Some can never be rehabilitated

Our darling Buddy dog, at one time in his life, was a monster. Chewed everything mine, including an expensive signed by the photographer art book. I would refer to his as the "bastard with fur " and his breed being a "wire-haired terrorist." His only interest, not that he has a lot now, was finding a way to get into the trash. We'd had baby-locks on the cupboard with the can until we remodeled and have a wonderful slide out drawer; fooled him.

After my beloved retired seven years about Buddy became a model citizen. Imagine that, he was just lonely. He loves going camping and doesn't bolt out the door when it's opened. He is quite enjoyable even though he's not a cuddly dog. I do miss my Sheba, she was the best snuggler in dogdom. Buddy will sleep on the bed but faces the door waiting for some bungler to attack, he's ever vigilant.

Just to keep up the aforementioned title, ever so often, Buddy will pull something sneaky. Last week he must have felt no one was paying enough attention. My Aunt and I were heading for the Getty Villa and, out the door, I remembered my camera and returned to the house. There he was standing in the middle of the dining table his muzzle deep into the remnants of a cup of coffee I had carelessly left. He was so busy slurping up the coffee he didn't notice me and I was too shocked to say anything. Too bad I had not gotten my camera yet as that would have been a fantastic snap. He finally did look up and just turned, jumped to a chair, then the floor, and out the doggy door like nothing happened. Thanks, Buddy, I thought you'd lost all your spirit.

Look Ma, no cavities!

Most regular readers know Buddy, the wire-haired terrorists. He's our eleven-year-old darling doggy and after a trip to the vet last November he was told by Dr Ron to lose a few pounds, three to be exact. Now this is not to say he's fat, just a tad over his fighting weight. So we stopped with all the "people food," which we thought was a good way to diet. Buddy didn't agree but us being the dutiful pet parents that we are we stuck with this new regimen.

Yesterday Buddy had an appointment to have his teeth cleaned. This was his first time. We've never had a dog with dental problems so why subject him was my thought. Anyway he did just fine, not a bad tooth in the lot and even had a blood test to say his insides were just as good.

And how did the diet work, she asks? Buddy proudly jumped on the scale and as the number rose my heart sank. He did not lose one ounce, not one. Of course he didn't gain anything, that would have been pure agony, but he really hasn't been eating anything close to what he did before November. Either this mutt is ordering pizza while we are away or we just don't understand how much to feed a dog. Back to the drawing board on this one. Poor Buddy.

Buddy?

This is not our dog; repeat, NOT BUDDY. He looks like Buddy but it's his doppelganger. He seems to be the anti-buddy. Click the link to see a video and read about this amazing dog. "Thrown Away Dog Saves Little Girl."


This is our Buddy. He's never saved a life, that we know of, and he's just a tiny bit bigger than the dog above. He is a very loyal, good at heart, dog. If I'm sick he'll stay right at the foot of the bed and he barks at intruders. I love him just as much as he's heroic cousin.

This is a test. If it were a real emergency …

Last night was girl's night out. Darling husband was at sweet daughter's house getting ready to make a new roof so a lady friend and myself had dinner and went to the picture show. When over it was late, for us, but since she is single said what the hey to a cup of tea at my house. She left after 11:00 and since there was zip on the TV I did some writing.

Very silent house except the clinking of the keyboard so you could hear any little noise the house makes. Just me and Buddy.

Let's have a bit of back-story here. We have a Carbon Dioxide detector that has been relegated to the garage. Seems as though the "chirps" it makes ever now and again makes the terrier certifiable. He will actually climb up in your lap, no matter where you are--note to self: close the bathroom door all the way--and quiver like the hounds of hell are pursuing him. We've had this problem before and that is why the current detector is out of his earshot, or so I thought.

Buddy was the first to hear the chirp and I should have known. Usually if you are up late he just heads off to bed. "See ya in the morning, don't forget to lockup." He was right next to my chair when I heard the detector hit the high note again but it is always one of the those, "Did I hear something?"

