Charles turns 11 years young this week (on July 13). He is such a wild and crazy guy and brings much excitement and joy to the Zoo. Many more years little man!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
Mom is making her annual migration to the beach. DogDaz will be vacationing until Monday, August 5. Enjoy your month and please come back to the Zoo. Thank you for your visits and for your continued support of our fur family.
See you soon! – Louise, Sofie Bear, Charles, Noel, Nine, Stella, Mini Cooper & Mom
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
Tags: animals, dog birthday, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, nature, pet blog, pomchi, pomeranian mix
5 Facts about Rabbits from Smithsonian: Giant Rabbits
In celebration of the annual spring appearance of the Easter bunny on Sunday, Smithsonian Science offers these facts from Rabbits: The Animal Answer Guide, a new book by John Seidensticker, conservation scientist at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo, and Susan Lumpkin, freelance writer.
1
Rabbits are not rodents, but lagomorphs (lag–uh-mawrf), a scientific term which means “hare-shaped.” Hares and pikas also are lagomorphs.
2
Image: A reconstruction of a giant Minorcan rabbit is shown next to a modern European rabbit. (Image by Meike Köhler)
Scientists studying the bones of an extinct giant rabbit found on the Mediterranean island of Minorca estimate this prehistoric animal weighed as much as 31 pounds! The largest rabbits alive today– domestic breeds such as the Flemish giant–weigh 22 pounds at most.
3
Thanks to human introductions the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) is found throughout Western Europe, Australia, parts of South America, North Africa and on more than 800 islands around the world. Today in Iberia, Spain, the European rabbit’s sole home for many thousands of years, it is threatened.
4
Archaeologists have evidence of people hunting rabbits in the south of France some 120,000 years ago. Scientists suspect even Neanderthals lived on diets made up largely of rabbits
5
A “never fail” Kansas folk remedy for reducing fever recommends making a strong tea from the dung of the wild jackrabbit and drinking it every half-hour.
(via: Smithsonian Insider)
Wishing sunshine to all who celebrate this weekend, be it Passover, Easter, or Earthday.
Your friends at DogDaz Zoo.
Tags: animal awareness, DogDaz, Easter Bunny, lorian lipton, nature, pet blog, pets, postaday, Rabbit
I wrote the first part of this post in 2016 and never published it. When Sofie was a puppy (born November 2010), other than being a bit whiney and barky in her first few months, she seemed like every other puppy I ever had. Thinking back, maybe she was a bit more strong-willed than others. It was harder to get her to listen to commands, but I figured that was her Sheltie/herding dog lineage and a vet told me she just needed a flock of sheep, or pride of cats, to work with every day.
Being the pet Mom that I am, I did Clicker training; I tried positive reinforcement with treats; I hired private trainers (twice); I even trained with an e-collar (before I knew it was not a good thing to train with). And, for a long time, she was great off leash and listened when I requested her attention. The only thing that I have never been able to get under control was her barking. She has super sonic hearing and barks at the slightest breeze.
When I look back at the list of things that I worked on with the first trainer when Sofie was about 6 months old, I see that the list hasn’t changed much in 6 years. (1) Barking at everything; (2) whining; (3) chasing cats. I can say that I taught her many things: not to jump on people, and how to sit, stay, come, stop, down, paw, leave it, drop it, up (in the car or on a bed), ‘Don’t’ (‘No’ is Louise’s word, so I used ‘Don’t’ for Sofie, so they wouldn’t get confused), find me (it’s a game we play), and place. I am pretty sure that she understands ‘quiet,’ but that she just doesn’t obey the command when I say it.
I feel like a failure. I have had 6 dogs in my life, and I have never had a dog with as many issues as Sofie.
Sofie’s challenges
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Thunder anxiety (always)
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Separation anxiety (sometimes)
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Hyper noise sensitivity (always)
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General, everyday, life anxiety
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Night terrors. Waking several times at night from sleep and starting to bark and go crazy as if something is attacking her.
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Dislikes puppies and any dog that lick her face
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Skin issues (mostly in warm weather)
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Breathing issues (whizzing and asthma like)
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Digestive issues
How things manifest
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Comfort sucking: She sucks on fabric, on the bed blankets, on toys (her favorites are catnip toys), even sometimes on my pants while I am wearing them. Sometimes she will ‘flank suck’ on herself, but that is rare.
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She pants, a lot, no matter the weather
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She whines
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She barks at everything
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She barks at dogs, people, trucks, anything passing the house, even if she can’t see them.
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She barks at deliveries leaving a package at the any door (and of course my daughter buys everything online).
3 different Veternarians over the years have told me she suffers from some form of mental instablity. At the end of the day, what does that mean?
———————————–
Fast forward to 2019 – to be continued…..
After 8 years, Sofie continues to be a challenge in a multi-animal household.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, mental illness, nature, noise anxiety, pet blog, separation anxiety, thunder anxiety
From all of us at DogDaz Zoo,
we wish you the happiest of holidays and
a wonderful NEW YEAR!
We will return on Caturday January 5, 2019, and
look forward to entertaining you for another year!
(in order of age)
Noel (the Christmas cat),
Charles (the Mugwump),
Louise (aka Lulu Belle),
Sofie Bear,
Mr. Nine,
Stella,
and
Mini Cooper
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
Tags: cat blog, cats, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, Dogs, lorian lipton, nature, pet blog
It is amazing to me how time flies when it comes to age. Sofie Bear turns 8 years old today. My silly girl has been on a roller coaster of emotional/health issues for most of her years, but underneath it all, she is still my silly fluff ball who loves to roll in leaves and chase squirrels.
Happy Birthday, Sofie Bear! We would not be DogDaz Zoo without you!
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, Birthday, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, nature, pet blog
What a perfect day for the 3 DogDaz beauties to return from vacation because someone decided it is NATIONAL DOG DAY! We thought that every day was DOGDAZ (d-aw-ga-d-aye-za). Fall is in the air this week, summer is winding down, kids are heading back to school, and sadly, the pool is full of leaves. The zoo is as busy as ever and we plan on a full schedule of blogging about our antics. We hope you had a nice summer break and are ready to start taking longer walks in cooler temperatures. We know that Sofie and Charles are. Louise has been walking no matter how hot it is, but those fluff balls, no way they are going out in the heat and humidity. Bark Out Loud. Looking forward to fall.
HAPPY NATIONAL DOG DAY TO ALL
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, Dogs, lorian lipton, Mutts, national dog day, nature, pet blog, postaday
Puppy Sofie maybe 14 wks March 2011
Sofie’s Smile
Sofie’s Rescue
Ride Home
March 2011
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, animals, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, nature, pet blog, postaday, sheltie mix
Louise, aka Lulu Belle, is 8 years young today. How did that happen? She was just a scared 5-month-old puppy with a bad start. Now she is a wonderful (still scared) big girl. When I was adopting Louise, I did not start out looking for a black dog or a short hair. I was a fan of light colored long hairs. Louie was a silver poodle, Nikki a buff cocker, and Squash was an everything with the thickest coat in the world. We went to an adoption event to see this tan long haired boy dog that I found online but ended up falling for this shy short haired black dog covered in mange. I didn’t know then that black dogs are usually the last to be adopted and the first to be put to sleep. There is actually a name for it – Black Dog Syndrome. What a sad mistake if I passed over adopting Louise. She is a joy and has taught me so much.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! LULU
Louise would like everyone to adopt a less adoptable pet next time you have space for a new furball:
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, black dog syndrome, Dog People, DogBlog, DogDaz, lorian lipton, nature, pet blog, Plott Hound, plott hound mix, postaday
DogDaz Zoo 