Doggy Lama Blog

No to Hate. No to Prop 8. Yes to Love.

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

This is what I’ve been passionately involved in lately: fighting the haters behind Proposition 8, which would end marriage equality for gays and lesbians. Victor Hugo said, “There is nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come.” We fought for women’s rights, rights for African-Americans, rights for disabled people. Those fights continue. We must now rise up and fight for the right for gays and lesbians to marry their partners. Gays and lesbians have the same responsibilities for their families—they must have the same rights. Gay rights are human rights.

"In Germany, they came first for the Communists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist;
And then they came for the trade unionists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist;
And then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew;
And then . . . they came for me . . . And by that time there was no one left to speak up."
—Martin Niemoller, imprisoned by the Nazis, used this quote in post-World War II speeches to urge solidarity against all forms of repression.
If you live in California, PLEASE VOTE NO on PROP 8—gay rights are human rights.

These pics are from Weds, Oct. 22, from High St. and MacArthur Blvd. in Oakland. Things got a lot crazier. There ended up being about 200 people at this intersection. There were a dozen cop cars and the cops closed down High St., diverting people to Coolidge Ave. during rush hour! Most of the Yes on 8 people appear to be coming from the Samoan Morman church on High St., which is a very large church. It was especially sad to see so many beautiful Pacific Islanders, especially the children and teenagers, acting in a very un-Christian manner. At these protests, my friends and I were called faggots, spat upon, hit with signs, and told to "Die from AIDS!" I live in a bit of a bubble—having a group of friends and acquaintances who are liberal, open-minded, queer-friendly. To find out that there are so many haters who live near me has been a painful and eye-opening experience.

We did not respond with harsh words or actions. My hand-painted signs say, "Choose Love, not Hate—Vote No on Prop 8" and "Jesus didn’t teach hate. Please vote No on Prop 8." We are telling each other and ourselves to not respond in kind when people show us hatred—we are staying calm and as positive as we can be.

Last night I went to a Native American drum ceremony with 6 other women—it was organized and led by my friends Ruth and Diane, who own Paws and Claws Natural Dog Food and Bath Store. We met to drum and pray for peace and strength as we fight for human rights.

God bless us all. May peace prevail on earth.

I celebrated Obama’s victory with my pals Diane and Ruth at Velvet, the local lesbian bar. No, I am not outing myself here. I still like boys. But I worked with my good friends Diane and Ruth to (try to) defeat Proposition 8, and we hung out a few times at Velvet. I’ve been friends with Diane and Ruth for about 5 years. They are wonderful local activists and business owners (Paws and Claws, a natural pet food store,) and were married a couple months ago. It is for them and for my mom, who’s a lesbian, and for all my other queer friends, neighbors, and fellow citizens, on whose behalf I fought Proposition 8. Gay rights are human rights just as much as women’s rights, black rights, disabled people’s rights.

Love to all—despite the fact that Proposition 8 passed. This is a struggle—we will overcome.

Experienced East Bay Dog Walkers Needed

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Here’s the ad we put up on Craigslist and sent to approximately 300 of our best friends. Please get in touch if you know someone looking for a job who would be a good fit.

About Doggy Lama Pet Care
People like us. We were voted “Best High-Tech Doggie Care” by the East Bay Express in 2007. San Francisco magazine voted us one of the “Top 5 Places to Board Your Dog” in 2008. We have twenty 5-star reviews on Yelp.com and clients love our Flickr site, where we post new pictures daily of Doggy Lama dogs out on the trails and beaches.

Our main services are dog walking and in-home dog boarding although we also do some drop-in visits for pets. We have six dog walkers who walk dogs in Oakland, Emeryville, Berkeley, Albany, El Cerrito, and Richmond. We have an unusual style of dog boarding—we board 2-4 dogs each in 5 East Bay homes, where we keep the dogs with us constantly and don’t crate them unless they come with their own crates. We exercise boarding dogs for a minimum of an hour/day out on the trails.

We are looking for 1-2 dog walkers to join our team. The primary need is for group dog walks, although if our new dog walkers are interested in boarding, drop-in visits, or individual dog walks, those are options, too.