The next time it was unmistakable, at least for the dog because all of his 27 lbs leaped into my arms and refused to get down. With some soothing I convinced him off my keyboard and I was out to the garage. I yanked the detector from it's plug and showed Buddy. "See, I've slayed your dragon my great protector, now go to bed." Which he did until the damn thing set off again. Seems like I forgot to also pull the battery. Now there was nothing else to do with except shut down the computer and be off to bed where he slept closer to me than ever.

Some of you safety people are saying, "How could you disabled the detector; maybe there was actually a problem?" Not to worry, I have another one and it said on the case, chirpping every three minutes is a malfunction. It's off to Lowes this morning to buy a new one.

Who knows what that noise means to him. It is loud but not as ear piercing as the actual alarm. It's constant but only every three minutes when it's in the malfunction mode. Well at least we don't have to worry about not hearing the alert, Buddy will keep us safe long before the carbon monoxide gets us.

Goodbye our dear friend

Pets can be the best friends you'll ever have. Of course, they can also dig through the trash, eat books, or jump fences. Buddy was all of those things and more. He was Dan's constant companion while I was still working and my watchdog when Dan was away. Always willing to take a ride, or a walk, or a nap and if you had an extra french fry, oh he was your best friend.

Wednesday morning, while on their morning walk, Buddy was viciously attacked by a stray dog. He was bleeding from two wounds on his right side. We got him to the Vet, Dr Ron Animal Hospital in Simi Valley, and after x rays and exam were told his situation was very serious. Buddy was 15 years old, had a heart murmur, and is pretty much deaf and almost blind. Not a good candidate for surgery and the Vet was pretty sure the bites had punctured his intestines. With a heavy heart we told him to go ahead with the euthanasia. He did not need any more pain.

We can not say enough of the wonderful Vet, Dr Ron, and his great compassionate staff. They were wonderful and made the tough decision so much easier. He said we'd done the right thing and for a moment I wanted to try and save him but I knew in my heart it would not be good for my gentle friend. Even though it was difficult we said our goodbyes.

To the person who lets their dog run free, for whatever reason--shame on you--your dog has taken from us, in the most horrifying way, our darling little dog and brought sadness to friends and family.

To all our family and friends that have been so supportive, our love and thanks. See my sister and daughter's blog for their lovely sentiment about this great dog. Tombstone Tumbleweed and Maltese Parakeet.

Finally, to our little terrier Buddy, thank you for letting us be your caretakers for 15 years. We will miss you.

What's dat clinkin' noise?

As mentioned in a previous post, my beloved is in a fence building frenzy. So, along with the neighbors in back of us, he is plotting a new fence. We really need a new one there, as well.

The previous seven neighbors were all too cheap to go together for the building cost so Dan just put up wood attached to an existing chain link fence. Not the best solution but it did last quite a long time. Through the years and a variety of owners, with children, the chain link has started to lean. The neighbors to the rear are at the top of our more than 45 degree slope.

Because he had already rented a dumpster to dispose of the first old fence Dan, at the same time, tore down the rear fence as well. Funny thing, now we can see our neighbors since neither they or us have any bushes between and this did cause another problem. They have pets. The dog, though a large bulky Chow,it only stare menacingly at Buddy our little terrier. They've yet to exchange any "words. Oh, Buddy does pee in his general direction but we've not had any breakthrough moments with the dogs.

Now the tortoise, plural, on the other hand have been the most problem. They have two desert tortoise and these odd little creatures somewhere have gotten the idea our slope is nirvana and try to escape as often as they can. One would think it would be easy to keep something so slow moving corralled. Think again. In the six days we've had the fence down Mr and Mrs Houdini been down here four times.

Yesterday, when I went in the back yard, I heard this odd clicking noise accompanied with some strange groan. Desert tortoises are hard to find but when I zeroed in on the noise there they were, on my slope, making baby tortoises; or trying their darnedest. I scurried around the block to fetch the owner and when we got back they seemed quite done. I think he was smoking a cigarette but could be wrong. Honest, they move much quicker than I'd ever imagined.

