Category Archives: Professor Scamp Ph.D (Pretty Happy Dog)

Vol. 8, No. 24 – September 2 – September 15, 2015 – Professor Scamp

scamp fosterEnjoying themselves at the FelixNFido adoption event were “Paws For Reading” dogs Suzie, Jane Middleton, Library Technician II (not a dog), Doug, Herbie,  Murphy  and Ricky


 

scamp pugsBruno and Molly of Central Coast Pug Rescue are going home with Bob and Christina Thompson of Thousand Oaks after being adopted at FelixNFido event.


 

scamp kiarraKiarra was adopted  from CABODOGZ by  Nathan Celusta, of Newbury Park, and  his son Jasper at FelixNFido event.


 

scamp Radar:

Dear Dr. Scamp:

Through the mysteries of the ether, I have been informed of your views on the virtues of pet adoption, and I write to tell you how right you are.

I was one of a litter of expectant Labradors born about 11 years ago.  Through no faults of my own, I spent several years in grubby shelters, until I was rescued by an elderly gentleman who was attracted to my good looks and because he was familiar with labs, recognizing my potentialities.

We spent 7 years together before my age overtook me.  I’ll tell you about the best years of my life.

Like most labs I was trained to hunt birds, particularly quail and ducks, the former because I had such a good nose and the latter because I love the water.  In Mexico, I could locate a covey of quail by smelling them, when my boss could neither see them of hear them.  In the San Joaquin Valley I would wait patiently beside my boss in the blind, and, when the gun went off, I would follow the flight of the dead bird into the cold water and bring it back, gently putting it in my boss’ hand.

Although bird hunting was my first love, I loved being at home where it was warm and comfortable.  I was my boss’ No. 1 pal.  We would go for long walks, and I would see other dogs, not labs, and I would say to myself, “Humph! You don’t know the good life!”  I would see doves and quail and an occasional duck and bark, “It’s not the season.  Just wait!”

Well, toward the end I broke the ACL in my knee, and I could not walk very well or far.  My energy flagged, and I found it hard to get up in the morning.  I still tried to please my boss, and I wagged my tail every time he looked at me.  But I just gave up and died in the hands of my friendly vet.

To let you know what a good hunting dog looks like I also sent you my picture.

Sincerely, Radar Spaulding

Ojai


 

I want to give a big woof woof to all of the wonderful vendors and attendees at the at the Third Annual Felix n’ Fido Bring Me Home Adoption Festival, held at the Ventura Harbor Village main lawn. The entire event was about adoption and rescue of our homeless pets. A special thanks to Lightning Ridge Screen Printing for donating the printed shirts.

It was presented by CABODOGZ, me and the Ventura Breeze and  was a wonderful event that included music, pet artists and many dog adoption agencies, vendors selling pet items and of course the emceed Red Carpet Walk for all adoptees. I have included pictures of a few of the dogs that were adopted.


 

Wednesday, Aug. 26 was National Dog Appreciation Day.

And Californian’s certainly do appreciate us dogs. California has been ranked the #1 most “Dog Happy” U.S. state, according to the Milo’s Kitchen ‘Dog Happy’ Survey.

To create this national doggy appreciation ranking, Milo’s Kitchen brand dog treats surveyed 3,000 dog parents to determine how regularly they engage in thankful, grateful, and loving behaviors with their dogs.

The top 25 most ‘dog happy’ U.S. states

  1. California
  2. New York
  3. Washington
  4. Tennessee
  5. Florida

86% of dog parents say their dog “comforts them immeasurably”
71% say their dog “reminds them to seek out more joy in life”
64% say their dog “makes them look forward to going home more than anything else”
63% say their dogs “make them much more patient and responsible”

And 100% of dogs say their lives are richer when they live in a loving home (My own survey results)

 

Scamp the sheep herder?

Scamp the sheep herder

Scamp the sheep herder - pic03This is me at On the Lamb Ranch in Camarillo honing my herding skills. I couldn’t tell if the sheep were scared to death or laughing their heads off (did you see the movie Babe?)

