If you live in Southern California and have dogs, you are probably aware of foxtails. But, in case you are new to the area, have a new pet or are walking or hiking in a different area, I’d like to share a little information. This occurred to me over the past week when I noticed the nasty weeds popping up in my own back yard. Spring has sprung, indeed.

Foxtails are a feature of many grasses that grow locally. The distribution in my yard is fairly sporadic, but it’s common to see areas along sidewalks that get overrun. I snapped the above photo on Alvarado near Sunset in Echo Park earlier this evening.

The plant becomes problematic when it dries out (see photo below) and the seeds break off.

The danger of foxtail seeds is that they are barbed, so when they get stuck in a dog’s coat, they work their way in and get stuck. Paws, ears and nostrils are particularly vulnerable. They can embed under the skin and have been known to get under eyelids, in throats, etc. The bottom line is these nasty things can cause pain, bleeding, infection and rather substantial vet bills. If you have foxtails on your property or walk your dog(s) in area where they grow, inspect the paws, ears and fur daily. They are difficult to eradicate, especially if you don’t want to use harsh chemicals. During the spring, summer and fall, I pull the plants out of the ground by hand on a daily basis. Even with my vigilance, my dogs have had a couple of instances of needing some minor vet attention due to a foxtail lodged in a paw or an ear.

P.S. I read that outdoor cats are also at risk, it is much lower due to their grooming habits.

L.A. Animal Services issued a press release today stating that they are canvassing Los Angeles City neighborhoods checking for current dog licenses. Not only is it the law, but being in the system may increase your chances of a reunion with your dog should it ever get out. I know first hand that your dog that you are sure will never get out WILL.

Since 2008, the city has required dogs, and cats, over the age of four months to be spayed or neutered. Therefore, to get your $20 dog license, your pet must be altered. There are a few exemptions and if you qualify, you pay $100 (plus a possible $235 breeder’s fee if applicable) for the license. A current rabies vaccine is also required. The various applications can be found here.

Your dog will not actually go to jail if caught without a license. You won’t be fined, but you will be asked to bring any licenses current. Little Guy, pictured above, isn’t really behind bars. He just fell asleep that way in my dining room. (Rescued from East Valley shelter over 10 year ago. Neutered and licensed).

Are you a Gleek and a pet lover? Then this event is for you!*

The Rescue Train is holding its 5th annual Race for the Rescues event this Sunday, October 24 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The day will include a 5k, 10k and kids fun run along with lots of entertainment along the way. The proceeds benefit 10 non-profit pet rescue organizations in LA. There will be a huge silent auction, face painting for the kids and lots of pet shopping to dress up your four legged friend in time for Halloween. And if you were looking to adopt a new four legged friend, there will be dog and cat adoptions all day through the LA Animal Services and Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA.

And  your celebrity hosts for the event? Jane Lynch from Glee along with Carrie Ann Inaba from “Dancing With The Stars” and Danielle Fishel from the Style Network’s “The Dish.” Get your Gleek on!

Registration starts at 7am with races starting at 8:30. All events will wind down around 1pm. For a full schedule of events and to sponsor racers or make general donations to The Rescue Train, click here.  For more general info on The Rescue Train, please click here.

*I’m looking at you, Blogging.la author Queequeg!

Photo of "Jetta Rose," one of many pets who need homes via Rescue Train

Getting fluffed for show.

I never thought I would be one of those people, but here I am:  I went to a dog show yesterday.  The 2009 AKC/Eukanuba National Championship started Saturday at the Long Beach Convention Center and finishes today, Sunday, with the Best in Show being crowned at some point tonight.  There also is a highly entertaining agility contest – disproportionately attended by lesbians (not that there is anything wrong with that; I was there too) – in which big and small dogs race their way through an obstacle course.  If you have no plans on a lazy (and hopefully dry) Sunday and have a spare Andrew Jackson in your wallet, tickets at the box office are $20 and free for kiddies.

I know what you’re thinking: Best in Show and one of Jane Lynch’s finest performances outside of Glee. And, really, it is hard not to mock the entire event, or any event in which a group of obsessed people congregate to out-obsess the other.  But, for dog lovers, it’s also a nice chance to see all sorts of different dogs like the Xoloitzcuintli, learn about different breeds, and see how they fluff the bichon frisee’s fur.  It’s electric.

