released in October 2008, is his third New York Times best-seller. Other things Cesar include these: The first three seasons of Dog Whisperer are available on DVD; Cesar and his wife Ilusion have founded the nonprofit Cesar and Ilusion Millan Foundation, providing financial support and rehabilitation expertise to shelters throughout the United States; Cesar has an exclusive product line available at Petco; and he is giving online seminars, “Sessions with Cesar,” an interactive coaching course. More information can be found at www.cesarmillaninc.com.

About Dog Whisperer
Each episode of Dog Whisperer follows dog behavior specialist Cesar Millan as he goes directly into the homes of dog owners — without any prior information about the dog’s case — and documents the remarkable transformations that take place under Cesar’s calm, assertive guidance.

The hugely popular series has grown into a pop culture phenomenon, including parodies on “South Park” and “Saturday Night Live”; references on popular shows including “Jeopardy!” and Bravo’s hit series “Work Out”; appearances on “Oprah,” “Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “Martha Stewart,” “Today Show,” “The View” and “Live with Regis and Kelly”; and a guest star role for Cesar on the hit series “Ghost Whisperer.”

Dog Whisperer is produced by MPH Entertainment and Emery/Sumner Productions for National Geographic Channel. Executive producers for MPH Entertainment are Jim Milio, Melissa Jo Peltier and Mark Hufnail. Sheila Possner Emery and Kay Bachman Sumner are producers. For the National Geographic Channel, senior executive producer is Char Serwa; senior vice president of special programming is Michael Cascio and executive vice president of content is Steve Burns.

# # #

National Geographic Channel
Based at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C., the National Geographic Channel (NGC) is a joint venture between National Geographic Ventures (NGV) and Fox Cable Networks (FCN). Since launching in January 2001, NGC initially earned some of the fastest distribution growth in the history of cable and more recently the fastest ratings growth in television. The network celebrated its fifth anniversary January 2006 with the launch of NGC HD which provides the spectacular imagery that National Geographic is known for in stunning high-definition. NGC has carriage with all of the nation's major cable and satellite television providers, making it currently available to more than 69 million homes. For more information, please visit www.natgeotv.com.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Chris Albert, National Geographic Channel, 202-912-6526, CAlbert@natgeochannel.com


NGC-505-031209

"Canine 9-1-1" Dog Whisperer episode

Tonight, I watched the most amazing Dog Whisperer episode of them all.

The title of the episode is "Canine 9-1-1", and it originally aired on National Geographic Channel on August 1, 2008.

If there is still anyone out there who hates Cesar Millan, I insist that you watch this episode, and then tell me you still hate him and still think he is "abusing" animals. This episode proves that I have been right all along. Cesar is a true inspiration to dog lovers everywhere, and has a very special gift with both canines and humans.

Cesar vs. Chihuahua on tonight's Dog Whisperer!

Dog Whisperer week begins December 28th!!

Tune in to National Geographic Channel for Dog Whisperer week, beginning December 28th!

Check your local listings!

central Massachusetts ice storm

Storm damage, Spencer MA
For video, click on my videos to the right, or go to my YouTube page k2k9dogs

Sessions With Cesar, a great holiday gift!

Finally a chance for the average person to learn from Cesar Millan, without having to audition for the Dog Whisperer TV show, or live in southern California!

It's Sessions With Cesar, the interactive online coaching course available from Cesar Millan for the first time, ever.

Sessions With Cesar. Login, enroll (for a low monthly fee), choose your dog's behavior problem, and you're ready to go. The course consists of tutorials, audio clips from Cesar, and video clips where you can see exactly how Cesar works his magic with dogs.

After completing each section of the course work (at your own pace), you take a brief quiz. It's that easy, and it's fun! As a special added feature, Cesar's Pack is an online community forum where you can ask questions and communicate with other dog lovers. Cesar's Ambassadors are also there to help guide you through the course and try to answer your dog behavior questions.

For more information, go to http://www.sessionswithcesar.com/

Sessions With Cesar makes a great holiday gift for that "dog person" in your life!

K2

Sessions With Cesar Ambassador

Cesar Millan Inc Ambassador

Cesar Millan seminar in Atlanta December 6, 2008

Fellow Dog Lover!

If you are a dog owner or just love dogs, I hope you will take a moment and share this wonderful opportunity with your friends, families, co-workers and in and around your communities.

As a Cesar Millan Ambassador, I am proud to be able to share the opportunity for you to see Cesar Millan, LIVE! As you may know, Cesar's Way has swept this nation empowering dog owners the knowledge to rehabilitate their own dogs behavior issues instead of surrendering them to shelters and rescues, where many would have ended up losing their lives!

I ask that you help save even more lives by posting the attached information to your website, put up flyers in local businesses and around your communities, and share it through emails! And don't forget to purchase tickets for yourself, as well!

Working together, we can change the way the world treats animals and live healthy, happy and balanced lives with our dogs!

Cesar Millan, LIVE!
National Geographic's, The Dog Whisperer
December 6, 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia.
TICKETS AS LOW AS $25.00

Thank you for your consideration,

Kathleen S. Mueller, Ambassador

Cesar Millan, Inc.

"Exercise, discipline and then affection. In that order."

Cesar Millan's new book: "A Member of the Family"

I received Cesar Millan's third book, "A Member of the Family" today. I have both of Cesar's other books, and figured by the third book it probably wouldn't be so great. Boy, was I mistaken!

I turned randomly to the chapter written by Ilusion Wilson Millan, Cesar's beautiful wife. I was instantly hooked, and could not put this book down. I then turned to the chapter Cesar wrote about his beloved sidekick, Daddy, the greatest representative of Pit Bull known to man.

I know there are a lot of people whom I call "anti-Cesareans". These are people who dislike Cesar Millan because a) he doesn't have a degree and b) they (erroneously) believe he is cruel to dogs and c) they (erroneously) believe he is an illegal immigrant. For those anti-Cesareans, I have a message for you. READ THIS BOOK. You will find out about a man who has a deep and abiding love for dogs of all kinds, his family, his friends, and all human beings. Millan is a true specimen of humanity. The definition of "a good guy".

After reading this book, there should be no doubt in ANYONE's mind that Cesar is uniquely qualified to work with problematic dogs as perhaps no one else in popular culture today. But what is most remarkable is his open-arms approach to other dog behaviorists (some of whom have degrees, some who may not), and his understanding that there is room enough in this crazy world of ours for everyone. There is time and space for every method of interaction with canines, as long as it does NOT harm the dog. That is what Cesar Millan stands for.

I cannot stress enough (and for the bazillionth time!) Cesar Millan is not a dog trainer. He understands canine behavior and "what makes a dog tick" (pun, sorry) based on a lifetime of living with, and LOVING dogs (and humans alike).

