VIDEO: The Bird That Terrorizes My Dogs

Explain this? Anyone?

Behind The Scenes: Wynn Sportsbook

It's Oscar Sunday, so I have a piece posted on AOL News today that looks at the very real prospect that the Nevada Gaming Control Board may soon allow actual wagering on the Oscars, the World Series of Poker and several reality TV shows like American Idol and Dancing With The Stars. A rules change earlier this month has made it possible for sports book directors to present the board with bets they'd like to take.

For that piece, I spent some time last Saturday with Wynn oddsmaker Johnny Avello, who is well known for writing "just for fun" odds on all manner of topics from who will replace Regis Philbin (Neil Patrick Harris is the favorite, Betty White is 200-to-1) to whether Watson would beat Ken Jennings on Jeopardy!

He showed me around, and that's always fun. Above are the servers that handle the betting data and this, below, are the satellite boxes that manage all the TV feeds seen in the book:


This is Johnny at his desk with his fake honorary Oscar, which he received last year at the Wynn's Oscar party...


...and this is the command center:


Johnny really got going with the offbeat odds stuff when TV Guide asked him in 2000 to put odds on the first season of Survivor. Now he'll do almost anything the media asks, be it the Grammys for Rolling Stone or the prospects of a celebrity marriage for US Weekly. Last year, Avello came on The Petcast to explain how he sets the odds for the Westminster Dog Show, and you can hear that here.

Last week, he was working on the odds for who might win Celebrity Apprentice. This was his rough first-to-last list:


He'd never really be able to take bets on Celebrity Apprentice or any other reality show that films its season in advance of airing it because then too many people would know the results. DWTS and AI do their results shows live, but it's still tricky to make sure all bets are in before ANYBODY knows the outcome, even the people who tabulate them. The Oscars are a similar problem; he says bets may have to be cut off the day before the ballots are due into the Academy in order to please gaming authorities. That may reduce betting action, since many bettors are more likely to want to bet the day of the event, as they do in other events.

FYI, for however long they remain posted, you can download Avello's picks for Oscar right here. And you can find the pdfs of all Avello's current recreational odds on Wynn's website.

Meanwhile, Avello's office is a fun place. They've got this huge collection of bobbleheads, although none of Oscar Goodman or Norm...


And speaking of political figures, Avello doesn't seem too keen on making odds on election results, which many believe could be a popular amenity. Hilton sportsbook director Jay Kornegay mentioned it as an interesting prospect, but it seems like it's against state and federal law anyway. But Avello gave a different reason for avoiding them:

It’s a touchy subject. That’s not going to be one of htem. I don’t do it because it could offend someone. My boss Steve could be thinking one way or Elaine Wynn could be thinking one way and I could make somebody else the favorite. It could be more heartburn than anything else.

One other fun thing. There's not a lot on Avello's office wall. There's a framed picture of Secretariat, a mounted copy of a Vegas magazine profile of him, a movie poster and...


...this:


Avello had picked Donny Osmond to win his season of Dancing With The Stars. After he did, Donny sent him this autographed odds sheet.

I wonder if next year we can get Avello to make odds on the Trippies!

Aces, The Podcast

I corralled Emily out of her Michigander sabbatical to join me for a special phone edition of The Petcast last night to talk about and document the wondrous -- and all too rare -- joy of getting to know a new pet like our Christmas addition, Aces.

You can hear it by clicking here or right-click here to download it and hear it later. You can also subscribe for free to The Petcast in iTunes or Zune, by the way. I don't usually blog about individual episodes of The Petcast when they're up, but this one has lots of good advice (from Emily) on how to deal with adopting a rescued or abandoned animal and integrating it in a household with other pets. Also, it gives me the chance to post this photo, as if I needed one.

The Strip & Petcast Are Live on Sat

It's that time of week again!

We're doing two new episodes of The Petcast from Noon to 1 p.m. PT and then an hour of The Strip from 1-2 p.m. PT.

For The Petcast, guest host Amy and I will chat in the first half-hour with Mary O'Connor-Shaver of the Coalition to Ban Ohio Dog Auctions. Then we'll hear from Barbara Schmitz, who spearheaded the successful movement to pass Prop B in Missouri, which radically alters the laws regarding dog breeding in that state.

Then, on The Strip, our guests are Jabbawockeez founder Phil Tayag and Mystere clown Brian Dewhurst.

As always, you can listen live at via LVRocks.Com and join the chat with fellow listeners. Or wait and grab the podcast version via iTunes or Zune or listen via that nifty "Listen Now" player on TheStripPodcast.Com or ThePetcast.Com. Your call.

The Strip & Petcast Are Live @ 12:30p Sat

Here we go again!

