Feel Good « 4pawsdogs.com Blog

Archive for the ‘Feel Good’ Category

Great News!

Sunday, April 19th, 2009

akc

The American Kennel Club (AKC) has always been a promoter of purebred dogs. That’s what they’re all about. All of the events that they hold (and there are MANY) are for purebred dogs only. They hold more agility, and obedience trials than any other dog organization that I’m aware of.

For those of us with mixed breed dogs, there are not that many options for performance sports. I’m pretty sure that USDAA (United States Dog Agility Association) would be the largest organization offering agility to ALL dogs, regardless of breed status, but I think AKC far outnumbers them in trials. As far as obedience goes, UKC (United Kennel Club) does allow mixed breeds, but they have very few trials (at least in my area).

I participated in a survey a couple of years ago, asking what exhibitors thought about letting mixed breed dogs compete in performance sports (obedience, agility and rally). I thought it was a dead issue by now, but then I was informed by a friend that they have indeed decided to allow them to compete in AKC events. Wow – that is HUGE! I’m pretty sure they’re doing it for the extra money they will make from the mixed breed exhibitors (and not out of any good will), but hey – I’ll take it.

They made the decision in April and the mixed breed competition will commence on October 1, 2010. They will compete in a “separate but equal” class, but again, I’ll take it. It DOES make me curious though, why they can’t just compete with the rest of the dogs. Are they worried that the “mixes” might show up the “pures”? I’m not prejudiced – most of my dogs ARE purebreds. I just find it odd that they will compete separately and their titles will be slightly different. But again, really, who cares?

So the quest to seriously start working Micah in obedience has begun. I’m really looking forward to being able to be in a trial setting with him (on leash) so that he can get used to that. If he can get used to working in that atmosphere ON leash, we might eventually have a chance of making it OFF leash to do agility.

Chalk up one big “atta-boy” for the good old boys of AKC. You Rock!

Tags: Agility, AKC, mixed breeds, obedience, UKC, USDAA
Posted in Agility, Feel Good, Fun Stuff, Holidays, Micah's Journey, Rescue, health | 4 Comments »

Dane Fun

Friday, April 10th, 2009

Today was a good day. I went to visit a friend who just had a litter of Great Dane puppies. They are sooooooo cute! The litter is 3 weeks old and they already range between 5 and 7 pounds. Since I’ve had 2 Dane puppies myself, I know that they are one breed that you can actually SEE growing EVERY DAY!

Anyway – there is just nothing better in the world than puppies. Admittedly, I’m a definite sap for them. I could sit and watch them and their little puppy interactions for hours. They are hilarious. They are just learning to get their feet under them at this point and their clumsiness only adds to their cuteness. You can probably almost smell the “puppy breath” just by looking at the pictures. The little groaning noises they make while nuzzling your neck – priceless.

Just wanted to share a few pics of the kids. Enjoy!

Tags: Great Dane puppies, puppy breath
Posted in Feel Good, Fun Stuff | 2 Comments »

As Luck Would Have It

Sunday, February 15th, 2009

The other day I was in the car on my way to an in-home training session. It was a beautiful day out, and I was loving it! I stopped at a stop sign, not far off FM 407, when something odd caught my eye. There was a small field there, in the middle of a residential neighborhood, and something was standing there. Looked like a huge bird. It was motionless. I couldn’t tell if it was real or just a wooden statue. So I put on the emergency brake and turned on my flashers.

Sure enough, s-l-o-w-l-y he took a step. He WAS real!!! He was pretty cool looking, and as luck would have it - I had my camera with me, so I whipped it out of my bag and started snapping away.

All of a sudden I looked in my rear view mirror and realized that a squad car had pulled up behind me. CRAP!!! No lights, but he sat there for a few minutes - probably running a check on my plates. My first instinct was to jump out of the car and explain that “Gee - I was only taking pictures”, but I know better than to do that. So I waited it out, and he finally came walking up. “Everything OK?” he asked. “Yea, sorry - I was just getting a couple of shots of this guy” and I pointed to where the bird had been. As luck would have it - he was gone!!

Naw - just kidding. Thank God he WAS still there, but it would have made for a better post if he hadn’t been. :-0

He asked if I got them (the pics) and then said, “Well, you better clear the street then”. I was lucky that he was a nice guy. What exactly IS the fine for obstructing traffic anyway? Never mind - I don’t want to know.