You can find out more information about Doggy Lama Pet Care here:
Web site: http://www.doggylamapetcare.com (It is visible through Safari and Firefox browsers currently—sorry you can’t see it through Internet Explorer—we had code problems recently and a new version of the site will be up in a couple weeks.)
Daily photo updates: http://www.flickr.com/photos/doggylama/
Yelp reviews: http://www.yelp.com/biz/7oPSx23J1EKQ1pavqcYsWw

About the position
We will train you to walk dogs for us and, if you haven’t already gone to the Dog Walking Academy, we will partially subsidize you to get trained through that program on dog behavior, body language, and pack management, as well as Pet CPR and Pet First Aid. We will continue to support you as you become more confident walking groups of dogs. The eventual goal will be for you to walk up to two groups of dogs per day. The maximum number of dogs in each group is six.
You will be an independent contractor (IC), so you will be responsible for your own health insurance, vehicle, dog leashes, etc.
One of the strengths of Doggy Lama is that we’re a team. If you need help with your dogs at the last minute because you have car problems or you want to take a vacation, we’re here to help you.

Requirements
You must be available between 9am-4pm Monday through Friday.
You have a reliable car or truck that can accommodate 4-6 medium to large dogs.
You have a good driving record and insurance.
You can walk dogs rain or shine. (When it’s raining out, our clients need us more than ever!)
You can pass a criminal/background check.
You have some comfort and familiarity with computers and the Internet (We send regular email updates and use Google Calendar for your schedule.)
You have a cell phone that you can leave on during working hours.
You have excellent references.
You have extensive experience working with dogs—this can be in the professional, personal, or volunteer realm.
You must be at least 18 years old.
You must be able to make a minimum commitment of 1 year.
You live in the East Bay.
You are very responsible. Our clients consider their pets to be important family members—this is not a “slacker” job in any way.

Compensation
—Group dog walks
We pay 60% of the gross of what the clients pay us. For hour-long group walks, the clients pay $25/walk if the dog gets walked Monday through Friday and $27/walk if the dog gets walked fewer than 5x/week. This comes out to be $15-$16.20 per dog for up to six dogs. For a full group of six dogs, it usually takes an hour to pick them up, an hour out on the trails, and an hour to drop them off. We care about the environment and your time and stress level, so we will try to make your driving distance as small as possible.
Here’s another way to think about it:

# of dogs in group:/Pay range for group:/Approximate time needed:
3—$45 to 49.50—2.5 hours
4—$60 to $66—2.75 hours
5—$75 to $82.50—3 hours
6—$90 to $97.20—3 hours

If you have the energy, skills, and interest, we can build you up to two groups of dogs per day, but unless you already have experience as a professional dog walker, you should expect to walk only one group per day for at least a couple months.

—Drop-in visits
We charge $35/half-hour for a drop-in visit or individual dog walk. You would make 60% of that, or $21. Please do not apply to do drop-in visits only—our primary need right now is for dog walkers and drop-ins are something the walker could do only in addition to dog walking.

—Boarding
We charge $50-$55/dog/day for in-home boarding. You would make 60% of that, or $30-33/dog. Please do not apply for boarding position only—our primary need is for dog walkers. Boarding is something we can talk about doing with the new dog walker to supplement his or her income.

How to Apply
Please send your resume, at least 3 references, and a cover letter that tells us about your experience with dogs to the manager of Doggy Lama, Nicki Horne, at and cc: the owner, Molly Kenefick, at . Nicki works 2-6 PM on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays (she is off on Wednesdays and weekends). She will get back to you during her work days. Please tell us whether you come to us through a friend or acquaintance, or through Craigslist.

We hope to hear from you!

Thanks,

Nicki and Molly

The Cat Training Revolution

Friday, October 17, 2008

I had absolutely no idea this was possible. Very cool.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/09/30/petscol.DTL

This is from the “Your Whole Pet” column by Christie Keith, on SFGate.com.

Winged Fury: Dog Sculpture

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

This is “Winged Furry,” a bronze sculpture by Jean Van Keuren on the Davis, CA Greenway. There are three in the series, installed along the Davis Greenway. The other two don’t do much for me, but I love this one. It’s about 3.5 feet high. Dexter was pretty freaked when we walked up to this sculpture!

Not Impressed

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Dexter was not impressed that “Kitty was here.”

He said, "Whatever."

Rest in peace, Dakota.

Friday, October 03, 2008

I put my girl, Dakota, down on Sunday, September 28, 2008. Dakota had been having some bad days interspersed with OK days. She was 18+ years old—battling cancer and severe arthritis. That morning she sat in a pool of urine on the floor that was pink from blood—she didn’t have the strength in her hind legs to get up. I called a wonderful vet whose practice is entirely devoted to at-home euthanasia and asked him to please come as soon as he could. Dakota passed at about 3:30 PM.

My wonderful holistic vets helped us have a good last few years. I am so grateful to them and to my friends and family for their support.

Thank you, Dakota, for being my best friend and partner. You were the best dog I could ever ask for. I love you so much. You changed my life and made me a better person. Thank you, my friend.

