DROOL – Issue No. 2 by bixbi

BY B I X B I — I S SU E N O. 2

DAMN NEAR PERFECT Fresh meat kibble with a freeze-dried coating to give it a boost of flavor. Plus, industry-leading nutrition and digestibility without the insane price. It really is the closest thing to perfect dog food.

DOG FOOD

BY BIXBI—ISSUE NO.2

EDITOR-IN -CHIEF

James Crouch

MANAGING EDITOR

Alynn Evans

EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Chris Nelson

CREATIVE DIRECTION & DESIGN

TMBRWN

DESIGN PRODUCTION

Jennifer Roberts COPY EDITOR

Christian Glazar DIRECTOR OF MARKETING

John Webster

NO BAD IDEAS EDITORS

Rachel D’Agostino Melissa Van Vactor

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Alyssa Hurst, Ben Giese, Chris Nelson, Eric Weiner, Mallory Anna Emerson, Patrick Leone, Sophie Gamand CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Chris Matlock, Dave Camara, Julian Dahl, Parker Rice, Roy Son, Sophie Gamand, Taylor Fiore CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS

Adam Dougherty, Jeremy Fish, Joanna Dudoń, Jud Beaumont, Kate Kimmel, Nate Pack, Susan Roseman BIXBI Pet PO Box 7327 Boulder, CO 80306 303.666.1070 No part of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted in any shape or form without written consent from BIXBI. For general inquiries, story and photography submissions, contact us at droolideas@bixbipet.com. © 2021 copyright BIXBI Printed in the USA

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2

ISSUE NO.2

30 One Cuddle at A Time

“...ANIMALS BECAME MY SAFE SPACE. WITH THEM, THERE WAS NO MISUNDERSTANDING. THERE WAS JUST PURE, UNENCUMBERED FRIENDSHIP…I DEVELOPED MY RELATIONSHIP WITH ANIMALS THROUGH ART...I WOULD PHOTOGRAPH OUR DOGS, MY BELOVED BUNNY, AND MY VISITS TO THE LOCAL ZOO, WHERE, THROUGH CLEVER CROPS AND JUDICIOUS ZOOMS, I ERASED THE CAGES, OPENED UP THE SKIES, AND CREATED THE ILLUSION THAT THE CAPTIVE ANIMALS WERE FREE...” 10

Train. Pursue. Rescue Ten-month-old golden retriever puppy Neve is the newest member of Colorado Rapid Avalanche Deployment (C-RAD), which trains dogs for avalanche rescue.

Woman’s Best Friend Jean Bolinger rides her HarleyDavidson bagger across all 50 states, but she refuses to take off without Cricket, her beloved Boston Terrier.

Q&A: Gilles Marini There is more to this 44-year-old, French-American actor and supermodel than his dramatic bone structure and bulging muscles might suggest.

Reborn in Retirement If it weren’t for the faded blue tattoos in each of Baloo’s ears, you’d never guess that the playful pup was a former racing greyhound.

Homegrown Why BIXBI trusts the Barrett family and its farm to produce the best, highest quality dog food, manufactured in Minnesota.

Dogs of War Dogs have fought alongside us for longer than you might think, and their many contributions are far more astonishing than you can imagine.

Issue No.2 Cover Rum by Brooklyn-based photographer Sophie Gamand. Rum was from a litter of 12 puppies rescued from a California shelter and transferred to Oregon. All puppies from the litter were adopted into loving homes.

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

JUST A DOG? THREE WORDS HAVE NEVER BEEN MORE WRONG.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

I C A N ’ T S TA N D I T W H E N I hear someone say,

Left: An amphibious landing practice at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, preparing for deployment in the South Pacific. Right: If Colorado’s Rapid Avalanche Deployment (C-RAD) teams want to save lives, rescue dogs and human trainers must share deep trust and respect.

“It’s just a dog.” Just a dog?! It’s an insult that echoes deep inside of me, like someone just badmouthed Santa, or newborn babies, or my kindergarten teacher … just a dog? Since 600 B.C. dogs have loyally served as soldiers— tracking enemy troops, sensing landmines, jumping out of planes, and bravely standing on the frontlines —and for decades, police dogs have chased down criminals, sniffed out drugs, and detected explosives. Just a dog? Dogs have saved families from house fires, nursed baby animals from other species, recovered victims buried by avalanches, and protected humans from attacks by other animals. Just a dog? Dogs have found cancer in humans before doctors have, and dogs have predicted a person’s seizure before it happened. Dogs selflessly assist people in wheelchairs and soothe individuals with psychological conditions, and they function as eyes for the blind and ears for the deaf. Just a dog?! Well, if Superman is just a dude, or if Mother Teresa is just some lady, then I guess a dog is “just a dog,” but we don’t see it that way. We understand how important dogs are to our happiness and appreciate how much these furry companions do for us. That’s why we recognize and celebrate these amazing animals and their many contributions to our lives. In issue two of Drool we’ll introduce you to a lot of wonderful dogs, and I promise that not one of them is “just a dog.”

Cheers, James Crouch

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

We’re 90% digestible.

SHE’S 90% SURE THE MAILMAN WILL ROB THE HOUSE. We’re both damn near perfect.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Fresh meat. Zero meat meals. Simple ingredients. Plus, industry-leading nutrition and digestibility without the insane price. It really is the closest thing to perfect dog food.

DAMN NEAR PERFECT

DOG FOOD

DDRROOOOLL— —IISSSU SUEENNO. O.21

“...THE CONSTANT COMPANIONSHIP OF DOGS HAS EXPOSED ME TO THEIR LIVELY PERSONALITIES, AND MY ART TOOK A SERIOUS TURN WHEN I EMPLOYED MY DOG FRIENDS AS SUBJECTS; THEIR EXPRESSIVE QUALITIES INSPIRED THE STORIES TO BECOME SUBJECTS WITH PASSION AND PURPOSE...” Susan Roseman

Hand-colored linocut www.artieart.com

Cabin Fever, 2016

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

DRO OL N O. 2

TRAIN. PURSUE. RESCUE.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

THE LIFESAVING DOGS OF COLORADO RAPID AVALANCHE DEPLOYMENT (C-RAD) W O R D S B Y A LY S S A H U R S T P H O T O G R A P H S B Y D AV E C A M A R A

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Previous: Trained avalanche search and rescue dogs love the work, treating each pursuit with necessary determination and sustained optimism. Left: Recco, a legendary and multi-disciplined search and rescue dog, digging through snow blocks to receive her reward. The dogs are trained to alert in different ways – Recco begins digging. Right: Dog and handler from Grand Targhee Resort in Idaho training together. It’s critical that handlers watch their dogs constantly so they don’t miss a subtle alert.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

MOST 10-MONTH- OLD PUPPIES

have almost figured out leash-walking and can finally be trusted at home alone, but golden retriever Neve [Nev-ee] has a few extra accomplishments under her collar. She’s as comfortable on a chair lift as any Copper Mountain skier, she sits confidently atop a snowmobile as it charges up snowy slopes, and now she is learning how to stay calm aboard rescue helicopters as they traverse Colorado’s vast wilderness. One day soon, Neve will join dozens of dogs as a member of Colorado Rapid Avalanche Deployment (C-RAD), a non-profit organization that trains and validates dog teams for avalanche rescue. C-RAD took shape in 1987 after the devastating “Peak 7” avalanche killed four people in Breckenridge.

The slide left 20-foot-high piles of debris across 23 acres. Three days of search and rescue efforts were arduous, highlighting the need for more efficient, specialized resources. A local newspaper reported that few of the skiers that day were armed with appropriate search and rescue gear, and while dogs were eventually deployed to help, they were too late to save lives. Today, avalanche beacons and digital transceivers are the first line of defense if you’re buried in backcountry debris, but the next best chance at survival is being sniffed out by a well-trained avalanche dog. Puppy Neve’s owner and trainer is Nick Slaton, who spent the past five years handling avalanche rescue dog Recco, a golden retriever

who served for 11 years and was a bonafide legend in the rescue community. During her career, Recco was deployed on nearly 100 rescue missions, and Slaton says, “She just accelerated everyone’s expectations of what these dogs can do, and set the bar much higher. These dogs are all so talented, and the teamwork that can happen is amazing to see, but Recco just stepped it up in the right direction.” When Slaton first joined C-RAD, he was new to the avalanche rescue world and had plenty to learn, but the six-year-old golden retriever was an excellent teacher and became his shadow. She taught Slaton that each dog communicates its findings in a unique way; some dogs bark, but Recco

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Left: Piper, a puppy-in-training from Beaver Creek Ski Patrol, performing a run-away foundation drill. Middle: C-RAD president, Doug Lesch, and his validated black lab, Keena, performing a search drill. Right: Neve and Nick at their first training as a team.

