Magazine – The Art Of Dog.™

An Underdog Becomes Leader of the Pack.

The dogs at Tito’s Handmade Vodka offices and distillery are a constant reminder of the company’s mission to “unite with our friends, fans and partners to better the lives of pets and their families far and wide.”

by Anna Cooke

One of the very first employees of Tito’s Handmade Vodka was a dog named Dogjo. She was right by Tito Beveridge’s side when he started his distillery in 1997. It was the first legal distillery in Texas and the only crafts spirits distillery in the country, at the time.

During those early years, Tito’s Handmade Vodka was a one-man operation – from crafting and packaging to selling, delivering and dealing with paperwork. Beveridge and Jo often ate and slept at the warehouse. The 50-pound bags of dog food that Beveridge stored for Jo eventually attracted a revolving door of homeless pups, fondly called “distillery dogs.”

Beveridge has always said that he makes the vodka he likes to drink. “Since I was the guy making it, bottling it and selling it, I realized I couldn’t make something for somebody else. It was just fortunate for me that my palate falls into the bell curve of what vodka drinkers like.”

This is Taki, the current official distillery dog.

Tito’s Handmade Vodka grew and so did the number of dogs who hung around the distillery, as Beveridge continued to feed and take care of them. Today, the distillery is home to a handful of rescued dogs, including Taki, the current resident distillery dog who eats, plays and lives there. The dogs are a constant reminder of the company’s mission to “unite with our friends, fans and partners to better the lives of pets and their families far and wide.” Following the devastating destruction that resulted from Hurricane Harvey in 2017, it is no surprise that this dog-loving team came together to brainstorm the most effective and immediate ways to help those affected.

“When a natural disaster strikes, one of the largest groups affected is always stray and abandoned animals,” said Amy Lukken, Chief Joyologist of Tito’s Handmade Vodka. “We knew we would have to act quickly, even before the storm made landfall, in order to save as many animals’ lives as possible,” she added. The Tito’s team has an ongoing relationship with local animal shelter Austin Pets Alive! When they reached out for help, the Tito’s team provided as much support as possible, even as some of their own family members in Houston and surrounding areas would be displaced because of the hurricane.

Tito’s Handmade Vodka animal advocacy program, Vodka For Dog People, donated money to Austin Pets Alive! to help with the purchase of food, supplies and shelter for displaced animals after Hurricane Harvey hit Texas. More than 5,000 animals who were in Harvey’s direct path have been saved. Vodka For Dog People also gave locally to Wags Hope and Healing and Bailing Out Benji. On the people front, the company partnered with the American Red Cross with a dollar-for-dollar match of up.

Although Austin Pets Alive! and other Texas shelters have done a fantastic job at providing aid to these animals, disaster aid is still needed beyond the Texas border. The Tito’s team continues to help fund transportation methods for pets out of the Caribbean and Puerto Rico following Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

harveytruck — Tito’s employees and volunteers collecting donations after Hurricane Harvey in 2017.

Through the Vodka For Dog People (VFDP) initiative, more than 1,000 animal welfare nonprofits in over seven countries have been helped since its inception, six years ago. VFDP, which partners in more than 700 fundraising events each year, has been a permanent company-wide cause program for three years.

In Florida, VFDP has provided support to more than 50 different events and charities, including Vets For Pets Charitable Clinic in Tampa and Pet Pal Animal Shelter in St. Petersburg. “We expect those numbers will continue to grow as our Vodka For Dog People program gains more recognition and visibility, thanks to partners such as The New Barker,” said Beth Bellanti, Vodka For Dog People Program Manager at Tito’s Handmade Vodka. “The easiest way to get involved with Florida animal advocacy programs is by donating to local shelters and charities. We host VFDP events all over Florida,” Beth added. By the way, we saw a beautiful raffle basket of Tito’s Handmade Vodka with fun goodies at Manatee County Animal Services 4th Annual Adopt-A-Palooza this past Saturday.

Vodka For Dog People is the perfect legacy to honor Jo, Tito’s first companion dog, almost 21 years ago. “Everyone has an incredible rescue story, including those of us who have adopted dogs from the distillery,” said Beveridge.

Reflecting on those earlier days, Tito thinks about failure in terms of energy. Harkening back to his geophysics days (he graduated from The University of Texas with degrees in geology and geophysics in 1984), Beveridge said, “Energy isn’t destroyed. It simply changes forms.” He uses this knowledge to his advantage whenever he is struggling with a project. “Your first instinct is to blame everyone else,” said Beveridge. “But, don’t blame it on anyone. Wrap your arms around [the failure] and take the blame, so all the energy becomes yours. You can’t destroy energy. You can, however, change the phase.”