We're live with The Strip from 12:30-1:30 p.m. PT on Saturday with Mr. Las Vegas himself as this episode's guest. We talk all about Wayne's big plans for turning his home into a tourist attraction but also about his support for Sen. Harry Reid and, yes, how he keeps that hair so dark.

From 1:30-2:30 p.m., guest host Jennifer Prosser and I will mint a pair of new episodes of The Petcast. Our guests will be Dr. Beth Davidow, medical director of ACCES Animal Blood Bank in Seattle, and Dr. Margaret McEntee of the Cornell University School of Veterinary Medicine, who oversees the school's student-operated pet-loss support phone hotline.

As always, you can listen live at via LVRocks.Com and join the chat with fellow listeners. Or wait and grab the podcast version via iTunes or Zune or listen via that nifty "Listen Now" player on TheStripPodcast.Com.

The Strip & Petcast are LIVE on Saturday

Those of you who keep up with me on Twitter know I've been at the hospital with Walt all day since he collapsed around noon. He's admitted and it looks like he'll be OK, so as of now we are planning to do The Strip and The Petcast tomorrow from noon-2 PT. You can hear us then at LVRocks.Com.

The Strip goes first at noon. It's a TOTALLY 80s episode featuring interviews with "Lost Boys" star Corey Feldman and Expose singer Jeanette Jurado. Feldman is headlining at House of Blues on Oct 23 and Expose appears at the Henderson Pavilion on Saturday night. Odds are, however, we won't have time to play much of those interviews on the live show, seeing how there's a ton of Vegas news to discuss.

The Petcast comes up at 1 p.m. Guest host Jen Prosser and I will be interviewing holistic pets expert Stacey Turis, who just came out with a new iPhone app to help pet owners trying to keep it natural for their animals. Then, author Karen O'Toole joins us to discuss her book Orphans of Katrina: Inside the World's Biggest Animal Rescue.

As always, you can listen live at via LVRocks.Com and join the chat with fellow listeners. Or wait and grab the podcast version via iTunes, Zune or that nifty "Listen Now" player on TheStripPodcast.Com.

The Strip + Petcast are LIVE on Sat!

We are back with The Petcast after a monthlong hiatus following The Great Petcast Roadtrip, so we begin our cycle of guest-hosts with Amy while Emily is away until May. We will be recording two new episodes of The Petcast from noon-1, followed by an episode of The Strip with me and Miles from 1-2 p.m. Pacific at LVRocks.Com.

On The Petcast, we'll speak with Lori Birdsong of LinensForAnimals.Org, and then we'll interview Dr. Nicholas Dodman, author of the new book, "Good Old Dog: Expert Advice for Keeping Your Aging Dog Happy, Healthy, and Comfortable."

Then Miles and I will mull the week's Vegas news plus we'll play my interview with a surprisingly humble and contrite Pete Rose.

As always, you can listen live at via LVRocks.Com and join the chat with fellow listeners. Or wait and grab the podcast version via iTunes, Zune or that nifty "Listen Now" player on TheStripPodcast.Com.

Wrap: The Great Petcast Road Trip

Well, that was fun!

There we are yesterday morning as we parted after five wonderful days of driving, talking, doting on Archie, eating surprisingly healthy and suffering surprisingly little bickering. We delivered Emily safely after 2,100ish miles to Ann Arbor for her prestigious journalism fellowship and, in all that time the only real argument we got into was over using her Garmin GPS system or my iPhone directions app. (For the record, both gizmos had flaws. Garmin likes to send people the wrong way on one-way streets and takes up a lot of space, not to mention the lighter jack; the iPhone relies on sometimes unreliable cell signals and the map is hard to look at when you're, say, on the phone ordering delicious Valentino's pizza per the suggestion of Lincoln native Cara Roberts, aka Norm Clarke's Leggy Blonde.)

There's a load of great photos in this Flickr Set I created, complete with snark and commentary where appropriate. And Emily and I recorded a special 18-minute Petcast episode en route to dropping me at the airport yesterday, so be sure to download and listen to that by either clicking here to make it play or right-clicking here to download it.

Those who followed my Twitter stream knew we stopped in on the icky Herman L. Frank's Dog Park in Salt Lake City...

...improbably caught up on the road with Emily's moving van...

...raised my total to 33 state capitals visited in Cheyenne, Lincoln and the sensational Des Moines...

...discovered Nebraska State Sen. Dennis Utter and the fact that his dog's name is Putter...

...got 45 of 50 states and five Canadian provinces in the license plate game...

...had 50-cent ice cream cones at the Little America rest stop in Wyoming, peach shakes at Bauder's Pharmacy in Des Moines (thanks, RoadFood.Com) and Thai -- pumpkin curry! -- in Davenport (thanks, Urbanspoon app)...

...saw my 85-year-old friend Walt's childhood home in Beatrice...

