Princess Sophie Turns 7

It's so hard to believe my little girl is 7 years old today.  I have no idea where the years have flown. 

Happy Birthday Sophie!

It seems like just yesterday we were fostering an extremely shy little hound girl...

Sophie was 10 months old when she landed at the Lapdog household, which meant we missed out on the itty-bitty puppiness, but we got photos from her first foster Mama!

We never planned to be a 4-doggy household, however she decided she wasn't going anywhere and we couldn't be happier!  It's been a wonderful 6 years and 2 months baby girl.  Time for our annual photo recap..

A true Princess...

  

A girl for all seasons...

  

Sisterly love...

Big brothers are pretty cool too...

She loves her job reviewing goodies for the blog...

And her part time job as Watchdog #4...

Sophie being Sophie...

 

Goofing around during our photo shoots...

 

Sophie says she can't wait for Santa Paws to bring her some new squeaky toys, although she could live without the embarrassing headwear...

 

Make a Wish Baby Girl...

A Few of My Favorite Things

Everyone is in the midst of a holiday shopping frenzy and I suspect many of you are resorting to what I love most, shopping online from the comfort of your own home!  To help you out, the Lapdogs and I have decided to share a few of our favorite things... Happy Shopping! (be sure to scroll through all 4 pages of items)



Wordless and A Birthday

Happy Hump Day... don't forget to Wipe Your Paws!

Today is also my other half's birthday, so please join me and the Lapdogs in wishing their Daddy a very Happy Birthday!  We love him very much!

PREVIEW: Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed

Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed

The Fascinating Science of Animal Intelligence, Emotions, Friendship, and Conservation

by Marc Bekoff
Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: New World Library (November 5, 2013)

In 2009, Marc Bekoff was asked to write an article on animal emotions for Psychology Today.  Since then, he has written more than 400 popular essays.  Some present research and scientific theories about animal minds and emotions, while others are more practical and address what each of us can do to improve the lives of other animals - and by doing so, improve our own. 

Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed is the compilation of Marc's updated essays.  They showcase animals' cognitive abilities as well as their empathy, grief, humor, and love.  The essays are organized into eleven sections:

• Animals and Us: Reflections on Our Challenging, Frustrating, Confusing, and Deep Interrelationships with Other Animals
• Against Speciesism: Why All Individuals Are Unique and Special
• Media and the (Mis)representation of Animals
• Why Dogs Hump: Dr, What Can We Learn from Our Special Friends
• Consciousness, Sentience, and Cognition: A Potpourri of Current Research on Flies, Fish, and Other Animals
• The Emotional Lives of Animals: The Ever-Expanding Circle of Sentience Includes Depressed Bees and Empathic Chickens
• Wild Justice and Moral Intelligence: Don't Blame Other Animals for Our Destructive Ways
• The Lives of Captive Creatures: Why Are They Even There?
• Who We Eat Is a Moral Question
• Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why: Redecorating Nature, Peaceful Coexistence, and Compassionate Conservation
• Rewilding Our Hearts: The Importance of Kindness, Empathy, and Compassion for All Beings

The following is an excerpt from Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed.

Old Brains, New Bottlenecks, and Animals: Solastalgia and Our Relationship with Other Beings

A few days ago one of my colleagues, Philip Tedeschi, founder of the Institute for Human-Animal Connection (www.humananimalconnection.org) at the University of Denver, reminded me of a very interesting and important New York Times essay concerning our relationship with nature in which the concept of “solastalgia” was discussed.

While the concept seems to apply more to our relationship with landscapes, describing the pain we feel when we witness and feel their destruction, I had also written about solastalgia in my book Minding Animals concerning our relationships with nonhuman animals, who surely are an integral part of natural landscapes. People often forget that the integrity of an ecosystem is inextricably woven in with the well-being of the animals who live there, and that when we “redecorate nature,” we can have serious effects on the lives of other animals. When we are removed from the natural world, we often feel alone and alienated because our old brain pulls us back to what is natural and what feels good. This is what E. O. Wilson proposed with his “biophilia hypothesis.”

