Follow-up Friday: Rosie's Spay, Dog Treats, Giveaways

I'm glad to be joining Heart Like a Dog in the Follow-up Friday blog hop again this week.  This is the blog hop that lets you wrap up your week and leads you right into the weekend.  Hosted by FUF creator, Jodi at Heart Like a Dog and co-hosted this week by Misty at Misty Shores Chesapeakes. 



This week has flown by.  I'm weather obsessed (always) and, perhaps, never more so than this spring.  Our weather has been seriously crazy for this area of the country.  Pity the folks who already had their tomato plants set out in their gardens when it sleeted and snowed for 2 days straight.  In May!   While I shook my head and grumbled about the damage to blooming flora, the dogs just were wishing the white stuff would accumulate enough to make snow angels.

Rosie had a trip to the vet to remove her stitches from her spay surgery.  She did terrific throughout the experience.  No cone for her.  It was her nursemaid, Jeffie, we had to watch in terms of licking.

I've been thinking lately that I should be buying lottery tickets because I've been so lucky!  First we won a box of The Honest Kitchen Smooches dog treats from Roxy and Torrey at Roxy the Traveling Dog.

We heard from Kate at SlimDoggy that we were one of the FitDog Friday giveaway winners of a coveted SlimDoggy scoop!  I should note, that given how Rosie loves to eat, I suspect that soon we'll need to be joining the FitDog Friday blog hop!

And we won 2 adorable Cesar Millan dog toys from Bren Lee and Titan at Pibbles and Me!

Image stolen from Pibbles & Me

Jeffie, Rudy and Rosie entered that giveaway thinking that if they were  lucky enough to win, they'd share with the homeless dogs at their favorite shelter.  Bren and Titan have graciously sent our prizes to Stray Rescue for us.


Good Dog Take Outs - New Flavors Review and Giveaway
We've heard from several of the winners of our Good Dog Take Outs giveaway and these yummy, all natural dog treats got paws up! 

Yesterday Sharon sent these cute photos of Schooner and Skipper.  She says they loved their Carob Cherry and Chili cheese Crinkle treats.  In fact, Sharon writes:  Schooner is still barking, wanting more as I am writing this email.

All About Jeffie Quiz
Ann at Pawsitively Pets was the winner of a pair of my hand crafted dog lover earrings in the random drawing for this contest.  She'd already emailed me to let me know she received them and really likes them.  Then yesterday she made my day with this glowing For Love of a Dog review with some wonderful photos! Wow!  Thank you, Ann. And I think you rock those earrings!


This weekend, among other things, I'll be writing a review of a new dog book, It's Just A Dog by Russ Ryan, finishing a custom jewelry order for another book author, Jaimi Wolotsky - this one a book about rescue dogs.  And, hopefully, the sun will come out and there will be some Jolly ball.  Lots of Jolly ball!

Mischief Monday: Ducks, Geese and Dogs

 

If you asked the dogs, they'd say that there's plenty of mischief going on at our pond.  A flock of ducks flew in and have been having a high time swimming, splashing, and generally just doing what ducks do.  There are sometimes as many as 12, but usually 6-8 that spend their days here.  Nights, too, sometimes. 

 

They've been joined by a pair of local wild geese.  This pair frequently visits us and we were surprised that they didn't mind the newcomers.

In fact, at first glance we first wondered if the geese had brought early goslings along with them.

 

Nope, those are the ducks peacefully swimming with the geese.

Rosie didn't know what to make of the whole situation and the strange gathering of critters.  She sought the safety of the deck, where she could just watch.

Rudy, onn the other hand, likes to get upfront and personal.  It drives him crazy that these fowl are soooo close and he couldn't get to them.  AND he was told not to bark.

  
"The ducks and geese are our friends, Rudy.  We like the them!"

Rudy never barked at them, but as you can see from his "full alert" stance, he sure wanted to.  Pretty sure he'd like nothing better than to chase them.

