For many years people have pierced their own ears and adorned them with sparkling jewels and beads in a variety of materials. Then along came the loyal dog.

First it was a colorful dress or coat for the dog to wear, then it was diamond encrusted collars and tiaras.

Now it seems that the more 'bling' the better and dogs of all ages and sizes are sporting shiny earrings!

Boutique pet stores are rising to the demand, such as Critter Company, a pet boutique in Bossier City, Louisiana. Since 1994 the Critter Company has been well-known for its pioneering efforts in pet care and so it was just natural that the store offered ear piercings for dogs. The cost is $25 including a pair of earrings.

"It's something we thought that pet owners might like," said Angela Welch, an assistant store manager at Critter Company.

Lisa Thorne, another assistant manager, stated that:

"We had one lady come in who had a pit bull puppy and she wanted a piercing done in only one ear because it was a boy dog. She wanted some bling for that dog."

The Critter Company has had quite a few doggie clients who have come in specifically to have their ears pierced.

"We've gotten a lot of dogs so far," said Lisa Thorne.

Although, Lisa does admit that most of those dogs are of the smaller breeds.

"They're mostly Yorkies and Chihuahuas," she said

However, does piercing a dog's ear cause them any pain?

Apparently not, though the groomers who do the piercings at Critter Company do use a numbing cream first and according to Lisa: "The dogs don't even whimper."

Ear piercings are better suited for smaller, indoor dogs rather than bigger, more boisterous dogs.

"It's not feasible for outside dogs who are scratching their ears all the time," explained Lisa.

But is it ethical to pierce a dog's ears?

Young babies have their ears pierced by their parents. Since the babies are unable to talk yet, they are not able to give their consent to having their own ears pierced. It is the same with puppies and dogs too.

Ear piercing, whether it is your own ears, your baby's ears or your dog's ears, is deemed to be a cosmetic procedure.

Similar to having your dog's nails painted, ear piercings for dogs is more about 'keeping up with Jones'. Current styles and trends in human fashion accessories reflect greatly on pet fashion accessories too.

In a recent poll at PetPlace.com in which pet lovers were asked if pet owners should be allowed to pierce their dog's ears, 96% of the 800 votes received, stated "No, that is crazy." A mere 3% voted “Yes - why not?”, whilst 2% were unsure.

If the idea of adding some bling to your dog's ears is something that you would go for, there is another option besides having your dogs ears pierced. A company called Bow Wow Bling sells the Earring Bling, earrings specifically designed with dogs in mind and made from Swarovski Crystallized Elements. The best part about these doggie earrings is that you will not have to pierce your dog's ears in order for him or her to wear them. This is because they are glued onto your dog’s ear with a pet-safe, non-toxic glue, aptly called 'Bling It On!'

The glue dries quickly and is quite easy to remove using a few drops of baby oil, or you can leave them to fall off on their own in about three weeks. The Earring Bling earrings are reusable and come in a pack of 4 different colors, Red, Purple, Pink and Diamond.

Dogs with earrings, whether pierced or glued on, will certainly be the center of attention at all of your holiday parties!

Before opting for piercing your dog's ears, talk to your veterinarian first.


Photo Credit: tanakawho

A new book written by Robert and Brenda Vale from New Zealand called "Time to Eat the Dog: The Real Guide to Sustainable Living" seems to thinks so!

According to the book, the carbon pawprint of a pet dog is double that of your standard gas-guzzling SUV, making man's best friend to be the environment's worst enemy.

Victoria University of Wellington, sustainable living specialists, the Vales, examined a few popular pet food brands and were able to determine that a dog of medium size would eat approximately 360 pounds, or 164 kilos, of meat and 95 kilos of cereal per year of its life.

Once the Vale considered how much land would be needed to grow and produce the food, they discovered that a medium sized dog would have annual footprint of 0.84 hectares (2.07 acres). This is more than double the 0.41 hectares that is required by a 4x4 SUV driving 10,000 kilometers (6,200 miles) per year, including the energy that is needed to build it.

In an effort to confirm the Vales findings, John Barrett from the Stockholm Environment, was asked by the New Scientist magazine to assess a pet's eco-pawprint using his own data.

Mr. Barrett's results were more or less the same than those of the Vales.

"Owning a dog really is quite an extravagance, mainly because of the carbon footprint of meat," Barrett said.

However, it is not just dogs that are detrimental to the environment, say the Vales.

It was also determined that cats have an eco-pawprint of 0.15 hectares, which is a little less than driving around in a Volkswagen Golf for a year.

Other pets targeted were two hamsters that were compared to a plasma television and goldfish that actually burn energy that is equivalent to two cell phones.

Of course such findings have already met with much opposition from pet lovers and animal rights organizations around the world, such as from Reha Huttin, the president of France's 30 Million Friends animal rights foundation, who simply states that the human impact of abolishing pets would be just as devastating.

