Wednesday Sunset Date: Barnaby

Who says shelters don't have puppies? 

This is Barnaby.  He is a 5 month old blue pit bull mix. AND SO SQUISHY CUTE!!  K. and I took him out to the yard to check his behavior since he hasn't been released to the adoption floor yet (yes, that's how brand new he is).  He is super cute, super playful and I'm gathering super smart.  He caught on quickly that when we say sit and he sits he will get a treat.

Check out this video of him!

Barnaby will be available for adoption this Saturday at the SL County Pit Crew/SLCOaS adoption event at Petsmart on 3300 South 3100 East (11am-4:30pm). We will have lots of other adorable dogs with us for adoption!

Wednesday Sunset Date: Boss

I am pleased to introduce you to one of my favorite boys at 

Salt Lake County Animal Services... BOSS.  

Or as I like to call him, Bossy-Boo.

   Picture compliments of Salt Lake County Animal Services.

I vividly remember the first day I met Boss this summer. He "looked" at me through his kennel door and his eyes said "Be my friendly lady."  And so I took him out in to the yard.  I wondered why he ran in to my legs, in to the door, in to the kennel walls. Of course I inquired and found out that Boss was loosing his eyesight.  So I started researching how to work with dogs that are going blind.  Scents and sounds were going to become powerful tools in helping this guy. He can always sniff out the treats I bring him. And I bring him the GOOD stuff, the really smelly kind!

If Boss were to place a "Single's Ad" for Valentines Day his stats would read:

*7 yr old handsome male 

*Wants to be your only furbaby 

*Loves belly rubs, cuddles and most importantly KISSES

*Searching for that special someone to take me on long walks and splash in the water

*Needs a little extra TLC to help me learn this new world around me

Every week we are learning new things about Boss.  One of the shelter staff took him home last weekend and learned that he is great with chickens and her young daughter, that he is housetrained and does well in a crate!  For now, Boss needs to be the only dog due to his failing eyesight.  Other dogs and cats have a tendency to sneak up on him and spook him.  He did well around small children, as long as they are respectful of his space.  Otherwise, little grabbing hands might also spook him.  

Picture compliments of Best Friends Animal Society, January 2012

He has been in the shelter WAY too long (July 2012!).  I have been working on "Stop" with him at the shelter to prevent him from running in to walls, door when I am with him.  Blind dogs are just as awesome as seeing dogs! He needs someone who will love him for him and teach him how to keep being awesome in this new world without his sight.

Here is the video I took with him yesterday during our date.

And here he is on Channel 2 News Tuesday!  He really is our little movie star!

http://www.kutv.com/news/features/pets/stories/vid_40.shtml

And here he is on Channel 4 News this week!
http://www.abc4.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=3936770

If you are interested in Boss, please come visit him at Salt Lake County Animal Services (500 W 3900 S).  

And of course, if you end up falling in love with him I will simply say "Told you so."  

Wednesday Sunset Date : Casey

 Casey is my "Adora-Bull" Wednesday Sunset Date! This month at Salt Lake County Animal Services they are featuring some of their dogs with fun Valentines.  Following suite, here is my "Singles Ad" for Mr. Casey...

I am a frisky fellow looking for love.  Don't let my age (1 yr 9 months) fool you~ I have wisdom beyond my years. I love to play, but also am perfectly content to snuggle all night long in front of fire with my special someone.  I am constantly "winking" at you with my single black eyebrow~ think Groucho Marx and The Rock (Dwayne Johnson, can you smell what the ROCK is cookin')!  Come whisk me away as your Valentine today!

Casey is an absolute love bug!  The first photo is his professional glamour shot taken by one of our awesome volunteer photographers at the shelter. The others are mine that I took last night. He was always trying to sneak a kiss in, that sneaky little guy. 

He's also great at bathtime!  Me and M and S took him, along with a few others, to get bath's at Paw Paw's a few weeks ago and he took it like a champ! He has the most handsome brindle spots on his white coat. 

