On a September afternoon in 2011, Roxy, Blitz, Kal-El and I went to the dog park. It was their favorite place to go. When we arrived, I opened the car door and they sprinted to the gate. Once inside, Roxy usually went off and explored. Blitz found his friends to play and Kal-El followed him […]
Tag: Stories from the Pack
Breeding Success
When Dakota was a puppy, I got a message from Kathy Salvucci. “Dakota looks like she is going down in pastern. If she is on puppy food, get her off and put her on adult food.” I didn’t understand her concern. “The pastern is between the knee and foot on the front leg. It should […]
Affordable Care
In June of 2013, my wife and I were awakened by a phone call. Her mother, whose health had been failing, was dying. We needed to come to the hospital immediately. What followed was an emotional and stressful morning—especially for my wife, but also for me. I had never seen someone die before. I didn’t […]
What If I’m Dead Already?
Almost 40 percent of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer. It’s happened to me twice. The first time came in September 2000. I was sitting in my office when my doctor called with the results of a biopsy taken earlier in the week. He told me I had melanoma. “What does that mean?” I asked. […]
Agent of Change
When Alex returned from Florida, it only took a few days before her pain became uncontrollable. She was admitted to Johns Hopkins Hospital for what would become an extended stay. The pediatric oncology floor had strict rules to protect patients. At the top of the list—no animals. After a lot of pushing—and more than a […]
Kal-El
On a warm spring day in 2010, Alex shouted excitedly. “Dad, come see this!” She was looking over her mother’s shoulder at a Facebook post. A woman out for a morning walk found an abandoned puppy in a box by the side of the road. She couldn’t keep him and was trying to find him […]
Happy Birthday, Blitz
On a December night in Baltimore, I was photographing the holiday fireworks at the Inner Harbor when I heard a call from down the pier. “Is that Blitz?” Two women I didn’t recognize walked toward me, with cameras in hand. They turned out to be fellow photographers who I connected with on Facebook. Blitz was […]
Roxy: The Golden Years
Roxy wasn’t supposed to be my dog. She was for my wife and kids. In fact, I was told to keep my distance. Roxy joined the family while I was on a business trip to Orlando in 2006. She was a bundle of Golden Retriever energy from day one. She loved her new family and […]
Happy Birthday, Robert
Almost 40 years ago, during an exhausting day, I was taking a break when a man I’d never met came over, put a bottle down in front of me and said, “You look like you could use a beer.” Before the bottle was empty, Robert DiRinaldo and I were no longer strangers. That conversation marked […]
Hard Choices
Having dogs in your family is a joy—the companionship, the love, the adventures, the comic relief. There are a lot of responsibilities and chores as well. And some annoyances. That’s just part of the deal. Then there are the hard choices. Buster was the first leader of The Great Dog Pack. Today is the anniversary […]