If you can’t make it, no fear: a full recap will be up next week for those who live vicariously through their computers.  The pictures might be the best photos I have ever taken.

When I think about charity, the first image that pops into my head is a zipper busting troupe of lingerie-clad burlesque dancers surrounded by distressed wood paneled walls, Gothic mirrors, 200-year old architectural trappings, the smell of British gastro pub fare – and of course, bingo!

On Sunday, September 27, Royal Clayton’s and Legendary Bingo will host “Bingo Burlesque,” a regular event that occurs on the 4th Sunday of each month. The funds raised at the door benefit local and national charities. So you see, since this is all for a good cause, it may actually be the only time that you can get loaded and drool over nipple tassles without having to worry about going to H-E-DOUBLE-HOCKEY-STICK, if you know what I mean, and I think you do, heathens.

On this sin approved evening, your $20 suggested donation will include a scorching Burlesque show, 10 thrilling games of heart pounding bingo and the hurts-so-good feeling that you are helping support a very special charity, Downtown Dog Rescue. Doors open at 6:00 PM and the show begins at 7:00 PM.

Downtown Dog Rescue was founded to assist the homeless community of dog owners. It is the only program in California, and possibly the United States, that specifically helps homeless dog owners spay/neuter, vaccinate, license their dogs, as well as offering a variety of services including crisis care, for the life of the dog.

Please call Royal Clayton’s at (213) 622-0512 to reserve a table for the event. Read the rest of this entry →

Thanks to Sean‘s twitter feed, I learned yesterday that the Pasadena Humane Society, who has taken in 200+ evacuated pets affected by the Station Fire, desperately needs donations of blankets, food, money, etc. I had a case of premium food that my picky dogs won’t touch that I took over to them. I always feel so helpless when a natural disaster is going on and was happy to make a helpful gesture, no matter how small it is in the grand scheme of things.

The Pasadena Humane Society is located at 361 S. Raymond Ave. The facility is closed to all adoptions at this time and are keeping the doors locked. However, you can knock on the door and they will graciously receive your items. While they are typically closed on Mondays, I confirmed that they are accepting donations today. If you have any questions, you can call 626-792-7151.

Che Needs a Permnanent or Foster Home, Can You Help?

This week’s featured rescue dog is a three year old Vizla/Pit mix who was minutes away from being euthanized at the West Valley Pound before the nice people at Karma Rescue stepped in to help.

Che is a very playful, energetic guy who needs someone who can give him plenty of exercise. He is housebroken, great with other dogs and apparently even friendly with cats too! Che is currently living in a temporary boarding facility where he isn’t getting a lot of attention. He could really use a structured home environment until Karma Rescue finds him a permanent home, so if you can volunteer as a “foster parent,” please e-mail info@karmarescue.org for more information.

You can also stop by Karma Rescue’s regular pet adoption events held at Kirby’s Pet Depot located at 12112 Venice Blvd in Mar Vista (one block east of Centinela). Check Karma Rescue’s web site for more information.

This is Abigail, a one year old Pit Bull mix who became the victim of shocking, barbaric abuse when she was inexplicably set on fire. Abigail was brought to the Lancaster Shelter where Karma Rescue heard of her tragic story. Karma immediately transported Abigail to a local animal hospital where she received intensive care for her injuries including second and third degree burns throughout her body.

It has been a long road to recovery. Abigail has had multiple surgeries requiring skin grafts, but she is going to make it, thanks to the generous care and support of Karma Rescue’s donors and volunteers.

Unfortunately, the perpetrators of this heinous crime were never caught, Read the rest of this entry →

This week’s featured rescue dog comes to us from Karma Rescue. Kit is a stunning and rare, one-year old Dogue de Bordeaux (French Mastiff) mix. He’s a lover, not a fighter for sure. Kit was found walking the streets of Las Vegas, feeling down on his luck, presumably after losing a bad bet. We can only assume that’s how this poor guy lost two of his toes – but that doesn’t seem to bother him at all.

This beautiful Dogue de Bordeaux needs a home

Kit is learning proper puppy manners from his big foster sister. He also gets along with all the dogs at the park and beach and walks nicely on a leash.

