Follow-up Friday: Bunny Ears, the Big Head, Senior Dogs and more

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 mastermind, Jodi, at Heart Like A Dog and co-hosted this week by Lisa at Dogs N Pawz.


Before I begin my follow-up, I just want to mention a few things. 

Love dogs wearing rabbit ears?  Be sure to come back on Sunday to see Jeffie, Rudy and Rosie in their bunny ears in honor of Easter.

Be sure to visit Talking Dogs during the month of April, because we're going to be celebrating Jeffie's 7th birthday ALL MONTH LONG.  There will be a different giveaway each week - hint: don't miss us on Tuesdays!

I have to thank Kathy Hensel Porter for the very lovely article she published this week on her Healing Rescue Pets blog about my life and For Love of a Dog jewelry business.  Kathy's doing a series of interviews with women who followed their dreams and created pet related businesses.  My interview is long, thorough, and Kathy did a wonderful job telling my For Love of a Dog story.

Finally, I have to shout WOOF at Caren Gittleman.  Here I am, just reading my Google Reader and I stumble on a totally unsolicited fabulous review of For Love of a Dog and my jewelry work.  I was gobsmacked and absolutely thrilled.  She better watch out or I'll get "the Big Head!"   Be sure to visit Dakota's Den on April 1 to enter a very special giveaway she's hosting.  I promise - this is no April Fools Day joke!

And, finally, a bit of follow-up:

Dancing in the Snow: Our First Real Video
I just want to thank everyone for their comments!  Obviously, Rosie has stolen our hearts, too, and we love watching her play with Rudy, with or without snow!  Hopefully, my skill at the "video thing" will improve as I remember where the zoom is and steady my hands.  LOL  I need to hurry up with that because Rosie is growing up fast.

Busted:  Dog Fighting Ring in KS MO TX
Last I heard, 100 dogs were seized and most were Pit Bulls.  (Frankly, I can't say much more about this story in polite company, if you know what I mean.)

March Madness: Wordless Wednesday Not
Over the years, Jeffie has learned that yelling at the television is okay and not directed at him.  He consistently is THE BEST comforter when your team is having a bad day, too!  Happily, both of my teams are in the Sweet Sixteen:  KU Jayhawks and Duke Blue Devils.  Rosie can have her cookies, I'll take my boys in blue.  (The dog daddy was for the Tar Heels.)  

Adoptable Senior Dog: Surrendered because He is Old
NEW INFORMATION!

Mac, senior Lab mix, adoptable dog. Photo: Kim Hansen

Freddie, senior Lab, adoptable dog. Photo: Petfinder

Mac, 12 year old Lab mix, and his companion, Freddie, a female black Lab, were discovered by a realtor.  They'd been left behind in an empty house that had been foreclosed.  Please, people, share these pups!

Redbone Coonhound Jingle Will Steal Your Heart

 Meet Jingle, a beautiful Redbone Coonhound dog.

No, you're not going crazy.  No, it's not the first stages of Alzheimer's, nor is it deja vu.  You've seen Jingle before.

In fact, you've seen Jingle twice on this blog.  The first time was in our Q and A interview with Kristi and Glenn Austin about fostering dogs.  The second was in our Follow-up Friday blog post where we gave you an update on Jingle.

Jingle will steal your heart.  She stole mine.

Jingle was found as a stray with her two 8 month old puppies by animal control in Christiansburg, VA.  No one stepped up to claim this little family.  The puppies were adopted, but Jingle remained homeless.

Pulled from the Montgomery County Friends of Animal Care and Control by City Dogs Rescue, thanks to the persuasive efforts of Kristi Austin who volunteered to provide foster care while Jingle was vetted, had surgery and was spayed. Jingle was saved.

Jingle waiting to into the clinic for her vetting.

Jingle is described as "one of the sweetest hounds to come through the shelter (and we see a LOT of hounds!)"

While in foster care with the Austins, Jingle got used to hardwood floors and enjoyed cuddling.

