My GOTCHA day!

Yippie, It's my GOTCHA day - that means when my family got me! Actually, it's the 2nd anniversary of my gotcha day -- I was adopted 2 years ago and have had a wonderful life ever since. My previous life wasn't so good, and I didn't stay with anyone for very long -- but I definitely know where I live now!! -> -> -> My mom came to get me from really far away - drove all day from Cincinnati to the rescue foster home in Atlanta where I was staying, and then drove all day the next day to get me home. I'm a very lucky - and a very happy pup!

Too many CATSSSSSSSS

There's entirely too many cats in my house. Actually they're kittens; sometimes as many as 10 or 12 at a time! There's 2 grown up cats that live with me (Chelsea and Punkin-Head Jones - see Catster!) and they're just fine. But lately, my mom started fostering kittens for a rescue group in our area, and I LOVE the furry little critters -- but -- they take too much time away from me. Sometimes I have to go to my bed and pout because mom is feeding them and cleaning up after them and playing with them and giving them medicine -- and I'm not getting any attention at all! --> --> --> And then they want to chew on my ears and lick my face and grab my feet and tail, and climb all over me . . . . I love to play with them, some of it is OK, but not all the time. Sometimes I have to go to my bed and pout because they're just too many and too much to take!

Little White Doggies Everywhere!!!

We just came home from a 1st Annual Cincinnati Eskie Picnic that my Mom helped to plan and coordinate - we were at the park all day and there were 15 or 20 other American Eskimo Dogs who came in from all over. We all had matching bandanas with our names on them because it was hard to tell us apart!!! -> -> -> Everybody had such fun playing games and running around the fenced-in dog park and eating lunch together! Then we played on the playground equipment; the slide and the tunnel and the climbing place and the merry-go-round. I'm so tired, I can't wait to go to bed and sleep really good!

I helped with Katrina Animal Rescue

I let my mom be gone for a really looong time; I had to stay at home with all the cats and my dad. She was off helping rescue animals abandoned and left behind in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. I helped because I was a good doggie while she was gone. But it sure was exciting when she came home!!!

Here's my mom's story:

We spent several days of working/helping with the rescued animals at the Tylertown, Mississippi rescue site/encampment that Best Friends Animal Society has set up there. (About 100 miles north of New Orleans.) It was the most wonderful, miserable, fantastic, awful, incredible week spent with some of the most wonderful, generous, compassionate people -- I'm sure I won't ever be able to forget it.

A friend and I took a u-haul trailer full of donated supplies (a really big thank you to everyone who supported us with donations assistance and/or money - it certainly went to a very good cause.)
Every day, the rescuers (my heroes!) went off into the toxic sludge of New Orleans and each night, they brought in 20, 40, 60 dogs/cats/misc. small pets. Everyone would wake up and gather at the "Ellis Island" area to offload the animals. We would coax them out of their crates, loving and welcoming them even though we were always aware that they may be contaminated from the toxic areas they were rescued from. Some were so scared and traumatized that it just made you cry. Some were emaciated, burned, injured - but a lot of them weren't. They were walked and watered and put back into their crate to await the next day when they could be examined by vets, pictures taken for ID, and grouped into their new temporary pens.

And every day, in horribly hot and humid conditions, amid swarms of bugs, volunteers kept pouring in from all over the country. We fed, watered, walked, poop-scooped, and cared for all the dogs & cats and critters. We cleaned & sanitized mountains of crates so they could be used again for the next day's rescue efforts. We tried to keep from getting heat-stroke by drinking water/Gatorade/juice practically non-stop all day, and hosing each other down with the water hose. (The dogs had to be hosed down a couple times a day - it was just too @#&#@ hot!!!!!) We sorted and organized donated food and supplies. Some of the volunteers prepared sandwiches and sometimes a hot dinner (bless them). The vets and vet-techs worked to vaccinate and micro-chip the animals, and to tend their wounds and illnesses. It was both exhausting and exhilarating.

We cried tears of happiness whenever an animal was reunited with their people. Everyone cheered and teared and took pictures and wished them well - it was the best part of each day!

Then, each night, we'd fall into our sleeping bags and hope to get a few hours of sleep before starting it over again the next day. (It was extremely hard to sleep because of all the barking dogs and nighttime camp activity.) Regardless, my heart is still there with the wonderful volunteers and Best Friends employees who are continuing to take care of those poor, wonderful, and very-lucky-to-be-rescued animals.

PS - I took tons of pictures while I was there - and have them posted at http://community.webshots.com/user/evelynblack Scroll down to the albums titled "Hurricane Katrina".

(More info available at www.BestFriends.org)

Who's been sleepin' in my bed???

What's with this "guest"?? Lil' Foxy Brown has come to visit, be fostered, whatever. I have to be nice to her because she went thru everything awful because of Hurricane Katrina, and my mom brought her back to stay with us for awhile. She gets to eat what I eat, goes for walks with me, sleeps in the bedroom with everybody else, plays with my toys and gets waaay too much attention from my mom. I don't think I like it. Not one little bit. --< --> -->

I do get to play with her, if I feel like it, and she does back off when I tell her to . . . and she is kinda cute . . . but I don't like sharing her with my mom and I'm not too happy with her being here all the time.

Who's been poopin' in my house??

Foxy Brown isn't real smart. She doesn't do very well about only peeing and pooping in the yard; it's embarrassing because I never make the kind of mistakes she does. And she acts like she never gets enough to eat - always wants my food too after she scarfs hers down. Plus, she doesn't know how to walk very well on-leash either, she's always pulling and trying to go the wrong way. I never do that. --> -->
She even BROKE her collar and ran off a couple of times (actually broke two collars and one tie-out). I have never done that - what's the matter with her??

Can't bathe her or even trim her nails

This foster dog is so traumatized that she won't even let my mom bathe her or trim her nails - what's wrong with her? Doesn't she know that those things won't hurt?

She's still here .. .. .. when is she ever going to leave?

That darn foster doggie is still here. Still being trained, and learning how to be a proper house-pet. Still getting her health improved. Still taking waaay too much of my mom's time and attention.

Sascha is solo again

Foxy Brown has gone on to her forever home. She lived with us for over a year, getting healthy, learning to be well mannered and to be a good family member. We'll miss her and we wish her a wonderful new life.

Sascha put up with her, but never really enjoyed her company. And now that she's gone, Sascha doesn't even miss her one little bit!