2022 Issues
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Past Articles
The Daily Dilemma of the Homeless & Their Pets
Story by Rebecca West Ask any number of people their views on the homeless population with pets, and you’re likely to get a mix of responses. A lot feel bad for the animal and feel it’s unfair of the owner or irresponsible to keep them under the circumstances. But...
Precious Time Dogs Steps Up For Pups in Need
HOPE Animal Shelter launches an initiative to provide a bridge for at-risk dogs to their forever homes. Story by Emily Dieckman, Photos courtesy of HOPE Animal Shelter Stacy Van Dyke is a board member at HOPE Animal Shelter who has also been volunteering with the...
Tech Sqt. Josh Reid, Military Dog Trainer at Davis-Monthan AFB, Shares His Role as MWD Kennel Master and the History That Goes with it
Story by Rebecca West, Photos by Candice Eaton When you sit back and think about it, animals have played a significant role in military campaigns for thousands of years. Horses and dogs, in particular, have marched across continents with their masters and handlers as...
And The Cover Dog Winner Is! Lord Mojo Filthwad Von Sheddington II aka “Mojo”
Story by Emily Dieckman Big ones, small ones, some the size of your head. Some in sunglasses, hats, Halloween costumes, or halfway through eating a cup of whipped cream. Competition was fierce for the 2021 Tucson Dog Holiday Cover Dog Contest, in which readers...
Wild Horse Haven Rescue: A Man And His Wild Horses Changes The Lives Of Those With PTSD
Story by Rebecca West, Photos by Duane Whitmer Many people don’t realize the extent to which horses and other animals end up needing refuge, just like house pets. These four-legged creatures suffer similar fates as the countless dogs and cats that find themselves...
A Tribute To John Gilbert: The Founder Of Tucson Rescue Now Leaves Legacy of Hope For Senior Dogs
Story by Colleen Keefe Ask anyone who knew him. John Gilbert just couldn’t sit still. So, after retiring from more than 60 years in the shoe business, when John decided to become a volunteer dog walker, no one was surprised. “I’m not a retire kind of guy. I can’t even...
Soldier’s Best Friend, Helping Veterans Live Better Lives with the Support of Furry Friend
Story by Rebecca West and Photos by Candice Eaton Soldier’s Best Friend is an incredible program here in Arizona designed to give service members improved wellbeing and quality of life through relationships with service animals. The group behind the program is...
Growing Number of Pets in Tucson with Valley Fever, but Help is on the Way!
Story by Rebecca West, Photos by Dr. Lisa Schubitz and Danae Nash Coughing, fever, weight loss, lack of appetite; worrisome symptoms that are all cause for alarm when exhibited by loved ones, including family pets. If you recognize these clinical signs of illness in...
Arizonans adopt tort-ally awesome pets through the state’s Desert Tortoise Adoption Program.
Story by Emily Dieckman, Photos courtesy of Courtney Sheldon Courtney Sheldon had always wanted a pet tortoise. When she was 9 years old, her family would help take care of a dog kennel when the owner was away. She spent her time at the pond out back, playing with the...
From the Director’s Desk: Pima Animal Care Center
Story and photos by Monica Dangler, Interim Director It’s been quite a year and it seems like we may be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel for COVID-19! Fingers crossed. However, at PACC and shelters across the country we are just beginning to see the long-term...
Pet Partners, Improving Human Health
Story by Rebecca West and Photos courtesy of Pet Partners of Southern Arizona Gentle eyes, a loving gaze, and a soft nudge. Antics that bring laughter and uplift spirits. Companionship and loyalty like no other. Animals bring joy and comfort to hundreds of millions of...
Kids and Animals: Rowan and Archer’s Animal Kingdom
Story by Bella Wexler, Photos Courtesy of Melody Albright It’s hard to find a kid who doesn’t care deeply about their pets. In the Hawkins’ house, Archer and Rowan prove that their love for animals isn’t even limited by how many they can count. When asked how many...
The Leader of the Pack Speaks
Dearest readers, As we head into summer, I am so happy to see things opening up in our world with most of us finding a new normal in our daily lives. It has been a very rough year and a half for everyone, and it feels good to see things moving in a forward motion...
Pet Health: Aquamation – An Environmentally Friendly Alternative to Flame Cremation or Burial
Story and photos by Dr. Kellie Barrett, Kindred Spirits Pet Services Unfortunately, all pets eventually pass away and families are faced with the decision of what to do with their beloved companion’s body. Until recently, pet owners have been limited to burying their...
Training: Summer Fun For Your Dog! How to Burn Energy On Hot Day
Story and photos by Jeremy Brown, The Complete Canine One challenge we all experience during the summer is how to burn enough energy as the temperature rises. Walks are spread out further between and many canines become destructive as they’re bored and have pent up...
Flying High!
Story and photos by Nancy Schuessler Several times a year, Al Johnson boards his blue and white Cessna airplane and flies from Marana Regional Airport to Deming, New Mexico and back. His cargo? A homeless dog. His mission? To help it find a family. “It starts with a...
Southern Arizona Animal Food Bank: A Lifeline During Hard Times
Story by Bonnie Craig Photos Courtesy of Donna DeConcini As we are all aware, the Covid-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on lives worldwide. In addition to direct health repercussions, people are facing financial struggles on an astronomical...