Jingle is 8 years old, a female Redbone Coonhound, and weighs 57 pounds.  She is house broken and crate trained.  Though she is excellent with other dogs, she not fond of cats.  Jingle adores people and does great in the car.

Jingle's tummy is full and the treats keep coming!

Jingle does well on leash and loves to go for walks.  She's playful, submissive, friendly, and shy.  Jingle is a low maintenance dog.
   

Jingle - on her way to the big city and City Dogs Rescue.

 While in foster care with the Austin's, Jingle learned about hardwood floors and became a foster that was very hard to give up.  Kristi says Jingle is the "sweetest girl.  I look over at her and she starts wagging her tail."

Country girl Jingle gets her first look at the big city, Washington, D.C.

Jingle is now living in a foster home in Washington, D. C.   She is available for adoption from City Dogs Rescue.  View her adoption page here - available dogs are listed in alphabetical order; just scroll down to Jingle.  Click on her and you'll see many more photos.


City Dogs Rescue was formed for one reason: to rescue adoptable dogs in overcrowded and high-kill shelters where resources are severely limited.  They offer a lifeline to as many of these pups as possible.  City Dogs Rescue is a network of volunteers who foster dogs with volunteer families and donated boarding facilities.  By finding dogs permanent and loving homes in the DC metropolitan area, they enrich the lives of both canine and human.

We always feature an adoptable dog on Sunday at Talking Dogs.  They're all special and they all deserve a loving forever home.  However, today's dog is more special to me.

You see, this dog has captured my heart.  It's one of those inexplicable things that just happens.  Like it or not, I feel a connection with this particular dog.   If our lives were in a different place, there's no doubt in my mind that she'd be joining our family.  Please help me network and share to find Jingle that perfect forever home.

Old Dogs Are the Best Dogs Book Review

Old Dogs:  Are the Best Dogs is, hands down, my favorite dog book.   This is less a book review as it is an opportunity for me to encourage you to consider this one of the best gifts you can give this holiday season.

A collection of short profile vignettes written by Gene Weingarten and photographs by Michael S. Williamson, this book is a tribute to senior dogs. 

The publishers state that anyone who has ever loved an old dog will love Old Dogs.  I beg to differ.  Anyone who has ever love any dog will love this book.

All of the dogs in this book were at least 10 years old when their portraits were made.  Published in 2008, many are now waiting for their human companions at the rainbow bridge.  Weingarten notes:

"If you ask us which of them [the dogs] are still alive, our answer is:  They all are.  May old dogs live forever."

Old Dogs begins with by far the longest essay.   Remembering Harry is a story about Harry, a yellow Labrador Retriever, the product of a Kansas puppy mill.  In telling Harry's story, the author shares observations about living with our best friends and life itself.  

" Old dogs can be cloudy-eyed and grouchy, gray of muzzle, graceless of gait, odd of habit, hard of hearing, pimply, wheezy, lazy and lumpy.  but to anyone who has ever known an old dog, these things are of little consequence.  Old dogs are vulnerable.  They show exorbitant gratitude and limitless trust.  They are without artifice.  They are funny in new and unexpected ways.  But above all, they seem at peace.  This last quality is almost indefinable.  If you want to play it safe, you can call it serenity.  I call it wisdom.."

Without a doubt, I promise you will find dogs in this book who will bring your own old friends to mind.  I suspect you'll fall in love with every dog in this book.  These beautiful black and white portrait photographs of the dogs will melt your heart.  Many of Weingarten's profiles will require tissues.

If you don't have a copy of this book, get one.  If you're a dog lover like me, you'll find yourself picking it up more often than you can imagine.  It is a meditation on the meaning of life with dogs and on love.

As a dog lover, in Weingarten you'll a kindred spirit.  This is a man who has instructed his family that he wishes to be buried in Washington's Congressional Cemetery, because it allows dogs to run free.  He wants his tombstone to read only:  

"Gene Weingarten, a funny man who loved dogs."  

and to be carved in the shape of a fire hydrant.



Old Dogs: Are the Best Dogs, published 2008 by Simon & Schuster, 160 pages.  Available at major book sellers.


