Week One With Willow

Today marks the first week with our new pup, Willow. She is catching on very quickly and she seems to be learning a great deal from Buddha. Buddha has been a great influence on all the foster dogs that we have brought in. He is confident, fearless and calm. His energy is absolutely perfect for fearful or timid dogs. Willow has had difficulty getting into the car and walking on a leash. Today, I took her and Buddha to the dog park and she took his lead. He made her less fearful in the car and she simply followed his example. It was her first day at the dog park and she did amazingly well. She made friends and ran like mad. I'm proud of her progress and I'm so happy to have Buddha in my life to help bring peace to pups.

A Time To Give

I am very fortunate to be a part of an amazing group of people at a dog park that I take my dogs to every morning. Each person has their own unique background and life but one thing that they all have in common is kindness and generosity.

I thought it would be a fun idea to have a Secret Santa that was designed specifically for the dogs. There were a little over twenty doggy participants and even those who were not a part of the affair received treats. The gifts were very thoughtful and fun. My dogs have gone absolutely wild over the yummy treats that they received and I was excited that Buddha received a Star Wars collar and Simba received an awesome charm and car magnet! I live for these moments. I get so excited buying gifts and partaking in the Holiday cheer. Yes, I'm cheesy but it makes me happy. :-)

I also thought it would be important to help those animals who had far less than all of ours. We started a donation box for a local rescue and collected toys, treats, food, collars, leashes and clothes for our furry friends. The rescue was happy to receive all the donations and I think we all felt a little bit better knowing that we could help some animals in need.

A lot of thoughts float through my mind during the holidays. This year has been difficult but I have desperately tried to stay positive. Not only that but Christmas has always been such a cheerful time in my family and it's associated with positive memories. I want to share that feeling as best as I can. I know a lot of people who don't get the same feeling I do. I might not ever be able to change their associations with the holidays but I can keep my own happy memories and perhaps add a few more. I do believe that we made the holidays nicer for a bunch of dogs and cats this year. How can it get any better?

September Allure

Nature is a beautiful thing. I love to photograph the dogs at the park because they are pure, real. They play, roughhouse, run and some don't get along. Their kingdom is full of truth where a lot of humans wear a mask. The allure of nature is the variety found throughout the seasons and after storms, days of oppressive heat and cooler mornings. It all seems so elementary but it is truly intricate.  

Fashion Faux PAWS

It's been nearly two years since I started going to the dog park. I went from never owning a dog to owning two dogs and going to the dog park every single day! Here are some FASHION lessons I have learned!

1) Never wear a white shirt.
2) If you like your gloves, make sure you keep them on because the second those puppies come off a dog will snatch and chew them up!
3) Your legs will get battered by excited dogs so if you want to wear shorts be ready to be a scratching post.
4) Remember those brand new shoes you bought? They now have poop in all the tiny crevices. Good luck cleaning them!
5) High heels? PLEASE! Those suckers will sink into the urine infested ground. YUM.
6) Nice phones and other expensive electronics will get drooled on, stolen by a sneaky pup and ultimately broken because dogs don't mind yanking things off the table and using them as their personal chew toy.
7) Scarves can prove to be ultra hazardous especially if you wrap them nicely around your neck. This can incite a type of tug of war between you and a dog or one dog on each end.
8) That gorgeous Louis Vuitton bag that you own won't stand a chance. First, it smells like a cow (yummy) and second, dogs don't care how much you spent on your accessories.
9) Wild, untamed hair may attract the opposite sex but it will also attract dogs. Scrunch it up lady! Unless you want your hair chewed on and ultimately pulled out.
10) Summer dresses might be nice but if you are conservative be prepared for sniffing dogs to push up your skirt. They don't follow the same moral codes that we do and screaming just makes them want to do it more!

Buddha Bear

I totally enjoy dressing the dogs up, playing games with them and putting random objects on their heads! Buddha didn't seem to care that he had flower petals on his hair. He was extremely tired from the dog park and just wanted to sleep. I couldn't let him have his way! I am trying to train them both to balance treats on their snouts but that is not as easy as I thought it would be...

