African eye-to-eye

Tags

african dogs, basenji, rhodesian ridgeback, rhodesian ridgebacks

One of the most common, yet completely inaccurate breed mis-identifications for Bowpi is Ridgeback. I think people have a vague sense that she’s some kind of African breed, and when they see her B-ridge all bristled up, a Rhodesian Ridgeback just comes to mind.

As you can see, they are very different dogs…

… from head to tail.

They seem to be very common around these parts. I’m surprised they don’t crack any official lists of top breeds for the area (though they do appear on San Diego and Austin’s lists). Perhaps if the stats were not tallied by AKC registration figures, but by number relative to overall population in the country, we’d see them up there?

I like the way these guys are built — muscly and lithe, a moderate balance of power and speed. Though most at the dog park trot pretty close alongside their owners, the ones we’ve gotten to meet up close are charmers, indeed.

Worth a grin

Don’t stray too far…

Tags

off leash

When we walk off-leash (in safe, designated areas), I pretty much let the Bows walk ahead as they please.

Somehow, they know to stay within sight, and they never let me fall too far behind without checking back to make sure I’m following.

FILM: Barren Lives (Vidas Secas)

Tags

baleia, brazil dogs, dog movies, vidas secas

Film: Barren Lives (Vidas Secas)
Director: Nelson Pereira dos Santos
Performers: Baleia, Átila Iório, Orlando Macedo, Maria Ribeiro, Jofre Soares
Breed featured: Brazilian native dog
Production Information: Luiz Carlos Barreto Produções Cinematográficas/Sino Filmes, 1963 (Brazil)

As described by the title, this is an arid, bleakly rendered film full of desperation and deprivation. One beautiful little dog, Baleia, provides much needed glimpses of hope throughout the film. She is a loved family member — traveling with, sleeping amongst, hunting for and working alongside her migrant family. But in the end, even she is unable to survive the harsh conditions of poverty…

I have no idea what breed she is… or what one might call a Brazilian native dog. She looks like a small Podenco type to me, and even a bit Basenji-like at times, with the lean figure, high tuck, long skinny muzzle and exaggerated, alert ears of the sighthound/pariah dog look that I favor. According to an accompanying short film on the DVD extras, she was known as “Piaba” and spotted at a local market by the film crew. They bought her off a vendor who later admitted that he didn’t even own the dog — she had just been a happy lingerer until her life was forever changed by starring in this film.

Warning: Spoilers in slideshow and text beneath the cut!

Bowpi really hates meeting other Basenjis

Tags

basenji, canine body language

I put this one in slideshow format so you can scroll through and get a sense of just how Bowpi is so completely immobilized as the other two Basenjis, Foxy and Rozzie, come around to check her out.

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Photos taken 12 May 2012

She only gets this tense when greeting other Basenjis. The boys tend to be nicer to her than the girls. Apparently, this is to be expected with the breed.

LINKS: Bay Area Shiba Blogs

Tags

bay area, northern california, san francisco bay area, shiba blogs, shiba inu

While things are “slow” here at the House of Two Bows (still got enough shorter, pre-drafted posts to maintain our M-W-F schedule!), I thought I’d spread some link love by sharing other Bay Area and Northern California Shiba Inu blogs. For whatever reason, we are a strangely cohesive, social networking-oriented breed community.

In no particular order…

Eat, Play, Love: Maya the (Long-haired) Shiba (above! and at the very bottom of this post)

Sinjin the Shiba Wanderer, with Sienna

Demon Dog: Prince Zuko’s blog

Suki, canine sidekick of professional photographer Jonathan Fleming

He’s Ichigo! (pictured below)

Life with Kai the Shiba (bonus: potent adorability on this entry with puppy Shiba and two Basenjis!)

Severus the Super Shiba (hasn’t been updated in a while, but we hope our fellow allergic Shiba is doing well!)

My Shiba is a Diva

Maggie the Mini Shiba (whose photos are actually in focus, as opposed to mine, below)

And let’s not forget all the Shibas spotted by The Dogs of San Francisco. No, it’s not every day that one spots a Shiba… but around here, you do see them with some frequency.

Did I miss any local Shiba blogs? Let me know!

Sightings: Oh, the suspension!

Tags

alaskan klee kai, finnish lapphund, great dane, jack russell terrier

I don’t know why they’re all (mostly) running in the same direction!

Auntie cleans ALL the ears

Tags

beagles, formosan mountain dog, puli, taiwan, taiwan dogs, tugou

My aunt in Taiwan is one of the few true dog lovers in my (very, very large) family. She keeps her pets very differently from what I’ve grown accustomed to. In her view, dogs are strictly outdoors pets, though her purebred Maltese and Pomeranians are occasionally permitted to flounce about indoors. Her favorite Maltese often gets to ride in her purse on errands about town, but the rest stay home to keep guard and earn their keep. Most of her dogs don’t get daily walks, though they get lots of time to freely roam the garden, a fairly spacious plot.

Occasionally she’ll chance upon a high-energy dog that obviously needs extra exercise. But mostly, auntie’s dogs bend to her way of life, which involves a lot of busywork and activity about the house.

She values her Taiwan dogs, her tugou, as household guardians. Thus, she often favors the darker-colored ones that others will ditch, since black dogs with white feet, in particular, are considered extremely inauspicious. To her, it makes no difference in terms of functionality, companionship, and loyalty.

Lucky, picture below, is currently her oldest dog. He was about nine years old in the summer of 2009 when these pictures were taken. His head makes me think he’s part Akita, but his ancestry remains as mysterious as the morning fog draped over the local mountains.

And the beagle below was her latest addition at the time. He was found seeking refuge in the yard with an injury to the face and signs of neglect all over his body. Auntie got him patched up, and since he didn’t show any inclination of leaving, she decided to let him stay.

I do look forward to the trip back to that village — those mountains, those people, those dogs… though things may change faster than I can document them.

Film: Just Around the Corner

Tags

afghan hounds, bedlington terrier, borzoi, dog movies, pekingese, poodles, shirley temple, standard poodles, toy poodles

Film: Just Around the Corner
Director: Irving Cummings
Performers: Shirley Temple, Joan Davis, Bert Lahr, Bill Robinson
Breeds featured: Afghan Hounds, Borzoi, Poodles (standard and toy), Pekingese, Bedlington Terrier (brief), Greyhound (brief), Wire Fox Terrier (brief), Old English Sheepdog (brief)
Production Information: 20th Century Fox, 1938 (USA)

In Just Around the Corner, Shirley Temple assists the maintenance crew at a posh Manhattan apartment where the children’s playroom consists of a grand piano, ping-pong, and card tables, and the basement garage level houses a doggy grooming and boarding center. Clients include a rowdy pair of Afghan Hounds, Borzoi, Pekingese, Bedlington Terrier, and a toy poodle that walks on its front paws.

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The DVD version I saw has options to watch in black and white or in a colorized restoration, which I thought was nicely done for the most part. Some of the yellows, golds, and fawn colors look off to me, but somehow I associate these softened hues with yesteryear, so it was all appropriate to my eyes.

The House of Two Bows keeps a running index of movies blurbed on the site, annotated by breed. If you’re interested in writing a guest blog for a dog film, contact for details.

Sightings: Stareback edition

Tags

greyhounds, sheltie, shetland sheepdogs