Rest in peace.

Notes from Monday, September 29, 2008 11:43:48 PM

I’m doing ok. Life feels weird but I am glad I am just feeling my feelings… I want to be mostly by myself or be working.

These are some of the things notice:

• I keep seeing the French doors to the deck shut and panicking that they got closed and Dakota must need to pee. (They were left open 24/7 for months.)
• I took most her meds and supplements (a couple dozen of them) off the counter and now there’s a lot of space there.
• I picked her raised bowls off the floor—now there’s space there for me to walk comfortably around the dining table, which feels luxurious. I walked around that double bowl-holder for so long.
• I see Dexter lying on “her bed” under the stairs and worry that Dakota’s uncomfortable somewhere else.
• I slept upstairs last night and it felt so odd (I had slept downstairs on a twin bed for the last few months to be with her). My cat Blue Blue slept on my chest and was happy I was back in the master bedroom.
• Feeding the dogs only took a couple minutes instead of half an hour.
• I drove back home after the morning’s hike and as I turned off 35th Ave. I thought, “I’ll see Dakota in a minute.” Then I remembered that I wouldn’t.
• The postal worked handed me a package that contained $100 of Dakota medicine. I looked at it and said, “My dog’s dead so I don’t need this medicine. Do I have to take this?” She took it back from me and said, “No, I’ll write ‘refused’ on it and it will go back.” I was shocked that I spoke about her death matter-of-factly. Dakota’s death seems totally dramatic and sometimes completely banal.
• Sometimes I think to myself, “That was weird—I thought Dakota was dead but of course she’s not.” Then I remember that yeah, she really is dead.
• Life feels smaller without my dog and also larger when I think of possibilities of things I can do that I couldn’t do while she was alive and sick. I feel guilty for seeing some good things. But then I don’t.
• I knew this was coming but then it came and somehow it feels natural and unnatural at the same time.

It even oddly reminds me of the first time I was a labor assistant (at my friend Rebecca’s first child’s birth at her home in Berkeley). After over 2 days of helping her and her husband birth their baby, I walked outside and down the street. I felt like the whole world had changed because I had seen Merav’s birth. I wanted to stop people and say, “Hey—this is life and it is precious! Don’t take anything for granted.

People are being born every day and it is the most beautiful, miraculous thing in the world.” Of course Dakota’s death is not really miraculous, but having known her and now that I know she has died, it seems as if the world has changed. How can the world be going on about its worldly business? Part of me wants to stop people and tell them not to take anything for granted because there is beauty and incredible love in the world. Writing those words makes me cry.

I am crying a lot. Crying is good.

Mourning my dog I also mourn my (first) mother who died in ‘87, my dogs Dixie, Helen, and Raleigh, and the people I love(d) who died this year: my friend Rob Castle who died in February, my friend Beth Block who died in April, and my Uncle Kevin who died in July. 

One more thought—this thought more than any other:

• Dakota was the dog of my life. The best. I have been so lucky.

Peace.

Molly

Rascals the Border Collie

Sunday, August 10, 2008

14-year-old border collie Rascals is one of the most eccentric dogs I know. For instance, when we’re on a walk and I start talking on the phone, she immediately drops to the ground and stays there—no matter where we are (even in the middle of the street!).

When I sneeze, she attacks and bites my foot (not very hard, thankfully)! So now when I sneeze I yell "No, Rascals, don’t bite me!" and all she does is rush over and look disappointed that she can’t bite me.

Old lady Rascals is pretty cranky but she doesn’t really do much except snarl and make complain-y noises. The other dogs pretty much ignore her. Here,  Rascals threatens to kill and eat Roxy, who trots by—completely oblivious.

Miss Rascals is ridiculously cute. She hates being in the back with the other dogs (she has space issues) so I often indulge her and let her be my co-pilot.

Rascals does not like coming through the “floating” screens. She is waiting for me to hold them aside!

Beach babe Rascals says, “Listen up, humans—I’m going to go long on the next one!”

Oakland Garage-Door Dog Art

Friday, June 20, 2008

This building in Oakland’s Temescal neighborhood has very good garage-door dog art.

Left garage door:

Right garage door:

Not a Vicious Dog

Saturday, April 05, 2008

Tig the black lab mix frequently strikes fear into people’s hearts because of her intense "submissive smile." This is a wolf behavior that most dogs don’t exhibit, but many do. She is very submissive and this is one of the appeasing/puppy behaviors that wolves and dogs do to show that they are submissive and not a threat, thereby heading off any aggressive behavior on the other animal’s part. Other similar appeasing behaviors are: lying down with belly exposed, submissive peeing, and licking other animals’ mouths. 

