NEW PUPPY? Some Helpful Tips.....by Debra of Sleepy Cat Designs

Hopefully a lot of puppies and dogs of all ages were adopted during National Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog month in October all over the country. For those who adopted a puppy recently, here are some helpful tips directly from the Hill’s Pet Nutrition Website (http://www.hillspet.com/index.html):

Puppy Proofing Your Home - Playful and intelligent, puppies investigate objects by touching, chewing and tasting them. Growing puppies love to explore, but need protection from household items that are dangerous if swallowed.

Dangerous Items to Keep Away From Your Puppy:

String, ribbon, yarn, sewing supplies and other small household items.

Paper clips, erasers, staples, rubber bands, plastic bags and twist ties.

Coins, small board game pieces, fragile keepsakes and ornaments.

Medication, vitamins, pill bottles, dental floss, razors and cotton balls.

Household and automotive chemicals ("pet-safe" antifreeze is available).

Toxic houseplants, including philodendron, mistletoe and poinsettia.

Toxic garden plants, including lily, azalea, daffodil, tomato and hydrangea.

More Ways to Keep Your Puppy Safe:

Provide pet-safe puppy toys to keep your puppy occupied.

Use covered trashcans in your house and garage.

Keep kitchen countertops clean and clear of food items to reduce temptation.

Store household chemicals and poisons in a locked cabinet.

Keep toilet lids down so your puppy can't fall in or drink from the bowl.

Keep electrical cords and wires out of sight or secured to walls.

Secure dangling blind and curtain cords out of reach.

In winter, rinse your dog's paws with warm water and towel-dry after outings to rinse off snow and melting chemicals that irritate the footpads and mouth.

Keep your dog indoors and safe from extreme weather conditions year-round.

Submitted by Debra of Sleepy Cat Designs, an online shop dedicated to all things feline, especially fabric safety collars which are comfortable, unique, and  affordable.

Sophie - Who Rescued Who?...........................by Mona of 3 Peeps Designs

I used to be one of those people that believed the negative press about pit bulls. That changed about 4 years ago when I helped convince my mom to rescue and keep a pit bull. This beautiful dog showed up at the empty lot across the street from my parents’ house about a week after they had to put their beloved Phantom (a beautiful Akita) to sleep. She's now called Sophie, and she is an amazing brindle pit bull with the deep, soulful eyes of a survivor and the playful temperament of a kid.

Having heard all of the negative stereotypes in the media about pit bulls, we were all a bit scared of her, well, everyone except for my dad (he’s never met a dog he didn’t like.) Anyway, we had no problem feeding her, but the thought of bringing her into our homes was a little scary. For me, it was because I had 2 kids, 3 cats, and a dog and I didn't want anything happening to them. My mother was against it because of the media’s negative hype about this breed and because of the recent loss of her dog. Well, after 2 days of feeding this little girl I started doing my research into the breed because I wanted to save her. I passed along every scrap of information to my mother in order to convince her to accept this girl into her home.

I wondered how this pitiful dog, who was so thin and hungry could be the mean, man-killing dog that the press portrayed. She was too shy and too scared. She didn't give off “bad or scary” vibes. Watching her sit and cry while she waited for me to put the food down and walk away, I just never got the impression that she would jump me and try to have me for dinner.  I've encountered some dogs that were like that and I've learned to trust my instincts. So, I did my best to convince my mom that Sophie wasn't a killer dog, in fact, she had more love and affection to share than most dogs that we have ever known.

(Miss Sophie Nov. 2007 about a month before giving birth)

I think it took about a week to get Sophie to cross the street and come to my parents fenced-in yard. During that time, we spent fed her several times a day, put water out for her, and spent extra time in the front yard so that she could get used to seeing us and get used to our voices and the noise we made. Anyway, my parents really didn’t have much choice in bringing her over because the owners of the empty lot were set to start building and my mom didn’t want anything happening to this dog (she was already getting attached to this homeless pup :-) during construction. My dad welcomed her with open arms, but I knew it was my mom that we had to convince to accept her because she was the one who was home all day.

When Sophie first came to live with them, she was scared of everything! She loved the kids and trusted us women, the guys had to work harder to win her trust. She would eat most of her food and then bury the rest in case she didn’t get more food. For quite a while my mom would find surprises in her garden that belonged to Sophie. When they were able to get her to go into the house, well, it didn’t last long. She ended up running through the sliding screen door (luckily the glass slider was open) when she heard the toilet flush! It was obvious she had never been inside of a house before. She really needed to get used to the normal sounds that go on inside of a house. We tried to get her to use a crate, but she seemed to be a bit claustrophobic and wouldn't use it. Eventually, though, she decided she liked the house and started spending more and more time inside.