Photograph top right: Copper Ski Mountain Resort

EACH C-RAD TEAM HAS 20 MINUTES TO... SUCCESSFULLY CLEAR THE SCENE, AND AT THE END OF THE TEST, THE DOGS WIN THE ULTIMATE REWARD: A ROUGH AND RAUCOUS GAME OF TUG OF WAR. preferred digging. “I learned that as a handler I needed to keep my eyes on her constantly,” Slaton explains. “If I see her digging, it’s very obvious to me something is there. It was another level of that trust and communication.” Recco passed away in September 2020, and as he remembers his old friend, Slaton says, “As much as we’ve talked about how great she was at search and rescue, and how solid she was on the working side, she was also the sweetest, most loving at-home dog.” It won’t be easy for Neve to fill the void left by Recco, but Slaton is confident that his new companion has what it takes to be a

bold, strong rescue dog. He says that by teaching Neve simple, low-risk actions, like jumping on the play set at a playground, she will be far more comfortable listening to commands and taking action when the time comes to load into a helicopter during a high-stress situation. He says, “I pick her up and put her on my shoulders to build our bond and our trust, to make sure she does what I ask of her and that she does it confidently.” Slaton will spend the next couple years preparing Neve to become C-RAD validated, a process that ensures a dog team is

skilled in handling an avalanche scene; validated teams must be prepared to interview witnesses, efficiently find all buried victims, and extract them. As Neve gets older and approaches her validation test, her training will get more intense, according to Greg Dumas, who serves on C-RAD’s board of directors and is a handler on a C-RAD validated team with his five-year-old German shepherd Sasha. Now that Sasha is a validated dog, Dumas arranges weekly trainings, setting up burial drills to keep her drive high and tap into her special skillset, but for dogs below the age of three, trainings are much

more frequent and intense — and all of that training culminates in the all-important validation test. Dogs and handlers perform their simulated avalanche search in a 100-meter-by-100-meter site where between one and three human beings are buried beneath the snow, waiting patiently for rescue. Each C-RAD team has 20 minutes to execute all of the necessary tasks and successfully clear the scene, and at the end of the test, the dogs win the ultimate reward: a rough and raucous game of tug of war. “If you’re boring and you’re just waving a dog toy around, that’s not exciting,” Dumas says. “You have

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

SCENTS-ABILITY IT IS NO COINCIDENCE THAT A DOG’S FACE IS OCCUPIED ALMOST ENTIRELY BY ITS SNOUT. AS HUMANS, WE NAVIGATE OUR WORLD THROUGH SIGHT. RELYING SO HEAVILY ON OUR EYES, IT’S EASY TO FORGET OTHER SENSES PLAY INTO OUR EXPERIENCE AND PERCEPTION. IF OUR DOGS COULD TALK, INSTEAD OF TELLING US ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE SEEING, THEY WOULD UNDOUBTEDLY HAVE MORE TO SAY ABOUT WHAT THEY ARE SMELLING. IN HER 2015 TED -ED TALK, ALEXANDRA HOROWITZ, PROFESSOR AND HEAD OF THE DOG COGNITION LAB AT BARNARD COLLEGE, GIVES US SOME INSIGHT INTO HOW DOGS “SEE” THEIR WORLD THROUGH SMELL.

To dogs, scent is the tool that makes up their reality. No matter how many perfumes and deodorants that humans apply, our dogs will always know our unique scent and the changes in our scent based on time of day, stress, and other factors. We are just scratching the surface in understanding the full capabilities of the canine nose. From avalanche rescue to cancer detection, dogs are capable of sniffing out potentially lifesaving clues that are right in front of our eyes—but that we could never see.

Even though dog brains are smaller than humans’, they have much more brain power dedicated to perceiving scent. Not only can dogs detect what a scent is, they can interpret what components make up that scent, where it is, and how old it is.

The shape of a dog’s nose makes for efficient detection of odors. Where humans breathe in and out of the same nostril holes, dogs inhale into each main nostril and exhale out the side slits. This keeps the odor of interest in focus and lets more molecules concentrate at the receptors.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

The spongy texture of a dog’s nose is like a fingerprint, as unique to that individual dog as a highly developed sense of smell is to the entire canid species.

Tucked at the back of a dog’s long muzzle are 300 million olfactory receptors. Compared to five million receptors in the human nose, a dog’s sense of smell is 100 to 100,000 times more sensitive than humans, meaning they can detect smells in much lower concentrations.

Dogs’ noses work in stereo. Each nostril smells independently, allowing dogs to locate precisely where a specific smell is coming from.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Opposite: Hank, from Big Sky Ski Resort in Montana, peeks around the snowbank after a drill. Handler and dog teams travel from all over the west to train and put their skills to the test. Left: A yellow lab hitches a ride atop its skiing handler’s backpack. Dogs must learn to get comfortable with various means of travel to and from search sites. Right: A Dutch shepherd practices riding on a snowmobile. Avalanche rescue isn’t this dog’s primary discipline, but it’s important for working dogs of other fields to get comfortable with different equipment and situations, so when they are deployed on a real-life mission, they can stay focused on the task at hand.

A PERSON WHO IS BURIED IS EMITTING SCENT THAT RISES UP THROUGH THE SNOW, AND THE DOG IS TRAINED TO LOCATE THE STRONGEST POINT OF THAT SCENT. to dig into your 13-year-old-girl sleepover voice and act like a dying animal that’s losing its mind.” Slaton says that tug of war is a key element of avalanche rescue. “It’s the game that they love the most,” he explains. “It brings back the canine instincts of fighting each other in the pack — of pulling meat off the bone. So, if we can use that as our specific reward for these drills and then in the real-life thing too, that’s how we can make sure these dogs continue to play the game so well and so often.” C-RAD success relies on a dog’s natural instincts and abilities, but none more than their keen sense of

smell. According to a 2015 TED-Ed talk by Alexandra Horowitz, professor and head of the Dog Cognition Lab at Barnard College, dogs smell separately with each nostril, allowing them to rapidly pinpoint the direction of a smell’s source, which makes them invaluable life-saving tools in avalanche rescue deployment. “A person who is buried is emitting scent that rises up through the snow, and the dog is trained to locate the strongest point of scent,” Dumas says. “I’m waiting for my dog to indicate to me that they have the strongest scent possible, and that’s where I start probing.”

Most C-RAD validated handlers, including Dumas and Slaton, are employed at Colorado ski areas and think of their dogs as co-workers. If an avalanche occurs within their designated ski area, they are already on the scene and able to quickly respond, and if an avalanche occurs in nearby backcountry, they deploy alongside a skilled avalanche technician. “That call translates into a whole trickle-down series of events, which could mean that my dog and I are flown in and on the scene within 30 minutes,” Dumas says. “Of course, 30 minutes buried in snow usually means that someone is deceased,

but there’s always that window of opportunity, and that’s our ultimate goal: to be that resource that could potentially save someone’s life.” As Slaton starts Neve on her journey to C-RAD excellence, he is excited to watch the puppy follow in Recco’s footsteps, and just hopes he can keep up. He is using lessons learned from Recco as a guide, most notably the importance of patience, which he hopes to carry through his training with Neve. “These dogs can do amazing things, if we can only understand them,” Slaton says. “We are the dumb end of the leash.”

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

THE DROOLWORTHY HOWLIDAY HIDEAWAY PHOTOGRAPH BY TAY L O R F I O R E

Hip + Joint Jerky Treats Chicken Recipe

Pocket Trainers® Peanut Butter Flavor

T H IS SEA S O N, TH E BIX B I T EA M

was busy building a “gingerbread house” using only dog treats! From the jerky log-cabin siding to the Bark Pop shrubs finished with edible green paint, each component makes this cozy, delicious getaway. To finish our cabin in the woods, we strung up some festive multicolored lights and glued on a pair of paper windows, then we poured ourselves a mug of hot cocoa, sat back in a comfy chair, and watched our dogs gleefully chew into our creation.

Original Jerky Treats Beef Lung Recipe

Bark Pops® White Cheddar Flavor Skin + Coat Jerky Treats Salmon Flavor

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Pocket Trainers® Salmon Flavor

Pocket Trainers® Chicken Flavor

Q 22

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

DRO OL N O. 2

AN OPEN-MINDED CONVERSATION WITH ACTOR AND SUPERMODEL

GILLES MARINI

WORDS BY CHRIS NELSON PHOTOGRAPHS BY JULIAN DAHL

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1 — B I X B I P E T.C O M

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

who loves dogs, and strives to encourage inclusivity and understanding in his adopted home of America. DROOL: Tell us about your relationship with animals. GILLES: I’m not kidding you, about 45 minutes ago I was feeding a squirrel inside of my living room, with my dog sleeping right next to the squirrel, and my bird talking human language to the squirrel to get out of the house, because my bird is jealous that I gave the squirrel food that the bird can eat.

the feature-length adaption of Sex and the City (2008), one of the movie’s main characters, Samantha, returns home and unexpectedly meets her new neighbor: a chiseled, gorgeous man in the buff, seductively washing himself in an outdoor shower. Toward the end of the scene, the neighbor, who is played by Gilles Marini, turns to acknowledge Samantha, and as he does, the audience glimpses his baguette. Before his sultry box-office debut, Marini was an internationally known supermodel who acted in daytime television dramas, but his tastefully silhouetted side-knob earned him overnight mass appeal. The following year, he competed in the eighth season of Dancing with the Stars, when he and his partner, dancer Cheryl Burke, finished in second place by the narrowest, most bittersweet margin. While 44-year-old Marini has become somewhat of a fetishized sex object for the modern age, his dramatic bone structure and bulging muscles belie the man he is beneath the surface: a compassionate, intelligent, and deeply feeling husband and father

D: Are you Snow White?! Your dog must be pretty laid back to share its couch with a squirrel ... What’s her name? G: Mila. She’s an 11-year-old French bulldog. She was supposed to be gone four years ago, but she survived a massive surgery removing all of the discs from her body, because she had a cyst inside her spinal cord. A year ago the vet that we love, Dr. Steve, was telling us, “You need 10 people a day to take care of this dog. It’s not good, you should put her down.” It was very, very hard for me. I said to my wife, “Please let me go to shoot this film. Keep her alive, I want to be here when we put her down.” And then I met this guy who gives me this product, this CBD oil, and tells me to my face, “In 15 minutes she will feel better and she will stand up again.” I wanted to say, “Dude, you have no idea what you’re talking about, my dog is done,” but 15 minutes after I gave her the oil she was up running. D: That’s incredible! G: A year ago, we planned how to put her down, and a year later she’s here sleeping next to a squirrel, getting ready to wake up, go do her

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Previous: Gilles, wearing a Wrangler jacket and t-shirt, with his 11-year-old French bulldog, Mila. Left: Mila atop Gilles’ shoulder. Gilles pictured in a sweater from Mr. Turk. George, Gilles’ son, begged for a dog back in 2009 and it didn’t take much convincing to get the rest of the family on board. For as much work as pets are, Mila reminds the Marini family every day how worth it they are to have in our lives.

