Eddie the Jack Russell

Here are two pictures of Eddie and me. Eddie is a Jack Russell. The Robeson County (North Carolina) Humane Society discovered him at an area dog pound. He was scheduled for euthanasia because his leg was injured. They thought his leg had been broken but x-rays revealed that he'd been shot.

I adopted him and brought him to a surgeon in Cary, NC, who implanted a metal plate in his leg to help the shattered bone heal. He has made a full recovery and runs and walks to such an extent that you wouldn't even know he'd been injured. (The affected leg is the one that sticks out a bit from the rest of his body.)

Eddie has a special fondness for teeth and he cleans his sisters' teeth every day - a collie named Simone and another Jack Russell mix named Lucy. I draw the line at him cleaning mine.

Eddie loves to ride in a car, and he'd follow me anywhere and everywhere - as long as I am alone. When I take him out to the pet shop or someplace busy, he gets frightened and wants me to carry him - which I always do. I can't say "no" to the little fella.

A Dog Who Sleeps Like a Cat

Each evening, Lucy Lou sleeps on top of the couch at my head. I don't know how she manages to remain up there without falling off, but she never has. When I go to the bedroom, I pick up her and carry her to bed. She barely wakes up and snuggles right away under the covers.



Friday Friends - An Update on Angel

I received quite a few emails about the story of Angel, the collie/ border collie mix who was found half-frozen on Thanksgiving Day with two broken legs. Earlier this week, I received an unexpected visit from Angel and her foster parents. And I have to say, if I didn't already have a houseful of dogs, Angel would not have left.

She is absolutely adorable. Her legs have healed and the only consideration is to keep her from gaining too much weight (bad for anybody's bones) and adopting her into a family in a temperate area, as cold, snow and ice might aggravate the metal pins she has in one leg.

She is about 4-5 months old, and as you can see from the video below, she gets along wonderfully with other dogs. Lucy Loo in particular really enjoyed playing with her. The man in the video is the Assistant Manager at the Robeson County Humane Society, and also along with his wife provide Angel's foster home.

They have already received several applications from folks wanting to adopt her. When she is adopted, I'll be sure to post it.

Friday Friends: I'm Stumped

Lucy gets more than her share of attention. She demands it. She is extremely bright, catches on quickly, and loves to play.

We've had her for about 16 months - close to a year and a half. She was more difficult to house train than any of our other dogs. But then she seemed to get it. We have three doggie doors that allow her into a fenced back yard that is about half an acre in size, and she can come and go 24 hours a day.

So why has she started urinating on the carpet again?

We did not get any new pets - dogs or cats or anything else other than fish babies who stay in their tank.

Nothing traumatic has happened. No one left for college. No one got married or brought a stranger into the house. No furniture has been moved. I'm so boring I am totally predictable.

She is spayed and is perfectly healthy.

We have a collie (female) who is extremely docile. And a Jack Russell (male) she plays with constantly. Neither of them are having issues.

Any ideas on why a dog will suddenly lose their house training?

Friday Friends

For all the dog lovers who follow this blog, here's a list of things that are toxic to dogs:

1. Chocolate

2. Grapes and raisins

3. Sugar-free gum or candy and food containing xylitol

4. Fatty table scraps (bet you didn't know that one!)

5. Onions

6. Compost

7. Macadamia nuts

8. Household cleaners

9. Antifreeze

10. Unbaked bread dough or cookie dough

11. Alcohol

And of course, never give your dog human medications unless prescribed by a veterinarian. Even with those that dogs can take, the dosage is entirely different.

Friday Friends

While I am working with the angelfish and writing my suspense/thrillers, I am surrounded by four rescue dogs.

The oldest is Mattie. She is a foxhound and specifically a Treeing Walker Coonhound. She and her brother Skipper were adopted through the Richmond, Virginia SPCA. They were seized from a hunting lodge in South Carolina that contains hundreds of malnourished and neglected dogs ranging from a few weeks old to three years old.

Treeing Walker Coonhounds, when kept as hunting dogs, only average a lifespan of two to three years. It's believed this is due to poor nutrition (some hunting lodges feed them only whole chickens, bones and all), no medical attention, being kept on the edge of starving, and forced to run miles during a hunt. It's a horrible life filled with cruelty.

If they are kept in a home, however, even they occasionally hunt with their master, and provided good nutrition, proper medical care and plenty of love and attention, their average lifespan is eight years. This is still very short compared to other breeds. It's believed this could be due to genetics.

Mattie is now 10 years old, ancient for her breed. She has arthritis and a heart murmur. She has good days and bad days. And we all love her!

Friday Friends - Treats

Several years ago when chicken tenders were made for dogs in the USA, a veterinarian suggested that I give those as treats to my dogs instead of treats made primarily of corn starch and preservatives. Chicken is 100% protein, better for the dogs and a healthier treat overall.

But when the chicken tenders began to be made in China, information surfaced that sometimes diseased chickens were being used and dogs in the USA were becoming ill - several even dying.

I didn't want to go back to giving them corn starch treats. Besides, they loved the chicken.

So I bought this dehydrator. It is fun and easy to use and the dogs LOVE the treats!

I used to pay $15.99 for a one-pound bag of chicken tenders. Now I pay $1.77 a pound. I buy boneless chicken breasts and I slice them about 1/6 inch thick. I simply lay the uncooked chicken on the trays - each tray holds roughly 1/2 pound, and there are 4 trays so I can make 2 pounds each time. I plug in the dehydrator, turn it on, and in about 7 hours I have completely natural chicken treats from chickens that were grown in the USA and are certified USDA for human consumption.

They sell jerky seasoning but my dogs don't care if I use it or not. They love the chicken just the way God made it and the dehydrator cooked it.

The gun came with it but I haven't used it yet. If I do, I will probably use ground turkey, which is very inexpensive.

My veterinarian told me another healthy treat for dogs is green beans so I am searching for a recipe I can use to make doggie treats in the dehydrator using green beans.