I'm a FINALIST

Mommy entered me in a contest on Facebook! One of our favorite brands of dog food, Nature's Variety, has a page on Facebook and is holding a testimonial contest. Mommy posted a testimonial about how much the food helped me after I was rescued, and posted my picture. And I got picked for the finals!

If everyone could do us a BIIIIIIG BIG favor and vote for me, Mommy and I would be soooo soo grateful.

All you have to do is look for Nature's Variety on Facebook and become a fan. Then scroll down to my picture - or click here.

Then vote for me by "liking" my story!

THANK YOU!

Happy Thanksgiving

This was my first Thanksgiving with Mommy and Daddy, and I have a lot to be thankful for since I've been living with them this past year.

I'm thankful that Mommy rescued me from my old guardian, and that she decided to keep me and has taken such good care of me. I'm thankful that I have a Daddy who loves me too, and that I never have to be afraid of getting hurt by my family ever again. I'm thankful that I'm much healthier now than I was this time last year, and that now I have parents who make sure I see the vet when I need to. I'm thankful that I'm spayed now, and will never be forced to breed again, and will never have to experience miscarriages or having stillbirths, or my puppies dying which was so sad for me. I'm thankful that Mommy keeps my nails trimmed properly now, and that she has that nail grinder thing so I don't have to get my nails cut the scary way anymore. I'm thankful that I have my brothers and sisters, canine and feline, because even though I didn't like them at first, now we all get along and it's great having playmates. I'm thankful that I always get lots of cuddles and kisses. I'm thankful that I get to sunbathe on the porch when I want, have sweaters and blankets to keep me warm when it's cold, get to go on walks to explore and keep in shape, and have a yard to play in. I'm thankful that I have tasty, healthy food to eat, and that I get lots of treats and chewies. I'm thankful that I have toys to play with and comfy beds to nap in. I'm thankful that I have wonderful friends. I'm thankful that I'm very loved, and that this is my forever home, so I'll never have to worry about being mistreated or unloved ever again.

Home From the Hospital

Thank you everywoof for the prayers. I am home from the hospital now. I'm not feeling too well - I'm very sore and still kinda groggy. The vet had to pull a few of my teeth, and my incision from my spay surgery is very ouchy and sensitive. I'm pretty hungry too, since I couldn't eat the night before surgery, so I haven't eaten anything since yesterday afternoon. Mommy is cooking some boiled chicken and rice for me though and hopefully it won't hurt my mouth too much to eat some of it. Mommy also stopped by the pet store and got some of my favorite canned food for me to eat for the next week or so until I can handle dry food again. I'm glad that my Auntie Lydia, Mommy's animal angel friend, was there to take care of and keep watch over me during my surgery and afterwards. I was very glad to see Mommy though and glad to come home! I'm worn out, so I'm gonna take a nap with Mommy on the couch now.

Surgery

Mommy is about to take me to the vet. I'm having surgery today - I'm getting spayed, and at the same time having a dental cleaning and probably will have to have some teeth removed. Mommy is so worried about me, because I'm a very tiny, fragile girl. If everyone would please keep me in their thoughts and prayers, Mommy and I would really appreciate it.

My Birthday was PAWSOME!

My birthday was the best birthday I've ever had! First, let me say thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday on the forum, through Pmail, and through gifts. It makes me feel so special!

Here at home, I really got the star treatment. Mommy gave me yummy canned rabbit for breakfast. Mommy didn't stick any candles in it, but she did sing me Happy Birthday. Canned food is one of my favorite treats! I also got some Pure Rewards (Wellness treats) which I also love cause they're soft and chewy. Then Mommy gave me my presents! I got two rope chew toys (one is grape flavored and the other is cherry), a big bullystick and a bag of flossies (which I chewed on all afternoon), and a pink plushie puppy.

Both Mommy and Daddy gave me extra lovins all day. Mommy has been sick all weekend, so she spent most of the day resting on the sofa, but I was allowed to lay up there too and snuggled with her. We watched the Puppy Games on Animal Planet last night while Daddy was at work (with the big dogs too).

Then for dinner, I got to have raw beef tips! YUMMY! I was definitely spoiled and pampered all day. I'm so glad I got to celebrate my birthday with my wonderful, loving forever family.

