Horror in Real Life

Japan is over all a civilized country. However, they have a huge problem with humans abandoning their dogs. There are so many abandoned dogs, and too few humans willing to take care of these dogs, that the authorities have been forced to horrible action. They destroy the unwanted dogs who do not get new humans. This is done by loading the dogs into a mobile gas chamber, driving the dogs to a crematorium. The poor dogs do not know the horrible end that awaits them.

If you follow the link, you can watch a BBC news report about this. I have to warn you, it is horrible! In my mind, this is worse than any horror movie I have ever seen. It is even more terrifying, when you consider that it is true. I wish Japanese in general would take better care of their dogs. News reports like this make me afraid for the very country where Shiba Inus come from.

By the end of the report, though, there is a tiny hope for the future, as it seems like more and more of young Japanese are willing to take care of abandoned dogs. Let us hope for this!

End of the Month

I am proud of Paula. She has now been working full time as a nurse for two full months, a job that takes great skill and requires great responsibility. She also keeps making sure the whole family has a good life and that all the bills get paid. Sure, Daniel earns a substantial part of the family's income, but Paula is the one who actually pays the bills. It is now the end of the month, and the bills have been paid for this month. I am glad I do not have to pay bills, it seems like a dull thing to do, and Paula is never quite happy when she is done with it. Nevertheless, she always make sure the bills get paid. From what I know, the overwhelming majority of humans make sure their bills get paid every month, but I am still proud of Paula who does this in our family. She would be a great human for any dog to have.

Volvo Cars, Now Chinese

A company from the Peoples Republic of China has purchased the Swedish car manufacturer Volvo Cars. P.R. China is a dictatorship. They do not care about human rights. Rumour also has it they care very little about dogs. I believe it is too bad a Chinese company has bought Volvo Cars. If I would ever buy a car, I would not buy a car owned by a company from a dictatorship, thus, Volvo would now be out of the question.

Daylight Savings Time

Sweden shifted from standard Central European Time to daylight savings time today. I do not care much, as a dog, I let my humans see to it that things are done on time and follow their ideas on when to get up in the morning. I do think it is rather weird, though, to be forced to switch the time of all the watches. It is a way of deceiving people, instead of just asking them to get up an hour earlier during half the year. Well, maybe I just do not understand, since I do not care much about the exact time.

Salmon

Paula and Daniel were grocery shopping this afternoon, and found cheap salmon file that they bought. They had some for themselves, and then they gave a lot to us dogs. We did not have to eat any of our ordinary food, but had salmon, potatoes, and hollandaise sauce instead. While our ordinary food tastes good, it gets a little dull eating the very same thing day by day. The food we got today was a different thing altogether. It was also the first time that my pups tasted salmon. This food was great, and out of the ordinary. Sometimes, it does not take more than this to make a day terrific.

Birthday

My pups turn five weeks today. They are discovering the world around them and look like beautiful, but small, Shiba Inus. Well, since they are my pups and the pups of the father I chose for them, it would be rather strange if they would be anything but that.

We have made plans for the first dog shows for both pups, where they can go in puppy class. They are not yet entered into any shows, but entering them is not necessary yet. I will not take anythingfor granted, but if we are very lucky, one of them may join me in the BIS-puppy club. They do have parents who have gone far in the show rings, so they would have the talent necessary. I hope they will like dog shows as much as I do.

Easter is Coming

It is soon Easter, just a week away now. I like this holiday, because it is the holiday when the most candy is consumed. Do I have to say more? I am looking forward to it.

Of course, candy is not the original reason to celebrate Easter. It is celebrated for the death and resurection of Christ. This may well be commemorated with a lot of candy.

Adorable

Have you ever seen pups discovering the world and playing with each other? I do that constantly these days. My pups are adorable. I wish everyone could experience the kind of joy that I feel when I see my pups happy.

Minced Meat

My pups have started to eat real food. They get minced meat, which is tasty and healthy for them. As is usually the case with pups of their age, they only eat a little at a time. I help them out, so they can finish their meals. This also teaches them that if they do not finish their meals themselves, somebody else will, which is a valuable lesson for them. It almost goes without saying that I also like the minced meat. What I eat will get to them, nevertheless, since they still get milk from me. It is a win-win situation.

Visited by Wolves

A village in the northern, sparely populated parts of Sweden, Lillhärdal in the province Härjedalen, is visited by wolves. The wolves have killed deer right in the middle of the village. It is one female, and she has met a male and is in heat, so there may be pups in the near future.

