Happy Monday!

You may know that we lost our Westie Angel last year.   I still feel like I’ve lost my best friend, but we’re still not ready to get another one.   We have three other dogs and someday I’ll be able to think about bringing home another female Westie.

This video?  It made me want to run right out and get one TODAY.   Does this dog remind me of Angel when she was a puppy!   Fearless, funny…even the head turning!

I promise that even if you’re not a Westie lover,  you can’t not smile watching this.

Puss,  Bubby,  Freddie Gumdrop.

Just a few of the silly nicknames our pets have had over the years.  Since I know that everyone else does this too, I’m interested to find out – What are some of yours?

Our Westie Angel was our first dog that we brought home in 1999.  It didn’t take long for my husband to dub her Lady Westie Puss.    That was shortened to Puss, which she answered to as well as her name.   Puss had all kinds of variations like Pussness and The Pusster.

The Pusster

Our Schnauzer Gordon was quickly nicknamed Bubby, for no reason, when he was a tiny puppy.  He answers to Gordon, Bubby and all forms of the latter including Bub, Bubster, Bubbilicious…it goes on and on.

Of course, Bub sounds like Love and can be substituted in countless songs – All You Need Is Bub, Crazy Little Thing Called Bub and Bub Will Keep Us Together.  If you think that people look at you weird for saying “Chi–Wow-Wow”, try busting out with one of these Bub songs in front of anyone.

Fred was a little different.   Early on we dubbed him Freddie Gumdrop, and the Gumdrop part changed seasonally.  Freddie Pumpkin, Freddie Cranberry, Freddie Mistletoe…you can see where I’m going with this.

Okay now, your turn.   Do you have these crazy little names for your pets too?  Please share!

The English Mastiff, or Mastiff, is one of my favorite breeds.    Big, sweet and beautiful, these giants are usually good with children and are loyal companions.   The recognized colors are fawn, apricot or brindle.

History – Drawings dating back to 3000 BC depict English Mastiffs on Egyptian monuments.

Size – This is a BIG dog.  The minimum height is 30 inches at the shoulder.

Temperament –   Sweet and mild-mannered.  This is a dog that wants to be with you – meaning he’ll want to sit on your feet, your legs or even your lap if he can.

Pros -

• Good watchdog (just their size alone will probably deter burglars!)
• Peaceful and affectionate disposition.
• Needs only moderate exercise.
• Their short coat is easy to care for.

Cons -

• This large breeds needs a lot of space.
• They drool.
• Can be a challenge to train.

As with other large breeds the Mastiff is prone to joint problems, hip dysplasia and arthritis.   Some Mastiffs have ear problems so regular ear cleaning is a must.   They are also prone to “bloat” as well as eye and thyroid problems.   If you’re getting a puppy remember to find a good breeder to avoid genetic health issues.

Mastiffs have a tendency to overeat so weight-watching is a necessity.

The Mastiff Club of America has links for Mastiff Rescue and Breeder Referral.

If you love a big dog and don’t mind drool this could  be the perfect breed for you.  As with any breed make sure to do your homework before getting a dog.

Please send me your Mastiff photos to include here.   I’d also love to hear all about your Mastiffs!

Sheba

Hello!

Well I’m back from a fantastic mini-vacation in beautiful Maine.   It’s so nice to get out of the Florida heat in the summer.

Speaking of summer heat,  I Still Want More Puppies posted last week about another dog being left in a hot car.   Folks, when it’s this hot out?  Leave your dog at home!   Please check out MyDogIsCool.com for more info.   And please pass it on.

Even though I was only gone for a few days, and my husband stayed home with our animals, you would have thought I had returned from months (!) away from my dogs when I got home.   How awesome is that anyway?   If only everyone was that excited to see us.

I did get a dog fix while I was there.  My cousin brought her Pug/Pekinese mix (Puginese?) to Maine for a few nights, and she is adorable!  I think that she looks like a tiny Pug, but Laura swears that she looks a lot like a Pekinese.  What do you think?

Mia

Oh, and I saw three different “Chi-wow-wows”  (I really have to stop saying it like that) at the airport.   I talked with the owners and they all confirmed that Chihuahuas are great to travel with.   All of the owners were more than happy to chat with me about their babies (you can always count on people bringing their dog on vacation to “talk dogs” with you) and I was so interested in what they were saying that I forgot to snap photos.  Oh well, they were all very cute.  Trust me.

I hope that you are all having a wonderful summer!

Hello everyone!

Well I’ve been in Ogunquit, Maine this week having a great time with my family.  I thought that I’d be able to post from here, but I haven’t been having a lot of luck with internet or cell phone connections from where I’m staying.

