Mickey the Accidental Paw Print Artist

Hey, I'm Mickey, a 2 year old Labrador Retriever who's got some other mixed canine heritage too, just not sure what. It doesn't matter much to me though. I just like hanging out, smiling, and thinking about stuff. Not too much though, my momma told me once that too much thinking can get you in trouble.

I do wish I had thought a little bit before walking into that wet cement though. Lucky for me, I only stepped into it with my right paw before I realized what was going on. It's kind of embarrassing, and other dogs have been teasing me about it, but it's supposed to rain this evening and that should wash off most of it.

Wanna know the really cool thing? My paw print will be in that sidewalk forever. Well, maybe not forever. There isn't anything in life that's forever. Let's just say that paw print will be there for quite a while. And I'm OK with that.

Heidi the Therapy Hound

Meet Heidi, a 3.5 year old dog who loves spending time in Bangkok pharmacies peforming a variety of tasks for which she receives no payment other than peoples' smiles. Heidi is what's known as a therapy dog, an animal that greets customers as they arrive and helps them figure out what purchases to make.

Heidi is an independent analyst with vast knowledge of various pharmaceutical products. Because she's not beholden to any one drug manufacturer, Heidi can provide objective recommendations. That's a rare commodity in a time when drug companies seem to hold all the cards.

Shoppers love the unwaveringly friendly attitude that Heidi exhibits, and her services are in demand in many different parts of the Thai capital.

Come On Now, Let's Have A Kiss

My, what a romantic evening. The stars, the moon, and the clouds in the sky seem to all be aligned in the most picturesque possible way. Damn, it's stunning!

In light of this confluence of undeniable beauty, I was hoping you might give me a kiss. Yes, right now. You heard me, girlfriend.

What's that you say? You've got a headache? Yea, never heard that one before. Pretty original. Sorry babe, that excuse ain't gonna fly.

Here's how it's going to go down: We're going to smooch romantically under this sparkling canopy of stars, or I'm going to bite you. Playfully, of course, but with enough channeled intensity to hopefully sweep you off your paws. It's going to tickle, too. Your call.

Meet Hank The Softie

Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like you to meet Hank, a 1.5 year old hound who's just one of the most sentimental fellows you'll ever come across.

Kind. Gentle. Caring. These are all adjectives that apply to Hank, although he's so humble that he always runs away and hides whenever the compliments starting raining down.

Hank likes to think a lot about life. He's a big fan of older movies, and can often be seen wiping away a tear during the really emotional moments. Hank isn't shy about expressing his emotions, which is notable in a city like Bangkok, where dogs can get hardened by the street in a hurry.

Hank is pictured here waiting for a street worker to arrive to work and sweep the dusty sidewalks. These are people from the less glamorous stations in life, but Hank has found them to be kind folks, and so he makes it a point to be there when they start their day.

Mollie The Mama Dog

This is Mollie, a 3 year old mutt of mixed German Shepherd, Siberian Husky, and a whole lot of other stuff. She's a smiley gal who always enjoys a good belly laugh. Says it's healthy or something, I don't know.

Mollie is a master of impressions, and the face she's pulling here is supposed to be that of Julie, the broom-selling entrepreneur dog I profiled in a post last August. Julie's kind of a serious dog, and Mollie likes to poke fun at her stern demeanour. That kind of makes Julie angry, though, so Mollie only does it when she's not around.

Mollie's impressions have brought us Bangkok street dogs a lot of laughter, and sometimes, she performs them at just the right time, like when we all really need a laugh.

Confronted By Indecision

Man, with so many beverage choices, what's a thirsty dog to do? I feel like I need a tour guide just to help me decide what to get!

Anyway, I'm Ralph, a 3.5 year old mixed breed who lives near Sukhumvit 101, and could probably stand to lose a few pounds. I'm not self conscious about it at all though. I eat whatever I want, whenever I want, and I don't subscribe to the notion that dogs should ever have to calorie count. Life is so short, and sometimes, full of suffering -- why not have fun?

(OK, so I stole the above line from the Woody Allen movie, 'Vicky Cristina Barcelona', which is one of the better films I've seen in a while).

