Dalmation Danger

Hi everybody,

Sorry it’s been so long since I posted here. I’ve been really busy – eating, walking, sleeping, playing, eating, sleeping, eating – you know how it is.

This message is for your humans so I hope you have them read this too.

The other night we were out walking and a Dalmatian was out without a leash. She was having a great time; running through yards, chasing things, barking at everything. Lots of fun! Her owner made several attempts to get her but there was no way this human was going to catch this young Dalmatian.

She came over near me but sensing that my boy would try and bring her back home, she didn’t get too close. She followed us on our walk for awhile.

All of a sudden she darted into the street and a van was coming! My owner yelled and she just missed the back end of the van – she had to jump up at the last second to avoid hitting it. We were both scared.

So even though we love to get loose and run free it can be very dangerous out there with those big metal things that humans drive speeding by. Especially when it’s dark and they can’t see us or the weather is bad and they can’t stop fast.

So please be careful out there and remind your owners to keep you on the leash except for trips to the dog park or a fenced in yard.

That was just too close with that young Dalmatian. She was lucky.

What's Up Doc?

I am going to have to speak to the humans running ClevelandPets.com.

I was browsing the site and saw that their featured pet this week is a rabbit!!!

After all the work me and my friends have done to keep those furry pests from our yards. It's bad enough that squirrels are everywhere gathering nuts and acorns. And they somehow know exactly how long our leashes are.

But a rabbit? As featured pet? Take a look at the critter.
They might as well start putting cats up there too.

Woof

Back to School

My friend Bonnie is ready to go off to school to learn to be a real therapy dog.

Her human only got to keep her for a year and then has to say goodbye. This is really sad for both of them, but once Bonnie is working and helping people they'll both appreciate what a great thing they did.

I can't wait to meet the new puppy that comes in to be trained for a year in Bonnie's place.

Good luck Bonnie! Write to me!

Guide Dog Nicky - a real Hogan's Hero

I admit that sometimes I think of Poodles as being kind of fussy and pampered.

But then I heard about Nicholas who is a poodle and also a Guide Dog.

He is really helping out a lady who can't see. He is a true Hogan's Hero.

Here are some photos of Nicky with the nice lady who trained him for a year and of his new human - the one who can't see. What a great group!

We are proud of you Nicky and I won't say bad things about poodles anymore.

Water, water everywhere

This rain has been getting to me. Well, not to me. I love the water and if I find a puddle I will play in it. But it seems like my humans are reluctant to take me out to play in the rain. And we haven’t been to the dog park or to Hub and Luke’s house or Roger’s yard for a loooong time.

I think all the other humans feel the same way though. When it does stop raining for awhile I see a whole bunch of my friends out walking with their humans. Then if it starts to rain, they all scurry back inside.

Don’t they know that water is fun?

Hub and Luke

Hi everybody,

2 of my best friends in the world are Hub and Luke. They are Bernese Mountain Dogs and every so often (not often enough!) our people let us play together in their fenced in yard.

Hub and I used to play and then Luke came along too. What fun! Luke is now bigger than Hub.

There are some great pictures of Hub and Luke here.

I was on TV!

Hi everybody,

Guess where I was today? I was on TV! Do you recognize this set? (Set is a TV term I learned today - it means the place where they point the cameras.)

It's from the Good Company set on Channel 3. While I was waiting to be on TV, I snuck over to their set.

I will tell you all about it and post more pictures soon. But keep the morning of August 12th available. That's when I will be on the Golden Opportunities Show on Channel 3.

Woof!

It's My Birthday!

Today is the big day! It's my Birthday! I am 3 years old today. WooHoo!

I don't know what my humans have planned but I overheard some talk about going to the Dog Park (I hope lots of my friends are there) and maybe setting up my pool in the yard (it sure is hot).

I also heard the girl talk about cutting up a peach or two for me - I love peaches!

If I don't see you at the Park, I'll let you know how the day goes.

4th of July

As my fellow canines will confirm, the 4th of July is not our favorite day.

The sudden and extended loud noises from fireworks can be very scary. And if people shoot them off too near us, we can get hurt.

I hope that all the humans will be very careful if they have to blow off firecrackers on the 4th.

Here are some tips on keeping all of us safe on the 4th of July and throughout the summer months.

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill

I wonder what it is like to be part of a famous family and travel the world. An Italian Bracchi dog named Palio is part of Tim McGraw and Faith Hill's family. He is travelling with them and their 3 children on their country music tour.

They will be at Quicken Loans Arena for a concert.

Kathleen DeBernardi, owner of Love Is Mobile Dog Grooming in Mentor, received an exciting call the other day. She will be grooming Palio before the concert tonight!

Here are more details and a picture of Italian bracchis.

I hope Kathleen gets some more pictures at the concert - and maybe a pawtograph!

Hot enough for you?

Hi everybody,

Today sure was hot. I went to the park and then got brushed and hosed off but I was still hot. But then, a great thing happened.