...found future gigs for Holly Madison all over Nebraska...

...puzzled over the skanky mannequin with the gun and the edible G-strings in the closed shop window in Beatrice...

...and ultimately delivered Emily to her new (temporary, right?) home.

Debate still rages over what this thing -- a heater? an air handler? a leftover of a pre-shower era? -- is in Emily's shower.

Also, what's wrong with this George Washington portrait in the century-old schoolhouse by Homestead National Monument in Iowa?

Why are there spikes around the door to the Nebraska Capitol?

How often do people use flashcubes in Iowa anymore?

Why there was a dictionary on a music stand in the lobby of the Iowa Capitol?

There were some interesting innovations, such as the Casper, Wyo., paper's special weather section...

...and Cheyenne's Plains Hotel's means of avoiding stained white towels...

... and the advent of audio tours via your cell phone...

...although that can be improved inasmuch as you can't pause, forward or rewind it and when lots of people are listening on their phone speakers at once, it could be rather irksome, no?

We did learn one thing about Nevada. At the Homestead Monument, they had these sculptures that showed the proportion of the state the feds gave away in the Homestead act. Here's Oregon (I think) and Montana...

...there's Florida...

...and here is Nevada:

Maybe the Homestead Act could also be known as the Pre-Yucca Screw Nevada Act?

Well, anyhow, we did it. Check out the Flickr page and the podcast. And I leave you with this:

Aww!

The Strip & Petcast Are Live TODAY!

**THE STRIP STARTS 12:30 TODAY! SORRY FOR THE DELAY!**

We're back in the studio on Saturday for The Strip and The Petcast from 12:30-2:30 p.m. Pacific at LVRocks.Com. And it should be fun because...

* On The Strip, we celebrate FIVE YEARS of podcasting with our traditional annual reel of bloopers in addition to all the fun stuff we do.

* On The Petcast, we have a normal interview-centric episode at 1:30 p.m. PT followed by a special one with some surprises for temporarily departing co-host Emily Richmond from 2-2:30 p.m.

As always, you can listen live at via LVRocks.Com and join the chat with fellow listeners. Or wait and grab the podcast version via iTunes, Zune or that nifty "Listen Now" player on TheStripPodcast.Com.

The Strip/Petcast are LIVE today

Sorry for the delayed notice, folks, but I've been carshopping and IT SUCKS.

Anyhow, The Strip is live at noon PT and The Petcast is live at 1 p.m. PT at LVRocks.Com. This week's Strip guest is longtime Strip magician Rick Thomas.

Then, on The Petcast, we'll chat first with Dr. Alan Beck, director of the Center for the Human-Animal Bond at Purdue University. Then we're hear from Alan Zimmelman, vice president of ITEX.Com, the nation's largest barter exchange, on how pet owners can barter -- yes, Sue Lowden haters, barter -- for vet care and other services.

Join us live at LVRocks.Com to listen live, see us via webcam and join us in the chat. You can also listen via mobile device. Or you wait for the podcast version, of course, and subscribe via iTunes or Zune to The Petcast or to The Strip in iTunes or Zune.

Petcast But No Strip Today

As referenced in last week's show, we're going to skip a new episode of The Strip this week because I've got to be at Netroots Nation today to hear Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid. But I am skipping out for an hour to do The Petcast from 12:30-1:30 p.m. PT because we've got Dog Fancy editor-in-chief Ernie Slone coming on, we've wanted to speak to him for a while and I didn't want to jerk him around after setting a time with him. So please join us at LVRocks.Com to listen live at 12:30 p.m. PT to hear Emily and me chat first with Animal Planet host Keegan-Michael Kay ("The Planet's Funniest Animals") and then Slone in the second show. Or wait for the podcast, which you can subscribe via iTunes or Zune to The Petcast.

The Strip/Petcast Are Live Saturday!

We'll be doing our usual hours of The Petcast (two shows recorded together) and The Strip on Saturday 4-6 p.m. Pacific Time at LVRocks.Com. Listen live, see us via webcam and join us in the chat. Or wait for the podcast version, of course, and subscribe via iTunes or Zune to The Petcast or to The Strip in iTunes or Zune.

Here's the schedule:

4 p.m.: Barbara Techel, an author who has written extensively about life with her partially paralyzed and incredibly cute dachshund, Frankie.

4:30 p.m.: David Mizejewski of the National Wildlife Federation to discuss his observations of the wildlife damage caused by the BP oil spill.

5 p.m.: Comic Brad Garrett* and I discuss "stalking," hearing aids, old gay audience members, Patricia Heaton's politics and more. Guest co-host David McKee of the Stiffs & Georges blog fills in for Miles.

*Note: The full Brad Garrett interview will be available on the podcast sometime Sunday. Only about half will be played during the live show.

