NATIONAL DOG DAY

National Dog Day on August 26th encourages dog ownership of all breeds. While seeking a new companion, be sure to consider the mutts, mixes, purebreds, and everything in between. 

Whether mixed or purebred, embrace the opportunity for all dogs to live a happy, safe, and abuse-free life. They all give us companionship. Additionally, they keep us safe, and they aid those in need. Dogs play. Well, they play many roles in our lives, too! They keep us healthy, both physically and mentally.

While many days aim to find loving homes for dogs, this day expands that consideration to look beyond the breed. Look into the heart of the animal. The purpose of the National Dog Day Foundation is to rescue 10,000 dogs each year.

A dog is man’s best friend.

Breeds

Purebreds are animals whose parents were both of the same breed. While the American Kennel Club (AKC) recognizes official breeds, not all dogs with parents from the same breed are considered official by the AKC. One benefit of purebred animals is that characteristics such as behavior and size are predictable.

With mixed breed animals, the genetics becomes uncertain, and some of the predictability is lost. However, when it comes to choosing a dog to add to your family or for training one to join a team, both purebred and mixed breeds may still fit the bill. Both types of dogs, young and old, find their way to shelters.

Many popular breeds fill shelters due to recent films or television shows. Families buy an animal imagining they will make the perfect pet but are unprepared for the training, care, and other responsibilities that come with canine care. Regardless of their genetics, all dogs require care and training. If there’s a particular breed that has captured your heart, check the shelters. You might be surprised to find either a purebred or one that is a mix of the kind you’re fond of.

Meet Rosie. She is spoiled rotten and happily shares our home with 5 cats and us humans too.

When dogs find a forever home, their companionship creates lifelong benefits. They bring with them joy, loyalty, and devotion. Eventually, no matter the breed, these pets become family.

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HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalDogDay

Listen to Dog Walking by The Knits from their album Pixel Parks.

When considering adoption, adopt, don’t shop. If you have your heart set on a purebred companion, consider visiting a website like bestfriends.org or petfinder.com to find one at a shelter. Learn how organizations like these are changing the way we adopt. As you search for your new family member, get prepared. Keep in mind the needs of a small versus large dog. Until you find your forever companion, consider volunteering at your shelter or becoming a foster parent.

Use #NationalDogDay and post photos of your dog on social media. Take your dog for a walk.  If you do not have a dog, ask to take your neighbor’s dog for a stroll, or volunteer at a shelter.

NEVER BEAN BETTER DAY

If you’ve waited for a Never Bean Better Day to enjoy the unconditional love of your canine companion, August 22nd is the day! Just like our ever-joyful pets, the day casts away the worries and spreads enthusiasm for life.

The celebration encourages both the spirit of generosity and sharing the joys of life with delight. Go out into the world with your family pet and plant the bean of love everywhere you go. Share it generously, like dogs do when they take care of us when we are sick or down. They give us all their love with abandon in the forms of licks and snuggles. Sometimes our furry friends do tricks and antics only canines know how to do. Other times, they even perform their own love song or woo woo. Every day should be a Never Bean Better Day to share all the love your dog stores up!

NEVER BEAN BETTER DAY HISTORY

The Drager Group, Inc. founded Never Bean Better Day to recognize the unconditional love dogs bring to human lives. The observance honors the birth of a special therapy dog, Bean, who eagerly spreads his Bean wuv everywhere he goes. Bean improves the lives of those who need it most. Visit NeverBeanBetter.com to learn more about Bean and his many talents, canine and not so canine.

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HOW TO OBSERVE #NeverBeanBetterDay

In recognition of the celebration, share the Bean wuv. Fetch up some fun and make a difference like Bean, a very special therapy dog, does every day in providing comfort and joy to so many through his physical and virtual presence. Help someone by sharing your time, talent or treasure or just by making someone’s day by getting them to play … human or canine!

Follow Bean’s tail on Facebook at Never Bean Better @neverbeanbetterwoo, Instagram, and Twitter. Be sure to spread the Bean wuv by using the #NeverBeanBetterDay and @neverbeanbetter to share your never bean better moments on social media. Get out and fetch up some fun! Make every day a Never Bean Better day!

NATIONAL LIGHTHOUSE DAY

Observed annually on August 7th, National Lighthouse Day honors the beacon of light that for hundreds of years symbolized safety and security for ships and boats at sea. At one time, the beacon of light could be found across almost all of America’s shorelines.

A lighthouse is described as a tower, building or any other type of structure that is designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. 

A lighthouse serves multiple purposes such as marking dangerous coastlines, hazardous shoals, and reefs providing safe entry to harbors. They also provide aerial guidance. Once lit by open fire and candles, they’re now brightly lit by electric or oil-fueled lamps. However, the number of lighthouses are declining. Maintenance is expensive and modern electrical navigation systems are replacing them. 

Lighthouse Facts
  • Their style may differ depending on the location and purpose but they have standard components.
  • The lantern room is a glassed-in housing at the top of a lighthouse tower
  • Beneath the lantern room is the Watch Room or Service Room 
  • Next to the Watch room is an open gallery.
  • Development accelerated in the 17th century with Britain’s Trinity House constructing its first in 1609.
  • In North America, St. Augustine, Florida built the first lighthouse. Printed on a 1791 map, it had been built by Menendez after his landing in 1586.
  • Boston Light built on little Brewster Island next in 1716.
  • The oldest existing lighthouse in the United States is the Sandy Hook Lighthouse in New Jersey. Built in 1764, this lighthouse is still in operation.
  • At the end of the 19th century, the United States had the most lighthouses of any nation.
  • The 9th Act of the first Congress created the US Bureau of Lighthouses in 1789, which placed lighthouses under federal control.
  • The United States Coast Guard took over on July 7, 1939.
  • Hobbyists enjoy visiting and photographing lighthouses. They also collect ceramic replicas.  

