A Welshman, 200 sheep, and 1000 LEDs walk into a bar…

What do you get when you combine welsh shepherds, sheep, herding dogs, electricians, lighting techs, and copius light emitting diodes? Genius. Dear Readers, we don’t CARE if this is a thinly veiled  advertisement. This is, very simply put, the best. video. ever.

Post-April fool’s edition: (faux) Chupacabra; real shame?

according to one breeder, this dog- likely a Xoloitzcuintle or "Mexican hairless"- may have been "doctored" to appear more menacing.

In 2007, Associated Press ran a story on this frozen critter, which the Cuero, Texas woman who found it described as a “chupacabra,” a legendary goat-killer from south American folktale and mythology. According to media fallout, breeders on “Xolo” sites believed this to be a Mexican hairless dog, and some went so far as to speculate that because the breed is so rare in the U.S., this apparent roadkill may have been an unhealthy or undesirable animal, dumped at the side of the road by an unethical breeder. Subsequent DNA tests suggested that the animal was probably a diseased, mangy coyote

In another instance in 2008, a chupacabra was said to have been caught on tape- again in the Texas town of  Cuero (see clip, below)

 

The author of   not discount the possibility that the chupacabra does or did exist, but for now, we can only speculate that the little town of Cuero has either a high rate of dependency on drug and alcohol… or a high rate of gullibility.**

 

** http://www.drug-detox-rehab.org/states/texas_drug_detox_rehab_info~Cuero.html

 

 

Cf. http://www.sciam.com/blog/60-second-science/post.cfm?id=chupacabra-strikes-texas-town-2008-08-13

http://news.mongabay.com/2007/0904-chupacabra.html

 

Puli Dogs: hirsute canines

flying mop? animate dryer lint? This mid-air mass of moving dreadlocks is actually a puli dog on an agility course

 

The Puli, a medium-sized Hungarian herding and livestock guard dog,  may not fit the mainstream aesthetic bias towards dainty, long-haired lapdogs, but  its long, corded coat, which looks like locks (“dreadlocks”), make it virtually waterproof, not to mention closer to Jah.  

yet some Puli spokesdogs insist that wheras rastafari dreadlocks symbolize the Lion of Judah, and among some hindu  Sadhus and Sadhvis locks are an expression of disdain for profane vanity,  most Pulis are not religiously or politically affiliated: they are simply rockin’ their own version of the “natural.”

 

 

its not "a race thing:" black and white alike sport the curly coils.

 

 

cf. http://www.akc.org/breeds/puli/index.cfm
     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puli
     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreadlocks

Purse Dogs

A prime specimen of purse dog.

The purse dog is not a species unto itself; rather, it represents a human intervention in animal behavior. Purse dogs have rapidly adapted to their owners’ whims: many have developed hermit crab-like behaviors, and emerge from their shells only when they outgrow them, or to find a new portable home, or one with more “bling.”  Purse dogs are disproportionately popular amongst girls with names that end in “Y.”

Those unfamiliar with purse dogs can often be heard wondering whether the tiny dogs’  tiny legs atrophy from lack of use, and where the tiny dogs evacuate their tiny bladders. Indeed, the purse’s interior must be exceptionally piquant after long trips to the mall, where purse dogs can often be found.

Pursedogs are not entirely a laughing matter, however; these dogs are often raised in puppy mills, by breeders that prize tiny-ness over health. These dogs often have difficulties in gestation and delivery, and “oversize” dogs are cast aside, left to live in substandard conditions. Those interested in protesting the abhorrent practices of puppymill breeders can find links to specialized advocacy groups  and information on how others have staged protests, below.

http://www.puppymillprotest.org/
http://www.prisonersofgreed.org/actions.html
http://www.ehow.com/how_2150779_organiz
e-puppy-mill-pet-store-protest.html
http://www.youtube.com/ProtestPuppyMills