Posts Tagged "dogs"

Puppy Conversations | National Dog Day

Dear Kid,

Puppy: Mom
Me: Yes, sweetie
Puppy: Do you know what today is?
Me: Wednesday?
Puppy: No
Me: Yes, it is definitely Wednesday
Puppy: It’s National Dog Day
Me: It is?
Puppy: Most assuredly
Me: It’s also Wednesday
Puppy: Pay attention
Me: Of course. Should we talk about National Dog Day?
Puppy: Do you know what National Dog Day is about?
Me: The dog days of summer?
Puppy: No
Me: Doggie bags?
Puppy: No. Wait, dogs have bags? What are you talking about?
Me: National Dog Day is about working dogs and rescue dogs
Puppy: Yes. How did you know?
Me: I read the same posting you did
Puppy: But it’s still important
Me: Absolutely
Puppy: I am a working dog
Me: You are most assuredly NOT a working dog
Puppy: I’m not?
Me: No. Working dogs do things like guide blind people, and sniff for bombs, and rescue people. You sniff for fun and nap.
Puppy: I do important sniffing!
Me: But National Dog Day is about more than working dogs
Puppy: It’s about treats!
Me: It’s about rescue dogs
Puppy: And I rescued a dog?
Me: You are a rescue dog
Puppy: So National Dog Day is about me
Me: It’s about all dogs
Puppy: Which means I should get a treat
Me: You have very interesting logic
Puppy: Can I have a bag too?
Me: A bag?
Puppy: You said doggies get bags
Me: I love you, baby
Puppy: Love you too Mom

Love, Mom

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4th Recap and Some Things Just Have to Be Said

Dear Kid,

What a wonderful 4th of July weekend.

There was so much going on this weekend—celebrations in different cities with different families of different times in our lives.

Shout out to those at #Kutz50 this weekend–Love you guys! Sorry we couldn’t be with you.

One of these days I will figure out how to clone myself and be all places simultaneously. In the meantime, I’m grateful for Facebook and people who share photos.

Shout out to those at Red, White, and Blue Ash–Thank you for enjoying the evening for us!

Shout out to family gathered in Cleveland–Oh wait. I’m here. No shouting necessary. Yay!

Hope you had a wonderful Fourth of July. DearKidLoveMom.comWe watched fireworks from the rooftop in Cleveland last night. It was absolutely amazing to see all the fireworks from countless localities all at once. It was a panorama of pretty. A kaleidoscope of kaboom (without most of the noise). Very, very cool.

And just when we thought the show was nearing its end, the City of Cleveland started its fireworks show. Spectacular.

If you don’t mind, I’m going to take a small moment for a Public Service Announcement.

Dear ‘Murica,

No, it’s not better when you take a photo of fireworks using your iphone with the flash on.

No, it’s not better when you hand your nephew a burning sparkler and tell him to stick the end through the chain link fence so he doesn’t get burned.

No, a few more beers does not improve your ability to set off fireworks. Let the professionals do it. You should stick with saying “ooh” and “ahh.”

No, it is not funny to try to convince your dog that fireworks are fun. Let him go inside and cower in the privacy of his own home.

Sorry. Some things just have to be said.

Hope you enjoyed your fireworks show last night and you have a great day today.

Get some sleep, kiddo. Pretty sure you need it.

Love, Mom

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8/6/13 International Assistance Dog Week | Woof, Sniff, and Empower

International Assistance Dog WeekDear Kid,

This week is International Assistance Dog Week (really and truly). As we know, there are lots of other service animals including service monkeys (I have yet to hear about service fish), but this week is for our canine friends. So pull up a doggie biscuit and read on.

Should you wish to attend an International Assistance Dog Week event, I have thoughtfully provided a listing of local events.

IADW was created to recognize the devoted, hardworking service dogs that help individuals achieve their goals in life.

Two organizations that I know and love celebrate assistance doggies every day. Meet Guiding Eyes for the Blind and Circle Tail.

Guiding Eyes for the Blind is a wonderful organization located in Yorktown Heights, NY (which is only considered “upstate” if you live in The City)  that trains dogs to assist visually impaired individuals. Auntie M and Uncle Sean have been puppy raisers for Guiding Eyes for a long time—they will welcome Puppy # 6 to their home in a few weeks—and even though they don’t bring their charges to the midwest frequently enough they are Most Excellent Puppy Raisers. The adorable Tanner (puppy #5) goes to college a few days before you. He’ll probably also graduate sooner….

In a move I have to admit I did not see coming, Guiding Eyes for the Blind has teamed up with Pour Le Monde (a company specializing in natural fragrances) to create a lovely scent that is worn by people and helps raise money to raise and train puppies. The fragrance is called Empower. In my opinion, they should have called it Sniff.

