We had to share this great KING-TV “Evening Magazine” feature on Edmonds’ Dining Dog restaurant.

Thanks to City Stormwater Engineer Program Manager Jerry Shuster and Recycling Coordinator Steve Fisher, the city secured a stormwater education grant to purchase 4,000 collection bags. Then Shuster convinced the firm of Custom Bioplastics to donate 10 dog waste bag dispensers to the City of Edmonds, for a savings of $600, Buckshnis said

Dispensers have already been placed at the following “test” locations: Sunset Avenue and the Mini Park near the restrooms at the Washington State Ferry holding lanes.  They will be installed at these locations next week: City Park, Yost Park, Pine Ridge Park and the Interurban trail near Lake Ballinger. More dispensers will be added, so ideas for future locations should be directed to Parks and Recreation Department Director Carrie Hite or Manager Rich Lindsay at 425-771-0230.

“So please dog owners, scoop the poop!” Buckshnis said. “Picking up after your dog not only makes all dog owners look responsible, but it helps keep our streams and creeks clean and – by extension our lovely Puget Sound.”

I overheard some people at the dog park talking about Wobbler Disease, what is that?

This is a condition seen most commonly in tall, long-necked horses and large breeds of dogs, particularly Great Danes and Dobermans. The disease is characterized by an abnormal gait in the front and/or the hind legs. The animal seems to “wobble” when walking or exercising. Some animals seem to have a stiff neck, may appear to be weak or lazy, that is reluctant to move, stumble more than normal or seem to misstep. There may be a generalized unsteadiness, hindquarter weakness or knuckling over in the lower leg joints, particularly in the hind limbs.

The term is frequently applied to several different abnormalities resulting in ataxia, defined as a proprioceptive deficit (loss of sense of where the animal places his or her feet). In advanced cases, the animal may fall as it struggles to walk. In horses, it includes a specific condition known as Equine wobbles anemia. There is considerable controversy about the potential genetic nature of Equine wobbles anemia. Other specific conditions that can result in the same set of signs include at least three different malformations of the cervical (neck) vertebrae; protrusion of an intervertebral disc, disease of the interspinal ligaments or of the articular facets (the joints) of the vertebrae in the neck. Other names for this condition are; cervical vertebral instability, cervical spondylomyelopathy and cervical vertebral malformation. The condition can also be the result of a brain lesion.

The most common cause in both dogs and horses is spinal cord compression from one of the various cervical vertebral malformations, which, again, may or may not be inherited. Spinal cord compression can be either dynamic, occurring only when the animal bends or extends its neck, or static, present all the time.

To make a definitive diagnosis, your veterinarian will have to do a complete neurological exam and then X-rays of the spinal canal including a contrast study (myelogram). The X-rays will have to be obtained with the animal under general anesthetic. While conducting these tests your veterinarian will also rule out the possibility of an infectious agent or a traumatic injury by examining the cerebrospinal fluid.

Some wobblers treated with nutritional and medical management have shown improvement, but the results are not impressive. If the cause is compression of the spinal cord, a veterinary surgeon, with the proper training and experience, can decompress the spinal cord and fuse the problem vertebrae, usually by using Titanium baskets and bone marrow transplants. This is similar to the recent surgery done to the professional football quarterback Peyton Manning. It ain’t cheap folks!

Dr. Gross is the author of “Animals Don’t Blush,” which describes the unique patients and even more unique clients of a veterinary practice in Sidney, Montana in the early 1960s.

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The first meet-up will be Sunday, Jan. 15 at 2 p.m. at 18104 76th Ave. W.

Spehar has also created a Facebook page.

If you see Lucy, please call 206-291-7779.

If you see him, please call 206 619-0178.

Sharon asks: “Why are raisins bad for dogs?”

I am so pleased you asked this question. You gave me the opportunity to brag about the department I was honored to lead from 1995 to 2006.

Faculty in the department Veterinary Biosciences at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign formed the original Animal Poison Control Center, long before I arrived. We were fortunate in convincing the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) to take over and grow that Center. Veterinarians in the Poison Control Center started to notice an increase in reports of dogs showing signs of toxicity after the ingestion of both grapes and raisins in 1999. From April 2003 to April 2004, the Center logged 140 cases of dogs consuming either grapes or raisins; 50 of these dogs developed signs of toxicity and seven of them died.

Drs. Carla M. K. Morrow, a toxicology graduate student in the department; Victor E. Valli, Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine; Petra A. Volmer, a faculty member of in the department; and Paul A. Eubig, another toxicology graduate student published a definitive report on grape and raisin toxicity in the Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation in 2005. They studied 10 dogs that suffered acute renal (kidney) failure after ingesting 6.72 grams or more of raisins per pound of dog. That calculates to about 9.5 ounces of raisins for a forty-pound dog. Other studies reported toxic doses of 6.8-18.9 ounces for raisins and 19.6 ounces of grapes for a forty-pound dog (sixteen ounces to a pound).

Usually within 12 hours after ingesting either grapes or raisins, dogs will start vomiting, become lethargic and develop diarrhea. If not treated, they become increasingly lethargic, dehydrated and refuse to eat. The dog may urinate more frequently than normal early but this progresses to a decrease in urine production and eventually to anuria (no urine formation). The primary lesions of this toxicity are in the kidneys with significant degeneration or necrosis (death) of the proximal renal tubules (very bad). Morrow, et al. also reported pathological changes in arteries supplying the large colon in the dogs they studied. Unfortunately, nobody has yet been able to determine the toxic substance in grapes, raisins, or grape pressings from wineries (yep, at least one dog ate grape pressings). It is difficult to obtain funding when the scientists must feed animals potentially toxic substances isolated from the grapes to be able to determine what it is that is toxic.

