Wendy Morrell and Udo and their good friends Karen Ruddlesden and Coco will get their chance July 13th to help move the torch to start the games. Wendy and Karen are also using this opportunity to help spotlight a couple important service dog charities in the UK:
- Dogs for the Disabled
- Medical Detection Dogs
Both of these organizations train dogs that help make people more independent and Wendy and Udo travel across the globe speaking at conferences to help improve the lives of people with disabilities and impairments.

For Wendy, this year’s torch carrying will bring back memories of carrying the torch in 2008 with service dog Caesar. Wendy’s work with Caesar and Udo has dramatically helped increase public awareness of the incredible impact from service dogs.

Kudos to Wendy and Karen for the awesome work you’re doing to educate people about the amazing impact of service dogs in people’s lives. Be sure to give Udo and Coco some extra belly rubs from me and all of your Fit As Fido friends.

What is cystic fibrosis? It’s a genetic disease where mucus is extra thick. This thick mucus can fill the lungs making it hard to breath. This mucus also interferes with the body’s ability to absorb nutrients from food. Cystic fibrosis can be a devastating illness for the children and young adults who struggle with it. Fortunately, through research, more treatments are now available to help reduce the impact that cystic fibrosis has, improving both quality and length of life.

Visit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation website to find a walk in your area and make a donation. We’ll be walking with our friends Paul and Olivia and, of course, their fundraising mascot Lacey. Lacey follows in the pawprints of that famous pug Chloe who was always the star of the Great Strides walks.

Olivia and fundraising pug Chloe at a Great Strides walk a few years ago

Please join us walking and supporting the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and see what terrific pups show us this year!

In new research published in this month’s Center For Disease Control’s Emerging Infectious Diseases journal, researchers from North Carolina State University suggest a possible link between cat scratch disease bacteria and some rheumatology diseases. In this study, blood samples were collected from almost 300 patients being treated by a rheumatologist. About half of the patients had been diagnosed with Lyme disease, with the others having arthritis, chronic fatigue, or fibromyalgia. When the blood samples were tested for Bartonella bacteria, two in three patients tested positive for being exposed and two in five patients were infected.

Bartonella bacteria were identified in:
- Over half of patients with Lyme disease
- Over 25 percent with arthritis
- Over 25 percent chronic fatigue
- Over 10 percent with fibromyalgia

The researchers didn’t have comparison information about how many healthy people also had Bartonella bacteria in their blood or whether the bacteria could be linked with causing or worsening patient’s symptoms of joint pain or inflammation. This research, however, may spur new studies investigating possible infectious links for common rheumatology conditions and potential new treatments.

In Fit As Fido and The Power of Wagging Tails, you can read about medical studies proving volunteering is great for our health and tips on getting started volunteering as a therapy dog handler.

Government statistics show that one in four adults does some volunteer work. Think you don’t have time to volunteer? Interestingly, these statistics show that those people who do volunteer are married, working, middle-aged adults with children. People in their early 20′s were least likely to volunteer and volunteering also dropped when people hit retirement. The average volunteer spent about 1 hour per week volunteering. About half of those volunteering started volunteering on their own and the other half started after someone asked them to volunteer. So in case you’re someone who needs to be asked, “Wanna join me as a therapy dog volunteer? You’ll have great fun bonding with your dog. You’ll be amazed to see how your silly little dog can make huge changes in people’s lives. And you’ll get healthier along the way. What more could you want?!”

Read more about the health benefits of volunteering in today’s PetMeds Blog.

My terriers brought me joy, new friends, research projects, and books. My terriers have also shown me a tangible way to say thanks to men and women who have served and sacrificed for me in the military. And in today’s PetMeds Blog, you’ll read more about where your dog might take you.

So tell me — where has your dog taken?

Now, I’m starting a companion book designed for people with cancer — Your Cancer And Your Dog — that will share similar information about how they might tap into healing support from their own pet dog or other dogs they may encounter along the way. I have all the research studies that prove what we dog owners already know — dogs are good for your health. Now I need to add personal stories that will bring this research to life and I’m hoping you might have a special story you’d like to share:

- I’m looking for stories of people with cancer who have been touch or helped along their cancer journey by a dog.
- It could be a person’s own dog helped them when they were diagnosed, going through treatments, or as a cancer survivor.
- It could be someone else’s dog — such as a therapy dog — made an impact.
- I’m looking for stories that show case dogs helping when cancer is first diagnosed or when people are going through different treatments or have finished treatment.
- I’m looking for stories that show how dogs can reduce common cancer-related symptoms, like pain, isolation, loneliness, and fatigue.

Stories will showcase those special moments between person and dog where a healing connection is made. We don’t expect dogs will cure cancer, but they can be a wonderful resource along the journey. If you have a story you’d like to share, please let me know.

Wouldn’t YOUR dog look great in a Pawz For Wounded Vets patriotic bandanna?
Make your tax deductible donation to the Pawz For Wounded Vets program. If you’d rather write a check, send me a message and I’ll give you the Doggie Donation Corps mailing address — 100% of all donations go directly to help train service dogs for wounded Vets. Then tell me about your donation, take a bite out of our fundraising pie, and I’ll send you a bright red bandanna for you dog to show his or her support in your neighborhood.

Check out my Pet Meds Health Blog: Live life with the attitude of a Lab

Before heading home, we popped into Washington’s Tavern and imagined ourselves enjoying a cool dish of water as we shared stories with fellow travelers along Braddock’s new road that would become a model for the nation’s first national road connecting western Pennsylvania to Ohio to promote expansion and commerce.

Toby and I felt privileged to be able to relive a bit of history and were so pleased this park welcomes four-legged history buffs on their grounds.