They are probably crossing the state line now! Alert alert-I'm going to get to cuddle Dottie and Prissy (and of course Ms. Dollie) and visit with my parents. Cody will be over the top-he loves Prissy and I am sure Prissy will be glad to see Greta and Cody-she's been cooped up with the old dogs and the old folks.
Anyway-they are on their way!
Saturday, March 3, 2007
Friday, March 2, 2007
a moment of sanity
Sue pointed out tha Labs would be too high energy for me, even with a cart and even with a treadmill-so it's back to big hairy giant breeds that will die (sob) in 8 years or so.....
There might be some wisdom in using what has worked for thousands of years.
There might be some wisdom in using what has worked for thousands of years.
Rescue, Breed, what to do?
I am looking for my carting dogs and it's sad and interesting all at once.
For instance wouldn't it be great to get people to do chariot racing with pit bulls instead of fighting? Rotties pulling little old ladies to Starbucks for coffee? This whole carting thing is really capturing my imagination.
While I'm looking for draft dogs, I am working with Greta and Cody to train them to pull a miniature cart-training dogs is training dogs, and why not practice while I'm laid up? Because Greta has her bad hip I'm going to find a lightweight child's toy for her to pull-that way she can play along with us with no danger to herself.
My first experience with dog carting was 20 or more years ago when I trained a shepherd mix to pull a car with my daughter in it. I macrame the harness because I was too poor to buy a proper harness, but none of us cared....we carted proudly through the mobile home park where we lived. For some reason there is this negative "white trash" connotation to mobile homes-which I think is silly and I won't support by pretending I've never had any experience with them.
I wonder if you can get sponsors without being a 501(c)? I negotiated a good deal on my cart by telling the people I'd be at Whiterock and would pass out cards when people asked......but the cart is only part of it-I need harnesses, dogs and kennels, crates for the dogs. I'm just not OK with putting dogs unattended in the backyard while I'm at work-no matter how big the dog is.
The thing is, I've found the therapy dog groups to be kind of cliquish-not really encouraging, etc. And why would the tractor store donate crates, cages when they would be at my house and the only thing I could do would be put a sign on the cart saying sponsored by.....It's not always cheaper, but it's usually easier to go it alone.
For instance wouldn't it be great to get people to do chariot racing with pit bulls instead of fighting? Rotties pulling little old ladies to Starbucks for coffee? This whole carting thing is really capturing my imagination.
While I'm looking for draft dogs, I am working with Greta and Cody to train them to pull a miniature cart-training dogs is training dogs, and why not practice while I'm laid up? Because Greta has her bad hip I'm going to find a lightweight child's toy for her to pull-that way she can play along with us with no danger to herself.
My first experience with dog carting was 20 or more years ago when I trained a shepherd mix to pull a car with my daughter in it. I macrame the harness because I was too poor to buy a proper harness, but none of us cared....we carted proudly through the mobile home park where we lived. For some reason there is this negative "white trash" connotation to mobile homes-which I think is silly and I won't support by pretending I've never had any experience with them.
I wonder if you can get sponsors without being a 501(c)? I negotiated a good deal on my cart by telling the people I'd be at Whiterock and would pass out cards when people asked......but the cart is only part of it-I need harnesses, dogs and kennels, crates for the dogs. I'm just not OK with putting dogs unattended in the backyard while I'm at work-no matter how big the dog is.
The thing is, I've found the therapy dog groups to be kind of cliquish-not really encouraging, etc. And why would the tractor store donate crates, cages when they would be at my house and the only thing I could do would be put a sign on the cart saying sponsored by.....It's not always cheaper, but it's usually easier to go it alone.
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Did I mention I ran over my good foot?
Swerving to miss Greta, I ran over my good foot with the wheelchair. THEN I did it again in front of my assistant Olivia. No more barefootin.
My just rewards
I slept in and both dogs peed in the floor before I could wheel over to the door to open it. My bad, but cleaning up pee from a wheelchair is an aerobic activity. Note to self: Let dogs out and go BACK to bed if you want to sleep in.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Ooops
Greta and Cody climbed into my lap this afternoon to assist in my teleconference. Unfortunately they both began to snore loudly about 10 minutes into it. It was a stupid and boring and useless meeting and I hope the other participants thought I had a bad case of gas. I love my dogs.
Blustery Day
Kids are out eating grass on this very blustery day. I really do think spring has sprung.
I ordered a dog cart for two-(two dogs, two people). I would like to make a team of dogs out of rescue dogs, but I also want to use those dogs to cart old people around Whiterock Lake.....An unbalanced irate chihuahua is one thing, an unbalanced out of control Borzoi is another. Well DUH, that's why bigger dogs are harder to place.
Since I can't even walk right now, I will have plenty of time to contemplate the ethics of saving dogs vs. endangering elderly people and hopefully the solution will come. Oh, there is no hope about it-the solution is always there.
For one half assed crazy moment, I thought a team of rescued Pit Bulls would be the perfect statement-butI'm just not up for that and I don't really care that much for the breed as a whole anyway. I'm going to contact the Texas Pyranese rescue and maybe a Great Dane rescue....I'm afraid a Newfie in August in Dallas would be a pitiful site.
Of course, then there is the whole mutt thing-THEY deserve rescuing too. Dammit, I want to save them all and I want to have a mile long chain of carts hauling little old people out in the spring sunshine getting some fresh air. But I guess I will just do what I can.
I ordered a dog cart for two-(two dogs, two people). I would like to make a team of dogs out of rescue dogs, but I also want to use those dogs to cart old people around Whiterock Lake.....An unbalanced irate chihuahua is one thing, an unbalanced out of control Borzoi is another. Well DUH, that's why bigger dogs are harder to place.
Since I can't even walk right now, I will have plenty of time to contemplate the ethics of saving dogs vs. endangering elderly people and hopefully the solution will come. Oh, there is no hope about it-the solution is always there.
For one half assed crazy moment, I thought a team of rescued Pit Bulls would be the perfect statement-butI'm just not up for that and I don't really care that much for the breed as a whole anyway. I'm going to contact the Texas Pyranese rescue and maybe a Great Dane rescue....I'm afraid a Newfie in August in Dallas would be a pitiful site.
Of course, then there is the whole mutt thing-THEY deserve rescuing too. Dammit, I want to save them all and I want to have a mile long chain of carts hauling little old people out in the spring sunshine getting some fresh air. But I guess I will just do what I can.
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