Till Next Time…

Tags: training session
Posted in Feel Good, Humor | 2 Comments »

True Confessions

Sunday, November 16th, 2008

Anyone who knows me well at all, knows that I am a lousy housekeeper. It’s not a fact that I’m proud of, believe me. I wish I was better. It’s something I’ve struggled with for years. My sister in law keeps an immaculate house - with 3 kids and a husband, and a dog, and company constantly in and out of the house. It’s just part of who she is. It’s NOT part of who I am. I didn’t get the “good housekeeping gene”. Don’t get me wrong - I’m not saying that she doesn’t work hard at it. She does! But I could work day and night and never have my house half as clean or organized as hers.

As I look around my house - really look, I see scarcely a surface that isn’t piled with crap. It’s one of my biggest vices. Paperwork, and dog stuff - that’s a good share of it. Half the time I really don’t even notice the junk that is piling up. Don’t worry - it’s not one of those houses that has rotting food in the corners, and 4 dumpsters worth of trash - nothing quite that dramatic. But the place could certainly use a good overhaul. I blame my undiagnosed A-D-D for my inability to tackle the job. It seems overwhelming at this point.

So Wednesday, after a grueling night at the E.R. clinic, I decided to unwind by watching Oprah from earlier that day. She just happened to be doing a show on the “Clean Up Your Messy House” Tour - moving across America helping others, just like me, get it together. Peter Walsh is the head dude, helping people clean up and clean out. I felt a little encouraged as I watched him pop in on unsuspecting Americans whose houses looked remarkably like mine - some even a bit worse.

As Peter explained, you do things in small increments. Ten minutes a day, that’s all - and commit to 6 months. Well, of course I had to do the math. That’s about 30 hours of work. And of course, I should see a significant difference by then. So I started a few days ago, and imagine that I should be able to see a pretty big difference within a month. I can’t wait!!!

As his Grandmother said, “What’s the best way to eat an elephant? One bite at a time”. Although I don’t condone the eating of elephants, I get the picture. And I think for me that is the key - don’t look at a whole room, it’s too overwhelming. Just look at one little corner, or one little table, and spend 10 minutes on it. It seems DOABLE that way! I’m Excited!!!!!

Normally, you KNOW I would have taken tons of pictures to share with you, but I’m a little embarrassed by the mess I’ve made so I’ll only share one for now. It’s a table in my office / den. It sits behind the computer table, and as you can see, it’s pretty much unusable. (The fluffy stuff under the table is for the “two terriers” to land on between parties).

Maybe when I’m done with the project I’ll share more pics, but for now, I just want to challenge anyone else who feels the way I do: that the job is just too big to tackle. They just started this “Clean Up Your Messy House” project, so jump on board. It’s not too late. Peter will send monthly e-mails with tips to make the process easier. It’s painless - I promise!!

Tags: ADD, Clean up your Messy House Tour, dog, good housekeeping gene, paperwork, Peter Walsh
Posted in Feel Good | 3 Comments »

Fall in Texas? Could happen!

Friday, November 14th, 2008

I am SO happy that the brutal Texas summer seems to be (finally) over. I’m a Minnesota girl, and fall has always been my favorite time of year. I tease people down here that Texas only has two seasons: summer and winter (if you can really call it that. I dare say that no self respecting Minnesotan would ever call what they have down here “winter”). At any rate, there’s not much spring or fall.

But the temps have finally broken, and it’s been hovering in the 80’s and now even the 70’s for the high. Hell, that’s practically winter right there - for Texas that is. I noticed today that there are even a few trees turning the traditional fall colors. Not many, mind you, but a few. Just enough to make me feel like fall might really happen. So I had to get a couple of pics.

.
.

It’s good dog-walking weather and sitting out on the patio with a glass of wine weather. You have to take advantage of it, because summer is SO stinking long here!!!

I had a couple of the dogs at the park the other day, working on tricks and heeling, and actually said out loud (me, not them) that the weather was absolutely perfect!!!! The dogs totally agreed.

Even though I miss fall in Minnesota terribly, I sometimes will secretly admit (to myself) that I don’t really miss the winters, although they seem to be getting milder lately. I talked to my sister in law today who lives 90 miles from the Canadian border, and she said that the temps were dipping into the 30’s and even the 20’s. Yeah, my 70 degrees sounds pretty good about now, as I sit here in my shorts and T-shirt. I guess I’ll stay awhile. At least for the fall.

