Back on the grid. (Picture alert!)

So we were without a pc for a little over a week due to a pooped out memory card. And here we are again with some new pictures and adventures.

A lazy Sunday afternoon after yard work and the park:




As promised here is the elusive Colbert on film being a goof:











"Curses! Foiled again!"



Took Oreo to the vets today as his ears are still gunked up. Again we had the wonderful Dr. Jones (who treated Dixie for her heart worm), Oreo was given an allergy shot and had a sample of his gunk taken to be looked at. His sample contained both yeastie beasties and some bacteria. So we have a new round of drops and a follow up in two weeks.

"I hear them talking bout me behind that door"



"What is it with you and that infernal camera? On your cell phone too?!"



"I bumped the door with my butt and there was a noise, I must now check out that noise!"



In all he was the happiest dog I have ever taken to the vet. Lots of new smells, people, and dogs. And yes, he is definitely a puller when he sees something he wants.

Overall, he's a very healthy & handsome old man.



So, want to adopt a tall dark and handsome cattle dog mix for your home?

A year in review: it's a biggie.

It seems like 2008 has flown by, course, they also say that the older you get in years, the faster time goes because it becomes a smaller percentage of your lifetime.

I've decided to post a retrospect.



October of 07 we took Colbert in as our first foster. He also became our first failed foster, or FF as it is known on some forums I am on, in February of 08. I quickly thereafter spent 3 days on the couch with the flu from hell. But Corona was happy that she got unlimited cuddle time.



Around St. Patrick's day, there was a stray kitten who came right on up to me as soon as I called him. I named him Dean Martin, gave him a bath, put up fliers, brushed him out and removed the matts on his head. Poor guy looked like he'd been knocked around a few times. No one in the area claimed him, so I posted his cute little face on Craigslist and someone from Walterboro came and picked him up.



After months of the shelter stalling on getting Kenya's eye surgery done,we offered to foster her in March so that she would have a clean house in which to convalesce. She also snuck up on D and got out of the house. She was eating from a bowl on the back patio each night until D corralled her in the corner of the yard. That was for my birthday in April.



The first of May Donovan and I made like little kids and ran off to the court house to get married. We then took the pups to the dog park and let them run til their tongues hung out.

Also in May, one of Colbert's brothers, Sudan, who had been adopted out, got away from his owner and consequently run over by a car. Makes me want to stress how important having a harness on flight risk dogs is.

In June we returned Kenya to the shelter for her to be adopted out. Colbert went with Donovan to drop her off. Colbert apparently still has memories of being there because he immediately looked for a place to hide and curled into an inconsolable ball.



Also in June/July we had two surprise fosters. One was Bindi, a cattle dog that we held for two weeks through Blue Crush Rescue. Bindi now has a forever home in Illinois, but is having some behavioral issues with resource guarding, they are trying to work it out.



The other was Barnaby, who I had thought was the neighbors dog loose again, but was a stray that no one wanted to claim. Big, gangly, and goofy, we kept him for the weekend and then had to call animal control.



We had a few weeks off until Donovan saw Dixie's story on AuCaDo in August. Heart worm positive and turned into a shelter. We offered to foster her and get her through her medicine. She turned out to be highly submissive to humans, to the point of peeing. A huge cuddle bug, if you needed a bed warmer, Dixie was your gal.

In November I picked up yet another gray cat in the back yard. This one was named Jack and had a number on him and everything. I called the number, because the tag said "please call". Jack's owner told me he was an outside cat and that I could just let him go and it would be fine. I promptly told her that the people that live in this subdivision drive like idiots with no concern for people, never mind a gray cat at night. I also told her that his eye was weeping and his ear cauliflowered. She was not amused. She even called back the next day, after I released him, to see if we kept him because he hadn't come home yet.

Yesterday we returned Dixie to Blue Crush. She has some fear aggression, and didn't want to leave D. She looked back twice possible three times, I am sure she whined for him too. They are getting her a behaviorist to help her through her timidness so that she can find a home too.