Do not pass "GO". Get this book, now! I promise you, you will not be disappointed.

And for those anti-Cesareans: life is too short. Stop being so petty and give this guy a chance. If he were standing in a room with you, he would give YOU a chance, of that I am positive.

Happy tails.
K.S. Mueller

Anemia - the often undiagnosed epidemic

I generally reserve this blog for dog-related or other non-medical stuff, and use the Fibro-Fog Chronicles to post about medical info. But this topic is important enough to broadcast more widely, so I'm posting it on both blogs.

Women: please! Get yourselves checked for anemia. This is an often easy-to-treat problem, and incredibly easy to diagnose. However, this epidemic (as some experts believe) is often overlooked and undiagnosed, with perhaps millions of women being told "it's all in your head" or "there's nothing wrong with you". There is no excuse for this. Doctors: please! when a woman comes to you with annoying symptoms do not "diss" her -- test her for anemia, and then educate yourself on the symptoms of anemia.

I was told that my symptoms were NOT from my hereditary anemia by several doctors. Guess what, that is not true! All of my symptoms are from anemia. Every single one of them. Yet not even the hematologist nor the neurologist nor the rheumatologist suggested anything of the kind. It was simply "No" (from the hematologist) and "there's nothing wrong with you" from the others. Do not let this happen to you! Get yourself tested, and educate yourself on anemia. Below are some links to help you get started. Check out Wikipedia as well.

I found this web site anemia.org. This non-profit organization was created by medical professionals who see anemia as a huge epidemic in the United States and want to bring this fact to the attention of the medical establishment, ordinary physicians, and citizens in general. They estimate that 3.4 million people have been diagnosed with anemia (in one form or another), but that this estimate is low, and that anemia is much more serious of a health concern than people realize.

Anemia is often UNDIAGNOSED, even though a simple, routine blood test can detect anemia very easily.

As you can imagine, since I have been diagnosed with a hereditary form of hemolytic anemia, I am on my latest crusade! I totally agree with these folks that anemia is seriously under-diagnosed. In fact, perhaps my journey of the last 5 years would have been significantly shortened had any one doctor taken the time to learn that the symptoms I am experiencing ARE symptoms of anemia (contrary to what they all told me).

I hope to be able to invove myself in this organization somehow, and am planning to write a letter to their executive director.

In the meantime, here are some links you may find interesting:
http://www.anemia.org/patients/symptoms-quiz/
http://www.anemia.org/resources/education-kit/about.php
http://www.anemia.org/patients/faq/
http://www.anemia.org/
http://www.anemiainwomen.com/html/home.htm

K2

Jimmy Buffett wannabe? (or, sunset at the equator)

My luggage has still not arrived. Tobago story. That's what we call a mishap that is SO TYPICAL of Tobago. A beautiful island, but you can't get ANYTHING DONE around here without hitting beaurocracy and laziness in the extreme.



Anyway, when we go out to the store, etc. I have to wear Gil's clothes.



Here's a very attractive photo of me making a lame attempt at imitating Jimmy Buffett, or so it would seem.

Here's a photo of Echo, the Tobago dog

Echo

Easy-Walk Harness by Gentle Leader Company

I just bought two "Easy-Walk Harnesses" made by the people who make Gentle Leader. I had read about the harnesses in a magazine. I went to Target today, and I was just looking at pet supplies like I always do, and they had them, so I bought two of them. Well, lemme tell you, these things are AMAZING! The leash hooks onto the front of the harness at the dog's chest. It automatically makes the dog walk behind you. Then, if the dog does try to pull, you give a tug to the side "a la Cesar" and the dog (supposedly) stops pulling. I haven't tried that part yet. I just put the harnesses on, fit them to each dog, and then we walked around the living room and kitchen. I would have tried to go outside, but the road is all ice and I'm really tired from being in Boston and driving all day. So, I will try them out tomorrow for real, outside (during the Super Bowl lolol). If this works, I will be able to walk my dogs together again with no panic attack!!!! I'm so excited!

And later....

I walked the dogs across the other side of the lake and back today with the new harnesses and it was WONDERFUL!!! ! Hector didn't know what to think LOL It threw him for a loop! I felt SO confident. It will be interesting to see what happens when we encounter a strange dog or cat.

And the next day....

Yay!! Just got back from walk number 2 with the new harnesses. What a DREAM! Whomever invented this thing was a genius. It's way better than the Illusion Collar (sorry Cesar!), and runs circles around other harnesses (literally lol). Hector just walked right by my side the whole time. The leash was loose "briefcase style" like Cesar demonstrates. This time we went on our usual route, only it is a big hill and extremely icy (all that melted stuff from yesterday froze overnight), so I got a little panicked about that and made the dogs turn around because I didn't want to fall on the ice just from being a klutz lol. They didn't pull at all. I think Hobie is mad because he can't do his little "back out of it" routine like he tries with most collars lol. And I'm so happy because I don't feel like I'm choking the life out of my dogs by having collars on them "show-dog style". I think this thing is amazing. So far, so good. I'll keep ya posted!

Altenburg family members

If anyone from the Altenburg legacy happens to stop by this blog, I am looking for any relatives who may be diagnosed with one of the porphyrias: AIP, HCP, VP, etc.

Our family is from Cook County, Illinois and parts of Wisconsin. My mother is "Mook" Altenburg, her parents were Ernest and Lucille.

If you are one of my cousins or their offspring, and think you may have information regarding a family medical history of porphyria, please contact me privately by email at kathleensmueller@hotmail.com

I'd also like to connect with Altenburg cousins anyway!! lol

All the best,

K2

Happy Birthday Millennium Dog!

Hobie the Y2K K9 turns eight years old today.

Here is a fun video of Hobie listening to wolves howling on CD.

All-new Dog Whisperer tonight!

Dog Whisperer's regular season resumes tonight after the holiday marathon break.
Don't miss it! Sounds like a good episode! 8 pm eastern, repeated at 11 pm.

Don't forget to watch the new show about dogs immediately following Dog Whisperer at 9 pm eastern, repeated at midnight.

Happy trails!

Dog Whisperer Week on NGC

Whoops! Forgot to post here announcing Dog Whisperer Week on NGC, which ends tonight.

My bad!!!

Dog Whisperer Marathon Friday!

Dog Whisperer Marathon on the National Geographic Channel starting Friday at 2:00 pm Eastern. Check your local listings!
For fun, go onto National Geographic's web site, and take the "Diagnose The Dog" test on the Dog Whisperer page! Fun!!!
Happy Thanksgiving everybody.

Since Hector was a pup!

Some of you may have read my essay on k2k9.com about my wonderful dog, Hector, and how he got his name. His name came about because of a phrase some of us at work used "we've been doing things that way since Hector was a pup". This is a phrase evidently popular for centuries. When I got Hector, we couldn't think of a name, and I was at work with my dear friend Roberta and she used the phrase (as we always did) and we looked at each other and said "HECTOR!!" and that's how my Hec got his name.