United For A Cause

I mentioned before that the dog park crew lost their wonderful friend and den mother. She passed on New Years Eve but her memory lives on. I invited her to my wedding last year but she could not make it. Instead, she wrote a beautiful note to me and sent one of her crystal swans as a gift. I remember reading her card and opening the swan the night of the wedding. I was still hyper and couldn't get to sleep. Naturally, I walked onto the balcony and looked at the bustling city below, breathed in the August air and proceeded to look at all the lovely gifts. The swan's packaging was small and understated. I knew I had to open it first. She told me that I was as delicate and graceful as that swan and that it was her favorite piece out of her collection. I instantly loved the swan because I knew that it was a gift from her heart and it truly touched me. I was also flattered by her compliment and now I keep the swan in the bedroom and try to lock away all the inspirational things she ever said to me. Every time I am at the dog park I expect to see her and her dog sitting at the green picnic table. It's silly really but her absence is felt.

After she passed, the dog park morning crew decided that we would not allow such a magnificent woman to be forgotten. After weeks of deliberation, we decided that the best way to honor this woman would be to have a tree planted in her name at the park. So many people loved her and they opened up their wallets to make the tree a possibility. Today, we have reached our fundraising goal! Soon, we will witness the planting of the tree. We miss you Irene.

Snow Pups

The first snow of the season and they were ELATED!!!

Dogs in Motion II

Watching dogs rough house and run gives me a feeling of peace. It even makes me giggle.

Another Rick Perry Comparison

I think by now everyone has made the comparison between the jacket that Governor Rick Perry wore in his campaign video that was flamboyantly anti gay and anti Obama. People put his picture next to Heath Ledger's picture from the movie "Brokeback Mountain" because the jackets appeared to be exactly the same. Now it's time for me to make a comparison of my own. While at the dog park this morning I noticed a cute little white pup in a stylish jacket. He was this tiny little guy who tried to hump several of the other male dogs in the park. Naturally, I could not get the image of Rick Perry's jacket and message out of my mind. I might have even offended the owner but I had to take several photos of the dog with his Rick Perry style jacket. Clearly, the dog is MUCH cuter.

Down and Dirty

Golden retrievers SUCK!

Little Buddha took his second trip to the dog park with Simba. He was excited but we stayed on the small dog side because there was an aggressive dog on the big dog side. After that dog left we proceeded to go to the big dog side where there were two dogs playing. One was a golden and the other a mutt. I knew the golden and had always thought it was a even tempered dog. Buddha kept trying to play with him. He wanted the ball that he had and before I knew it the golden went after my pup and all I heard was the most haunting scream. Buddha would not stop screaming. I grabbed him and searched for the injury. Truly, I almost threw up because I couldn't stand the sight of his eyes rolling into the back of his head and his inability to focus because he was wailing. Simba kept jumping up to see his little brother. He was extremely worried. The golden backed away and I immediately retreated to my car. I saw blood pouring from his mouth and I saw a gaping hole in the top of his gums. I could contain it no longer and began to cry. I cried, consoled him and drove to the vet. It turned out that the bite was deep and he would need surgery. My guilt was overwhelming and I could not stop crying. So after several hours my little baby came walking out of the room, high on drugs. He was doing fine but his mom was a total wreck. Needless to say it took several weeks and a lot of pain medication before Buddha healed completely. I never saw the woman with the golden ever again. Maybe she was afraid I would sue her. I probably would.

Shiba Inu meetup

Simba had the opportunity to meet up with some family members of his. Well, they weren't really related but they are of the same breed. It was lots of fun to see all the pretty Shiba's running around. So many different colors and sizes. They are a fun loving breed and they don't really bark either. There is something called the Shiba scream and you have to hear to believe it. Regardless, there was a lot of sound at the meet up and I noticed that Simba was not the only dog who made such a nasty "bitch" face as we call it. When Shiba's play they look really mean and are very vocal. It does not look like play to the naked eye and I always have to reassure people that there is nothing evil about it. Just because some dogs don't want to be hugged, kissed or smothered all the time doesn't mean that they are not good dogs. I force my little Simba to give me hugs and kisses. He sighs deeply because he rather be left alone but I say it's OK for him to suffer just a little!