My humans pulled out the pool and started filling it up. I couldn’t wait. I LOVE the water!

I played in it for a long time and am hoping to get back in this evening too.

What did you do in the hot weather? Let me know. And please e-mail me your pictures to Hogan@magnuminc.com so I can see what you look like and post you on the blog or on ClevelandPets.com

Click on the Play button below to watch me play in my pool!

You can be Famous Too

Thanks for all the nice responses to my picture on the magazine cover.

My humans said that we can put your photos up at ClevelandPets.com too!

Just send them a photo (or 2 or 3) via e-mail (if digital) to pet@ClevelandSeniors.com or mail photos to

ClevelandPets

3150 Payne Ave

Cleveland, OH 44114

and they will scan them in and put them up.

Don't forget to include a little about yourself and why your humans think you are so special.

I can't wait to see what some of you look like!

On the cover of a Magazine!

I can’t believe it. Nine of my friends and I (and 2 cats - grrrr) are on the cover of a magazine!

We are on the cover of the current issue of FiftySomething Magazine.

In case you can’t tell I am in the 2nd row in the right column.

It makes sense for us to be featured in FiftySomething Magazine because dogs and other pets are tremendous additions to the family and can be great additions to the lives of those 50 and over.

Be sure to pick up a copy of the magazine and I will be glad to put my paw print autograph on your copy. That should be worth a lot on eBay, right?

My Vacation

I just came back from a vacation.

One of my humans took me on a really long ride - I thought we'd never get there. I didn't know where we were going but it sure took a long time.

When I got there I met a really nice man. He played with me and the next thing I know my human was gone. She left behind a blanket and some toys and I found out later she left me a couple really good bones too.

I don't know how long they were gone, I'm not really good with time. But this new guy was really nice to me and played with me and I got to go in or out any time I wanted!

Then my human showed up and I was really happy! We went for another long ride and I was back at home.

All of my other people were waiting for me. Everybody was happy to see me and I was happy to see them too!

What fun!

15 Most Beautiful Dog Breeds

I see where they surveyed humans and they voted on the "most beautiful breeds of dog."

They broke it up into Small, Medium and Large Breed and, of course, Labrador Retrievers were a winner in the Large Breed category.

Here are the other results.

It's hard to argue with the 15 breeds that they chose but there are so many other good-looking breeds.

And the word "beautiful" is not the best choice. Some of us guys would rather be called "handsome"

Muddy Day at the Dog Park

I really needed some exercise so my boy took me up to the dog park this morning. There were about 8 other dogs there but I didn't know any of them.

There were a few dry spots by the fence but a lot of the park was wet and muddy. Yippee!

Being a Lab, I just can't resist a nice puddle. So I dove in and some of the other dogs followed me.

I was all nice and muddy and it felt great but when my boy got me home he didn't even let me in the house until he gave me a bath. Sometimes I just don't understand humans.

Here are some more pictures from my morning.

Famous Friend

I have a new friend. She is a rescued boxer name Lilly.

She is the Featured Pet this week over at ClevelandPets.com

Her human was a TV star! The human’s name is Margaret Bobonich (read more about her ) and she was on the TV reality show called Survivor.

Margaret gave Lilly a nice Nike headband because they are an athletic family.

Some people don't like white boxers because they are not "recognized" - whatever that means. Many of them, like Lilly, can't hear either. But I think she is great and so does her family.

Forgetful (and strange) humans

Woof! Did you ever find yourself in this position? When my people leave the house, they have always put me in my bed while they are away.

So yesterday, I was resting on the couch (hey, it was a tiring morning!) and the girl gets her coat and keys and says goodbye to me. Then she walks out the door!!!

I waited a minute or two to see if she was coming back but I heard her car drive away. So I got off the comfortable couch and walked over to my bed in the kitchen. Just because she forgot me doesn’t mean I won’t do the right thing.

The odd part is that when she came back, she was laughing that I went to my bed by myself. What did she expect?

I can’t figure out these humans sometimes. I went back to the couch and reflected on it for awhile.

Miss Scarlett protects her girl

My friend Miss Scarlett is a Rhodesian Ridgeback. She's almost 8 months old. She heard a strange noise downstairs and, of course, had to investigate. That’s what good dogs do.

It seems her human girl was sitting on this thing and spinning around. It made a terrible noise. Scarlett didn’t know what to do so she sniffed it out carefully and then decided she had to pounce to protect her human.

Good for you Scarlett!

See the photos here.

Everybody into the pool?

Woof!


I guess I'm glad to see some of the snow melting. Sure it was fun and I love the cold, but I love to be outside too and my humans won't let me stay out there too long when it's freezing.



And the walks we went on weren't as long because very few of the sidewalks were shoveled. The street isn't much fun to walk in.

I have seen more squirrels and even some chipmunks lately so spring is coming.

What I'm really looking forward to is getting to swim this summer. My boy keeps telling me he's getting me into water this summer, but we're not sure where to go.