So the owner, disgusted with their, yet again another, escape. Swooped them up and headed for the car. This in its self is driving our dog Buddy absolutely nuts. I'm sure he can't figure out why people come and are taking all our tortoises from the back yard. So far, they've taken four and never brought any back. Poor Buddy, I believe he things we are growing them because he keeps nosing around in the bushes for more.

They really tug on your heart strings

He's ok now.

I've always said the day Buddy doesn't get excited about going for his daily walk is the day he goes to the vet and that happened yesterday morning.

He was in quite a bit of pain and after the Dr checked him out decided it was his neck. Buddy is 11, which is Social Security/Medicare time for puppies, and things just get wonky. The meds were an anti-inflammatory and had our precious pup up and tail wagging in a few hours. Whew.

But there was some more sad news, oh not for us, for Buddy. Doc says he's gotta drop a few pounds by his next appointment which will be in January. When I told Buddy he needed to go on the South Beach Diet he got very excited, all he heard was "go".

Chief, you have mail

Our wired-haired terrorist Buddy is about eleven-year-old and is housebroken but when I went into my studio last week, a no-dogs-allowed area, I found someone had left me a "present" on the floor. Present in this case was a small pile of dog crap in the corner and yes, I do know the difference between a gift of some value and this. I was amazed because this isn't something this dog does. Oh there was that one time at Mary's when, much to my horror, he lifted his leg on a house plant but the two Bark Brothers were there and I think he was just marking his territory.

My beloved stepped in on Buddy's behalf because while moving cars in and out of the side yard he'd closed the doggie door and forgot it for the rest of the day. Poor Bud-man. There was no use admonishing him, it was long past, but this incident did qualify Buddy for a new Navajo name. My darling christened him, Poops-on-Floor.

Thanks, Snores-Real-Loud. I can only guess what he calls me.

Sometimes the blindside sneaks up on you

For a variety of reasons I've not posted here. Summer; we've been busy walking/hiking. Lazy; it's oh so easy to stay away from the computer when the couch and a good book beckon. Creativity; my level has been low, read non-existing. Evaluating; just how important is this blog? Combine them all together and you get two posts since April.

Writing here has always been a release for me. Saying somethings I don't vocalize but it feels good to get out into the open. Getting through tough times; just wanting to forget or remembering good times; leaving a record of both.

Saturday, in the mail, I received Buddy's dog license renewal notice. They ask to be notified if you no longer have the animal so I tossed it on my desk with a reminder to call after the long holiday. When I called this morning I surprised myself. You see, telling the clerk we no longer had Buddy made my voice crack. I took a moment and started again. The clerk was more than patient, thank you, and I made it through.

There are some folks that say, "It's just a dog for god's sake, get over yourself!" and I have to say I feel that way too but boy, did I lose a good friend.

Lately we've discussed getting another dog and I keep saying it's because we can be more free to get away without having to worry about a pet but I wonder if that's the case with me. Am I too afraid to get so attached again? Do I miss Buddy or just having a dog? In 42 years of marriage this is the longest stretch without one.

I gave myself until January to decide.

Buddy, on patrol

Does all this pet food poison scare worry anyone but Buddy the wire-haired-terrorists? He's very aware of what has and has not been contaminated and wants everyone to be super vigilant when it comes to a recall.

What keeps me up nights, besides the pizza, is wondering what's in the food we import? Sheesh! Who is watching this stuff. I know everything is global these days but does the Food and Drug Administration not look what is coming in to the country? A little nightmare reading from the Bioterrorism Law.

If accidentally some foreign substance can get into pet food how can we be sure anything imported is safe? It wasn't the FDA or Canada's equivalent but dead pets that alerted everyone to the problem. Buy local. Support your local Crop Share or Farmer's Market for fresh produce.

Buddy suggests to check out Snopes, his fav site for correct information. Feel safe knowing he's out there protecting the pack.