Anyway, so yeah, I'm trying to figure out what to drink -- should I go for the milk, or satisfy my perpetual sugar craving with a nice, fructose-loaded iced coffee? Oh, and I will probably be needing a snack as well, which adds even more weight to the drink decision.

Meet Socks

Hi everyone, sorry I've been out of touch for a while, I know, I'm one lazy dog.

But I'm back now. And here's my new friend Socks, a 2 year old black mutt with distinctive white paws. Isn't she cool?

When I was younger, I went through a phase where I dyed my paws white to achieve the whole 'wearing socks' effect. But Socks has it going on in a natural way. I would kill to have such beautiful paws. Actually, I'm pretty non-violent, but you know what I mean.

Anyway, Socks is very laid back and happy, and she loves posing for photos. She's one of those dogs that I look to after I've had a hard day and feeling down about stuff. After hanging with Socks for a while, though, that depression goes away. She's like a natural mood enhancer.

"Yea, I Miss You Guys Too"

This is Barley, a 4 year old brownish dog who used to drift around the alleys and streets of Bangkok, but now lives in America. Barley was (and still is) one of the most popular individuals in the Bangkok street dog community, and still has a huge group of friends. Barley is not only a friendly dog, he's also an athletic one. And like my friends High Jumping Harry and Stretch, Barley used to apply his athleticism to help obtain food for his friends.

Barley's most legendary exploit was the time when he somehow managed to knock over the cart of a roasted chicken seller in a Chinatown market who wasn't paying attention. I don't know how Barley did it, he kind of just threw himself at the cart, and the thing toppled over, spilling several delectable roast chickens into the street, where they were summarily devoured by me and several other street dogs. Damn, that was a great day.

Barley, like Ricardo, another good friend of mine, was adopted by tourists when he was a pup, an event that whisked him away from the near-certainty of a hardscrabble life in the Thai capital. Now Barley lives with his family in San Francisco, California.

But Barley still misses his buddies back in Bangkok. And he's pictured here during one of his weekly marathon phone calls to his friends there. He just calls a pay phone down in the Silom district of Bangkok and a bunch of us dogs go down and pass the phone around and reminisce about the good old days.

Don't get me wrong -- Barley loves San Francisco -- but there is undeniably a piece of his heart that never really left Bangkok.

Introducing Sally

Hey everyone, I'd like you to meet Sally, a 2 year old female who's pictured here snoozing on a Sunday Bangkok morning at 6:45 a.m. Well, she's actually trying to pretend she's still asleep, when in reality, her mind is spinning like a hamster wheel. At this moment, life is spilling in on the fringes of Sally's consciousness, in the form of people and cars and motorcycles arriving to chase her out of the vacant market area and send her reluctantly into the day.

Sally is sick and tired of breathing in the constant stream of pollution emanating from vehicles in the Thai capital. She's holding out hope, however, that people will heed the words of His Majesty The King, who recently urged Thais to step up their use of biodiesel fuel in order to begin reducing the city's choking air pollution.

Sally isn't overly idealistic though. She's fully aware that changing peoples' habits and effecting environmental change are slow processes that require infinite patience. She plans to help further the cause herself by spreading the word in the Bangkok street dog community. As soon as she finishes this nap.

Ricardo the Art Aficonado

This is Ricardo, a brown 4 year old brownish hound who really looks nothing like any stray dog you'd encounter on the streets of Bangkok. And that's because Ricardo had the good fortune of being adopted when he was younger by an Italian family and brought back to their homeland. His story is testimony to the efforts of organizations both inside and outside Thailand that help street dogs find happy homes all over the world.

Since coming to live with a family on the outskirts of Florence, Italy, Ricardo has become a big art aficionado. And that's why he's pictured sulking in this photo. He enjoys visiting Florence's Uffizi Gallery, where many of the world's finest pieces of art are displayed. But he wishes that the reportedly large number of works at the Uffizi that remain stored away in back rooms, out of the gaze of the public, will someday be accessible. So that they may be treasured like the rest.