Tags: dog walking, fall, heeling, Minnesota, Texas, tricks
Posted in Feel Good, Fun Stuff | 2 Comments »

The Angels of RAM

Thursday, October 30th, 2008

A few weeks ago I watched a piece on 60 Minutes about an organization called RAM (Remote Area Medical). I was genuinely moved by this EXTRAORDINARY group of people, founded by Stan Brock.

Stan started RAM in 1992 to go into third world countries to set up emergency medical clinics where the needs were the greatest. They have done over 500 expeditions.

Now, RAM is “throwing America a life-line”. In fact, 60% of their work is now done in the US.

There are 47,000,000 people in the United States who have no health insurance, and millions more who are under-insured. RAM sets up weekend outreach programs to help those that cannot afford medical treatment. During one of the expeditions held in Knoxville TN, some 276 doctors, optometrists, and dentists from 11 different states set up their stations in an exhibit hall, and worked the entire weekend for free. All equipment is donated, everyone is a volunteer, and all care is at no charge.

The people who came as patients that weekend (mostly the working poor; most with families) started lining up in the middle of the night, to make sure they would be among those that got seen. They were given numbers to make sure they stayed in order. They slept in their cars, in the cold, and waited.

About 6 a.m. Stan Brock started calling for the first of the numbers to be let in.

That weekend in Knoxville, the docs saw 920 patients, and other than the general medicine that took place, they made 500 pairs of eyeglasses, performed 90 mammograms, extracted 1066 bad teeth, and did 567 fillings.

Stan’s lament? They had to turn away about 400 people when the weekend came to a close.

How does RAM do it? They rely on the generosity of the American people. Plus, they really know how to stretch a buck. Last year RAM’s operating costs were a mere $250,000 and they treated 17,000 patients. Brock (the founder and leader) is devoted - TOTALLY devoted to RAM. He has no family, draws no salary, and has no home. He is currently living in an abandoned school, leased to RAM by the City of Knoxville for $1.00 a year.

PLEASE GUYS!!! This is such a wonderful organization, that if you have a few minutes to spare, please to go this website and watch the 60 Minutes piece on them. I promise it will make you feel good for at least a little while. And maybe the next time you have a couple of bucks to donate to a really worthy cause, you might think of them. I know I will.

Thanks!!!

www.ramusa.org/learn/media.html

Tags: medical clinics, Remote Area Medical, Stan Brock, under-insured
Posted in Feel Good | 2 Comments »

Faith Restored

Tuesday, August 5th, 2008

I still work part time at an emergency pet clinic. In that field you sometimes see things happen that shouldn’t, and people that do things to their pets that you almost can’t believe. Sometimes it’s easy to become a little cynical. (Thank goodness, I DO realize however, that there are MANY great owners out there who would give life and limb for their 4-legged kids).

Tonight my faith in humanity was restored. Not that it had been obliterated, but I have seen it limping a little, from time to time. So tonight, at our very busy clinic, I witnessed something I have only rarely seen, and may never see again.

A client who could not afford treatment for her pet was preparing to put her dog to sleep. She was absolutely heartbroken. Inconsolable. She was so in love with this dog, and she felt horrible that she couldn’t afford the treatment that was so urgently needed.

She was in the waiting room struggling to pull herself together, amidst quite a few others who were somewhere in the mid-treatment stage with their own pets. A woman quietly approached her and told her that she would pay the bill for whatever the dog needed. No questions asked.

The bill was MANY hundreds of dollars. The woman simply said, - “I know how it is to have a sick pet. They’re like family”. She had just learned that her own dog had come through a pretty serious surgery, and was doing well. Perhaps she had made a deal with God. You know, those deals we all make when we’re in a desperate situation. You let me have this now, and I’ll be good for the rest of my life, (or any number of similar scenarios). Or maybe she was just an extremely empathetic and generous person.

I don’t know why she did it, but at any rate, tonight my faith was restored. And it feels really good. Whatever the reason for her deed, she totally made my day. In fact, I think she made my week. I really don’t know how long I will be thinking about that act of incredible kindness; for at least a little while I hope. I think acts such as that deserve some recognition, and so I hope I think of her for a long, long time!

Tags: dog, emergency pet clinic
Posted in Feel Good, Rescue | 2 Comments »

4pawsdogs.com Blog