I WAS FEEDING A SQUIRREL INSIDE OF MY LIVING ROOM, WITH MY DOG SLEEPING RIGHT NEXT TO THE SQUIRREL, AND MY BIRD TALKING HUMAN LANGUAGE TO THE SQUIRREL TO GET OUT OF THE HOUSE, BECAUSE MY BIRD IS JEALOUS THAT I GAVE THE SQUIRREL FOOD THAT THE BIRD CAN EAT.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Below: Our pets can teach us so much about what it means to be kind to others. Above all else, Gilles is a father, leading his children by example in compassion, understanding and curiosity – many lessons he’s learned from the animals that have come in and out of his life.

thing, and have kind of a normal time; the only thing that would kill my dog now is the fact that she’s old. Of course the damage is so great that she lost four years of incredible muscle mass that she will never be able to recoup, but still ... if I put a toy in her mouth she fights like a two-year-old dog. D: You’ve had other French bulldogs, haven’t you? G: When I moved to Miami in 1997 I arrived with $470 and a two-yearold French bulldog, Nino, but unfortunately by age five somebody broke in and stole my dog. D: What?! G: Ten years later in Los Angeles I got another French bulldog named Buddy, and again some asshole stole my dog. I said, “I am the unluckiest man on planet Earth.” I didn’t get another dog until I was on Dancing with the Stars in 2009, when I went to visit my family in France and my son was like, “Dad, I would love to have another French bulldog. After Dancing with the Stars, if you do well can you get me one?” And I did well, so we got Mila. D: That’s so impossibly sad that two of your dogs were stolen. We’re sorry you had to go through that. G: When I was 25, two years before I moved to America, I lost my father when he was 44 years old, and that’s when I got Nino. That dog became the center of what I missed with my father. He was my therapy. I didn’t want to cry or show weakness to my family when my father died because I wanted to be the man he was, but the moment I realized my dog was gone — I am not kidding you — I cried like a young boy. I would not be able to even look at his face in my mind, I would cry and never stop. My wife thought, “Okay, this is super exces-

sive,” but then she realized, “Oh my God, he’s mourning his dog, but his father at the same time.” D: You must’ve been pretty close with your father. G: My dad was my best friend and made me who I am today, specifically when it comes down to dedication and working hard, and giving to others ... that was my father in a nutshell. He was literally a saint of the neighborhood. When he died the church was so packed that people were standing outside. It was Black, white, Christian, Muslim, Catholic, atheist ... everyone. The priest said, “I wish my Sundays were like that.” I probably spent more time with my father who died at 44 years old than someone who had a father for 80 years, because at age six I started working at his bakery, doing small things, like making the strawberry shortcakes. I liked making pastry more than making bread, and also making bread at six years old is extremely dangerous because you deal with fire and extreme temperature all the time. From six years old until the moment he died I was with my father, even sleeping next to him in the bed during the day in the only room in our house without windows. D: It must’ve sucked having to wake up well before dawn to go to work. G: In the middle of the night, my father would say, “Be careful at night, all the cats are gray.” He was telling me it’s dangerous; we had a huge problem in my neighborhood with crack and heroin, and people were sharing needles and dying of AIDS. I saw things that kids usually do not see because I worked early hours in the bakery. My father gave day-old baguettes to these guys living on the street,

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

and one day this young man who was in bad shape bit on a baguette and all of his teeth came out. When you’re 10 or 12 years old and you see that at four in the morning, you’re never going to use drugs, ever. My father never was shy to put me in the middle of the war zone, and because he did that, I never was naïve and I never was shy about helping another human being. He gave me a lot of compassion. My daughter is a lot like my dad, and she never met him. D: What makes them similar? G: Since second or third grade, my daughter has focused on helping and caring for anyone with any type of disability; she calls them “super powers.” My wife and I didn’t really know about it until middle school when a teacher said, “You got something here, this young woman does it not for looking good, she does it blindly.” I mean, I have countless videos of her with other kids, helping

D: Woof, ain’t that the truth. Do you have any other children? G: My son. He’s very, very straightminded, it’s impossible to move him. He wants to get into the FBI. I am the one who tries to make him do silly, stupid stuff all the time, and he always tells me, “Dad, I think you’re going to hurt yourself.” Nineteen surgeries later, at 44 years old, I still haven’t learned, and he’s the one that always calms me down. He understands that his dad is crazier than he’s ever going to be. In March he turned 21, I put a beer in front of him, he sipped it, and he’s like, “How could you drink this?” I drank both beers that night and then I couldn’t drive home, so he drove me back. D: Sounds like the kid’s head is screwed on tightly. G: I have yet to hear my son talk back to me, he’s never done it. I am an American-French man now more than a French-American man, but for our kids, my wife

of it. I want my children to understand how much work it is. D: You seem like the archetypical father, and surely your wife is a wonderful matriarch to match. G: She’s definitely the good apple; she’s there for me when I lose control, when I lose faith, or when I lose ambition in this Hollywood machine that loves to bring you up and shut you down just to bring you up and shut you down again. She and I found the right medium to raise kids to be proactive and good in society. I think the secret is to give them a chance to be who they want to be. Kids are smarter than we think. As soon as we give kids orders they have a tendency to tense up because we don’t like orders, I don’t care where it comes from; I was a soldier, and I really didn’t like taking orders. When you give orders to kids, sometimes they take it wrong, so instead give them choices. I am a father — not a buddy, a father — and I show my

aration and hatred, the more this tool is going to become dangerous. I don’t envy the parents of those young people who are becoming overnight famous through TikTok and Instagram, because if you have a bit of common sense you know how fragile and dangerous this is. We’re not moving forward, we’re standing still. Or perhaps moving backward. D: It’s hard to feel good about where America is right now; we’ve got to be better. G: My father told me once, “When you vote, vote with the mind of not thinking of yourself only, and only then the world will become one.” The things in our lives are the poison in our hearts because the more society tells you to love things, the less you can love that thing. Humans need to look at the demeanor of what animals are content with; look at how they react to your richness or nothingness, and nothing changes.

HUMANS NEED TO LOOK AT THE DEMEANOR OF WHAT ANIMALS ARE CONTENT WITH; LOOK AT HOW THEY REACT TO YOUR RICHNESS OR NOTHINGNESS, AND NOTHING CHANGES.

and teaching them. I believe my daughter will change the world when it comes down to caring for others. She’s only 14 years old, but by age 20 or 25 I think she will create or find something to make this world a better place, because we desperately need a little bit more compassion and understanding, because humans are pulling apart right now, more than ever.

and I took the best out of what the French education is and we took the best of American education. The French education is harder, that’s the truth; if the kids mess around, bam. My son will not bitch about me telling him to do chores, because he understands what caring for a home is. If tomorrow I get hit by a car and die, this is his home, and he will need to take care

kids who I am, because if you start lying about who you are with your kids, they’re going to be fake. D: There’s too much phoniness in Hollywood as is. G: Some of my peers are making me want to never work in this business again. The social media world needs to be altered because the more we are going toward sep-

We need to learn from animals because we lost our way with things. I think this unconditional love and being able to take care of something that you may not talk to is super important for a human being to have. I believe it with all of my heart that animals are one of the reasons why I’m happier in life. Maybe the key is dogs, who knows?

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

She doesn’t bark. She loves everyone.

SHE CHEWS THE CROTCH OUT OF YOUR UNDERWEAR. She’s damn near perfect.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Fresh meat. Zero meat meals. Simple ingredients. Plus, industry-leading nutrition and digestibility without the insane price. It really is the closest thing to perfect dog food.

DAMN NEAR PERFECT

DOG FOOD

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

ONE CUDDLE

30 DRO OL N O. 2

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

E AT A TIME FINDING ART AND VOICE THROUGH BITES AND BARKS.

WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY SOPHIE GAMAND

Left: Crunchy, and Right: Pucci, from the Wet Dog series. Though the wet dogs appear to be funny, they are also incredibly poignant, and remind me that dogs are at the mercy of humans.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

MY FRIEND’S PARENTS were supposed

to drive me to school, but they were running late, so I walked over to their house and rang the doorbell. Behind a large wooden gate, the family’s Briard began to bark, and then the shaggy herding dog started to snarl and scratch at the wood, trying to get to me from underneath the gate. I was terrified. My friend’s youngest sister came out of the house, unlatched the gate carefully, and propped it open slightly to say “hi” and apologize for her parents’ tardiness, and when she did the dog forced his muzzle through the opening and jumped on top of me.• For a split second, he looked like a bear standing on his back paws, looming over me, and at that moment I thought I was going to die. I fell under the full weight of the dog and rolled into the tightest ball I could, hiding under my heavy backpack. The adults ran outside and managed to pull their dog off, but I was left with multiple superficial wounds. Before that day, animals – and dogs especially – had been my safe space, but that incident robbed me of the safest, purest friendship I had ever known.