An update on Colbert:
When we started fostering him he was 8 months old and 14 lbs. He is now 25 months and 22 lbs. His face is slowly turning white in the most distinguished old dog way, even though he isn't one. He sings and talks to us. He loves fetch with his red kong and still makes forts of pillows and blankets under which to sleep, which you can see above, that is him this afternoon with my lap blanket. He even has special pillows just for him because I am a softie. He has started to lay out in the middle of the living room, where he can see everyone, but still relaxed and hanging out with us. He will occasionally hop up onto the ottoman, where he knows we'd have to move to grab him, but close enough to get a beloved butt scratch. Still no cuddle time. He will get on the opposite couch and smell everything and lay down with a treat. But that is about it. Oh and he lets me play with him and his kong, but we'd have to be laying down or sitting on the floor. But as always, he is my handsome little boy.

Failure to launch

So yesterday was Dixie's visit with prospective parents. As you can see from the title, not so much.

She does have an issue with meeting people and wanting to protect who ever is holding the leash. Once she gets over that she is her adorable love bug self. Just needs some training. They weren't too crazy about that idea. However, they would have taken my handsome boy Max in a heart beat I think.

I will be driving her to Newberry, SC to meet up with Martha tomorrow, and give her back to Blue Crush. Hopefully being closer to HQ will find her a home quicker. There apparently are some people interested in her anyhow, plus Martha has another slot lined up for January on the local news which has a certain day that show cases animals in need of a home.

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A note on taking in any new dog, adopted or (shudder) purchased, they will always need training to meet your standards. Some people don't mind when their dogs like to talk, others cannot stand knowing when the neighbor walks by to check their mail. TRAINING!!

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This is "The Dixie Report" that Donovan typed up:

December 24, 2008

Dixie Report

We took her in because she tested positive for heartworm. We were to be her calm, quiet environment while she went through the heartworm treatment—the goal to minimize her physical activity. This was an uphill battle with Dixie in a perpetually playful mood; instigating bouts with anyone willing. Oh, did I mention she likes to bark…

She’s a very mouthy girl. She vocalizes everything. Sometimes it’s a normal, “Hey, there’s another dog barking.” Other times it’s, “Hey, someone’s walking by the house,” or “Hey, I’m going this way now.” So if you dislike barking, then you are in store for a relationship built on compromise. It’s not constant, it’s chronic.

Sweet, affectionate, playful…she has many good qualities. She can be easily trained—just use food. She is highly motivated by food. If you look at her like a 5 year old child, then she’s easier to endure. Likewise, she can be entertained by almost any manner of play—be creative.

It’s been very amusing to watch her learn how to play fetch and catch. She loves it. She’s also an explorer; she has no recognition of property lines. She’ll dart off the second you turn away to go learn about the neighborhood. She doesn’t understand “Come” yet.

Her background, as much as is known, is that she was left outside on a large lot alone almost continuously. This hands-off approach to dog care being the root cause to her exposure and contraction of heartworm. This also resulted in her being semi-anti-social. As far as we knew for a long time was that she was simply not human-savvy, so we worked on her manners (keeping her distance while we eat, giving everyone their personal space). As she encountered more strangers we observed her behaving confused and insecure, showing itself as sudden barks and a motion of her head as though she’s trying to snap at the person but she’s not serious about it. It’s a convincing show, though. It took her the entire 5 days my parents came to visit us in November until the night before they left for her to warm up to my mother and sit with her on the sofa.

She’s exhibited these outbursts with neighbors and everyone whom she doesn’t know. She’s pretty good with strange dogs, but she’s not wholly stable herself. So if the newly introduced dog isn’t perfect, then expect some tension and negative behavior.

A more serious issue she’s developed over the past two weeks is aggressive confrontation with the other dogs of the pack. It appears to be motivated by possessiveness. She’s been getting too much cuddle time during the day and access to the bed during the night. She starts fights that are only a couple notches down from a genuine intention to injure. As a result we’ve had to keep them separated during the day while we’re away at work.