NATIONAL LIGHTHOUSE DAY HISTORY

On August 7, 1789, the United States Congress approved an act for the “establishment and support of Lighthouse, Beacons, Buoys, and Public Piers.”  It was two hundred years later that Congress designated August 7 as National Lighthouse Day.

Make sure you attend a tour of our Lighthouse in Pensacola, Florida. Not only is it a historical landmark, its been featured on National television as a haunted one. There seems to be a connection between the Lighthouse and their keepers that sometimes even death cannot sever. Make sure to wear comfortable shoes as its a long climb to the you of the stairs.

HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalLighthouseDay

Tour lighthouses near you. Take a road trip. With lighthouses on every coast and the great lakes, one or more is surely worth the trip! As you celebrate, you can learn more about lighthouses, too. 

  • Read Lighthouses of North America: Beacons from Coast to Coast by Sylke Jackson.
  • Watch a documentary about lighthouses. Give A Day in the Life of a Lighthouse Keeper a view from National Geographic. Or perhaps, Behind The Light: Lighthouse Keepers will interest you.
  • Share your experiences visiting lighthouses including visits to lighthouse museums around the country. 

Share your photos of lighthouses and use #NationalLighthouseDay to post on social media.

NATIONAL BUTTERMILK BISCUIT DAY

May 14th ushers in National Buttermilk Biscuit Day to celebrate this high-rising breakfast staple.

Biscuits are made using baking powder or baking soda as a leavening agent rather than yeast.  A typicalbuttermilk biscuit recipe contains flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, butter, and buttermilk.  They are often referred to as a “quick bread,” indicating they do not need time to rise before baking. While being made, the dough is beaten and folded to incorporate air, which expands while baking, causing the biscuit to rise. 

Before the American Civil War, biscuits emerged as an inexpensive addition to meals. This sturdier bread product soon became popular as people realized it absorbed the gravy on their plate better than plain bread. Soon a new family favorite, biscuits and gravy, was created.

Alexander P. Ashbourne patented the first biscuit cutter in 1875.

Supermarkets offer canned biscuits that are refrigerated until ready to be baked. In 1931, Ballard and Ballard patented these refrigerator biscuits.

Biscuits have been a staple of the Southern United States cuisine for many years and are often made with buttermilk.  Traditionally served as a side dish with butter, they are also served at breakfast with molasses, light sugarcane syrup, maple syrup, sorghum syrup, honey, jam or jelly, or as a breakfast sandwich.

HOW TO OBSERVE #ButtermilkBiscuitDay

Share your favorite recipes and biscuit combinations. Aside from biscuits and gravy, give these biscuit ideas a try:

  • Make biscuit breakfast sandwiches with eggs and cheese.
  • Serve biscuits with your favorite soup. It’s better than dumplings!
  • Use biscuit dough to make pizza crust. Partially bake the dough before adding toppings.
  • Warm biscuits with butter and jelly satisfy every time.
  • Serve biscuits with pork chops, pork loins, or pulled pork.
  • BBQ and biscuits hit the spot, too. They soak up the juices quite well.
  • Whenever you have fresh fish, serve homemade biscuits. Catfish and biscuits are particularly delicious.
  • Who likes tomato sandwiches during the summer? When fresh tomatoes ripen on the vine, slice them up while they’re warm. Add a little bit of mayonnaise and sprinkle of salt and sandwich them between two warm biscuits.
  • Don’t forget dessert. Biscuits make an excellent base for strawberry shortcake. Just add a little sugar to your dough to sweeten it. You’ll make up the rest of the sweetness with the strawberries and whipped cream.

Use #ButtermilkBiscuitDay to post on social media.

NATIONAL PUPPY DAY

Observed each year on March 23rd, National Puppy Day celebrates the unconditional love and affection puppies bring to our lives. Their cuddles and wiggles make us smile and without a doubt, there are squeals of delight when there are puppies around!

The day also brings awareness to the need for care of and homes for orphaned pups as well as to educate people about the horrors of puppy mills across the country. Puppies are a big responsibility. Be sure to consider everything involved and adopt from a shelter. The puppies there need love and a home just as much as any other and they grow into loyal pets, too!

According to the ASPCA, approximately 3.3 million dogs enter shelters every year. Some of these dogs come with litters of puppies. If you’re seeking a puppy to start your furry family, check the shelters first. When these abandoned and abused animals find their way to a shelter, each one needs a forever home and their potential is limitless.

NATIONAL PUPPY DAY HISTORY

National Puppy Day was founded in 2006 by Pet Lifestyle Expert, Animal Behaviorist and Author, Colleen Paige.  Paige is also the founder of National Dog Day and National Cat Day.

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HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalPuppyDay

  • Use #NationalPuppyDay and post photos of your puppy on social media.
  • Go to the dog park and let your puppy play.
  • Pick up a special treat for your puppy.
  • Go for a walk with your young friend.