And what was the birthday boy, Jeffie, doing?  Just doop-dee-dooping around the yard.  Guess he thought they were just more birthday party guests!

We've received so many fabulous photos for Jeffie's Birthday Party Pet Photo Contest, that I'm going to share some today, plus announce the lucky winners in the Good Dog Take Outs dog treat giveaway!

Bren L, Kate V, Dogmama, Shelbie J, Jackie B, and Sharon G! 

   

You've won your choice of two flavors of Good Dog Take Outs pet treats!  I've already sent you an email asking for your selections and shipping address.  Note:  I need to hear from the winners within 48 hours or alternates will be chosen.

Jeffie, Rudy and Rosie love Good Dog Take Outs dog treats and hope you do, too!

More dogs have arrived at Jeffie's Birthday Party!  Plus, you should take a look at some of the outtakes of Rita's birthday greetings for Jeffie.

Delilah (above) and Sampson (below) from Heart Like a Dog arrived 

with these pawesome birthday greetings for Jeffie!

Granite has his party hat on and already has a little frosting on his nose!

Follow-up Friday: Cherry Blossoms and Party Dog Photos

I'm glad to be joining Heart Like a Dog in the Follow-up Friday blog hop again this week.  The is the blog hop that lets you wrap up your week and leads you right into the weekend.  Hosted by FUF creator, Jodi, at Heart Like a Dog .

I think spring has finally arrived in the Ozarks.  So much blooming goodness with the fruit trees, quince, forsythia, and flowers, too.  I can't resist sharing a photo of one of my cherry trees in full blossom.

The west side of our backyard is lined with redbud and dogwood trees.  They've got fat buds and I can hardly wait!

Tripawd Dog Mandela Deserves a Forever Home
Imagine the horror of your foot rotting off because you have a compound fracture in your leg.  Plus, you're starving and homeless.  Stray Rescue of St Louis saved Mandela's life, but he still needs a loving forever home.  Thanks to those of you who shared this post.

Mischief Monday: Party Photos and KONG Winners
Congratulations again to our winners!  Jeffie, Rudy and Rosie wished they could enter because they LOVE these new all natural KONG Jerky dog treats!

Can you believe the pawesome party photos?!  Wow, is this ever fun!  You can catch up on the party now on our Jeffie's Birthday Party page (see below for link.) 

Good Dog Take Outs Treats New Flavors: Enter Now!
You've still got time to enter the giveaway for your choice of two flavors of Good Dog Take Outs dog treats.  These are good!  And, yes, they have cat treats, too!

Wordless Wednesday: Dogs in Party Hats

I need to buy some more hats for my dogs.  I love dogs in hats!  I used to dream of finding a little black derby for Tucker, but never did, dog-gone it.

Yes, all three dogs wore their party hats for both taste testing sessions (KONG Jerky treats and Good Dog Take Outs.)  Seriously, the whole time.  We did have to do a bit of hat adjusting when the party became a little, well, not rowdy, but...   there was a lot of jockying for good position, if your know what I mean.

The interesting thing is that Rudy actually seems to enjoy getting "dressed up."   All three dogs forgot all about the hats when the treats were at stake!  Most of the time, Rosie's hat was hanging from around her neck, but she looks pretty cute with it on, too.

Jeffie's First Construction Project
The Dog Daddy took a walk down memory lane with this little story about Jeffie's puppy days.  Too bad I don't have any photos of Jeffie helping the Dog Daddy water.  Jeffie always carried the hose!

Jeffie's Birthday Party Pet Photo Contest
Join in the fun!  Here are some more fantastic party dogs!  

Fetch the Jeffie's Birthday Party page for more.  Enter your pet(s) photo(s) for a chance to win an Amazon.com gift card.  Get the details here.  Party hats are not required and Photoshopped photos are fine.  There's plenty of time - contest deadline is April 27.

Jeffie was thrilled with Gizmo's birthday greeting!

Rosie is hoping for some double zoomies!