Tig is wearing a Gentle Leader head-collar, not a muzzle—it’s a management tool for dogs who pull on leashes.

Bed-Head Fairy Visit

Thursday, April 12, 2007

My Bed-Head Fairy was in a groovy mood last night. I’m fresh outta bed here—human hands have not touched this hair sculpture, nor has caffeine penetrated my neural system. "As-is human"

Snapshots: Quest for Back Pain Relief

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

After cupping, Dr. Kang gave me accupuncture with electrical stimulus. This was a pretty painful hour at my doctor’s (he practices traditional Chinese medicine).

Acupuncture needles in my face hurt a lot, too.

November 2008: My quest continues. I haven’t found anything so far that relieves back pain for long.

Muzzles

Saturday, February 17, 2007

Muzzles are management tools and do not take the place of training. However, some people have dogs that are not safe out in the world without one and do not have the time (or skills) to train their dog themselves or the money to hire a trainer to do so. In that case, a muzzle can be an useful tool. Some dogs may get more affection and positive reinforcement when they are wearing a muzzle than not. Dogs can get used to wearing a muzzle and come to think of it as a positive thing, especially if reinforced with getting treats, praise, and adventures. (Other management tools are the Easy Walk or SENSE-ation harnesses, Gentle Leader head-collars, and prong collars or choke chains. We often use the first three items; we don’t like to use prong collars and we do not use choke chains.)

It’s very important for the dog to be wearing the correct type of muzzle—we only use “box” muzzles, (like the one pictured here,) that allow the dog to breathe naturally, drink water, and take treats. We would never walk a dog with a tight vinyl grooming-style muzzle that keeps the dog’s muzzle closed. The dog would overheat quickly. They told us at the Dog Walking Academy that those muzzles should only be used for five minutes at a time (long enough to trim a dog’s nails, for example).

I tell clients that while we reinforce good trail manners, we are not trainers. We do reinforce good trail manners, and I often give clients the contact information for trainers I respect.

Bingo is wearing a box muzzle that has two straps that meet with a little plastic clip behind his head.

This is another kind of box muzzle that has a third strap that goes up between the dog’s eyes and over his head—it is more difficult for the dog to get off than the one above.

We live as we dream, alone. (Poem)

Friday, February 16, 2007

You brought my stuff back last night
Books, a belt, a pair of crutches
You forgot my CD
Stupidly, I asked you in
You were so boyish in the front door light
I wanted to brush your hair off your face
Take your sweater off
Push you back on the bed
Straddle you and grind and hear us groan
Our animals straining together
The very thing that got us here I guess
But instead in my nervousness I did a kind of show-and-tell
Showing you some things from work
And asking about your family and friends
We drank sherry in fancy little glasses
I’d just bought
Amazing that awkwardness between us
The worst ever
It was almost a relief that it was so bad
It gave me hope that in two weeks
There will scabs on my heart
Still I hear what’s been haunting me since we first met
Was it from Conrad or the punk song I heard it first?
We live as we dream, alone.
I knew it was a warning
All the time.

Inny (Poem)

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Lying on my bed
Listening to my breath
Playing with my breasts
Daydreaming
No radio on–no music–for once
Almost midnight
Feeling my buzz wind down
Savoring sensations in a slightly drunken way
Observing shadows on the wall
Spider webs moving gently… with what breeze?
Completely unproductive
Contemplating my navel (an inny)
My breast (an outie)
My hips (gently rolling hills)
Thinking of Eskimos and northern lights
Endless days or endless nights
Igloos and sealskins and fur-covered boats
Couples who couple through slits in their clothes
42 words for snow
—and numeric systems based on 5
—instead of 10
—since it’s too cold to take out 10 fingers
—at once

The Whisker as Talisman

Friday, December 22, 2006

Whenever I see a whisker on the floor or bed, I pick it up and put it in my jewelry box. I’ve never sent one to anyone before tonight. I had just written a letter to someone who is an “online friend” (we view and sometimes comment on each others’ Flickr photos). She recently lost her senior dog and I asked for her address so I could send her a “real” letter in a card. Before I sealed the envelope I had the sense that I wanted to send her something more than “just words.” I walked around my house trying to think of what to send and eventually found myself at my jewelry box.

A whisker is a kind of talisman to me. It came from an animal I love and although I can keep it it reminds me that we can never really keep another. A whisker marks a space of time–that it grew, that it stayed as part of the animal. It marks time during which we shared space, air, love. He or she rubbed the whisker against me and on things in the world in which we both walk.

A whisker is an talisman, a marker of time, a connection between me and an animal I love.