Somebody was Googling over the weekend, looking for "since hector was a pup cartoon" and landed on k2k9.com (yeah, I can spy on them and see how they ended up on my web site).

I decided to Google the same phrase and see what else comes up. Here is a great article explaining the possible origins of the phrase "since Hector was a pup".

"since Hector was a pup"

Dear Editor:
I sometimes hear the phrase "since Hector was a pup" and can't for the life of me find its source. I suspect it refers to the Hector of Homer's "Iliad." Can you confirm this hunch?
—M.E., Scottsboro, Ala.
Dear M.E.:
No one seems to be quite sure of the origin of this curious phrase. "Since Hector was a pup" is one of a variety of expressions meaning basically "since way back when," another favorite being "since Pontius was a pilot."
Several sources offer the unsubstantiated suggestion that the expression is based on the once-common practice of naming big dogs "Hector," most likely after the hero of Trojan War fame. Names for dogs, just as for people, go in and out of style. (We wouldn't even want to guess how many dogs were named "Lassie" in the 1960s.) According to the theory, "Hector" was in vogue for dogs in the mid-to-late 19th century, and the expression refers to the long past puppyhood of the family dog.
If this theory is true, it would discredit other suggestions that the expression was coined later by W.C. Fields or by the creator of a comic strip popular in the 1920s, "Polly and Her Pals."
It may be that one or both of these humorists was simply the vehicle for popularizing an expression already in existence. "Since Hector was a pup" may also have been a favorite expression of poet and dog-lover Ogden Nash, who works a variation on it in these lines:
"She seems to pant, time up, time up!
My little dog must die,
and lie in dust with Hector's pup;
So presently must I."

so proud of my hector!

I have to brag about my wonderful dog, and how great I handled a potential panic-attack situation!!

So, I stupidly accepted a vet appointment for 5:15 pm tonight. Bad idea since the vet's office is on the main highway called "Route 9" (the old Boston Post Road for any of you historians out there), and very heavy work traffic at 5:00-ish.

It was pouring rain, and already dark by the time I left the house with Hector in the car. I decided to leave my eyeglasses at home even though I have a hard time seeing at night, and especially in the rain with that glare, but the other challenge is walking the dog with glasses on... my glasses make me a little dizzy, and Hector pulls so I was afraid I'd fall down and the glasses would smash into my face.

So, perfect setup for a panic attack:

1) Having to take Hector somewhere where there will be other dogs (and cats)
2) Pouring rain
3) Pouring rain in the dark
4) 5:00 work traffic on Route 9
5) Route 9 itself, which I avoid like the plague at all costs
6) Having to make it to an appointment on time
7) Driving on very dark back roads which are under construction and heavy work traffic to get to Route 9

I made it all the way to Route 9 which is about 10 minutes from my house on awful back roads. As soon as I get to the set of traffic lights where I need to turn right to go to the vet's office, there is a HUGE accident in the middle of the intersection, police blue lights flashing, cars backed up for miles. I'm early, but now I'm thinking "I'm gonna be late" and then, "That could've been ME" Yep, somebody ended up with our worst nightmare: a car crash, in the middle of a busy intersection on route 9 in the dark at rush hour in the pouring rain.

I get to the vet's office, and we are 15 minutes early. I see a person with another dog go inside ahead of us. I do not want to encounter them, so I park in the back of the building. I calmly take Hector out of the car and we go for a little walk. Remember, it's dark, and pouring rain. I have to make sure I have my keys, credit card, and his papers from the previous vet because I've changed vets since the last time he had shots. Hector and I walk around in the back parking lot for a while, and we're getting soaked and he does his "business" (thank goodness).

I go back to the car, and realize we've still got 10 minutes to kill, and I don't want to encounter the other patient (dog). So, we get back in the car, I start it up to turn on some heat, and I sit there and read the newspaper which happens to be on the floor of the car. I decide I am going to go inside at 5:14 exactly. I read until 5:14. Then, I gather my keys, credit card, papers, put them in my pocket, grab the dog, and we walk up to the building.
Yippee! The waiting room is empty!

The ladies greet us and everybody ooohs and aaaahs over Hector because he is so handsome and so goofy all at the same time.

We sit down after we weigh him, and he's had some treats. As we're heading to the waiting area, a customer comes out of the exam room with a German Shepherd Dog. Hector and the dog sniff each other, but no problems ensue. This is remarkable, if you know Hector. He usually goes nuts when he sees another dog.

A minute later, a man, and a young boy of about 11 years old, and an elderly woman come in with a Yellow Lab/Mix who is shaking and all three of the people are freaking out. The dog has no collar on and the boy is holding the collar and leash in his hand, saying, "It's not my fault. It was an accident." What happened was, the dog pulled so hard that it broke its collar and was loose in the parking lot with no collar, no leash, during rush-hour on Route 9. (Our second worst nightmare, those of us who own dogs). The grandmother assures the boy that everyone knows it's not his fault, the dog is safe now, and they are amazed that the dog ran in to the office instead of out into traffic! The man is holding the dog on the ground and trying to tell it to calm down, but the man is shaking so badly the entire family is petrified. The grandmother tries to fix the collar (a flimsy prong collar made for a chihuahua, not a Lab!). As I'm watching this, I am amazed that Hector is within 12 inches of this dog and could care less. He is just totally relaxed and calm, and so am I!

As grandmother fails to fix the collar, I offer the advice of taking the leash and looping it thru the handle, thus making a collar and leash combo out of the leash. They all smile at me, toss away the broken collar, and do as I suggested. Everyone breathes a heavy sigh of relief.

Just then, a little baby Chocolate Lab comes in with its owner. Of course, the puppy greets everyone, and everybody is ooohing and aaahhing again. Once again, Hector sniffs noses with the pup but doesn't cause a ruckus like he's been known to do. The perfect gentleman, he just sits quietly beside me.

We get called into the exam room, and Hector gets fussed over by two assistants and the vet himself. Hector gets his shots, and off we go.

When we get back into the waiting area, there are two more dogs. Again, Hector either ignores or just sniffs and keeps walking.

After I pay the bill, two people come in with two CATS. One loose, being held in the owner's arms, the other in a crate. I tell Hector to sit, and we wait for the people to pass us before we proceed out the door. Hector again, the perfect gentleman, he almost didn't even care that there were two cats in the room!!

