Two Things I Learned This Week

 Did you know that . . .

(1) You should never throw cold water or put a wet towel on the back of an overheated dog?  Instead, first give lukewarm water to drink, then cool the soles of the feet and chest/lower abdomen with a damp towel. Then put the dog in the shade on a damp towel!! (Source: Facebook post by Cathy Moore)

(2 ) Washing clothes in cold water is just as effective as getting them clean with warm or hot water. Also, is cheaper and better for your clothes. (Source: WKYC news on 6/18/23)

Please leave a comment sharing something you learned this week.

"My Second Gotcha Day" by Roxy

before I was adopted--at the shelter

Me Today after Getting My Teeth Brushed

I've been with Karen and Gerard for 2 years now and am six years old.  I've come a long way since I first arrived.  I don't bust through screens anymore.  I can stay home alone without chewing things or getting into trouble.  I do not have to be crated, yay!  I don't jump on the door as often when they come back home.  I usually pass other dogs on the street without tugging on the leash to get to them.  I usually wait for permission before chasing squirrels.  

Today is was very rainy and thunder boomers came during my morning walk, but we took shelter on someone's porch that was very nice and dry.  The lady didn't seem to mind and even offered to drive us home the rest of the way, but we waited it out.  It only rained for about 15 or 20 minutes.  We have lots of nice people that live around us!  Just the other day when we got caught in a rain shower one street away, a lady loaned us her umbrella.  

I had a good "gotcha" day in spite of the rain because Karen and Gerard did not go to play pickleball like they usually do.  I had Gerard all day and Karen most of the day except when she went to the gym.  When she came back, she had ice cream sundaes from McDonald's and I had a Dogster ice cream.  For supper, Karen included a bacon treat as a surprise for me.  

I am happy with my home and so glad they adopted me!  They usually let me have the couch or the chair by the window.  (I do still bark at other dogs that go by and of course, the mailman.)  Oh yeah, and I like my new name better too!  There are still lots of dogs in shelters.  Maybe you could rescue one?  Woof!  Woof!  

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Roxy's 1st Trip to Fernhill Park

Yesterday Roxy spent all day at the vet for her dental cleaning, a couple vaccines and to get microchipped.  It was a good day for it since it mostly rained all day and cleared up for her evening walk.  Anyhow, I felt bad for her so wanted to make it up to her.  Today we took Roxy to the Fernhill picnic area off Snow Road for the first time and boy, did she enjoy it!  It was only 69 degrees so a very good day to go with her there.  She likes cooler weather.

She made this video so she could tell you all about it!  After we got back, it was time for lunch and then she came with us to watch us play Pickleball.  She actually got to watch four others play too who were on the next court.  They were very impressed with her!

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Saturday Morning Relax Time With Roxy

After blow drying Roxy off after our walk in the rain, I rewarded her with a little mom time on the bed together.  Nice to not have to do our grocery shopping this morning since I did it Thursday this week.

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The Corona Virus Restrictions Makes Someone Happy!

Everyone is upset over the Corona virus except our dog, Roxy.  Every time my husband and I leave together, we crate our dog.  She never minded though until last Monday and we cannot figure out why.  We've been crating her since last August twice a week.  We just put in some special treats and she walked right in and settled down.  Since I retired in January, we've been going out more often.  We crated her about 1-2 hours a day, 3 on Sunday while we went to church.  We used to include a busy bone along with some delicious frozen Wolf Wilderness stew until about four weeks ago when we found out she had gained 8 pounds and I discovered the busy bones are really high in calories.  We were giving her them 5-6 times a week but the recommended amount on the bag said only 2 a week for a dog her size.  Oops. 

I think she's realized that she misses these busy bones.  She has been losing weight since we've cut them down to just on Sundays so it's working.  Since our last vet visit 4 weeks ago, she's lost 4 pounds but still has 4 more to go yet to get to the weight she was at when we first got her.

With our church services cancelled, the Sr. Center closed for the rest of this month at least, and the libraries closed to the public, we are spending lots more time at home and haven't gone anywhere together without her.  I did our grocery shopping last night alone to avoid having to crate her today.  We are doing lots of walking including new routes to change things up.  Fortunately, the weather has been in the 30s or better and dry for the most part.  The ice and snow are all gone so I am grateful for that!

Although I am bummed that all our hangouts have closed down, Roxy is thrilled!  Any ideas on how to get her going back in again without the Busy Bones?  We can't really trust her to leave things as they are and not break a window if we leave her out when we go away. 

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My New Home Is Official! by Roxy

Howl!  My two-week adjustment period is officially over today, and Karen bought me an ID tag with my name, phone and address.  I am so happy to have found a good home.



To get your own bed, just keep on lying on your owners' bed every night. Karen bought a nice soft dog bed for me from Walmart.  I tested it right away and it seems quite nice like it will work.  It is a fancy Sertapedic Enhanced Memory Foam couch Pet Bed.  It says the "memory foam blend provides therapeutic support for all dogs and eases discomfort of older dogs with hip dysplasia and arthritis."  Karen thought that since I like lying on the couch and the chair so much, that I would appreciate a soft bed.  

