Hello! It's Wednesday night when this photo was taken. I'm at Fidos For Freedom, doing some training, seeing lots of my friends, and getting my picture taken by Jim. He's a great photographer! He took lots of pics of Fidos' dogs Wednesday night.
Thank you, Jim!

Fidos For Freedom will have a 2010 calendar out soon, and lots and lots of my Fidos' dog pals will be in it! Therapy Dogs and Assistance Dogs. Kinda cool, betcha can't wait to get one!

Thoughts on Playing Ball

Hi Everyone!!! ARF!! Mom was reading this newspaper article that was posted on that book of faces ... oops, Mom says it's called "facebook." :-) Anyway, here is the link:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/10/AR2009081002454.html?referrer=facebook

It is an article by a writer named Richard Cohen, the following are the final two paragraphs of the article:

"In due course, Vick will play again. His entry has already been smoothed by the touching concern of Jackson and others, not to mention a bevy of sportswriters who seem to have programmed their computers to type out "paid his debt to society" with a single keystroke. Some of them have pointed out that they are dog lovers. Touching. But we have yet to hear from the dogs themselves.

When Vick takes the field, I for one will imagine the thrashing of pacifist puppies as they are drowned or twisting in the wind as they are hanged. And throughout the land every kid will know -- if they do not already -- that what matters most is not that Vick has paid his debt to society or is remorseful, but that he could still throw the ball. Maybe an athlete can't quite get away with murder, but drowning dogs is a different matter." (-Richard Cohen, August 10, 2009).

Yep, that's the last part of the article ... lots of big words, but when Mom read that sentence:
"We have yet to hear from the dogs themselves," I thought, okay -- I am dog, here's how I feel about this:

This is SCARY! This man throws balls and drowns or hangs dogs?!!? Hey! There is something very very wrong with this picture! ARF! ARF! ARF! ARF!

I am a dog. I chase balls that Mom throws. I even bring them back to her. (sometimes I swerve around her, at the last minute, running very very FAST! with a look of glee in my eyes!! But, heck, I'm a puppy, and I'm PLAYIN'!) And Mom's laughing!! We are PLAYING together!

I have met a GAZILLION KIDS!!! (since living in Maryland.) I don't want any of them thinking that what matters most is that a man can throw a weirdly shaped ball, rather than how very bad it is that he hurt lots and lots of dogs, very badly ... OW-OW-OW-OW !!! (Just thinking about it, makes my chest hurt.)

I'm sticking close to MOM! She will protect me. I know that with all my heart. Actually, I would bet my life on it!! Mom would stand STRONG between me and anything that would ever threaten to HURT ME!!! I know I'm safe. But, I am sad and upset about the dogs that were drowned and hung .... I did not know them, but I have lots of dogs who are my friends, and I would not want any of them ever hung or drowned because they did not want to fight. Fighting is soooo STUPID anyway! I've never heard of humans who made dogs fight each other, and if the dogs wouldn't fight, then, those dogs would be killed. That's horrible. I know I don't want to fight any other dog. (I also know Mom would NEVER put me in that situation. That is so sad, that those dogs did not have a Mom like I have. They did not have anybody to protect them.)

Hey, kids, those of you I've met, and all of you I've not met yet... and any kids (and adults who are reading my blog) ... dogs being forced to fight each other is wrong. Any man or woman who does that, should not be allowed to be a public role model.

I want all of you to know ... sometimes there are adults who ask kids to do bad things, yes, sometimes, there are some adults who might ask a kid to not tell the truth, or to "beat up anyone who calls you a name," .... not every adult is smart or kind.... so, to all KIDS, you need to remember, anytime an adult asks you to do something that does not feel okay, RUN LIKE THE WIND and find some other adult and tell him or her what is happening. Go tell a teacher! Go tell your Sunday School teacher, if you go to church. Go tell the lady or man at the library, when you are checking out books. Tell the school nurse, or your doctor. Tell your friends' moms or dads .... but TELL SOMEONE. And sometimes, kids, even your friends might ask you to do something that will hurt another kid or even hurt an animal.... here's what you can tell them: Raynor told me to say: "NO WAY! Mean isn't Green. Being mean isn't cool. Being nice, playing, telling your friends how much you like them and how smart they are .... now that's COOL!

