Tag Archives: dog

Bear, before spurs:-)

We had our first ‘living in the wild’ experience today. Our dog Bear got into some sand spurs. Actually, it was more then some, it was A LOT! It was the first storm since we moved in last Friday and the kids and I were outside with the pups while it was still drizzling. I had my camera in hand, they were running around the property on their new walkie talkies (they arrived earlier today in the mail). I was taking tons of pictures of our friends the banana and orchard spiders and of course our kitties, who were wandering the yard for the first time. Suddenly the dogs were gone, we couldn’t locate them for about 15 minutes, it had started to storm and thunder again. Then out of the wild, the fern and weed covered wild area between the house and front gate, Lilith comes running, then Bear shortly behind her. Only Bear was COVERED with sand spurs. There must have been 100+ easy. She’s a chow mix, longer hair (luckily she had been groomed not too long ago, so it was shorter than normal). Anyway, with the help of scissors, tweezers and a metal prong pet brush, oh and about 30 minutes, I managed to get them all off. UGH! Then we took a shower together:-).

Day done, Peace!

D.A.R.E. stands for Dachshund Adoption Rescue and Education. They are a non-profit group dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation and finding homes for dachshunds in need. I recently photographed a family of three Dachshunds that belong to a volunteer and foster mommy of D.A.R.E. I quickly fell in love with Mimi, Charming and Oscar.

The Three Musketeers, Mimi, Charming and Oscar!

Here’s what Cheryl had to say about her Three Musketeers!

“Oscar is 14. I have had him since he was 8 weeks old. He was meant to be my daughters… but as soon as we set eyes on each other it was love. He has been my best friend ever since. He is always there with unconditional love…come what may. Mimi is 2. She has been with me for a little over a year. The first time I saw Mimi she was being walked by her previous owner. I, of course, went over to make a fuss over her… her owner jokingly asked me if I wanted her… I said yes… and 5 minutes later I walked away with my princess. She is so full of love… and always trying to mother everyone in the house. I call her the Good Will Ambassador because she is always the one to welcome a new foster into the house. She is so amazing. Charming I have had for a little less than a year. He is 3 and I adopted him from DAREtorescue to be a playmate for Mimi who was harassing Oscar (who was not even slightly interested in playing with a pup). I carefully looked through the pictures and bios of available dogs until I finally found the most perfect one….and he is perfect. He is the most loving little man. He fit right into our little family. He has been a playmate for Mimi and someone to snuggle up with Oscar when Mimi has wore him out. He has made me realize that there is always a chance to have a second chance… and that even when you are down… you are not out. Charming was also considered unadoptable by the shelter he was dumped at and D.A.R.E. saved his life and I will forever be thankful that they did. My Charming made me realize that there are so many just like him out there…looking for a little help to find their forever homes….so…I became an extremely proud foster mom. The end. Lol.”

“Right now I have 2 fosters. Frankie who was confiscated from an abusive home and was considered unadoptable… Harley who was dropped off at the vet for a check up and when it came time to pay the bill they decided it was too expensive to care for a dog so the vet was told to put him to sleep. Yesterday my ‘Monday’ was adopted by a family who didn’t care that she was blind and a little overweight still…. they loved her anyway. So now I have an opening… and have already been contacted to see if I was ready for a new foster. It never ends… makes me so sad.”  – Cheryl.

If you’re interested in adopting or fostering a Dachshund please contact D.A.R.E. at info@daretorescue.com.

Finding yourself in a book rut? Don’t know what to read? If you have a love for cats or dogs I have several choices for you.

How to Wash a Cat:

I walked in to Haslam’s one day and there is an end cap holding all these little Mystery books on it.  Being the Cat Lady I am, I was immediately attracted to this book.  I mean, there is a cat on the cover.  This is the first book by author Rebecca Hale and I almost got her name confused with Cat photographer, Rachel Hale (Love, Love her work and aspire to be her, lol).

What a great summer read.  It’s a little paperback so it’s easy to hold and I really flew through it, so fun to read, it sucked me in.  I loved all the funny and accurate anecdotes about the two kitties, Rupert and Isabella, that star in the book, but it’s also a great Mystery taking place in San Francisco with underground tunnels and the history of the Gold Rush.  I’m currently reading her 2nd book named, Nine Lives Last Forever and I can’t put it down.

Dewey:

Spring Break 2009 we took the family to Key West, one of our favorite vacation destinations. I needed a book so off to Voltaire Books we went. They have a staff recommendation wall which grabbed my attention and it didn’t take me long to choose Dewey and Little Bee. This book was therapy for me. One week before leaving we had to have our four-year old Orange Boy Putter put down and I was an emotional mess. I’ve had dozens of kitties come in and out my life and I’ve never experienced a bond like the one I had with Putter. I cried from cover to cover with so many parallels between Dewey and Putter. This is an incredible story of how one kitty can make such an impact on so many lives. It’s a must read for kitty lovers and others as well.

The Art of Racing in the Rain:

Well, it does have a dog on the cover so…. Needless to say by now, I’m a sucker for dogs and cats so this book was a given and the entire story is told by the dog’s point of view, Hello!! A warning, this is a sad book, but it’s also a really nice story. You will laugh, cry, get angry at times and most of all smile.

Please Buy Local!

Get to know your locally owned independent book stores. Go to IndieBound to shop your local bookstore on-line or click on any of the book links above. Thank you!