Growing up in Lyon, France, my family had a pair of cheeky German shorthaired pointers, sisters named Arpege and Ardoise. The one time when we took the girls on a hunting trip with a few of our relatives, Arpege and Ardoise cried and hid as guns fired and birds fell in the distance; I shared their feelings about the cruel and grotesque spectacle. They were far more comfortable at home, where their favorite activities included chasing lizards, lounging in the sun, sneaking into our beds when we were away, and digging holes under the fence so they could enjoy a sweet escape into our village. When I was 10 years old I got my first camera, a pink Kodak Ektralite, and I became obsessed with portraiture. As a child I felt unloved and lonely, as if my being born had been a terrible mistake. My family was bathed in trauma, and I was sensitive to it all, so with no comforting hugs available, photography became a tool with which I could create intimacy from a distance. Using zoom lenses, I captured close-ups of family faces, trying to decipher the mysteries behind the absent smiles and the

Top: Bo, shelter dog, Las Vegas (adopted). Bottom: Oscar, Wet Dog. Oscar is one of my favorite Wet Dogs because despite his predicament, you can’t deny the soul, the fragility, and poise of this doggie.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Murdock, Pit Bull Flower Power. Murdock was seized by the police when his owner was arrested on dogfighting charges. At the shelter, Murdock recovered from his wounds, though he lost an eye. He was kept separate and held for a year as live evidence in the case against his owner. When the owner pleaded guilty of animal fighting, Murdock was released for adoption and later found a loving home. He was my first ex-fighting dog model, and he taught me so much. He was very friendly and was loved very much by his family until he passed away peacefully a couple of years later. His previous owner was sentenced to a $200 fine and agreed to not own a dog for five years.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Flower, Pit Bull Flower Power. I photographed Flower at a high-intake shelter in California. He was euthanized a few days after our shoot, without my knowledge. He is the only dog of the series who was euthanized before I had a chance to help him. I named him Flower because no dog should die unnamed.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

preoccupied eyes. Already, my work explored notions of darkness and dignity. Animals became my safe space. With them, there was no misunderstanding. There was just pure, unencumbered friendship. I was one of those kids who, when asked, said I wanted to become a veterinarian — until my mother explained, in a dramatic shortcut, that my job would consist of euthanizing sick animals. Instead, I developed my relationship with animals through art, and by collecting all sorts of unusual pets, from mice to snails. I would photograph our dogs, my beloved bunny, and my visits to the local zoo, where, through clever crops and judicious zooms, I erased the cages, opened up the skies, and created the illusion that the captive animals were free. After I was attacked by my friend’s dog, an element of danger was introduced into my beautiful relationship with dogs: the irresponsible owner. It was very clear to me humans were to blame. I was convinced of the dog’s innocence, even though I saw him as a beast. He’d just done what he thought he was supposed to do, a

guarding behavior encouraged for years. Still, whenever a large dog approached me, I became overwhelmed by a quiet, but gripping, fear. In 2010, I moved to New York with my husband-to-be, and due to the cultural and linguistic barriers, I got acquainted with my new life through the lens of my camera, seeking intimacy from a safe distance, just like I did as a child. One day, I entered a vet clinic and asked if I could photograph the interactions between the doctors and the animals. It took some convincing, but slowly I was granted full access. I met an animal rescuer at the vet clinic and joined her on a rescue mission in Puerto Rico. I wanted to document the rescue process and celebrate happy adoption stories, but my introduction to the world of rescue was a baptism by fire. The first dog we found died only a few minutes after we found him; Angel took his last breath looking straight into my lens as I clicked the shutter, immortalizing the horror and absurdity of a life discarded. I spent the next two years traveling back and forth to Puerto Rico, to feed strays and help save as

many dogs as possible, a Sisyphean task which left me exhausted and empty. In parallel, back in New York, I photographed dog fashion shows and dog pageants, in an obsessive quest to rationalize our codependent relationship with dogs. I was split between two worlds: the frantic race to save lives while witnessing the meaningless death of abandoned animals, and the dazzling and somewhat theatrical relationship between “purse” dogs and their stage moms. My computer was full of photographs of dogs who never made it, and projects that were going nowhere, and I needed to feel like my work wasn’t completely in vain, so I took a break from rescue trips to Puerto Rico and turned my attention to shelters, where I knew the dogs were safe and just needed an extra push to find a loving home. I was stunned by some of the adoption portraits on shelters’ websites: dogs tethered to walls, filthy and visibly terrified. I donated my skills to local shelters, where I could set up a studio for the day to photograph up to 40 dogs in a row. I embarked on a mission to change the way we perceive shelter

Left: Roam, Pit Bull Flower Power. Roam was part of a litter I photographed in Oregon. At two weeks old, these were my youngest flower models of the series. Their mom was going to be euthanized, pregnant, at a high-intake California shelter, when she was pulled to safety by the Oregonian rescue.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

dogs and portrayed them as happy, healthy, ready-to-move-in friends. I sought to empower these dogs, to give them their dignity back at a moment when everything was in shambles in their lives. In 2013, I shot the project that would change my life: Wet Dog. Vulnerable, pleading, at the mercy of humans, Wet Dog was a touching and hilarious compilation of miserable dogs at bath time. The portraits took the internet by storm, and soon I had a book deal, received awards, and earned international recognition. Emboldened by the success of Wet Dog, the following year I started a new project with pit bulls, the most euthanized dogs in the U.S.—by the hundreds of thousands every year. There were so many pitties languishing in the shelters, seen as vicious, not to be trusted, dangerous. At first when the shelter staff brought a pit bull in front of my camera, I tensed up, transported back to that morning behind the large wooden gate, but the dogs I met were so wholesome and gentle. There was a disconnect between what I experienced at the shelter and the gnarly image of pit bulls I had in my mind, and it was time I faced my fears.

I came up with the silliest idea to help undo the breed’s stigma: crowning shelter pit bulls with flower wreaths. It was a gamble — this idea of placing headpieces on dogs I’d never met before, dogs who had every reason to distrust me — and on the first shoot, I nearly fell over when I realized I had to wrap my hands around their heads, our faces only a few inches apart. But I was driven by the irresistible call of my muses, and I wondered: if those flowery portraits were the only images we knew of pit bulls, would we still be afraid, and would we still kill them senselessly? I never anticipated Pit Bull Flower Power would take off the way it did; millions of likes, shares, and comments propelled the series worldwide, and me into the role of a pit bull advocate. Pleas from shelters poured in, and I embraced the journey as best I could. Six years in, I have photographed about 450 shelter pit bulls in flower crowns all over America and abroad. Many of them found homes thanks to their portraits, sometimes after years of wasting away in a cage. The series has made me who I was born to be: an artist

and an animal advocate. I finally went back to Puerto Rico in 2016, and at the worst animal control facility I’ve ever stepped foot in, I found MacLovin. Nothing could have prepared me for the harrowing experience — the smells, the screams of agony, the palpable fear, death all around — but in the middle of the horror, my soul dog: a small brindle sausage who was scheduled for euthanasia because, “Nobody will want him, he just looks like any other street dog.” When I looked into the puppy’s eyes, I could swear that MacLovin and I already knew each other. Mac is the sweetest, gentlest dog. Hypervigilant, hypersensitive, he is afraid of everything, from wobbly toddlers to flying plastic bags, to anything brushing against his tail. It’s OK, because I am afraid too. In a way, MacLovin and I have both been violated by each other’s species: The Briard that jumped on me, the animal control officers that handled Mac — we were all unwilling participants in this complex construct called the human world. Together, Mac and I are rebuilding our safe spaces, one cuddle at a time.

Top: Sophie and two puppies. Bottom: MacLovin in all his glory. In the four years we’ve been together, MacLovin has only modeled for me a handful of times. We took this particular portrait as I was going through a very difficult time. It helped me connect with my inner strength.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

“...MY FIRST DOG PORTRAIT WAS FOR A FRIEND WHOSE HUSBAND WANTED TO STUFF THEIR DOG AFTER IT DIED AND DISPLAY IT IN THE FRONT ROOM. SHE THOUGHT A PAINTING TO REMEMBER THE DOG WOULD BE A BETTER IDEA...” Nate Pack

Acrylic on canvas www.natepack.com

South Ogden Pup, 2020

HOMEGROWN— HOW PREMIUM PET FOOD SAVED THE BARRETT FAMILY FARM. 42

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

DRO OL N O. 2

WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY R OY S O N

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1 — B I X B I P E T.C O M

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Tom and Sarah bring balance to the family business. Having lived outside of New York City, Tom has always had an appreciation for city life. On the other hand, Sarah loves nothing more than balancing her busy workdays with the quiet country life on a farm of her own, just a few miles from the manufacturing facility.