Oh, one more thing:  I surprised Karen yesterday.  Before she and Gerard went outside together for just a short time, only 5-10 minutes, she put me in my den with the popsicle Wolf Wilderness popsicle treat.  I had it all gone by the time she came back inside and she was shocked that I had it finished so quickly.  Now she'll realize give me that does not keep me occupied for long at all when she leaves me alone in my den while they leave.

Karen just added a new playlist to her YouTube channel for me:  Roxy Rocks. 

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My First Trip to See Pickleball by Roxy

Today, Karen was off work and her and Gerard took me along with them to Elmwood Park in Independence where they play Pickleball.  I was not interested in the game at all, but I sure enjoyed meeting their friends who said I was a gorgeous dog.  One guy (Bob) said I reminded him of his first dog, a Husky/Shepherd mix.  Gerard and Karen took turns playing while one stayed with me.  Bob volunteered to walk me around too so Karen and Gerard could both play at the same time!  I loved walking around such a pretty wide open place.

While walking with Karen, we found a nice big bowl right by a drinking fountain near the ball fields that I got a drink from.  We also found a poop bag box so Karen pulled out a couple just in case, but I didn't have to make poopers while I was there.  It was a very nice day, sunny with a gentle breeze and only around 70 degrees the whole time I was there.  Part of the time I just sat near the bench getting pet up by different people and some of the time I laid in the shade near the picnic bench.

I saw a big field with a fence all around it and some dogs were running around inside.  I sure hope one day I'll be able to do that!  It's a very pretty park as you can see from these pics Karen took as we were leaving.

Gerard and Roxy heading back to the car

Fence is around the ballfield and some let their dogs run loose inside.

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Dog Fashion Show by Parma Animal Shelter

Today we went to Honey Hut to use Gerard's gift certificate and then on to Veterans Memorial Park to see the Parma Animal Shelter's dog fashion show.  It was fun seeing all the different dogs and they included their shelter dogs in the hope of getting some adopted.  We saw several that we liked but the one we liked the most they couldn't tell us anything about because they just got him and he wasn't vetted yet.  He is black and white (like our cat) and his name was Walker--I'm thinking because he must like to walk.  He is the last one in the video.  (There were even more dogs I would have taken pictures of, but unfortunately, my battery ran out.  Boo.)

It was very hot in the sun though and I felt bad for the dogs who were dressed up.  I seriously doubt if any of them wanted those clothes on.  Some were really cute though and at least there was a nice breeze.  I couldn't help thinking about our wonderful dog, Abby, and wishing she was with us.  I know exactly what she would have done.  First off, we would not have dressed her up other than maybe have a kerchief around her neck, but I know she would have sniffed out that big treat jar that was just sitting unguarded at the beginning of the runway.  She was such a smart dog!

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Dog Gone Fun at the Cleveland Zoo

Last Saturday, we saw a dog show at the zoo with stunt dogs who were all rescue dogs.  It was so much fun that we went again the next day and this time brought my camera along.  Saturday, I got to pet Confetti, the last dog.   It was very fun seeing the dogs really enjoy doing their stunts and I liked how they got the audience involved as well.

You still can go see it this weekend yet! 

(I apologize for the poor quality of this video but I had to use the email save for it to make it small enough to upload to my blog.)  

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National Dog Walking Day

This is one of Abby's favorite days--National Dog Walking Day! Our do loves to go for walks in all kinds of weather and my husband is very good about picking up her poop. He always brings along an extra bag just in case because sometimes she poops more than once during her walk. What is very nasty though is when people do not pick up their dogs poop and leave it for others to step in, other animals to eat it or just being ugly to look at. It is especially inconsiderate to not clean it up when it's in someone's yard! You can go to dogscantflush.org to get a small free yard sign to remind your neighbors that they need to clean up after their dog, especially in your yard.  So be responsible and enjoy your dog walk and let others enjoy it too by picking up the poop.

Abby approves this message, Woof!  Woof!  By doing this, more people will enjoy dogs.

This way, dad.

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Happy National Dog Day All!

 Today is National dog day, Woof!  Woof!  I am so happy that I have a great home and both my mom and dad are home with me this week.  I am a happy dog. 

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Now I'm Excited About The Browns This Year!

The Browns announced today that they will have a live dog lead the team on the field.  I am so happy that they finally are going to have a real dog for a mascot.  It's name is "Swagger" and it is a bull mastiff.  Looks like a pretty sad dog, don't you think?

Source:  Bleacherreport.com
Read all about it here:  Real Animal to Lead Browns Onto Field 

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Happy St. Patrick's Day

Got my green on today, what about you?

 Joining in with AWW Mondays.

