Kids Club E-newsletter

I hope you’re all having a woof-tastic week like me! This month, we’ve tracked down a whole bunch of stories and other fun things to keep you entertained all day long — well, for an hour or two anyway!
     Read on to find out what classic canine tail (oops, tale!) has been made into a smash-hit musical, why a George the Great Dane is set to become a super star and how a doggy treat company in the UK baked the world’s biggest dog biscuit!
     And don’t forget to grab a copy of the latest issue of Dogs Life #98 November/December 2009. As always, there’s bound to be a bunch of interesting stories that you’ll enjoy and plenty of paw-some competitions for you to enter!
 

Catch ya soon… and enjoy!

Natasha – Kids Club Coordinator

Crazy canine tails from around the world...

A delightful doggy musical

 

Which classic children’s book that’s filled with a bunch of cute canine characters has been turned into a Broadway musical? The 101 Dalmatians, of course!
     If you haven’t read the book by Dodie Smith or seen the classic Disney movie based on the popular novel, The 101 Dalmatians tells the story of two loveable Dalmatians, Pongo and Missis, and what happens when their 15 puppies go missing. Who’s the main suspect? Cruela de Vil, a horrible woman who has dog-napped the spotted pups, along with 86 other Dalmatians, to make a fur coat.
     Although humans play the popular spotty characters in the touring musical, 15 Dalmatians from shelters and rescue groups across the US were chosen to play special roles in the show and have since been given a second chance at life. In fact, while on tour the shelter-dog stars get a new home on a large ranch in Florida and travel like rock stars on a specially-designed doggy tour bus.
     So are there any doggy divas amongst the Dalmatians chosen to star in the musical? According to animal trainer Joel Slaven, the answer is no. However, he adds, there is one pooch in particular – Rascal, a puppy who was rescued from the side of the road with a broken leg - who captures hearts wherever he goes.
    “I thought — ‘Just want I need, a four-month-old puppy with a broken leg’ — but [Rascal] was my guy,” Slaven said in a recent interview. “He goes out with the big dogs and watches them. He's learning from them and he's like, ‘I can do this, this is what I was meant to be.’”
     Check out www.the101dalmatiansmusical.com to find out more about The 101 Dalmatians Musical!

A tall tale

If you think your pooch is tall, then check out George, a gigantic four-year-old Great Dane from Tuscon, Arizona in the US.
     Standing at almost 107 centimetres tall and weighing in at a staggering 111 kilograms, George may just be the greatest of Great Danes – a title that his owner Dave Nasser aims to snatch from the current holder when the next edition of the Guinness Book of World Records is released in 2010.
     Although George towers over almost every pooch he meets, it seems that the loveable dog is just as well-known in his neighbourhood for his friendly, loyal nature. “[George] really thinks he's a tiny dog and wants to sit on your lap all the time. He wants to be right with you,” Nasser said in a recent interview. 
     So what’s life like for a dog so tall? According to his owners, George chows down apprxomiately 45 kilograms of dog food every three weeks and produces just under two kilograms of doggy doo every time he does his business. The Nassar’s also make sure their much-loved pet gets a fitful sleep at night, with George bunking down in a double bed set up in his owner’s own bedroom!

Take a chunk out of this!

Warner Brothers has come up with a novel way to celebrate the release of the new DVD Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins and Scooby-Doo playset — by making the world’s largest dog biscuit!
     Prepared by the UK-based Canine Cookie Company, the record-breaking monster snack measures a staggering 3.3 by 1.2 metres, making the massive doggy treat 2,332 times the size of an average dog biscuit.
     Given its size, you can imagine how difficult it was to bake and manoeuvre the big biscuit. According to organisers, it took a team of two bakers, one baking assistant and two chefs more than two hours to mix, four hours to bake, three hours to cool and one to ice the bone-shaped monstrosity. Several muscley men were also needed to transport the treat.
     What ingredients were needed to make the giant Scooby snack? The Canine Cookie Company team have revealed that their baking team followed a standard dog biscuit recipe, but with quadruple the usual quantities, including:
- 59.5kg of plain flour
- 21kg of vegetable oil
- 21kg agave nectar
- 140 eggs  

     After debuting the mega Scooby treat at Harrods Pet Kingdom, London, the biscuit was donated to The Dogs Trust, a large animal shelter, where it was gobbled up by plenty of pooches in need of a good feed!

Picture © Gareth Davies

Three cool things to do this month...                                         

#1 PURINA WORLD DOG GAMES

Saturday 31 October to Sunday 1 November 2009

Do you love dogs and exciting, action-packed entertainment? The it sounds like the PURINA® World Dog Games, to be held at Sydney’s Acer Arena, is just your thing! Race on over to www.worlddoggames.com.au for more info on the weekend Dog Fest and sporting spectacular.

#2 EMERALD CHARITY DOG WALK

Sunday 15 November 2009

#3 SEEING EYE DOGS OPEN DAY

Sunday 22 November 2009

 

Tell us about your dog…                                                                                                  

I love Leon!

Awwwww, isn’t Leon a cutie! His owner Lockie is a loyal Kids Club member from Ivanhoe, VIC.

Do you think your precious pooch is the best pet in the world? Or have a barking mad story to tell us? Then we want to know about it!
     Tell us all about your furry friend by flicking an email to dogslife@universalmagazines.com.au with the subject heading “Kids Club: Tell us about your dog…”. And don’t forget to send a happy snap too!

PAW-TASTIC PRIZES

 

What are we giving away this month? Thanks to our sponsor The Show’em How Much Your Love’em Company, we’re giving away 10 paw-tastic Love’em prize packs that your pooch is sure to love!
     Flick to page 97 of Dogs Life #98 November/December 2009 (OUT NOW!) to find out how you can be a winner!