And, you adults out there .... stay away from any adult who does mean things to animals and/or people. If you know it's happening, step in and stop it. (I know that a lot of you adults, at least the ones I've met, already do that. I am meeting really wonderful people everyday!! They play with me, love me, and take care of their dogs and cats and kids!! whew!)

I do not like this man who throws funny shaped balls (Mom says they are called footballs, and the man's name is Michael Vick). I want every kid and adult who reads this to know, he is not a good man. He is not someone to look up to, NO MATTER how far or fast he can throw a ball.

He hurt his own dogs. Because they would not fight. They did not have a choice, and fighting is not what they wanted to do ... they were being asked to fight their friends.

So, if you like football, and see this Michael Vick playing, please, change the channel. Tell your mom and dad that you do not want to watch Michael Vick play football. He plays for some Eagles in a place called Philadelphia. (yes, Mom is helping me with all these names and big words.) I'm still just a puppy.

But, even a puppy knows when something is bad, and drowning and hanging dogs, because they won't fight, is a very bad thing to do.

Okay... now, everyone of you, who has a dog ... quit reading my blog, and go hug your dog, and then, really, Play Ball!

I'm still here!!

Greetings! Up late for a youngster. Been missing everybody! Mom will post some pics tomorrow, but I just wanted to say: HELLO!! You all won't believe just how MUCH I've grown!

Every day .... I am 17 weeks and 3 days old now.

Been feeling blechy .... under the weather ... where did that phrase come from anyway? I'm a puppy, and what I've been feeling is blechy. (I am sometimes UNDER a chair, or UNDER a table, I can even get UNDER the BED! Surprise! ...and I am often UNDER Mom's feet!)

But, I'm on the mend. Lots of people are helping me to feel better. Mom's taking care of me, and the people at Fidos For Freedom are helping Mom take care of me. (Thank you Fidos!!)

I did something really COOL: you'll never ever in a million dog years guess what, so I'll tell you:
I went to ACUPUNCTURE! My acupuncturist is Noreen Javornik! She's really kind. Noreen saw right away, that I was NOT feeling good last week, and she stuck some very very thin needles in me, (I hardly felt them at all), and afterwards, I felt SO VERY MUCH BETTER! Thank you Noreen. Acupuncture gets a 4 paw star rating from me. Let me just say, from one pup to another, if you ever don't feel good, go and get some Acupuncture!! (If you live near Laurel and Columbia, MD, definitely go see Noreen!! She's the BEST!!)

Noreen has 2 dogs of her own: (well, her dogs have their person -- and her dogs names are Cassie and Bailey Sue.) Cassie is the cutest little Corgi!! She did NOT like it that I bit her ear! oops! I forgot myself for a minute, when I met her ... see, I'm teething, and I just HAVE to put things in my mouth. But Cassie's ear, NOT the right thing to chew on. I'm not certain she's forgiven me. I'm sorry Cassie. Cassie let me borrow her Wolf-size Nylabone to chew on during acupuncture. That was yummy! Thanks Cassie.

Bailey Sue, I have not met her muzzle to muzzle. But, next post, I will tell you more about her. Noreen is a great mom for Cassie and Bailey Sue. Cassie is a Therapy Dog with Fidos For Freedom, Inc. That's the same place, where I'm growing up to be a Hearing Assistance Dog. Fidos For Freedom, helps us all to have good lives and important things to do, whether we are Therapy Dogs, or Puppy Assistance Dogs In Training!

Well, I'm pretty sleepy, it's been a really big day.

Now, I know -- photos are what you all love to see, so, Mom will get her camera turned on and plugged in, and post some pictures of me, and what we've been up to. It's hard to write and take pictures when you don't feel good.

But, it won't be long, before I'm feeling great and doing all my puppy adventures.

Good night everyone!

-Ray