If your dog has eaten grapes or raisins and is showing signs of illness, or if s/he vomits and you see pieces of grape or raisin in the vomitus, get the poor guy to your veterinarian within two hours. The treatment involves inducing vomiting, possibly treating with activated charcoal and administering large doses of intravenous fluids in an effort to flush the kidneys. If the kidneys are badly damaged it may be necessary to use either peritoneal or hemo-dialysis. With fast, effective treatment, about half of the dogs showing severe signs of grape or raisin toxicity can be saved.

Dr. Gross is the author of “Animals Don’t Blush,” which describes the unique patients and even more unique clients of a veterinary practice in Sidney, Montana in the early 1960s.

Greyhounds up for adoption in Edmonds Saturday.

All The Best Pet Care-Edmonds is hosting a Holiday Greyhound Adopt-A-Thon at 9803 Edmonds Way, (next to PCC), this Saturday, Dec. 17 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Royal Hounds Greyhound Rescue will be in the store with former racing dogs looking for a new home. If you have been thinking about adding a dog to your family, please consider a greyhound. They don’t require any more exercise than an average dog and are very social, smart and sweet. Royal Hounds Greyhound Rescue is dedicated to helping these deserving dogs transition off the race track and into loving homes.

Woofstock 2011 will run from noon-4 p.m. at the Smiley Dog warehouse, located at 23303 Highway 99 in Edmonds. Woofstock is an annual celebration bringing Seattle area pets and their people together with industry experts to learn about pet nutrition, sample new products, support local vendors and pay no sales tax. Admission is free.

“We keep hearing from our clients that Woofstock is the one event that they look forward to each year,” said Smiley Dog owner Craig Weindling. “It’s the one day each year that we invite folks to come to us instead of showing up at their door. We’re thrilled to support our local vendors and help PAWS with the wonderful work they do in the community.”

Local vendors featured this year include Himalayan Dog Chews, Aussie Pet Mobile, Hands to Paws Massage, Litter Spinner, Magic Photo, New Roots Organics, Northwest Naturals and The Whole Pup. All products collected in the event’s pet food bank will be donated to PAWS. The event is co-sponsored by Canidae and Precise pet foods.

The Silent Auction features items from local artists and businesses. Packages include a Seattle Mariners autographed baseball, box seats and game bats. Attendance for two at the 2012 Seattle International Film Festival Opening Night Gala is also up for bid.

More information about the event is available at www.SmileyDog.com or by calling 206-903-9631.

Woofstock 2011 is produced by Smiley Dog, which provides free delivery of healthy pet foods. The locally owned company began operations in 1992 to offer busy pet owners a dependably convenient way to feed healthy foods.

• For more information, visit: http://www.SmileyDog.com

A pug from Edmonds is making quite a name for herself — all because she hates iPhones, or at least the commercials for them.

A video featuring Coco, a 4 1/2-year-old black pug, has become a YouTube sensation with more than half a million followers, because her owner has captured her barking and growling at the television set every time an iPhone commercial appears.

We caught up with a member of Coco’s family, Stefan Torres, who along with a friend has created a Facebook page, a website and T-shirts commemorating the pug’s quirky anti-iPhone behavior.

Stefan, before we get to Coco, tell us about yourself:

My family (myself, parents and sister) moved from Philly across the country to Seattle when I was in grade school. After a few years we moved to Edmonds and have since stayed for 12 years. I’m a full-time registered nursing student, also working full time between two hospitals.

Now tell us about Coco. How long have you owned her, how old is she, how much does she weigh?

Our first family dog is a fawn pug by the name of Cooper. A few years after his arrival, Coco was introduced and my sister immediately fell in love with her, taking responsibility for her care. Since then, we’ve taken in a Chihuahua by the name of Minnie and a dachshund named George. They’re all great pals! We’ve owned Coco since a week after her birth and she is now 4 1/2 years old. She’s a bit self-conscious about her weight, so I think she’d be upset if I told you!

When did you first discover Coco barking at the iPhone commercial and what happened after that? At what point did you decide to make a YouTube video?

It’s been well over a year that we’ve known about Coco’s beef with the iPhone. She likes to sit on the backrest of the couch and watch TV… and it became apparent that every time an iPhone commercial popped on to the screen, she’d bolt down from the couch and start springing up at the TV set, barking madly! Once the commercial ended, she’d return to the couch to chill. This is not just on occasion; it happens every time.

How did it go viral and get so many views?

A few months ago I was telling my out-of-state friend, a mobile phone connoisseur, about Coco’s odd reaction to the iPhone, and he didn’t believe it at all. I finally got around to recording it about a week or so ago, and sent it off to him. He thought it was an absolute riot! He forwarded it to a few of his friends, and they passed it on the same. Later that night it began to pop up on all sorts of blogs and within a few days the video was featured on some very popular websites like MSNBC and CBS News to name a few.

Sounds like Coco’s pretty famous, with a Facebook page, a website and t-shirts, not to mention many media appearances. Have you been actively promoting it, or has it just happened?

Needless to say we were surprised at how popular the video became so quickly. By reading all of the reactions and responses on the YouTube page and the variety of other sites, it was clear that tons of people worldwide fell in love with little Coco-roo, including plenty of Apple fanboys! Since we’ve got some basic experience with website development and graphics design between my friend and I, we decided to have some fun with all this and start a website for her! We’re excited to say that it, too, has been extremely popular!

What’s next for Coco?

Look out for a mini web series starring Coco & Co. in the near future! Check back at the website www.pughatesiphone.com for all sorts of articles, ranging from Coco’s Top Ten Lists to mobile phone news updates (particularly Android!). For questions or additional info, readers can feel free to reach me at: www.facebook.com/stefanjt1 or by email at stefanjtorres@gmail.com.