Unconditional love in a furry package

My husband and I were lucky enough to be entrusted with our daughter and son-in-law's dogs while they were out of the country. We'd watched these two fluffy white little Maltese before so it was no problem to add them to the kennel.

They were finicky eaters and barked at the drop of a leaf but they never once piddled on the carpet or refused to cuddle in bed. After walks, napping seems to be what they enjoyed best and since I was feeling poorly they were my best friends.

Multi, on the left, is about three times Max's size and if he'd hold still, Max would fit in one hand. I've cooked bigger chickens. Max's problem is he doesn't know he's pint-sized, he thinks like a pitbull. I wish I had his confidence. He established himself as the alpha dog early on and no one has told him different. I love his bravado; he even walks with a swagger.

Our darling Buddy, a wire-haired terrorist in his own right, acquiesced to the little dog immediately. Not that he couldn't have grabbed him by the neck and shook him to death, Buddy was a patient host and only asserted his alpha-dogness on walks. Hey, one can only be so polite.

Poor Multi usually gets the brunt of Max's mischievousness but he does fight back when he's had enough but more than once Max would sneak up on Multi and pounce on him like the attack animal he is. Multi is content to let Max run amok while he finds a human to lay upon.

Sometimes, when I have to find someone to stay with Buddy while we vacation I think about not having the responsibility of a dog and then I think of all the doggy friends we've had over the years. I can't ever imagine not having an animal around; they ask so little and give so much.

The Bark Brothers were here an-all-to-quick twelve days and we miss them now they are back home. Dogs are a lot of work, worry, and responsibility but they are so worth it when they lick your nose. I mean that IS unconditional love, would you lick someone's nose?

The Gypsy Caravan is on it's way; again

Cat, Sister and Brother-in-law took off down the road for their next adventure. Always sad at their parting but I know, when they settle, it will be closer than Florida. We are all happy about that.

Their next stop is heading north to Sequoia and beyond so they needed an early morning departure. I envy them their adventure for I think I've a bit of gypsy in my bones, too.

No, we didn't swap trucks, this is darling husband being funny with his truck when we camped together at the beach. While parked under their fifth-wheel it did get some odd looks.

The beach camping trip, albeit short, was great fun. Buddy dog enjoyed watching the abundance of squirrels and rabbits in our area. Amazed at how many there were but I never noticed any natural predators and they were very good at stealing Buddy's dog food so they adapted to us humans.

A sad passing

My sister's darling Buddy-cat has passed away. I'll let you read about him but he will leave a whole in their heart for sure. We loved you, Buddy.

Buddy, the fashionista

The hundred-year-old dog wasn't happy to get his photo taken after his haircut. He looks marvelous but as you can see by the tail placement he's not thrilled. He seemed to be afraid of the camera in my hand. New for the old dog.

What I was trying to show is how young he looks with his hair short. Must make an appointment for me.

Camera captures the past

We didn't take any photos when we adopted Buddy, our wire-haired terrorist but this snap really tells his story. Lil Bird found him at a local pet store adoption day and I believe this was what he was doing. Little did we know.

Honestly, Buddy has turned out to be a great friend and we wouldn't know what to do without him.



see more dog pictures

Cool ocean breeze makes life worth living

We've been away camping, again so blogging takes a far back seat. Someday I might get a laptop and post from where ever but until them the blog takes a bit of a hiatus from time to time. We have a few campgrounds to choose from but we knew it might be difficult to find a spot. It's been hot here in town and that usually drives the peasants to the shore and this peasant was feeling the heat and wanted to get to the beach.

We decided Monday morning would be our best bet and though our first choice, Faria, was full we found more open spaces at a camp ground called Hobson. It's tucked into the end of the Rincon and the beginning of some private residences with a few dry camp spot and about a dozen ones with full hook-ups. We took a dry camp by the water, well rocks actually because there is a berm built of big rocks between most of the spots and the surf. The view is only visible if you climb up on a rock or two bit you can find a few flat ones to put a beach chair.