And just in case you need even MORE reason to go see Casey here's a little video I made last night (first one ever btw)...

If you are interested in making Casey your Valentine, stop by Salt Lake County Animal Services (500 West 3900 South)! Trust me, you won't regret it.

On My Bookshelf

A lot of people ask for good reads. Well, I started reading Dead and Alive, but then got interrupted by receiving Wallace for Christmas.  Some good reads if you ask me!

WALLACE by Jim Gorant

What the Blurb says: Saved from a suspicious breeder, Wallace was a dog with so much drive and intensity that he flustered the people and dogs around him to the point that the no-kill shelter where he ended up considered putting him down. But where some saw menace, Roo and Clara Yori saw misunderstanding. After a long fight they were allowed to take Wallace home. 

Determined to give Wallace the focus and support he needed, the Yoris stumbled into the world of canine disc competitions—an unlikely place for a big-headed, lumbering pit bull to make his mark. But through the sheer will of his unbending desire, Wallace exceeded all expectations, and along the way he helped salvage the couple who had saved him and became a symbol of hope and potential in a larger struggle.

What I Loved: I love reading true stories about dogs. Wallace happens to be Hector's fur-brother. Hector is a Vicktory Dog.  And I think we all know I'm obsessed with the Vicktory Dogs. I've been following Wallace on Facebook and wanted to know more about him. Of course I cried throughout almost the whole thing.  You see, Wallace currently has cancer. But he's beating the odds and living longer than his vet thought! And then I smile knowing how his whole life (after being adopted by the Yori's) is all about changing perceptions. And then I start to tear up again because I'm thinking about dogs who have stigma's attached to them just because of what they "are." And then I smile thinking about the ones I know personally who are changing local perceptions... This cycle just keeps on going. 

You'll Love it if... you like a true underdog story.

DEAD AND ALIVE by Dean Koontz

What the Blurb says: As a devastating hurricane approaches, as the benighted creations of Victor Helios begin to spin out of control, as New Orleans descends into chaos and the future of humanity hangs in the balance, the only hope rests with Victor’s first, failed attempt to build the perfect human. Deucalion’s centuries-old history began as the original manifestation of a soulless vision–and it is fated to end in the ultimate confrontation between a damned creature and his mad creator. But first they must face a monstrosity not even Victor’s malignant mind could have conceived–an indestructible entity that steps out of humankind’s collective nightmare with powers, and a purpose, beyond imagining.

What I Loved: I'm a monster book nerd. I can't help it. I like to read about zombies, vampires, monsters.  I especially love Dean Koontz books.  This is book three in the Frankenstein series. I bought the entire series at a garage sale for a total of $2. I paid $5 since all proceeds went to a dog rescue group. Sheesh, how did I start talking about dogs again? Monsters. We're talking about monsters and stuff. Keep on subject.

You'll Love if... you like monster books.  Book one was good. Book two started to get a little strange. Book three is beyond strange. I wonder what book four will bring.

National Pit Bull Day

Lola and I participated in National Pit Bull Day festivities hosted by Salt Lake County Animal Services Pit Crew.

 

Lola wore a bandana to show her Pittie Pride!

Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

This fall me and the girls (Becca & Brookie) made our first, and certainly not last, journey to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.  It was an amazing, life changing experience. 

 

Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is the largest no-kill sanctuary in the country and home to about 1700 animals.

 

 

We stayed on-site in one of eight cottages.  They are situated right outside the horse pastures.  I highly recommend staying here!  There are also a few cabins for 1-2 people.  The cottages can accomodate up to six people and have a kitchen so you can bring your own food.

 

Brookie and I volunteered our three shifts in Dogtown. Becca was in Horse Haven. Yes, I am rockin' a fanny pack AND my Pit Crew t-shirt, which one of the employees recognized and asked me about.