As corrective actions we’ve aligned all of our actions to convey to her that she’s not the top dog on the list. After I mix the wet food with the dry every night with a spoon or fork, she’s the last to lick the utensil. Her food bowl is the last to be placed on the floor. She’s the last to receive a treat. It’s made a noticeable difference—she’s getting the point.

Dixie has grown quite attached to us. So she will very likely be morose for some time after she leaves our home that’s been hers for about 4 months. She will make an excellent companion for anyone willing put forth a little effort to mold her behavior.

Oh Crappy Day!

I have good news and I have bad news.

Good News: There is someone so interested in Dixie that they want to meet her Saturday night and possibly pick her up for Christmas!!

Bad news: Kenya has passed on.

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Kenya was Colbert's sister, feral, neglected and abused. She was a foster in our house for nearly 4 months as she recovered from cherry eye. She was the first foster that we actually returned.

She got out of her new parent's grasp and was hit by a car recently.

She was such a sweet baby. I knew that eventually she would be the best little dog for someone. She had just gotten so that she would take a treat from my hand if I was laying on the floor. Sometimes if I didn't move around too much, she would lay at the foot of the bed and snooze with Buela after wreaking havoc for a few minutes after Donovan left for work.

She had this crazy purple tongue that she would let hang out while she pranced and pounced in the living room. And an almost cauliflowered ear on her left side. And the most beautiful wheat blonde fur.

It almost makes me wish that we had kept her.

It makes me so mad, and want to stress to all owners that if your animal has a history of skittishness to ALWAYS keep a collar, leash, harness on them so that you CAN retrieve them. But even I know that with such things, immediate capture isn't possible. We didn't take the collar off Colbert until sometime late this summer. But if we didn't have a pack that he belonged to and came back with, he would probably still be wearing one.

We will see you when we see you my darling.

Look I'm cute!















Look I'm really cute!















Even though I take weird pictures when I hear the camera. I'm CUTE!

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I would like everyone to cross their available appendages, someone is interested in meeting Dixie for adoption.

Yay!!!

A Vicktory nonetheless.

This is a blog that I posted on my MySpace page, but I figured it belonged here too.

Dixie and crew are doing well, Dixie will be on the local news station pet spotlight in December so we are really hoping that it finds her a great 'furever' home in time for Christmas, and that, I think, would be just awesome.

Side Note: I do NOT condone the giving of live animals as presents for any reason without careful consideration for the animals welfare and several visits to local shelters to see what will happen to that ball of fluff once it becomes un-cute.

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog&pop=1&indicate=1

True not a real blog, but kind of makes me feel better knowing that he truly has ruined his life forever and that his pits are getting what they deserve: a better life.
However I think his ass needs to stay in the clink a bit longer, 'tis only just seeing as what he has done to promote the ugliness of the breed. The ugliness which is just the mirroring of the ugliness of the owner. Remember, all things are a reflection of their creator.

Also remember that every one of those Vicktory dogs and many hundreds of thousands of other pits all started out life like every other dog on the planet, harmelss, defenseless, yowling balls of fluff and infinite cuteness.

These two pits are actual Vicktory dogs, the others I cannot verify.






















(There are several other photos posted in the myspace blog as well as a photo of my favorite pit Dook. Who belongs to one of my very dear friends mother. The rest of the blog post continues from here)



http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-timdahlberg-111508&prov=ap&type=lgns

Vick wants to play, but what team would risk it?

By TIM DAHLBERG, AP Sports Columnist 7 hours, 34 minutes ago

• Michael Vick lives in a prison in Kansas, making 12 cents an hour while plotting his return to the NFL. His houses and farms will soon be gone, the two yachts are history, and he's down to his last couple of Range Rovers.

A race horse he bought for $60,000 died of colic, the Atlanta Falcons are still trying to hit him up for millions they paid him, and the IRS and the state of Georgia want nearly $1 million in back taxes.

In 2006 he made nearly $15 million. Recently he reported total income of $12.89 for an entire month.

That's $12.89 as in 12 dollars and 89 cents. This from someone who, before things went terribly bad, categorized a $1,000 check to his mother as "chump change."

