Dogs! In the News!
Dog Flu in Florida
Dog flu has been detected in Florida. The highly contagious disease struck more than 1,000 dogs in Chicago, its suburbs, and nearby states in 2015. Urban Dog reported on it here, here, and here. All told, dogs in ten states were originally affected by the virus. Now it is in the Sunshine State. So far, all of the cases are in north central Florida. At least one animal has died of the disease. There are new flu shots you should consider, you can read about them here on the Science Daily website. Below you’ll see a picture of Bodhi getting his shot last week from Dr. Dion Osborne at the Ocala Veterinary Hospital.
Please take this seriously! Canine flu is very contagious and potentially fatal. People who own dogs that spend lots of time in the company of other dogs, at dog parks, day care or boarding facilities, or events like dog shows, should be especially vigilant.
Here’s what to watch out for…
The Most Popular Dog Names in New York City
The New York City Department of Health has released its list of the most popular dog names in the Big Apple. (The department is responsible for dog licensing.) As in previous years, “Bella” is the number one name for female dogs and “Max” is the most popular moniker for male dogs. You can see what names round out the top ten list here. The Health Department broke out names by category as well. “Ginger” is the number one name for dogs named after spices, fruits, or vegetables. “Bear” is the most popular “animal name” for dogs. But what I found most interesting were the names that are most popular by breed. Here are just few…
- Pomeranians: “Harley” for males and “Foxy” for females.
- Golden Retrievers: “Bailey” for males and “Goldie” for females.
- English Bulldogs: (Unsurprisingly) “Winston” for males and “Betty” for females.
- Maltese: “Snowball” for males and “Snowball” for females. (Nope. That’s not a mistake.)
- Siberian Huskies: “Storm” for males and “Snow” for females.
- Mixed Breeds: “Frankie” for males and “Daisy” for females.
Check out the Department of Health website to see the complete lists, including more “names by breed.”
The Tail: Stand-off on Wall Street
Okay… this story gets a little complicated… if you are familiar with the Wall Street area in New York City, you’ve probably seen the statue of a giant bull in Bowling Green. It is a symbol of the strength of the American people according to sculptor Arturo Di Monica.
In March, the managers of an index fund comprised of gender-diverse companies that have a higher percentage of women among their senior leadership, placed a statue of a young girl facing off against the bull. This statue has come to be known as “Fearless Girl” and was made by Kristan Visbal. It has proved to be very popular with tourists in New York.
This ticked off Di Monica who said it subverted the meaning of his statue; he is suing the fund managers who commissioned the piece.
Then another sculptor, Alex Gardega, placed a statue of a dog peeing on Fearless Girl’s leg as a protest and in solidarity with Di Monica. Gardega felt that Fearless Girl, which is really an advertisement, diminished the meaning of the statue of the bull.
The New York Post reports:
“This is corporate nonsense,” Gardega told The Post of “Fearless Girl,” saying it was put opposite artist Arturo Di Modica’s famed bull as a publicity stunt by a Boston-based financial firm. “It has nothing to do with feminism, and it is disrespect to the artist that made the bull,” he said. “That bull had integrity.” The Upper West Side artist sniffed that he even made his dog particularly poorly just to stick it to “Fearless Girl” even more. “I decided to build this dog and make it crappy to downgrade the statue, exactly how the girl is a downgrade on the bull,” said Gardega, who has never met the other statues’ creators.
The Peeing Dog statue has since been removed.
The fate of Fearless Girl has yet to be determined.
