Daycare Dog ~ Daisy

Meet Daisy, one of our new doggie daycare pals! Isn't she sweet?

Monday at 10pm ~ Animal Planet Investigates

I can speak from experience...puppy mills are not pretty! I volunteer to respond for deployments with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and with United Animal Nations (UAN) Emergency Animal Rescue Service (EARS) to disasters such as a puppy mill seizures. (When the state steps in and shuts down one of these places, and seizes the dogs, who get sent to a temporary shelter until they can legally be released for adoption in local shelters.)

So, I have had a first-hand look at the deplorable conditions...I'm glad to see that Animal Planet is exposing this horrible practice that so many pet stores participate in. The bulk of these animals are supplied to pet stores or sold online, and when you buy a puppy that way, keep in mind that they come from places like this. If we all stop buying those puppies, the puppy mills would no longer profit from over-breeding and the practice would stop. These people who call themselves "breeders" are in it for the money, not for the dogs. Real breeders care about their dogs.

Puppy mills really put the public in a bad position, though...we see that puppy in the pet store and we want to "save" these poor dogs, but for each one that is saved, another just replaces him.

Watch the show if you can! I just set my DVR. It's on Monday, May 17th at 10pm.

Archie joins our ever-growing list of STAR Puppies!

Meet Archie, a bulldog puppy that recently graduated from our STAR Puppy Program. Isn't he just the cutest little thing? Archie and his pals spent six weeks attending a one-hour class called Puppy Playschool, held on Mondays at 6:30pm. Archie and his buddies educated their owners about housetraining, puppy biting, and other puppy-raising tips, as well as how to manage their dog in a playgroup.

Have you got a puppy under 16 weeks of age? Then come on down and join the fun! You can start any Monday you would like, just register on our website at www.geminidogs.com and we'll see you Monday night!

Great Weekend at Our APDT Rally-O Trial

We had a great success this weekend hosting our first APDT Rally-O trial in several years...makes me wonder why we waited so long! We awarded both an ARCH-EX and an ARCH-MX, which for those of you who don't know Rally, are quite a big deal for the dogs and handlers. They have to work really hard to achieve these titles, and we were pleased that we could be the ones to congratulate them and recognize their awesome achievements. We got a photo of one of those handlers (Rachel Brostrom) with her dog and Lynn Currie, the judge. But the camera's battery died before we could snag one of our ARCH-EX winner!

We also awarded lots of other titles, and those details we will post soon. I drove home without the list...oops! So I'll update this post later...

Great News from Marjorie and Lily!

"Lily and I completed our CPE C-ATE (CPE Agility Team Extraordinaire) championship last Saturday at the SCAT trial in Connecticut! 5000 points at level C was a long road and certainly not something I ever thought I'd achieve way back when I started agility "just for fun" and said "Oh, I'm not going to compete."

Not bad for the girl who always got picked last in gym class and can barely stay upright on course, and a castoff Southern puppy plucked from certain death at a shelter in North Carolina by the Sudbury, MA rescue group Save a Dog (thank you Shirley)!

Finishing the C-ATE was a great follow-up to Lily's 2009 achievements: Number 8 Top Scoring Regular/Vet in CPE 2009 Top Ten and 6th place in the Games category for her height class at 2009 CPE Nationals. I am super proud of my girl!

Thanks to all for your support and encouragement, and especially thanks to Lily for loving to play agility with me and for putting up with my handling! I hope that Lily and I will see you soon and you will join us in celebrating. Cheers!"

Marjorie Otterson and C-ATE Lily Top Ten 2009, ExST, ExCL, ExJU, ExWC, ExSN, ExFH, PK1, PJ1, CGC

Goodbye Seamus...

We just received a note from Kate, Seamus Ricca's mommy. Seamus passed away at 10:30am this morning. He had mast cell cancer and had undergone two surgeries, but the cancer came back and they were told last Thursday that they only had a short time left with him.

He would have been six at the end of May, but the family decided to start his birthday celebration last night; Seamus had steak and ice cream, cuddled with his mom and dad under the stars overnight, took a walk in the woods, and laid his head down in mommy's lap, with daddy rubbing his back, ate some biscuits, and passed away in their arms.

As Kate said in her note, "Seamus was a great dog and will be missed so much, but the memories of him are just wonderful."

Now, go give your dog a kiss and tell him that you love him...goodbye Seamus...we love you!

Congratulations to the teams who earned a Top Ten Award in CPE Agility in 2009!

2009 Regular/Veterans Year-End Awards
8th ~ Marjorie Otterson and Lily (BC) Gemini Dogs Student

2009 Enthusiast Year-End Awards
2nd ~ Denielle Stasa and Ivy (GSD) Gemini Dogs Instructor

2009 Specialist Year-End Awards
7th ~ Denielle Stasa and Jury (GSD) Gemini Dogs Instructor

Bailey Had a Nice Walk Today!

This is Bailey. Isn't she cute? Bailey has had a couple of Gemini Dogs dog walking visits, and very soon, she will be starting in our doggie daycare where we just know that she will make lots of new friends!

If you would like to have a dog walker visit your house, just give Michelle a call or email her at michelle@geminidogs.com and she will set up a time to stop by and visit with you and your furry friend! And if you're curious about what it's like to have a Gemini Dogs dog walker, have a peek at this note we left for Bailey's parents today!

Hmmm, they left the keys...should I?

Howdee's mom sent this photo recently, and we just had to share it. Isn't he cute?

Just One...