THE GEOGRAPHIC CENTER

of Minnesota is located in Crow Wing County, 10 miles southwest of the city of Brainerd, and only a few miles away from the Barrett family farm. You’d be hard-pressed to meet a local who hasn’t heard of the Barretts, or their farm that has been in the family for three generations, or their high-end dog food manufacturing business, Barrett Petfood Innovations, which produces BIXBI Rawbble, Liberty and high quality kibble from other premium pet companies. The Barretts first started using their crops to produce top-quality pet food in 2006, after patriarch Mike Barrett purchased the machinery and equipment necessary to make organic fertilizer — only to realize that he overestimated the market. As the organic fertilizer venture petered out, Mike’s daughter, Sarah, did some research and discovered that the equipment that her father had purchased to produce organic fertilizer was more commonly used for making high-quality pet food. She shared what she found with her father, and they decided that they needed to pivot and enter the pet food game with a very deep understanding of farming, but little to no experience in the pet industry. For almost all of her life Sarah has worked at the farm alongside her father, and she has always had a deep passion for animals. Pets weren’t allowed in the farmhouse when Sarah was a child, but every

stray animal that she found became her new pet, and was snuck inside. Sarah eventually moved away for college, but every summer she came home to help her dad, handling bigger and bigger responsibilities as she became more accustomed to the operations side of the business. One semester she stayed home to keep working on the family business, and decided to make the change permanent and not return to school, which is when she assumed responsibility for quality control for operations and the transition into the pet industry. It was around that time when Mike called his son, Tom, to see if he had any interest in helping his sister grow the business. Tom also grew up helping around the family farm. “I can pretty vividly remember the first summer I was off on my own in the tractor, at seven or eight years old,” he recalls. “I had a few hiccups here and there — getting tractors stuck, running into trees, things like that — but all in all, no major catastrophes.” As a child, Tom enjoyed driving his go-kart around the property and as he got older, he transitioned into drag racing cars, which is a hobby that Tom inherited from his father. Mike’s love of cars and planes echoed in the boy’s world, and eventually drove Tom to study aviation at university, with dreams of becoming a pilot. When Tom received the call from his father, he was living just outside New York City and had just earned his master’s in aviation management, but with an economic recession looming and his family asking for help, Tom and his fiancée decided to move to Brainerd. At the time, Barrett Petfood Innovations had only six employees, so Tom and Sarah quickly learned every job in the business and worked to illuminate

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

When they’re not making petfood, Tom enjoys racing cars, a hobby fostered from a young age and a shared interest with his dad. As an animal lover, Sarah’s free time is spent tending to her rescue farm animals. With a few rescue horses, including Willy and a pig named Howard, she’s got her hands full.

each other’s strengths; Tom ran sales and marketing, while Sarah led day-to-day operations. The Barretts started out small with a few bird food accounts, and then focused on partnering with small, independent dog and cat food brands in order to build strong, intimate relationships. The first few years were difficult and slow-moving, but in 2012 Barrett Petfood Innovations essentially doubled in size, then again year after year; today it manufactures some of the most specialized pet food in the world. Moving into the pet industry meant updating all of the farm’s equipment and machinery — except for the extruder that Mike originally bought to make fertilizer, which Tom describes as “the heartbeat of the operation.” This past summer, the Barretts opened a new facility with a state-of-the-art production line. “It allows for higher fresh ingredient inclusion: so, more meat, more fresh vegetables, fruits, anything like that,” says Tom. “We’ll be able to include more of those fresh ingredients into the kibble.” Traditional farming still plays an integral role in the family business, as most of what Mike grows is processed in the plant for pet food. For instance, the sunflowers that Mike grows on the farm are harvested and cold-pressed locally, and the oil is used as a key ingredient in a variety of pet foods. Tom explains, “We look at trends every year, and we’ll go to our dad and ask, ‘Do you think you can grow sorghum or millet?’ And he’ll say, ‘Well, I’ll look into it, I’ll talk to my agronomist.’ If he thinks there’s a chance at it, he’ll give it a shot.” The Barretts make every effort to reduce waste at the farm, and to be as efficient and as self-sustaining as possible. Sarah says, “When my dad harvests oats off the field,

there’s straw that’s left behind, and he doesn’t have time to come back and capture that waste because he’s moving on to another crop. So then I’ll come in and I’ll bale the oat straw, which usually gets sold for bedding, or I’ll keep some for my cows. It’s kind of this whole cycle.” She also says that this is the first year that 100 percent of bio-waste from the pet food side is being recycled and applied to the fields. What started as a modest family farm has grown into a massive manufacturing operation producing some of the best pet food products available. The Barretts stayed resilient when times were tough, and they relied on each other to get to where they are today. Sarah and Tom could not have built the company into what it has become without working up from the foundation laid by their father, and Mike wouldn’t have made the leap from fertilizer to pet food without his children and their progressive ideas. Both Tom and Sarah have families of their own now. “My wife and I have a six-, four-, and one-yearold, and a six-month-old Bernadoodle, Freddy,” Tom says. “My older boys are pretty much following in our footsteps. They’re coming around the business, they’re creating chaos, and it has certainly brought back some of those memories of me as a child, doing the same shenanigans.” Sarah and her husband have two little boys — with one more on the way — and they also have one dog, one cat, a pair of pigs, four horses, and five cows. “Our animals are such a big part of what we do,” Sarah says, “so I think that’s kind of what makes us different: it’s not about the money, it’s more about the values and knowing that we want to do what’s best. Tom and I wouldn’t make pet food that we wouldn’t feed to our own animals.”

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

HOT WHEELS TOM BARRETT SAYS, “MY DAD IS A TOTAL CAR NUT AND HAS BEEN SINCE HE BROUGHT HOME HIS FIRST CORVETTE WHEN I WAS FOUR. HE LITERALLY BOUGHT IT IN PIECES, IN ABOUT 50 BOXES, AND HE RESTORED IT TO ORIGINAL CONDITION.” TOM BARRETT HAS SINCE OWNED ABOUT 60 CLASSIC CARS, AND NOW HIS GRANDKIDS LOVE PLAYING AROUND IN THE FAMILY GARAGE, WHERE THERE IS AN INCREDIBLE COLLECTION OF VINTAGE AUTOMOBILES, MOTORCYCLES, AND TRACTORS. THESE ARE OUR FIVE FAVORITE MACHINES THAT WE CAME ACROSS:

1955 CHEVROLET 3100 This stylish step-side pickup debuted in March 1955 with design cues from Chevrolet’s sedans, including a wraparound windshield, hooded headlights, and an egg-crate grill. “My dad found it in a barn in Oklahoma,” Tom says. “He restored the truck but didn’t touch its natural, sunburnt patina.”

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

1959 BMW ISETTA

1967 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL

1969 CHEVROLET NOVA

1979 HONDA CBX

The front end of this adorable, three-wheel bubble car is hinged and opens like a refrigerator door, which makes sense since the Isetta was originally designed by an Italian refrigerator magnate before BMW bought the design. Tom Barrett says that his parents went to an auction in Arizona and when his mom saw the Isetta come across the auction block, she had to have it.

The fourth-generation Lincoln Continental sedans and convertibles featured rear-hinged “suicide” doors in an effort to limit the size of the luxury automobile, which is well over 18 feet long. Tom says that the first Continental that his father owned was a total lemon and was always broken, but “a few years after, he missed it, so he bought another one.”

The SS version of the Nova went from zero to 60 mph in six seconds and turned a quarter-mile in 14 seconds. “My dad bought the Nova for me as a college graduation gift,” Tom says. “He raced cars when I was a kid, and he always wanted me to race with him, and it became a hobby we shared and a way for us to spend time together.”

Most Honda CB-designated motorcycles had names that used numbers to indicate engine displacement, but for this Honda used “X” because it was the most “extreme” CB ever built, with a huge, 107-horsepower, transversely mounted straight-six engine. “My dad bought this when I was pretty young,” Tom says, “and has just kind of left it in the garage to stare at.”

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

She’s smart. She’s pretty.

SHE THINKS THE VACUUM WILL ATTACK HER. She’s damn near perfect.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Fresh meat. Zero meat meals. Simple ingredients. Plus, industry-leading nutrition and digestibility without the insane price. It really is the closest thing to perfect dog food.

DAMN NEAR PERFECT

DOG FOOD

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

Jud Beaumont

(in memoriam 1960-2020)

A poorly trained table

Bad Table, 2005

( JUD’S WIFE )

“...JUD’S APPROACH TO FURNITURE WAS SEEN AS ENGAGING, WHIMSICAL AND SURREAL. DOGS ADDED ANOTHER DIMENSION TO JUD’S CREATIVE REPUTATION AND UNDOUBTEDLY ANOTHER LEVEL OF CHARACTER AND FUN TO HIS WORK...”–KATE BEAUMONT

“...IF YOU CAN DRAW IT, YOU CAN BUILD IT...”–JUD BEAUMONT

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1 55

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

DOGS OF

CANINES STAY LOYAL TO THE CAUSE. WORDS BY ERIC WEINER P H O T O S C O U RT E S Y O F L I B R A RY O F C O N G R E S S A N D N AT I O N A L L I B R A RY O F S C O T L A N D

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

57 DRO OL N O. 2

Previous: World War II (1943) As part of their training at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, War Dogs were acclimated to explosions and gunfire. In this photo, Private Michael DiPoi and his canine companion endure a simulated battle at the Marine War Dog Detachment Training School.

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

Below: On a painted chest found in King Tut’s tomb dating to 1300 BCE, two saluki are depicted attacking enemies of Pharaoh — most likely Syrians or Nubians.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

DOGS

Above: “Golden Eyes” (1918). A young woman accompanied by her collie named Uncle Sam, holding a “Liberty bond” on his collar. Their act of patriotism supported American soldiers during World War I.

take their jobs seriously: All members of the Postal Service rightly deserve to be barked at, no squirrel may enter the yard unchased, and scraps of food dropped from the kitchen table must be summarily Hoovered up. That said, the dog’s position in human society was once tightly woven into more essential functions, be it herding livestock, retrieving hunted game, or signaling the presence of trespassers. The bond between people and dogs was forged through partnership and collaboration — and in times of conflict, too. From ancient Egypt through modern times, dogs have played a role in the theater of war. Before you let your imagination run wild with legions of loyal Labradors in coats of mail charging into battle, slobbering in the wind, dogs were enlisted for such attacks with exceeding rarity. The historical record is packed with instances of camels, elephants, and horses marching into large-scale conflict, but in the overwhelming majority of cases, dogs worked jobs more suited to their natural talents: guarding, patrolling, tracking, and acting as envoys and sentries. In 19 BCE, when the king of the Garamantes tribe of the Sahara made his way back from Roman exile, he was accompanied by 200 dogs in his protective detail — and they weren’t toy poodles. After all, dogs were not bred exclusively for war, but those used for hunting and guarding were most adaptable to the harsh realities of combat. The Lydian Greeks, in circa 600 BCE, employed a horde of dogs against their Cimmerian foes. Xerxes’ invasion of Greece in 480 BCE was said to include enormous numbers of Indian hounds.

