A Dog Wearing Shoes Written & Illustrated by Sangmi Ko Schwartz & Wade Books 9/29/2015 978-0-385-38396-7 32 pages Ages 4—8 A Junior Library Guild Selection “When Mini finds a dog wearing bright yellow booties, she wants to keep him. And who wouldn’t?! But a dog with shoes on must belong to someone, …
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By: shelf-employed,
on 2/24/2011
Blog: Shelf-employed (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: E, animal shelters, poetry, book review, cats, poems, storytime, Add a tag
I don't have these books yet, but here are three just released or soon-to-be released poetry titles that look very promising.
Wardlaw, Lee. 2011. Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku. Ill. by Eugene Yelchin. New York. Macmillan.
Also from Macmillan, Bob Raczka's, Lemonade: and Other Poems Squeezed from a Single Word. (Ill. by Nancy Doniger)
Just like the title says, these poems are each created from a single word. How much fun can you have with that? Lots!
And finally, from Holiday House
I Am the Book, a collection of poems selected by Lee Bennet Hopkins and magically illustrated by Yayo.
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By: Sue Morris @ KidLitReviews,
on 11/22/2015
Blog: Kid Lit Reviews (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Children's Books, Picture Book, pets, dogs, Favorites, Debut Author, animal shelters, Random House Children’s Books, 5stars, Library Donated Books, lost dogs, Debut Illustrator, Schwartz & Wade Books, A Dog Wearing Shoes, found dogs, Sangmi Mo, Add a tag
Blog: Kid Lit Reviews (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Children's Books, Picture Book, pets, dogs, Favorites, Debut Author, animal shelters, Random House Children’s Books, 5stars, Library Donated Books, lost dogs, Debut Illustrator, Schwartz & Wade Books, A Dog Wearing Shoes, found dogs, Sangmi Mo, Add a tag
By: Sharon Ledwith,
on 8/25/2014
Blog: Sharon Ledwith: I came. I saw. I wrote. (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Dogs, Volunteering, Animal Shelters, Shelter Dogs, Dog Walking, Animal Lovers, Musa Publishing, Jan Flores, Animal Adoptions, Add a tag
Blog: Sharon Ledwith: I came. I saw. I wrote. (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Dogs, Volunteering, Animal Shelters, Shelter Dogs, Dog Walking, Animal Lovers, Musa Publishing, Jan Flores, Animal Adoptions, Add a tag
Everyone is emotionally touched by an animal at some point in their lives. For me, having a dog in the house since the day I was born forever cemented canines in my heart. Some people have had terrible experiences with animals, while others can’t live without one. If you’re thinking about getting a dog or cat to add to your family, then I urge you to adopt a pet from your local animal shelter. You’ll not only help an animal in need, you’ll receive something we ALL need—unconditional love.
And now, without further ado, part two of Jan Flores’s heartwarming tail, er tale…
Things have changed at the shelter where I volunteer as a dog walker. It now has a Behavior and Training Department, whose members evaluate the dogs that come in to determine if they have any medical and/or behavior problems before advancing them to the adoption floor. But when I first started, it was just me, the dogs, and a slip lead (For those who don’t know what a slip lead is, it’s a long piece of material about half an inch wide with a metal “D” ring at one end. To use it, you thread the end through the ring, forming a circle that substitutes as a collar. The “slip” of the lead means that it can be adjusted to any size dog). In those early days, I quickly learned that it wasn’t so simple as: put on a leash and go.
I chose to work with the clinic/hospital dogs instead of those already up for adoption because they seemed to be most in need of help and attention. They didn’t know where they were, or why their family had left them behind in a strange place. I wasn’t a familiar face, but I could be a helping hand, letting them know—for the brief time I was there on my volunteer day—that they weren’t alone.
It was an experiment for both of us. In those early days, I had no way of knowing when I entered a kennel what I was about to face. Some dogs “shut down” in depression and turned away; others became aggressive because they were uncertain and scared. But most were so glad to see me that they almost vibrated with excitement. A leash, a leash, we’re going for a walk! I could see it in their faces, and it makes me smile every time. Their joy at such a simple act almost makes me forget why they are here. Almost.
It was a shock to learn that only a minority of the shelter dogs are strays (at least in our shelter); the majority have been brought in by owners with various excuses (see Part I) about why they can’t keep the dog any longer. But one justification I’ll never understand, is “We just don’t want him anymore.”
How can you not want a dog who has been a faithful family member for years? How can you throw him away for someone else to take care of just because he has silver around the muzzle, or cataracts in his eyes, or limbs crippled with arthritis? To see such a dog watching his former family walking away without looking back is simply gut-wrenching.
I always pay special attention to these old dogs. The look in their eyes just breaks my heart.
