Stop Chewing on Your Sister... And other useless rants.

Stop barking at me. No, I'm not sharing my beer with you. Did you bother to offer me any of your dog food? No, I'm not sharing my dinner with you. Squirrels are not your friends. Please stop chewing on your sister. If you were a fly on the wall, or either one of my neighbors; these are some of the things that you'd hear yelled in and around my house. Personally I think that I have the worst animals in the world. They are ill mannered,OK maybe that's my fault. They really aren't trained well. I tried; we went to puppy classes. I personally believed that she passed them because they were so damned cute. But if Caesar Milan were to show up at my front door, he'd turn around and go back to Mexico.They are dirty little animals. Again maybe my fault.When it rains, Fiona likes to roll around in the mud like a pig. But if it's not raining,she just rolls around in the dirt and pretends that it's mud. As I sit here trying to type this; Fiona and Buttercup are currently wrestling in the backyard. As they roll around on what is left of my lawn. A thick cloud of dust and dirt surround them while they frolic in what used to be my beautiful back yard. You know that dogs kill grass. I refuse to plant any more grass until they get a job. They are too big to try and wrestle them into the bath tub. And trying to hose them down in the yard would be a fiasco. Just think more mud for Fiona to roll around in. Which leaves wrestling them into the car and dragging off to the groomers. Currently my car is full of dog hair from our last trip to Petmart. Fiona doesn't really care for the car.Unless it just happens to be one of those days that they escaped from our yard and is waiting for me to come pick them up from whatever neighbors yard that they've decided to play hide and seek in. At this point they are both so tired they just want to get in the car and go home. Just to let you know, they're usually up the street or around the corner from the house. Lazy Bitches.

There's Always Room for One More

This is on a bookmark that has been on my refrigerator for years. I don't remember where I got this from. But I believe it was part of a mailing from the Humane Society or the SPCA. Whenever I take the time to read this, I end up crying like a little girl with a skinned knee. Then I have to go and spend some time with Fiona and Buttercup. I have to remind myself,that I  found the room for one more in my heart as well as my home.
I guess this is how the wonderful people at the animal shelters and rescue groups must feel when they come across one of God's creatures that need their help.

I see by his coat he must be a stray, The untidy look gives him away. He's lost his will and is so thin, Hasn't eaten since God knows when. I know as I coax him through the door, There's always room for one more.


The other night in the freezing rain,The little female came again. Matted and soaked,crying in need,
Lost and alone with babies to feed. Her pleading eyes I couldn't ignore,There's always room for one more.


There's a new face on the docks today,Hungry but clean,to our dismay,I stroked her head,her body rippled,
When she got up I saw she was crippled.She started to go,but fell on the floor.There's always room for one more.


There's the poor doggy standing in the rain, I've tried to entice him time and again. One ear is lopsided, the other's been torn, Blind in one eye, lost and forlorn. He's coming now,so I'll open the door. There's always room for one more.


These stories are true, As I've said before, There's always room for one more.

 Now aren't you glad that you opened the door and let them walk all over you. Now go play with your animals. Remind them how special they are. 

The Best Road Trip Ever

I remember it like it was yesterday.

Miko, my beloved German Shepherd /Golden Retriever mix passed away in October 2008 after 14 years together. The months in between were absolutely empty, the house was too quiet and I was heartbroken.

      On December 26,2008, I decided that I would consider looking for another dog. I wasn't sure if I was ready for another dog yet, but I told my self that I would start by just looking on the Internet.

I asked a couple of friends who had recently adopted dogs from the local animal shelter. I was told that their were many dogs that were part pit bull mix available. I have to admit that I wasn't really that interested.  Not that I have anything against pitbulls. And I believe that all dogs need good homes;but I missed Miko. I knew that I would never find another Miko, but one could hope. So started to seriously think about if  were to get another dog what were the characteristics that I would want. Well I wanted another German shepherd/ Golden retriever mix female puppy. Because they were two of the best and most popular breeds of dogs. Because they were not pure bred they were more likely to have less of the health problems that plague their pure bred counterparts. Both breeds make great companion animals, they have good temperament, need LOTS of exercise (just what the doctor ordered) because so do I. I could stand here for days and list why I think that this would be the perfect dog for me. I'm sure you get the point.  So now where do we find one? I also considered a pure bred German shepherd or a golden retriever, I spoke to a lady I had met at the golden retriever rescue group. She told me that "when the time was right, my dog would find me".

