WE HAD TO ASK:   When Jonathon McDonald heard that Vancouver film biz veteran Debi Weldon was putting out a CD for hounds, he could barely believe it

Q:  We nearly choked on our biscuits when we heard about your CD, Soothing Stories and Music for the Solo Dog. What's the story?

A:  I have a girlfriend who has two standard poodles. Early this year...I was walking in the forest with my friend and her dogs and she told me that when sho goes to work in the morning she puts the radio on the French CBC station for her poodles, and when she returns from work, they run up and kiss her, and run back to stare at the radio and listen to their program. That was my "a-ha" moment, and I told my girlfriend I would make a CD especially for dogs.

Q:  You've taken a "puppy maternity leave" from being a costumer in the film biz. Did you really need to take time off to be with your puppy? The film biz is booming.

A:  Well timing is everything, and mine is really bad. I get gas when it is most expensive, and I didn't know there would be so much work this year. This is the story. I had a soft-coated wheaten terrier named Mr. Kelly, who was the love of my life. I had to have him put down nine years ago due to illness, and for the past 8.5 years, I have had a rental dog called Molly, who was his girlfriend. She was much younger, obviously, and lived on the next block, and whenever I needed some dog loving I would go and visit her. Last year, Molly also became very ill, and she died this past September. I was always going to wait until I retired from the film business to get another dog because of the responsibility involved in raising a puppy, but after Molly went, I said to myself, "Life is short, money comes and goes, and I need a dog to love now." I now have puppy Charlie. A dog is a dog forever, but only a puppy for one year, and they have to be trained to know how to behave, so yes, I had to take a year off work to be a dog mother . . .It's ironic to me that at work, when I tell an actor to fix their tie, or something like that, they do it right away; when I tell my dog to sit or come, he looks at me like I've lost my mind, and continues whatever he was doing.

Q:  So you approached professional voice actors to narrate dog monologues over the soothing sounds of classical music.

A:  Being in the business, I knew great sound technicians, and I started really listening to voices. Dogs like female voices best, and they like changes in pitch. That is why it is successful to name a dog with a word that ends in "y" or "ie", because our voice goes up at the end when we say it. I not only told the voice actors that they were dogs, but what breed of dog they were, because all dogs are different. When we reheasred "Tails at the Fire Hydrant" -- about a first obedience class -- I had to find a person who spoke Portuguese from Portugal, not from Braxil, so that the accent was what I wanted, and a man from Yorkshire, and a man from France. It was challenging, but I am happy with the results.

Q:  What's nine-month-old Charlie O'Shea -- the inspiration for your CD --like? Does he have any idea of the celebrity awaiting him?

A:  Puppy Charlie is a Woodle--three-quarters soft-coated wheaten terrier, one-quarter standard poodle. I have never owned a cross breed before, and I did it only for health reasons, but I must tell you he is one smart puppy. He's big, stubborn, willful, and very bouncy, but he's mine.

Q:  What sort of productions have you done as a costumer? Rumour has it you once worked with Marlon Brando. Who was easier to be around -- Brando or dogs?

A:  I worked with Marlon Brando on The Freshman, and he was wonderful. I have been around actors all of my life, and he was the first one I asked to have a picture with. I have worked with Matthew Broderick, Kurt Russell, Kenneth Branagh, Antonio Banderas, Lucy Liu, Richard Pryor, Donald Sutherland, Alan Alda, Al Pacino, and many others, and everyone does put their pants on one leg at a time.

Q:  So who's actually going to buy the CD?

A:  It's perfect for people who go to work and have to leave their dog alone. Dogs are social animals and they need the company of nice voices talking to them. Each track has a different voice, so it is not boring and the classical music is so soothing for stressed nerves.

Q:  Are you sure I can bring my hound to the CD release party? The last time Finny tried to join me in Chapters, they weren't all that thrilled about it.

A:  It is a dog-friendly event, and Chapters has had dogs in the store before for book parties. This will be the dog party for November. It will be catered for the dogs by True Carnivores, a great natural dog store, and I will supply the unhealthy people treats. Many of the voice artists will be there, and the CD will be on full blast. Too bad some of the composers can't make it, like Bach and Beethoven

Q:  Any advice to someone who's convinced his dog isn't remotely interested in music?

A:  Hearing and smell are both very strong instincts in dogs. If a dog can hear, he will be interested in music. If plants respond and grow or wilt to music, why not dogs?

Debi Weldon and her dog Charlie O'Shea

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