I was so happy, I actually did one of those skip-jump things like you see on TV as we were jogging through the parking lot on our way back to the car!!! and I think I even let out a little WHOOP!! LOLOL I was so proud of Hector, I smothered him with kisses when we got inside the car! ROFL

Wait, there's more... afterwards, I went to WAL MART to get dog food and some food for us people! WOW!!! and guess what? No panic attack!!!! (that's the same Wal Mart where I had the bad one a month or two ago)

I am so proud of Hector for being so well-behaved, and of me for not having a PA!!!!!

K2

k2k9 forums and blogs now ready!

Hope you'll visit k2k9's forums and blogs, located here:
http://www.fibroworks.com/k2k9/

Forums

Coming soon! On k2k9.com we will host a forum for dog enthusiasts as well as a place where each forum member can create their own Dog Blog!! Should be up 'n' running in a few days! Stay tuned!!

In the meantime, if you are a person with fibromyalgia, or know anyone who has fibromyalgia who might be interested in my forum on my other web site (www.fibroworks.com) please send them my way!

Here is the URL: www.fibroworks.com/board2

New photos

Just wanted to share these. Hector at the top of the stairs, and a rainbow in my backyard.

tori does beantown

The show was awesome!! Tori came out dressed as Pip (photos here are from the actual show I attended!), and did several songs, then she went offstage costume changed to Tori.

I downloaded the show from toribootlegs.com! She played 25 songs.

Miss Massachusetts was in the audience, and Tori did an improv song to Miss Massachusetts. It was hilarious!

Pip played: Cruel, Bliss, Fat Slut, Smokey Jo, Teenage Hustling (awesome!!), and Waitress.

Then Tori came out and did Professional Widow, Big Wheel, Crucify, Conertina, Cornflake Girl, a very emotional rendition of Putting the Damage On, Take to the Sky, Jackie's Strength (OMG so good!), Etienne (a song I'd never heard before ? I'm shocked at that one!), Virginia, Hotel, Code Red, Precious Things. (Oh, and in the middle there she did the Miss Massachusetts thing).

She said goodbye, then came back and did Digital Ghost.

Said goodbye again and came back again and did Bouncing off Clouds and Hey Jupiter.

(so cool that I have the playlist and can recount everything!!! I never would've remembered!)

Afterwards people were talking about how they were blown away that she did 25 songs!

Doggie In The Window videos

Look, I made a little video of my dogs set to Patti Page's "How Much Is That Doggie In The Window?" and added it to my video list on You Tube. For some reason, every time I look at my blog page, it shows all these other videos set to the same tune, not mine! To see mine, please click your "refresh" button, and my videos will appear. Jeesh, you'd think in the 21st Century, they'd be able to get this right!

Tori Amos concert next week!

One week from tonight, Susan and I go to see Tori Amos play in Boston! I can hardly wait! Tori is the most inspirational, phenomenal, outrageous and beautifully talented musician, singer, songwriter and pianist of our time. In my quite-biased opinion.

I posted some videos on my blog last week from You Tube. I was so thrilled to find this episode of VH1 Storytellers from 1998. It was the first time I'd ever seen Tori perform "live" (well, on TV!). I was absolutely mesmerized by her. I had been listening to her records for several years, but never had I seen her perform. I was entranced and enchanted. It changed my life forever. Of particular note was her performance of the song "Father Lucifer". I was over the moon last week when I found this on You Tube. I played it over and over. It is just beautiful.

Well, to my chagrin and extreme annoyance and disappointment, somehow this video of "Father Lucifer" is "no longer available" on You Tube. Why? All of the other clips are still available. I am truly devastated at the second loss of this great televised performance.

What I would give to have a VHS or DVD of this episode of VH1 Storytellers. If anyone has it, contact me privately at k2k9dogs@yahoo.com

October 1st - 23 years in student travel!

The entire state of Massachusetts used area code 617, and dial-up speeds of 300 baud were considered fast. In fact, nobody else even had dial-up, or new what a "baud rate" was, except us!

How amazing that twenty-three years have passed since I started my first job in the student travel business: October 1, 1984. I was 24 years old, married, going to college and travel-agent-training full-time. I needed to get a full-time second-shift job since the collection agency would not let me go back to full-time (I had reduced my hours to part-time a year before). I was putting my then-husband through college at the prestigiuos Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and, well, one of us had to earn a steady paycheck. That one would turn out to be me, and the resentment that ensued would be the reason for the dissolution of our marriage shortly thereafter.

I kind of fell into my career in student travel by accident and karmic coincidence.

I started job hunting, and responded to one of those ads in the newspaper classifieds that read "Send resume to Box X, Worcester Telegram and Gazette bla bla bla" An unknown company needed a second-shift person to operate their IBM System 36 computer system -- a system I had operated for four years at Associated Credit (Worcester's premiere collection agency) and at Easy Day/Suburbanite in Framingham (the household cleaning product manufacturer), for four years prior to that.

I mailed my resume to the T&G, and received a call practically the next day. It was Charlene Flannery, asking me to come in for an interview, to a travel company located at the Worcester Airport. The company's name was ALSG (American Leadership Study Groups) the first of the "alphabet-soup" stutrav companies, and owned by one "Gilmartin" (as my friends in Worcester erroneously referred to Gil Markle). "Gilmartin" was more well-known for having brought the Rolling Stones to Worcester two years earlier, in 1982, and owned the countryside recording studio Long View Farm. He also owned ALSG.

Flannery hired me practically on-the-spot, and introduced me to Gil Markle during the interview. When Gil and I shook hands and smiled politely, "Nice to meet you," there was a spark of electricity which I vehemently denied at the time, but was irrefutably love at first sight on both our parts. On my first night of work, I called my former co-worker, Jeannie, at the collection agency and whispered into the phone, "His name isn't Gilmartin, it's Gil Markle. Gil is his first name." as Gil himself walked around the corner and heard me, and I quickly ended the call.

I started work on that October 1st. Whether that was a Monday, just like today, I can't recall, but it probably was. My job, exactly as it was at Associated and at Easy Day, was to operate the large System 36 CPU, run backups, run reports and do data entry, and work a modified second-shift from 2:00 pm to 10:00 pm. I arrived practically fully trained, plus I was going to school for travel and tourism. If this was not fate waving its mighty hand, I don't know what was. It was as if the job were tailor-made just for me.


Flannery stationed me at a desk at the far end of the mailroom which everyone called "The Bowling Alley" -- a long corridor just inside the exit door from ALSG's offices to the main terminal of the deserted Worcester Airport. I was completely isolated from the rest of the "DP" (data processing) staff, except for the computer programmer who would sit at the desk next to me once a week. At 5:00 pm, when the other DP girls would go home, I would move to their area and run reports, do backups and all the data entry they'd left behind.

My DP colleagues would complain when Flannery and her cohort Debbie Condon were out of earshot, saying it was very unfair that I was kept apart from the rest of the team. To make matters worse, because I worked a second shift (same shift as the sales staff) I was doubly-isolated because the sales department would never include me in their social events or business meetings. I was a lone worker, sitting in my little booth down at the end of the bowling alley by day, and inside the roaring computer room by night.