Ricardo hasn't been back to Thailand since being adopted, but his human family has, and they recently brought back several paintings that they purchased from local Bangkok artists at the Chatuchak Weekend Market. After seeing these paintings, Ricardo was very pleased to see that the engine of artistic creativity is alive and well in the city of his birth.

Introducing Monty

Meet Monty, a 1.5 year old black and white male who possesses a friendly, confident demeanor, despite his position as a Bangkok stray dog. Some might expect a dog that finds himself at the bottom of the social ladder would withdraw into a shell, or become bitter and angry, but Monty's not that type of dog. He's an upbeat fellow with a spirit of social awareness and activism, the type of character whose energy is positively contagious.

Recently, city officials investigated Bangkok's Pata Zoo after reports that the animals were being kept in less than acceptable conditions. Although the zoo passed the inspection, Monty was upset over the possibility that his animal brethren could be suffering.

So, he rounded up a bunch of other Bangkok strays, organized an effort to collect scraps of mango and other fine fruits sold at the Klong Toey market, and brought them to the animals in the zoo after closing one night. That's just the kind of guy he is.

Monty is also a big fan of the London-based World Society for the Protection of Animals, which announced plans in September to set up its Asian headquarters in Bangkok.

Monty isn't the kind of activist who carries the world on his shoulders, however. He believes that meaningful change as it applies to improving the lives of his fellow Bangkok street dogs doesn't necessarily have to happen quickly to be effective. But he does think it should be steady.

Introducing Julie the Entrepreneur

This is Julie, a black and white mutt that lives in the Chatuchak Weekend Market in northern Bangkok. She's zoning out, looking at the crowds of people walking by, from all over the world, and it's hot, and humid, and blazingly sunny, and you might even say the weather conditions aren't fit for a dog.

But there's great shopping here. Julie knows this, and she's contemplating just how powerful the draw of the market is. And she's trying to figure out how to capitalize on it by opening up her own business. Because that cart full of feather dusters to her right is just not the glamorous, hot item that shoppers are flocking to on this day.

But Julie has no business experience, which means she's jumping around from idea to idea - dog toys, liver flavored milkshakes, and tongue massages are a few of the ideas she's come up with -- but she has yet to come up a guaranteed moneymaker of an idea. Once that happens, Julie plans to open her own shop in the empty space upon which she's standing.

Introducing Sam

Meet Sam, a shy, 3 year old brown mutt who in this photo is seen lounging outside a shop in the Chinatown district of Bangkok. He's a quiet fellow, but there's a lot of thinking going on inside that canine cranium.

Sam has been sitting in front of the same shop in Chinatown since he was a pup, content to watch life pass by in the busy way it often does in that part of the capital. It's noisy, dusty, hot, and smoky sometimes, but it never seems to bother Sam or interrupt his thoughts.

If Sam looks a little forlorn here, that's because he just broke up with his girlfriend, Rosie, a 2 year old grayish mutt who I never liked much anyway. I wasn't surprised when she broke my buddy's heart, and I tried to warn him, but hey, sometimes the toughest lessons you have to learn all by yourself.

Anyway, I'm meeting up with Sam later and we're going to head out to the Klong Toey market to tip over a few trash cans and hopefully feast on whatever edible scraps we can find. I don't know of a better way to lift a friend's spirits than to snuffle through some fresh garbage together.

Introducing Rowdy Roger and His Pals

This jolly chap is Roger, an orange, fox-like 2 year old Bangkok street dog who loves running around with his buddies and getting into trouble, although the behavior is usually good natured and friendly. When other dogs get bored, they tend to lounge around and sweat and sleep, but Roger gets out there and explores the Thai capital. He's just real energetic that way.

In this photo, Roger and his pals were running around near the port in Klong Toey, in the southernmost part of Bangkok. They like to hang around and watch the cargo ships come in, and the dock workers sometimes throw them scraps of their lunches. The big prize, however -- and the real reason they like the docks at the port so much -- is that sometimes, large shipments of dog food come in from abroad. And they all dream of going to town on some gigantic shipment of kibbles and bits while there's no one watching!

