Category Archives: Dogs & Other Animals

Breeds Revealed!

Dogs & Other Animals

The matter of what Baxter’s heritage is has been the subject of much discussion. So for my husband’s birthday last year I had a DNA analysis done on Baxter.

Baxter showed up at our house nearly nine years ago as a drop off. He was only a couple of months old and it appeared he had been well cared for and he had some manners already. So we never knew anymore about his background. Whoever dropped him off probably thought “these crazy people with all the dogs will take care of him”. How right they were.

It turns out that according to the analysis he is 25% Labrador, 25% Rottweiler, 12.5% Doberman, 12.5% Collie, 12.5% Chow Chow, and 12.5% so mixed that it was indeterminate.

So the lab accounts for his great love of frisbeeing. The Rottweiler, Doberman and Collie for his great loyalty and obedience. And the Chow gives him the dark tongue spots!

Whatever the mix, it has added up to one wonderful dog.

The Dog Ate My…

Dogs & Other Animals, ,

This is a copy of the letter that I recently sent to our local library. A variant of “the dog ate my homework”.

I can only laugh. And keep Cassius in his crate when we go away. I hope the library employees laugh too.

I put it in perspective by realizing that if he had actually hurt himself, I would be willing to pay much more in veterinary bills.

So, although it cost me the price of a book, at least it was a soft bound book and everyone is still healthy. And, I hope, having that laugh.

Enough!

Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life,

I had a moment of clarity and vision today. It was not good.

I am a scientist. I was at work reviewing a new batch of SDS’s (formerly MSDS’s). Safety Data Sheets-a source containing information about the safety, or lack there of, of various chemicals. One of the ways they determine this is by animal testing. There, at the back of the reports were the figures derived from the Draize tests on rabbit eyes to determine sensitivity. And results of other tests done on rats, mice, etc. Some of these chemicals are acids, folks!

I had to make my mind a blank to avoid having an emotional meltdown at work, thinking what this actually meant for these animals and what they must have suffered. It turns my stomach and causes me distress.

Yes, I am a scientist. I do not need evidence from experiments on some poor animals to know that acid in my eyes or on my skin is going to cause me harm.

Enough already! These barbaric tests must stop!

Surviving Winter

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals,

How do you survive the winter cold and darkness? Well, you could move south or west.

But here in the Midwest, you can tough it out and go outside anyway…

or grab a blanket and hunker down until better weather arrives.

If you’re versatile like Baxter, you do some of each.

Zekie!

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings, ,

Just a quick update on foster boy Zeke. He is a happy pup.

He still has separation anxiety but it is manageable on the Prozac. If you don’t mind a dog with sizable amounts of drool in his crate when you come home. The crate is now more or less where it was when we left. Mondays are always the worst after I go back to work for the week. It’s a good thing I don’t wear expensive clothes (although this is part of the reason why) because Zeke jumps and paws at me for a while when I return. Dogs are far superior to nice clothes any day!

But the rest of the time he is a joy. He becomes a 43 lb. lap pup for about 10 minutes every day. We both enjoy this. On Sunday last week, he got to go to grandma’s for a visit along with Baxter and Cassius. The girls, Nikki and Shelby, stayed home because they were having a turn to go away the next evening to visit at the nursing home. Zeke was well behaved and listened. We had our 10 minutes of lap time there because I suspect he was feeling insecure.

Yesterday, hubby and I took Baxter, Cassius, Shelby, and Zeke for a walk on the Hike and Bike Trail and there were no incidents with other hikers. Of course this may have been because it was 15 degrees and snowy, so there were no other hikers! 😉 Hey, you seek progress where you can find it.

And last but not least Zeke has wormed his way into my heart enough that I call him Zekie!

Inside!

Country Life, Dogs & Other Animals, ,

Baby, it’s cold outside. The last week, temperatures around here have been averaging around 5-6 degrees Fahrenheit during the day time and zero at night.

The weather and tv stations have been advising that people check on their dogs and cats. Why would you have to do this? Your pet dogs and cats should be with you!

We take our dogs out for about 10 minutes of play time, to chase the frisbee and ball. That is enough for them. They are glad to go out and glad to come in. They do want to know why we didn’t turn the heat up before we went out!

Relief is in sight however. Forecast for today is in the 20’s. Oh, the excitement!

