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Big Ben is very patient with his tiny toddler bestie!
We’d love to see these two in a photo shoot! <3
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As a dog parent, one of my worst nightmares is dognapping. As a result, I’m pretty obsessive about the safety of my own dogs, and I always worry about dog theft when I see dogs tied to bike racks and lampposts outside of coffee shops, grocery stores and other spots around New York City. So, what is dognapping? Why does it happen and are certain breeds or types of dogs targeted? How do you prevent it in the first place? What do you do if it happens to you?
An abandoned dog. Photography by Shutterstock.
An estimated two million pets are stolen every year in the United States. The American Kennel Club, which tracks instances of dog theft from their National Pet Theft Database, found a 31% increase in dognappings in recent years, with newly stolen dogs reported daily from communities across the country.
Dognappings happen for many reasons and dogs may change hands multiple times after being stolen, which makes them even harder to locate. Thieves often steal dogs hoping to make money off of them. This might be someone looking to collect a reward, or something even more sinister. Intact dogs (canines that aren’t spayed or neutered) may be sold to puppy mills or backyard breeders, small dogs or dogs of popular, expensive breeds might be taken and resold, or dogs may be sold to dog fighting rings either as fighters or bait dogs.
According to Pet FBI, some of the top small dogs targeted for cash include purebred Yorkshire Terriers, Pomeranians, Maltese and Chihuahuas, while Pitbulls, Boston Terriers, German Shepherds and Boxers fall victim to theft for dogfighting rings. In NYC, there has been a rise of dognappings of small dogs in return for cash.
Unattended dogs are easy targets for dognappers. If you are running errands that aren’t dog friendly, leave your dog at home.
Hopefully your dog never goes missing, but you’ll need to prove he belongs to you if he does. Microchip your dog, and ensure that your contact information is up to date with your microchip company. Thieves could remove a collar and tags, but microchips are permanent forms of identification for your dog. Some dog guardians even use the advanced technology of Dog DNA tests to prove the identity of their dogs.
In recent years, there have been several high-profile cases of dogs going missing while in the care of dog sitters — and never being seen again. Only hire responsible, insured and trusted pet-care providers and always check references before hiring a walker, daycare or sitter.
Be very guarded with your dog’s information. Sometimes, dognappers will try to determine how much a dog is worth, and if they’re spayed or neutered before taking them. Deflect detailed questions from strangers — particularly about how much your dog cost.
Immediately call the police and your local animal control department. File a police report.
Try to find any witnesses who might have seen the dognapping occur. This will help you and the police get information about who has or had your dog. Distribute current, clear photos of your dog right away.
Search out local lost and found groups online and on Facebook.
Other helpful sites include:
Social media sites like Facebook are instrumental in spreading the word about lost or stolen dogs. Don’t forget to contact your local media — newspapers, TV and radio — to try to increase coverage of your dog’s disappearance.
People whose dogs are missing are vulnerable to being taken advantage of even further. I can’t even imagine how desperate I would be if something happened to one of my dogs — I would want to do everything and anything in my power to get them back. The Better Business Bureau warns pet owners to watch out for scam artists who demand reward money before they return the missing dog. For example, someone calling to say they are a long-haul truck driver who found your dog out of state and requesting money to get your dog back to your state, or someone saying they need money for airline tickets and a crate to ship your lost dog back.
Thumbnail: Photography by Shutterstock.
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Sassafras Lowrey is an award-winning author. Her novels have been honored by organizations ranging from the Lambda Literary Foundation to the American Library Association. Sassafras is a Certified Trick Dog Trainer, and assists with dog agility classes. Sassafras lives and writes in Brooklyn with her partner, a senior Chihuahua mix, a rescued Shepherd mix and a Newfoundland puppy, along with two bossy cats and a semi-feral kitten. Learn more at sassafraslowrey.com.
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Why do dogs pant? My dog, Baby, and I go hiking through a nearby forest just about every day. By the time we return home, we’re both huffing and puffing a bit harder than normal. The hotter and more humid the weather is, the more I sweat, and the more intensely my dog pants. While I’m always sweating like a maniac, though, Baby remains as dry as the proverbial bone. Does her tongue, lolling off to one side, help her stay cool?
A dog with his tongue out next to a bowl of strawberries. Photography by duxx/shutterstock.
One of the most obvious differences between humans and dogs is how our bodies respond when they start to warm up. Dogs can manage rising body temperature through sweat and through their blood, like us, but not effectively. For dogs, panting is the primary mode of heat relief.
Yes! Dogs have glands all over their bodies, just like we do, but theirs serve different functions. Most of the pores and hair follicles on our bodies can produce sweat. For the most part, a dog’s glands release oils and scent chemicals called pheromones. Between baths, the oils protect and condition the skin and coat, while the pheromones are largely used to communicate with other dogs.
A dog’s true sweat glands are located on their noses and feet. No one’s really sure what a dog’s sweat glands are actually for. Moisture on the nose might help them detect scents with more precision. When dogs sweat through the paw pads on their feet, it could be for added traction. Whether we’re talking about a Maltese or a Mastiff, a dog has so few proper sweat glands, they’re practically useless for cooling a dog’s entire body.
In the summertime or after a period of heavy activity, you may notice that what little exposed skin your dog has changes color slightly. Pigmentation and markings vary from dog to dog, but when a dog gets hot enough, his normal skin color takes on a pinkish hue.