Recently, Roger and his buddies were hanging out at the docks and saw the Heidleberg Express, a cargo ship out of Bremen, Germany, steam into port. According to the Bangkok Post, the ship was carrying several cargo containers of kibble. As the dogs gazed longingly at the dock workers unloading the containers, Roger and friends began drooling at the almost incomprehensible delights that could possibly lie inside.

But a strong moral compass, and cognizance of right and wrong, keeps Roger and his pals out of trouble. Although they probably could have hatched a scheme to steal some of the dog food, perhaps by distracting one of the dock workers with a staged dogfight, Roger and the boys instead reluctantly left the port and decided to go check out the scene in Lumpini Park.

Caught In The Act

I caught this sneaky little devil -- a good friend of mine -- catching a drink from a roadside noodle stand very close to the Queen Sirikit Center in Bangkok. She think's no one's watching, but she's wrong. But Bessie, a two year old white hound of mixed terrier/ridgeback heritage, can drink to her heart's content at this particular noodle shop, because the proprietors always leave a full bowl of fresh water out for her.

Bessie is thirsty because she's been chasing cats in the 95 degree F March heat. In Thailand this time of year, it gets so hot you can feel it in your soul, but that doesn't keep Bessie from engaging in her favorite pastime: Scaring the holy hell out of cats by chasing every one she sees on the streets of Bangkok.

It's pure sport to Bessie -- she's harmless -- but the cats don't usually stick around to verify that for themselves.

In fact, in this photo, Bessie had just sensed a cat passing by across the street, behind her. She's actually got very strong rearview radar, and about 10 seconds after I snapped this shot, was hot on the trail of a grayish brown stray cat. I could hear the sound of her howling and barking as she receded from view into the crowded Klong Toey market.

Later, as we sat and chatted together on a sidewalk in the humid night, Bessie recounted the story with a kind of childlike enthusiasm that made me smile.

Introducing Marco the Intellectual

Marco is a 5 year old white dog who doesn't bathe often, but still manages to maintain a large circle of close friendships with other street dogs in Bangkok. The secret to his popularity is the fact that he's a tough guy, a real bruiser, but also a bit of an intellectual as well.

This unique combination of brains and brawn means that Marco can hold his own in a variety of settings. He's just as comfortable taking part in a snarling junkyard dogfight as he is dropping by the local library for a Kafka reading. Marco's views on postmodernism have landed him in many a debate with local canine thought leaders, but somehow he always emerges from these discussions as the clear winner, leaving other pseudo-intellectual dogs to lick their wounds, so to speak.

Whenever I talk to Marco, I'm amazed by how he's able to get right to the truth that underlies all things. That's a tough thing to do when you're a street dog in Bangkok, and life's realities are mostly harsh. Most dogs prefer not to think too much, and we mostly live in the moment. Which isn't a bad way to get through the day, I guess.

But Marco's an old soul -- he sees that his predicament as a stray dog in a large city isn't as bad as it seems. Marco's friendships, and the knowledge he's built up over the years, prevent him from ever getting lonely out there on the dusty streets of the Thai capital.

Introducing Lenny

No, he's not an laughing hyena. But doesn't he kind of look like one?

Meet Lenny, a 5 year brown street dog of Chow Chow ancestry. He's pictured here sunning himself on the sidewalk of a busy city street, chuckling as he watches the madcap procession of people, motorcycles, cars, and trucks pass by. That crazy smile on his face causes people to give him a wide berth, but Lenny's one of the docile creatures on this earth.

The urban cacophony of Bangkok is deafening, but Lenny doesn't mind sitting and watching life go by. He loves just being out there on the streets, soaking it all in, laughing at the improbability of life. He also loves thinking about the interconnectedness of all things, and how, when its all said and done, and the sun has sunk below the Chao Praya river horizon for the last time, his molecules will mix with those of the cosmos.

Pondering such things is more than just a way for Lenny to get through the rough realities of being a street dog. Its a badge of belonging that he wears, one that that makes up for the collar he doesn't have around his neck - i.e. the one he would have if he had a home.