Some of the inhabitants are scared, one of them even asked the authorities if he could kill the wolves. The authorities declined. This is good. I can understand the anxiety of the villagers, but I am also concerned about the well being of the wolves. I wish there would be an easy way to make the wolves move further away from the village. This would be safer for the wolves and the humans in the village would also feel much better. It is too bad I have no easy solution to offer.

Back from the Show

Paula, Mum, and April came back home from the show this afternoon. My daughter Meja had also been there, and she was the most successful of all the Shiba Inus connected with our kennel, becoming third best female. Mum was BOS veteran and April was fourth best in champion class. It is always nice to hear about Meja's success, it makes me feel proud to be her mother. I guess I did something right when raising her, giving her the basic knowledge of how to act as a fine dog that is the basis for every dog show star. Hopefully, the pups of my current litter can be equally successful.

Puppy Visitors

We had visitors here today, friends from the neighbourhood where we used to live when I was a pup myself. I still count their dog, the Bernese Mountain Dog called Amadeus, a friend of mine. If everything goes to plan, they will be my son Nemo's new family. Nemo liked them when they cuddled with him. This is good. I am sure Nemo will get a great life with his new family.

Spring Show

Paula took April and Mum to a dog show tomorrow. I did not get to go, since I have my pups to attend to. While I love my pups and live for them, I still feel a little sad that I did not get to go too. Dog shows are so fun to be at. Well, we have talked about going to shows later in the year, when my youngest pups will compete in puppy class and I can compete in champion class. This is something to look forward to.

Spring

Spring is near. We have had temperatures well above the freezing point today. There is still a lot of snow, but this is not strange considering how much snow we have had this winter. With higher temperatures for a longer time, all of the snow will eventually disappear. I look forward to spring. It is good if the weather is warm when my pups start to go out. It will not take long now before they do.

Great Result

Meja, Aangenaam Gently As She Goes, was BIS 2 Junior at a match show in Laholm!
We are very happy and proud over Meja! Special congratulations to Mejas owners, Karin & Staffan!

I am certain Meja will be even more successful in the future. She will certainly get great results in the years to come.

Names

The pups of my most recent litter have been registered with the Swedish Kennel Club under their respective official names. The names are:

The male, Nemo: Aangenaam Eclipse Class Cruiser
The female, Polly: Aangenaam Full Moon Eclipse

This is the E litter from our breeding, and since both Mum and I have the name Eclips in our official names, we decided to have an E theme based on the word eclipse. Nemo is named for a Royal Navy class of war ships, which suits the marine inspired name that we call him. Polly is named for the last part of the Twilight trilogy, novels and films that especially Paula is fond of. These are good names.

You might wonder why we spell eclipse with an e at the end. This is because that is actually the correct spelling of the word in English, but when Mum got her official name Taichung Total Eclips of the HRT, the final e had to be cropped off because her name would have been too long otherwise. I inherited the spelling from Mum, but we felt it was time to spell the name in a more proper fashion now.

Formula 1

The Formula 1 season of 2010 started today with the Grand Prix of Bahrain. Paula and Daniel have purchased the TV channel Viasat Motor to enable us to see all the grands prix. The first race was a double victory for Ferrari, winner was the two time world champion Fernando Alonso (2005, 2006). My guess is that Alonso will be world champion again this year.

We Do Have Water

In a part of our home city called Solhaga, the community water pipes are out of service. This is one of those moments when I am glad we have water from our private well. However, if you will ever be out of water, the best time is a snow rich winter like this. The inhabitants of Solhaga has the posibility to fill pots with snow and then melt and boil it on the stove. If this would have happened on a dry summers day, that would not have been an option. Still, it is of course more convenient to have water flowing from the tap.

Play Time

My pups have started to play with each other. A little carefully to start with, just a cute form of wrestling, but still. It is very cute to look at. It will not be long until they start to be all over the room. Then they will discover the world outdoors. It will be more play when they do, and more to look after. So far, they are just here with me in the litter box, though.

Morning Walk

This morning I joined Daniel and the other dogs for the regular morning walk. It was my first morning walk since before I got my present litter of pups. I felt like I needed it, a girl has to stretch out her legs once in a while. It was fun to get back into the old habits, if only for a while. When we got back home, I went in to my dear pups again. They were still asleep and I do not think they even realized that I was gone for half an hour. They are so cute. The rest of the day was an ordinary pup maintenance day.