As a dog’s body heats up, the blood vessels closest to the skin widen or dilate. Warm blood passes through these expanded vessels, cooling down on its way back to the heart. Since dogs show very little skin and can’t sweat anywhere near as much as we do, temperature control is left to their mouths!
Have you ever posted a photo of your dog’s mouth hanging open for “Tongue-Out Tuesday”? These images are endearing, even comical. When it’s hot or humid, and your dog’s tongue is at full extension, it means he’s doing all he can to cool off! The methods dogs and people use differ, but the effects are the same. When we sweat, the hottest fluid in our body rises to the surface and evaporates. That evaporation cools us gradually.
Panting does the same for dogs. The warmest part of a dog’s body is the chest cavity, where his heart and lungs are in constant motion. The more real estate a dog can expose to the open air, the faster super-heated fluids can evaporate. A wide-open mouth also gives moisture a chance to evaporate from every surface the open air can reach, including a dog’s windpipe and lungs.
In theory, the more intensely a dog pants, the more relief it provides. If the heat is extreme, or if your dog has a short muzzle, even panting at full strength can’t keep him from overheating. Limiting exercise to short bursts in the morning or evening, making sure your dog has fresh water and letting him lounge around with the air conditioning on are always winning strategies!
Thumbnail: Photography ©eurobanks | Thinkstock.
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Melvin Peña is a writer, editor, social media manager and SEO specialist who spends most of his time in Durham, North Carolina. His interests include his dog, Baby (of course!), art, hiking, urban farming and karaoke.
Editor’s note: This article appeared in Dogster magazine. Have you seen the new Dogster print magazine in stores? Or in the waiting room of your vet’s office? Subscribe now to get Dogster magazine delivered straight to you!
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I’ve had and walked dogs since childhood. Until last autumn, I’d never given a second thought to how I walked them. I’d just always clipped a leash to the ring on the dog’s collar and got on with it. In October of 2015, I was conducting interviews for a Dogster magazine article on the health benefits of dog walking as exercise. As I noted in the piece, when dogs and their humans establish a regular walking routine, the benefits — emotional, mental, and physical— pass up and down the leash.
The article wasn’t published until February of 2016, but two of the interviews I conducted— with Tricia Montgomery, founder and CEO of K9 Fit Club, and Jt Clough, author, dog trainer, and inter-species life coach— made an immediate impact on both me and my dog, Baby. I was fascinated by how passionately each of them spoke about using a dog harness instead of the standard collar clip. The long-term risk to a dog’s neck over years of pulling and being pulled had simply never occurred to me, and I’m convinced that these interviews may have changed the course of my dog’s life.
Two weeks after I got Baby in 2014, with the leash clipped to her collar. (Photo by Melvin Peña)
One of the questions I’d formulated for my interviews had to do with chest or waist leashes for dog owners versus the traditional method of holding the leash by hand. When I asked Montgomery and Clough about these rigs, I was taken aback when each of them turned their answers toward a dog harness, specifically.
Clough: I have become a proponent for dog harnesses. The love of my life is my 10-year-old Weimaraner; she got a neck injury… My realization was that I was pulling on her neck all the time. That’s how we’ve always been taught to control our dogs. The benefit of a harness for a dog is [that it’s] really helpful for [reducing] wear and tear on their bodies.
Me: The risk of repetitive stress injury never occurred to me.
Clough: It really became apparent looking at her X-rays. If you’re pulling on that all the time… They withstand it a lot differently than we do, but their ligaments, their bones, and the way they’re put together, the wear and tear is the same. You can only pull on something, or jerk on something, so many times before it has a life-long effect.
The dog harness made an immediate difference both to Baby and to me. (Photo by Melvin Peña)
When I asked Tricia Montgomery about harnesses, the echoes of what I’d heard from Clough startled me.
Montgomery: I’m a huge advocate of harnesses. I believe harnesses work for the dog. The harness controls dogs just a little bit better. Keep in mind that excessive pressure for the dog on its neck or cervical [vertebrae] can cause so many issues related to whiplash lameness.
I’d adopted my dog, Baby, about 18 months earlier, and had only ever walked her the same way I’d walked every dog I’d had before, with the leash attached directly to her collar. It didn’t take long for me to learn that Baby, a Bluetick Coonhound mix, is a puller. She’s powerfully scent-motivated and physically very strong. With Clough and Montgomery’s words ringing in my ears, I thought about all the times I’d already tugged at Baby’s leash, and, by extension, her neck.
I also thought about all the times she tried lurched off at full speed after an intriguing smell, straining her own neck in the collar. I felt a compounded sense of guilt, not only for my baby puppy, but also for all the dogs I’d ever had. Having lost my previous dog, Tina, in the spring of 2014 to a debilitating idiopathic condition that robbed her of the use of her hind legs, I could only wonder what role, if any, a lifetime of tugging and pulling from both ends of the leash might have played.
Now we never walk without the dog harness. (Photo by Melvin Peña)
Within a day, I’d obtained a simple harness for Baby and haven’t looked back since. As with any dog accessory, there are a wide range of options, sizes, and price points. The harness I got was literally the simplest $12 to $13 dollar one at the pet store. We slide her front legs through two hoops, and clip it over her back, where I attach the leash.
It took a while for each of us to get used to it, but the difference in handling her was immediately noticeable. I feel more in control of her when we walk, and I am confident that Baby’s risk of unforeseen spinal trauma is greatly reduced in the process. Sincerest thanks to Jt Clough and Tricia Montgomery; Baby thanks you, and so do I!
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