I’ll be back to talking normal dog stuff tomorrow when I get home, but for today I thought I’d ask this question:

Do you take your dog on vacation?

This seems like a pretty dog-friendly town, and of course this Bed and Breakfast caught my eye the first time that I saw it several years back.  I had hoped to check it out on this trip,  but they are at full occupancy so I guess I’ll have to wait until next time.

We’ve never taken our dogs on vacation, but I think that it could be fun.  If you do I’d love to hear from you and any tips that you might have.

I hope that you’re all having a great weekend!

I saw this terrific story about a new charity giving pet food to those in need.    What a wonderful idea!

Animals will always be dropped off at shelters.  People will, unfortunately, continue to get  pets without thinking it through or doing their homework.   They’ll continue to leave their pets at shelters for so  many reasons – it got too big, it was too expensive, it’s not the right breed for them – the list is endless.   I  started this blog because I thought that if I could stop just one person from getting a dog that they won’t keep, I’d be making a difference.

The bad pet people get an animal without thinking it through and then drop it off at a shelter.   But what about all of the people, the good pet people, who just can’t pay their bills?

So many people are having a difficult time financially right now.  Even if you’re doing okay (and I’m happy for you!) if your neighborhood looks anything like mine (and a whole lot of others) there are empty homes with foreclosure and auction signs.

A lot of these homes had pets.   Right now, more than ever, people are dropping their animals off at shelters because they just can’t afford them.

Is there a program like this in your area?  I’m trying to find out if there is one in mine and if not, I’d like to start one.

Imagine if you had to give your beloved pet away because you couldn’t afford to feed him.   I can’t even conceive  it.

I always want to pronounce this “chi-who-a-who-a”.   I heard that in a movie or a old TV show, I can’t remember which one, but it’s stuck with me since then.   My husband used to work with a guy who said “chi-wow-wow”.   We still laugh at that, but I’m afraid to say it too often for fear that I’ll accidentally pronounce it like that in front of other people, and they’ll think I’m an idiot.

The Chihuahua is another breed that tops the Most Popular Breed lists year after year. These cute little dogs are great for people in apartments and travel well.

History – There are differing theories about the origin but almost everyone seems to be agree that, at some point, this breed came from Mexico.
Size – They should not exceed six pounds.
Temperament –  Chihuahuas can have a variety of dispositions – some can be sweet and fun, others high-strung and fearful.   If you’re buying a puppy insist on meeting the parents since genetics will play a part in your dog’s temperament.

Pros-

• Doesn’t need a lot of exercise.
• They are great watchdogs.
• Loyal.
• Affectionate.

Cons -

• They tend to bark a lot.
• Can be tough to housebreak.
• Can be clingy.
• Not recommended for families with small children.

This is a smart dog but because of his strong personality and stubbornness,  you should consider formal obedience training.   They become very attached to their owners and may show jealousy towards others.   I’ve met really sweet and funny Chihuahuas and others that could  have used some training.    Remember to do your homework!

If you’re looking for a Chihuahua puppy the American Kennel Club has a Breeder Info page.

If you’d like to rescue a Chihuahua please visit Chihuahua Rescue & Transport.

Please send me your Chi-Wow-Wow photos if you’d like to include them here.

Wow, I think that I’m still coming down from the excitement of yesterday’s Blog The Change event.   Not only was I excited to participate but I’m having so much fun reading everyone’s wonderful blogs.   There are so many terrific animal lovers out there who are passionate about some GREAT causes.   I love it.

There is one last part of Fred’s story that I wanted to share and it’s about his foster mom, Jennifer.

It was a few weeks after Fred died and I was freaking out.    I couldn’t find his picture from Petfinder on either computer.  This was the photo that had made me fall in love with him.   How could I not have saved it?

I emailed Jennifer, explained that I was having a really bad “missing Fred” day and asked if she could please email that photo to me.   I checked my messages regularly and still hadn’t heard back from her after a week.  I was starting to worry that she didn’t have the picture either.

And then I received a package in the mail.   Not only had Jennifer sent me prints of every photo that she’d taken of Fred, but she sent the photo to me in this beautiful dog frame.

How unbelievably awesome is she??  That meant so much to me – it still does – and this still sits in our living room where we look at it every day.

Rescue people rock!

Since I’m new, I just found out about Blog The Change For Animals
and today is the day when we share the animal causes that we’re passionate about.   Yay!

I am a huge fan of Rescue, especially adopting older pets.    We adopted a senior Miniature Schnauzer, Fred, a few years ago.  Unfortunately we had him for less than a year,  but I’m just so happy that he left this life knowing that he was loved.   Here is my Fred story:

When we adopted Fred from Schnauzer Love Rescue we knew that he was thirteen, so we understood that we wouldn’t have him for years and years.   I had fallen in love with his picture and his story (his family that had him since he was a puppy had given him away when they had children) and I knew that I wanted to give him a loving home for the rest of his life.

