DOG OWNERSHIP

Katie Helf of Chickasha, Oklahoma, is very angry about something we said in the article on big dogs attacking little dogs in the August issues lead story.

You have your heart set on a certain breed - and you want it to be a puppy - so you go on the Internet to track down the dog of your dreams. And you find her - shes absolutely adorable, just seven weeks old, available (but you better act fast), and, better still, comes from an organization that has the words Humane Society in its name. In other words, the dog you want is even a rescue animal; youre getting exactly what you desire and saving a life in the bargain. The only hitch is that she lives 1,000 miles south and has to be shipped north. No sweat. The rescuing organization will transport the dog for you; you can pick her up near your home from a group where the dog will be dropped off. Is it a good idea?

For the last day or two my dog has stopped urinating. He strains and maybe a few drops come out, but theres no stream to speak of. I know that a dog will sometimes miss a bowel movement. Is this the same thing?

When a dog died last March during a Houston-to-New York flight on United Airlines after being stowed in an overhead compartment, a tragic mistake the company acknowledged and apologized for, United temporarily suspended its program for allowing dogs (and cats) to fly on its planes while reviewing its safety policies.

Can littermates recognize their siblings that they havent seen in a long time? My dog and his four littermates are all from Tennessee but ended up in New England and were adopted out to different families by the time they were 12 weeks old. Now they are five, and three of us owners got together for a meet-up recently. We thought the dogs would be ecstatic to see each other again, but while they certainly had a good time horsing around together, they did not appear to have an affinity for each other that was any greater than their affinity for other dogs they have come to know and get along with. At the same time, I have read about littermates so thrilled to see each other again after having been separated for a long time that youd think they were on one of those TV shows where adoptees try to find their birth families. Whats the answer?

Frances Fineberg of Oviedo, Florida, is worried for her two-year-old golden retriever, Amos, and for good reason. He hates going in the car, but the Fineberg family is about to take him on a vacation that involves an 8-hour road trip. They cant board him while they are away because he is a service dog. Ms. Fineberg believes its not the heat of the car thats causing the problem.

Wolves are raised by their mothers and fathers until they are two years old. Not so, dogs. Their mothers are done with them at weaning, around the time a puppy is about 8 weeks of age. Perhaps thats why theres such a high mortality rate among pups not living as pets; more than 80 percent of dogs die in their first year of life without human care. But not to worry - there appears to be an across-species evolutionary process at work that helps helpless, newly motherless puppies get adopted into human homes. It involves a young dogs peak adorableness.

My town has a Facebook page where people go to post announcements or ask questions. When I said on it that I was writing an article on what to do if a big dog attacks a little dog and asked if anyone had stories to share, the responses started flying. A particularly dramatic one came from Todd Alvey, whose 40-pound mixed breed was attacked by two dogs who must have weighed 100 pounds each, he says.

Who among us hasnt felt at least a twinge of guilt when leaving the house to go shopping and watched the beseeching, or even forlorn, look of a dog about to be left alone? Wouldnt it be great, you might think to yourself, if stores would just loosen their policies so your well-behaved pet could come along with you?

First the bad news. The geographic distribution of ticks that can infect dogs (and people) with Lyme disease is spreading. The Northeast has had the problem from the outset, and no area of the U.S. is completely Lyme disease-free, but the Companion Animal Parasite Control Council now says theres going to be an increase this year, with Lyme disease making its way to areas that have not been of particular concern, like the Midwest and the Southeast.

We are about to make a big move across the country, and I am concerned about the emotional well being of my six-year-old American Eskimo dog, Bibi, who has never known any other home. Whats the best way to help her make the transition?

My 11-year-old Lab mix was having trouble breathing, so I took him to the vet, who diagnosed pneumonia. But now the doctor is saying he has to have an operation to correct some trouble in his voice box, which caused the difficulty breathing in the first place and also led to the pneumonia. Does that make any sense? How could a problem with the voice box lead to labored breathing or pneumonia? I have gone to this vet for years but now fear she is trying to bilk me.