This gorgeous, gently used Bentley comes to us from a friend of Metblogs who is trying hard to find this four year old pup a new home. They tell us that Bentley is a family friendly guy, just 85lbs of pure love and happy dogness. The current owners are looking to place Bentley with a responsible, dog loving family – so an interview will be required. Here’s what else they have to say about him:

“Bentley is the first to welcome me home, come rain or come shine, he meets all of us with an array of circle runs, sky-high-jumps and happy barks. He’s a sucker for treats and expects them when he’s been good…which is often. He’s very smart and is oh-so-trainable. He diligently chases midnight marauding raccoons who are attempting to over-turn our trash cans and mockingbirds who are always attempting to steal just-ripened-fruit from our courtyard garden.

He’s house broken, sleeps in our son’s bedroom and naps on various doggy pillows around the house. He loves SoCal’s sunshine and prefers peeing and pooping in private. A daily walk or run is his definition of the start or end to a perfect day.”

If you are interested in adopting Bentley or can help find him a new home please e-mail Jock Begg at begg@nhlfunding.com.

Bentley Needs A New Home

I engaged in an important Los Angeles rite of passage today: my first audition. Actually, the audition was for my “nephew” Spencer, a Golden Retriever/Lab mix. I took Spencer over to Venice Beach for the Long Island-based North Shore Animal League’s Tour For Life 2009, billed as “the world’s largest cooperative pet adoption event.”  As the name indicates, Tour For Life is a roving pet adoption event that hits many major cities around the U.S.  But at Venice Beach, we got the added attraction of Cesar Millan, the “Dog Whisperer.”

Read the rest of this entry →

CurbedSF links to a story in the San Francisco Examiner about the latest rankings in Eventful’s 2nd annual Most Eventful Cities. Los Angeles comes in second behind New York among U.S. cities “according to the number and diversity of local events for residents and visitors.”

The 2008 ‘Most Eventful Cities’ rankings are based on the total number of events listed on Eventful that took place in each U.S. city between December 1, 2007 and November 18, 2008.

While we may have dropped from 1st to 4th in the rankings for Music Lovers, and while that Performing Arts ranking is suspect, L.A. has made some notable accomplishments in 2008:

• We have taken over the #1 spot from San Diego for Pet Lovers

• We bumped New York out of the top spot for Night Crawlers

• We climbed from 4th to 3rd for Singles

• We’re hanging on at #10 for Sports without the NFL

• And we’ve retained our #1 ranking for Bookworms. Apparently, we have the mostest events for people who read good.

To sum up, we rule. Keep it up. Complete Eventful rankings after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry →

Meowlers peeks through the window

I recently moved into a little bungalow in the middle of an old part of Canoga Park. The block holds three large groves of eucalyptus trees–holdovers from when the property had not been subdivided and had been part of local ranches–and a good amount of overgrown open space, and as such plays host to all sorts of fauna adapted to living on the loose in suburbia: Raccoons. Possum. Rats. Mice. Hawks. Owls. Parrots.

And cats.

I am allergic to cats. I never cared much for cats. I was a Dog Person.

Then I moved into this house, and realized it came with Yard Cats.

Cats are pretty highly modified from their wild counterparts. Their constitutions are not as hardy as, say, bobcats or ocelots. They survive ok on their own, going feral and clawing their way through a short and hungry life, but they aren’t built for that. They were bred for a gentler kind of life.

Click through for the saga of Meowlers, my little ball-less wonder, and the wonderful service that is FixNation.

* Ok, only karmic profit…and no, not much fun, but a good deed nonetheless.

Read the rest of this entry →

I’m posting this plea for somebody to adopt this beautiful little stray dog because I think getting her placed with somebody else is the only way I’m going to be able to resist adding her to my already-too-large animal brood:

I just found this sweet girl as I was driving to an appointment in Maria Del Rey early this morning (7/29/08). She was running across the street dodging traffic and ran behind a doughnut shop. I followed her and found her in the trash looking for scraps.

I’ve bathed her and given her flea medicine already and am taking her to the vet tomorrow morning. She seems very healthy, just a little malnourished. She’s extremely well behaved, slept in my car and has been quiet and sleeping all day. As you can see by the photos – she’s quite a looker too.

I’m calling her “Rey” for now – she weighs about 20lbs – my guess is she’ll grow to about 70lbs.

If you’re interested, drop me a line in the comments and I’ll forward you the person’s contact info. And make with the clicky for a larger peek at the sweet houndling.