Basically, our old big brains force us to seek nature’s wisdom even though we are living in — some might say we’re really trapped in — new technological and sociocultural bottlenecks. We become very uncomfortable when we allow ourselves to reflect on how alienated we truly are. It’s important to ask why we feel good when we’re out in nature. Years ago I discovered the following quotation by the renowned author Henry Miller: “If we don’t always start from Nature we certainly come to her in our hour of need.” Perhaps there isn’t only one reason why nature’s wisdom is frequently sought when we feel out of balance, when times are tough. Perhaps we can look to evolution to understand why we do so.

I find I’m never alone and neither do I feel lonely when I’m out in nature. Her wisdom easily captures me, and I feel safe and calm wrapped in her welcoming arms. We converse with one another. Why do we go to nature for guidance? Why do we feel so good, so much at peace, when we see, hear, and smell other animals, when we look at trees and smell the fragrance of flowers, when we watch water in a stream, a lake, or an ocean? We often cannot articulate why, when we are immersed in nature, there are such penetrating calming effects, why we often become breathless, why we sigh, why we place a hand on our heart as we sense and feel nature’s beauty, awe, mystery, and generosity. Perhaps the feelings that are evoked are so very deep and primal that there are no words that are rich enough to convey just what we feel — joy when we know that nature is doing well and deep sorrow and pain when we feel that nature is being destroyed, exploited, and devastated. I ache when I feel nature being wounded. I experience solastalgia, as do so many others.

What about our ancestors? Surely, there must have been more significant consequences for them if they “fooled” with nature. They didn’t have all of the mechanical and intellectual know-how to undo their intrusions into natural processes. And of course, neither do we, because our rampant intrusions are so devastating, and in many cases irreversible. Indeed, early humans were probably so busy just trying to survive that they could not have had the opportunities to wreak the havoc that we have brought to nature. And the price of their injurious intrusions would likely have been much more serious for them than they are for us, because of their intimate interrelations with, and dependency on, nature.

We can easily fool ourselves into thinking things are “all right” when they’re not. Denialism is a great mechanism for allowing us to ignore the effects of what we’ve done and to continue on the heinous path of destruction. Nonetheless, our psyches, like those of our ancestors, suffer when nature is harmed. Human beings worldwide commonly lament how bad they feel when they sense nature and her complex webs being spoiled, and ecopsychologists argue just this point. It would be invaluable if we could tune in to our old big brains and let them guide us, for our brains are very much like those of our ancestors. However, our sociocultural milieus and technology have changed significantly over time, and we face new and challenging bottlenecks. Cycles of nature are still with us and also within us, although we might not be aware of their presence because we can so easily override just about anything “natural.” Much technology and our incessant “busy-ness” cause alienation from nature. This breach in turn leads to our wanton abuse of nature. It’s all too easy to harm environs to which we are not attached or to abuse other beings to whom we are not bonded, to whom we don’t feel close. But of course, if we carefully listen, animals are constantly asking us to treat them better or leave them alone. Our brains can distance us from nature, but they also can lead us back to her before the rubber band snaps. For when it does, we easily continue on the path of destruction that harms ecosystems, their animal residents, and us. There’s an instinctive drive to have close ties with nature, and when these reciprocal interconnections are threatened or ruptured, we seek nature as a remedy. Our old brains still remember the importance of being an integral and cardinal part of innumerable natural processes; they remind us how good these deep interconnections felt.

Perhaps our close ancestral ties with nature offer reasons for hope, reasons for being optimistic about healing a deeply wounded nature. It just does not feel good to cause harm to nature. Perhaps the intense joy we feel when nature is healthy, the joy we feel when we are embedded in nature’s mysterious ways and webs, is but one measure of the deep love we have for her. This love offers us a chance to change our ways, for this love awakens us from a dangerous and pitiful apathy that amounts to the betrayal of our collective responsibility to act proactively and with passion and compassion to save nature for our and future generations. Calling attention to our destructive ways and doing something to right the wrongs can be healing for us and nature. It is but one way for us to return to nature some of the wisdom and solace she provides, to allow her to continue to exist for all to relish.

