Adopt a Black Dog

Seems animal shelters have as much trouble placing black dogs as they do black cats. There's actually a national "Black Cat Awareness Day" (observed on the twenty-first of October). Do we need a "Black Dog Awareness Day" too?

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/9193883/why_dont_people_adopt_black_dogs.html?cat=53

As noted earlier in this blog, my online identity is a black cat (and animal shelters are welcome to name animals, especially black ones with amber eyes, either "Priscilla" or "King" depending on gender), because the whole Cat Sanctuary is a memorial to a wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime pet who was a black cat. She was named "Magic" because it's practically a generic name for any black animal. She lived up to the name, though; her ability to communicate and make friends across species barriers, even making pets of possums, really was uncanny. I've always been glad that this cat was given to me by a friend. What a loss it would have been if she'd been overlooked in a shelter just because she looked so ordinary.

My recommendations: (1) Don't put animals in shelters.

(2) If you're going to adopt a shelter pet, make a conscious choice to look for the black ones. If you want a quiet, independent pet, look for the ones who fade into the shadows at the back of the cage. If you don't mind living with an animal who has a dominant personality, pay attention to the ones who call out or reach out to demand that you release them from the cage.