For awhile now, I've been wanting to volunteer for something. There are so many causes that need help that it was almost overwhelming for me to decide what I could truly make a difference with, but I think I've found it. I've started a web site/organization called Adopt An Animal (at adoptananimal.org) in order to help homeless animals find loving, responsible homes. My friend Josh from work is helping me out, my wife's offering public administration know-how, and hopefully soon many more will volunteer their time. So far we have one animal, a female dog, available for adoption.

"Avril" was a stray who wandered around our workplace campus and was lucky enough to be taken in and kindly fostered with another of my coworkers, Lindsey (sorry if I spelled it wrong!) I took some video of the dog Lindsey and her husband are fostering, posted it on Adopt An Animal's website, Facebook, and YouTube, and will offer it in a podcast as soon as iTunes approves it (should be any time now.) Though we definitely want to help strays find homes and foster families place their fostered pets, we also hope to volunteer our services to local animal shelters and rescue organizations and offer help with video and other online media like podcasts, blogs, websites, etc. I think most animal welfare groups are short-staffed, under-budget, don't have the multimedia experience, or all of the above, so Adopt An Animal will help where it's needed. Also, though we're currently in Indianapolis and will begin by assisting Central-Indiana pets, we'd love to expand as much as possible. So if you'd like to offer your services, no matter where you are, let me know! And if you're fostering a pet or if you're part of an animal welfare organization and would like help with adopting your animals, be sure to visit AdoptAnAnimal.org and let us know, or contact me through this blog. (2-27-2008 update: Avril's been adopted! Her foster family decided to keep her. One down, millions more to go :) )

Indiana, animals, podcastTristanFebruary 25, 2008Indiana, Indianapolis, adoption, animals, cats, dogs, pets, websites Comment

BBC coverage of Japanese whaling; what’s the point of blogging, anyway?

I've written a few times about this season's whale hunt by the Japanese, but have realized that the BBC's Jonah Fisher is a much better source for it. He's aboard Greenpeace ship Esperanza and is also keeping a journal of the events, so I'll just link to his diary. Rather than me regurgitating what I've read elsewhere, you can go straight to the source. That's my problem with blogs: most of them are used simply for regurgitation of info that can almost always be found more easily and with better information elsewhere. This whole "news aggregator" phenomenon of Digg, Newsvine, Reddit, etc., etc., etc. often leads viewers/readers to blogs with summaries of other stories, so what's the point? I guess blogs are good for diary-like entries; they're good for friends and family to check out and stay updated; they're good for illegally posting copyrighted content. But what else are they good for? My guess is absolutely nothing (UNHH - say it again!) Oh wait, they are good for one more thing: wasting time.

animals, asides, environment, mediaTristanJanuary 22, 2008Japan, activism, animals, blogging, environment, time, whales Comment

Taking your dog on holiday/vacation? Some things to consider…

This is a little late (meant to post before the holidays), but good nonetheless. Almost every time my wife and I take our three rather large dogs (Diva's pictured, as puppy, to the left) to a friend or family member's house, I grapple with whether or not I really want to deal with them (the dogs, not the people.) They can be a lot of hassle and work, but in the end, they usually win. So I try to be as considerate as possible to our hosts, though it's not always the easiest thing to do. This New York Times article has some entertaining stories and tips about taking your pets on vacation with you, especially on holidays to friends' or relatives' houses. And though I do refer to my dogs as members of my family, I hope I'm not nearly as extreme as some of the owners in the story. An excerpt: Difficult guests are no longer limited to humans. The boundaries between humans and animals have been so eaten away by pet therapists, pet designer outfits and pet bar mitzvahs, that it has reached a point where devoted owners, who treat their animals as privileged children, lose all perspective on the pet’s role in their social lives. More American households have pets than ever — 68.7 million of them in 2006, according to a new survey by the American Veterinary Medical Association, up 12.4 percent from 2001. Among dog owners, 53.5 percent considered their pets to be members of the family, the survey found. For cats, the number was 49.2 percent. And the term “family member” should not be used lightly. Ari Henry Barnes, who works in a New York law firm, is so devoted to his cat, Romeo, that he wipes the animal’s behind every time he does “a stinky boom boom.” Many four-legged family members are routine travelers. Derek Welsh, the president of www.bringyourpet.com, a “pet-friendly” hotel and lodging directory, estimates the number at roughly 10 million a year. “If you do get a green light, bring a lot of treats for both your dog and the human host.”