She quickly put on weight and started looking healthy and then she kept gaining weight. Yup, you guessed it, she was pregnant! While she was getting used to all of us and living indoors, my husband and I put up signs to try to find her owners. I have to admit, we didn’t try too hard because of how scared and timid she was, combined with some suspicious old scarring on her body. Luckily for us, no one claimed her.

While preparing for the birth of the puppies we did a lot of research – what to expect when your dog is expecting! We'd only ever experienced the birth of kittens and judging by the size of Sophie, these were going to be considerably larger than the kittens. We stocked up on supplies: blankets (lots and lots of blankets,) toys, pee pads, and food. My mother introduced vitamins and other nutritious food into her diet to improve her health and get her ready for the impending birth of her puppies.

Our Christmas gift that year was ten beautiful puppies! Sophie had no problem accepting our help with the deliveries. Nine of the puppies were big and healthy and one was a lot smaller and in need of some extra help. My husband and I ended up at Walmart at 3am buying puppy formula and bottles. My parents wrote down the birth time of every puppy, printed up a plan for their development and learning, and my mother became a gourmet cook for the puppies once they were old enough to eat food. They even charted the weight of every puppy on a weekly basis!

(The perfect litter of 10)

The puppies took over the garage: my dad built a huge wooden playpen to keep them in when they weren’t in the house or outside playing. My kids and I were there everyday to help with playtime, feedings (including bottle feeding the runt until she was big enough to want to eat with the rest of the litter,) and cleanup. My sister visited and ended up staying for a few weeks to help out as well. It seemed we were constantly buying dog food, vegetables, baby rice, goat’s milk (to supplement the runt’s feedings) and pee pads. It was a great time, but a lot of work. And as it turns out, it was the best way to pick out a puppy!

We really hadn’t planned on getting another dog, but how could we not? I fell in love with Sophie and all of her puppies. Being there every day enabled me to learn all of their different personalities and pick out the perfect little boy for us - my Charlie! My parents kept the runt, Piper. My sister and her husband ended up adopting a head-strong little girl and named her Pebbles. And we found wonderful homes for the remaining 7 puppies, even keeping in touch with a couple of the adopters.  We were very lucky to have a relatively easy time in finding these pit bull mixes good homes (even though we cried every time one left the pack.)  I really believe it had a lot to do with my parents raising them like they were top of the line, pure bred puppies.

(Charlie, Pebbles, and Piper – Sophie's kids Nov. 2010)

A few weeks after the puppies went to their new homes, Sophie finally allowed my dad to put her into the car and took her first ride. Shortly after that, he took her to the vet and the vet checked for a micro-chip and didn’t find one. The vet gave her a full check-up, she received her vaccinations, and had blood work done. The blood work ended up showing that she had heartworms. That was really scary news, but thank goodness the treatment worked. She was also spayed.

I can’t believe it’s been almost 4 years since she came into our lives! Sophie has come a long way. She only has a few quirks now and we figure it’s from her life on the streets and the way people treated her. She now lives a safe and comfortably spoiled life with her daughter, Piper. How many dogs do you know that get their own tiny bowl of ice cream every night? 

(5 dogs taking over the living room)

Submitted by Mona of 3 Peeps Designs where her love of animals is clearly seen in the intricate and lovely beaded jewelry designs she makes by hand. Mona is one of many CFA Guild artisans participating in the promotion this week where 10% of each purchase using the coupon found here will be donated to the Close to Home Animal Rescue Group in Ohio/Pennsylvania. Read all about it by clicking on the box below as well.

You’re Never Too Old......................By Kathryn A. Gainard

Ahhh, the sweet smell of puppy breath. The awkward pitter-patter of oversized tootsies on the floor—paws still a little too big to fit the body. The huge, innocent eyes looking up to you amidst a lake of happy accidents and drenched newspaper. The tenacious destruction of every cute pair of shoes in the house. The relentless, mournful whimpering during crate training that seems to pass from hour to ungodly hour. Ahhh, yes. Puppies. Not to say that the joys of puppy-dom aren’t immense. If you could bottle up the cuteness and sell it you’d be a millionaire. But why the fascination with baby animals? Especially at shelters and rescues. Dogs older than two years have an incredibly difficult time finding homes… and sadly, it gets harder with every year. But why?

