Pet care company steals our product

My hu-MANS are not happy.

Remember me telling you about these clever K9 parking leads they designed?

My hu-MAN spent hours and hours in research and development. Heaps of his own money and time spent creating a safe and unique product. Finding suppliers, and distributors. He approached a few of the major pet store chains in the country. They were not interested (but funnily enough a very similar product appeared on their shelves within a few months).

Never mind. My hu-MAN managed to get his K9 parking lead distributed through Kmart and Coles stores in Australia and New Zealand. Under the Go-Pet label. A segment of Purina Pet Care, a subsidiary of Nestle.

After two years of hard slog, my hu-MANs were heading towards their goal of earning enough money through the sale of this product to cover the costs of hosting burnt out church and community workers at the small island retreat they are building.

When sales got to about 900 units per month, my hu-MAN couldn't understand why there were no new orders coming in to restock shelves. My hu-MAN approached Go-Pet. He was given the brush off with the news that HQ was heading interstate to Sydney and all packaging and purchasing would now be done from that office. When things had settled down, he was told, they would be in touch to re-establish orders.

A few weeks later they were grocery shopping and found their K9 parking lead had been replaced by an inferior product. But it still had their own product name, design and tag on this replacement product (which probably came from Asia). And it was still selling for the same retail price, despite inferior manufacturing.

I'm just a dog, but I'm smart enough to know this, the creator and manufacturer of any products in Coles and Kmart make the least amount out of each sale. They grind the distributors so low on prices they are forced to steal local companies designs and get them made cheaper overseas, so that Coles and Kmart can make more per unit sale than before. How else do you think they can fund their "Price Rewind" tactic.

Numerous attempts to get answers from Go-Pet administrators ended with nothing but unanswered emails and phone calls. My hu-MANs don't have the money to finance a legal fight against this injustice. Another micro-business in Australia bites the dust.

If you have a local famers market. Shop there. Get your fruit and veg direct from the grower. It will be fresher, and the famer's family will get their fair share of the rewards for their labour. Need gifts, art for your home, or pet accessories? Try your local craft market. Support the little people with your dollars. They deserve it. The multinational corporations don't.

Life's ruff!

Camouflage

I got a parcel in the post today. Inside it was a canine camouflage jacket. The card said it was so I could sneak up on the kangaroos and koalas. But I make too much noise to sneak up. They hear me coming from a mile off. Besides, my huMANS get very cross if I try to chase the local wildlife. Unless of course it's those poohing ducks or the wood-eating galahs. I'm allowed to chase them away.

Checking out the Christmas story

Check out this nativity scene my humans made over the weekend. With all the bushfire stuff and other stressors going on, they decided it was time to do something fun. Gathering building scraps and some things from the "useful" box in the shed, they invited some friends over for a BBQ and an afternoon of power tools and creativity. This was the end product.

I had to check out the christmas story up close and personal. Sniffed out the manger, and gave the leg my seal of approval.

I'm floored!

It's been a busy couple of months around here. Digging huge holes, filling them with concrete and logs. The floor base is down now and as you can see in the photo above, I like the view from up here.

I've been sharing the role of canine site manager with one of the builder's dogs. His name is Seb, short for Sebastian. He's been a bit hungry and cleared out my chow bowl a few times. So now I get fed inside. Here I am offering him a piece of grass as a dining option.

Site manager

My huMAN's are building a new house. Guess who the site manager is :-)

wig pig

I've been a very naughty boy!
Snuck down to the waterfront this morning. Found a smelly muddy patch of seaweed and rolled in it till I was covered all over.

Oh no! Is that the laundry tub I can hear being filled up . . . ?
Quick I gotta hide - cos I hate getting washed!

Sea legs

When my humans say that wondrous "W" word, I get pretty excited. A walk means adventure outside the gate.

I'm learning to get just as excited with the "B" word. When they say we're going out on the boat, it's hard to contain my excitement. I love exploring the lakes. A boat trip is usually accompanied with a walk when we reach the destination for the day.