Each day, around 3:00 pm, Gil Markle would make his trek from his cavernous, plant-filled executive office to the airport lounge and bar. As he walked by my cubicle, he would always stop and say hello. We were both painfully shy, and the conversation basically amounted only to "hi" with a smile, and that darned electricity between us every time. In the evenings, before he went home to Long View Farm, he would stop in the computer room and visit me. He liked to sneak up on me when I was in the middle of those roaring machines and scare the living daylights out of me. He wore sneakers, and was always very silent. I'd be engrossed in a sales report and I'd look up from the report and he'd be standing within ONE INCH of me, reading over my shoulder! I would jump and exclaim, "Ugh! You scared the shit outta me!" and then I would laugh, and he would keep a poker face. On his way out to various trips he would take, he'd always visit my desk and tell me where he was going. And when he returned, I think I was the first person in the office he'd visit.

ALSG was ahead of its time. We had the internet in 1984. Gil owned another subdivision of ALSG called modemcity, and we had email and people could login and set up an account with a credit card. There were chat rooms and bulletin boards, long before that became the norm. I "met" people from all over the world on modemcity. And Gil and I started writing each other love letters by email. Or, as we called it at the time "modem mail". Gil was smart enough to keep and archive those emails, which we still have today. It's great looking back at them, and even the business emails still exist, which are often times hilarious.

Gil wrote the following poem, which I always figured was about me! See his footnotes at the bottom of the page after you click here:

http://www.studiowner.com/essays/essay.asp?books=0&pagnum=23

The photo of me on my profile here on blogspot.com was taken in 1986, and I'm standing beside the modems and the large "Vax" computer that drove modemcity, and which I co-operated for many years. The series of photos taken that day include the one at the head of this blog posting, which would soon appear in Worcester Business Digest, accompanying an article about Gil and modemcity.

(see http://www.studiowner.com/essays/essay.asp?books=0&pagnum=132)

During another interview, Gil made mention of the little pink "While You Were Out" slips, and, for effect, crumpled one up and tossed it across the room, claiming that the paper office would one day be obsolete. It was only this year, 2007, when we came to that reality, now scanning almost all of our office documents instead of keeping paper files. Twenty-two years later!

We moved the Vax, the System 36, and all of ALSG's employees, equipment and furniture out of Worcester Airport in 1986 and in to the old Sibley's Neighbor restaurant in Spencer. And, we've been there ever since. Except ALSG eventually got sold, moved to Boston, and went out of business in short order in June of 1993.

The reincarnation of ALSG, passports, began in 1992, a year prior to ALSG's demise, and is still going strong today. Stronger than ALSG ever was, in fact.

I'm now Vice President of U.S. Operations at passports. Every day, I still do backups, operate computers (although they no longer take up the space of an entire room!), and still do the same data entry tasks I did back then. Plus wear a thousand other hats, including supervising and managing up to 50 people, with a lot of help from my senior colleagues.

And Gil and I still send each other love-letter emails.

It's been an amazing 23 years, and it went by in the snap of a finger. No two days are ever the same, and I am never, ever bored. Gil and I have stayed together through it all, and are more in love today than we were then. The electricity is still there. We make a great team.

One time, on a long-distance motorcoach filled with 50 passports clients and about 10 employees, a client asked us each to go up to the microphone and talk about how we got our start in student travel. Without exception, each and every one of us said, "I kinda got into student travel quite by accident." and then proceeded to tell our stories. There are no coincidences. It's been a wild ride.

In Memory of John2

Saturday, we had the memorial party in honor and memory of our dear friend John Farrell. I called John "John2" (say with a French accent "jean-tu"!) because both of our computer names at ALSG and Long View Farm ended in the number 2. I'm kathy2 and he was john2. We called each other brother and sister because we had the same "last name" LOL. I often would call him up and greet him with "Brother John?!" when he answered the phone.

Some background history: John and his life-partner Geoff met Gil in the mid-1960s down in Truro. They hit it off, and Gil offered them both work at Long View Farm where they lived and worked for a couple of decades. They re-built Long View when Gil purchased the property from an elderly lady. Meaning, they designed and renovated the whole inside of the two buildings, put recording studios in and everything -- you name it from soup to nuts they did it. They also re-built/renovated the building that now houses Passports, which is a building almost identical to Long View (white farmhouse and red barn).

John was a very talented singer, songwriter and a fabulous chef and avid gardener. He was one of the funniest people I've ever met in my life. He would have you cracking up laughing within one second of being with him, and the laughter would continue all day long. He did all the cooking at Long View for all the various musicians that used to stay and record there. And all the time he was cooking, he'd be singing. It was such a shame that he died of cancer of the larynx and lungs. He couldn't speak for the last two years of his life, let alone sing. A real tragedy. And he was far too young at 60 years old. After all, he'd tell you himself that 60 is the new 40!

(continued below, after photos)




K2 & Vincenzo

K2, Gil & Moe

Gil & Moe: A Tradition, what's a party without a photo of Gil and Moe!?

Jubilee and Abby (Jubilee is 19 years old! I call her
Jumpin' Jahoozabee because she used to jump so high!)

Brother Bill and Scott. That's our building behind
them.

Geoffrey, sitting at one of the built-in desks he
created in 1986. Another is behind him. He also
installed the bay windows.

K2, Sue and Tacke (the "church lights" behind us
were chosen by John2 in 1986 when a local church
was being renovated and they were selling their used
light fixtures. Whenever I turn the church lights on or off,
I think of John.)

John and Geoff had a somewhat well-known band in the area called "Fragile and the Eggs". You can find all of their stuff on Gil's website (www.studiowner.com) just search "John Farrell" in the Media Library section of the web site.

Watching John perform in some of the videos is priceless. He was a great performer, but I guess I'm a little biased!! We played the videos on three plasma screens all day Saturday.

Around the time that Gil and I left the farm, John and Geoff moved to Florida and retired.
Geoff is an artist (painter and sculptor), and a lot of his work is sold in Provincetown. They owned a vacation home in North Truro up until about 4 years ago when John started getting sick they sold it. I went down to Florida to visit them about a year after John was diagnosed with cancer. I'm so glad I went. I almost cancelled the trip because... yes.... I had a fibro-flare. I flew down there in horrible pain, which lasted throughout my visit. I'm so glad I went because it was one of the last times I saw him. He came up here that summer to visit, but he was so sick by then, it was difficult for him to be away from home.

What a wonderful day Saturday was. The party was perfect, perfect, perfect. Even the relentless thunderstorms that started halfway through the (outdoor) party were perfect, and we figured they were sent special delivery from John himself! We hadn't had ANY rain in 7 weeks, so it was actually welcome, and everyone stayed outside even though they could've gone indoors whenever they wanted!