On a brighter note, here are some of the special dogs I’ve met at the shelter:
HOLLY: (so named because she was found in a parking lot at Christmas). We never knew what happened to this white, bright-eyed little Maltese cross—whether it was abuse, or being hit by a car—that caused paralysis in both hind legs. I admit to mixed emotions when they fitted her with a canine version of a wheelchair. It seemed so unnaturalto me. But when I saw Holly’s joy at being able to race around—sometimes on one wheel—I had to admit that, for her, it was the right prescription.
LEO: a small boxer cross that came from Mexico
STEVIE: a black, blind terrier cross with eyes that looked like silver coins. He was found wandering on a busy thoroughfare. It was a miracle he wasn’t killed. The shelter vet reluctantly determined that it was too late to restore his vision, but he didn’t let his blindness stop him. Whenever he heard the jingle of a harness and a leash, he whirled in circles, eager to go outside for a walk.
CHANCE: a beautiful 25-pound American Eskimo, with the blackest eyes and a blindingly white coat (once he’d had a bath to wash away the street grime). He had many physical problems, but he didn’t let that stop him. Sometimes he just wanted to sit with my arm around him while we watched the world go by.
FLOWER: an abused pit bull with so much potential. Black with a little white on her chest; eyes gleaming with intelligence. We worked hard getting her aggression under control so she could be adopted, only to have her returned in a semi-crazed state with no explanation about what had happened. Despite our best efforts, she quickly developed “shelter stress”, and even though it was the best thing for her, it was a sad day for us all when she was put down. Such a loss for a dog who had tried so hard.
ABBIE: an extremely shy Aussie, with a beautiful “Autumn” coat. She would retreat to the opposite of her kennel and shake when anyone tried to get near her, but with a lot of patience we brought her out of her shell and into a new life.
BRIE: another Aussie. She had to have her front leg amputated because her owner left a home-made, too-tight bandage on and left it on too long, destroying the circulation in that leg. She was a brave and uncomplaining girl who just wanted to be loved. That’s what we gave her—until her new family came along, fell in love, and adopted her.
There are so many more that I could go on and on. They pass through my mind like a fancy shuffle, with the cards falling in a waterfall, moving so fast I can’t see the faces. But I know they were there, and I believe I did my own small part in helping them. What they did for me—and continue to do—is more than I can say.
Janis Flores was born in Montana, and raised in Colorado and California. After graduating from college, she received her license in Medical Technology, married Ray Flores, and they moved to northern California—she to supervise a laboratory, he to establish his horseshoeing business. She found time to take a class on the short story, but instead wrote her first book—a Gothic suspense titled HAWKSHEAD, which was subsequently published in hardcover by (then) Doubleday and company. Thirty-four novels—from historical to contemporary mainstream—followed.
SWEETER THAN WINE, published by Musapublishing.com, is her first ebook.
The award-winning TOUCHED BY FIRE has now been reissued in ebook form.
Both titles can be found at:
SWEETER THAN WINE:
Musapublishing: http://tinyurl.com/ebookSweeterThanWine
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/JF-STW
TOUCHED BY FIRE:
Musapublishing: http://tinyurl.com/musa-Touched-by-Fire
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/JFlores-TBF
You can find Jan on her website: www.janisflores.com
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/janfloresauthor
On Twitter: @JanisOFlores
0 Comments on Guest Post: Why Author Jan Flores Walks Shelter Dogs… Part 2 as of 8/25/2014 5:37:00 AM
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By: Sharon Ledwith,
on 8/18/2014
Blog: Sharon Ledwith: I came. I saw. I wrote. (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Dogs, Volunteering, Guest Post, Animal Shelters, Shelter Dogs, Animal Lovers, Musa Publishing, Mysterious Tales from Fairy Falls, Jan Flores, Add a tag
Blog: Sharon Ledwith: I came. I saw. I wrote. (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Dogs, Volunteering, Guest Post, Animal Shelters, Shelter Dogs, Animal Lovers, Musa Publishing, Mysterious Tales from Fairy Falls, Jan Flores, Add a tag
Animals are near and dear to my heart. In 2007, I had the privilege of working at our local animal shelter. From this experience I got an idea to write a book for my Mysterious Tales from Fairy Falls series—a young adult teen psychic series—now in the hands of a few reputable traditional publishers via my agents at Walden House (Books & Stuff). It was through my love of animals that I met fellow author and kindred spirit, Jan Flores, who I found loves our furry friends just as much as me. Jan has had some wonderful experiences, especially with shelter dogs, and I asked her if she’d be so kind as to share them with you. Take it away, Jan…
Five years ago, I walked into our local animal shelter and changed my life forever. It wasn’t easy. In fact, volunteering to walk shelter dogs was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I know that will probably sound silly to a lot of people: after all, what’s the big deal about walking dogs? Put a leash on and go.