The photo is looking south about five in the afternoon with a bit of fog drifting in. Other than that we experienced wonderful weather. The nights were great. Clear skies that were dark enough to see the Milky Way if you were up late. I get such a kick out of that each time we are there and am lucky to have a bladder that wake me around two in the morning for my own private show.

We did have some interesting neighbors this time. A family with three teen aged boys and three younger girls and a truck full of surf boards arrived after we'd set up. While they unloaded, we are so close we could have helped, I couldn't help but notice the mother unloaded what I thought was a little puppy. No, it was a little piggy. Lilly, a 10 month-old pot-bellied pig, was quite a surprise at the beach. Buddy the dog wasn't aggressive but very interested in the noises she made. When I asked why a pig for a pet the father said, "Well, we had one before." I didn't go any further with that line of questioning.

The little porker was kept in a dog carrier and evidently didn't get out much because by the morning it was covered with flies. Nice neighbors to have. Lucky for us they found a better space the next morning and left. Pig, kids, and surfboards were thrown into the trailer and truck and off they went. They forget to take the flies.


Going home we were driving into the sun and that makes it tough on Buddy. He usually gets on the floor of the truck but it was pretty hot and couldn't find the right place. After he'd gone back and forth enough to make me scream I plopped my cap on his head to shade his eyes. Bingo! That is what he was looking for and wore my cap the rest of the way home. When you're pulling a teardrop trailer with a dog wearing a baseball hat you get looks.

It was back to the real-hot world on Wednesday morning. Sad that it has to end but knowing school will be back in session soon and we then can take the 5th wheel up to the Rincon, again.

Doggie Disguise

Some breeds of dogs get a bad rap and this website seems to have the answer. Have a dog that people are afraid of? Just get a Doggie Disguise and be done with the fearful looks from strangers on the street. Who thinks of this stuff?

Our own darling Buddy has a new disguise of his own. We think he looks handsome and quite a bit younger with his summer buzz. It was a miscommunication with the groomer but he'll be back to furry-Buddy by Christmas.

Grandma what big paws you have

The better to eat you with my dear.

Yikes, we saw these mountain lion tracks on our hike to Mt McCoy this morning. As reference they are about five inches long. Our naturalist said it was a big cat because of the depth of the claw prints. Bobcats don't walk with their claws extended. This was less than 100 yards from a housing tract and only a few feet from the trailhead. "Oh honey, have you seen the dog lately the dog?"

The weather was cloudy but there was still quite a view from Mt McCoy 500-600 feet above Simi Valley. From the ridge you can see the Reagan Library and, I'm sure, on a clearer day the Pacific ocean. We took our terrier Buddy and even though it was less than three miles round trip he was pooped out by the end and ready for a nap.

The naturalist, Mike was great. He called himself a greyhound which I took to mean we were in for a quick trip to the top but not at all; he stops at every bush. We saw so many wild flowers but this is just the start of the season so I'm looking forward to next weekend. If you want check out my Shutterfly there are a few more pix from the trip including Dan and Buddy at the top. Of course I was there, who'd ya think took the picture!

Baby it's cold inside

Our darling Buddy was cold this morning and I can't say I blame him.



Though I did get him to at least poke his nose out to say Happy New Year!

Let's all be more like the pig

So many are glad 2009 is over. I can't say it's been a great year but it did have some positives. Of course, with anything, there were bad times. Today I'm thinking of the good ones.

My beloved has had another Cancer-free year. My friends are healthy with a few beating Cancer, a few not so lucky. Lil bird's husband is unemployed but I have hope for great things plus I promised to teach him to cook while he's off work. We had a great Christmas. My darling sister and husband lost their long-time friend, Buddy-Cat but after the pain the memories become all that much brighter. Now, they're making an acquaintance with a new guy, Mr Bogart. She swears he'll grow into his ears. We are planning to travel more this year and I didn't brake any bones in 2009.

We live a simple life so life is good for us. I hope you can look toward the future and see the bright spots coming. Remember: Pigs can't look behind them to see the past.