Dog diseases aren’t funny — except when they are. I worry a great deal about Frankie’s diabetes but I also know that collecting pee samples in public can make for some pretty amusing situations; see The Pee Strip Chronicles, San Diego. And anyone who has made a frantic drive to the emergency room with a…
How Amtrak could become solvent (hint: pets are involved)
Doing a guest post about traveling with dogs on MyItchyTravelFeet.com, a terrific travel blog, was a great experience and not only because it brought new visitors to WillMyDogHateMe. A couple of the comments and questions got me thinking about topics I needed to explore further, or that I have explored further but never thought to…
Blaming the dog
‘Tis the season for retrospectives, and I’ve been feeling pretty sorry for myself. Many of my prime writing markets have disappeared this past year, or have stopped using freelancers. Yes, I wrote a dog book that’s been well received, and that’s exciting. So was launching this blog. But they don’t pay the bills and won’t…
We’re on the road
That’s the royal “we.” Frankie is staying at home. But I’ve done a guest post for Donna Hull, a terrific travel writer whose blog, My Itchy Travel Feet, has won all kinds of awards. It was Donna who provided me with the colorful dog clothing pictures from Asia that I posted last month. Enjoy your…
Another contest & a product endorsement
I got an email yesterday from a woman named Annie, the web director at Mambo Sprouts, a site that helps promote natural and organic manufacturers. She asked for my help in publicizing a photo contest on my blog. It’s co-sponsored by Wellness Natural Food for Pets and benefits an animal charity. I said yes, so…
And the contest winner is…
This was tough. Really tough. I was wowed by the thoroughness of many of the comments — not to mention the graciousness of all of them. Not a single person said anything mean about me or Frankie that I had to remove. In fact, you were all wonderfully encouraging about my writing (Frankie’s adorableness was…
Weekend Win-a-Book Contest: Blog 911
Life lessons are sometimes ambiguous. Yes, my failed foray into bells-and-whistles SEO/SEM technology taught me that there’s no substitute for solid writing and communication with readers. A blog is only as good as its content and its bond with a like-minded audience. But it also made me aware that it’s tough to reach that like-minded…
Holiday stress? Some music to soothe the savage breast
First things first: I don’t think dogs are savages. I often look to Frankie for wisdom, as my last post attests. But every time I’ve used the phrase “soothe the savage breast” in the past, an editor has changed “breast” to “beast”; one even accused me of having my mind in the gutter. Also, the…
WWFD: What would Frankie do?
During my failed blog revamp these last weeks, I’ve been on an emotional roller coaster, one minute frustrated with my web guru, the next hopeful he could accomplish what was promised. I alternated between the personae of six of the seven Disney dwarfs, especially Grumpy and Dopey (I exclude Sleepy because I get insomnia when…
Five Nonfiction Dog Books I Love
[originally posted November 28, 2009] After yesterday’s shameless self-promotion post for Am I Boring My Dog, I thought it only fair to talk about some of the books that influenced, inspired, or otherwise gave me great reading pleasure while I was doing my research. Full disclosure: I started putting this list together for Flashlight Worthy…