Euro Puppy BLOG

Eric Banks - Child turned Norfolk Terrier

In Allan Ahlberg's delightful book "Woof!", 10 year old Eric Banks is magically transformed into a Norfolk Terrier. The book explains life through they eyes of a dog and when he becomes a boy, he has to prepare for it to happen again!

This children's book is well known in modern day literature, as Eric soon finds out that all is not well. The style of writing is very curious as Alhberg tries to mingle the thought processes of a dog with that of a boy!



Norfolk Terriers are said to be completely fearless despite being the smallest of the working terriers. True to the terrier form, they enjoy chasing down small prey like mice and rats. They enjoy being in regular contact with humans throughout and make excellent pets.

Norfolk puppies are in great demand due to these qualities.

Did you know that chocolate is toxic to dogs? I wish I knew this when I had my first dog Steffi. She used to love chocolates. And which dog wouldn't? Dogs have a sweet tooth (unlike cats who don't have 'sweet' taste buds) and any dog would gulp down chocolate immediately given half a chance!



But be wary. Chocolates contain theobromine which is toxic to dogs as they metabolize the chemical more slowly than humans. Merely 25 grams of bakers chocolate would be sufficient to bring about toxicity symptoms in your dog. Be wary!

Heart attacks, and arrhythmia are common causes of death in dogs who are subjected to Theobromine poisoning. The initial symptoms though are nausea and vomiting. Note that dark chocolate contains significantly more theobromine than white chocolate.

If you have accidentally fed your dog chocolate, or if your dog has managed to break into the the chocolate box (happens frequently :) ) and you notice any of the symptoms like diarrhea and increased urination, called the vet immediately.

The former host of VH1's top 20 Video countdown is now a comedian! And she has the most adorable Yorkshire Terrier (Yorkie)! His name is Dignan. In the picture below, you can see that Alison has cut his hair short. She's mentioned that on her blog, as well as the fact that he's not a "Teacup" Yorkie.



Yorkshire Terriers are plucky dogs who retain their courage and self esteem in spite of the fact that they can have a small size. The breeding standards don't mention ideal height for the Yorkie, and so they can be extremely small, or sort of medium sized like Alison's.

Yorkshire Terriers are also more intelligent than most other dogs. They have a fantastic ability to remember commands and understand what they person is saying. As such, they are excellent candidates for jobs where such skills are required.

The tails of Yorkies are traditionally docked. However, there have been growing movements to stop this practice. It depends on the state you live in as well as the preference of the individual owner.

Ok this was a new one for me. I always thought that dogs were color blind. I don't know where I got that idea from, but it stuck. Looks like I was wrong all these years. Research conducted by Neitz J, Geist T, and Jacobs G H shows that while dogs see less color than we do, they are far from being unable to distinguish colors at all.



Apparently, dogs have a form of color blindness called deuteranopia which translates into red and green color blindness. So while they are able to clearly distinguish between say blue and yellow, they have trouble telling red from green.

Apparently, this is a bit like seeing the world at night. Dogs were not meant to rely on vision alone for their survival. They are meant to use a totality of their senses including smell and hearning, and that is why they haven't developed the detail and sharp eyesight that humans have. It's more important for them to detect motion.

Dog obstacle courses have blue and yellow themes for this reason. Nice to know that my canine companion doesn't see me as black and white!

Actually yes. My home is at the Zoological Wildlife Foundation. Which is also home for Euro Puppy USA.
Have a Happy New Year!

The Iditarod looks really tough. You need to cover 1,161 miles with nothing but your dogs to you help you. What makes it worse however, it's held in Alaska! With wind chill reaching 100 degrees Farenheit, I shudder (even without the cold) to think of the ordeal.



Breeds like the Siberian Husky and the Canadian Eskimo dogs are famous for being sled dogs are and most used in these kinds of races. The physical strength, speed, and endurance that are needed are truly remarkable and they have been known to travel 90 miles in a day pulling 85 pounds each!

The Iditarod is completed by teams of 12 to 16 dogs and managing them throughout the race requires skill and dedication, not to mention the ability to stay in the cold for so long. No wonder the winners of the race are celebrities!

Every week Euro Puppy showcases a dog lamp. Is it tacky or wacky? We will leave it up to you to decide. While having our own beliefs, we would love your comments...Enjoy....

Silver Retriever Lamp


The lamp for this week is an interesting piece, because we have a Silver Retriever instead of a Golden one :) .

The design is from Judith Edwards and is intended to compliment a library. The books below the lamp are part of it, and heighten the effect of serious study.



Another attribute of this dog lamp is that the shade is made of faux leather, accentuating the effect of soft light. You can fix a 60 watt lamp onto it and it is 2 feet high. Just the right height for a desk to gently illuminate your study!

The Basset Hound has an amazing sense of smell. Second only the Blood Hound in this regard, they were initially bred for hunting Rabbits. Their long ears are often the subject of much comment!

Their noses mean that they respond exceptionally well to all promises of food while training. Here is a poem about their amazing sense of smell.....


The saggy baggy Basset Hound
has ears that nearly touch the ground
with mournful eyes and wrinkled skin
that hangs below his droopy chin

But Basset has a clever snout
His nose will always sniff you out
With this amazing nasal asset
nothing an get past the Basset

How many of us have remembered our first dog? How we used to prevent him or her from sitting on the couch, the bed, or sleeping under the blankets. And then little by little, they worm their way in!

Let us see how this progresses....

DOG RULES

1. The dog is not allowed in the house.

2. OK, the dog is allowed in the house, but only in certain rooms.

3. The dog is allowed in all rooms, but has to stay off the furniture.

4. The dog can get on the old furniture only.

5. Fine, the dog is allowed on all the furniture, but is not allowed
to sleep with the humans on the bed.

6. OK, the dog is allowed on the bed, but only by invitation.

7. The dog can sleep on the bed whenever he wants, but not
under the covers.

8. The dog can sleep under the covers by invitation only.

9. The dog can sleep under the covers every night.

10.Humans must ask permission to sleep under the covers
with the dog.