The numbers are cold, but they have to warm the heart of any animal lover sickened by what once went on at Vick's Bad Newz Kennels. To many, seeing Vick stripped of the material things he and his fellow millionaire athletes like to enjoy is almost as good as watching him go to prison in the first place.

Best of all, the dogs who survived the terror of Vick's dogfighting ring are having the last laugh.

They're the stars of a recent National Geographic Channel television special. They live in comfort in a Utah ranch, thanks to $928,000 Vick agreed to contribute to finance their care.

And now they have their own wine.

Yes, there's Meryl, looking anything but ferocious on a bottle of Syrah. And there's Lewis, peeking out from the front of another Vicktory Dog bottle.

Maybe Vick can pick up a $40 bottle when he gets out of prison next July, assuming things go as planned. If he's careful about not spending his prison earnings in the commissary, he could be paroled with enough to buy a couple of them.

He shouldn't drink too much, though. Because he's still got some football to play.

Buried in the hundreds of pages of paper detailing Vick's financial woes the other day in federal bankruptcy court was the declaration that not only does Vick expect to be reinstated in the NFL upon his release but also believes he will "be able to earn a substantial living" playing quarterback once again.

Good luck with that.

Just what team he believes will employ him to do so wasn't mentioned, but the Falcons are surely out. They severed their ties with the quarterback they once were sure would lead them to a Super Bowl and are now being led by a quarterback who has been so good in his rookie season that he just might.

Vick is supposed to be released July 20, so he could be out just in time for the opening of preseason camps. But how many teams are so desperate for a quarterback that they would risk the ire of PETA-types and other animal activists to sign an ex-con who admitted to doing some heinous things?

The other question is how much would they risk for a quarterback who has a career passing rating of 75.7, fumbles the ball once every 10 times he carries it, and hasn't played a down in two years. Quarterbacks who could run were once the rage in the NFL, but most teams today look for the traditional pocket passer.

If a team did take a chance on Vick, it would likely be for little or no guaranteed money with incentives kicking in only if he produces—something that can never be certain in the NFL, where injuries and age can quickly take their toll. Even then, Vick won't keep all his salary because under his bankruptcy plan he must pay part of any future earnings to creditors.

Indeed, Vick's financial mess is as much a cautionary tale to his fellow athletes as his criminal woes are.

He has assets of $16 million but owes creditors $20.3 million. His attorneys had to hire forensic accountants to find out where the money went, $18 million of it over the last two years alone as Vick bounced from one business deal to another and seemed to hire financial advisers he met standing in line at the supermarket.

Flush with bonus money from the Falcons, Vick bought houses by the handful, invested in a rental car franchise in Atlanta and poured money into a liquor store and restaurant. He hired friends, gave away money and cars, and could never say no to his mother, who got $700 for an Easter Egg hunt one year and $317,000 for a new church building the next.

Now he sits in a prison in Kansas after a staggering and quick fall from the top. Once a favorite of fans who couldn't buy enough of his No. 7 jerseys he's now vilified and hated by millions who will never forgive the despicable things he and his buddies did to their dogs.

A comeback is still possible, but my guess is that this story will not end well. Upon his release from prison, the odds are Vick will spend more time dodging creditors than defensive linemen.

The dogs are a different story. Those that survived will live in comfort the rest of their lives.

And for that, we should all raise a glass of Lewis red in celebration.

Tim Dahlberg is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at tdahlberg@ap.org

As many have said, blame the deed not the breed. And finally,

Don't shop; ADOPT.

jesus already.

Hurray!!!

Captives of the kitchen while the carpets were getting cleaned yesterday. Buela on the left, Dixie on the right.















Sweet Nothings, Sweet Nothings...














Adopt ME!

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We took Dixie in to have her 2nd heartworm treatment yesterday. Per Martha's vets advice we asked for another heart worm test prior to the injection. The one done at the office was just barely tinged with the faintest of a blush of color. Our vet, Dr Stephen Jones, who is on the board of the American HeartWorm Association and one of SC Veterinarians of the Year, wanted to call it a negative test. We had more blood drawn from Dixie and it was sent to a lab for confirmation.

