Everything You've Ever Wanted to Know About NYC and Dogs (But Were Afraid To Ask)

Got a question about taking your dog on the subway during rush hour? Want to know where the best four-legger friendly restaurants and watering holes are? Looking for a dog run that's open late? Look no further. Last week, the NY Times ran an entertaining and very informative 3 part Q&A with Nadia Zonis, author of "City Walks With Dogs: New York." You can check out all 3 segments over at NYtimes.com.

'Marley & Me' Author's Puppy Treated for Hip Dysplasia

“Marley & Me” author John Grogan’s new Labrador Retriever Woodson – one of several puppies to portray a young Marley in the film adaptation – is being treated for severe hip dysplasia, Grogan writes in USA Today.

“We noticed that our pup seemed unable to do the things Lab puppies do so effortlessly – leap onto furniture or hop into the back seat of the car,” Grogan says.

A veterinarian delivered the bad news. “Both rear hips were so malformed, the balls and sockets did not connect,” Grogan says. “With each puppy step, bone was scraping bone.”

Grogan called the now 1-year-old dog’s breeder – “not to complain, just to inform,” Grogan says – who offered to exchange the dog for a new puppy. “My wife and I thought about it overnight before realizing there was really nothing to consider,” Grogan says. “Woodson was part of our family now.”

Woodson is now on a special diet and a “regimen of cartilage builders and medicines” and sees an orthopedic specialist at the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School, Grogan says. “Surgery might be in his future, but for now he’s comfortable and enjoys his life as a pampered house pooch. Woodson will never go hunting or hiking or even on long walks, and that’s OK,” Grogan says. “Some dogs are put on this Earth just to love you.”

[Source: DogChannel.com]

Books for the Dog & Cat Lovers

From pooches on the big screen in Beverly Hills Chihuahua and the upcoming Marley & Me to the endless speculation about the Obamas' future "first dog," canines have leaped from supporting status as man's best friend to star billing in entertainment magazines and on the front page.

Publishers, too, have hopped on the doggy wagon. And with gift-giving time just days away, there's sure to be a dog-related book that'll bring smiles and wags (well, at least from your more effusive friends).

A Very Marley Christmas, by John Grogan, illustrated by Richard Cowdrey (HarperCollins, $17.99). Take one rambunctious Labrador retriever puppy (dubbed "the world's worst dog" by his adoring but exasperated family), add breakable ornaments, deliciously chewy wrapping paper and eminently tuggable fir trees (Marley can't resist a good tug of war), and what've you got? One big happy mess. (For ages 3 to 8.)

Phodography: How to Get Great Pictures of Your Dog, by Kim Levin (Amphoto, $17.95). Ms. Levin gets into the nitty-gritty of terrific animal photography, with fantastic advice and sections on such vital topics as close-ups (it's all about the nose and ears), getting the perfect "head tilt" and staging action shots ("Rolllllll over, googums, googums, googums. Yes, we love that wiggly belly!").

Bliss to You: Trixie's Guide to a Happy Life, by Trixie Koontz as told to Dean Koontz (Hyperion, $16.95). Mr. Koontz's fans know his deep devotion to his golden retriever, the late Trixie – he is pictured with her on just about every one of his books, and he features golden retrievers in many of his story lines. Trixie's thoughts are concise and not necessarily grammatically correct (hey, what did you expect?) but often shine with wisdom. Example: "Thomas Jefferson said life mostly sunshine. Hitler said life mostly suffering. Freud said life meaningless. You know whose dog had more fun."

Woof! Writers on Dogs, edited by Lee Montgomery (Viking, $24.95). This canine-themed anthology focuses on the relationships between dogs and their humans, with contributors including Rick Bass, Abigail Thomas, Denis Johnson and Antonya Nelson. With humor and pathos, the writers pay tribute to ordinary dogs who become extraordinary contributors to their families' lives, just by being their wonderful, slobbery, perfect doggy selves.

Izzy & Lenore: Two Dogs, An Unexpected Journey, and Me , by Jon Katz (Villard, $24). Mr. Katz, who once worked as a journalist at the Dallas Times-Herald, continues his series of nonfiction books about the dogs (mostly border collies, but here including a black Lab puppy) at Bedlam Farm, his farm in upstate New York. Here he takes the dogs off the farm, as trained hospice volunteers bringing canine comfort to those who need it most.