Wolves Hit by Railcar

Four wolves have been hit by a railcar in Dalecarlia in central Sweden. Two of them were killed, while two are probably hurt and sought after by hunters. This is a great tragedy. Wolves are already an endangered species in Sweden, which has, nevertheless, been decimated by legally authorised hunting this year. We do not need the unnecessary death of more wolves.

If anything good can come out of this killing of wolves, I hope it will be to set the recent complains against train companies into perspective. People in Sweden have complained about the train companies and railway government authorities all winter, because there have been so many late trains. The death of two wolves and injuries for other wolves are a much greater tragedy than that.

Early Night

Sometimes, we stay up until rather late. Other evenings, we go to sleep early. Paula does not feel very well this evening, so we accompany her to the land of nocturnal dreams early. Good night, everybody!

International Women's Day

Today is the International Women's day. This is the day that favours women as the sex among humans who have, throughout history, been more disadvantaged in society as compared to men. Whereas men and women are rather equal these days, there are still many who believe they are not equal enough and that the women's day is needed.

There is no need for an equivalent day for dogs. Among dogs, it is self evident that the oldest female is the ruler of the pack. Nevertheless, it would be fun to instate an international day like this, especially if you consider the metaphorical meaning - besides the litteral meaning - that the name of such a day would have: the International Bitches' Day.

No Animal Welfare Lawyers

In Switzerland, the people voted against a proposal to install a nationwide force of lawyers, whose job it would have been to protect the interests of animals in courts of law. I am not quite sure what to think about the plan or the vote not to adopt it. On one side, it would certainly be positive for neglected and mistreated dogs in the country. On the other side, Switzerland already have high standards on their animal protection laws while these proposed lawyers would have meant a heavy cost for the tax payers.

The main concern that I had, though, when I heard of the idea, was that these proposed animal lawyers would work for the protection of many more species than dogs. I do not care much for livestock and other such animals, that are meant, eventually, to be eaten. It is for the best if livestock is treated in a good way, because it means the meat becomes better. However, I cannot extend my compasion to livestock in the same way that I do for other dogs or for humans. Perhaps it is for the best that this proposal was turned down, so that the animal rights groups of Switzerland can come back with a less expensive plan that cares for man's best friend and not much more.

Visitor

Paula's sister Mia came to visit me and my pups. Both pups were comfortable in the hands of Mia. I know Mia since I was about the same age myself, and I trust her completely to be careful and gentle with my pups. It was a nice visit and a nice break in the routines when caring for pups. As the pups grow older, we will be able to welcome more visitors.

Outrageous Behaviour

Some boys have bullied Her Imperial Highness Princess Aiko of Japan in school. It has gone so far that the princess has been home for most of this week. This is outrageous! How can anyone get away with doing that to an Imperial Highness of Japan? What is more, how can anyone get away with doing that to someone who has such a nice dog, as can be seen on a picture in the article that I have linked to.

Shorter Days

It is spring, and the Sun is above the horizon longer and longer each day. On the other hand, Earth's rotation has increased slightly by the recent earthquake in Chile, making each day a little shorter. While the annual shift in daylight is noticeable, the change due to the earthquake is not. According to NASA, the shift was only about a microsecond. This is a length of time that I cannot imagine, it is so short. Nevertheless, it is a fun little fact to know of.

Wales

The Swedish national football team is playing a friendly game against Wales tonight. I am not that interested. Friendly games are not very important, and Wales does not have such a good team that it is an exciting game of itself. I would bet that Sweden wins. I care about my pups instead of watching the game.

TV Shows and Caring for Pups

My pups are what is most important for me, especially when they are so small and helpless as now. There are occasions, however, where I have a wish to be somewhere else. This evening, Paula, Daniel, and the other dogs were watching a TV show on K-9 cops, that is dogs in police service. This is interesting and I would have wanted to see it. I stayed with my pups, however, because they are more important. I know what priorities I have in life.

Snow Storm

It is March, a month which can be considered a spring month, if you divide the year into four equally long seasons where December, January, and February is winter. Nevertheless, the south of Sweden has been plagued with temperatures below the freezing point, snowfalls, and cold winds. There is so much snow that when we walk along the paths that Daniel has made through the snow outdoors, we cannot see anything to the sides. The snow is simply lying to high for Shiba Inus. Well, I guess spring is bound to come, eventually. The days are getting longer.