But you'll almost always see Lenny smiling if you happen to catch a glimpse of him someday. (Except when he's eating, because it's kind of hard to smile when you're eating without looking like a disgusting slob).

And that smile is Lenny's way of saying, "There are too many things to be happy about in this world."

Introducing Ronnie the Racer

This is my buddy Ronnie, she's a two year old light brownish mutt who loves to run, and spends most of her time training with sprints up and down the streets of Bangkok. She's developed a healthy enthusiam over the years for racing cars and buses, and more often than not she wins these races easily.

Ronnie is pictured here catching her breath after spending an afternoon doing wind sprints up and down Ratchadapisek Road on a humid, 95 degree day. She also loves going to the motorcycle races that take place all over the capital on Saturday nights, which are fueled by large numbers of bored young people looking for excitement. (Much as they are in the rest of the world, from what I hear).

Ronnie has yet to win one of her races with the motorcycles -- which is hardly surprising when one considers that the motorcycles often exceed speeds of 110 miles per hour -- but she regularly beats tuktuks and taxi meters whenever they challenge her.

In a city where every human and dog seems to be constantly running from one place to another, Ronnie has carved out a niche as Bangkok's premier canine sprinter. The 2008 Olympics are just around the corner and I wouldn't be surprised to see Ronnie bring home a few medals from Beijing.

Meet Vanity the Clothes Hound

Hey, I'd like you to meet my friend Vanity, who is in this photo engaging in one of her favorite pastimes: browsing a local market and shopping for clothes. Vanity is a three year old brown and white mutt who loves to shop and has a real nose for bargains, although some Bangkok store owners aren't exactly overjoyed when they see her rummaging through the clothing racks.

Just after I took the above photo, Vanity ended up buying the lime green blouse on the left, which I frankly think is a ghastly color. But, then again, I'm a guy with very little fashion sense, so what do I know?

In fact, Vanity once offered to help me with a wardrobe makeover, but I declined her offer because, well, I don't need anyone giving me advice on how to get ahead and score points in the game of romance, know what I mean?

She might not look like the cleanest dog in the world in these photos, but Vanity knows how to look her best when she attends local dog shows and other canine high society events in the Thai capital. She's always impeccably dressed and well coiffed, and there's usually a good looking male dog by her side.

As for me, Vanity and I tried dating once, but it didn't work out. We've still stayed pretty close though, and she loves telling me all the gory details from her nights out on the town. Which she has made me promise not to relate in this blog, for fear of cannibalizing sales of her upcoming book on the subject.

Introducing Hanging Chad

Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like you to meet my buddy Chad, a 2 year old white mutt who in this photo appears somewhat brownish in color (he really needs a bath). We call him Hanging Chad because he's a slow paced guy who enjoys just hanging out, sitting and relaxing and watching life go by from spots all over Bangkok. He loves just hanging out, relaxing and not worrying about stuff.

In this photo, Chad is chilling out in a shady spot in a vacant lot off Sukhumvit Soi 22, and ruminating on philosphical subjects, one of his favorite pastimes. Chad also likes to sit along busy, traffic-choked streets in Bangkok and think, and sometimes even sits in the road itself, believing that the noise and chaos actually help clarify his thoughts. Chad once tried to climb a tree in Lumpini Park in order to meditate among its leafy upper reaches, but slipped and fell, landing on his head. However, Chad said the mishap -- and the ensuing concussion -- enabled his to reach parts of his inner psyche that he'd previously been able to reach only while asleep.

Chad has a very accepting outlook toward life, and he once told me that despite the hardship that many Bangkok street dogs experience in their lives, he feels it's much better to be a dog than to be some sort of horrid creature like a beetle, rat, or a cockroach. And that's how Chad manages to keep a smile on his face during the rough times. He's one of the most stable and truly happy hounds I've come across.

My friends have always thought he was a nutcase, but Chad is just a free spirit who does things his own way -- and makes no apologies for being different from the pack.