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I'll Never Tell by Abby Dabby Doo (Monday Mischief)

 When it's is very cold out, my mom puts this pretty jacket on me.

To make sure it stays on, she puts my harness on top of it so not only is the velcro fastened, but the harness helps hold it in place too!

That's why my mom couldn't believe it when my dad came in from our walk carrying my jacket in his hand!  Ha, ha, I managed to take it off.  It just wasn't that cold to me.  I good magician never tells how he does his tricks.  Mom must have asked me at least six times how I got out of it but I wouldn't tell.  Then she tried tricking me by asking if I would do a video showing other dogs how to do it, but I did not fall for that.

Face it mom, sometimes I am smarter than you.  Most days my fur keeps me warm enough.  Woo Hoo!

Joining Monday Mischief and Aww Mondays.

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What Our Pets Think of "Cats Stealing Dog Beds"

Once again, a video proving that cats rule: Check out this cute funny compilation of cats stealing dog beds at Paw Bonito or the original post at HuffingtonPost.com (I tried to embed it, but it didn't work, sorry.  It's really worth watching for a laugh).  My favorites were the dogs pulling the beds in an effort to get the cats off.  I think only one succeeded.

Here's what our pets thought of this video:

Spunky Doodle and Manny:  We think those cats are very brave not running from the barking dogs.  We have to work at developing that quality.  Abby barks so loud though, it hurts our ears!  We think these cats in the video were extremely mischievous!

Abby:  I think those dogs should leave the cats alone and lay on the floor our a couch like I do.  It's perfectly comfortable.  I got a big soft dog bed for Christmas one year and never used it.  

Does your dog use a dog bed?  What did you think of the video?

Joining Monday Mischief, Aww Mondays.

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Aww Monday With Abby and Monday Mischief With Spunky

toweling off after my walk in the rain

This morning when I tried calling in my refill prescription, Spunky Doodle came walking on the phone covering the keys so I had to start all over.  Then, when I hung up, she actually pushed the receiver off with her head, doing a head bump!  After initially being annoyed, I went for the camera realizing it would make a perfect Monday Mischief post, but Spunky Doodle had her own idea of what mischief to use:

I don't want to do it again, mom!

I refuse to do it again, I'm done and away I go!

She can be so stubborn sometimes!

Joining up with AWW Mondays and Monday Mischief.


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AWW Monday

Belly Rubs Are Best!

Join in AWW mondays with a picture that makes you say "AWWW."

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I'm So Pretty, Oh So Pretty (by Abby)

Abby Dabby Doo Happy to be Home after Her Spa Day

I had my spa day Saturday and got all washed, rinsed, dried, perfumed, and even my nails were clipped. I dread going though as you can see in this video that my dad thought would be funny.


Once I actually get going though, it's really not so bad. My mom likes how much softer my fur feels now and that she can pet me up without get a handful of fur. She used to be able to pull chunks right off me but not now. She doesn't complain about it though because she is just so happy my fur all grew back from after my surgery when I was attacked. I especially like my patriotic scarf. It was a hot day so the bath actually felt good! If you want to see me actually being groomed here is the longer version.


My mom and dad both stayed and watched me the whole time. That's one reason that they like Bartels and Busack Pet Hospital Resort and Spa--because they treat the people nice too! Even though it's a bit scary, I recommend my dog friends visit a spa near you and get gussied up like me! Woof! Woof!

Joining in with Monday Mischief.


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Aww Mondays: Cute Puppy

I went to the Ralph J. Perk park in downtown Cleveland on my lunch hour to read The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau, but found myself smiling and taking pictures of this cute little puppy instead:

Aw, do I have to climb this big hill?

Going down the hill

Hey mom, what's over there?

A great day to frolic in the grass!

I love seeing animals during my work day!  It's the best stress reliever there is!

Joining up with Aww Mondays.

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Aww Monday: Soaked!

Our wet dog, Abby Dabby Doo

We all got soaked on Friday when it poured down rain around 5:00.  Gerard and Abby were on their walk (without a raincoat) and I just got out of work and had a farther walk than normal to the bus stop due to the Captain America moving being filmed in downtown Cleveland which means certain streets are blocked off.  Fortunately, I at least had a lightweight plastic poncho at my desk in case of rain emergencies such as this.  My L.L. Bean waterproof shoes kept my feet and socks dry so just my baseball cap and pants got soaked.  It could have been much worse.  I got home about an hour later than usual.

Smelly Harness--Yuck!

Abby's harness got so wet it smelled like wet dog even two days later--I didn't even let her wear it when we visited the nursing home, it stunk so bad!  We had a brand new collar that we used instead and put the harness on the porch to air it out and dry it off.  P. U. 

Abby's heart color

 

When we were walking back from the drugstore with her, Gerard was trying to pull her the way we wanted to go and it slipped right off her head!  She's such a good girl, she just stayed still while I made it tighter and put it back on. 




 Joining Aww Mondays and Monday Mischief hops.

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