Running of the Bull #Dogs

Posted by Russ Ryan in Celebrity Dogs, Dog Cartoons, Dog Movies, Dog TV Shows Commercials, Dog Videos and tagged with , , ,

GEICO has long been known for its charming (though some might say annoying) talking lizard spokesanimal — but the insurance behemoth has sprinted ahead of the pack with this new clever Pamplona spoof! (YouTube)

Does Your Dog Have More Followers Than You Do?

Posted by Russ Ryan in Celebrity Dogs, Dog Humor, Dog News Stories, Dog TV Shows Commercials, Dog Videos and tagged with , , ,

Sometimes a dog isn’t just a dog — as we’ve seen these past few years with the explosion of commercials using celebrity dog spokesmodels discovered on Instagram and Twitter. These well-paid (and surely well-fed) “pet influencers” get book deals, endorsement deals, and TV shows — but I’m still not convinced how well they take direction — as this recent article in (The New York Times) explains.

The Book of #Dogs in Art

Posted by Russ Ryan in Celebrity Dogs, Dog Art Dog Pictures, Dog Art Photo Books, Dog Books, Dog Non-Fiction and tagged with , , , ,

I was at the SFMoMA last week, and this simple, elegant little pooch tomé caught my eye — The Book of Dog.

Yeah, okay, it might appear a bit artsy-fartsy on the outside — but you can’t judge a dog book by its cover, right? This elegant catalog was chock full of tasteful portraits and chewy tidbits for any high-or-low-falutin’ dog lover!

The Original #Dogs Whisperer #DogBooks

Posted by Russ Ryan in Dog Books, Dog How-To Books, Dog Memoir, Dog Non-Fiction and tagged with , , , ,

Before Cesar Millan and the explosion of TV dog trainers, there was Dr. Patricia McConnell, a world-renowned animal behaviorist and author, who has published a new dog book, The Education of Will: A Mutual Memoir of A Woman and Her Dog.

McConnell takes her years of animal expertise to come to terms with her own troubled past while treating a fearful, aggressive Border Collie named Will. Also, be sure to check out her past best-sellers, For Love of A Dog and The Other End of the Leash.

#Dogs Purpose or Protest?

Posted by Russ Ryan in Celebrity Dogs, Dog Movies, Dog News Stories, Dog Rescue Non-Profit and tagged with , , , , , , ,

a_dogs_purpose-movie-filmFirst off, let me just say that I loved the book, A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron, and was really looking forward to seeing the movie…

And then the horrific TMZ video came out, documenting potential abuse by the dog trainers on the set of the film. The writers, producers, and actors involved in the production — along with millions of moviegoers — were all justifiably horrified by what they saw on the disturbing clip.

However, later, after Cameron and the studio execs viewed ALL of the footage that took place during that day of filming, it was revealed that the video clip had been edited out of context to maximize the impact of the traumatic footage.

Unfortunately, by that point, the cat pooch was out of the bag, so to speak.

Gavin Polone, the big dog lover/producer on the film, wrote a compelling Hollywood Reporter column breaking down the whole incident, which explains the nasty dog fight brewing between PETA and Hollywood. (I’m assuming that part of PETA’s position has to do with the sad fact that past dog movies like 101 Dalmatians and Beverly Hills Chihuahua have inspired numerous “bad fad” pet adoptions — which later resulted in countless Dalmatians and Chihuahuas being returned back to rescue shelters once the new owners got “bored” with their new puppies and couldn’t handle all the responsibilities that it takes in caring for an animal.)

Tragically, no matter where you stand on this issue, there are no winners, as all dog movie fans and dog rescue advocates alike have been harmed during the making of this film.