      So I spent most of that afternoon on the computer, looking at different sites. I figured that I probably wouldn't find my dog in Maryland. And that I might have to go out of state. Alright, I decided that I would go no more than a 4 hour drive in either direction. I had to be reasonable about this. So after searching and searching on line trying to find a puppy,I figured that I would call it a day. I couldn't find anything except Very expensive pure bred puppies from breeders. Just when I was just about end my search for the day, I decided to change the wording of my goggle search. And then it happened.

I came across the link for the Ashe County Humane Society. I clicked on the link and there she was. Her name was Holly and she looked just like my Miko did when they bought her home 14 years before. I couldn't believe it I found my dog. I couldn't stop crying. Then I scrolled down and saw another puppy,her name was Noelle. All I could think was I had to have one of those puppies.
So, I map-quested directions to Ashe County,North Carolina and realized that It was about 9 hours away from home.  So I sent an email and I called and left a message expressing interest in Holly and Noelle.

Next I called my neighbor to tell her about the puppies, and as luck would have it she and her husband were driving to Charlotte NC that next Saturday. This was a good sign that I was meant to have this puppy.
So then, I rearranged my work schedule so that I could be off. (Actually I "killed off" a relative so that I could get paid for my adventure ) And then we were on our way to North Carolina.  On Tuesday of that week I received a phone call from ACHS asking if I were still interested in the puppies. I told the gentleman that I was and that I was making arrangements to come down and see them and that I was coming all the way from Baltimore Maryland. And to  "Please keep a puppy for me".  So I "killed my sister" and drove to NC to get my puppy. I know it's terrible,but considering that I am an only child, there was not a guilty bone in my body. OK; Do you really think that my job was gonna give me paid time off because I needed a puppy. Duh!  When we finally made it to the Humane Society we found out that they were nice enough to keep both of the puppies for me. But I only wanted one puppy. But they were so adorable. My girlfriend and I were both crying while we were holding Holly and Noelle, I couldn't bear to separate them. It would always be in the back of my mind "What happened to that other puppy?" Would she be loved as much as my girl? Then I remembered the poem that's posted to my fridge "There's Always Room for One More".  It 's true. What 's another bag of dog food ? I 'll have cut down on my extra spending. I guess I'll have to cut out that fancy imported beer and drink domestic. It won't won't kill me. Alright how am I gonna explain this when I get home? Oh well I found my puppies,what difference does it make. My friends and I  got a chance to spend  a little time with the wonderful people at the Ashe County  Humane Society. They are incredible. I remember filling out the application for adoption and there was a question on the application." Where will the dog sleep? "I asked the lady could I write in "where ever the dog wants to sleep to." She told me that they weren't concerned where my dogs would sleep. Anyone who has a professional portrait of their dog riding in a little red sports car in their wallet ,they aren't really that concerned about. They just seemed happy that the lady from Baltimore actually made it to Ashe County and left with her two puppies.

     So it's been over year and a half since we left Ashe County.
What's happened since. Well,Fiona Holly Adams and Buttercup Noelle Adams are doing quite well. They are spoiled rotten. Having two dogs is definitely an experience. I guess it's like having twins with two distinct personalities. Fiona Holly is really laid back. Buttercup Noelle is more dominant. Even though I have a large fenced in back yard,we still walk 3-4 miles a day(in good weather) if not they get restless and try to find a new way to escape. And they are good at escaping, I've become a regular Bob Vila/ Martha Stewart.  If there is a way for them to get out of the yard to chase squirrels they will try to find it. But I'm not having it. I'm not going to let them get the best of me. They love the snow. During the month of February;Baltimore received over 50 inches of snow. They absolutely loved it; but I truly think that they were the only ones. I had to practically drag them in the house. They wanted to spend all day and all night playing in the snow.They love to chase birds,squirrels,foxes, and each other. They both think that they are a lap dogs. I have to admit that trip to Ashe County was the Best Road Trip Ever.