Gene Weingarten is a nationally syndicated humor columnist and a Pulitzer Prize-winning staff writer for The Washington Post.  He has written two books:  The Hypochondriac's Guide to Life And Death and I'm with Stupid (with Gina Barreca).  

Michael S. Williamson is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and works as both a photographer and photo editor at The Washington Post.

Dog Song Saturday: Old Dogs

It's Saturday.  Time for a Dog Song at Talking Dogs.  

We're celebrating national Adopt a Senior Dog month!   

Today's dog music video was put together by Lily's Legacy Senior Dog Sanctuary and features the sweet country ballad Old Dogs, composed by Bill Staines.

The lyrics to the final verse of Old Dogs:

"Old dogs come and old dogs go, old dogs always seem to know,
That love is life's most precious flow and love is worth the waiting.
And when their time on earth is through, old dogs are forever true,
And �round the bend they wait for you come some tomorrow morning.

And when their time on earth is through, old dogs are forever true,
And �round the bend they wait for you come some tomorrow morning."

Grab a dog.  Sit.  Stay.  Relax and enjoy beautiful senior dogs and Old Dogs.

Fetch more dog song music videos at Talking Dogs and be sure to scroll down below today's video to explore some barking good dog blogs because today is the Pet Blogger Hop.

The Joys of an Older Dog | Guest Post

Our senior dog Tucker aka Sugar Lips

We're celebrating national Adopt a Senior Dog month at Talking Dogs.  Today we have a guest post from the dog daddy at our house, my husband, Gary.  

The Joys of an older Dog.

Like us, most people who decide to get a dog, or another dog, get a puppy.

Puppies are incredibly cute, soft and cuddly and look to us for direction in life. 

Until recently I had never questioned our decision to adopt puppies. Because of my wife�s avocation as blogger of all things dog, I have begun to think outside of the �Puppy� box.

One thing I have realized is just how many dogs are available for adoption that have had a previous loving life in a family. They are house broken, neutered, socialized and most of all longing for the love and inclusion they once knew.

 I am talking about older dogs. 

Just because an older dog is in a shelter or foster care does not mean something is wrong with them. Their previous people may have died, fallen on hard times or were forced to move somewhere they could not keep the dog. 

This realization has led me to think about our previous pets. The recent loss of our beloved senior dogs, Tucker and Lucy, first comes to mind because I still miss them greatly. Yes they were puppies when they came to live with us, but being a puppy only lasts a short while. 

You get to watch a puppy as they grow into an adult and then grow old. All the while you get to know them better and they get to know you better. They learn their place in their world and become great role models of puppies and people. 

A bond grows and they truly become part of your life and you become a major part of their life. 

If you watch closely you can learn a lot from your dog, and not just little things.  Things we all need to learn in life:  acceptance, trust and unconditional love. 

Yes, my dogs have been a positive and loving experience in my life and have taught me a lot about living. Not much of this learning happens in puppyhood while you are busy house training teaching them the ropes and replacing things they destroy. 

This learning happens as you share your life together. Yes, the end is hard but if you are lucky you get to hold them as you bid them farewell, knowing they had a good life and you were a major part of that. 

Now we have Jeffie, six years old, who is just beginning to show some age.  That realization causes me to want to spend more time with him and share the bond we have. There is Rudy, who is two years old, and I find myself longing for the day when he mellows and learns some of the lessons we are all trying to teach him. 

Puppies are great but the greatest joy is sharing a long and loving life with them.

The shelters are full of older dogs that have already learned those puppy lessons and wanting to share some love. 

Think about it.   I am.

Adopt a Less Adoptable Pet Week: Senior Dogs

There's still time to celebrate Adopt a Less Adoptable Pet Week September 17 - 23 sponsored by Petfinder.

Petfinder surveyed member shelters and rescue groups and found that some pets wait for a home nearly four times longer than the average adoptable pet does.  Survey participants said the ones do they have the hardest time finding homes for:  senior and older pets.