 Isn't Misaki gorgeous in this beautiful birthday card?!

 Looks like Rita is having a really good time at the party!

 Toby brought along some other party animals (who shall be nameless)

 Jack & Maggie, the dogs from SlimDoggy just arrived and they brought cake!  Hurry and eat some before Jack eats the whole thing!

Emma, the GBGV, asks:  Did you order a present?

As you can see, its been a busy week at Talking Dogs!  We have more party fun planned, including a giveaway of a piece of For Love of a Dog jewelry!

Now, why don't you join the Follow-up Friday blog hop and tell us what you've been up to!

Wordless Wednesday: Dogs in Party Hats

Rudy

Jeffie

Rosie

 I love dogs in party hats!  Even when, like Rosie, 

they can't keep them on properly.

Join in the birthday fun with Jeffie's Birthday Party Pet Photo Contest

 and don't miss the 

Good Dog Take Outs dog and cat treats giveaway this week!

Good Dog Take Out Treats New Flavors: Enter Now!

 

When Good Dog Take Outs heard that we were celebrating Jeffie's birthday this month, they very generously offered to join in the fun!

Good Dog Take Outs has added new flavors!  

We got to taste test some of them and 

6 lucky party dogs get to try some, too!

We reviewed Good Dog Take Outs a couple of months ago and they were a big hit with all three of our dogs.  Their dog and cat treats are made in the US, in fact they're made in the heart of central Michigan in a licensed kitchen!  They oven bake fresh pet treats from human grade ingredients that contain no added fillers or preservatives.

Their new flavors include:

• Carob Cherry - Carob and Michigan Grand Traverse area red tart cherry juice.  They're the closest you can come to a chocolate covered cherry for your dog safely. 
• Nacho Mamma Chips - nacho cheese flavors and special handmade seasoning.
• Iced Cinnamon Rolls - heart healthy cinnamon and raw honey. Cinnamon improves circulation and has anti-inflammatory properties for your dog's joints;  raw honey helps boost the immune system.
• Chilli Dogs - spicy puppy shaped dog treats with no additives.
• Wheat/Gluten Free Chilli Cheese Crinkles - cheese, spices and no wheat/gluten.  Like cheese straws for dogs.

We ordered the Carob Cherry, Nacho Mamma Chips, Wheat/Gluten Free Chilli Cheese Crinkles to taste and Good Dog Take Outs sent Jeffie a package of Original Flavor as a special birthday gift!

Not only are these dog treats all natural and healthy, they look and smell good, too.  The Carob Cherry are adorable with their heart shapes.  Nacho Mamma Chips look just like you think they should!  The Original Flavor are cute dog bones with icing squiggles.  The Wheat/Gluten Free Chilli Cheese Crinkles look like cheese straws.  The Dog Daddy even tried them:  Yum!

Jeffie, Rudy and Rosie didn't really care how the treats looked.  One whiff and they were ready to party with Good Dog Take Outs!

Though it was nerve wracking waiting for a taste test, Jeffie, Rudy and Rosie had beautiful party manners!

I wish I could tell you which new flavor was their favorite.  However, they loved all of them!

We like to make our own dog treats, but sometimes there simply isn't time.  Good Dog Take Outs are just like homemade - without the time and messy kitchen!  Plus they come in such cute take-out containers.  Perfect for gift giving to a special doggie friend.

We're pleased to give Good Dog Take Outs pet treats our highest recommendation!

   Six lucky winners are going to find out

just how good these treats are...

because we're doing another giveaway!

Six (6) winners will win two (2) 4 ounce packages of Good Dog Take Outs in their choice of dog or cat treat flavors!

All you have to do is use the Rafflecopter form below to enter.  Sorry, winners must have a United States shipping address.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure:  We received no financial compensation for this review.  We purchased 3 varieties of these dog treats. Good Dog Take Outs gave me one package as a gift.  We only publish our own opinions at Talking Dogs and share information about products we like and support. 