 

Vol. 8, No. 23 – August 19 – September 1, 2015 – Professor Scamp

Scamp“It’s nice to know that help is available if I have a medical problem, or need a lift to the vet”

scamp bath

“ Do short hair dogs need to take a bath daily? I get a little dizzy in the washer-dryer but I look very handsome after”

Thank all of you who attended the FelixNFido adoption event held on Sunday at the Ventura Harbor. It was nice meeting you.

My good friend Victoria Usher wrote the following for me while I was napping, but I made a few comments.

The limit on how many cats residents can own in their home in Los Angeles may soon be relaxed in order to help raise the number of pet adoptions and help prevent felines from being euthanized in very crowded shelters. As of right now, it is illegal to have more than three cats without a kennel permit. In order to change this, a proposal must be made which would have to go through the city’s animal welfare committee and then after that it would need the City Council’s approval. Councilman Paul Koretz, chairman of the city’s Personnel and Animal Welfare and many others are really pushing to move forward with this so that residents can have as many as five cats. There are obviously people that have their doubts about making this change but in the end if it does happen not only will there be more cats in loving homes but there will also be less cats that have to be unnecessarily euthanized in packed shelters. No matter what, it’s all about what’s best for the cats. ( And I’m getting used to cats now that I live with one, they’re not too bad-Scamp).

The Working Cats program helps rescued cats with street-smart skills find homes. But not only will they find good homes, they will find good homes that will put their street smart skills to better use. A perfect example of this would be Pacino, a brown tabby from Los Angeles. Pacino had apparently lived on the streets of Los Angeles for quite some time, always running from danger and never knowing when or where his next meal would come from. But then one day he was turned in at one of the L.A. County animal services shelters. Pacino never thought he would be adopted by anyone; after all he was far too aggressive and distrustful. He never ever suspected that someone like Melya Kaplan who had started the Working Cats program in 1999, would come along looking for a cat just like him with a street-smart attitude. Pacino then became a nighttime warden at the Original L.A. Flower Market, always making sure that rodents never got out of hand. There are many other cats just like him that have also been recruited by an animal rights nonprofit to find homes in places that could use cats street-smart qualities. Because of the Working Cats program, all kinds of cats are rescued from different shelters and sent to locations such as private homes, businesses and schools. The Working Cats program has placed about 500 cats in about 50 locations. That is absolutely wonderful. These are the types of programs that we need more of in this world. Not all animals are alike, just as not all of us humans are alike. We all just want to find a place that we belong. The Working Cats program has done that for these cats and it’s a beautiful thing.

There has been a recent new study of ancient wolf DNA that is now telling us that dogs actually split from wolves as many as 27,000 to 40,000 years ago instead of 11,000 to 16,000 years ago, as earlier genome research had previously suggested. The genetic material used for this analysis was a small piece of rib bone, which belonged to a male wolf that lived on Siberia’s Taimyr Peninsula. During an expedition to this region, Love Dalen, first author Pontus Skoglund of the Harvard Medical School and their colleagues found this specific genetic material. At first they were all unsure if the sample came from a modern or ancient wolf, but radiocarbon dating later revealed that the animal did live about 35,000 years ago. After studying the animal’s DNA and then comparing it to genomes of modern wolves and dogs, the team all figured that there must have been a three-way split between the Taimyr, dog and wolf linages. (They must have all likes eating because that is my favorite thing to do, besides writing of course-Scamp)

Vol. 8, No. 20 – July 8–July 21, 2015 – Professor Scamp

scamp SavanaFoto: “What time does this bar open?”

A friend of mine (who lives by the beach) lets his four year old kitty cat “Blackie” play in the sand by his house. Recently a Pierpont neighbor saw his cat killed by an off leash dog on the beach. So please keep your dog on a leash (which is also law) even if you think that they are very friendly and not a threat to other animals.

Sometimes even the most friendly dog will run after a cat if it is running. And how will you know if your dog poops if it is far way on the beach?

