My idea of a pure, indulgent pleasure is to have a pedicure. For 40 minutes, I can close my eyes and have someone else make my abused feet look presentable again. I happily pay for this privilege. If I could afford it, I would do it weekly. As a kid, I would convince my Weimaraner Misty to sit patiently while I did her nails, usually with a holiday theme. This breed of dog has lovely clear nails that made applying nail polish especially rewarding to an 8-year-old budding aest

Five year old Beagle Carlos hates the dog next door. He can’t see Cockapoo Sheldon. An 8 foot stockade fence separates the two dogs. It doesn’t matter, though. The first thing Carlos does when he is let outside to do his business is to race the fence and skim the base of it with his nose, hunting for Sheldon. Then, let the barking begin. How the Carlos/Sheldon feud began is a mystery. Carlos’ owners moved into the neighborhood first. When Sheldon’s family arrived, it appeared

It’s the white elephant in the room whenever there is a Mastiff, St. Bernard or Bloodhound present. Owners of these breeds – and other loose-lipped dogs – typically carry a rag or handkerchief tucked into a pocket or purse for on-site damage control. The walls of their homes are coated with scrubbable paint. Their furniture is upholstered in forgiving fabrics. Their clothes are machine washable. I’m talking, of course, about Drool. There are two kinds of drool. The drop or t

I always ask my clients to let their dog greet me at the front door they way they would with any other guest. I like to see how a dog reacts to the arrival of a stranger on his home turf; it tells me a lot about the dog’s temperament and standing in the house. If I could describe the greetings I have received over the years in a poem, here then is an ode to the exuberance of dogs at the door: How do I greet thee? Let me count the ways. I greet thee by body-checking you at ful