Circle Tail, Inc. is a FAB-U-LOUS organization just north of Cincinnati. Actually a little farther than “just” but still in the general vicinity. They train all kinds of assistance dogs and they have some very interesting programs including having inmates raise and train some of the dogs, and offering Healing Touch for Animals (HTA). There is a great picture on their site of a dog putting clothes into the washing machine (I know people who haven’t mastered that skill.) The dogs they train come from a variety of sources including families, humane societies, and shelters. One of the photos they have on the site is of a beagle/ dachshund mix who is about to become an assistance dog (with much longer legs than our beagle/dachshund mix….).

There is a wonderful doggy “gym” in their facility. Booker has gone a few times. (When Booker goes we have to get out a different water bowl for him because he isn’t tall enough to drink from the one they have out for the rest of the dogs.)

How Can I Participate in International Assistance Dog Week?

How you ask? So sweet of you to inquire.

If you were a working adult of the earning money variety, I would suggest you make a donation to an organization that supports working dogs. Non-profits always appreciate financial support. If you lived in an area with a local event and weren’t working the hours you’re working, I’d suggest going to an event. Here are some ideas for college students of the not-so-much-spare-cash variety.

  • Like one of the organizations on Facebook and/or follow them on Twitter
  • Tell others about the wonderful work assistance dogs do and suggest they make a donation
  • Many companies support non-profits—check their websites to find out more
  • Figure out how the average person can successfully photograph a black lab.

You can also Like DearKidLoveMom.com on the website or Facebook. It won’t necessarily help the puppies, but it can’t hurt.

Sniff.

Love, Mom

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5/9/13 Staring at Cats and Springtime Shedding

cat down the streetDear Kid,

This morning, as most mornings, I woke Booker, spent some time assuring him that he is the most wonderful puppy in the house, and took him for a walk.

Because of all the rain, there were lots of blades of grass to be sniffed. I really don’t know why the after-rain sniffing is so detailed, but it generally is, so I accept that we’re going for a sniff not a walk. We sniffed our way to Cobra’s house.

Cobra, just in case the recall section of your brain isn’t awake yet, is the cat down the street with whom Booker is very good friends.  (Very Good Friends being defined in some weird cat/dog way that I don’t pretend to understand.)

This morning Cobra happened to be out and about doing Cat Things. Unfortunately, he was doing them two houses away. Booker started to whine for Cobra. Cobra ignored him. Booker stared, hard. Booker believes he can control Cobra’s appearance by staring hard enough because one time when he was staring at the closed garage door, it opened and Cobra came out. Booker has not forgotten this. It has not worked since that one time. Booker hasn’t noticed. (No one said he was a candidate for graduate school.) Or if he has noticed, he’s convinced that lightening can strike twice or something.

In response to the whining, Cobra disappear, at his own pace. So far, normal morning. Then the yellow cat appeared.

The yellow cat is the feline Dad loathes. (Ok, to be fair, he’s not much in favor of cats in general, but this one sends him into apoplectic fits. It’s entirely possible the yellow cat is feral—it certainly moves like it’s bones are held together with twisty ties that have been tied one time too many. The yellow cat frequently appears on our property, and I’m reasonably sure Dad’s attitude has rubbed off on the pooch.) The very instant Booker saw the yellow cat, his entire body went on alert. He stared at the yellow cat. The yellow cat stared back.

The yellow cat took a few steps toward the road and twitched its tail. Booker stared. The cat took a few more steps, and twitched its tail. Booker tracked every movement. The cat decided that since Booker was on a leash he posed no threat whatsoever and sauntered, with great condescension, into the street.

In a surprise move (at least to me and the cat), Booker began to bark. A lot. All nineteen pounds of him trying to sound like an aggressive, highly annoyed, unfed Rottweiler. The cat lit off for parts unseen. Booker continued to bark.

Meanwhile, Cobra showed up. Booker barked. Cobra gave him a look that clearly said, “I don’t think so” and walked, as slowly as possible, into his garage. Booker was beside himself (which sort of tangled the leash).

I finally got him headed home and decided to brush him.

Let me just say—if he were a goose we’d be wholesaling down pillows.

Fur came off that boy in melon-sized fluffs. After just a few minutes, he was knee deep in fur. Granted his knees are fairly close to the ground, but still. That’s a lot of fur.

When most people brush their hair, they brush and then end. (I’m explaining this part because you have such short hair I can’t remember the last time you brushed it.) Even Pi (who has enough hair for a small country) gets to a point where she is finished brushing.

Not so with His Furriness. The fluff just kept coming and coming—he is the EverReady Bunny of Shedding. But here’s the funny part. During the entire seventeen hours that I brushed him, he stared intently down the street waiting for a cat to appear. (Never happened.) Eventually, I gave up and we went in for breakfast.

Beware of feral yellow cats and Springtime Shedding (not necessarily in that order).

Love, Mom

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