IOTD not used pile
 

http://cellar.org/2004/andrex.jpg

This is the "Andrex puppy" and his model in wax. I felt it was an odd thing: too commercial for Brit viewers, too obscure for everyone else.

http://cellar.org/2004/newheadset.jpg

Some new headset. I decided I couldn't tell the difference between this and any other mobile phone headset.

http://cellar.org/2004/untruck.jpg

What looks like a Palestinian loading what looks like a rocket launcher into what looks like a UN truck. Too political.

http://cellar.org/2004/dubyahair.jpg

This was too political, and also, I didn't want to spark a discussion of child abuse.

That girl in the last picture's going to look back at this picture in 10 years and either fall to the floor in uproarious laughter or fly into a rage complete with "how could you do that to me would you look at my hair who's bright idea was that oh my god this picture was made public oh i hate you can I borrow the car?".

Yep -- I'll bite. What is an Andrex Puppy?

And what makes you think it is too commercial? :)

Don’t despair if you can’t make it to London, as the Puppy isn’t just putting in a star appearance at Madame Tussauds; in response to his ever increasing popularity Andrex has embossed the Puppy onto new packs of white toilet tissue, so the Puppy can now move into homes across the country too - look out for ‘Andrex Puppies on a Roll’!

You know you've reached the epitome of popularity when you get printed on toilet paper.

It took me a great deal of searching to find out that the damn dog is advertising toilet paper.

Someone British tell me ... is "Andrex" unusually soft and fluffly?

Tracked it down because of a reference to Kimberly-Clark on the Andrex page. Plenty of cute games there, damn little about the product.

It's Cottony Soft Cottonelle.

I now just want to understand why toilet paper has to sounds more "Manly" in Britain.

Aw, I just thought it was cute. :D

Uh oh..which one is the wax figure? ;) :question: :p

From the link
The Andrex® Puppy emerged as the nation’s favourite fictional TV character in a recent poll run by Madame Tussauds, showing that after 32 years the Puppy is still one of our best loved and most enduring celebrities.

32 years is pretty old to still be a puppy. :eyebrow:

Good thing all yellow labs look alike, isn't it?

As I was reading the article as well as searching around it was interesting to read that one of them specifically mentioned that the Andrex Puppy was of the same type of dog used for seeing eye dogs. Although labs (of assorted color) are used for this purpose in the US, we still have the iconic image of the German Shepard Seeing Eye Dog. Does this differ in other parts of the world?

I've never associated German Shepards with being Seeing Eye Dogs. My experience is that SEDs are usually Labs of some flavor...or a blend of Lab and something else....Shepards are military/para-military/guard/police type dogs to me...

Known as Alsations over there!

...or Alsatians over here?

hope *nitpicking* don't get ya banned... :o

I had a blind patient admitted a year or so ago. When we learned that she had a guide dog, it was picked up by our outreach team and brought in for her. He was a German Shepherd.

We also had a stupid, drunk, blind guy who killed his seeing eye dog. He was so drunk that he claimed the dog was merely being "uncooperative" when he dragged it home. That guy had a black lab. (This was covered in the local news).

I'd wager a guess that most any larger breed can be a good assistance dog - I've seen Shepherds in the position, they're just not the one I think of first hand....I have two blind friends who have always had yellow labs for their assistance dogs....Ryan, and Mackenzie are the two that I've known through them. Ryan has an ankle fetish, and Mackenzie loves raisins.

Dags

It's not just the size that makes an assistance dog. There are several types, guide dogs for the blind are just one of those. The guide dogs tend to be larger breeds, but with very stable and steady personalities. Part of their training includes doing things like interposing themselves between their owner and something dangerous.

Smaller breeds are used for other service types, such as assistive dogs for the deaf (let their owners know when the phone is ringing, door knocking, fire alarm going off, and so forth), as well as for persons with physical handicaps ... the dogs can bring needed items to them, or pull a cord to turn lights on and off.

I had a cat who would turn cord-pull lamps on and off, but it was usually without being asked to. He particularly enjoyed turning lights off when you were crossing through or trying to read in an otherwise dark room.