"Pets are anti-depressants, they help us cope with stress, and they are good for the elderly. Everyone should work out their own environmental impact. I should be allowed to say that I walk instead of using my car and that I don't eat meat, so why shouldn't I be allowed to have a little cat to alleviate my loneliness?" Huttin was reported as saying.

The Vales also state that domestic cats and dogs also have a devastating impact on the environment, by polluting the waterways, spreading disease and eating other animals.

For example, New Scientist states that in Britain where there are 7.7 million cats, roughly 188 million wild animals are hunted, killed and eaten by domestic cats every year; this equates to 25 birds, mammals and frogs for every cat living in Britain.

Dogs reduce biodiversity in the areas in which they are frequently walked. A dog's feces also causes rather high levels of bacteria in rivers and streams, thereby polluting the water and killing off aquatic life.

Owners who flush their cat's litter down the toilet affect the lives of sea otters with toxoplasma gondii, which causes a deadly brain disease.

However many solutions exist to helping reduce your pet's carbon pawprint!

One such solution is to reduce your pet's protein-rich meat consumption.

"If pussy is scoffing 'Fancy Feast', or some other food made from choice cuts of meat, then the relative impact is likely to be high. If, on the other hand, the cat is fed on fish heads and other leftovers from the fishmonger, the impact will be lower," said Robert Vale.

Other tips include keeping your cat indoors at night to prevent them from eating other smaller animals; and avoiding walking your dog in areas that are abundant with natural wildlife.

Photo Credit: Playful Pirate

It appears that there are more Chihuahuas in California than what California can actually handle!

California's Oakland animal shelters are so overcrowded with the tiny dogs that they have begun to ship the Chihuahuas out of state, sending more than 100 to Arizona, Oregon and Washington State.

The Director of Oakland Animal Services, Megan Webb, even says: "as soon as they get them, they are ready for new ones."

There are so many abandoned Chihuahuas in Californian animal shelters that they comprise more than 30% of the total dog population in all the shelters in California combined.

Animal experts are blaming Hollywood's pop culture, claiming that fans want to copy Paris Hilton and Miley Cyrus by carrying their own Chihuahuas in handbags. Unfortunately, the majority of these pups are eventually abandoned at the local animal shelter.

The animal experts certainly seem to be accurate in their assumptions - California animal shelters are the only animal shelters in the entire US that is swamped with abandoned Chihuahuas.

The senior vice president overseeing the ASPCA adoption center in New York City, Gail Buchwald, acknowledges that shelters in other states would love to have Chihuahuas in their shelters because of the high demand for them.

"We never have enough supply for the huge consumer demand for small dogs," she said.

However, one the main issues faced by the Oakland Animal Shelter is the lack of resources and money to fly the Chihuahuas to other states. But Ms. Buchwald has stated that she is more than happy to help out in that regard:

“"othing is outside the realm of possibility here. We have a supply-demand issue," she said.

Los Angles city shelters have so many Chihuahuas that 25 of them were flown to Nashua, N.H., last week. All of the Chihuahuas found new homes within one day of arriving!

Prior to being flown away, the Chihuahuas received baths, were sterilized and tested for heartworms before donning little coats for the flight out of California. This inaugural Chihuahua flight was funded by actress Katherine Heigl and the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation.

Los Angeles is hoping to fly out at least 40 more Chihuahua as soon as the money can be raised.

Madeline Bernstein, who is the president of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Los Angeles, explained that Chihuahuas are the most popular breed of dog in Los Angeles, and so therefore, it stands to reason that the Chihuahua is also the most commonly abandoned breed of dog in Los Angeles.

Ms. Webb from the Oakland Animal Shelter stated that her shelter receives nearly 10 Chihuahuas every day! Because of this, the majority of Californian animal shelters that were originally built to accommodate big dogs, had to be remodeled to better serve the needs of the small, 5 pound Chihuahuas.

Movies such as 'Beverly Hills Chihuahua' and 'Legally Blonde' have boosted the image of Chihuahuas to that of stardom.

The Senior Coordinator of the Chihuahua Rescue of Beverly Hills, Dave Frangipane, explained that Chihuahuas are sought after dogs by fans of Chihuahua-totting celebrities.

However, there are a few reasons as to why these adorable little dogs are being abandoned. The most obvious reason being that any cute puppy has the potential to grow up to have behavioral problems, such as aggressiveness and anxiety, or could succumb to a myriad of health problems.

Because of their susceptibility to injuries, Chihuahuas face higher veterinary bills in California that most other dog breeds living in that state.

Mr. Frangipane has said that: "People think nothing of kicking a small, yappy dog. And they can be abused by people of all sizes. A toddler can snap a Chihuahua's leg in a second."

However, the biggest increase in the Chihuahua population in California is most probably as a direct result of greedy backyard breeders and unscrupulous puppy mills, agreed both Ms. Buchwald and Mr. Frangipane.

Photo Credit: ajari