kathi

Blog the Change for Animals: It’s the little things, too

January 15, 2011 by kathi

Sometimes I wish that my twentysomething self would peek her idealistic head into my fiftysomething life, and tell me that I really can change the world, that all I need is faith and hope. I am no longer sure that is true. It can be very disheartening trying to raise awareness about topics such as breed specific legislation, puppy mills, and breed rescue and then…

your neighbor hates and fears your dog just because he is a Rottweiler
your coworker buys a puppy from a pet store after you have offered to put him in touch with breed rescue and some ethical breeders
your friend buys a cross-breed “designer dog” from a so-called breeder for more than you paid for your well-bred show dog… or your first car

And there is the unfortunate truth that awareness does not necessarily equal change or even concrete support. But I can’t quite bring myself to give up. My twentysomething self would be even more disappointed in me than she probably already is. What I do to keep myself sane is to try to remember that little things count, too. I may not be able to effect great changes in the world, but I can make life better for a few animals in it.

Right now, I can’t be very actively involved in breed rescue. I can always spare a few hours on a weekend every so often to help with transports, though. These usually involve moving a dog from a high-kill shelter to a rescue or foster home, or from a foster home to a forever home. As an experienced dog owner with a minivan that’s set up for traveling to shows and trials, it’s something that is a good fit for me as a way to contribute. I may not be making a big difference in the world, but I know I am making a difference to my canine passenger.

Between work, The Total Rottweiler Magazine, and the newly forming breed club I’m involved with, I’m on the computer a lot. One little tiny thing I can do while stuck behind the keyboard is to click to help. Not just donations, although I do that, too, while going through my favorite pet blogs. When you can’t make donations, you can still click (and shop) at The Animal Rescue Site and Freekibble.com to donate food and care to shelter animals.

What’s your sign, baby?

January 14, 2011 by kathi

An amazing-to-me number of people are all bent out of shape at the news that their zodiac signs have changed with the addition of a 13th constellation, Ophiuchus. I guess if I believed in astrology and actually thought that my personality would or should change to that of another sign, I would be upset, too.

I haven’t acknowledged the Western zodiac in years. If anyone starts talking about horoscopes or wants to know my sign, I tell them I am an Earth Dog and that is where it ends. I do acknowledge the Eastern zodiac (so proud to be Asian, our zodiac did not change) even though I don’t actually believe in it much more than I do the Western version. I find it completely amusing and appropriate that I was born in the Year of the Dog. I’ll let you do the math and guess what year that would be.

Interestingly enough, three of the six past and present resident Rottweilers are also Dogs. Well, of course they are dogs. I am still talking about the Eastern zodiac. Heidi and Oscar were Wood Dogs, and Axel is a Fire Dog.

I found a Chinese zodiac site describing each of the Five Types of Dog and I had to laugh at the Fire Dog writeup. It is so Axel!

“A highly dramatic and attractive type of Dog who will be thrown into the limelight by his alluring yet friendly personality.” — Well, he’s not really that friendly, but he’s very dramatic and attractive enough to be an AKC Champion. He was definitely thrown into the limelight as he chased ~~his~~ my championship dreams.

“He will be defiant and rebellious when forced to do something against his will…” — This pretty much describes every Rottweiler, I think.

“…but he will be very popular with the opposite sex.” — That gives me some hope for his success as a stud dog!

Pet Blogger Challenge

January 10, 2011 by kathi

Although I may not be a “real” pet blogger, I think I’ve written enough Rottweiler-related content over the past couple of years to participate in today’s Pet Blogger Challenge, hosted by GoPetFriendly and Will My Dog Hate Me?.

So here are my answers to the questions of the day:

1. When did you begin your blog?
This blog started in November 2008 for NaBloPoMo. I did successfully make a post every day that month, and many of the posts were about my dogs and cats. I decided to keep the blog going and attempt to focus on two of my favorite topics: Rottweilers and technology.

My original blog was focused on my pets and their health issues and was active mainly from April-December 2002.

2. What was your original purpose for starting a blog?
My original blog was started to record and share my pets’ health and training issues. This blog was started because I wanted to do NaBloPoMo in November 2008.

3. Is your current purpose the same? If not, what’s different? If so, how do you feel you’ve met your goals?
I’m struggling to find a purpose at the moment. With the dogs on hiatus from training and competition, and thankfully enjoying good health, I often find myself reaching for anything to write about. I don’t feel I have the writing or photography skills to make day-to-day life with my pets interesting to anyone but my family (and I see some of them yawning a bit when they think I’m not looking). So I definitely need some specific topics such as training or health to focus on. It would be completely against the spirit of this exercise to go back to training before we’re ready just to have something to write about!

4. Do you blog on a schedule or as the spirit moves you? If the former, how often — and what techniques do you use to stick to it? If the latter, do you worry about… well, whatever you might worry about (e.g. losing traffic, losing momentum)?
Over the last two years, I’ve often participated in NaBloPoMo, which runs all year now. In those months, I post daily. During the months I don’t participate in NaBloPoMo, I don’t have a schedule and I don’t worry about it.

5. Are you generating income from your blog? If so, how (e.g. sponsor ads, affiliate relationships, spokesperson opportunities)? If not currently, do you hope to in the future — and how?
No, and I’m not actively seeking to monetize. It’s not why I blog. If an opportunity that makes sense were to present itself, I hope I will be smart enough to recognize it.

6. What do you like most about blogging in general and your blog in particular (bragging is good!)?
I like having a place of my own to say what I want. I like that sometimes one small blogger can make a huge difference just by getting something started for a big cause, an educational effort, or just to help one dog live a better life.

7. What do you like least?
At its worst, the blogosphere (hate that word) is just as cliquish as high school was, and ten times as nasty. No thanks to the internet, it can take less than a day to falsely ruin someone’s name. Maybe I would feel differently about both high school and the blogosphere if I were one of the “cool kids.” Nah, I don’t think so.

8. How do you see your blog changing/growing in 2011?
I’m still deciding whether I will keep blogging at all. As I mentioned in my answer to question 3, I’m still struggling with redefining my purpose.

So there you go. Thank you to Amy Burkert and Edie Jarolim for making the Pet Blogger Challenge happen! There’s a linky list, too. Go and check out what everyone else has to say, and let’s hear from you, too!
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Project 365 | The Saturday Pet Blogger Hop

January 8, 2011 by kathi

I mentioned earlier this week that I’m doing a Project 365 (photo-a-day) this year. Since not all of the photos will be about Rottweilers, computers, or even world domination, I’ve started a separate photoblog as well as a Flickr set for the project.

So far, I’ve been using my familiar point-and-shoot Nikon S51 and the camera on my BlackBerry Curve 8330 for the daily shots. But one of my goals for Project 365 is to learn to use my Canon Rebel XS DSLR to best advantage, so that camera will be added to the rotation starting next week.

I cross-posted my first Rottweiler-related photo earlier in the week. Here are the other pet-related project photos:

Click photos to go to the blog posts

Now that we’re concentrating on pet-related content again, it’s time to rejoin the wonderful Saturday Pet Blogger Hop! As always, this blog hop is hosted by Life With Dogs, Two Little Cavaliers, and Confessions of the Plume.
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