It was more like a reunion than a memorial service, and we planned it that way on purpose. There were people there that I hadn't seen in years and years, and some I never met before. John was the heart and soul of Long View. He and Geoff lived there full-time and John was really the glue that held the place together.

Gil and Dave have been working on videos and audio during the year since John died (he died Aug 29, 2006), in preparation for this event.

It was John who, in the past, would organize the kind of party we threw this weekend in his memory.

Guests came from out of state, and even from other countries. Gil somberly noted, in his eulogy, that some of them hadn't seen each other in 20 years, and may never see each other ever again if the same time pattern continues. During the eulogy the lightning was so vivid, and the thunder so loud and incredible, as we all huddled under a huge canopy in the pouring rain and laughed because we knew that John had sent the thunderstorms to us! When Gil passed the microphone to Geoff, Geoff said very few words, but they were heartwarming and we were all crying. Geoff and John were together for 42 years! They were the first committed gay couple I ever met, and we became very close and dear friends.

We had the videos of John with his own music as the soundtrack set up on a constant loop on three plasma screens in our office building (which John and Geoff re-designed and renovated in the mid 80s when Gil bought the property) and the video ran repeatedly all day, and people would go inside and sit for a while and laugh and cry and reminisce.

The food, which we had catered, was excellent. Our office building is located at a horribly dangerous intersection, so we hired a town cop for the day to do traffic detail. The last of the guests left at about 11:00, and we had two of our employees stay behind to provide building security. Gil and I stayed up really late watching video footage that I and two other people had shot throughout the event.


Traffic detail cop and Lupo, videographer extraordinaire!

What a week it's been!!! I had no houseguests after all, so now I have a spotlessly clean house! Bonus!!!

Happy Birthday, Hector!!!

Hector is 6 years old today!!!!

Happy Birthday, Hec !!

Hobie 'n' Hector meet Monty!!

Mike called tonight to ask if he could come by and intro his puppy, Monty, to Hobie and Hector.
I of course said yes right away. We had already planned in advance that he would walk up to the fence from the outside and let them sniff and we'd take it from there. If Hobie and Hector were good, we'd bring Monty inside the yard.Well, my dogs were perfect angels!

First, while I was waiting for Mike and Monty to walk over from their house, I picked up all the toys of value and their rawhide bones, any food, etc. I put everything away in the closet and left two boring tennis balls (there is diff between tennis balls if you ask Hector. There are the boring kind and the high-value kind. The high-value kind got put away in the closet).

Then, my dogs and I walked around inside the fence together. I picked up dog doo-doos and they just hung around and were VERY relaxed. I was so proud because I have just started taking my new anti-anxiety meds so I was relaxed and it obviously translated to the dogs. We had about a 10-15 minute wait. And while we were waiting, all of the dogs in the neighborhood were announcing Monty's arrival. It was so funny! I could tell where they were on the walking route by which dog was barking (yes, you can recognize their voices!).

Mike and Monty approached the fence, and it was delightful. This little puppy, so cute, and my dogs were just perfect gentlemen. I told Mike to bring Monty in through the HOUSE, so we all went back up to the house -- Mike and Monty in front, and me and my dogs in the back. We all entered the house simultaneously from the back door and the front door (this was unplanned) and they greeted in the kitchen. Then, we all went into the back yard together. I had Mike carry Monty down the stairs. He's still a bit small for stairs!

We let him off-leash and they had a ball! They were sniffing like crazy, and then running and leaping and running, running, running. Hobie, the one we were most worried about, was actually almost "motherly" towards Monty. He was just so wonderful with the puppy. I was so proud of him. Hector was a little bit stimulated and tried to mount this little dog a few times and after the meeting was so over-exerted it took him over an hour to stop panting! But all in all, he did very well. He and Monty have almost the same markings so it was so delightful seeing a mini version of Hector running alongside of the big doofus!

They were very gentle with Monty. I noticed that they allowed Monty to be the leader. It was not really like they were chasing Monty, it was more like they were FOLLOWING Monty. They moved as a pack, at a slow trot. It was awesome! But then, Monty would lie down and flip over and show his stomach very submissive. It was just a great, great experience and I am SOOOO happy.

Afterwards when Mike got home he called me and we talked about it for 10 minutes! We were both very happy that it was such a successful meeting. Now the ice is broken, and I don't have to worry. Oh, and did I mention how proud I am of my boys?

Cat attack!!

Wait'll you hear what happened on this morning's walk.

I had watched "Greta and Hoss" on DW last night -- every time that episode is on I point at the screen and go "That's me!" Hoss does exactly what Hobie does on walks. I noticed that when another dog approached, Cesar did make the people STOP, make the dogs sit and calm down, and then continue walking. I can't imagine how that is done without incident, but that's definitely what he trained them to do! Hopefully I can master that one day!

I decided to take a friend's advice and use the prong collars this morning. Thank goodness I did because they definitely gave me a (little) more control over the dogs. My goal was to walk them over to the other road so they could hopefully meet Mike's new puppy. But, in order to do that, we have to walk up three dead-end dirt roads: mine, another one, and then Mike's. My street is good because they know everybody; the other street is deserted (no houses) so there are no problems there; Mike's road is very populated and lots of pets. But I noticed that there were very few cars in the driveways, it being Saturday morning and "tax-free weekend" here in Mass, everybody is probably out shopping. Hooray! It would be an easy walk!

Not so fast. I made it to Ralph's house (this is the dog-hater -- his property abutts mine but he lives on the other road -- same road as Mike, only further down). I didn't see the cat snoozing in the brush, but the dogs sure smelled her. They zoomed to the left and then I realized there was a cat! Thinking back, I realize that the dogs were perfectly fine, it was only when I said "NO!" that things started to escalate. Darn it!!! But those prong collars sure came in handy. The dogs were straining at the leashes and I figured out that because I'm so short I have a low center of gravity and I could feel that I was about to go down on the ground face first. So, instead of letting them pull me down, I SAT down deliberately! !! If anyone had looked out their window at this point, heaven only knows what they would've thought! (Meanwhile, my house, which is RIGHT THERE? Well, Gil is home all right, but he has the music on FULL BLAST so he can't hear the ruckus. Hobie is barking, Hector is whining, and I'm saying "NO!" in as calm a voice as I can muster). I do feel bad because I shouldn't have been pulling CONSTANTLY on those prong collars. I know they're only supposed to be used for "snap" corrections, but I didn't know what else to do. I was terrified that if I let go, the cat would run, they'd chase her, and kill her. And, in hindsight, I should've just kept walking instead of stopping and sitting down on the ground!

