November 13, 2012

Be the Change - Shelter Drive By!

Today I've got a very Hellen-Woodward-centric post.

Dr V. (not our Dr. V, whom you might remember from Abby's oncology visits, but a different Dr. V.) of www.pawcurious.com has teamed up with BlogPaws and the folks at Iams (with their annual "Home 4 the Holidays" campaign) to highlight National Animal Shelter Appreciation Week.

Dr. V. asked that bloggers do a "drive-by" of a local Home 4 The Holidays shelter or rescue and drop off a donation. She said it could be something "as simple as bringing them an old towel from your closet or as complicated as you wish. I like simple. Simple is good and repeatable and easy and is what I will be doing."

So, I did something simple. I gathered up a small bag of some sheets and towels we no longer needed. I also checked Helen Woodward Animal Center's "wish list" page. If you've been reading the blog for a while, you know I volunteer at HWAC. They actually started the Home 4 the Holidays campaign. In fact, a certain little girl we know and love was adopted during that campaign:
How could we resist bringing this face home with us?? (Miss that girl...)

November 12, 2012

Monday Mischief: Underwear Everywhere

Around here, we can't resist an underwear snatching pooch. (If you don't already know what the dog ate, well, he ate some panties that didn't belong to his momma. This is no spoiler, since it's revealed in the opening line of the book: The vet handed Maggie Baxter a plastic specimen bag containing a pair of size-tiny lavender thong panties extracted from her dog; but they were not hers.)

So, of course we fell in love with Ecco, the underwear thief, when we first met him a few months ago. Ecco is the "nawty dawg" with a big heart. His mom contacted me about spreading the word for Ecco's 2012 "Underwear Everywhere" Drive.

The flyer is a bit hard to read on my blog (I couldn't post it full size or it wouldn't fit), but below the image I've typed up the text.

"Please help Ecco, the naughty dog with a big heart, collect NEW socks, hats, gloves and underwear for the 300 plus homeless served by the Union Mission Ministries. Every year, Ecco tries to redeem himself by donating more underwear than he has destroyed over the past year. It's never too late to turn your negatives into positives! Thank you for helping Ecco with his goal of collecting over 1000 pairs of socks and undies! Please send all items to p.o. box below. If you are local (Hampton Roads), we will be happy to provide pick up! Donations can also be made via our web site, www.nawtydawgbigheart.com under the "BIG HEART" tab. Please write "Mission" in the comments to ensure the proper allocation of your gift."

P.O. Box 1007, Smithfield, VA 23430-1007

Rita is, amazingly, the first dog we've had that doesn't steal our undies. It never occurred to me to take a photo of Bailey or Abby scampering around with our undies (probably a good thing), but luckily we have the adorable photo of undie-thief Ecco to enjoy for Monday Mischief.

Is your dog an undie thief?

Happy Monday Mischief!

November 9, 2012

Just Chew It

The other day on CometDog.com, a site my friend started for "sharing, support & shenanigans" with other dog lovers (and also cat and lizard and any-ol'-pet lovers!), she posted a link to this very informative article from Whole Dog Journal on The Best Rawhide Chews for Your Dog.

Rita is not a destructo-chewer (thank heaven!), but I love to give her something to munch on in the afternoons when she's bored and wants me to stop staring at the box on my desk. Since I normally write in the afternoons, I need to keep her entertained. But I've never been really sure about what's best to give her.

We've tried a few things, starting with bully sticks. You might remember I posted these pics of her enjoying her bully sticks before.
"Give it to me!"

November 7, 2012

Wordless Wednesday: The Power of Jerky

As you know, we've been in the midst of a backyard renovation project. It had hit a snag (caused by the city, which tried to give me a heart attack from the stress of dealing with them to get our permit, a process that only took about 10 days longer than it should have...), but we are back on track now. This is good news for me and the hubs, but terrible news for Rita, since she HATES the strange men in the yard.

Here she is in typical Cujo-mode when she sees the men out there working (been keeping the blinds down, but as you can see that doesn't really help...):
Yes, her feet are fully off the floor.


November 5, 2012

Monday Mischief: Playing Dentist

Usually on the weekends, we like to take Rita to Fiesta Island and we go for a long walk with her while she plays with the other dogs and romps in and out of the bay. But, since Mike's double knee surgery, it's too crazy down there for him. (I've seen lots of people - and I've been one of the people - bowled over by charging dogs not watching where they're running.) So, to protect his knees, we've been going to the much calmer Kate Sessions Park, which has a lovely view of the bay.

Technically it's not an off-leash park, but it's got a huge lawn, so there are usually some dogs playing off leash in one corner. Every time we've been there, Rita has found a buddy to play with, like this cute Golden mix pup. She invited him to play "dentist":
"I'm opening as wide as I can. How do they look?"

November 1, 2012

Frosty Paw Winners!

Just a quick post to announce the winners of the Frosty Paws giveaway!

The lucky folks/pups who have Frosty Paw coupons and the stuffed Frosty dog coming there way are:
"Hello, winners! We're headed your way! Please don't eat us."
  1. cstironkat
  2. Roxy the traveling dog
  3. Danielle M.
  4. JO
  5. Britt T.
  6. Sara M.
  7. Micki
  8. Peggy F.
  9. Kathleen N.
  10. Ashley T.

I'll send emails out to get your mailing addresses.

Congrats!
"It tastes like heaven in a cup!"
Rita says it's never too cold to eat a Frosty Paw... but, then, Rita lives in Southern California. No worries if you happen to live somewhere that does get too cold - the coupons are good until the end of next year, Dec. 2013! Thanks again to the folks at Frosty Paws!

A Special Beach Day

Last Wednesday a handful of current/former Tripawd owners met up at Fiesta Island. In attendance, we had Linda & Bernie Bin Laden (siblings to Angel Max), Queen Nova's mom was there (unfortunately, being a Great Dane and all, it was not possible for Nova herself to fit in a carry-on and come along with Mom on her trip out from Michigan), Wookie (the lone Tripawd in attendance), and of course Rita (sister to Angel Abby).

It was a beautiful day - sunny and hot and the water was about as calm as I've ever seen it in the bay.
Linda, Rita & Bernie immediately head for the water.
Rita & Big Bear