This is a fabulous video story that was just sent to us be Cheryl, Louie and Bella's forever mommy.

Please, please, take a moment now to watch this video. Though it is a bit of a tear-jerker, it is a very heartwarming story. It reminds me very much of how I got into this business to begin with. I found a dog who had been stranded on a highway (495) at 11pm at night in a snow storm and whose owner was seen kicking the dog out of a van, before he drove away. Thankfully, I was able to catch the very scared dog (who I named Highway) and find him a forever home; I did it in much the same way that this video mentions.

So when you are done watching the video, please kiss your dog for us and consider what one thing you can do today to help a dog in need...

Gemini Dogs will offer a 10% discount on dog training to anyone who adopts a shelter or rescue dog after watching this video...just let us know that you saw the video and decided to do just one thing for just one dog! (Please make sure that everyone in your family is in agreement about your new buddy before you make a lifelong commitment to care for him...) This is our one thing...let's see how many lives we can impact by posting this link.

Beginner Agility Class Forming

Start Your Dog in Agility Classes Now!

Is your dog ready for some fun? If you have completed basic obedience training you could join us on Tuesday, December 1st at 6:00pm with instructor Michelle DuBois for in introduction to the fabulous world of dog agility. Register now!

And Here's One More!

Who is that? Oh, it's Rugby!

Rugby's Costume

Isn't this just the cutest thing ever!?

This is Rugby, one of our regular daycare dogs, showing off his costume on Halloween.

Oh, and that's Tyler saying, "Hey, I don't know this new guy!" ...even though he plays with him every day!

Focused Nose Work ~ The Latest New Dog Sport!

Based on detection dog training, Focused Nose Work prepares pet dogs for target odors with the opportunity of competing in organized competitions. It is fast becoming the hottest new sport in the world of canine competition. Check out http://www.funnosework.com/ for details on what this sport is all about!

Two classes are now forming on Wednesday evenings. Choose from 7pm-8pm or 8pm-9pm, beginning on Wednesday, November 11th. Space is limited to 6-8 dogs per session. Cost is $180 per dog, per 6-week session. All dogs must be at least six months old, be able to walk on leash, and come when called.

Register by calling 617-775-7968. This class is hosted by Gemini Dogs, but you must register directly with the instructor, Gail McCarthy.

We Met "Bruiser" from Legally Blonde the Musical!

We had the pleasure of meeting "Bruiser" on Sunday. He is the little chihuahua that Elle Woods totes around in her little pink tote during the musical Legally Blonde. "Bruiser" and his trainer were at PetRock to promote the musical and we had the chance to meet them both and hear about the dog training and selection process for this and other Hollywood hounds...very interesting stuff that Bill speaks about in his book "Broadway Tails." The Legally Blonde musical is coming to Boston soon if you would like to see "Bruiser" in action. (By the way, his real name is Chico!)

Congratulations Puppy Stars!

Meet Sophie, one of our most recent Puppy STAR graduates! Sophie's mom writes:

"We had a wonderful time at Puppy Playschool and got a lot of great tips. This weekend she went to her first parade - got lots of socializing there, although she wasn't a big fan of the bagpipes!
Thank you for everything! We will highly recommend Gemini to our friends and family."

Got a photo of your STAR Puppy? Send it in today!

How Hot Do Cars Get?

Have you ever noticed how hot it can get inside a car on a summer day — far hotter than it is outside? That's because a car acts like a greenhouse, trapping the sun's heat. A study by the Animal Protection Institute showed that even moderately warm temperatures outside can quickly lead to deadly temperatures inside a closed car.

The study compared an outside temperature of a shaded area with the inside of an automobile in three states: Fully closed; With four windows cracked; With two windows cracked. Inside temperatures were measured with an indoor/outdoor thermometer and an oven thermometer. All temperatures use the Fahrenheit scale. The outside temperature is listed first, and then the temperature reading from inside the car:

Inside Closed Automobile
82° > 109°
87° > 115°
98° > 119°

Inside Auto with 2 Windows Cracked
80° > 95°
88° > 105°
99° > 109°

Inside Auto with 4 Windows Cracked
88° > 105°
90° > 108°
101° > 115°

Bella Walks for Baypath Humane Society

Gemini Dog "Bella" and her mommy Charlotte are walking on June 7th to benefit Baypath Humane Society in Hopkinton, the shelter from which Bella was adopted. Bella is an alumna of Gemini Dogs obedience classes, and currently enjoys Doggie Daycare and Agility classes.

If you wish to contribute or to just want to read more about her, see her story.

Doggie Daycare's Black Lab "Tucker" Is a Famous Actor!

Labrador Retriever Rescue, Inc. has a new video about their re-homing program, and the extraordinarily handsome black Lab shown in much of the video is Tucker, a 9-1/2 year old who attends our doggie daycare.



Tucker is an LRR rescue from 2003. The scenes on the owner's deck and in the backyard were shot in mid-March. For those of you who remember his paralysis (left rear leg) from the spinal stroke (FCE) last June, watching him joyfully running in the backyard with the kids should be quite special. By the way, those are the videographer's children, whose loud screams accompanied their running, and Tucker had JUST met them. Mom was so proud of how appropriately he played with them, considering he has not had much experience off leash with small children. Backyard and indoor scenes with LOTS of dogs were shot at one of LLR's foster homes.

Niko's First Dog Show

Our doggie daycare buddy, Niko, participated in his first dog show this weekend. Have a look at what a good boy he is!