For me, it wasn’t that simple. Blessed (or cursed) with a writer’s super-active imagination, I didn’t know what would be waiting behind the reception desk, locked away out of sight of the public. I pictured rows of dogs in wire kennels, unloved, unwanted, dropped off by owners who abdicated responsibility because the dog was sick, or old, or injured, or ill-mannered, or just something to be thrown away because it was, after all, only a dog.
I’ll admit it: I was anxious—scared that I’d make a fool of myself by bursting into tears as soon as I saw the dogs; sure that I wouldn’t be able to turn away from all those sad faces, begging for rescue. I was positive I’d have nightmares about frightened and confused dogs, who didn’t understand what had happened to them, or why.
Then I saw a poster that made me feel like a coward, writing checks to assuage my conscience, donating money instead of time so I wouldn’t have to see what I didn’t want to know. The poster showed a dirty, skinny little dog with a huge chain hanging from a studded collar around a neck that looked too frail to hold it up. I couldn’t look away from the depth of pain and hopelessness I saw in that dog’s eyes. The caption under the picture read:
You might not be able to help all the lost dogs in the world, but you can help the one in front of you.
That day I walked into the shelter and volunteered to walk the dogs.
SWEETER THAN WINE, published by Musapublishing.com, is her first ebook.
The award-winning TOUCHED BY FIRE has now been reissued in ebook form.
Both titles can be found at:
SWEETER THAN WINE:
Musapublishing: http://tinyurl.com/ebookSweeterThanWine
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/JF-STW
TOUCHED BY FIRE:
Musapublishing: http://tinyurl.com/musa-Touched-by-Fire
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/JFlores-TBF
You can find Jan on her website: www.janisflores.com
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/janfloresauthor
On Twitter: @JanisOFlores
0 Comments on Guest Post: Why Author Jan Flores Walks Shelter Dogs…Part 1 as of 8/18/2014 5:45:00 AM
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By: shelf-employed,
on 2/24/2011
Blog: Shelf-employed (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: E, animal shelters, poetry, book review, cats, poems, storytime, Add a tag
A librarian plans early. My mind is often several months ahead, planning library programs. I recently attended Booklist's webinar, "Spring into Books: Terrific New Titles for Youth." There were many books previewed that I look forward to seeing, but I had an eye out for poetry titles, with April's National Poetry Month bubbling in the back of my brain.
I don't have these books yet, but here are three just released or soon-to-be released poetry titles that look very promising.
Wardlaw, Lee. 2011. Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku. Ill. by Eugene Yelchin. New York. Macmillan.
It's the story of a shelter cat who finds a home - written entirely in haiku.
Just like the title says, these poems are each created from a single word. How much fun can you have with that? Lots!
And finally, from Holiday House
Jane Yolen, Naomi Shihab Nye, and others are included in I Am the Book. This one's due out in March and it looked delightful.
I'm hoping that all of these arrive at my library soon!
0 Comments on Lemonade, Won Ton, and the Book: a poetry preview as of 2/24/2011 11:37:00 PM
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By: Administrator,
on 2/12/2010
Blog: Margo Dill's Read These Books and Use Them! (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Picture Book, rescue dogs, childhood cancer, Humane Society, Animal shelters, Elementary Educators, Making Personal Connections, Personal Connections, Preschool to 1st grade teachers, Research Ideas, puppy mills, Un-Forgettable Friday, Jan Zita Grover, Grover Jan Zita, Lane Nancy, A Home for Dakota, Nancy Lane, Add a tag
Blog: Margo Dill's Read These Books and Use Them! (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Picture Book, rescue dogs, childhood cancer, Humane Society, Animal shelters, Elementary Educators, Making Personal Connections, Personal Connections, Preschool to 1st grade teachers, Research Ideas, puppy mills, Un-Forgettable Friday, Jan Zita Grover, Grover Jan Zita, Lane Nancy, A Home for Dakota, Nancy Lane, Add a tag
photo by kimbospacenut www.flickr.com
I decided to write about this book today in honor of the approaching holiday–Valentine’s Day. This book is about love in one of the most selfless and special ways we can give love–to animals who have been in puppy mills. **A portion of the sales profits from A Home for Dakota go to shelters and animal rescue groups.
*Picture book for preschoolers through second graders, contemporary fiction
*Puppy mill pup as main character
*Rating: A Home for Dakota will pull at your heartstrings and make you want to hug your pets and your children!