Ancestors of the British mastiff, Greek Molossus, Irish wolfhound, and Arabian saluki were used for attack in various contexts across centuries of history. Even in situations where dogs were called to battle, their presence was often strategic. The Achaemenid King Cambyses II moved on the city of Pelusium in 525 BCE, and his plan to sow confusion in the opposing Egyptian ranks was executed to perfection. Knowing that his enemy considered certain animals sacred, Cambyses flooded his front lines with sheep, cats, dogs, and other animals. Whether the Egyptians broke formation out of religious concern — or out of sheer panic at the sight of an unholy multi-species regiment rushing full steam ahead — is unknown. The dogs of war weren’t isolated to ancient Greece and Egypt. When Caesar’s forces expanded across Western Europe in the second century, they encountered several Gallic and British tribes that used large mastiffs as bodyguards. In 101 BCE, when the Romans defeated the nomadic Cimbri at Vercellae, mastiffs protecting the women, cattle, and wagons were unleashed in a massive horde as a last resort against the Empire’s forces. The Romans were impressed enough with mastiffs that they began breeding them, trading pups across the continent; well into the Middle Ages, more than a thousand years later, it was common for royal courts to send the dogs as gifts. Think about that the next time you send an Edible Arrangement. Canine armor developed from its original use of protecting hunting dogs from large game, but the equipment was adapted for wartime — sometimes in outlandish fashion. The Ancient Greeks of

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Photographs left and opposite page: National Librar y of Scotland

World War I. Top Left: (1915) Belgian dogs trained to draw quick-firing guns. Top Right: (1917) Red Cross nurse bandaging the wounded eye of a dog. Bottom: (1917) Cheery pilot and observer with their mascot pup ready for a flight over the German lines.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Above: World War I (1917). Scottish soldier rests with three messenger dogs. Messenger dogs were common in WWI, traveling long distances to deliver notes to soldiers on the front lines.

Ionia utilized armored war dogs, and medieval Finns outfitted their furry friends with protective gear, like spiked collars, and trained them to attack the muzzles of invading Russian horses, which would get spooked enough to throw their riders. There are some astonishing descriptions from 11th to 16th century Byzantium of dogs wearing armor designed to carry vases full of oil. The vases would be lit ablaze as the dogs were set loose on a village in hopes of setting fires that would flush out the enemy. Mauryas in India tried a similar strategy, attempting to burn down thatch-roof enemy settlements in 300 BCE, tying bags of flammable powder to the tails of dogs and monkeys. B oth the Spanish and the English employed war dogs in their often brutal colonial campaigns in the Americas and Caribbean, but by the 1900s the role of dogs began to change to fit the evolving nature of warfare. During World War I, the Belgians used dogs to move carts and wagons carrying supplies, wounded soldiers, or even large gunnery. Also during this period, particularly in the United States, dogs began appearing as mascots on recruiting posters. The most famous of these WWI-era pups is Stubby, an olive-drab-wearing mutt that wandered into training camp at Yale University. When the soldiers shipped out to France, Stubby joined them. The stubtailed canine first pulled his weight by sniffing out a German spy. Later, he warned entrenched soldiers of incoming artillery shells and imminent gas attacks. As reported in the dog’s 15-paragraph obituary in 1926, Stubby often ran into the so-called no man’s land between trenches to stand by wounded soldiers until medics arrived. Upon

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Stubby’s return to the U.S., the battlefield veteran was regularly profiled in newspapers and toasted at conventions across the country. General John Pershing awarded Stubby a gold medal in 1921 — recognition for his service in 17 battles and four major Allied offensives throughout World War I. Dogs remained very much in the fray during the ravages of World War II. The Soviet military used Samoyeds to pull wounded soldiers on sleds over snow. Much less effectively, dogs were strapped with magnetic mines designed to detonate when they ran under invading German tanks; the mines also tended to go off near Soviet tanks. On both Axis and Allied sides of the conflict, dogs were used for sentry purposes, as well as for guarding fixed positions. In

Above: World War II (1945). Private John L. Drugan and his dog Pal on Okinawa. Pal saved a platoon of Marines from an ambush by alerting his handler of a hidden Japanese machine gun nest.

Opposite: World War I (between 1915-1918). Red Cross dogs traveled with ambulance units, trained to find wounded soldiers and alert the unit to their location.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Top: Vietnam War (1967). Two black Labradors responsible for sniffing out Viet Cong fighters and some enemy installations during Operation Lismore. Bottom: World War II (1944). A war Doberman and handler walk on the

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

beach on Guam. Doberman pinschers were a common breed used in WWII, likely for their intelligence, tenacity, and extreme devotion to their handlers.

particular, the U.S. Marine Corps sent Doberman pinschers and German shepherds to the Pacific theater for tracking enemy movements through dense forests and jungles. Another famous American war dog, a German shepherd-collie-husky mix named Chips, made a name for himself in World War II. Chips participated in the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943. At one point, he and his handler were pinned down under enemy machine gun fire when the dog escaped his position and charged the protective pillbox where the gunners were holed up. Under attack, the four Italian soldiers were forced to surrender to U.S. forces. That same day, Chips participated in a raid that captured 10 more Italian soldiers. Dogs continued to serve, fighting in the Vietnam War as well as other more recent conflicts. Most notably, a Belgian Malinois named Cairo was part of the Navy SEAL team that killed Osama bin Laden in 2011. Man’s best friend, of course, harbors no natural predisposition for war. Dogs simply have an innate desire to want to be part of something larger than themselves — to be useful, to belong. As history shows, dogs are time and time again willing to give their all to any task we ask of them. They are absolutely loyal to their pack leaders, which resonated as much with the ancient Romans and Egyptian pharaohs as it does with us. Next time your dog barks at the Amazon delivery van, just remember that they might as well be sounding the alarm about enemy movements descending on your camp’s position. Don’t chide the watchful rascal — throw that soldier a bone.

Photographs Opposite: Marine Corps Archives & Special Collections

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Above: (2010). During the “Cold Response” exercise in Norway, a German soldier jumps out of a C-130 “Hercules” with a shepherd.

DDRROOOOLL— —IISSSU SUEENNO. O.21

“...LIKE MOST ANIMALS IN MY ART, I USE DOGS FOR THE SYMBOLISM. LIKE IN TRADITIONAL FABLES, THE RABBIT IS FAST, THE TURTLE IS SLOW. THE DACHSHUND HAS A NAPOLEON COMPLEX...” Jeremy Fish

Sakura ink pens on paper www.sillypinkbunnies.com

Jeffery’s Dogs for Lynette, 2020

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

He doesn’t beg. He doesn’t dig.

HE HUMPS EVERY SINGLE PILLOW HE SEES. He’s damn near perfect.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Fresh meat. Zero meat meals. Simple ingredients. Plus, industry-leading nutrition and digestibility without the insane price. It really is the closest thing to perfect dog food.

DAMN NEAR PERFECT

DOG FOOD

DRO OL N O. 2

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

WOMAN’S BEST FRIEND

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1 — B I X B I P E T.C O M

LIFE ON THE ROAD WITH A SWEET BOSTON TERRIER BY THE NAME OF CRICKET OUTLAW MOONSHADOW.

WORDS BY BEN GIESE P H O T O G R A P H S B Y C H R I S M AT L O C K Life on the road was never a new concept to Jean. Having traveled and lived all over the US and abroad, it was only natural that Cricket would join her on her journeys.

W H E N I A R R I V E D AT A L A S V E GA S

coffee shop one afternoon during the sweltering heat of summer, I rushed inside like a firefighter into a burning building — only I was the one on fire, and the sweet air conditioning inside was my only hope for survival. It was 106 degrees outside, and I sat there sipping a cold brew, asking myself, “How could anyone live here?” Shortly thereafter, Jean Bolinger and her dog, Cricket, walked in the door, completely unfazed by the heat that was obviously killing me. Jean was wearing a black leather jacket, black leather pants, black leather boots, and a sinister-looking black Biltwell helmet. She took off her helmet and jacket to reveal arms completely covered in tattoos and a punk rock haircut with one side of her head shaved — a real “don’t mess with me” look that was slightly intimidating as I approached to introduce myself. I began by complaining about the heat, of course. She laughed at my delicate nature and reassured me that these were mild temperatures for this time of year, and it really wasn’t a big deal. Cricket didn’t seem to mind it either, sitting there calmly in her micro-sized biker vest adorned with patches and a studded collar. Jean proceeded to order a drink and asked me if I was one of those goofy guys that wears a rainbow-colored bubble shield helmet. Nothing like a little jab to break the ice. I laughed, told her “No,” and thought, “What did I get myself into?” We spent a half hour or so making small talk and planning out a route to go ride and snap some photos of her and Cricket. Jean has a calm and confident demeanor, with plenty of attitude. I get the sense that she’s seen a thing or two — the type of person with more life experience

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

than most. She’s a person with many layers — a badass on the surface who would slowly reveal an endearing softness. It’s always refreshing to meet unique and interesting individuals like this. Jean was born in Washington State as a Navy brat. Her formative years were spent living all over the United States and abroad. Always on the go, always landing somewhere new; that’s how she caught the gypsy bug. She carried that sense of wanderlust into adulthood, living in both Northern and Southern California, Nevada, Colorado, Virginia, Japan, Washington, Oregon, and Utah, to name a few, never staying in one place for too long. She told me that she has always had a love for the Southwest, which is why she ended up moving here. To anyone who knows or follows her dog, Cricket, on Instagram, it’s clear that Jean is an animal lover. The origin of this love for animals, and her connection with animals and motorcycles, goes way back to when she was just a little girl. Motorcycles and horses were simultaneously integrated into her life at her uncle’s farm, where she learned to ride her first bike and also learned to ride horses. She spent her youth riding dirt bikes on the farm and competing nationally in equestrian events, including show jumping, dressage, equitation and trials. She eventually graduated to street bikes,

SHE’S A PERSON WITH MANY LAYERS — A BADASS ON THE SURFACE WHO WOULD SLOWLY REVEAL AN ENDEARING SOFTNESS.