It gets better. All of a sudden, the cat springs into action and she rears up on her haunches and starts PUNCHING the dogs and hissing at them! Between this, and me sitting on the ground and foot-tapping the dogs' legs so that their feet keep going out from under them, the dogs completely calmed down. I said, out loud, "Everyone has to calm down!" and I looked in Hobie's eyes. After all I was sitting on the ground, and so was he. And I did not see a killer. I saw curiosity, love, and beauty.

Once they were completely calm, I stood up, dusted myself off (it had rained so the dirt road was all MUD!), and decided not to go to Mike's but to turn around and go home. As we started walking back down the road from whence we came, the cat started to trot after us. I looked at her, and she was so darned cute! And I thought, "Aw, isn't that sweet, she's walking with us!"

WRONG!!! She trotted up to us, and stood on her hind legs and started punching the dogs and hissing!!! It was amazing and hilarious. It was all I could do not to laugh, but at the same time I was scared it would make the dogs escalate again. Instead of continuing down the road, I made the radical decision to cut through Ralph's yard (dog-hater) which brings me to the back gate of my yard in about 12 seconds. I made it inside the gate, having to tromp through thickets, thorns and hopefully not poison ivy. I entered first, made the dogs go in and then dropped the leashes. Then, I started to have what I think was an asthma attack or something! I don't have asthma, but I couldn't breathe and I was coughing. I guess it was probably panic attack, who knows! I walked around the yard to cool off. The dogs knew I was mad, they both sat in the shade FAR AWAY from me.

But at the same time I was fascinated by what that cat had done. Amazing.

Hey, if nothing else I'm good for a story or two!

"Hey, Lady!"

I just thought this was funny, and I had to memorialize it someplace.

This is as good a place as any.

I was pulling out of a parking lot today, and stopped at the end to look both ways before I made a right turn toward home. Coming at me from my right was a huge dump truck, and it was maneuvering around a family walking five-abreast on the road. Thus, the truck was in the wrong lane. And so, I waited, and kept my eye on that truck as it careened toward me in the wrong lane.

I suppose it must have looked, to a woman riding a bicycle coming from the left, as though I was going to pull out -- which would've been really stupid since there was a truck in my lane, going the wrong way. Bicycle-riding-woman was coming from my left, right up alongside my car, and she and her four companions were apparently not worried about the large Mack truck heading their way in the wrong lane, but were instead worried about me because I hadn't (yet) looked to my left to see if anyone was coming.

I, of course, learned from my mother, Mook, many years ago "head on a swivel" when pulling out of anywhere. What Mook meant by that was to turn my head back-and-forth several times before moving forward in an automobile. In England they say, "Look Left!" (because they drive on the "wrong" side of the road). And, being one to always be extra-super-duper careful, I was simply sitting and waiting for the truck to go by and then I was going to start my head-on-a-swivel, which eventually would've meant turning my head to the left, then back to the right, then left again, right, left, right until I was satisfied that it was safe to proceed.

"Hey, LADY!" Bicycle-riding-woman hollered as she passed close by the front of my car, four companions close at her heels on their own bikes. I hadn't looked left, so I hadn't seen them (yet) but I think she thought I was just an absent-minded old lady. Those thoughts went through my brain rapid-fire, and instead of glaring at her, I just smiled. As she rode past, she said, "I just wanted to make sure you saw us!" and then all five of them waved. I pulled out behind them, real, real slow, and stayed way back until they turned up the bike path 100 yards away. As they turned, and I drove past them, they all waved again.

It was the first time anybody ever yelled, "Hey, Lady!" directed at me.

"OMG," I thought, "I have become 'lady.' That word. It's connotation, "Old hag." "Lady!" the very sound of it like something that smells bad.

"Hey! Lady!" Jerry Lewis.

Stephen King's "Hitchhiker" ("Thanks for the ride, Lady.")

"Jeez, Lady, watch where you're goin'!"

"Ugh! LAAAADY!!!" as some gray-haired woman cuts you off in traffic.

"Hey, Lady! Wake up!"

"Hey! Lady! Pay attention!"

But it was none of those things. It was Smart Lady, waiting for the truck to pass before moving into traffic.

massachusetts legislators take a bite out of lyme

Today, Massachusetts legislators announced a proposal by Rep. Jennifer Callahan of Worcester that would result in a special facility, possibly located right here in Worcester (!!) devoted to educating health professionals about chronic Lyme disease which is often undiagnosed and untreated. Here is a news article on the topic, which was announced just one hour ago.

http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/local/BO58179/

In addition, here is an article written about three weeks ago regarding the controversy over chronic Lyme diagnosis, and the difficulties patients like me often encounter in trying to geta diagnosis.

http://tinyurl.com/2kckz2

This, along with the recognition of Fibromyalgia by the FDA just last month, is fantastic news for people like me who have been living with these bizarre and annoying symptoms for many years with no diagnosis.As you know, I've long suspected that I may have chronic Lyme disease. I was tested for Lyme by a reluctant physician in 2004 when I first developed chronic fatigue, pain and other symptoms consistent with Lyme (as well as MS, fibromyalgia, Lupus, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and several other syndromes). That test came back negative. This is a common problem with chronic Lyme because only one testing lab in the U.S. is equipped to properly test blood samples for the presence of the Borelia bacteria in the blood. If your test doesn't get sent to that lab (and most don't), and you don't have the telltale "bull's-eye" rash, then your test comes back negative and you're told you don't have Lyme. This is more than a common occurrence, and part of the focus of Ms. Callahan's proposal.I have been exposed to ticks constantly due to my interactions with my dogs as well as the frequency of my visits to Cape Cod. Ticks are also rampant in Worcester County as well. The way I figure it, if I don't have Lyme disease, it would be a miracle! While I have, to my knowledge, not seen the typical bull's-eye rash, I have often found ticks on myself, although I am not aware specifically of an actual bite. I check myself and my dogs for ticks constantly, and I'm more than vigilant about doing so. We are over-run with ticks here on Cape Cod, and it's not unusual to find one crawling up my leg! The dogs, who often sleep with me, are always loaded with ticks. I spend a good part of our post-walk routine picking ticks off everybody.Since neurologists are the specialists most often dealing with chronic Lyme, it is more than ironic that these two newsworthy developments would occur just days before my upcoming introductory appointment with a neurologist.I intend to discuss both issues with her: Lyme and Fibromyalgia.Stay tuned!

k2 announces k2k9 group on Yahoo Groups!

Having been a member of several Yahoo groups over the last year or so, and always being a natural-born leader, I wanted to have a group to call my own.


Click to join k2k9
When I started searching Yahoo Groups I was astonished to learn that there are over 50,000 groups in the "dogs" category.

Wanting to make my group stand out in a crowd, I knew I'd have to come up with something unique, original and upbeat.

