April 8 2021
Dogs Can Be Heroes Too
I often tell you about human superheroes, but us dogs can be heroes too!
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) has a team of 29 dogs and their humans specially trained to undertake search and rescue operations after natural disasters. 11 of the pairs already have international certification for their specialised life saving talents. Due to the Covid pandemic, they have not been able to train for a while, but they have returned to training and aim to become the largest certified search and rescue dog unit in the country. They are currently celebrating their 35th anniversary.
They became famous for the heroic work they did after the 2017 earthquake in Mexico City, but they have been helping during natural disasters around the world. In 2011 two of the teams went to Japan following the huge earthquake and tsunami there.
If you want to read more about this incredible team of superhero dogs and their humans, check out this article .
April 8 2021
Stray Dogs in Progreso
First, let me tell you this humans. Stray dogs are a people problem. Us dogs would much rather have loving homes, but no, you humans get bored with us and abandon us. Then we hang out with our friends, have babies, and then you all complain about us.
Stop it humans!
The fisher folk of Progreso are getting worried about the number of stray dogs in the area. The dogs are not aggressive but they are still an issue affecting the day to day work of the fishers.
I hope that an education programme will be started and that they start spaying and neutering the dogs that are already on the streets. The only long term solution is to prevent the problem by teaching people about responsible dog ownership, helping to keep the dogs in their homes with subsidised veterinary care, and by sterilising dogs so that the population does not continue to grow.
Let me know what you think can be done to solve this problem because Yucatan can never be truly pet friendly until every dog and cat has a loving home.
You can read about this news story here .
April 6 2021
Could Yucatan Learn from Zero Stray Programme in Greece?
When Theo Moumtzidis and Silja Schiller decided to help the strays of Aegina, Greece, they had no idea that they would be establishing a model that could help communities around the world humanely, and effectively, end their stray dog problems.
In the Greek Reporter they explained how they realised that long term solutions were the only way forward after helping to build an animal shelter there.
“That experience taught us that, while shelters are absolutely important in solving the stray dog problem, unless you go after the root cause, no shelter will ever be big enough to home all strays and there will never be enough families to adopt all the animals living in shelters either. So we put our thinking caps on and realized that what we really had to focus on was the root cause, which really is abandonment, irresponsible ownership, and the anonymity of dogs which allows them to be abandoned.”
Through a combination of permanent identification with microchips, working with local government to ensure enforcement, outreach, and sterlisation, they have nearly reached their goal of having a zero stray community.
You can read more about this incredible programme here .
April 1 2021
Dogs and Autistic Children – An Important Relationship
Today is Autism Day, so it is a good day to talk to humans about the wonderful things that us dogs do for humans who are autistic or neurodivergent. There are some very smart and loving dogs, who have an important job helping autistic children as assistance dogs. They receive a lot of training to make sure that they can be the best friends and helpers to the children.
Some of the things they help with include, social behaviour, reducing anxiety, and helping the children to cope with situations that might frustrate them. Dogs give unconditional love. We love you every single day and that is our super power. We are always happy to share that when we can.
According to Dra. Esther Charles, Veterinarian for Cesar® at Mars Pet Nutrition México in El Imparcial,
“Dogs destined for this noble function require a special assessment prior to being therapy dogs; it is important that the intended dog is docile, friendly and on the other hand tenacious to guide the child. As the dog builds trust in front of the child, thanks to the daily coexistence, it is able to teach him behaviors such as crossing the street and attend to situations that he did not perceive before.”
To read more about the relationship between autistic children and dogs, check out this article .
April 1 2021
Adopted Dog Inspires Mexican Feminist Artist
You may not know this, but I care about many issues other than dogs. I believe in human rights – without humans who would feed me tacos? I believe in women’s rights – my humans are women and they feed me tacos. I believe in LGBTQ+ rights – because I’m a fabulous dog. I hate racism – because it’s a very bad thing and I don’t even need to explain to you why.
This is why I was so excited to read about Laura Juliana Ramírez, an artist, illustrator, and documentary film maker, among other things. She runs a project called Perrito Feminista (Feminist Dog). She was inspired by the black and white dog that she rescued, who she felt opened the inner child of people that they met.
“I have always liked dogs and I adopted a pet. I feel that a dog takes you back to childhood, takes you back to take care of something, of a being with which to learn. Nor do I believe that the dog as such has a sex, it is not a man, it is not a woman: it is a dog and that’s it, ”she says.
She uses the image of the dog to portray her own thoughts through art. You can see her work on her Facebook Page
You can also read more here .