 

 

We started out in Old Town.  Old Town is for pups that are older or who have some medical issues.  Brookie even walked a feral dog.  She was instructed not to pet her or push her. I got to walk the November "cover dog" of Best Friends Magazine.

 

 

This is JuneBug. She did not want to go on a walk. With Brookie's charm she got her at least once around the trail.  And then she just stopped. Wouldn't move. Nope. We heard she got adopted this winter! Congrats JuneBug!

 

 

Little Eve stole my heart.  She has a neurological disorder that makes it so her back legs don't work properly. She just got her new set of wheels.  We were the lucky pair to take her on her morning walk.  Eve got to go on a sleepover at one of the cottages next to us.  Even with her special needs they said she was a gem.

 

That afternoon we volunteered at The Clubhouse.  Here we got to walk, walk, walk.  This is our special friend Nugget.

 

 

The next morning we visited one of the most famous dog pods at Dogtown.  This is where the 21 dogs from the Vick rescue started out when they first arrived at Best Friends. 

 

 

Two of the Vicktory dogs still reside here in this pod.  It was here I fulfilled a bucket list item ~ meet a Vicktory dog.  It didn't stop there though.  I got to walk one of the special Vicktory babies: Mya.  Sweet, sweet Mya is still very much afraid of people.  She army crawled practically the whole entire time and would barely make eye contact with me or Brooke.  One of the employees came with us and walked with Curly (another Vicktory dog) to encourage Mya to walk.  Curly is not allowed to be walked by volunteers yet.  It was bittersweet to have this experience with Mya.  You could see how terrified she was of us, yet when you looked in to her eyes as she was barking at you from inside her run her tail was wagging and you knew that she was happy. Happy and safe.

 

This is Gizmo.  The biggest (literally) cuddlebug I have ever met.  All he wanted to do was lay in my lap.

 

 

So many dogs, so little time!

 

 

The day we volunteered at Old Town, we got the opportunity to have a sleepover with one of the dogs we met.  Lori from Old Town was placed with us.  She is practically perfect with the exception of her awful farts.  She didn't make a peep the whole time.

 

 

We took her in to town for dinner and she was the perfect dinner guest: no begging, no jumping, laid right by our chairs. She slept on the couch all night.  We could tell she was housebroken.  She was such a great girl.

 

 

On the way out of the Sanctuary we visited Angels Rest.  It's the animal cemetary.  All of the animals that have passed away at the Sanctuary are buried here.  It was incredibly peaceful and very large.  Visitors can also bring little momento's of their own passed pets to leave here.

 

 

The Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is an amazing place.  It solidified my love for working with rescue animals and giving a voice to those who do not have one.  Every single employee that we encountered there had one thing in common: their unwavering commitment and love for the animals they work with.  I can't wait to go back.

Wednesday Sunset Date

*BEYONCE*

 

This week I debated who my sunset date post was going to be about and that's why this is a few days late.  I am working with some amazing dogs who each deserve to be recognized.

 

I would like to introduce you to Beyonce.  She is a beautiful, chocolate pit bull terrier mix, 4 years old.  Every time I walk to her kennel I start singing something of her namesake. I think she likes it.

 

She has a TON of energy.  For the first five minutes of all our sessions I let her do zoomies. It's so cute when I crouch down and call her name and she comes running at me full speed to give me a smooch. I know, I'm weird. Having a muscular dog running full speed at me and all I do is giggle.

 She knows sit and we are working on down. It's like a half-crouch, half lay kind of position.  She does great on the leash. I have yet to put the halti on her because as soon as I start to slide it over her muzzle she rolls on to her back for belly rubs.  And that's how our visits end.

 

 

Beyonce, like stated earlier, has a ton of energy.  She would do great in a home with an experienced dog person and/or someone who is willing to keep her training up.  Since her energy level is easily excitable and sometimes doesn't know when to stop with other dogs. Probably no small children so that they don't get plowed by her zoomies. I love this girl and know she will find that perfect human one day.