Follow-up Friday: Treats, Winners, Coyotes

I'm pleased to be joining Heart Like A Dog for the Follow-up Friday blog hop this week.

I love Jodi's idea and am pleased that I've finally gotten it together to join in! 

It's the blog hop that lets you wrap up your week and leads you right into the weekend.  Hosted by Jodi at Heart Like A Dog, and co-hosted this week by Donna and the Dogs.

Today I have some follow-ups to more than just the past week of blog posts.

Good Dog Take Outs Treat Giveaway
We've heard from a couple of our winners who are enjoying their Good Dog Take Outs dog treats.  Tiffany reports that her dogs have sampled the Peanut Butter dog treats from Good Dog Take Outs.  Bella and Jenny love them!  Tiffany sent photos to prove it.

Kelly was hoping that her Peanut Butter and Egg and Cheesy dog treats would arrive in time for Artie's Gotcha Day Celebration and they did!  Here's Artie:

Be sure to visit Talking Dogs in April because we'll be celebrating Jeffie's birthday with giveaways!  In fact, Good Dog Take Outs new dog treat flavors will be among the prizes!


Dog Mom Jewelry Bracelet Give Away
Our celebration of my mom's birthday was a lot of fun!  Especially for the winner, Caren Gittleman, author of Cat Chat with Caren and Cody and Dakota's Den blogs!   My mom never met a celebration or giveaway she didn't love, and I know she's smiling that a dog and cat lover won that bracelet! Bark at me in the comments if you'd like me to have another For Love of a Dog jewelry giveaway and tell me what you'd most like to win!

Fostering Dogs: Kristi and Glenn Austin Q and A
Kristi reports that Jingle has settled into her new foster home in Washington, D. C. and is looking for that perfect home where she can spend the rest of her senior years.  Contact City Dogs Rescue for more information on "one of the sweetest hounds you'll ever meet."

Jingle is now waiting for adoption.

A Different Sort of Canine Wordless Wednesday
This probably merits a whole new blog post, but since I won't get around to that until next week, I'll give you an update.

Since I took those snowy coyote photos and wrote that post (okay, confession time:  I schedule posts ahead of time) we've had several more close encounters of the coyote kind.  However, these encounters were way too close for comfort and were with a lone coyote with a bit different coloring than the pair we've been watching.

This coyote shows absolutely zero fear or caution.  He just sits there, a few feet away.  Watching.

I think he's pegged Jeffie as all bark and no bite;  Rudy as a loud, inexperienced goof;  and Rosie as a delectable delight.   All true.

And me?  You know how all the literature tells you to make yourself as big as possible?  To yell and wave your arms? I was on the top of the back porch, yelling like a banshee, and definitely waving my arms.   No reaction.

Got the dogs in.  I came in.  The coyote, looking very obviously bored and feeling like the show was over, slowly meandered off to the north.

There's something very wrong here that this wild creature has absolutely no fear of any of us in any of these encounters.  I have a feeling we're approaching a "High Noon" moment.  Stay tuned...

Missouri: A Dangerous Place for Animals
Here's the deal:  I try not to think about the fact that I live in Missouri.  I've blogged about the shame I feel living in the Puppy Mill Capital.  Animal welfare is not the only issue that makes me feel that way about Missouri.

However, I do live here and so do millions of other animal lovers who have worked very hard to improve conditions and protect animals from cruelty.  If we all left, stopped spending our money here, never promoted the state... then where would animals in Missouri be?  Definitely in worse shape.

Is Missouri our home state?  No.  We moved here to provide hospice care for my mother and to fulfill her wish to die at home.   Will we be moving?  Probably.

My husband is fond of saying:  Bloom where you're planted.  He's also big on: Everybody's gotta be somewhere.  Right now we do live in Missouri and we do what we can for animals.
[rant over]

So...  that's how my week has shaped up so far!  

Join the Follow-up Friday blog hop and tell us all about your week!