East Tennessee Bloodhound Dog Rescue Event

East Tennessee Bloodhound Rescue is located deep in the backwoods of Powell, Tennessee.  Founded five years ago to rescue Bloodhounds, they now rescue senior dogs of any breed, especially those who have been severely abused.  These dogs are able to live the rest of their lives at the sanctuary.

Dogs available for adoption from East Tennessee Bloodhound Rescue can be found on Petfinder.  When they're ready for their new homes, all will be up to date on all shots and spayed or neutered.

Always in need of funds, especially for vet bills, this rescue also needs volunteers to help at adoption events, fostering and socializing the dogs.  

Right now East Tennessee Bloodhound Rescue is conducting an online auction on Facebook.  Bid to win a wide variety of prizes, including a Bloodhound dog breed necklace donated by For Love of a Dog Jewelry and Gifts.  The auction runs through June 30th and you can instructions for bidding on the East Tennessee Bloodhound Rescue Facebook page.

Here's a photo of the Bloodhound necklace donated by For Love of a Dog:

Handmade porcelain Bloodhound dog head sculpture pendant on a silver snake chain necklace.

Support Bloodhound and senior dog adoption - check out the Eastern Tennessee Bloodhound Rescue auction event now at https://www.facebook.com/East-Tennessee-Bloodhound-Rescue

Long Term Shelter Dogs: How Long is Too Long?

Yesterday I received my e-newsletter from Dogwood Animal Shelter.  Dogwood is the no kill animal shelter we adopted Jeffie from after finding him on Petfinder.  They are 100% privately financed through donations and their thrift shop, where we periodically take donations.  

Each Dogwood newsletter highlights cool things donated to the thrift shop and special sales, fund raising events for the animal shelter, and pets available for adoptions.  Which leads me to this blog post.

Like most animal shelters and rescue, Dogwood is coping with more animals than they have space for.  In February they ran an adoption special and have now extended it to include the entire month of March.  

All kennel dogs who have been in an "Adoptable" status for over 90 days will have half-off adoption fees.  Adoption fees include all shots, spaying or neutering, and a microchip.

Take a good long look at Hailey, the dog pictured here.  She's a beauty and those eyes tell me she's a sweetheart, full of fun.  Now, notice that white hair on her muzzle.  At our house we call that "sugar lips" and we insist the kisses are sweeter.

Hailey is celebrating her 8th birthday.  She has been at Dogwood Animal Shelter since she was two months old.  This is the longest a dog has ever been at Dogwood.

As their newsletter notes:  it is a bittersweet birthday.

If I had to spend my whole life in an animal shelter, Dogwood would be one I would wish for.  This is a relatively new physical facility with an virtual army of volunteers, including their Canine Coaches program that works on obedience and sees to it the dogs get exercise.  For all the cat people reading this blog, rest assured, Dogwood's cat rooms are fantastic!

However, Hailey reminded me of other dogs in other shelters that I've stumbled across in the last few years.  Dogs that have spent years and years in a shelter.  I'm a "no kill" girl myself... but how long is too long to spend in a shelter?

Is life in a shelter better than no life at all?  What do you think?

Take another long look at Hailey.  The Dogwood Canine Coaches have taught her well.  Hailey  minds well, is great on a leash and is reported to be extremely sweet and loving.  She loves to roll in the grass, though she doesn't get many opportunities to do that.  She's a bit particular about what dogs will be her friends.  She's spayed, house trained, and weighs 64 pounds.

Hailey is a black lab mix.  Well, black with a bit of white, including that ancestral St Johns Water Dog medallion marking on her chest.  

The good folks at Dogwood surmise that Hailey has been overlooked because she is a black dog.  The plight of big black dogs and Black Dog Syndrome has been written and talked about for years, especially the disproportionate number of black dogs that are euthanized in shelters across our country.

So, Hailey is lucky.  Right?  Any day now someone could come along and adopt her into a loving home.  It's happened.  We've all read a few stories about senior dogs finally finding their person.

However, how many dogs live out their years in a "no kill" animal shelter?

How long is too long to live in an animal shelter?.