We’ll toast to that.

Ulele_Group_Tito — The marketing team for Columbia Restaurant Group invited Tito Beveridge to Ulele. The Tampa restaurant serves Tito’s Handmade Vodka.

The New Barker is a Florida-based lifestyle magazine all about dogs and the humans who love them. Featuring original stories with award-winning photography in each quarterly publication since 2006 – each cover of The New Barker features an original work of art by a different artist. Subscribe today.

The Human+Dog Bond.

“Having a dog in my life completes me,” said Pam Stuart. The human+dog bond is one of the most beautiful things to stand back and observe. That’s just what we did while attending several dog agility events, recently, in Florida.

by Anna Cooke

Of all the things we’ve experienced over the last 12 years of publishing The New Barker, the bond between a dog and human is one of the most beautiful things to stand back and observe.

A few weeks ago, we checked out DACOF, the dog agility competition held at the Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee. The dogs competing were happy to be running, jumping and barking alongside their humans. People cheered each other on and there were a lot of atta boy and good girl praises, no matter the outcome of the agility run. Everyone was smiling, especially the dogs. Could it have been the bacon jerky treats?

Marina, owner of ARTPool Gallery in St. Petersburg and her dog Franklin, were at DACOF in Kissimmee. “We closed the store to attend the event with Franklin,” she told us.

Sunday, July 29, 2018, we attended the annual Summer Games for members of the Upper Suncoast Dog Training Club (USDTC) in Clearwater. In addition to the fun and camaraderie, the event raised funds for Canine Companions for Independence (CCI), surpassing the club’s goal of $1,000. We had an opportunity to speak with some of the members and interact with their dogs.

Big MacGyver was heading outdoors for a potty break, toy securely in mouth, when we first saw him. The French Bulldog+Boston Terrier mix will be two in October. His human, a nurse, has been training with him at USDTC for about a year. Dressed in her uniform, she would be heading to the hospital to work the night shift after attending the Games. “I always take time out for my pup,” she told us.

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Janie_TinyTim — Janie and Tiny Tim. “He helps get me out of the house.”

Tiny Tim has titled in dog tricks, Beginner Novice obedience and Rally Novice. His human Janie has been a member of USDTC since 1981, when the club was located in Dunedin. She loves Afghan Hounds, but after her last Afghan passed three years ago, Janie realized her days running with a bigger dog were limited. But living without a dog was never a consideration. Tiny Tim, a Chinese Crested Powder Puff, came into her life almost three years ago. The career hairdresser told us, “I knew I had to have another dog with hair.” She said that Cresteds and Afghans have similar personalities. “They’re both very independent breeds.” she said. “I’m very proud of Timmy and his accomplishments. Besides, he’s going to keep me young for another 10 years.”

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Sid has earned the right to sit and observe the action.

Sid is a 15-year-old Schnauzer. The retired service dog has earned the right to be a quiet observer, lounging in his chair while his human competed with another dog. A cyst in his left eye required surgery to remove the whole eye. He now has bladder cancer, and is actually doing remarkably well. “He’s had a wonderful life,” said his human, who adopted him from the SPCA Tampa Bay. “He was just a puppy when I found him at the shelter, about to be put down because he had kennel cough.”

Lately, we’re hearing from quite a few of our readers, informing us of their dog’s passing. That’s the sad reality of having been publishing The New Barker since 2006. Sometimes, the deadlines and workload make the time seem like it’s been never-ending. But, for life with dogs, it’s never long enough.

Bruce and his Newfoundland Ransom are regulars at a lot of dog-friendly events around the Tampa Bay area. The family’s Newfoundlands have been featured in The New Barker several times, over the years. We first met Ransom as a puppy, during a Clearwater Threshers Baseball Bark at the Park. During Sunday’s event, Bruce said, “Thankfully, for many of us, our dogs have been forever immortalized on the pages of The New Barker. I am happy to have saved the magazines over the years and enjoy revisiting them. Always good memories.”

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Callum is Pam Stuart’s puppy. The club’s current president, Pam has been a contributor to The New Barker, writing about her favorite breed, the Vizla. Her contribution about gun dog broke dogs, was one of our most highly-commented-on pieces. She has since lost two of her own Vizslas, Monty, who passed a few years ago, and Pete, just within the last couple of months. She says of Callum, who is four months old. “I had to have another dog. I’ll always have a dog in my life. Dogs complete me.”

Pam_Stuart_Two_Dogs — Pam with Monty and Pete.