*Disclaimer~ These are only my experiences with Beyonce.  I encourage you to come meet her and see what your experience with this sweet girl is. She migth just crawl in to your lap and turn in to a huge snuggle bug.

Wednesday Sunset Date : Oakley

**Oakley**

Oakley is a beautiful gray pittie! Her left ear is so cute and floppy. She is approximately 2 years and 8 months old.  Our date started out a little crazy. She has so much energy that once I leashed her up and brought her out of her kennel she tried running straight for the play gate door!  Once outside I let her zoom out some of that energy. She LOVES to play ball.  I got her to sit for me and started teaching her a new trick- "Touch." She was catching on very quickly (thank goodness for treats).  

I wanted to work with her on harnessing her energy through a halti.  A halti is a small face leash (I don't know how else to describe it) that applies gentle pressure to the top of her nose, like her momma would have done, when she needs gentle correcting.  In past experiences, most dogs are not thrilled when I put on the halti.  Oakley acted like it was no big deal.  She walked great with it on and we had a loose leash almost the whole time. I was even able to redirect her energy when we went back in to the kennels and I had her sit and wait before putting her back in.  

From what I have read and heard about Oakley from animal care staff is that she is in playgroup with other big dogs and does well. She does not do well with little dogs though.  Which probably means she would do well with kids over age 10 (not wee little ones).  She needs structure and a routine and I think she will flourish under that premise. Probably someone who is comfortable around strong willed dogs. Salt Lake County Animal offers low-cost training options to help Oakley blossom in to an amazing furry family member. If you are interested in meeting Oakley please go visit her at Salt Lake County Animal! Sorry my picture is a little fuzzy. She could see the treat in my hand when I told her to sit and her little head was moving.

*Disclaimer: These are simply my experiences with Oakley.  I cannot guarantee she will walk well for you on a leash, nor can I not guarantee she won't turn in to a big squishy love bug and immediately crawl in to your lap.

Wednesday Sunset Date

Introducing Wednesday Sunset Date Weekly Edition!  

Each week I will feature a dog that is available for adoption at Salt Lake County Animal Shelter and that I have personally worked with (that way you know I'm not just making it up).  For this first post I want to give some background with my picture.  And then from here on out, once a week, there will be pictures and stories!  So be sure to check in every Thursday for my Wednesday Sunset Date story!

Background:

Every Wednesday I have the opportunity to volunteer at the Salt Lake County Animal Shelter. I want my weekly limited time there to actually be helping and not just going, taking a dog out to potty, giving them a belly rub and then putting them back in their kennel.  The animal care/behavioral staff there is amazing and is allowing me to work with the ones who need a little more help than the others, whether they need some help with manners or simply need me to sit with them to help teach them that not all people are scary. I started this new found focus a few weeks ago. Each week I let the Pit Crew manager know who I want to work with and if there's anyone else I should be working with (usually this is in the event that one that I have been working with gets adopted and I can add another to my time).  She gives me guidance. Most importantly, she has confidence in me. 

I've been volunteering at this shelter since the beginning of the summer.  I have seen them come and I have seen them go (IE. ADOPTED!).  I have taken extra efforts to help prepare me to better understand the needs of the "special" dogs and how I can better work with them.  I get excited over the tiny baby steps of progression that I get to see these dogs make.  I get even more excited (and usually tear up) when one of them adopts their very own human and gets to go to their furever home.  Each one gets a little spot in my heart.  A side effect of all of this has been I have become even more focused on my own dogs.  I watch their body language more, teach them new things, and overall am enjoying (even more!) having them part of my family.

Interested:

If you are interested in any of the dogs featured in this series please holler at me, call SLCO animal shelter or pop in to the shelter to meet them.  You will not regret the decision to adopt.

