People could learn a lot about living well from dogs. They enjoy simple pleasures that too many humans ignore: playing with friends, burrowing in fresh snow, swimming on a hot day, running just to feel the wind in their faces, etc. I defy anybody to watch a group of dogs at play and not smile.Originally posted by dandy_warhol
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. -- John F. Kennedy, January 20, 1961
Our Lizzy enjoyed her first Christmas this year. Besides her best gift - the love of a family, instead of being chained to a tree outside - she scored a box of jerky treats, a bag of treats, pigs ears, rawhides, a new purple leash to match her purple collar, and a new stuffed toy. Her nose lef her to her treats. We wrapped some in tissue paper for her and Luke to open and devour on Christmas morning (as well as a couple on Christmas eve). The best part of the evening was while we sat in the family room and Lizzy quietly disappeared into the other room. She reappeared a moment later, having pulled a sealed bag of treats from her stocking, which she dropped at our feet. The puzzle was Luke's present. It took him less than five seconds to figure out how to move the disks with his paws so that he could get to the hidden treats.
http://arescuedogstale.wordpress.com...dscn9189/#main
Anyone want to adopt a dog?
5.5 years since the kid and I lost our dog; RJ loved her, too. Kid and I are wanting a dog; RJ is a hard sell. All we need to do is find a good doggy-boarding place for when we travel. I miss having a dog, never gone this long.
Christmas was quiet this year for our two furry family members. They are both old, and on restricted diets, so we couldn't get them just any old treats. So one new bag of Newman's Own small treats - cheese flavor - and one large bag of Yummy Chummies - original flavor - and the dogs are happy. They get both mixed in with their usual, so they will last for a little bit.
No squeaky toys this year!! They have enough.
"We do not need any other Tutankhamun's tomb with all its treasures. We need context. We need understanding. We need knowledge of historical events to tie them together. We don't know much. Of course we know a lot, but it is context that's missing, not treasures." - Werner Herzog, in Archaeology, March/April 2011
My dog LOVES squeaky toys, but she always ends up 'killing' the squeaker.
She is still available....
http://www.raisingaidfordogsatrisk.org/juniper
There is something about this one that tells me she is a true gem. We would take her in ourselves, but we have not had Lizzy for that long, and we already have two dogs.
Salmarissa - Yummy Chummies are great! They are a favorite treat here too.
Anyone want to adopt a dog?
My former dog, Rusty, who will be gone 1 year tomorrow, and my current dog, Tucker, could NOT possibly be more different when it comes to dog toys. Rusty, a German Shorthaired Pointer, who lived to hunt -- and kill -- furry rodents had a large collection of stuffed squeaky toys that he loved but never, ever destroyed. A few squeakers died and I've sewn up a few torn seams over the years, but I still have his very first and most favorite stuffed "woodchuck". Tucker, a Poodle who is totally clueless about hunting, "kills" the squeaker and destuffs any toy he really likes and ignores the ones he doesn't like. His Christmas "hedgehog" is now totally destuffed, its squeaker in the garbage since Tuesday AM.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. -- John F. Kennedy, January 20, 1961
Funny thing about Luke. He will destroy just about any stuffed toy we give him - except one. A couple days after we picked him up as a puppy we took him to the store and let him pick out a toy. His choice was a small pink lamb with curly nylon hair. He will look for it and carry it around, but he has never tried to rip it open. Now that we have Lizzy, who is also a destroyer, we have had to put it out of reach.
Anyone want to adopt a dog?
On the one year anniversary of the passing of my best bud for 15+ years, here's a pic of Rusty from his halcyon days, and a link to his photos on my FLICKR photostream: Rusty.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. -- John F. Kennedy, January 20, 1961
What a great collection. He certainly had a very good life.
Anyone want to adopt a dog?
He was a very lucky dog given that he probably started his life in a puppy mill and spent his first 5-6 months undernourished, unexercised, and crated in a crate that was too small for him. He was rescued by the New York GSP Rescue from a suburban NYC pet shop in 1996. I can't imagine what he looked like when they got him because he looked like a 2 x 4 with legs and a tail when I adopted him in July, 1996. He added so much weight and muscle from good food and exercise in those first few months that he went into winter, 1996-1997 with a virtually hairless chest because he finally developed the deep chest that's a GSP hallmark.
Despite that tough start, he was healthy his entire life, although arthritis caught up with him the last couple of years and really hobbled him (of course, he was around 100 in "dog years" by then). Aside from a few torn dewclaws and muscle pulls and some kind of nasty abscess he developed in 2009, Rusty was literally never sick. He even avoided a bout with bordatella that nearly killed some of his pals from Bergman Park back around 2002.
I'm really torn between rescuing another GSP or just rescuing another breed or mix. They are a high maintenance breed that require, minimally, mutliple hours of outdoors time daily. Tucker, a standard Poodle, is much easier as he's not nearly as high energy.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. -- John F. Kennedy, January 20, 1961
My two Italian Greyhounds are both rescues. While I love the breed, they are not for everyone. I've been suggesting to hubby that next time around, we adopt former racing greyhounds. They are indoor dogs, because the fur is thin and too much sun can literally give them a sunburn, and they are gentle. He thinks it's too much dog, though. So we may be an Iggie family next time round, too.