March 31 2021
Cool Humans Keep Their Dogs Cool
It gets hot in Yucatan. Not just regular hot, but super duper incredible hot. This can make life very uncomfortable and even dangerous for us dogs. Not only can we burn our feet on the sizzling streets but we can suffer from heat stroke. Sometimes humans do not even realise that we are overheated until it is too late.
I will be producing my own article about this subject soon, but in the meantime, this is a very good article about how to protect your dog from heat stroke. Keep cool buddies!!!!
Read more about this story here!
Brave Dog Saves His Human from Mugger
Any human who knows anything, knows that us dogs are your best friends. This dog from Tlapan, Mexico, proves it and there is video evidence. A very bad human attacked a woman outside her home. Fortunately, her canine companion jumped into action and bit the criminal on the leg, scaring him away and saving the woman. I hope the dog got plenty of treats and cuddles.
There is nothing like a trusty dog to keep you safe, if you love and care for it properly.
You can read more about this story and watch the video here!
March 28 2021
Cutest Human Child Ever Promotes Pet Adoption in Mexico City
Humans think puppies are so cute. Did you know that dogs think human children are cute too? Well, this is why. This adorable little boy decided to conduct interviews with dogs in his street in Mexico City. Watch the video. Your human heart will get all fuzzy like mine.
His name is Santiago and he wants people to adopt. Santiago has six adopted dogs of his own. I’m adopted too, so I think he’s a very special and wonderful human.
You can read more about Santiago and how his campaign has made him go viral in this article in Televisa News.
March 29 2021
Stolen Puppy Recovered by Yucatan Police
It always makes me sad to hear about my fellow dogs being stolen by bad humans. This story made me happy though because the state police helped to recover this beautiful puppy called Kimo and now he is back at home with his humans.
If your dog is stolen, please never give up looking. Use local Facebook pages to get the message out like these owners did.
You can read more about this in Diario de Yucatan’s story.
26 March 2021
Dog Fighting or Making Dogs Fight with Any Other Animal is Banned
This is so important. There are some very bad and strange humans who like to see dogs fight or like to see dogs fight with other animals. I will never understand why some humans would be so cruel. The good news is that there was a vote and the humans in charge of making laws have banned these activities.
You can read more about it in this article
26 March 2021
Sterilisation of dogs and cats in the south of Merida
Communities and organisations are working hand in hand to sterlise dogs and cats in the south of Merida. This is one of the best ways to make Yucatan a truly pet friendly place. Until every dog and cat has a loving home, humans will need to keep working hard to stop pet overpopulation through sterlisation programmes like this one. I give the San Marcos community four paws up for this wonderful initiative.
Read more here.
25 March 2021
Dog Rescued from Well
I always thought us dogs were supposed to get help for human boys who fall down wells. This is a story of a young man helping to save a dog who fell down a well.
I do notice a lot of stories about dogs falling into old wells. Keep an eye on your dog friends. Luckily, this lovely fellow was OK.
Read all about this malix dog being rescued from a well by police today in this article from Yucatan Ahora.
15 March 2021
Sterilsation of pets is encouraged in Yucatan
According to this article in the Diario de Yucatan, spaying and neutering your pets is an important part of responsible ownership. As you all know, I am an ambassador for neutering and spaying, so it makes me very happy to see that this is an issue that humans are talking about in Yucatan. Yucatan can’t be truly pet friendly until there are loving homes for all of the dogs and cats born in the state. The only way to achieve this is through sterlisation.
I recommend reading this article.
“It is very important and recommended that you sterilize your pets. If you have a trusted veterinarian, you should approach him if you have questions about the procedure, you have to give it importance, “said Noé Hernández Cruz, president of the Society of Clinical Veterinary Doctors in Pets, AC”
Read more here
An English Cyclist is Helping to Feed Abandoned and Neglected Street Dogs
The more I learn about the wonderful things that humans are doing in Yucatan to help dogs and cats that do not have a loving home, the happier it makes me feel. This is such a wonderful story about a human who loves to ride his bicycle all over Yucatan and who has combined his favourite activity with helping street dogs. I recommend that all humans follow his example and spread kindness.
I recommend reading this article to learn more about this wonderful human.
“However, this personal challenge became an altruistic task when through his social networks, Martin began to collect donations of 200 pesos, with the aim of buying food for sick or abandoned dogs, refugees with the Huellitas de Amor organizations. , in Mérida and AFAD, in Cholul.
“Some send the money from England, friends, family, other friends from Mexico, I buy it and deliver the food, so that you know that it will be directed to the dogs (…) more than anything it is because of that, because they suffer a lot and I feel that this is a good cause to help them have a better life,” explained Stopher.”
Read more here
Pet Friendly Yucatan 