If you are interested in volunteering, holler at me (once again). The shelter ALWAYS needs volunteers. You can work with the dogs or cats. Love animals, but directly working with the them not your thing? They always need office help!

Without further ado let me introduce my first Wednesday Sunset Date...

DALLAS
*UPDATE!!! Dallas found his furever home on Saturday, December 8!*

Dallas is 4 years old. He is a handsome *look.at.those.eyes* brindle pit bull mix.  He knows sit, lay down, shake~ all the basics!  Dallas LOVES to have his chest rubbed.  When he was sitting, he would scoot in to me and look up at me with his face very close to mine just to get his chest rubbed.  He didn't make one peep the whole time I was with him. He is going to make a family super happy! SLCO Animal also offers low-cost training options so you can teach him even more new tricks!

*Disclaimer: Dallas, from my limited interaction with him, seems to be pretty much perfect.  He's not one of the special issues pups. I had been wanting to meet Dallas, so I did!  The Pit Crew manager said that sometimes Dallas gets overlooked at the shelter because he is calm when people walk past his kennel that they might think he's not interested. SOOOO not the case. He LOVES people. He's just calm and not crazy jumpy for attention.   My experience with Dallas is just that, MY experience.  I cannot 100% guarantee that he will not bark for you or sit for you or shake for you or try to jump right in to your lap.  This is just my observations and what he was able to do for little ol' me. Who knows, he might try to kiss your face!

Immortalized in Art

Mister commissioned an original oil painting of Buster and Lola by our friend Mark Crenshaw.  Last fall he took over 100 photos of the dogs outside.  He finished it and brought it by just in time for Buster's birthday (yesterday).  It's 30 x 30 and absolutely beautiful.

Yes, we have become THOSE people.  Now we need one of Moose!

National Dog Week

It's National Dog Week. In honor of this week, this is the story of how our {wolfpack} came to be.  It all starts with Sampson and Blue...

This is Buster & Lola's dog mom-Blue- and dad-Sampson. Both are pure-bread AKC registered. Check out his dad's creepy one blue eye.  If it weren't for that Buster looks EXACTLY like Sampson. See for yourself- put a finger over that one blue eye.

Try and pick out which one is Buster. Give you a hint. Right in the middle, brown face, taking up ALL the room, laying on his sister's head. Some things never change. This is Buster at 2 days old.



Lola 2 weeks



Lola 2 months, Buster 1 year

Of course you know what they look like today.

This May Moose came in to our family.

Buster was cool with him. Lola didn't want anything to do with him.

Guess what... times have changed.

And we are one big happy {wolfpack} family!

Check out some of my favorite doggie sites:
Best Friends Animal Society
Teach your kids about dog safety
Kahuna's K9s
DaisyDog Creations

And then go check out XENA's blog on my stalker list!

A Second Chance

Many of you know of my love for animals and my new commitment to live a cruelty-free life.  It all started with the discovery of the Beagle Freedom Foundation.  My heart broke when I watched the rescued beagles take their first steps on grass.  It was at that moment that I decided to change. 

You can stop reading now and skip to the bottom or you can read on about my journey to get to where I am currently...

I did my research on cruelty-free products.  You'd be amazed at which of your favorite companies DO test on animals and those who DO NOT.  Check HERE for the PETA listing. This list isn't 100% complete but it's a good jumping off point.

Boyfriend has been 100% behind me and hasn't laughed once.  Even when I called him from Target in a panic one day because I ran out of hair spray and couldn't remember which of my regular brands (ie. hairspray that is under $6)was on my list I could buy from.  Yes, I ended up coming home empty handed. I know many people might find this all really silly, but I believe in why I do what I do.

Now, don't get me wrong, as much as I've committed to live a cruelty-free life it's only to a point.  I still eat meat.  I still eat eggs. I still eat sea creatures. I am just more conscious about where it comes from.  I'm still trying to get Boyfriend to let me buy cage free eggs, but when you look at 89 cents compared to $3 he hasn't caved yet.