Cricket happened into Jean’s life and has clearly made an impact on almost everyone she encounters. Her sweet, sensitive nature is refreshingly comforting and approachable, prompting immediate trust.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Cricket is almost entirely deaf in her right ear and very hearing impaired in her left. Not a problem for her biker lifestyle, in fact it likely helped her adjust to riding alongside Jean.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

accumulating over a million miles in 18 countries and across all 50 states. Throughout her life, she has refused to choose between riding bikes or horses, and still rides both to this day. “Horseback riding and motorcycling are so intertwined, I feel like they are two of the most similar experiences you can have in life,” Jean tells me. “With horses, you have a large, powerful animal that you control through gentle and sensitive movements. You build a bond and rely on each other in a deeply connected way. Motorcycles are the same for me; you have a powerful machine that you are more successful operating with finesse. You eventually get to know every part of your bike. And the feeling of freedom, the power, and the adrenaline you feel when riding horse or motorcycle are the same.” It’s an interesting connection, and cool to hear how these lifelong passions helped that little girl develop into the woman she has become. “As a young woman, being able to command a large horse or a powerful machine forces you to learn about your strengths and weaknesses and to mature rapidly to avoid being injured or hurt. You have to build and maintain a relationship with an animal that, quite frankly, could kill you or cause great injury. It’s the same with a motorcycle. Learning to communicate non-verbally with a horse, to read their behavioral cues, and to react appropriately definitely helps in interpersonal relationships within your own life. Horses and motorcycles both taught me about the respect, confidence, and the hard work required to achieve my goals.” Jean’s love for animals goes well beyond just riding horses. She has owned bison, ostrich, emu and various other exotic animals, mostly

THAT DOG HAS SEEN MORE MILES IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS THAN MOST HUMANS DO IN A LIFETIME. SHE’S GOT MORE FRIENDS THAN YOU DO, TOO. coming from rescue situations. She has also bred over 100 species of reptiles and amphibians. But one of the most interesting things I learned about Jean during our afternoon together was her current career. She works for the federal government, traveling across all 50 states and U.S. territories via motorcycle, with Cricket by her side. Her job is to work with veterinarians at zoos and other federally regulated facilities that exhibit animals to the public to guide them and ensure humane animal care and welfare. “I am grateful that my experience with exotic animals allows me to work behind the scenes with some of the very best zoos and marine mammal parks in the world,” she tells me. “It is literally a dream job, and I love that I can make a positive impact on so many endangered and threatened species.” Getting to know Jean and learning about her story was inspiring, but let’s not forget the main reason I drove all the way out to this godforsaken desert in the first place: to meet Cricket, the sweet little Boston terrier who has racked up more than 300,000 miles on the back of Jean’s motorcycle across 48 states, Mexico, and Canada. Her full registered name is Cricket Outlaw Moonshadow. In Native American culture, animals with two different-colored eyes are thought to be connected with the spiritual world

and considered to be good luck. Jean lived in Japan for a while, and in Japanese culture, crickets are a symbol of good luck. So, “Cricket” comes from good luck, “Outlaw” is an ode to her biker lifestyle, and “Moonshadow” represents her multicolored eyes and the unique markings on her face, like the light and dark sides of the moon. Jean says, “It took me three months to name her after I got her. She was an old soul even as a puppy, and I wanted to take time to find a name that was as special as she was.” Jean and Cricket are basically on the road full time, typically spending only 45 to 60 nights at home per year. They travel by motorcycle as often as they can, and Cricket almost always travels with Jean. That dog has seen more miles in the last five years than most humans do in a lifetime. She’s got more friends than you do, too. In addition to visiting zoos across the country, Jean rides to various motorcycle shows, rallies, festivals, and gatherings throughout the year. Cricket has become engrained in biker culture and is a well-known member of the motorcycle community. With over 113,000 followers on Instagram, it’s clear that people love her. She’s become quite the influencer, even racking up a few sponsors along the way. Dogs are wonderful companions, and humans have bonded with them for centuries, but these two obviously share something special. “Cricket came into my life after a significant loss that left me pretty shattered,” Jean says. “I wasn’t exactly looking for another dog at the time. I got a call from a breeder with a special-needs puppy. She had failed her hearing test and was almost completely deaf in her right ear, and very significantly hearing

impaired in her left. The breeder knew I wouldn’t be able to say ‘no’ once I met her, and she was right. We quickly bonded, and I decided to keep her.” Jean continues to explain the impact Cricket has had on not only her life, but also how she helps other people. “Cricket is exceptionally sensitive and perceptive to people around her. She seems to always find the person in the room who needs comfort and goes straight to them. It’s almost inevitable, if I’m at a big event, someone ends up on the ground with her, with tears in their eyes, as she comforts them. They tell me about some major traumatic life event that has recently occurred (like the loss of a longtime pet or family member), and how they really needed her love at that moment. She has a way of finding the one person going through some type of internal trauma and smothers them with love. I’ve literally had strangers sobbing, holding my dog, thanking me for sharing her with them. I also take her to the VA hospitals and veterans’ homes as a therapy dog, where she spends time with veterans who have PTSD and traumatic brain injuries. She has also done quite a bit of therapy dog work with pediatric brain tumor warriors. She is so gentle and loving to everyone.” Jean and Cricket are a dynamic duo that have been gifted with the amazing opportunity to live a life in motion, chasing experiences, seeing new places, collecting beautiful moments, building community, and making a positive impact on the world. I drove out here to tell the story of an amazing dog, but I ended up getting to know an inspirational human as well. The wheels keep turning, and Jean and Cricket keep moving, making this world a better place one day at a time.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

He watches the house. He watches the kids.

HE WATCHES YOU TAKE A DUMP. He’s damn near perfect.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Fresh meat. Zero meat meals. Simple ingredients. Plus, industry-leading nutrition and digestibility without the insane price. It really is the closest thing to perfect dog food.

DAMN NEAR PERFECT

DOG FOOD

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

I H AV E A P R O B L E M .

I cannot leave the pet store without a shiny new ball, or a squeaking dragon, or a furry chewy. I love to spoil my basset hound mix, Blue, and he knows it, and frankly so does my bank account. My sausage-bodied boy has two full toy boxes, but Blue will basically chew on or chase after anything: empty water bottles, hair scrunchies, pieces of paper, or one of his feline sisters. I thought, “Why not make my own dog toys and give my bank account a break?” After a quick internet search, I found there are like-minded pet owners who have detailed do-it-yourself instructions on how to make dog toys from shredded denim. I had a lot of fun making the toys, and Blue very much approves.

DIY DENIM DOG TOYS

DONUT DENIM DOG TOY One (1) whole jeans leg Two (2) long, inch-wide strips of denim

BRAIDED DOG TOY Nine (9) long, two-inch-wide strips of denim

Roll the jeans leg into itself, making a donut shape, then wrap the denim strips around the donut to secure the shape, and finish by tying the ends of the strips together with an overhand knot.

Secure the nine strips with a rubber band and divide the strips into three groups, then simply start braiding down using three groups of strips. Once you are at the end, take the rubber band off and wrap two of the strands around the three groups and tie in a knot. Do the same to the other end of the toy.

Use a pair of old jeans to create these easy, no-sew toys for your pooch. By Mallory Anna Emerson / Photographs by Taylor Fiore

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

HIDDEN BALL DOG TOY One (1) tennis ball One (1) whole jeans leg Start at the opening of the jeans leg and cut its opposite sides into strips. Tie the strips on the first side tightly together and insert the tennis ball into the pant leg, then knot the strips on the second side of the pant leg together.

CROWN KNOT DENIM DOG TOY Four (4) long, inch-wide strips of denim Gather the four strips and tie together at one end with a rubber band or hair tie, then begin to braid a series of crown knots or box knots; the crown knot creates a round dog toy while the box knot creates a square dog toy. After you make the series of knots, simply tie the knot off with another rubber band and fold the remaining strips under the band to hide it.