We got the results today when we took our FF Colbert in for his rabies vacc.

Dixie is now heartworm NEGATIVE!!!

YAY!!!

Anyone want to adopt a super submissive love bug bluey?

Nothing new here.

Check out those bear claws...




















Guess who hates having his photo taken.




















Look! it's the Firefox logo!

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Everyone is still getting along. No one has any new scars, no one died, and no puking (woo hoo!)

Dixie is still a cuddle monster, and doesn't EVER want to miss out on anything. So even if you say Corona, Dixie will scramble up from the wood floor on the other side of the house and be sitting next to you before Corona can even hop off the ottoman 2 feet in front of me. All because, of course, you might have food. Ugh.

Her final two shots are scheduled for the 26th and 27th. Her incontinence has abated and was probably exacerbated by the vet visit. The vet we had that day said that she is a very timid dog and anxious dog and this is probably what is causing her accidents. Good news is that it eventually goes away. Good thing she is a love bug, so that her eventual 'furever' parents will love her despite having to clean up the floors for the first few days after a vets visit. Poor Girl.

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Colbert is still a card. he squeals like a girl while playing with Max. He also has developed a sneaky typical little brother tactic to steal Max's rawhide. He will go over to max, tail tucked and ears down, tapped his paw off Max's head while rolling over. He will then curl his body around Max's head all while 'talking' and squeaking. This makes Max grumble and turn his head because I am sure it is all very annoying. Once Max turns his head Colbert, whose mouth just happens to be next to the afore mentioned rawhide picks it up and walks to his corner in the living room. Here he promptly plops down with his big Corgi butt facing the rest of us and goes to work on his newly acquired rawhide. We all know that a stolen rawhide with someone else's slobber tastes alot better than the dry one that has been sitting at the top of the stairs for a week.

I would tape this, but Colbert runs from the sound of the camera.

C'est la vie.

x0x W

Sweet Baby

Cuddling with Papa.

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Poor Dixie has had a rough night.

It started with retching at 7pm. Then 11 pm. Then 6am and 6:30am. Our normal lap monster is laying under the dining room table looking like she was ridden hard and put away wet.

We have consulted the vet tech from our vet that lives across the street and she said to fast her for 24 hours, making sure that she drinks.

We've given her a milk bone and the fast has begun, wish her luck, and if you know what it means, rub a bentley for her.

YaY!!! THE VETS OFFICE!!!

The patented ACD "Porn pose"
















"Superman"

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http://www.dogster.com/dogs/866159

The above is a link to Dixie's Dogster Page.

She is doing just fine, spooned with me nearly the whole night. She only showed some distress (she just couldn't find a good position to lie in and was very restless) yesterday afternoon until I gave her one of her Codeine pills for pain (lucky girl).

There was no decrease in appetite or any other symptom the vet told us about that might occur.

It took 2 techs, the vet and Donovan to hold her for her shot, I had her face in my hands. The first attempt she screamed like a stuck pig. She wiggled so much that she bent the needle (there was only one tech and D holding her that time). However we couldn't be too entirely sympathetic because she whined the whole time he was listening to her heart and lungs with a measly stethoscope. He said her heart and lungs sound great so he didn't want to do x-rays or ultrasounds. And that she is a big sissy.


Fun fact: our vet is on the board of directors for the American Heart Worm Association, and vets from all over the region call him with their questions. (Woo Hoo!)

http://www.heartwormsociety.org/article.asp?id=8

AND------------

*this is where D and I get to puff up our chests*

He said he couldn't think of a better home for her to be in right now.

W

The Cattle Girls.

In person, if you were to casually look at this pic you'd see two happy dogs, in reality Buela is gearing up to bite Dixie in her bratty little sister 'play with me bitch' way. Also note how much alike they look apart from the spot on Dixie's head and the red around Buela's eyes.















Happy Tails to you. With in hours of coming into our house, nothing but zoomies and play fighting.
















What happens after an ACD spends 3+ hours in a car followed by 2+ hours running amock.

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So Dixie immediately blended in and started clapping to the floor to initiate play. No major spats or growling, nothing like when we brought in Bindy. Of course we got the 'Here we go again' death look from Corona, but nothing that wasn't expected.