Old Dogs Are the Best Dogs, by Gene Weingarten, with photographs by Michael S. Williamson (Simon & Schuster, $19.95). This is a heartfelt, upbeat paean to the wonders of the graying muzzle, the shaky-hipped gait, the ears that don't always hear the mailman. Each photo is accompanied by a story that captures character – of one dog, or of many. To wit: Buffy, 14, a cocker spaniel, has appointed herself the family's paper girl. Her owner says Buffy "has to make sure she shakes the newspaper violently from side to side, to break its neck. Only then will she bring it in for us."

Dogology: What Your Relationship With Your Dog Reveals About You, by Vicki Croke and Sarah Wilson (Rodale, $17.95). The writers good-naturedly help you figure out your own psychological tics and traps by looking at how you treat your dog – what you call him or her ("Hey, you!" is a different type than "Pooky-love-doodle"), how you praise, what you expect and how you show your love. You might be a buddy, a free spirit or a dynamo (and if so, you probably own a golden retriever, a border collie or a miniature pinscher, respectively).

It's a Cat's World ... You Just Live in It: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Your Furry Feline, by Justine A. Lee (Three Rivers Press, $13.95, available Dec. 30). Ms. Lee, a veterinarian, lets the cat out of the bag on some eternally puzzling questions. "Do cats get high from catnip, and can I use it?" (Her answers: Yes, and no.) "Should I dump my boyfriend because he doesn't like my cat?" (Her answer: Yes. We suspect a slight prejudice on her part.)

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter (Grand Central, $19.99). On a bitter-cold night, someone stuffed a kitten into the book-return slot at the Spencer, Iowa, public library. Maybe they were playing a prank, or just trying to put the kitten in a place where he could warm up. He was found by the library director, Ms. Myron, the next morning – and he stayed for 19 years, becoming as much a fixture as the filing system for which he was named. Meryl Streep is slated to play Ms. Myron in the movie version; this could be next year's Marley & Me at the movie-plex.

[Source: DallasNews.com]

New Photo Book Celebrates Canine Couture

Halloween has gone to the dogs. In photographer Karen Ngo's delightful book, "Indognito: A Book of Canines in Costume" (Little, Brown, $19.99), a stable of pooches sit, stay and pose in a variety of unforgettable getups.

Ngo, with a background in New York fashion, has a whimsical approach to dressing the four-legged rather than the two-legged. A French bulldog in Elvis garb is more costume than couture; nevertheless he would be as good to go on the runway as he would be the Thompson Park dog run.

[Source: NY Daily News]

The Lonesome Puppy

Americans may already have Clifford the Big Red Dog, but “The Lonesome Puppy” reinforces the idea that bigger isn’t necessarily better.

In fact, when you’re a dog that’s taller than Russia, with legs bigger than Sequoias, it can be hard to make friends. Bend down to sniff them, and they might get sucked into your nose. So the puppy was, indeed, a lonesome puppy. But when a curious and determined little girl climbs up into the clouds to explore, she is a surprised to find a new friend. Soon, the puppy wasn’t lonely anymore.

It’s a book that’s dedicated by renowned Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara to physically challenged children everywhere. The moral of the story is that there is a friend for everyone, if people only stop looking past the people who seem different and take the time to get to know someone as an individual.

The artistry is wonderful, all charcoal lines and indefinite boundaries. It mimics the way that many so-called “normal” people view those who are different: as a nebulously defined “thing.” It encourages us to define their boundaries by getting to know them.

Of course, if the homeless panhandler down Broad Street looked more like a furry puppy than a lunatic, it would be easier to get to know him. But as parents generally don’t allow their children to wander down urban streets unattended, the readers of this book will likely take these lessons to school with them. In a best case scenario, it will prompt children to look more carefully around them for unexpected surprises.

[Source: Metro Spirit]

Picture Perfect Dogs

Pictures are instant gratification. It’s no wonder most of us accumulate dozens of photo albums, crammed full of the things – and people – we love. And of course, our pets are always included in these collections of memories and have been for decades.

Photography expert Catherine Johnson has spent years collecting anonymous amateur vintage photographs and has compiled a book featuring old snapshots of man’s canine companion. Published by Phaidon Press, “DOGS” features poignant photographs dating from the turn of the 20th century to the early 1960s. The images capture the ways in which dogs have become a natural part of our lives and range from trips to the beach and candid backyard shots to posed family portraits.

In the book you can also find quotes about dogs from such figures as Robert Louis Stevenson, George Eliot, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. John Steinbeck remarked, “I am convinced that basically dogs think humans are mutts,” and Alexander Pope claimed that “Histories are more full of examples of the fidelity of dogs than of friends.”

“DOGS” is a beautiful look at the enduring love between humans and canines, a reminder that though times may change, our best friend does not. It brings forgotten vintage photographs of people and their dogs to light.