We didn’t get a lot of back-story on Fred – We were told that he may have been abused, but at the very least was seriously ignored (like just left in his crate) for a long time.   He definitely liked women more than men (I was the only one that could pick him up) so I’m guessing a man wasn’t so nice to him.   The Rescue people had also told me that “It was easier for his owners to give Fred away than to teach the kids how to treat him” which made me believe that he had bitten a child.

Since we don’t have kids we thought he’d like it here just fine.  And he did.   Once he got over just staring at me for the first few days, he was my little buddy.   He followed me everywhere – When I got out of the shower, there was Fred. When I went to the other bathroom to dry my hair, he’d lie right outside of the door until I was done.   He followed me around the house constantly, and was always waiting in the front window for me whenever I went out.

We found out that Fred’s kidneys were failing after Thanksgiving, and even though he had been going to the vet constantly, I had no idea that the end would come so quickly.   If someone had told me on Christmas Day that he would be gone on by the first of the year, I would have told them that they were crazy.

On New Years Day we knew that he was suffering and took him to the emergency vet to be euthanized.   Before we took “the ride” I had a talk with him – I told him that I was sorry if his former family had told him that he was bad, because he was a great dog.  I told him that their loss was our unbelievable gain.   I thanked him for being so wonderful and told him how much I would miss him.

It took me over a week before I was able to email Jennifer, who had been fostering him for months and brought him (all the way from Tennessee!) to live with us.   I knew that she loved him just as much as I did, and I knew my email would break her heart.  But I also knew that she had a right to know, and would want to know.   After a few days I received her reply.  It was so beautiful that I have to share it:

I’m sorry it took a couple of days to reply.  I just had a little trouble absorbing it all.  I did love Fred so much and thought of him all the time, how much I missed having him around.  I’m so very sorry for your loss.  I am saddened that Fred didn’t get to spend more time with you guys because he’s so lucky to have finally ended up in a great place, but at least he spent his last days with people who truly loved him.  I know his days with you were the happiest days of his entire life.  I so wish you’d gotten him earlier too, but sometimes things fall into place and if he’d come into rescue sooner, he might never have ended up with you.

Thank you so much for loving Fred, and taking a chance on a little old man.  It was truly an unselfish act that very few people would have taken on Fred.  Once you got past his trust issues, he was truly a wonderful dog, full of love and very sweet.  Not everyone could see that about Fred.  I’m truly sorry Fred didn’t last longer for you, because it’s so hard to lose someone, especially when your time together is brief.  But I hope you know that because of you, Fred left life with everything a dog could ever ask for, a family that loved him, and that’s the best thing.  It’s so hard to lose a pet when you love them so much, but it’s worth dealing with the loss because of everything they bring into our lives.

Thank you for loving Fred, and for giving him a loving home to spend his last days.

So even though losing Fred was beyond heartbreaking for me, I’ll never be sorry that we adopted him.  He was a GREAT dog that just needed to be in a different family.    I’ll always be thankful that I had him in my life, even if it was only for a short time.

Why not open your home and heart up to a senior pet?   I will definitely do it again.

I know that Fred would approve.

I was powerless against this beautiful face.

The Labrador Retriever consistently tops the AKC’s dog registration statistics, so there are a lot of Lab owners out there.   Everyone I know with a Lab is completely in love with the breed.   The recognized colors are black, yellow and chocolate.

History –  Can be traced back to Newfoundland in the 1700’s.

Size –  The average weight is between 55 and 75 lbs.   Height is between 21 1/2 inches  to 24 1/2 inches  at the withers.

Temperament –   Labs are friendly, outgoing,  gentle and easy to please.   I think “happy” just sums it up!

Pros -

• Great for families with children.
• Loving and fun.
• Intelligent and easy to train.
• Short coat requires minimal grooming.

Cons -

• They tend to bark.
• Can be destructive if left alone often or under-exercised.
• Labs shed.
• May not do well in a warm climate.

Labs are prone to health problems including hip and elbow dysplasia,  Gastric Torsion (Bloat),  cataracts  and Osteochondritis Dissecans  (a disease of the cartilage and bone development in the joints).

Because this is such a popular breed you really need to find a responsible breeder.  Do your homework – Make sure that you meet the parents and ask to see health information.  Remember a healthy puppy from a responsible breeder may cost a lot more but it’s worth every penny in the long run.   The AKC Parent Club of the Labrador Retriever has a Breeder Directory. You will also find links for Rescue on their site.

Please send me photos of your Lab to share here.

Madison

Reese