Then, Jacqueline Mercier Berman joined Lori to discuss other Californa Legislation concerning pet groomers. Sadly, some animals do get injured while at the groomer, and this legislation aims to make thing safer for the pets, while not being an unreasonable burden on the groomers. State Senator Juan Vargas is sponsoring this bill. His site is here.

And the News, with Peter!

Listen to the show here.

Five books came in for review this week.  We cannot read them all but will try to choose one or two that would be best for the radio show.

Lipstick and the Leash: Dog Training a Woman’s Way, by Camilla Gray-Nelson. The press release reads, “Lipstick and the Leash: Dog Training a Woman’s Way is an instruction guide for women who need help controlling their dogs. No wonder – since 3 out of 4 households leave dog care to a woman!” Author Camilla Gray-Nelson, a.k.a. the Dog Talk Diva, explains that it’s not about “Sit” when it comes to controlling a canine.” “Women will find Lipstick and the Leash insightful and helpful for improving their dogs’ behavior and as an added bonus, they will take away valuable lessons for becoming more effective in other areas of their life as well.” This book contains many photos depicting facial expressions of dogs, optimal positioning from which to give commands and other useful tips.

Soldier Dogs: The Untold Story of America’s Canine Heroes, by Maria Goodavage looks very interesting to us. “Heartwarming and informative, this book is the perfect read for dog lovers, military enthusiasts, and anyone wondering how the dogs who share their homes and lives could possibly be related to these helicopter-jumping, explosives-seeking canine heroes.” Lots of nice color plates in this one.

Katie: Up and Down the Hall. The True story of How One Dog Turned Five Neighbors into a Family, by Glenn Palskin, also looks good to us. I have read a few pages so far and it the story breezes along easily. The release states, “In KATIE, Plaskin tells the moving story of what happened over a period of sixteen years up and down the long hallway, his astutely-intelligent dog, Katie, leading him to discovering an entirely new “family” in his new York City apartment building.” Frankly, usually I am not drawn to this type of book, but for some reason I find it appealing so far. And that has nothing to do with the inexplicably long list of celebrity endorsements of the book (Joan Rivers, Calvin Klein, Wayne Dyer, Mary Tyler Moore, Mariah Carey, and many more).

Dale Ryan’s, “Sleeping with the Beast” is a very different sort of book. It “…is a rather intimate book about dogs and their human partners. Furthermore, the book touches an legal, moral and philosophical issues that confront our diversified families.” It’s a “…close up view of what it’s like to live with dogs – from cooking to decorating to gardening to literally sleeping with the beast.” The photos are in color and are gorgeous. It is a very honest and beautiful book.

Your Cat: The Owner’s manual, By Dr. Marty Becker Contains a wealth of information to improve the health of your cats. Becker, Veterinary contributor to Good Morning America and the Dr. Oz show, provides “Hundreds of Secrets, Surprises, and Solution for Raising a Happy, Healthy Cat.” We will have to read this carefully to see if we agree with that claim,  it probably depends on how little one knows about cats to begin with. We’ll let you know if this adds something new to the books on cats already available, but paging through it , we are optimistic that it will.

Peter H. Spiegel, M.D.

Visit their exhaustive website here:  SAEN

In the second half of the show, Peter and Lori covered many news items from around the world. Listen here.

The special guests were Dr. Richard Schwartz, and Frank R. Hoffman.

Richard Schwartz is President of Jewish Vegetarians of North America and argued that a switch to vegetarianism is a religious imperative. Visit Jewish Vegetarians of North America here and link to one of Richard’s articles, Judaism and Animal Rights, is here.

Hoffman is half of the Mary T. and Frank R. Hoffman Family Foundation, which operates the massive all-creatures.org websites. Frank said we “…have totally lost the Peace on Earth” and “…we say the words but we don’t do it.”  A link to one of the many articles at all-creatures is here, titled The Church’s Blind Spot, by Hugh MacDonald. The show link is here.

Dr. Richard Schwartz

Mary and Frank Hoffman

Then, US Representative Tom Marino from Pennsylvania joined Lori and discussed the Animal Fighting Spectator Prohibition Act of which he is co-sponsor. When animals fighting operations are raided, it is often hard to identify the organizers, who blend into the crowd. This legislation imposes stiff penalties on any attendees of organized animals fights as well as indviduals who bring minors to the events. Learn more about Tom here and details about the legislation maybe found here. Contact your congress member and ask him or her to support HR 2492.

And, the News with Peter!

Listen to the show here.

US Rep Tom Marino

Read about the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals here.

Here is Amy Paulin’s update on the bill.

And the Animal Law Coalition is here.

Then, Dr. John Pippin from PCRM described the Great Ape Protection and Cost Saving Act. Read more here.

And the News with Peter! The show is here.

Then Lori spoke with Deputuy Carlos Mendoza from Jurupa Valley, California. Mendoza and his law enforcement colleagues recently conducted a bust of a cockfighting ring. Yes, people are still fighting roosters to the death. Associated activities include gambling, firearms and drugs. Learn how it went down and what to look out for. And, the news with Peter.

Listen to the show here!

Cockfight

Macaques at Born Free USA Primate Sanctuary

Macaques