As the proud owner of two dogs when I was a child (Sam, a wonderful old howling Beagle; and Fritz, the scariest dog in the whole neighborhood --a German Shepherd Dog that my brother had gotten when he was a recruit at the police academy), I knew the special challenges that came with owning a pack of dogs.

I was fortunate enough to spend the lion's share of my adulthood with my most loyal friend and companion, Timba, a black Labrador Retriever who lived to the ripe old age of 18 (that's about the equivalent of a 125-year-old human). She died when I was 41 years old, and at the time I knew her longer than I'd known most people, including my sweetheart,Gil.

Shortly before Timba's death, I adopted Hobie, a yellow Lab/Shepherd mix who instantly took on the role of the love of my life, but not the well-behaved "perfect" dog that Timba had always been. Nevertheless,Timba actually taught Hobie many things, and when she passed away that sad day on Memorial Day weekend in 2001, I was ready to have Hobie takeover Timba's job.

But a very interesting thing happened. One September 4, 2001, exactly one week before "9/11", my dear friend Nancy announced that her daughter's dog, Oreo, had just given birth to a litter of black Lab-mix puppies. Missing Timba like crazy, and having such a good time raisingHobie, I decided I'd take a puppy when they were ready.

When 9/11 hit, it was like a ton of bricks to me personally. You see,I work in the travel business in a specialized "niche" market, and the terrorist attack hit our business hard.

Sad and depressed, I started visiting the puppies at Nancy's farm everyFriday afternoon. Hobie actually picked out the pup we would eventually take home: Hector, a black Lab/Coonhound mix who howled from the moment we put him in our car one November afternoon, and hasn't stopped howling since! I describe my Hector as "the nicest dog in the world." He hasn't got a mean bone in his body, and I often wishI could draw cartoons because he'd be a perfect cartoon character! If you watch Hector's antics for a while, you can see what kind of canine must have inspired the creators of Pluto, Snoopy, Marmaduke, and all the other cartoon dogs!

But soon after Hector and Hobie, who are both male and very close in age, reached adolescence, I also reached my mid-40s. I would never change a thing in the world (except my leadership skills, which are often weak)! Having two dogs is often challenging, difficult and exhausting, but at the same time rewarding, fun, joyous and did I mention exhausting!?

It is that which perhaps sets this group apart from others. I want to hear from others who live in multi-dog households. Whether you feel outnumbered, or want your pack to grow to epic proportions, we can help each other grow and have some fun doing it.

Before I sign off, I have two requests:

1) Please refrain from personal attacks or flaming of any kind.

2) Do not ever say anything bad about Cesar Millan here. Go do that somewhere else. Bashing of the Dog Whisperer is not allowed.

Violators of either of these rules will be removed from the group without additional warning.

Now, claim that gate, come on in (in front of your dog)!

Welcome to K2's Dog Park!

K2

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dog whisperer week in review

I spent every single night this week watching Dog Whisperer, riveted to the TV and even rewinding the DVR to watch some parts over and over. The show was run in a marathon format since it's on hiatus, and we fans need our "fix"!

Gil was away at the Cape, and I am back at home, so I had the whole house to myself and was able to watch it without his complaints or comments (he likes DW, but gets annoyed at the "marathons").

I learned SO MUCH even though I have seen the episodes so many times before (except for the two new ones). The show is so inspiring for me. Every night when I finished watching (sometimes I'd let the repeats run while I was sleeping lol)I would be so PSYCHED to take my dogs for a walk, but of course it being 11 pm I couldnt lol.

But the next day I would take what I learned and use it. I can't believe how many new things I learned, even from episodes where I thought it wouldn't apply to me. Like last night was the "Desert Bulldogs" episode. I've seen that 50 times before. But when the Cocker Spaniel ran to the fence and the other two dogs followed and Cesar explained that he had to correct them at thefence, and then let them go away from the fence, something clicked in my brain. That's why the dogs keep charging the fence -- because I'm not correcting them and calming them down at the fence! I have so much trouble at the Cape because we're on a public walking route, and everyone walks their dogs past our house. My dogs have no problem with dogs they KNOW (like at home, it's only dogs we KNOW that walk by). But the UNKNOWN dogs? Fergit it!! My dogs go berserk. I now know exactly what to do,and I can't wait to go back there and try it again. Thanks to Cesar!! That's just ONE example of what I learned.

Another thing was repeating over and over and over until you get the right results. I would try to get Hector to go down the stairs AFTER me, but if he didn't do it after one try, I'd just give in and follow him. I don't know why it took me watching these episodes 100 times beforeI realized that I have to stop on those stairs, bring the dog up again, and make him sit, and do it over and over until he stops trying to go first. What a revelation!! I did it today, and it only took three times and he "got" it!

Today, I walked my dogs in a completely different direction. I threw them for a loop because we always go on the same route every day.Or, lately I've been so frozen in fear that we go nowhere. Today,instead of taking a right at the end of the road and then doing "the safety zone walk", I went LEFT and went across the bridge over the lake. It's only a 5-minute walk, but that's ok because there are no other dogs and it was really hot out anyway. I had both leashes slack by my side and gathered them up holding them like a purse, instead of Hector running WAY out front, and Hobie being at my side. What a great walk we had! Every time Hector pulled, I corrected to the side or up, just like Cesar explains, to surprise the dog and keep him a little off-balance. It worked!!

What I need to do is watch Dog Whisperer every single day. I have not been this inspired in months. I'm going to set small goals each day, and go different routes to keep the dogs paying attention to me as leader.When we go back to the beach next week, I'm going to walk them up and down in the same 50-foot area in the public parking lot until I'm comfortable to go further -- back and forth, back and forth.

My ULTIMATE goal is to be able to walk them both, as a pack, safely on the beach with no problematic encounters and no angry humans. I AM going to do this. It may take years, but with the inspiration of Cesar I know I can do it. I'll just pop the DVD in and watch it,even if it's an episode I've seen 100 times who cares? I can't wait 'til Season 2 comes out on DVD, so I'll have more material to inspire me.

Well, I am so psyched right now. I hope I can continue this positive mindset, and not go back to my anxiety-attack state. BTW, fans of DW: don'tcha just LOVE the episode with A.J. that lady who has the Panic Attacks? That is one of my favorites (and obviously a lot of other people's since it was on fan-favorite night!). And wasn't it cool to see her in the new episode at the nursing "hotel"? I had mixed feelings, that woman inspires me so much, but at the same time I felt the other lady with the two little dogs had a bit of an "in" with Cesar because of the connection. Oh well, whatever works I guess. Good for her!!

And of course they played my favorite, favorite episode which is at the beginning of Katrina Dogs Part 2 -- Major Jones. I LOVE that segment with the older woman and her GSD Major Jones. I cry everytime I see it. That woman is truly an inspiration to us all.