A photo of a budding member of the Boston Police Department’s K-9 force sent a shockwave of ‘awws’ across the Internet Monday. The photo, which was posted to Reddit, is from Massachusetts Vest-A-Dog, a non-profit that helps provide bulletproof vests, essential equipment, training, and purchase of dogs for police and law enforcement K-9 programs throughout the state. “As K-9s are trained to give up their lives to protect their partners and all of us, we believe it is every bit as important to protect them,” according to www.mavestadog.org. Boston Magazine reported that the German Shepherd puppy’s name is Tuco, named for the volatile “Breaking Bad” character named Tuco Salamanca.
It’s an image that’s hard to look at without smiling. A dog sleeps in blissful repose, head rested against the neck and shoulder of a ponytailed man standing shoulder-deep in water. The man appears in profile, and he wears dark glasses, but his eyes seem to be closed. The smile on his face matches the dog’s contentment. The photo has drawn the attention of thousands of people since being posted on Facebook last week. The story behind the photo is touching. Professional photographer Hannah Stonehouse Hudson took it off Bayfield’s Reiten Beach in Lake Superior on Tuesday. The man is her friend John Unger. The dog, an aging, arthritic shepherd mix, is named Schoep, after a brand of ice cream that’s popular in southern Wisconsin (the dog likes vanilla). Unger and his then-fianceé found the dog 18 years ago at a humane society in Ozaukee County, Wis., when it was an 8-month-old puppy. “We knew we wanted to work with an animal who was abused,” Unger said. “I just had a vision of working with an animal to bring out his full potential.” Testing suggested that the dog had been beaten by a male, and it took Unger another eight months to fully earn his trust. The relationship with his fianceé didn’t work out. They shared custody of Schoep for a while, but he has been Unger’s full time since his former fianceé moved to Colorado 13 or 14 years ago. But the breakup with his fianceé caused Unger to enter a depression. One night, he said, he went to a breakwater in Lake Michigan off Milwaukee with thoughts of suicide. “To be honest with you, I don’t think I’d be here if I didn’t have Schoep with me (that night). He just snapped me out of it. I don’t know how to explain it. He just snapped me out of it. … I just want to do whatever I can for this dog because he basically saved my ass.” Unger has no other pets, but he said that while growing up he dreamed of having a house full of dogs. Like him, Hudson is a dog-lover. Self-employed as StonehousePhoto, she includes dogs in much of her work. “My dream … is to only take photos with dogs in them,” she said in a telephone interview on Friday. It’s the right community for people who love dogs, Hudson said. “Bayfield is a dog town,” she said. “We all love dogs. A lot of us have them, and basically we keep track of each other and our dogs.” She hadn’t seen Unger for a couple of months and thought his dog might have died. But last week, Unger approached her with a request. “He said it’s been so warm in the lake I’ve been able to take Schoep into the water,” Hudson related. “He’s so relaxed he just falls right asleep.” Unger, who found his way to Bayfield about six years ago, had a photo of himself with his dog in mind for several years. But that mission took on added urgency last week he said. Noticing Schoep limping, Unger took his dog to a veterinarian in Ashland. The vet prescribed pain-relief medication, but Unger doesn’t yet know how effective it will be. If Schoep isn’t able to get up without pain, it will be time to put him down, Unger said. Unger stopped the conversation to regain his composure. “What was going through my mind when Hannah was taking those pictures was that this may be the last time I’m going to be swimming with him,” Unger said. When Hudson got to the beach on Tuesday, Unger and Schoep already had been in the water for about 10 minutes, so she only had about five minutes to take the photos. She didn’t know the results until she looked at them on her computer later on Tuesday, and she didn’t have time to post them to her Facebook page until Wednesday evening. It didn’t take long for the image to go viral. “About six hours later I was in complete awe that it had been shared, I think it was, 200 times,” Hudson said. But that was barely the beginning. By Sunday evening, the photo had been shared 86,000 times, “liked” 150,000 times and viewed in excess of 1.8 million times. The more-than-17,000 Facebook comments on the photo include words such as “touching,” “tender,” “loving,” “breathtaking” and “precious.” Hudson, 34, who didn’t charge Unger and doesn’t expect to make any money from the photo, accomplished what she set out to do. “A lot of the time if I find an interesting, cool story that’s positive about animals, I’ll just do it,” she said. Unger, 49, works as a caretaker on the farm where he lives outside of Bayfield. He got his first computer in February and admits to being befuddled by the Internet. He has seen the responses to Hudson’s photo, but isn’t quite sure how to respond. “He is not really keyed in to the Internet world,” Hudson said. “That’s what makes this all even more fun. Because I think he’s getting e-mails from women asking if he’s single.” Unger — who is single — said the overtures haven’t been quite so blatant as that, but he has picked up hints of interest from some women online. Which is fine, Unger said. “Boy, is it tough to meet women up here,” he said, laughing. “So this might open up a new road.” The photo of Unger and Schoep is the second photo taken by Hudson to cause a sensation since she started her business in 2005. The first was of a bear crossing the ice on the lake in front of the Madeline Island ferry. “I tend to be in amazing spots at the oddest times,” she said. “It’s Lake Superior, and weird stuff happens.” Hudson’s husband, Jim, 34, also works on his own. A former police officer, he left the force 10 years ago to be a full-time fisherman. “We call it breathing into the bag of self-employment,” Hudson said. “But he’s having fun and we can do it and make a living and stay in Bayfield, which is very important to us.” Hudson is having fun in her work, too, especially when dogs are involved. “I have a blast,” she said. “I can’t believe I get to do this.”