 (From  http://www.office.microsoft.com/)

When you consider the day-to-day rush people go through between work and family and school and yada yada, it’s a wonder more older dogs aren’t adopted first. With an older pup, and I’m only talking two years old and up here, they’re more mellow. They’ve come into their own and have their personality figured out. Shelters will know if the dog likes children or other pets. If it’s a lap baby or an at-your-feet napper. These are lovely things to know for someone who wants to jump right into the loving, and bypass the puppy nuttiness.

Another big bonus is that nearly 100 percent of the older dogs are house trained. Ready to be left alone in your house… trusted with your new carpet and couch. A nice trait for someone who has a lack of patience or time to be able to properly train a wiggly-butt puppy.

They’ve sewn their wild oats and are ready for laid back lovin’…many of them have already had owners and have excellent manners. Some know tricks, if you’re into the Rin Tin Tin thing, and many are already crate and leash trained. Just add love and you’re set.

The simple fact of the matter is that we have pets for companionship and friendship. A loving face to start that day with. A friendly embrace to greet us home. A couch buddy to snuggle with. An unconditional friend that will always be there, ‘til the end. And because of this, I wonder how age makes a difference. I’ve never seen a dog in a shelter, of any age, that’s not hopefully searching for that glimmer of recognition on the face of the adopters. For the chance that they may have found a home of their own. The chance to know a warm bed and kind hand. The chance to give their heart and dedication to their human.

And I know that there isn’t an age that exists in any species where love isn’t something we’re all striving to give and receive.

Submitted by Kate of A Dying Art Co. on ArtFire where you can find many of her creative projects for people and pets, as well as her website: ADyingArtCompanyLtd.com. Kate is a very active volunteer with the Crafting for Animals Guild and uses her talents generously to help the guild in every way she possibly can.

She is one of many members participating in the coupon week from 10/23 through 10/29 to help raise funds for the Close to Home Animal Rescue group in Ohio/Pennsylvania, the spotlight charity for CFA Guild during October in honor of National Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog Month. Read all about the promotion HERE, and get the coupon code so you can shop with Kate and the other guild artisans during that week.

Scamp's Rescue Story..................by Lisa of OBX Puparazzi

An acquaintance of ours had a lab mix dog that had a litter of puppies, and we got to take a peek at them while visiting.  At the time, the puppies were 2 weeks old, and one seemed to have some trouble with a hind leg.  I pointed it out to the owner, who assured me they would have the pup checked out.

When we stopped by a week later, I peeked in at the pups again.  The one with the injured hind leg was now just a fur covered skeleton, unable to compete with her siblings for food.  The owner told me that she was getting better and trying to put weight on her leg.  After a quick consult with my husband, we agreed to ask for her.  The owner, who apparently knew nothing about dogs, agreed to us taking the 3-week-old puppy.

Under any other circumstances, we would not have taken the pup away from her mother at such a young age, but we felt that at least we could take her to the vet and end her suffering.  The vet looked at her and told us that there was a good chance, since she was so young, that her leg would heal.  We eagerly agreed to the treatment plan, since it was so much better than what we had been expecting to hear.  The vet put a tiny cast on her leg, and we took the tiny handful home.  

She weighed 1.6 pounds, so she was just a handful.  Too tiny for a collar, we put a hair scrunchie around her neck.  We fed her frequent small meals, watching her blow up like a balloon when she ate, to return to skin and bones by the next meal.  She was a determined little pup, and she started growing again on a regular schedule of around-the-clock meals.  

She wasn’t allowed to put weight on that leg; so she spent most of her time being held or penned in a small laundry basket.  We carried her everywhere with us, and people absolutely adored her.  In total, because of her growing, she had 5 different casts in 6 weeks!

Baby Scamp

About the time she was finally freed from her final cast, we heard from a friend that her former owner couldn’t find a home for the last pup left and intended to abandon her along the highway, feeling that someone would pick her up.  We drove over to his place and told him that Scamp needed a playmate and we’d take her sister.  Dave named the sister Corky, after a dog from his childhood.

Corky was just what Scamp needed, encouraging her to run and exercise her newly healed leg.  Being Labrador mixes, they loved the pond in our yard, using the waterfall like their personal water slide.

While Scamp and Corky were not our first rescued dogs, they have formed the foundation of the current pack at our house, and they are very good at helping us rehabilitate other dogs we foster.

Scamp and Corky

Submitted by: Lisa of OBXPuparazzi, a delightful online boutique full of handmade items for dogs and the people who love them. Lisa is a volunteer with the Crafting for Animals Guild on ArtFire and is participating in the special coupon promotion to raise funds for the guild's spotlight charity, Close to Home Animal Rescue in honor of National Adopt-A-Shelter-Dog month in October. Please check out Lisa's studio and read more about the promotion and get your coupon code HERE.