The Foothill Food Truck Fest takes place on the first Tuesday of each month at Ventura’s Poinsettia Pavilion from 5-9pm. Dining options range from their fresh maine lobster delivery, to grilled cheese sandwiches to homemade desserts. Beer, wine and margarita sales are available and diners have the option to dine indoors or eat outdoors while watching the sunset over Ventura.

Proceeds from the free monthly Foothill Food Truck Fest fundraisers, which have grown in size and popularity since being launched in 2014, help fund much-needed capital improvement projects at the Poinsettia Pavilion. Established in 1954, the facility is one of the oldest public venues in Ventura. It serves the local nonprofit community by providing affordable meeting and event space to non-profit and charitable. The historic venue, which includes a panoramic view of the city and Channel Islands, is available for public or private events. For more information, call 648-1143.

On Tuesday, July 7 the Poinsettia Pavilion combined the array of food trucks with the opportunity to adopt a new furry family member at their monthly Foothill Food Truck Fest event. The event included on-site dog adoptions hosted by several local animal rescue organizations that included the Canine Adoption and Rescue League (C.A.R.L.), Paw Works and the Santa Paula Animal Rescue Center, Inc. (SPARC).

“Our hope is that Foothill Food Truck Fest attendees will stop by to enjoy a delicious meal with us and also decide to open their hearts and homes to a homeless animal patiently waiting to be adopted,” said Carol Shiells, Poinsettia Pavilion Executive Director.

On June 20th Ventura County Animal Services (VCAS) launched its new ‘Pit Crew’ Program and website, at the Ventura Harley Davidson, located in Camarillo.

Ventura Harley Davidson stepped up as a “Powered By” sponsor for the Pit Crew, which educates the public on responsible pit bull ownership and the many fallacies that surround this breed. The partnership with Harley Davidson seemed a natural one to Animal Services Director Tara Diller.

The new website www. VCASPitCrew.com is a resource for pit bull pet family members.

The Pit Crew Mission is to re-brand the pit bull in our community. By informing the public and dispelling commons myths, promoting spay and neuter, as well as sharing responsible ownership facts, area residents are given the opportunity to make informed choices when choosing their next forever family member.

In 2013 an orange house cat by the name of Kevin went missing from Anderson, South Carolina. Very recently he was united with his buddies and found his way home! After hitching a ride on a U-Haul trailer to Riverside County Kevin was found hiding in the trailer during a regular routine inspection at the Arizona border. Once found, the very dehydrated tabby was taken to the Blythe Animal Shelter, and then animal-control officials were able to track down the owner, Cheryl Walls. She told animal control that Kevin had been an outdoor cat and one day he didn’t come home. She said that she is looking forward to Kevin’s return.

It’s so nice to hear a beautiful story like this. Savana was very happy when I told her. We’re all so happy that Kevin finally found his way back home!

by Victoria Usher

Paw’s Corner by Sam Mazzotta

Dear Paw’s Corner: You recently put out a notice about a new strain of dog flu that was affecting dogs in Chicago. Now I’m hearing about it everywhere. Can you update us on this virus? — Jane in New York City

Dear Jane: This strain of flu, classified as H3N2, has now spread to at least 10 other states in the continental U.S. How concerned should dog owners be? Well, they should certainly stay alert, but it is not a cause to panic or to drastically change your dog’s daily routine. For example, some media outlets are recommending that owners stay away from dog parks. That isn’t exactly practical advice for urban dwellers, as no one knows how long this outbreak will last. Instead, let common sense rule. If your dog is healthy, by all means take it to the dog park. Keep an eye on the other dogs, and if one seems unhealthy, don’t let your dog near it. If you have a puppy or a senior dog, you already know that they don’t have strong immune systems. So visits with strange pets or other situations where they can be exposed to illness — not just canine flu but other infections, too — should be off the table anyway.

Monitor your pet for signs that it may be getting ill. A cough, sneezing and runny nose are typical symptoms of H3N2. Consult your vet right away if these symptoms show up, or if your dog has a fever or other symptoms like a lack of appetite, lethargy or weakness. (c) 2015 King Features Synd., Inc.