Arthritis Dog Photo Goes Viral: John Unger and his Dog, Schoep Share Tender Moments
Hadley, Massachusetts - It’s important for pet owners to protect our dogs and cats from fleas and ticks which run rampant in the warmer months. But cold weather doesn’t necessarily mean the end of these pet-pestering parasites. Dr. Ted Diamond of Valley Veterinary Hospital explained that fleas can be a threat year round. “They can live all winter long on dogs and cats outside. Then when they come in the house they drop all their eggs and larvae around your house. So fleas can frequently be found in winter because they are left over from the fall,” Dr. Diamond said. Ticks can be even a bigger problem. They don’t die off during the winter, but rather they hibernate. “When it’s very cold they go into a hibernation, they’re not very active. They are not going to be attaching to your pets. But at the first increase in temperature like yesterday, they immediately come out of their coma and the first dog that comes by they will attach to,” says Dr. Diamond. And according to Dr. Diamond your pets lifestyle can also play a role in how susceptible they are to fleas and ticks. Dogs who are active and run in the woods, socialize at dog parks or doggie day care, even those that share their home with a cat are more prone to picking up parasites like fleas and ticks. Dogs that are couch potatoes, aren’t out much and aren’t socialized are less likely to pick up the insects. Dr. Diamond says that the best way to keep your pets protected is to keep them on a year round flea and tick preventative medication. He adds that over the last few years these medications have become less toxic and more effective, making them safer for you and your pet as long as they are used as your Valley Veterinary Hospital recommends. For more information on ticks, please visit:TickEncounter Resource Center - Frequently Asked Questions: Seasonal Information
A recent study by the National Institutes of Health, called Are Pets in the Bedroom a Problem?, came to a surprising conclusion: most people who share their beds with pets experience more benefits than drawbacks from the practice. If you don’t suffer from allergies or a compromised immune system, the two major drawbacks to sharing a bed with your dog are hygiene and sleep disruption. As long as you can tolerate the smell and hair, and your dog doesn’t wake you up with noise or movement, then co-sleeping with your dog is a win/win. Sharing a bed with your dog is relaxing and comfortable, and science backs this up. Oh, and it’s good for your dog, too—which is one more reason we love in-home pet sitting (you don’t have to sacrifice the cozy factor!). The rhythmic sound of your dog’s gentle snoring, breathing, and heartbeat can lower your heart rate. Research backs this up, in fact. A lowered heart rate is generally correlated with less stress and more relaxation. In other words: better sleep! To read more on this story, click here: 5 Big Reasons You Should Definitely Let Your Dog Sleep in Your Bed
If you are transporting your dog in your car, his or her safety needs to be one of the first things you consider. The best dog car harness and seat belts are those that will keep your dog safe, no matter what life throws at you. Even if you are in an accident, a dog harness for the car should keep your dog in place. When used properly and correctly, you don’t have to fear taking your dog on long distance road trips or onto the highways. In fact, it can calm both you and your dog. Even more importantly, however, you need to consider how much safer a dog harness or dog seat belt will make you. Essentially, they tether your dog to the car, making it impossible for him or her to run around and wreak havoc on your car. Keeping your dog in place means that
Your children will be safe
Your passengers won’t be distracted
You can put all of your focus on the road in front of you
The best dog harnesses have passed all of the tests and reviews in both fronts: keeping the inside of your car safe and keeping your dog safe at the same time. They are comfortable enough that the dog won’t mind being in one, made of materials that won’t irritate your dog’s skin or catch on his hair. However, they are also strong, able to withstand the pulling and torque of a dog who wants to break free. To read more on this story, click here:Top Performing Dog Car Harness – Designed to Safely Transport Pets
When Wang Yan lost his dog in 2012, he searched everywhere – even a slaughterhouse – to find his furry friend. Once he saw what was happening within the building’s walls, however, knew he had to take action and he build a shelter… There are a number of people choosing to use their wealth for a good purpose. For example, Johnny Depp intends to purchase the site of Wounded Knee Massacre and gift it back to the Native American people, and a 95-year-old Jewish Holocaust survivor is funding the rescue of 2,000 Middle-Eastern Christians. Such stories give one hope in humanity, and this latest news is no different. To read more on this story, click here:Chinese Man Spends $400K to Purchase Dog Slaughterhouse and Set Up Shelter