Any good ideas? Let me know

More Friends - Bailey

To tell the truth, I didn’t know there were so many different kinds of us around. For example, I had never even heard of a Schipperke until my friend Bailey came along.

She is 7&1/2 and her humans sometimes call her Sparkles.

There are only a few Schipperkes in Northern Ohio. Wow! There are a lot of us Labs, that's for sure.

Bailey is so interesting that she is the featured pet this week at ClevelandPets.com. So see more of Bailey here.

Wasn't that snow a blast!

Hi everybody. Sorry I haven’t posted anything for awhile. But there was all this snow out there and it was just too much fun playing in the snow.

Now that’s it’s starting to melt some, I will write some more.

I had a great time at the Dog Park with Buddy, Spike and some other dogs the other day. That's me and Buddy saying hello in the photo. I put some more photos up here.

The Westminster Show

My people and I like to watch the dog shows and the Westminster Kennel Dog Show is coming up this week. It’s lots of fun but I heard that some humans actually place bets on the results!

They bet on breed, group, sex and age of the winner. For example, a male dog is the big favorite to win.

Last year's best-in-show winner was a male Bull Terrier. A winner this year from the same breed would pay out at 30/1 odds. That’s a lot of biscuits!

The Fox Terrier (wire) is this year’s favorite at 12/1 odds. The Scottish Terrier is also a strong favorite at 15/1 odds. Listed as long shots are breeds such as the saluki, chow chow, rottweiler and shih tzu, all of which are currently listed at 100/1 odds.

What about the Labs? Come on Las Vegas, give us a chance. I guess we really are the underdog.

Dusty - another new friend

My friend Bonnie sure has a lot of friends. She introduced me to Nicholas and Leo and here is a picture of another friend of hers named Dusty.

Dusty is a Husky/Coyote mix and lives with Bonnie until she goes to school.

Be sure to read Bonnie's comment (below) about acting like the "annoying little sister". ;-)

AKC Show

Did anyone else watch the Dog Show last night? My family had it on and I watched along with them. It's fun seeing all the different breeds. Some looked very familiar. But some I've never seen before - like the Komondor - doesn't that hair get in the way?

My people made a few snide comments about me being lazy - when the dogs on TV were doing something special. I just rolled over, gnawing on my bone and ignored them. Except I had the boy scratch me behind the ears for awhile as we watched.

Even More New Friends!

Woof!

What Fun!

I got comments from a dog named Leo. Leo is a working Leader Dog.

Leo was honored as a Hero Dog by the Northeast Ohio German Shepherd Club and they gave him the award that he is wearing in this picture. Be sure to read all his comments (below).

Can't wait to meet you Leo - keep up the great work

Hogan

It's a small world!

Gee, this Internet thing is great. I am hearing from all kinds of dogs – and from all over. We just got a message from Nicholas who is attending formal Guide Dog training at Leader Dogs for the Blind all the way in Michigan!

As her comment says, she used to live with Bonnie’s Mom.

I don’t know where Michigan is but it sounds far. Maybe my boy will walk me there someday so I can meet Nicholas.

Bonnie, the Yellow Lab

I got a nice message from a new friend – Bonnie. She left a comment (below) about Mailman Ken.

She is only five and a half months old but is already going to school. She is in training to become a Guide Dog for a blind person. What a great thing to do.

Good for you Bonnie.

I see that she likes to lay in the snow like I do. She made a nice snow bed in this picture she sent. Looks cozy!

Keep us posted on how school goes and have fun in the snow.

Your new friend, Hogan

Mailman Ken

Woof

I know, I know.

I’m not supposed to like the mailman. I’m supposed to bark at him and try to bite him.

But I’ve known Mailman Ken since my humans brought me home and he’s a very nice human.

He talks to me and pets me and even gives me a treat sometime. What’s not to like?

But don’t get me started on those squirrels. Grrrr.

PS So far I've heard from Chestnut, Roxie, Hub, Luke and a secret admirer. This blogging is fun! Woof!

Snip Snip - What were my people thinking?

One of my good friends had to get an operation last week. I had the same operation when I was younger – it’s something that male dogs get. Ouch!

But when I had my operation, I had to wear a funny collar for a couple days. I looked really stupid and the squirrels were laughing at me when I was in the yard. My friend didn’t have to wear the collar – he sure was lucky.

I don’t know what my humans were thinking. If they asked me nicely not to bite at my incision I am sure I would have listened. But no, they had to out that ridiculous collar on me.

It’s bad enough I was snipped. Oh well, they did give me a nice soup bone when I felt better.

I love the snow!!!

Woof!


We have about 5” of new snow. Yippee! My boy took me out this morning and we had lots of fun in it. I tried to tell him that I wanted to stay out longer but he didn’t understand (he’s not always the brightest, you know). But the time we did have in the snow was a blast!

I hope I can visit my friends Roger or Hub and Luke to play in their fenced-in yards today. If not, maybe the boy will take me to the doggie park when he gets back from wherever he goes every day.

I better rest up now so I will be ready to go.