Excerpt from Broken Down Angel. Fixing The Spirit of a Broken Dog by Pam Stuart

“That dog is not gun dog broke,” observed George Hickox, a top dog trainer and handler. “That dog is just broken.” Someone yelled to Lonnie Spell, another dog trainer on-site: “Hey, Lonnie, you want that piece of crap?”

“I had to say yes,” Lonnie remembered. “It would have been easier to say no, but sometimes the easy thing is not always the right thing. And saying no would mean that pup was destined to be dumped in an after-hours outdoor run at a kill shelter with all the other dogs. It wasn’t my job to make this guy’s dump at the shelter easier, but taking that dog would be the right thing. It would save a life. And, I knew that dog.” ###

So, about those treats we mentioned before, whether they’re bacon jerky or another secret weapon handlers may use to gain a dog’s full attention. My conclusion, after observing so many dogs over the years, is that they will do anything – anything – for their humans in exchange for warm praise, a gentle touch and especially the simple gesture of companionship. Time spent with dogs is never wasted.

A few other dogs we met during the July 29 Summer Games in Clearwater.

Cruiser, a seven-year-old Sheltie. Crossing his legs is his favorite thing.

Lily is a Bichon Frise. She’ll steal your heart after she steals the photograph.

Star is a five-year-old Jack Russell Terrier.

Upper Suncoast Dog Training Club (USDTC) is an all-breed training facility in Clearwater, Florida. For 50 years has empowered people to become better dog owners through positive training and education. The classes are for every dog, from puppies to seniors; manners to competition. Classes offered include obedience, rally, agility, conformation, tricks and canine freestyle. They also offer therapy dog training for those who want to give back with their dogs to the community.

Dog Training Club of St. Petersburg

Dog Training Club of Tampa

Orlando Dog Training Club

Sarasota Obedience Training Club

Greater Ocala Dog Club

Imperial Polk Obedience Club

K-9 Obedience Club of Jacksonville

Obedience Club of Daytona

Miami Obedience Club

The Greater Gainesville Dog Fanciers Association

Marion-Alachua Dog Training Association

Fort Lauderdale Dog Club

Tallahassee Dog Obedience Club

Ochlockonee River Kennel Club

Dog Obedience Club of Hollywood

The New Barker is a Florida-based lifestyle magazine all about dogs and the humans who love them. Featuring original stories with award-winning photography in each quarterly publication since 2006 – each cover of The New Barker features an original work of art by a different artist.

Let’s Go Global.

by Anna Cooke and Heather Schulman

Even with a concise list of manufacturers to visit, we managed to get sidetracked at Global Pet Expo, last week in Orlando. The industry trade show for pet retailers is sensory overload with miles and miles of displays and products. Thank DOG for the various canines walking the floor, who helped bring us back down to earth on several occasions. There was Indie, catching the show from a backpack. And a sweet Pup In Pink Polka Dot whose name we did not catch. Then, there was Seamus. Oh Seamus, you stole our hearts. The Pyrenean Mastiff was part of the booth display at All Four Paws, makers of The Comfy Cone, The Chill Collar and The Wipe It Drool Towel (which Seamus was wearing).

Beds – There were lots of fun novelty items, like these Disney-themed beds and pillows (below). We loved the look and feel of the faux fur dog beds from Baylee Nasco, designed and manufactured out of Hialeah, Florida. That’s Chai Latte sitting on a pile of their beds at the show. One Lucky Dog in St. Petersburg carries the Baylee Nasco line. Feeling is believing.

Our favorite beds, paws down, are the ones made by Bowsers Beds. We have some throughout our home, and they still look brand new, after years of machine washing and drying. Now, it’s time to make an investment on some new ones. The dogs love them. The new, soft neutral colors are fabulous and will look good with any home’s color scheme or decor style. Fluffy Puppies Dog Store & Salon will be our go-to for our next round of Bowsers Beds.

Travel – Luggage can be a fashion statement. For those of us who love taking trips with our dogs, The Pet Collection from Chariot Travelware is the hound’s bow WOW! The hard side cases are fully lined inside and feature a high quality telescopic handle with push button locking system. They are gorgeous. If you order online, tell them THE NEW BARKER dog magazine sent you.

Unleashing The Power Of Play – We enjoyed meeting the new team at Planet Dog. This Maine company continues to impress us with their innovative creations of tougher toys. They don’t forget to include puppies and seniors in their plans when thinking up new product designs. And, the toys are all 100% guaranteed. You can’t beat that. We’ll be heading to Pet Food Warehouse in St. Petersburg, BarkLife Market & More in Seminole and Dog Mania+Cats in Dade City for our next toy supply. Our dogs can’t have too many, right?