DDRROOOOLL— —IISSSU SUEENNO. O.21

“...I THINK THAT DOGS’ EMOTIONS ARE REALLY EASY TO DIGEST, AND THAT’S BEEN A HELPFUL WAY TO EXPRESS HOW I AM FEELING WHEN I’M MAKING WORK...” Katie Kimmel

Ceramic www.katiekimmel.com

Various Portrait Commissions, 2018-2020

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

84 DRO OL N O. 2

AY IN T D A

REBORN IN RETIREMENT

D UN . O H

W O R D S B Y PAT R I C K L E O N E P H O T O G R A P H S B Y PA R K E R R I C E

NG GREY

THE LIFE D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1 — B I X B I P E T.C O M

A FOR OF Baloo has a bed in almost every room of the house – in some rooms he has two. Cushiony mats, quilted bolsters, even a dense, orthopedic pad; but nothing quite compares to his throne in the living room where he can peer out the window at passing neighbors before circling around and dissolving into a snoring slumber.

MER RA

THE TAGS ON BALOO’S COLLAR JINGLE

as he wakes up, stretches his shoulders, and leans back into a perfect downward dog pose. From my bed I can see the striations in his thick muscles quiver, and his massive chest brushes against the carpet as he turns up into cobra pose. He exhales before shaking it all out, his collar threatening to slip off his narrow head and needle-nosed snout. When I climb out from beneath my covers and scratch Baloo’s ears, I catch a glimpse of his identifying tattoos, reminders that he was once a professional athlete and that he belongs to one of the oldest dog breeds, known for its grace, speed, and intelligence. Baloo is a greyhound, and he eats like he runs: as fast as he can. Then he hops into his favorite chair and curls up into an impossibly small ball, his fawn brindle coloring making him look like a cinnamon roll without the icing. Only minutes after he wakes, he is back to sleep. This is the great paradox that is my greyhound. He can go from zero to 45 miles per hour in less than 30 feet and can maintain that speed for a quarter-mile or more, but he also sleeps constantly. Historically, greyhounds have been used to hunt small, fast game in the desert, but Baloo barely puts in an effort to chase away the bunnies that eat my garden vegetables. He spent his entire career as part of a pack, living and training with other greyhounds, but when he retired, we had to teach him how to be a dog.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Greyhound owners are a different breed of dog lover. Adopting Baloo meant patiently waiting for him to adapt to life in a home and learning his breed’s array of oddities – like their inability to sit as a typical dog does due to a particularly muscular hind end.

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

BUILT FOR SPEED

WHAT MAKES GREYHOUNDS SO FAST?

• Thin, powerful legs propel the dog forward • Disproportionally narrow head quickly guides direction while remaining aerodynamic • Deep, narrow chest allows for powerful breathing • Elongated feet for efficient acceleration • Spine provides balance and flexibility • Long tail acts as a rudder, efficiently adjusting speed

I L LU S T R AT I O N S B Y J O A N N A D U D O N

LIGHTWEIGHT

• Standing at an average of 28 inches tall, greyhounds range from 60 to 70 pounds – about the same weight as the ever-popular Labrador retriever, which stands only 23 inches tall.

SPECIALIZED MUSCLES

• Greyhounds have a high concentration of fast-twitch muscles, used for powerful, short bursts of energy.

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

BIG HEART

• Accounting for up to 1.73% of their total body weight, greyhounds have a bigger heart than any other breed of dog. • In a 30-second sprint, a greyhound’s heart will pump their total blood volume throughout the body up to five times.

SO MUCH BLOOD

• Greyhounds have the highest red blood cell count of any dog. More red blood cells mean more oxygen is delivered to the working muscles, allowing greyhounds to sustain speed with efficiency. It also makes greyhounds a common canine blood donor.

DOUBLE SUSPENSION GALLOP

• The double suspension gallop is the fastest gait of any land mammal. In a single stride, each paw touches down at a different time and all four paws leave the ground twice. • Not all mammals run this way. In fact, only a few have mastered it: the three-pronged antelope, the cheetah, and the greyhound are among the top performers, differing slightly in exertion and endurance. Cheetahs are the fastest, but can only sprint in short stints of about 15 seconds, suggesting greyhounds have the advantage in a fast-paced distance race. The antelope is able to sustain the gallop for much longer periods of time, covering miles before they tire.

For as fast as greyhounds are, they sure can teach us how to live slowly. Baloo appreciates the simple things: a good meal, long walks, and being close to his people.

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

Baloo was born with the name LK’s Mudcat, named after the kennel where he was born. Shortly after racing greyhounds are born, they get a tattoo in each ear. Baloo has 105H in the right ear, and in the left, his litter registration number given out by the National Greyhound Association. This is done to identify the dogs at the race, to ensure they are who they say they are, and to prevent inbreeding later on in life. When I brought Baloo home, I couldn’t resist looking up his stats; after a quick Google search, I was able to find his race results, videos, and a detailed fam-

19 pandemic hit, almost all of the tracks in Baloo’s home state of Florida shut their doors for good, which flooded the greyhound adoption organizations with hounds looking for homes. When I brought home our fouryear-old Baloo, I had to teach him some new “tricks,” like how to use the stairs, manually lifting his paws up one stair at a time. I knew it would take some time for Baloo to get used to his new home and chalked up his aloofness to the “laziness” of the breed, and after a few months — with plenty of patience and treats— his glo-

meeting new friends with a keen eye and a short leash. About once a week Baloo decides he wants to flex his muscles. In retirement, he only sprints when he wants to. He lets me know by bounding around the house with his ball in his mouth, and when I take him into the backyard to play fetch, he drops his ball and gets into his low play bow, and then Baloo takes off. Not in “chasing the ball” speed, but in “I’m the fastest dog breed in the world” speed. I stand perfectly still as he flies by, his tail clipping my shin like a skier blasting by a slalom gate. Baloo’s

WHEN A PERSON RESCUES A DOG, IT IS USUALLY NEXT TO IMPOSSIBLE TO LEARN ANYTHING ABOUT ITS PAST, AND IT FELT LIKE A GIFT TO BE ABLE TO LEARN SO MUCH ABOUT THE NEWEST MEMBER OF MY FAMILY. ily tree going back to the 1800s. On the screen, I watched my awkward pile of legs and tongue fly around a quarter-mile track like he was launched from a cannon. When a person rescues a dog, it is usually next to impossible to learn anything about its past, and it felt like a gift to be able to learn so much about the newest member of my family. There are records of greyhounds in ancient Egyptian art and in the Bible, and for thousands of years they have been bred with one trait in mind: speed. Greyhounds start racing at 18 months if they show promising speed, and those who don’t go into early retirement. The racers live at the track for their entire career, and typically the dogs race up to three times a week. Greyhound racing is only legal in the United States in Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, West Virginia, and Texas, and interest in greyhound racing has waned significantly in the past decade, which has caused many tracks to close. When the COVID-

riously weird personality came through. He was fascinated by mirrors and hardwood floors, and he bonked his head a few times before he figured out that he had to wait for the sliding glass door to “magically” open. He didn’t quite know what to do with his toys at first, so he just collected them in his bed to nap with, but it didn’t take long for our boy to master the skills of domesticated living. For many greyhounds, though, it can be a much slower, steeper learning curve. After years of being rewarded for chasing down a “rabbit,” it was tough for Baloo not to stalk or pull towards small dogs on our walks, or run after bunnies that happened to cross his gaze. Racing greyhounds have only seen and interacted with other greyhounds, so it takes some time for them to even recognize other dogs as, well, dogs — not food; some greyhounds have such high prey drive that they may never be able to cuddle up with the neighbor’s Maltese. A year later, I still closely watch Baloo and supervise

nose cuts the air around his tiny skull like a fighter jet’s nose cone. All four of a greyhound’s feet will leave the ground twice with each stride, exactly like their feline counterpart, the cheetah. He kicks up rooster tails behind him as dirt plinks off the side of the house; with this amount of torque, a perfect lawn is something that I will never have. He does a few more passes, then he lays off the gas. He trots to the back door, his ribcage working to get more air into his enormous lungs. After fewer than five minutes of chaos, it’s time for another nap. Baloo patiently waits for me to move the mound of blankets off his bed. When he was a pro he received massages and whirlpool baths after races, and in retirement he still expects a certain level of pampering. He curls up and I drape the blanket over him up to his ears, and when I do, he grunts his approval and appreciation. He tucks the end of his snout under the blanket and quickly drifts off to sleep. It’s been a long day for this long boy.

D DR RO OO OLL — — IISSSU SUE EN NO. O.21

“...I CAME UP WITH PUGLOO WHEN I WAS WATCHING SOME CLASSIC ’50s SCI-FI FILMS, AND I WAS REALLY MISSING MY PUG, BUSTER III. I LOVE PUGS BECAUSE THEY’RE SUCH A STRANGE, UNIQUE BREED. THEY LOOK LIKE LITTLE ALIENS...” Adam Dougherty

Clay, blood, sweat, and drool www.kreaturekid.com

Pugloo from Planet P, 2017

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 2 1

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

Overseeing 25,000 acres across the American West, each of Ranchlands’ five properties runs a professional livestock operation—employing skilled cattle dogs and bringing the occasional bossy dachshund along for the ride.

“THIS IS PUNCH, THE WANNABE COWDOG THAT SPENDS HIS DAYS BARKING ORDERS FROM THE SADDLE AT THE MP RANCH IN NEW MEXICO.” P H O T O G R A P H B Y C L AU D I A L A N D E RV I L L E A N D R A N C H L A N D S

D R O O L — I S SU E N O. 1

ISSUE 3 COMING SPRING 2021

DAMN NEAR PERFECT DOG FOOD

BIXBIPET.COM

Interested in winning a custom dog portrait from a #DROOLWORTHY artist?

Take a picture with this copy of DROOL and your dog, tag @BIXBIPET and you’re entered to win! For details and restrictions, go to bixbipet.com/droolportraitdetails.