Short, short summary: A Home for Dakota is told from the point of view of puppy number 241, who starts his life in a puppy mill and is rescued. After being held in a shelter, a human named Emma takes him home to help him get adjusted to living with humans. Emma is patient, kind, loving, and knows how to take care of a sick dog who has lost most of his fur from infection. She names him Dakota, and he learns to trust her. When he is on the mend, Emma brings a family in to see Dakota, and he learns to live with a new owner. The book being told from the puppy’s point of view makes it that much more powerful, and in my opinion, endearing to children.
So, what do I do with this book?
1. The last page of the book has special information for parents and teachers to teach your students or children more about how to treat dogs. This information may also help you to answer some questions that come up while reading A Home for Dakota. For example, many children might not understand why Dakota has lost his hair and the illustrations show that he has bumps on his skin. As a service learning project to go with A Home for Dakota, students could bring in their pennies to donate to a local animal shelter; or you could find the animal shelter needs list online or by calling, and students could each donate one item off of the list.
2. This is the perfect book to teach animal safety, especially when finding stray dogs or cats. Children often approach stray animals and scare them, and then the animal attacks. You can also discuss with students the proper way to care for and treat an animal that is in their home. After these discussions, allow students to create posters, sharing information they learned. You can hang these in the hallway at your school or in your kitchen (if you home school) to remind others of these important lessons.
3. Children may want to know why “Sweetie” is drawn without any hair. The text never says that Sweetie has cancer, and so children who are not familiar with this may not understand. Take some time to discuss with children why Sweetie may react the way she does to Dakota at first, why she has no hair, and how Dakota and Sweetie become friends. Give children plenty of time to ask questions and share stories of family members or friends with cancer.
Don’t forget–there’s still time to win your very own copy of Hate List by Jennifer Brown. This is a young adult book, fiction, about a school shooting and how students deal with the aftermath. Make a comment on the post about the book by Feb. 14 at 8:00 p.m. CST.
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By: Jennifer Porter,
on 7/22/2009
Blog: Post-Its from a Parallel Universe (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Life, Family, Cats, dogs, Humor, pet adoption, animal shelters, Parakeets, Add a tag
Blog: Post-Its from a Parallel Universe (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Life, Family, Cats, dogs, Humor, pet adoption, animal shelters, Parakeets, Add a tag
Yes, we now have a cat. Four dogs, two parakeets, a rabbit and a cat. Oh, and ten turkeys and twenty-two layer hens. Yes, a mental impairment occurred within me yesterday when I took my daughter back to the Oakland County Animal Shelter and adopted a cat.
Sarah and I had only done volunteer duty at the animal center two times. We walked and played with several dogs and then hung out with the cats. Or should I say, this one cat. It was like he knew us. He would ask to be let out of his cage and we would sit with him in our laps in the enclosed cat hall to which he’d been incarcerated and he’d snuggle. Snuggle is the best word because it implies that he returned the affection, of which he did. On our second visit with Tigger the orange snuggle cat, we discovered a PSP sign. This is when the animals go for a last-chance adoption event. Sarah was horrified.
You should have seen Tigger when we came back the third time to take him home. A fair guess would be that he has psychic abilities.
So, now Tigger is laying next to me in the office on his first full day being our cat. He worked the outside dogs into a near state of entire frenzy when they came in last night and met him. He knocked over the parakeets’ cage this morning and it fell apart upon impact. Having a fully integrated sense of morals, he ran from the room guilt-stricken. Starsky and Hutch flew around my room, found a place to land on a picture frame and waited for me to put their small ordered world back together.
When I had, I lifted their cage to them as they perched on my window curtain rod, huddled together and desperately wanting to go home, and they hopped on the cage and back inside. They were delighted to find the other parakeet who lives with them in the cage and is only found in the mirror. They were delighted to find a new slab of seed covered in orange goo on a stick and they were especially happy that Tigger had been banished from the room.
It is hard getting to know new people. Tigger is handling it well as he has the personality of a … a … a cat. Along with a healthy does of laid backism. Not to mention the snuggling trait which won him over even to the “I pretend to be crabby and say no all the time” husband. Cookie the Pug got over him fairly quickly and re-established herself on the throne of small dog. Lily was glad for the new distraction. The outside dogs make me nervous though, so we’ll have to keep our eye on them together. Sugar and Christy and the new cat, Tigger.
Tigger is waiting to go outside. He will have to adjust to never going outside, except in his fantasies. He will have to accept that he can only look at the outside and not touch it. Much the same as my relationship with the wealthy. This is to protect him from many outside dangers – everything from coyotes to turkey vultures to large trucks racing down our driveway. And to protect some of the outside from him – the birds, the chipmunks, my outside dogs.
The moral of this story- you are asking for a cat if you go and work as a volunteer at the animal shelter. Or maybe a dog. There are a lot of nice dogs there………
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