WOOFstock Cover Dog Contest Winners 2021
Story by Rebecca West Photos courtesy of dog parents Another year has passed and another WOOFstock cover dog photo contest has taken place. This year, our three winners couldn’t look any less alike, but together they share some amazingly...
Urgent Plea from Desert Labrador Retriever Rescue
Story by Judy Warnock Photos by Mary Ducharme We are looking for a very special home for our boy Dawson! Dawson is like a flower bud. He will blossom in due time, but you cannot force it. You have to have patience, and when it happens, you...
The Benefits of Dogs for kids
The bond between canines and humans is well established. Dogs are our best buds, faithful companions, and loyal protectors. They bring us joy, make us laugh, and ease our sorrows. They’re even responsible for the increased longevity of us upright bipeds and recognized...
Finding Gobi: The Story of How a Runner and a Stray Dog Brought the World Together
Story by Bella Wexler - Photos Courtesy of Finding Gobi The sand dunes Dion tread in Northern China’s Gobi Desert were barely wide enough to accommodate his own two feet, let alone the four paws that trailed behind him. It didn’t help that the scruffy little dog to...
Welcome, Zelda!
Story and photos by Emily Dieckman After years of writing for the Tucson Dog, staff writer gets dog of her own, and finds joy and connection during the pandemic. My boyfriend and I have been talking about getting a dog since before we moved in together 3.5 years ago....
Dylan Capshaw: A Journey to Improve the Animal/Human Condition
Story by Rebecca West Photos by Jason McCoy For much of the U.S., watching an impending storm raging through the South or barreling up the Eastern Seaboard is a dissociative experience. There’s a certain amount of head-shaking as to why people...
Holiday Cover Dog Contest Winners
Story by Rebeca West Here they are, the fabulous winners of our 2nd Annual Holiday Cover Dog Contest! This year’s participation level was phenomenal, with 50 contestants entered, and we couldn’t have been more excited with the amazing turnout and fantastic images...
Online Learning’s Newest Additions
Story by Bella Wexler Any student or teacher who started classes again this Fall would agree, school looks quite different than it has in the past. With so many districts using some form of online learning, we’ve gotten used to our bedrooms becoming our classrooms....
Urgent: Norville Needs a Home A Plea from Desert Labador Retriever Rescue
Hello, friends, We need a very special home for our boy Norville—he has been through so much and just wants to live his life as a loved and cherished member of a family. We are looking for an adults-only home where Norville will be the ONLY pet (for a unique...
Cody’s Friends In Need of Holiday Donations
Story by Rebecca West Photos by Amber Allen A constant convoy of food banks, rescue groups, and people in need — not to mention burning through as many as 8,000 1-gallon baggies for packaging pet food each month — is pretty much the norm for Cody’s Friends these days....
How Our Community Fosters Love
Story by Bella Wexler Photos by Candice Eaton It’s not easy to open your home to a stranger, especially during a global pandemic. But these days, many are finding it harder to resist—at least when those strangers walk in on four legs with wagging tails and soulful,...
True or False, Is Animal Fostering for You?
Story by Rebecca West Photos by Candice Eaton Have you considered animal fostering but you’re not quite sure if it’s suitable for your particular circumstances? There are a lot of inaccuracies and misconceptions when it comes to the subject, so we’ve put together a...
Fostering: Volunteers Saving Lives
Story by Brian Pettepiece Photos by Stacy Vandyke It’s an unfortunate reality that there are a lot of homeless dogs out there. But it doesn’t have to be that way. With the work of local volunteers, dogs in need of homes all around Tucson are getting the break they...
Pima Animal Care Center: Changing the Face of Animal Shelters
Story by Rebecca WestPhotos by Candice Eaton What does it take to reinvent the wheel? The wheel, of course, in this case, is the standard model for animal shelters. Set back in 1869, the very first official animal shelter in the country was formed by the Women’s SPCA...
Maggie and Dahlia: Training Together
Story by Bella Wexler Photos courtesy of Maggie Aladdin is a Disney story beloved by many, including local high school student Maggie Behzadi. Knowing that Dahlia is the name of Jasmine’s loyal friend and servant in the tale, finding a dog at Pima Animal Care Center...
From ‘Scaredy Cat’ to Queen of the House
An FIV-positive cat makes a transformation and finds her forever home after 1,405 days in the shelter. Story by Emily Dieckman Photos Courtesy of The Hermitage No-Kill Cat Shelter Amid the coronavirus pandemic of the last few months, many people have expressed feeling...
Third Grade Students for Four Legged Friends
Story by Bella Wexler, Photos by Julie Farbarik At Catalina Foothills School District’s Canyon View Elementary, the love for animals runs deep. This is proven by the school’s third grade students both within and beyond the classroom. On March 10, they filed into their...
Pilots to the Rescue: When Pets Fly
Story by Bella Wexler, Photos by “The Dogist” None have the privilege of choosing the circumstances into which they are born. Oftentimes, animals bear the brunt end of this reality, especially when they are born with severe medical conditions or are being housed in an...
Author Garth Stein Shares Wisdom at the HSSA 2019 Annual Impact Report Lunch
Story by Bonnie Craig, Photos by Candice Eaton “Gestures are all that I have; sometimes they must be grand in nature.” So begins the poignant, emotional roller coaster that is The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein. These words come from the narrator of the...