Boat & Walk. Two of my favourite words.

A dingo!

Yup! That's me and my huMAN digging trenches. He said something about this dingo coming for the day. I got all excited thinking I was going to meet a real native Aussie dog. Turned out it was just this noisy machine.

Can you see where I got to steer? I made a creative kink in my huMAN's very straight trench.

Sea change / tree change

Phew! It's been a busy time as my humans have moved from the city to the country. We now live on an island and I'm getting used to "farm things" like meeting the native animals.
This is me and Eric the echidna. He gave me a prickly reception when we first met. Now I understand he just needs more personal space than most!

puppy party

This is my friend Henry. He just turned 1 and I went to his puppy party today. There were special bones for us dogs and treats for the humans too. Then there was this gourmet dog cake made from carrot and chicken. My friend Henry is licking his chops cos he knows it's gonna be yummy!

Hot dogs

The Sunday Magazine recently ran a Hot 100 list of things/places/people etc. Coming in at # 18 was hot dogs. They reckon the new hybrid breeds are popular at the mo - creatures like spoodles and labradoodles. Whispers were also heard that the Shih-tzu/Poodle cross is becoming hot. Hmmm, we won't even try to abbreviate that!?!

Let sleeping dogs lie

How do you like my impression of a door mat?

a bone-a-fide celeb

Remember those K9 parking leads I told you about awhile back? Well, we're selling about 800 of them per month. My human tells me we're not rich yet, as we've had to cover a lot of set up costs first. But he reckons one day I might be a bone-a-fide celeb dog. Known as the inspiration behind the K9 lead system. So I thought I'd better practise posing for all my photo shoots.
Whaddya reckon - am I cool or what?

Photo by Kel

wrong white powder

My poor mates the drug sniffer dogs have been trained to sniff out white powder, only problem is it seems they got on the wrong scent trail.

Read all about it here.

I'm good for your health

Results from a recent NSW study on pets and health were recently published in the Medical Journal of Australia. It shows 41% of dog owners walk an average 18 minutes a week longer than those who don't own dogs.

They estimate that if all dog owners walked their dogs regularly, the boost in fitness across the community would save the Australian health system $175 million a year.

Phew! That's a lot of money! And even more exciting - that's a lot more walks for me and my K9 buddies. Go on people. Get out there!
source: Herald Sun, May 30

Picnic pup

I love picnics, not so much the sitting around on the rug and eating bit, but the guaranteed WALK that follows is the highlight for me.

bad hair days

Oh no! My human has decided to trim me up again. She pulled out the dreaded scissors and started snipping away. Here and there. Little bit by little bit.
She refuses to pay more for my grooming than hers, so I get home-made haircuts. She's devised this style where she undercuts my wooly bits, letting my top silky layer grow long, then trims my face to show off my eyes and "talking ears".
It's kind of embarrassing to have my grooming done at home and not in some chic dog salon. But everyone who sees me out walking says "he's so cute!"
A lady down the street even asked what kind of dog I was. She said, "I want one just like him!"
But I'm such a unique mixture there aren't many around like me.
Add to that my human's styling attempts and I'm definitely one of a kind.

K9 parking lead

pssst
here's a hot dog lead
the K9 parking lead helps humans keep their dog safe while out and about

I'm so proud of my human. He designed these clever leads that have a loop and clip on them. So when he takes me with him to the corner store, he can just park me at a pole and I stay there safe and sound till he comes back outside.

all my buddies and their humans thought they were such a great idea. So my human made lots and lots of them in bright colours, and you can now buy them in Coles supermarkets around Australia.

so, just in time for the RSPCA's Million Paws Walk this Sunday, you can sport the very latest in dog lead fashions

don't say I didn't tell you!

top spots for dogs

It seems the outer 'burbs are the top spots for me and my puppy pals. Well, for legal ones anyhow, as a study of pet registrations in Melbourne has shown.
The Yarra Ranges is the top spot for dogs with 29,138 registered.
Second is Casey with 26,700.
Third is my new turf - Knox - with 23,529.
My previous turf - Maroondah - is way down the list with only 13,000 registered dogs.