Neat Stuff – It’s always nice to put a face to the months of email correspondence. We met Jane with foufouBrands, creators of foufoudog designer wear. They also make Vegalicious, a 100% natural vegan treats for dogs, made in the USA. We also met the exuberant Kevin Roberge, who was passionate about the new product lines being created by ThunderWorks, inventors of ThunderShirt. #ThunderShirtYourself Although we missed seeing our contact Andrea Friedland with PAWZ, stay connected to THE NEW BARKER, as we’re planning something fun with them, later this year.

Friends and Associates – We ran into a longtime friend of THE NEW BARKER, Tom Brennan at the American Pet Nutrition booth. We said hello to Dr. Marty Becker at the Media Roundup Luncheon and ran into his daughter, Mikkel Becker, on the showroom floor. We saw Kris Logan, then said hello to the Pasadena Pet Motel and STK9 Training teams. David Fine of Bark N Bag regaled us with a Bernadette Peters birthday story. We said Aloha to Kelly Ison who was introducing a new line of treats at Einstein Pets. The Luau Time dog treats are handcrafted from natural and nutritious, premium raw ingredients in the USA. The treats are produced in small batches with only seven ingredients: Oat Flour, Coconut, Pineapple, Honey, Pork, Ginger, Chia Seed. BarkLife Market & More in Seminole and St. Pete carries the Einstein Pets line of treats. By the way, Abbey the Westie takes her job as taste tester serious. She remained at the Sarasota headquarters, working her little wiggle butt off. Way to take one for the Einstein Pets team, Abbey.

Curious Puck, our canine traveling companion, was a trooper. He allowed exhibitors to treat him, pet him and try some things on him. He didn’t turn his nose up to anything, even bravely pulling a bone out of a basket at one of the booths. Special thanks to Puck’s human, Heather Schulman, for bringing him along.

We loved hearing about companies donating a portion of their sales to various animal advocacy programs – especially the smaller businesses. Found My Animal is one such company out of Brooklyn, New York who, over the years, has supported Austin Pets Alive, Best Friends Animal Society and Bully Breed Rescue, to name a few. We were first introduced to their gorgeous line of collars and leashes by Rene of Hyde Park’s Downtown Dogs, many years ago.

Cool Find – PillStashios is a company that makes an edible pill stasher for dogs. You’ll find it at Pets Life Naturally in Palmetto and The Doggie Bag in Lakeland. The product, inspired by nature, looks like a pistachio. You insert the pill inside the edible stasher, snap it shut and serve it to your dog. We were given some samples for Dougie, our Scottish Terrier, who is on medication for skin allergies. It’s a dream to use and he loves the taste. The PillStashios product is 100% natural, free of gluten, wheat, corn and soy. This was a fun product and great group of people at the booth.

Raising the Woof – Food and treats were a big part of Global Pet Expo. It was good to see so many new products offering a variety of options for the consumer and their pets. We LOVE Pawsitively Pure Dog Food, a Central Florida company offering a line of products that include dog food, dog treats and bone broth. They use only the finest, freshest and purest human-grade ingredients. “We are committed to replacing conventional ingredients with certified organic alternatives whenever possible,” said Carole Brooks, the Founder and CEO. Carole started her company in 2007, after that year’s major pet food recall. The company’s mascot and taste tester is Ryley Jones, a Weimaraner. Carole gave us a sample of the fresh-made bone broth after we told her about Rita, our MinPin who has arthritis. She is digging the broth on top of her kibble.

It’s A Wrap – The work that all of these companies put into their products, then the time they take to travel, display and talk about them is impressive. Equally impressive: the number of pet retailers walking the floor looking for the most innovative products to bring to their customers. Check in with your local independent retailer and find out what new goodies are in store for you and your dog. Until next year, #GlobalPetExpo. We were doggone tired and our feet were definitely barking by day’s end.

Every Dog Happens For A Reason.

angel_2091-copy Meet Angel, the newest addition to The New Barker staff. Like Bailey, the dog in the movie A Dog’s Purpose, we’re clueless as to what Angel’s purpose is at the moment. We’re not even certain what compelled us to adopt a puppy at this stage in our lives. It’s been 18 years since we’ve raised one, and evidently our memory bank was devoid of all that is involved. Maybe it has something to do with her name, given to her before we adopted her from VIP Rescue Florida in Clearwater. Divine intervention for two broken hearts?