So let’s all rewild our hearts and build corridors of compassion that connect diverse landscapes and all of the amazing animals who depend on our goodwill. Indifference is deadly and inexcusable. Let’s allow our old brains do their job before it’s too late.

Excerpted from the book Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed.
© Copyright 2013 by Marc Bekoff. Reprinted with permission from New World Library.
 
About The Author: Marc Bekoff is professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has worked alongside leading writers and activists including Jane Goodall, Peter Singer, and PETA cofounder Ingrid Newkirk. He is the author of The Emotional Lives of Animals and The Animal Manifesto, among many other titles. He lives in Boulder, CO.

Disclaimer: New World Library sent Lapdog Creations a complimentary copy of Why Dogs Hump and Bees Get Depressed for review purposes. I was not compensated for this review. All opinions expressed in the review are my own.

REVIEW: Planet Dog Holiday Items

Planet Dog Holiday Items

Where to Find: Planet Dog

The holidays are quickly approaching, as is the holiday shopping!  Have you made your list and checked it twice?  No matter how naughty they can be, we know you won't forget the pups in your life, which is why we couldn't wait to tell you all about the great goodies we received for review from Planet Dog this holiday season!

We hope your dog already has his or her very own stocking to hang by the chimney with care, but we're sure there are a lot of new pups out there this holiday season in need of one for Santa Paws to stuff. Or, perhaps you need to replace an existing one - or, ah-hum, a non-existing one if someone got a little too chewy last year.  

The Lapdogs love the Classic Canine Stocking.  Available in traditional holiday tartan colors, this big stocking is truly universal.  It is 100% lined and features a soft, white Berber fleece cuff which you can easily personalize with your pup's name.  Measuring in at 17" long and 7" wide (neither measurement includes the "foot" part), this stocking is big enough to fit all of the coolest toys and treats on your pup's wish list!

The Orbee-Tuff Coal ball sure is a fun gift to give - to both humans and canines!  I think it would be the cutest gag gift ever for the doggy parent with a sense of humor on your list.  And, of course, it's a great gift for the canine who loves to chew.  Rated 5 out of 5 Chompers, this minty lump of coal is suitable for the most aggressive chewers.  Made in the USA, the Orbee-Tuff Coal easily rinses clean, in non-toxic and recyclable. 

The Lapdogs have loved Planet Dogs eats since they first came out!  In fact, back in 2010 we gave eats our Official 16 Paws Up Seal of Approval!  Fans for a long time, we also reviewed the PB & J and Chicken & Pumpkin Pot Pie flavors in 2012.  As I said, the Lapdogs sure do love these tasty, great smelling little treats!  Their Mama does too - eats are Made in the USA with all natural ingredients and have been designed to fit inside any of the Orbee-Tuff toys.  I love turning treat time into an interactive fun game. 

Of course, eats are also fantastic treats all on their own.  They are free of wheat, corn and soy, as well as gluten.  They are available in 12oz boxes, in two flavors - PB & J is made with real Maine blueberries and the Chicken & Pumpkin Pot Pie features pumpkin to help aid digestion. 

Visit Planet Dog for some fabulous finds for the 4-legged ones on your holiday gift list this year, as well as their proud parents.  You'll find a wonderful selection of toys, treats, collars & leashes, home items, travel items and more -- all Made in the USA! Plus, Planet Dog donates 2% of every purchase to the Planet Dog Foundation (PDF) to support canine service programs nationwide. PDF provides cash grants to programs throughout the country that train, place and support dogs who help people in need. Since January 2006, PDF has given away more than $875,000 in cash grants and in-kind product donations.

Disclosure: Planet Dog sent the above pictured items to Lapdog Creations, free of charge for review purposes. I was not compensated for this review and all opinions expressed are my own.

Black & White Sunday: Happy December

Happy December!  We hope you all visited some of your favorite "little guys" as part of Small Business Saturday yesterday, and bet many of you are gearing up for Cyber Monday tomorrow.  Stay tuned for some great holiday gift worthy reviews this week and next... we've got a lot of great things to share with you for both the furkids and humans!

Happy Black & White Sunday... rest up for all the deals!

Happy Thanksgiving

From the Lapdog Household to Yours...

We wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving!



Gobble, Gobble!