My Birthday

Today is my birthday! At least my observed birthday - today is the day that my old mom T.J. picked to celebrate my birthday. Mommy estimates that I'm about 8 years old today.

This is my first birthday with my new family, so I don't know what they have in store for me and I'm very curious! I hope I get presents and lots of treats!

Mommy's Helper

Today I helped Mommy a lot.

When Mommy cleaned the kitchen counters, I got under her feet to make sure she was ok.

When Mommy did the dishes and put them in the dishwasher, I climbed in to make sure she didn't leave any food on the plates.

When Mommy did laundry, I inspected the piles of clothes before they went in the washer and after they came out of the dryer to make sure nothing went missing.

When Mommy vacuumed the living room floor, I barked at the vacuum to make sure that big noisy thing didn't eat her.

When Mommy swept up all the dust bunnies, I made sure to stand in the middle of them to make sure they wouldn't blow away.

When Mommy brushed all the cat hair off of the sofas, chairs, and cushions, I made sure she didn't miss any before I sat on them and put dog hair on them instead.

When Mommy picked up all the dead bugs from the corners around the front door, I ate the ones she didn't see so they wouldn't still be laying there.

When Mommy sorted all of the dog toys and put them in our toy boxes, I pulled out my favorites to make sure she remembered to set them aside for me.

It's a good thing Mommy has me around to help her. I don't know what she'd do without me!

Heat

The summer heat is unbearable. Mommy can't stand being outside with us for very long during the day, and I can't stand it either. I like to go outside and sunbathe for a little while, and then relax in the shade on the back porch under the fans, but then I just want to come inside and sleep. The heat is exhausting. Mommy has been letting the big girls come inside the house more often too. They've actually been really well behaved and don't jump up on the furniture so I don't have to compete with them for couch-room. Lola does like to steal my favorite toy - my stuffed elephant - but I always scold and yap at her and she gives it back to me quickly.

Speaking of heat, I've gone into *that* kind of heat again as well. I've been more grumpy than usual, and am bleeding a little. Mommy is making me wear those dang denim panties with the pads in them again too - I hate those! But its' better than having to stay in my kennel all the time so I don't bleed on the furniture. Mommy was never able to get me spayed since she adopted me because of my other health complications. Plus Mommy and the vet wanted to wait until I could get my dental surgery done at the same time as well, so I would only have to be put under anesthesia once. Well now I'm ready to get both surgeries done, but now I can't again cause I'm in heat again. Oh well, maybe by the time I'm done with my heat, Mommy will have saved up even more money and will be able to afford my surgeries more comfortably anyhow.

Playing is Actually Pretty Fun...

I've decided that playing with other animals isn't half bad. Mommy actually first caught me trying to play with Stitch for the first time. She thought it was funny, because when she first adopted me, I hated the cats. I would go out of my way to just randomly jump down from the sofa and chase them out of the living room, growling and snapping. Now I've decided that Lola is a pretty good size for me to play with as well. Sometimes she still gets on my nerves, but if I'm in the mood, I will play with her now.

Wrangler and Riley are another story cause they're big enough to step on me and crush me. But maybe one day, if I trust them enough to be gentle with me.

Are you my Daddy?

Hm. I am trying to decide who my Daddy is. Before I came to live with Mommy, when I was still with my old mom T.J., for awhile I didn't have a dad at all. T.J. had been married to my old dad Paul, but he had been gone for quite some time anyway. When Mommy adopted me, she was already living with her friend Bryan. Mommy is married to a man named Robert, so I guess he would be my daddy. But he has been overseas and just got back, and I still haven't even met him yet. Now he and Mommy are getting a divorce anyway. The only father-figure I have in my life is Bryan, so I think he must be my Daddy.

My sisters are also confused, especially Riley and Lola since they never really knew Robert either (Mommy adopted all three of us while he was gone - Riley met him once before he deployed and then lived with him when he was home on R&R for two weeks, and Lola met him for the first time during his R&R too). Wrangler knows Robert the best, but even she hasn't been around him nearly as much as she's been around Mommy. Maybe Bryan would be her step-dad? I'm not sure, this is all confusing. But I have decided to call Bryan my Daddy. So, that's that.