Our home, over the last 10 years, was complete with four dogs. As editor of The New Barker dog magazine, there are many opportunities for dogs to cross my path, increasing the odds of falling in love, over and over again. In A Dog’s Purpose, Bailey falls in love over and over again with a different human. Without love, after all, what is the purpose of life?

While attending this year’s Florida Gulf Coast Classic Clusters dog show with a dear friend, she mentioned why she enjoyed coming to the show so much. “I love watching you interact with the dogs, because every dog you see, it’s as if it’s the first time you’ve ever seen a dog.”

Over the course of eight months during this past year, we lost our two Cockapoos, Zoe and Chloe. They had been a big part of our lives for 18 years, and boom, just like that, we were a family of four – two humans and two canines.

One of the reasons it’s so difficult getting over the loss of a dog is the simple fact that they are so dependent on us. They won’t “grow up” and develop a new circle of friends, go off to college, establish a career and start families. They leave us only when their time is up, whenever or however that may be. Their departure opens a space in the heart that may never be filled. But, what if, having known that one dog, a place is opened in the heart to make room for more love, compassion, faith and hope? Room for another dog, whose purpose may not be clear at first.

With it’s cool soundtrack, A Dog’s Purpose is not just a story about dogs. It’s as much a story about humans, with our foibles, our loneliness and our ability to forgive and love again. Yes, it’s a love story that will make you laugh and cry, then laugh again, which is exactly what dogs do.

While Angel’s purpose may not be clear to us, for now, she is helping to mend a pair of broken hearts. And, at present, that’s all we can ask of a nine-week old puppy.

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Angel’s Adventures will be a weekly feature of The New Barker blog, so be sure to sign up. Follow The New Barker on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest for a cuteness overload of Angel as we follow her growth and discover just what her purpose in our lives will be.

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Is She Or Isn’t She?

Earlier this year, a study from the University of Florida revealed that even experienced animal shelter workers often mislabel dogs as “pit bulls.” The researchers evaluated breed assessments made on 120 dogs by 16 shelter staff members, including four veterinarians at four different shelters, all of whom had at least three years experience. After the assessments, blood samples were taken from the dogs and researchers compiled DNA profiles for each animal. The study concluded that true pit bull-type heritage was positively identified only 33 to 75 percent of the time. Conversely, dogs with no genetic evidence of being pit bull-type dogs were mislabeled as pit bulls as much as 48 percent of the time.

Can you tell what kind of dog she is just by looking at her?

In THE NEW BARKER dog magazine’s feature on Pit Bulls (“The Never-Ending Story,” summer 2015) Page 28 – Luis Salgado, the animal services investigator who enforces Miami-Dade’s Pit Bull ban (Breed Specific Legislation or BSL) said, “There is no reliable DNA testing for that breed. DNA is useless. If you look at where that breed came from, there’s American Bulldog, there’s Terrier, all watered down and mixed together to produce the dog we now call the Pit Bull.” In enforcing the Pit Bull ban, Salgado went on to say that Miami-Dade relies on physical characteristics with a 47-point checklist. “Any dog that substantially conforms to the characteristics of a Pit Bull is considered a Pit Bull,” said Salgado. “Furthermore, it doesn’t have to be a purebred to be considered a Pit Bull. A Cocker Spaniel crossed with a Pit Bull is a Pit Bull. A German Shepherd Dog crossed with a Pit Bull is a Pit Bull.”

Also quoted in The New Barker article is Kris Irizarry, a professor of comparative genomics from the College of Veterinary Medicine at Western University of Health Sciences. “There is no boundary between what genes may or may not be in the breed. That is why it’s not a breed. It’s a general dog and there is no way to predict its behavior from its appearance.”

Adopted from Hillsborough County Animal Services.

Labeling dogs “pit bull” keeps them in shelters. The term “Pit Bull” covers any dog with a muscular build and big head. The true breeds most commonly labeled as “pit bulls” are the American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier and the Staffordshire Bull Terrier. Many dogs labeled as “pit bulls” don’t even have any DNA belonging to these aforementioned breeds.

However, according to an article in Newsweek earlier this year, shelters are unlikely to stop labeling the dogs as “pit bulls.” Ken Foster, a community dog program coordinator for Animal Care Centers of NYC told the Newsweek reporter that people expect breed labels and most of the inventories or databases that shelters use require breed labels.

An estimated 70 percent of dogs that end up in shelters in this country are classified as pit bull-type dogs. That is a devastating, oftentimes deadly label. Pit Bull detractors say these dogs are more likely to kill. Pit Bull advocates say the only thing they are more likely to do is die.

For more information, visit Miami Coalition Against Breed Specific Legislation. #TheNewBarkerDogMagazine