I couldn't do it-I HAD to look

I really need an intervention.

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In need for a small dog
Reply to: Date: 2007-01-26, 12:47PM CSThi, i'm looking for a small indoor dog for my 2 year old. i dont want one that grows too big, but i do want one that is potty trained if possible and if you are located in the dfw metro, even better. need it to be good with children. if however you have an american bulldog pup(s) or great dane, i'd like them as well. please know it's not for any kind of breeding or animal cruelty. i'm completely AGAINST that. i want them for our family. small rehoming fee ok, free even better! thanks.
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The good news is that many batchers and resellers and fighters are all too ignorant to write a really convincing ad. I am sending this person a mental poke in the ass with a cattle prod.

Lethargy (mine)

The dogs are never lethargic and they never seemed overwhelmed. They are always excited about whatever is happening, and ecstatic about anything food related. Life is a big old adventure, even if it's just chasing a squirrel in the backyard. That is the nature of a dog. And that is why dogs as beings deserve to be treated with respect and love, and proper care.

Living in the moment is one of the lessons that dogs can teach us. What's happening now, what can I do right now? Tomorrow really isn't something they think about, and they certainly don't dread it. Nor does Dottie appear to sit around and wish she was young like Prissy. Instead, she (Dottie) values herself as she is, believing that her old bones and wisdom are superior to "that Pup". She is not threatened by Prissy's youth, she is secure in her own divinity.

I am writing this at lunch after a hectic morning meeting with the Caregiver service, the housekeeper (apologizing for the furniture boxes in the living room), our Director of HR, the Director of Internal Audit and my boss, the CIO. I tried to think like a dog, deal with the issue at hand and move on to the next one and somehow I got through the morning. I'm going to try it again this afternoon.

I can get the task oriented, living in the moment stuff down pretty well, but it will be awhile before I am secure in my own divinity.

Layin Down the Log

Ok, since Cody "disappeared" under the porch last week, Greta has gotten stuck under the self same porch even without the E-Collar no less than three times. Enough I said, and I laid down the law, or rather the log. I rolled one of my logs in front of the hole until I can fence it off properly.

These logs came with the house-the former tenants used them for natural foot stools. The chi's use them for natural perches and I use them to plug holes in the fence, prop up barricades. One of the logs resembles a torso of David, only he, or it is a little more "alert". I have plans for that log-it is going to be featured in a photo shoot. I don't think I'll ever feel comfortable enough with the snakes to take them outside to photograph, so I am going to have the handyman bring David in this weekend, which means I will have to find another log to prop up the metal sheeting I am using to cover the hole in the fence. (I am a renter, so I would just fix the fence if the house were mine).

Not everything involving dogs is expensive. However, puppy mills and indiscriminate breeders tend to increase the numbers of genetically defective dogs, raising the changes that YOUR little cutie may have an expensive issue. Wanting to control breeding isn't about controling commerce or controlling the direction of a breed, it's about wanting to regulate the thoughtless production of crippled animals.

Now a confession. My Auntie Hilda sent me a poi-package to tide me over through my upcoming surgery. Confession 1. I had to eat some tonight. It was too late to make my planned crab salsa, so I simply mixed some dried tomatoes and one small onion (the POI wanted the onion....) and pan fried it in a bit of olive oil. Confession 2. The Poidogz were not invited to share.

I can't really justify that selfish act, but there it is. Thank you Auntie Hilda!

Tomorrow adventure: Greta gets ALL her staples pulled and I do the honor of holding her to see if that will make it easier on her and the vet staff. The brave Dr. at Cityvets, www.cityvet.com is meeting me at 9 am to help Greta take the next step in healing and socialization. The rest of the clan will join us for moral support and a day at doggy daycare.

A special guest appearance

Courtesy of my Cousin Cindy-this is an old photo of my Aunt Greta and her husband Charlie. I do think Greta the dog resembles her around the eyes. I am not sure what Aunt Greta's view on the afterlife was, but I can't imagine her coming back as a gimpy chihuahua in Wichita Falls, Texas. Maybe she meant to come back as a beloved pet, and somehow things went cockeyed.

Aunt Greta had a great sense of style, making custom fashions for the wealthy and even the famous. Greta the dog currently looks like a little Frankenstein's monster with a zipper belly and a shaved hip with a zigzag scar on it, accentuated by a bulldog under bite when she closes her mouth. She did manage to look regal in her fine Elizabethan collar until she crumpled it under the house. I bought her a new one, a fine red one, but she keeps pulling it off. Since she isn't picking at her incisions, I'm letting her have her way.

Aunt Greta made it out of Texas, via Oklahoma, into the big time and Hawaii. Poidog Greta has made it out of Wichita Falls into Big D. The adventure continues.

Need to Close my eyes for a bit

It's raining puppies on Craigslist.....it's now the end of January and all the bad 6 week old puppies that can't be potty trained are now looking to be rehomed. Of course, no one wants to actually lose any money, so to insure a good home there will be a rehoming fee to cover the cost of all the toys that come with the dogs. Lots of toys, but not any shots or health related things.

I'm having one of those days when I feel a little hopeless and helpless. What can I do to make a difference? I can't afford another daring rescue right now. But I want to HELP. I want to make it stop-all the full blooded, designer dog, hybrid cutsie, I care but I don't want to be bothered in anyway bullshit.

Sometimes I feel like hiding my dogs because I don't want someone to see them, think they are cute, and on impulse go buy one, only to start the viscious cycle again. Do we need stronger laws regarding pet ownership? Would that be the answer? Maybe classes and more outreach in the schools? It's a start.

Anyway, no more CL Pets for a week-I'm officially on the wagon.

Well don't we ALL?

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From Craigslist:

I am wanting a tiny male poodle that is completely trained and socialized. He must love adults, children and other dogs. He must be very sweet, loving, and for the most part calm. he must like to ride in the car a lot. I can provide a great home, lots of love and care, and will not leave him alone hardly at all!
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Hell, I'd like two PHd offspring to support me in my old age, however I don't want to pay for college, upbringing and I am certainly not going to change any diapers. And by the way, I don't want any 6 ft basketball stars or anything like that-only cute little pygmies need apply.

As I am not willing to spend any time or effort, if this doesn't work out the kids (dogs, cats) will be sent to the pound or stuck outside and completely ignored. And they better not have any health issues cause I don't want to lay out any cash whatsoever.

Remedial Efforts

The sun was out yesterday and everyone was in a far better mood.

Prissy, and to some degree Greta, are getting bad about whining when they are crated and I am home. So, remediation is required. Practice makes perfect. I'm just really lazy about crating them when I am home, because WHY? Well, WHY is that when a handyman comes over and they need to be crated, the noise level is embarrassing. Also, it's just good practice for them to understand that I decide when and where they are set free.

Life among the pack is about discipline, even if your pack's combined weight is about 25 pounds.

Now THAT was a neat trick

So, Greta manages to crawl UNDER the porch with her E collar on. The E Collar then flops back out, and she is stuck. Frantic. Bawling. In the rain.

I grab my mud shoes (trusty red sneakers) and race out to save her. But I am far too big to fit in the hole. Finally, I flop down, stick my hands under the porch as far as I can (no room for my head) crumple her collar around her ears, and PULL.

Out she pops, very grateful.

Bonus points for performing said rescue in the rain wearing my favorite bright turquoise moo moo which I had just put on to cheer me up from all the wretched weather. As the great diva Dottie says "There is always a place for fashion......"

Thankfully, no pictures will be provided.