KELLEY L. CARTER: Have fun even without Tigers 

Wow. Who would have thought the Tigers would fare so well this year? With the possibility of a World Series appearance looming, and home games on the schedule for today, Saturday and Sunday, downtown is certain to be buzzing with plenty of Tigers-friendly activities.

Seduced by the Aga Khan and the IRA 
For many years, Fiona MacCarthy was reluctant to let on that she had been among the last debs to curtsey to the Queen in 1958, the year the official season finally gasped its last breath and even nice gels stopped wearing hats and started thinking about sex and miniskirts instead.

Animal bites on rise in Fort Wayne 
FORT WAYNE- While August traditionally is the month when Animal Care & Control receives the greatest number of reported animal bite cases, the shelter is already alarmed by a 51 percent increase in animal bites reported between January and June 2006 compared with the first six months of 2005. Bites

Southwest Valley briefs 
Southwest valley briefs

How Sociable Is Your Beagle Puppy?

Do you want to find out how sociable and outgoing your Beagle puppy is? Then try this little experiment:
Put a few toys down in the room. Quickly walk away from your puppy and then observe his reaction:
*A favorable response would be the Beagle puppy running happily after you, regardless of what else might be occurring. This shows that the puppy highly desires the company of people, a trait that is advantageous. This puppy should be easy to train and should learn to focus well on you instead of distractions.
*An unfavorable response would have the puppy ignoring you and investigating something else, perhaps a toy on the floor or a sound coming from another room. This puppy may not value interaction with humans over his own desire to investigate his surroundings.
He may not be as easy to train as the Beagle puppy that values human interaction above all else. A puppy that ignores you in this way may have an unfocused or independent mindset that could be a prelude to dominant behavior.

Helping Your Blind Beagle Around The House

beagles can adjust to blindness and poor eyesight with very little difficulty. Their senses of hearing and smell begin to function as directional indicators, even though they may occasionally bump into table and chair legs or stumble over objects.
The following steps may help a blind pet find his way about the house and yard more easily.
1. Mark upright obstacles, such as chair legs and door jambs, with a light-scented cologne, spray or other scented substance. This helps your Beagle identify perpendicular objects.
2. Use a different scent on the floor about 6 inches from steps or similar obstacles. Use a light scent to avoid the buildup of odors around the house, which has been the only owner complaint about this method.
3. Wear a small bell or a bracelet that jingles. Visitors can also be equipped with such jewelry. This allows the dog to follow his owner’s movements more easily.
Sightless beagles adjust well to the problem, with little trouble to the owners. The suggestions above have been helpful in cases where the owner feels the need to do something to make the adjustment a little less difficult for your beagle dog.
Older blind beagle dogs may be handicapped, but they should be treated, as far as possible, as if they were normal. This means using the earned-petting routine regularly and performing obedience routines learned before the onset of blindness.

Pets, Pets, Pets 

Baseball isn’t for dogs. Your dog doesn’t even know about this year’s possibility of a Subway Series; but sure as shootin’, Fido will stay by you to root contunues…

When Joseph Cornish moved to downtown Los Angeles in 2000, he had just endured the breakup of a personal relationship and was searching for “something different, in all kinds of ways.” Downsizing from a home in Los Angeles’ Mount Washington area to a… contunues…

SAUK VILLAGE | Lansing residents Bill and Stacey Hastings said they didn’t think their lovable beagle Kasey would make it to age 20. “She’s been on thyroid medicine for the last eight years and she’s almost completely blind,” Stacey said. “She also has a problem with her hearing.” contunues…

Doctor Alfred Sant, as I had occasion to remark last week, has gone into election mode, even though this event is many, many months away and our sails are now set fair for a season or two of feeding fodder to the terminally gullible. contunues…

HUNTERS’ NUMBERS DOWN IN EAST TEXAS, BUT SQUIRREL NUMBERS UP 

There was a time in East Texas when squirrel hunting was a much bigger activity than deer.
Source: www.tylerpaper.com

Getting Your Beagle Puppy To Fetch AND Track

These are just two things you can do to build rapport between you and your Beagle puppy and at the same time teach him to respond positively to learning so that his advanced training will be easy.
Tracking: puppy tracking is a wonderful way to get you and your puppy out for a walk. Tracking is natural for a dog and is relatively easy to teach, at least for short distances.
1. Find a park or a nice open area. The initial site does not need to be very big. Tie your puppy to something and let him watch you “lay a track” by placing tidbits on the ground one foot apart in a straight line for ten feet. Also let him watch you put his favorite toy at the end of the track.
2. Walk back through the same track to the Beagle puppy. Take him to the first piece of food, point to it and say “Track.” Encourage him to put his head down and keep it down by pointing to the next piece of food. He will quickly start smelling the food from piece to piece! When he reaches the toy, praise him and play with the puppy and the toy. Repeat this exercise three times.
3. If you practice two or three times a week on short tracks, he will become reliable pretty quickly. As his nose keeps to the ground, spread the treats a little farther apart each time you “track.” When he can go fifty yards in one direction, lay another track at a 45-degree angle to the right or left. You should also have someone else start laying the tracks so that the puppy will learn to track different people. Do not try to hurry things along by going too far too fast or by making too sharp turns.
Fetching: puppy fetching is important and helpful. It both uses energy and teaches the Beagle puppy to return to you. Again, this exercise will help as a basis for more advanced training later on.
1. Find a toy that your puppy really likes. Sometimes this can be difficult if your puppy is the type who does not like to play (and there are those types, it’s up to you to teach them to play). A little agility work can loosen up a reluctant puppy, and when they are all wound up they are more apt to fetch. Try using a soft sock or small stuffed toy.
2. Put your Beagle on a twenty-foot line. Place the toy in front of your puppy and back up, waving the toy gently on the floor as you move back. When the puppy first grasps the toy, tell him “Good boy!” and very gently tug it for just a second to make him hold it (no tug of war). Let go and praise him as he carries it. If he drops it, repeat the process.
3. After a few successes, throw the toy a few feet from the Beagle puppy and tell him “Fetch.” When he gets it, praise verbally and let him carry it for a few seconds. Gently pull him to you (do not make him drop the toy by tugging too hard). When he reaches you, offer him a piece of treat for the toy. When he drops the toy, give him the treat. Repeat until he understands what you want. You will both greatly benefit from this game!