MAGGIE: the dog who changed my life

MAGGIE: the dog who changed my life
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Friday, February 28, 2014

Dog Voice and Sight Program Meeting Correction with Boulder City Council & OSMP

After my last post regarding the March 5 meeting of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) and the Boulder City Council regarding OSMP recommendations to update the Voice and Sight Tag Program in Boulder, I received an email from Steve Armstead, OSMP Environmental Planner and Project Lead informing me of the following:

"On March 5, an ordinance modifying the city code to enable the program updates will be presented to the Boulder City Council. As an initial introduction of the ordinance, this item is expected to be placed on the council’s 'consent agenda' which means there isn’t a public hearing for the item. A public hearing on the proposed changes will likely happen at a second meeting tentatively planned for April 1."

I inquired with FIDOS and was told that "the Voice and Sight discussion may be moved off the agenda all together as there is a discussion about a Sister City in Japan. We are working with the city to make sure it
will be on that date and will be sending out a newsletter with the final proposals and update on the
Council schedule on Friday the 28th or Saturday, after OSMP releases the final proposals...We can however provide feedback to the Council during the open session which precedes the meeting." This is important as it will give the new council members 2 weeks to consider about what they hear.

"What you can do is after 4.30pm on Friday 28th, sign up to speak at this link  http://www.eventbrite.com/e/city-council-meeting-march-5-2014-600-pm-registration-9308456845?aff=eorg.  But if it's not in the agenda, you won't have a place to speak, so you may want to go to this link to voice your opinion in an email to the Boulder City Council on the proposed restrictive changes to the Voice and Sight Program for dogs and their guardians on Boulder Open Space

"On the second reading it will be on the agenda and people will be able to talk directly to the item..." But by that time, says FIDOS from past experience many councilors have made up their minds by then. So Boulder dog guardians please let your voices be heard!

Click title below if you want to order  my book(s):

Monday, February 24, 2014

Protect Boulder Dogs' Freedom on Open Space

From Boulder FIDOS and B4ROS:

Help me continue playing on Boulder trails
Boulder City Council will meet to have the first reading of OSMP’s extreme proposed Green Tag program changes on Wednesday, March 5th.

Please attend to show your support for your fellow dog guardians, and to show your opposition to the proposed green tag program changes. You're asked to come to the meeting wearing your dog leash, to plan to speak at the meeting and/or write to the Council members at council@bouldercolorado.gov.

Here are some talking points for a speech or letter recommended by FIDOS (Friends Interested in Dogs and Open Space and B4ROS (Boulder for Reasonable Open Space) to oppose OSMP’s extreme proposed changed to the Green Tag program. I have copied all of the following verbatim:

1) OSMP is unnecessarily attempting to punish the majority of dog guardians for the infractions of a few.
2) OSMP’s proposed changes are unfair. OSMP has gone over the top in targeting the single user group of dog guardians with these costly, complex, and excessively punitive proposals.
3) Regarding offenses such as one strike loss of Green Tag for chasing wildlife, or two strike loss of Green Tag if your dog does not come IMMEDIATELY when called --- No other user group faces loss of open space privileges for committing any offenses on or off of open space. Climbers do not lose open space privileges if they violate a seasonal raptor closure. Mountain bikers do not lose open space privileges for biking on a trail closed to bikers. Hikers do not lose open space privileges for hiking on closed trails, or for creating social trails. People do not lose open space privileges for harassing wildlife while trying to take that perfect photograph. Dog guardians should not be unfairly targeted with the harsh punishments outlined in OSMP’s proposals, which would even include Green Tag loss for a single offense of chasing a squirrel into a tree - on Open Space land or anywhere in the city of Boulder.
4) The $734,000 price tag, for just the first year, needed to implement OSMP’s proposed Green Tag Program changes, then followed by a $135,000 ongoing annual cost, is too high. This money could perhaps be better spent on building new trails.
5) Historically, Boulder has always been a dog friendly place. Just look at the picture in the 1967 first Open Space tax poster. If we don’t allow dogs proper off-leash access, only the wealthy, who can afford acres of land, will have this privilege. This culture of dog friendliness has been eroding gradually, and now there is another OSMP proposal to introduce a much more restrictive and controlled environment, with a complex set of rules and punitive regulations. Dogs are family members. Dogs need to run and to exercise. Dogs benefit us all by making us lead healthier lifestyles.

Maddie loves to run on Boulder trails
OSMP has used your tax dollars to prepare and fund unnecessary changes to the Voice and Sight program. These changes will have only 'social' impact (memo to council 6/18/13), designed solely to reduce dog related 'conflict' on open space. This perceived conflict is supported by carefully designed studies paid for by OSMP to counter previous studies conducted by CU.

Voice and Sight dog guardians will face increased fees, penalties and revocation of V&S open space access as well as DUI style re-education for an enhanced range of infractions. No other open space user cohort is governed by regulation of this scope and magnitude.

Click title below if you want to order  my book(s):

Friday, February 7, 2014

Craigslist Inadvertently Causing Harm to Animals

According to the Care2 petition site, "Craigslist is helping dog abusers find animals to torture by failing to enforce their own rules." You won't find the animals for sale in the "for sale" section because it is supposedly against the policy of Craigslist. Some dogs and cats are offered for free. The concern is that animals given away on Craigslist could be used for research facilities, as bait animals for dog fighting, or by people who torture and kill animals. Technically, you can’t sell animals on Craigslist, but you can charge a re-homing fee. This may open a door for puppy mill operators, too.

What can you do? You can visit  the Care 2 petition site to sign the petition to DEMAND AN END TO SELLING DOGS ON CRAIGSLIST. You can help save the sweet innocent face above from the poor dog below.

Ariel Wulff made a great suggestion in the article Pets in Danger on Craigslist. Because Craigslist reaches every major city in US, she viewed the Craigslist pet ads every day in her city and skimmed every dog and cat ad. She wrote a short letter to each person  advertising their pet on Craigslist for free. Ariel believes that "many of these people love their pets and don’t even want to get rid of them, but are in desperate situations and feel like they have no other choice. They honestly do not know the danger they are putting their beloved pets in."  She suggests we can do the same in our cities. It's a way to do something to help dogs and cats that you may never have thought of.

Check out my books on Amazon if you are interested:
MAGGIE the dog who changed my life  
FINAL YEARS Stories of Parent Care, Loss and Lives Changed