She truly is a sweet dog, but lacks socialization in the way that the flush of the toilet made her wild eyed and back up. The beep of the microwave made her do that head cock that dogs do when they listen intently. Nail clipping was definitely a chore that I gave up on, as I am going to need a second person to hold her. What a big goober she is.

She has no house manners so that means if you so much as make a clucking noise at a different dog she is right there in your face and bound and determined that she is going to get her 40# body into your lap and you ARE going to give her loves. Demmit. If I have food there is immediately have someone panting in my ear...and it definitely isn't my newlywed husband.

In general she just needs some boundaries and to get through her heart worm meds. Which she starts Tuesday at 10:30 am. She is definitely more than adoptable.

D has taken to calling them the Cattle Girls. You cannot go far with out have them both with you, Buela because she is the velcro dog poster child and Dixie because she is a pro at monkey see monkey do. I have woken up more than a few times in a cattle sandwich, Buela up against my back and Dixie spooned to my front.

There was one night when Buela was getting a little disenchanted with her new shadow, Buela would settle by my head with her usual huff, then Dixie would settle against my back. Buela would get up with another huff and flop against my stomach. Dixie would then flop against my thighs. Buela would get up with another grumble and go back to my shoulder blades. Dixie spooned my back again. Buela huffed again and got off the bed. I fell asleep again after that parade of paws at 2 am.

I'll post on adventures at the vet when we recover from them, apparently last time Dixie went she needed a muzzle and sedatives. We are taking Buela as the good will ambassador as she loves everyone at the vets office.

Wish us luck.

Newbie on the way.

Nope, not Buela.




















That looks like a Buela face though.
















It's Dixie Rose.

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Wednesday I get to drive to Columbia to pick up another foster through Blue Crush Rescue. Her name is Dixie and was an owner surrender due to relocation. A relocation which also means that 2 children no longer have their best friend.

Surely a family pet that is housebroken and altered still young and full of life should be easily adopted right?

Donovan found her posting on AuCaDo under the urgent category and emailed me in regards to her after emailing Chris and Martha from Blue Crush Rescue about her. I called Martha and got the dirt. She will be pulled from the Asheville Shelter Monday and here with us on her lucky day the 13th.

Unfortunately Miss Dixie has heart worm. we have yet to find out how severe a case of heart worm she has, but are looking at 2 to 3 months of permanent quiet time. This should be fun, keeping a 2 year old ACD quiet for 3 months. If you do not know the temperament of an ACD, you shouldn't be purchasing or adopting one. Think of a golden with an attitude and mind of its own, on speed, steroids, and prozac encased in just a 30 - 50 lb body. Trust me, I love my Buela Grace, I wouldn't trade her for the world. Loyal, intelligent, protective, loving, problem solving masterminds of trouble and delight.

Heart worm is a disease that is spread by a mosquito bite and it can only be passed via a bite from an infected mosquito. What happens is an infected dog gets bitten by the mosquito, larval worms in the blood then live in the gut of the mosquito and go through 2 - 3 larval molting stages (instars) then move to the salivary glands of the insect. When the bug bites another dog these larval worms then live in the dogs veins and arteries, going through another 2 or 3 instars before becoming adults and moving to the heart. They can be 6 to 12 inches long and a severe infestation can easily be seen on an ultrasound and looks like spaghetti busting out of the heart.















Treatment involves up to 3 shots of an arsenic based vermicide. The treatment has been likened to chemo for dogs. To avoid the dog going into shock or have embolisms the treatment is dragged out so a few worms die at a time. The cause for keeping the dog quiet is so that pieces of dead worms do not cause a stroke or embolisms in the tiny pulminary veins of the brain or lungs.

How do you prevent heart worm and months of pain and soreness and misery for your pet? Put them on a preventative. A $13 a month beef flavored pill (which all our dogs take like a treat with no problem) versus having to go through the entire treatment process. All of this nonsense could have been avoided.


American Heartworm Society (sad really that there needs to be one of these).