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.

The Daily Coyote.

http://www.dailycoyote.net/

I have known about this site for a while. It is a blog by a person who took in a coyote puppy and has cared for him ever since. Shreve also has a black and white pup and a cat named Eli.

Enjoy.

"Saving one animal won't change the world, but surely the world will change for that animal." -unknown

Kenya was adopted.

Just because I hate fkn spam...

Fight Spam! Click Here!

Waiting on furever.

Hi, my name is Dixie,















and I am a goofy dog.

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Nothing new here. Just as mentioned before.

We actually had someone call the house mention the blog and ask for assistance in rehabbing feral dogs. That was kinda of cool. I also now get emails in regards to Cattle Dogs in the Carolinas, that also is on the cool side.

We still have Dixie, and probably will on through the holidays. Which is absolutely fine. Yes, we definitely want her to go to a forever home, but we also realize that with the economy kicking the bucket and the holidays being right around the corner that it may be a little bit longer until someone wants to adopt a rough playing sweet heart of an ACD.

One Year Anniversary.

Kisses from Papa.
















First Bath.
















Snuggles with Momma.















Day at the park.















Oh how we still love to make "forts".




















Happy puppy with Papa.

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Today, one year ago, we started with our first foster, (Stephen T.) Colbert. Abused, feral and wanting nothing to do with us we started working with him everyday, hand feeding at times, and forcing human contact on him by way of cuddling on the couch; can you imagine having to force an 8 month old puppy to cuddle?

So today is his gotcha day, even though we officially adopted him February 8th, just in time for Valentines. Yes he can have 2 anniversaries AND his birthday...he is afterall, a lucky dog.

He has gone from 14 lbs to 22 at his last weigh in. He loves fetch, still makes forts and sleeps with a blanket over his head, he will probably always be afraid of the dark, and yes, we sleep with a night light on for him. He also doesn't like flashlights or laser pointers. He loves his Maxi-poo and leading the pack when it is time for a walk. He still doesn't know sit or stay or down. Not that we have ever really asked him to - maybe we should start... He loves going for truck rides, putting his head right on Donovan's shoulder. He still isn't my biggest fan. He barks when someone comes home and hops around like a rabbit. He snorts and squeaks and snores.

Over the year we have called him Stinky, Moose lips, $hitty puppy, Sheddy puppy, Little boy, Baby puppy, Fussy boy, Fussy lip, Little bear, Bear paws, Stinky McFussypants, Mini-Max, and some lady at the park thought his name was Pooh Bear.

Most of all over the past year, we have loved him.

Something I had forgotten...

This is a post I had made at AuCaDo on May 23rd, and somehow it did not get mentioned here of all places...

For Sudan:

Sudan, Nov 06 - May 08

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As many of you know we have Colbert who is our adopted foster, and we have Kenya who is his littermate and our current foster. There were 5 puppies in the litter, Kenya, Chad, Sudan, Zambia (Colbert) and one other that is now Rusty; they were all named after African countries (why you name corgi mixes after African countries and not say counties in the UK I will never know). All were physically abused, tortured, and feral; making them all painfully shy, evasive, and anti-social.

Sudan was the last one to go into a home, she went just recently, a few months ago, after nearly a years worth of patience and love at Pet Helpers.

Yesterday or today she got out and was hit by a car. She did not survive. And even though she wasn't even my dog and I never worked with her, I am crying while I type this because I know the pain she was in just by fostering two of her siblings. To spend most of your life afraid of human contact and not knowing the joy of a belly rub, being sacked out on the couch or a good round of fetch. It hurts to know that someone could do what they did to one puppy never mind all 5.

But I know that she isn't scared anymore, scarred, in pain, or unhappy.

Much love to you Sudan.


In an update to this posting, Kenya is still looking for a home, all she needs is some patience and love.

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Now, anyone want to adopt a cattle dog?