From my perspective changing houses has been good. A move up in the world of canine classifications. Plus I have a bigger back yard in which to run around. Wasted space really since I spend most of the day curled up sleeping!

Hey! What's that? I hear the tinkling of the lead coming off the hook - gotta' fly folks, looks like my human is taking me out for a WALK.

fur burger

Just met one of my new puppy pals in the neighbourhood. He was a big black bully dog.
He wanted to eat me.
His human could hardly control him as he pulled against his lead to get at me. My human did a quick step and got us onto the other side of the street pronto. Saved me from being a fur burger she did.

I love my human!

doggone it

I know how this buddy feels. My home has just been shifted to a new address. I have a much bigger yardspace now and new dogs to meet behind every fence.

what i hate about computers

Okay, so I'm getting the hang of this blogging gig. But I've found some new frustrations.
There's a lack of a newsgroups entitled "alt.pictures.master's.leg"
I need to update my health cover. Three words: Carpal Paw Syndrome.
I can't find an "emoticon" that signifies tail-wagging.
Can't help attacking the screen when I hear "You've Got Mail".
It's too darn difficult to "mark" every website I visit.

. . . and the worst of the lot:
I can't stick my head out of Windows '98.
Sheeesh. No wonder everyone complains about it.

job hunting

My human is looking for work at the moment. It's made her a bit grumpy dealing with people who have poor interview skills and even worse people skills. Yesterday she found out she didn't get certain job. She was very upset. So I cheered her up by sharing this joke I found.

A local business was looking for office help. They put a sign in the window, stating the following: "HELP WANTED. Must be able to type, must be good with a computer and must be bilingual. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer."

A short time afterwards, a dog trotted up to the window, saw the sign and went inside. He looked at the receptionist and wagged his tail, then walked over to the sign, looked at it and whined.

Getting the idea, the receptionist got the office manager. The office manager looked at the dog and was surprised, to say the least. However, the dog looked determined, so he lead him into the office. Inside, the dog jumped up on the chair and stared at the manager.

The manager said, "I can't hire you. The sign says you have to be able to type." The dog jumped down, went to the typewriter and proceeded to type out a perfect letter. He took out the page and trotted over to the manager and gave it to him, then jumped back on the chair. The manager was stunned, but then told the dog, "The sign says you have to be good with a computer."

The dog jumped down again and went to the computer. The dog proceeded to demonstrate his expertise with various programs and produced a sample spreadsheet and database and presented them to the manager. By this time the manager was totally dumb-founded! He looked at the dog and said, "I realize that you are a very intelligent dog and have some interesting abilities. However, I still can't give you the job."

The dog jumped down and went to a copy of the sign and put his paw on the sentences that told about being an Equal Opportunity Employer. The manager said, "Yes, but the sign also says that you have to be bilingual."

The dog looked at him straight in the face and said, "Meow."


This is me - and the cat I have to share my humans with.

my top ten movies

Benji
Turner and Hooch
Lassie
Wizard of Oz
Rin Tin Tin
Dances with Wolves
Babe
Scooby Doo
The Shaggy DA
and my all time favourite Cats & Dogs - that beagle Lou is a legend!

who is blog-a-dog?

I am a male and was born 31.5.99

My mother was a maltese/silky terrier cross
My father was a long haired chihuahua/papillion cross

He proved once and for all that size doesn't matter
His motto was: If the dream is big enough the facts don't count!

Following in my father's pawprints I've taken on many insurmountable challenges.

My latest endeavour is to be a dog that blogs. It's been a slow start since I found the voice recognition software just couldn't cope with my accent. So for now, it's slow typing with the occasional help from my human.

If there's any fellow blogdogs out there, I'd love to hear from you. Let's start a revolution and take over the blogosphere.