My two love their Christmas presents! The cheese treaties are a big hit, so I may have to find a regular supplier. The Yummy Chummies are familiar, and yummy, but right now the new cheese treats are the bestest! The dogs sit to get their treaties. The boy dog usually stands to chew his treats, but he likes these so much he will stay seated in an effort to prove that he deserves another.
"We do not need any other Tutankhamun's tomb with all its treasures. We need context. We need understanding. We need knowledge of historical events to tie them together. We don't know much. Of course we know a lot, but it is context that's missing, not treasures." - Werner Herzog, in Archaeology, March/April 2011
You know, when I was shopping for your Secret Santa gift, I thought about getting you something greyhound-related, but I wasn't sure whether your pooches were Greyhounds or Italian Greyhounds. The Italian Greyhounds are smaller, aren't they?My two Italian Greyhounds are both rescues. While I love the breed, they are not for everyone. I've been suggesting to hubby that next time around, we adopt former racing greyhounds. They are indoor dogs, because the fur is thin and too much sun can literally give them a sunburn, and they are gentle. He thinks it's too much dog, though. So we may be an Iggie family next time round, too.
My two love their Christmas presents! The cheese treaties are a big hit, so I may have to find a regular supplier. The Yummy Chummies are familiar, and yummy, but right now the new cheese treats are the bestest! The dogs sit to get their treaties. The boy dog usually stands to chew his treats, but he likes these so much he will stay seated in an effort to prove that he deserves another.
Racing greyhounds are notorious couch potatoes, and really make excellent apartment/small house dogs. They are bred to be really short sprinters, so they'll run really fast for a little bit and then be done. The Salukis, Afghans, and other sight hounds are the ones that can run forever ... and GSPs.My two Italian Greyhounds are both rescues. While I love the breed, they are not for everyone. I've been suggesting to hubby that next time around, we adopt former racing greyhounds. They are indoor dogs, because the fur is thin and too much sun can literally give them a sunburn, and they are gentle. He thinks it's too much dog, though. So we may be an Iggie family next time round, too.
My two love their Christmas presents! The cheese treaties are a big hit, so I may have to find a regular supplier. The Yummy Chummies are familiar, and yummy, but right now the new cheese treats are the bestest! The dogs sit to get their treaties. The boy dog usually stands to chew his treats, but he likes these so much he will stay seated in an effort to prove that he deserves another.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. -- John F. Kennedy, January 20, 1961
Yeah, some people call them minature greyhounds, but that is incorrect. My girl dog has AKC papers, but she is too tall, too wide and too long to be a show dog. Boy dog has perfect Iggie measurements, but his broken tail and the way his front legs angle when he sits means he can't be a show dog either. Oh well, they make perfect house pets and companions!
Getting one of the Salukis or long distance runners would be good for hubby, since he runs a lot. However, he doesn't want to take a dog on runs. So we'll stick with the small or large couch potatoes.
"We do not need any other Tutankhamun's tomb with all its treasures. We need context. We need understanding. We need knowledge of historical events to tie them together. We don't know much. Of course we know a lot, but it is context that's missing, not treasures." - Werner Herzog, in Archaeology, March/April 2011
My dog has been at my FIL's since 12/22. I haven't missed him at all.
"I'm very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany"
Our little 13 y.o. cat has been out of sorts for a week or so. I took her to the vet today. Dehydrated, seems to have developed arthritis in her hips, and has lost an alarming amount of weight (and she was only 7.5 lbs to begin with). They did some blood tests, thinking it may be a thyroid thing, rehydrated her, gave her some pain meds. Keeping my fingers crossed.
Hope your kitty gets better
People will miss that it once meant something to be Southern or Midwestern. It doesn't mean much now, except for the climate. The question, “Where are you from?” doesn't lead to anything odd or interesting. They live somewhere near a Gap store, and what else do you need to know? - Garrison Keillor
Sending good thoughts to your little kitty, ZG. I hope the vets can discover and treat what ever is making her uncomfortable. Dramatic weight loss in an older pet can also be a sign of an issue with the kidneys.
In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. -Martin Luther King Jr.
The dehydration would also make me worry about the kidneys. I've seen it often with our cats over the years.Sending good thoughts to your little kitty, ZG. I hope the vets can discover and treat what ever is making her uncomfortable. Dramatic weight loss in an older pet can also be a sign of an issue with the kidneys.
ZG, I hope your kitty is okay and back up and running in no time.
Not valid without corporate seal
My dog is going to be 10 in a couple of months. I need to start getting used to him being "older". His once limitless energy at all hours of the day is starting to subside, and it's weird.
"I'm very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany"
Keep us posted on your cat, ZG. I hope she is okay.
Hope the kitty is well, ZG.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. -- John F. Kennedy, January 20, 1961
The cat that was foisted on us when the MIL passed has a thyroid deficiency. It was always a small cat but now it only weighs 4.5 pounds. Only takes it's medicine when it wants to but it seems healthy other than the weight. We've given up on the blood tests because there isn't any way to consistently keep it medicated for meaningful tests. I'd already have another dog if it wasn't for that cat.
“Death comes when memories of the past exceed the vision for the future.”
Thanks for the good thoughts, y'all.
The vet called late this afternoon: blood tests all normal, no indication of thyroid, kidney, or blood sugar issues. He wants me to pick up some pain and arthritis meds tomorrow, and try those for a few days, and see how she's doing. He thinks the pain and discomfort from the arthritis may be affecting her appetite. Keeping my fingers crossed...
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