Introducing Flash

Meet Flash, a three year old white poodle-mix who hates having her picture taken and was in the process of beating a hasty retreat when I snapped this photo the other day near a bus stop in the Victory Monument neighborhood. She's an extremely fast dog, and I've never been able to take a photo of her, but we're actually pretty good friends.

Flash hates having her photo taken because she believes that each snapshot takes away part of her soul -- a belief she shares with the Aborginal cultures of Australia and the South Pacific. Although she's pretty relaxed when no one is pointing a camera at her, Flash's skittishness keeps her from hanging out in touristy areas like the Grand Palace and Khao San Road.

Being one of the fastest dogs in Bangkok has its advantages though. For example, Flash has a habit of teasing bully dogs that cause problems for her friends, and being able to outrun these angry hounds after insulting them keeps her from being devoured. One time I myself was cornered by a couple of mangy bullies in a dark alley, and Flash bailed me out using this very tactic.

"Hey morons, a thousand baht says you can't catch me!" Flash shouted to the bullies, who immediately gave chase. Flash led them through a maze of back alleys and around a corner onto a main street -- and into the open doors of a Bangkok municipal dog catcher's van. She's a good friend.

Butch the Political Activist

One of the most widely overlooked side stories of the recent Thai election was the crusade of Butch, a 4 year old grayish street dog who staged a peaceful 6-day protest in the bus lane opposite Bangkok's Klong Toey market. Butch's sit-in was aimed at securing better representation for street dog interests, and although it ultimately didn't succeed from a political standpoint, his campaign did gain exposure for some important issues.

The main issues of Butch's campaign were the creation of tax breaks for Bangkok citizens who leave food scraps for street dogs outside their doorsteps, and municipal bonuses for street vendors to provide fresh drinking water for passing strays. In a moving display of commitment to his cause, Butch laid in the street and endured the heat, exhaust fumes, and blaring horns from angry drivers. Although no new laws were added to the books to protect street dogs, Butch told me he's confident that in the next election, things might turn out differently.

Butch won't tell me what he's got in store for his next protest, but whatever it is, the dedication of this up and coming figure in the Bangkok political scene is sure to amaze.

Introducing High-Jumping Harry

There are some Bangkok street dogs who gaze wistfully at food opportunities on the other side of a metal fence, and others, like my buddy Harry, who actually do something about it.

Harry, a two year old brown mutt of mixed Greyhound, Alsatian, and Bull Mastiff ancestry, is pictured here contemplating how to scale a fence outside a seafood restaurant in the city's Asoke district. This muscular hound has the ability to leap even higher than my friend Stretch, which means he can get over many of the barriers humans put up to keep us street dogs out of places where food is stored and tasty garbage is collected.

About 30 seconds after this photo was taken, Harry had jumped over the fence, grabbed a plastic bag full of crab and prawn remnants, and jumped back over, before anyone except a few amazed pedestrians had even realized what was going on. The best part about Harry is, he loves to share the spoils of his raids -- as long as you listen to his war stories about previous "missions", as he calls them.

Hey, I don't mind listening to a few self-aggrandizing tales if it means getting to dive into a smelly bag of seafood scraps!

Introducing Lai Fu

This is my friend Lai Fu in her usual posture: Laying around moping and worrying about the future and the fate of the world.

In this photo, Lai Fu, a six year old black poodle who lives in the Sukhumvit Soi 101 area, is wondering -- and worrying -- about who will prevail in Thailand's upcoming election to be held April 2. For the next few hours after this photo was taken, Lai Fu nervously pondered the effects the outcome that the snap election called last week by the Thai Prime Minister might have on the future of press freedom in her country.

But Lai Fu doesn't just worry about complicated matters: She worries about the small stuff as well. For example, the other day Lai Fu spent 45 minutes worrying if her paws were dirty after walking through the grimy local market in search of food scraps. Later, after finding a fresh pile of garbage and feasting on it, Lai Fu worried about developing high cholesterol from eating too many fatty foods.

Lai Fu's friends have tried to get her to relax and enjoy life more, but when we tell her not to worry so much, Lai Fu asks "Oh my, perhaps I have been worrying too much and will soon have a heart attack!"