My Pet World: Twenty years of columns have only fueled my enthusiasm about pets!
Summing up 20 years of work isn't easy. As I begin my third decade of writing this column, I have a wealth of memories to recall.
I was the first journalist to speak with a search-and-rescue dog handler at the World Trade Center, within 48 hours of the Sept. 11, 2001 disaster. After driving overnight from East Carondelet, MO (near St. Louis), Chris Christensen was among the first handlers on the scene.
Interviewing Chris via cell phone, he described the grisly scene in such graphic detail that I couldn't relay it all in my column. He told me how his dog, Servus, lost his footing and slid down a giant mountain of debris, landing head first in a pile of ash. Hoisting the 70-pound dog over his shoulder, Chris hollered for help and several firefighters came to the rescue.
A nurse began administering IV fluids to Servus on the sidewalk, while a police officer poured water over the now convulsing dog. What appeared to be liquid concrete streamed from the dog's nose. Rushed by ambulance to Animal Medical Center, Servus recovered quickly enough to do more work at Ground Zero.
This story spread around the globe, and morning news shows began covering the heroics of many 9/11 search-and-rescue dogs. I'm proud to have focused attention on these teams.
Following 9/11, I expressed concern about the "comfort dogs" brought in to support families with loved ones killed or missing in the wake of the terrorist attacks. The sentiment was wonderful, but many of the dogs weren't suited for the task. The term "comfort dogs" stuck, however, and today organizations do train dogs for just this purpose, which is a good thing.
I earned awards for both stories, and was named Syndicated Feature Writer of the Year for 2001 by Editor and Publisher magazine.
Better than awards, though, are comments from pet owners telling me that my columns have helped them. According to my math, that's 1,040 stories!
Back in 1995, I wrote that search-and-rescue dogs were despondent over not finding live survivors following the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, OK. TV news anchors picked up on the piece, asking, "Do dogs really get depressed?" I did dozens of media interviews following that column.
Over the years, I've reported on many advances in veterinary medicine. I'm proud of a 2003 op-ed piece I wrote countering a bogus Consumer Reports story on how to deal with "money hungry" veterinarians. The story was filled with misinformation, and directed consumers inaccurately.
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