Christmas, Gone To the Dogs

Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings, ,

Do you buy Christmas presents for your dogs? We never used to but it brings them such joy to be included that we do now. Cassius knows he heard a squeaker somewhere! He was running around looking for the squeaky toy when this photo was taken.

Cassius also got a new jolly ball for Christmas. They are actually sold for horses but when you find a toy that might hold up to the jaws of steel, you go for it.

Cassius is a good sport so let’s Zeke have a turn with his new toy.

Baxter got, what else? A new Frisbee!

Shelby, never one to lay down on the job, supervises all the holiday proceedings and goings on.

Nikki mostly stays out of the way. When the big dogs are excited, things can get crazy. A petite girl could get run over!

And Zeke the wonder dog is happy to be a part of it all. He is a very nice dog. He joins in playing and chasing toys with our crew and barely bats an eye. No snarling or altercations, just smiles all around.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas!

Dogs & Other Animals, Thoughts On Life,

I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. In this world of electronics we make friends far and wide via Facebook, email, etc. I know I have become acquainted with people that I value highly and who are a part of my days. Many more than I could ever get cards out to. These various media forms allow me to stay in contact with friends both old and new in addition to reconnecting with far away family. So to each of you, may the spirit of Christmas be present in your lives through the coming year.

Time with Zeke

Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings, Uncategorized,

We are learning more about Zeke as time goes by. Such as, he loves spending time outside as long as he is with the other dogs and knows we are nearby. He especially loves the snow, burying his nose in it and snuffling for what I don’t know. Maybe for the sheer joy of it.

We have also learned that he is not above stealing food from the counter and eating all of it. But only when we are not around. For this the fault lies with us for allowing the opportunity.

Zeke continues to move his crate across the room when there are no humans at home. And drool. The weather has not been conducive to walking so no updates on that front.

Even so, we are enjoying our time with Zeke. He is a fine dog.

Update on Zeke the Foster Dog

Dogs & Other Animals, Rescue Happenings,

It’s time for an update on our foster dog, Zeke. I have had people inquire about how he is doing which is encouraging for me. Although I can’t say Zeke is over his issues and acting like a normal dog, I can report that he is showing improvement. To what do I attribute this? Two things. Number one, time and consistency. Number two, drugs! The vet prescribed Prozac and occasional Valium for him.

The Valium seems to have little effect so I have only used it twice. Both times he still “drove” his crate across the dining room. When in his crate and we both go away he apparently flings himself against it so hard trying to get out that it moves across the room. We find it up against a piece of furniture or the wall where it was impossible to go any farther. If you’ll remember, he also drools buckets in the crate with standing puddles of it inside the crate and some flung out while we are gone. One time he cracked off part of a fang. He only had two fangs when we got him and now we know why. The Valium has no effect on these episodes so I probably won’t give him any more. Luckily for Zeke, the times when my husband and I are both gone at the same time are rare.

By the way, Zeke is fine in his crate when we are home. We feed the dogs in their crates and then they have a rest time in the crate right afterward for a short time. Zeke also sleeps in a crate and is fine. It’s the being alone that’s the problem. I felt the need to crate him when we leave the house though because I suspect that he would jump through a window to come look for us. The first three weeks I would crate him when I left for work because my husband was still upstairs in bed. (I leave at 6:00 am so who could blame him.) Zeke would do some minor barking and lots of drooling. So, I got brave and left him loose in the house because my husband was still home, just upstairs. Zeke has been good as gold. He has not tried to jump through the window and has been laying down and being good as gold at these times. Someday I may get brave enough to let him loose in the house when we both go away. Not anytime soon though. Because he has been known to knock pans and containers off the kitchen counters and stove. We also need to make sure there will be no incidents between him and the other animals. They get along fine but there is always the possibility of a misunderstanding occurring and the results of that could be disastrous.

Zeke was barking in his crate at night at random at first. Nothing hysterical, just attention seeking. We moved his crate beside our bed and now he doesn’t make a peep. Usually I would not allow the dog to control us like this but these are extenuating circumstances. Zeke needs to gain confidence and calmness to overcome his various problems.

Luckily Zeke is easy to love. He is affectionate and loving. He likes to snuggle and sit on your lap. You better have a big lap because he probably weighs about 45 lbs. now! He has a pleasant temperament and is fairly obedient when given commands. He listens when you talk to him and seems to understand a great deal, given his reactions to conversations.

More on other Zeke behaviors soon!