Category Archives: Dog Shows

Levi: FBI dog

Do you remember the PAX series, Sue Thomas, F.B.Eye that aired from 2002 – 07?  One of the major stars of the show was Levi, the golden retriever who served as an assistance dog to Ms. Thomas.  The series was based on the true story of Sue Thomas, who served first as a fingerprint specialist for the FBI, then was promoted to a surveillance team with the help of her assistance dog.

Because of the involvement of Levi, Animal Planet has picked up the syndication option on the show and is broadcasting repeats on Monday nights at 9 pm.  If things go well, they may even have more episodes produced.

If you didn’t see the show the first time around, it’s worth checking out.  Not terribly dramatic or suspenseful, but a good way to see how differently-abled people interact with their assistance dogs, and not a bad story about the type of cases the FBI pursues.

Until next time,

Good day, and good dog!

Brian Williams’ Dog Lucy

OK, maybe you’re sick of hearing about the Bonnie Hunt show by now, but I can’t stop talking about it!  Today’s guest was NBC news anchor Brian Williams.  First of all, he’s absolutely hysterical!  (He gave Bonnie a bird cage doormat for her fake hidden-camera equipped bird cage – it was huge!  Of course, the inhabitants of the bird cage are humans dressed in bird costumes.  Then he turns this into an opportunity to talk about the housing crisis and whether or not the bird couple have adequately planned out their expenses to see if they can afford the home.)

Anyways, he began talking about why he is a dog person.  He says that both his wife and a friend of his who is a psychiatrist agree that he has some dog DNA in him.  While he is saying this, he starts scratching at his ear, using his whole arm, as a dog would do.  Who knew that the guy reading the news would be such a riot?

Finally, he showed some pictures of his dog, Lucy, who was adopted from a shelter when she was about the size of a teddy bear.  Now 15, Lucy is a huge dog (maybe part lab?).  He says she suffers from a vestibular illness, similar to a stroke, where she constantly has her head tipped to the side, as if she were listening to something very interesting all the time.  She apparently gets up very early in the morning, and barks her head off, then goes back to sleep…EVERY DAY!

BTW, Wednesday is the weekly dog adoption segment, so check it out online, if you’re interested.  They talked about making dog guardianship more affordable in this economy.

Until next time,

Good day, and good dog!

Today Show Hosts at Westminster Dog Show

Since I’ve been home recovering from surgery for the past few days, I’ve gotten to watch NBC’s Today Show for more than the first five minutes or so.   They are running a series on the hosts trying out new things.  For example, today, they took art lessons and “learned” how to paint a nude!  Monday and Tuesday, the feature was the hosts showing dogs at Westminster.  If you’re not a handler, you may have never imagined how hard it is to run a dog around the ring!  I had always thought that conformance showing was pretty easy, especially compared to something like agility training, where the handler has to be nearly as agile as the dog.  I was pretty surprised to learn that there is a definite technique to handling a show dog, too.

Anyways, you can see the clip here.  Monday’s show (the 2nd clip on the list) is about the preparations they had to go through, while Tuesday’s show (the one that pops up when you open the link) shows the actual competition, which is pretty funny, in and of itself!

Until next time,

Good day, and good dog!

Survey Saturday: You Be the Westminster Best in Show Judge

blue-ribbonObviously, the biggest thing in the dog world this week has been the 133rd Annual Westminster Kennel Club Show.  We all know by now that the Sussex Spaniel won, but is that the dog you would have picked? 

Listed below are the 7 Best in Group winners – which one would you have picked?

Continue reading Survey Saturday: You Be the Westminster Best in Show Judge