The Strip starts at 4:30p PT on Sat

We start "The Strip" at 4:30 p.m. PT on Saturday because I need to get out by 5:30 p.m. and get over to Bellagio to cover the conclusion of Phil Laak's record-setting marathon poker attempt. You can hear us live at LVRocks.Com.

So here's the plan:

4p: The Petcast w/ guest Amanda Fortino of PETA
4:30-5:30p: The Strip w/ guest Vinnie Favorito
5:30p-on: We play Favorito interview in full

ALSO, former Las Vegas Sun/Weekly entertainment scribe Joe Brown is our special guest co-host! (Yes, Miles is working, sigh.) All our guest co-hosts are special, but seeing how Joe is leaving town pretty soon, it will be fun to debrief him on his views of the Vegas entertainment he covered for two years.

And yes, I guess this means Joe's no longer disgusted with me. Go figure.

The Strip and Petcast Are Live Sat

Join us from 4-5 p.m. PT for two live episodes of The Petcast followed by The Strip from 5-6 p.m. at LVRocks.Com.

For the Petcast, we've got a spokesman from the AAA talking about their 750+-page travel guide for pet owners and then the manager of the Flamingo Las Vegas' Wildlife Habitat.

The Strip features a blockbuster, comic Paul Rodriguez laying waste to his performing home of The Tropicana and its execs. Yikes. Really.

Join us and fellow listeners in the chat room and see us on webcam. Or pick up the podcast later. Your call. I gotta go take my sister to Firefly now. Bye.

The Strip & Petcast Are Live on Sat

I'm back in the LVRocks.Com studio tomorrow for The Petcast from 4-5 p.m. PT with Emily Richmond and then The Strip from 5-6 p.m. PT with guest host David McKee of Stiffs & Georges. (Miles is working but vows his weekends will again be his own next week.)

Should be a good week! Remember that cat we saved a few weeks ago? Well, he and his new owner, Dawn Christensen, are scheduled to be in the studio and on the air at about 4:45 p.m. PT! Then, the guest for The Strip this week is none other than Vince Neil, the Motley Crue singer turned tattoo/bar/aviation mogul.

So join us at LVRocks.Com to chat with fellow fans and watch us do our thing on the webcam. Or wait and pick up the podcast version. Your call.

A PETCAST TRIUMPH!

Aww. If any kitty ever deserved a comfy nap, it's this little guy. That's the handsome cat that loitered for months outside my Petcast co-host Emily Richmond's home. First we assumed it was just a cat that liked to wander, given that it had a collar (but no tags) and seemed well fed, so we made light of the matter in this YouTube video.

After a few months, though, it became clear to Emily and her neighbor, Debbie, as the cat was getting thinner that it was abandoned or seriously lost. So I posted this call for a prospective home and got folks to re-Tweet it all over the place. Emily couldn't take him because she's allergic and Debbie had three cats already.

Well...IT WORKED!!!

On Monday, reader Dawn Christensen emailed me. She and her partner had just lost their cat and wondered if this one was still bopping around the 'hood. He was. The Nevada SPCA, which had initially told Emily that they were full-up, had reversed that and was willing to take him in, but Emily and her neighbor hadn't gotten to that yet.

Emily posted some LOST CAT signs around the neighborhood for a couple of days to give the possible owner one more shot to reclaim their kitty. Then, on Wednesday night, the neighbor put the cat in a dog carrier and Dawn headed over to get him.

Let's pause the story here and look at him again:


Sigh.

OK, so Dawn and Hergit took in the cat. And on Friday, we received this email:

Wanted to let you know the abandoned kitty is doing very well. ... After spending all of 10 minutes in our home, he became so comfortable he quickly became ruler of the house so we've decided to name him Caesar. He's made himself very at home, which is wonderful!

I took him to the vet on Thursday morning. No microchip. The vet determined he is a 1-year old neutered male. He's in good health. No problems, confirmed today by the results of the blood tests. Got him all his shots and he's all set. He is so very friendly and loving and just all around adorable! He loves to give hickeys! Weird, huh?

A deep and heartfelt thank you to you both and to Debbie for taking care of him and spreading the word on his plight. We are so thankful to have him in our family. As my vet said, "It's good to have a cat in the house again, isn't it?" Hell yes, it is.

Here are other shots Dawn passed along of Caesar:


Hooray to blogs, podcasts and Twitter! However, I ought to remind everyone out there that it is kitten season, which means there are hundreds or thousands of cats overwhelming area shelters wherever you are. If you're so inclined, go save one or two. Caesar got lucky because he stalked the right home, that of a woman who podcasts about pets and animals.

Obviously, Emily and I will podcast about this and hope to have Dawn join us soon. Subscribe to The Petcast in iTunes here.

Oh, and one more thing:


Sigh. Happy Sunday, everyone.