It's been a long process, but if you go through my make-up, house cleaning products and hair products I will be happy to tell you that 97% of them are cruelty-free.  This makes my heart feel good. 

Even our dog food is animal friendly.  Yes, some animal food manufactures do incredibly cruel things to animals all for the sake of "testing results." * Sigh*

On to my what I really wanted to talk about...

Beagle Freedom Foundation does not have a local chapter in Utah, so I contacted the Humane Society of Utah to see if we had a research animal rescue group.  I am realistic and realize that research on animals is necessary to a degree.  You can't test that new pacemaker on a human for the first one. I get it.  So I want to help make the research animals lives as good as I can.  The Humane Society put me in contact with someone at the U of U who walks the reseach dogs.  These dogs are amazing.  Most of them come from local animal shelters and nobody wanted them.  Sure, I understand how people would think it's cruel to sell shelter dogs to research facilities for testing. But what they DO NOT know is that most of these dogs get adopted after their study is done.  Yes, some do not wake up from their study and that breaks my heart but I understand the "why" now. So these dogs that nobody wanted and there was a real possibility of them being put down get an extra special second chance at finding a forever family.  Or as we like to say their "retirement home."  Yes, I had to prep myself before the first day I walked through those doors that some of the dogs I would see I wouldn't see again.  I'm so glad I braced myself for that possibility because the first day that I didn't see one of them in their cages I was okay.  I was sad, but I wasn't devastated. Each time I get to walk some of them it gives me a little smile because I know that I just made their day a little better. And then comes the magically special day that one of them gets adopted... My favorite research dog Sydney got adopted with another one of her research pals, Gypsy, last weekend.  This makes it all worth it.  Look at her doggie smile!

Follow-up Note: I find immense joy in walking "my research dogs."  Unfortunately, due to PETA the U of U will no longer be obtaining dogs from local shelters.  They will only be using bred for purpose dogs and that's a whole other subject. I'm sure I'll have some really interesting stories when we start walking them (Because they've never been owned, they've never been walked, they know NO manners, but one day we will try and adopt them out).  We still have about 6 research dogs that are done with their studies and are (or will be soon) up for adoption. If you are interested in any of them please holler at me!

Dog Days of Summer + Easy Sangria Recipe

Ahh... the Dog Days of Summer have arrived... Literally.

One of my favorite things about summer is spending Sunday's evenings on my deck with good friends and good drinks.  We had a puppy play date last night.  All the pups were racing around the backyard except for these two.  They rather have their photo taken by the talented T. Doan.

My favorite summer drink is Sangria. I concocted a new version last night.  Here is the recipe for both the Unloaded and Loaded version:

Summer Sangria

Both:
1 cup raspberries
1 mango cut in to bite size pieces

Unloaded:
2 Liters Ginger Ale

Loaded:
750 ml white wine
1/2- 1 Liter Ginger Ale (pour to preference)

Mix, chill for at least one hour to blend fruit flavors, serve over ice.  Delicious!  Strawberries and peaches would be a yummy summer mix to add also!

I've linked up to...  Go check out these sights to get some more yummy ideas!

Moose Drool

Introducing the newest furball member of our family...

MOOSE

Moose (formerly known as Mousse), is Ben's family dog.  He needed some more attention (human and dog), so he has come to live with us for a while.

MOOSE FACTS:

• I like to DROOL. (Yes, that is a long string of drool coming out of my mouth. What.)

And Covered It With What...

I've been watching this clip all week and I'm still laughing my bum off. HA HA HA

Have a FABULOUS Friday the 13th! It's like the fourth best holiday ever! (birthday= 1st, Christmas = 2nd, Halloween = 3rd, F13th = 4th)

Ben and I are headed on a mini "doggie-moon" for the weekend. Think "baby-moon" with baby replaced by a dog. A 90 pound bundle of joy. Stay tuned for details...