Smiling Dog Farms: July 2008

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Technical Difficulties...

To those of you who have been such loyal readers of our blog, I want to express my sincerest apology for the lack of postings this past week. We are experiencing technical difficulties getting the photos into the computer.

Ricky and I have been in Galveston, Texas working on a property we need to finish and get on the market so we can sell it -- and have some money to use for the dogs!!

But our computer in Galveston was manufactured during the Truman Administration, I think, and when we are finished using it, the Smithsonian has requested that we donate it to them.

Ricky is working every day to try to figure out a way to crack the ancient computer's code and get our data and photos implanted into its senescent memory.

I understand the importance of regularly posting new stories to our blog, and I would ask you to bear with us while we work through this glitch!

Thank you for your patience!

Jay

Monday, July 28, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Millicent and Her Babies Make History!

This is Millicent and her two beautiful babies. Millicent is in the top photo, looking pensively from the door of her cottage. Her two babies are below her. Their daddy was a traveling salesman, and from the looks of it, it seems like he was a wire haired terrier!

Millicent came to us about a year ago from the local Animal Shelter in Wharton. She had been picked up, roaming the streets of Wharton and no one had claimed her. If she had not come to live at our farm, she would have been euthanized.

When Millicent arrived, she did not "show" and we had no idea she was carrying puppies, until one day we heard the tell-tale cries of babies coming from inside her cottage! She had two beautiful baby girls, neither of whom really resembles Millicent!

Millicent and the girls are going to make history for us at Smiling Dog Farms by being the very first babies to travel north to Dallas to be placed for adoption! Next weekend, they will be transported to Kimberly Fairchild, who founded Shelter2Rescue and who is doing adoptions for Smiling Dog Farms in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

They will hitch a ride with Mary Griffin, an independent rescuer who is also doing adoptions for Smilng Dog Farms in the Houston area. Mary will take them as far as Centerville (sort of in the center, between Houston and Dallas) where she will meet Kim, who will take them to their new temporary home.

Millicent and her girls will live with Kim or one of her foster families until they are ready to be placed for adoption. Kim and her fosters will help Millicent and the girls learn how to behave properly, so that they will succeed in adoptive homes. I am betting that Millicent will need little coaching. She is a quiet, introspective girl who always tries to please.

Her girls are another matter! They race through their play yard, barking and chasing each other, and having a grand time playing. They will benefit from going to "finishing school" I am sure!

All three of our adoption partners -- Kim, Mary and Dodee and Julie -- are very thorough in their screening of prospective families. They do vet checks. And they follow up after the adoption with home visits to make sure things are going as well as they expected. We are very proud to have adoption partners of the quality of these rescuers!

Next Saturday morning, we will be giving everyone baths and getting Millicent and her babies ready for their history-making adventure. We will miss them here at the farm, but we will be happy that they will have the opportunity to have a traditional family where they will live in the house and lay on the sofa watching Oprah!

You go girls!

Jay Hellerich, executive director
smiling dog farms
a 501(c)3 corporation
wharton, texas
979-257-3377
www.smilingdogfarms.org
http://smilingdogfarms.blogspot.com

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Sunday, July 27, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Kirby Is Looking for a Home...

This is Kirby. He came from the Arlington, Texas Shelter, simply because he ran out the clock. It is unfortunate but not uncommon for a dog to end up on a euthanasia list ONLY because he has stayed as long as he can, and the shelter needs his kennel space for another dog.

Kirby was down to the wire, and if we had not brought him here, he would have died.

You can't really tell from these pictures, but Kirby has one blue eye and one brown eye!

Our original idea was to pair Kirby with our Clarice. She looks very similar to Kirby -- same makrkings and colors (except Clarice has some grey fur, as well as tan and white) and same blue/brown eyes. Unfortunately, when Kirby met Clarice, all the hair on his back stood straight up and he growled at her! Subsequently, we have introduced to several other girls, but we have not yet found one to his liking. It may just be that Kirby is destined to be a bachelor.

Kirby is an obvious candidate for our New Directions Adoption Program. He would make a great "only dog" for a family or an older couple. He has no bad habits that would preclude him from being adopted. It is hard to see why Kirby did not get adopted at the shelter, but that is just the luck of the draw sometimes.

We are hoping that Kirby will soon find a family to love him. In the meantime, he is safe here and he seems to be enjoying his play yard and his toys.

Friday, July 25, 2008

Of Hurricanes and Blow Hards...

I am digressing today to talk about Dolly -- not Dolly the dalmatian, but Dolly the hurricane.

Am I the only one noticing that media folk covering hurricanes seem disappointed if the hurricane is not catastrophic? Smiling Dog Farms is located in southeast Texas, and we have a certain vulnerability to hurricanes. If the right hurricane, with the right strength, made landfall at the right place, we could be affected.

But statistically speaking, that is not likely. We are only in danger if all the possibilities line up in just the right configuration. It's like having all the right numbers lined up on your lottery ticket. It happens, but not often.

We started tuning into the Weather Channel on Monday, when we first heard there was a tropical storm in the Gulf. We wanted to know where it was projected to make landfall, and how strong it was. What we got from The Weather Channel was high drama. Monday and Tuesday were filled with non-stop hype... "the winds are up to 40 mph... this could (emphasis mine) develop into a Category One hurricane by the time it reaches land". I will be driving to the grocery store later this afternoon. A diamond-studded meteorite could fall from the heavens land in the back seat of my car. Somehow, I see an analogy.

Throughout the whole Dolly ordeal, the weathercasters were pushing "worst case" scenarios. When the outerbands of the storm began to reach land, the Weather Channel aired their Ace reporter, bracing himself against the wind in his rain gear, leaning forward and speaking in short bursts to catch his breath against the onslought, our hero putting himself in harm's way just so we can see what lots of rain and lots of wind look like -- the same obligatory "set piece" shown for every hurricane, every time!

After the storm blew through South Padre Island, landing as a Category One -- the mildest of hurricane categories -- this same guy actually said -- I am not making this up -- that although it made landfall as a Category One hurricane, it was almost a Category Two. You could just hear the wistfullness in his voice. If only the storm had worked itself up those extra few wind gusts to qualify at the next level.

The cameraman took the lens off our intrepid reporter long enough to show some of the horrific damage from the cataslismic hurricane -- we were there to watch as a streetlight bulb blew out! It was shocking film, all right. And then the reporter opined that this must be the worst hurricane damage to South Padre Island since 1960. Which may certainly be true if this is the only hurricane to make landfall at South Padre Island since 1960.

The truth is that Dolly was a minor hurricane, as hurricane's go. Up until the moments before landfall, its winds were not sufficient to even qualify as a hurricane. It was merely a tropical storm. And yet those of us living in south Texas were barraged by friends and family from other parts of the country, wondering how we were faring in these dangerous times!

The truth was that we never skipped a beat. It barely even rained! Let me also add, here, a "hats off" to our local newspaper, The Wharton Journal Spectator, one of the very few media outlets which did not allow itself to be drawn in by the hurricane hysteria. Their front page article -- not even the main story -- in Wednesday's paper was, Dolly not expected to say 'Hello' to (Wharton) county.

That was the truth. I wish The Weather Channel and their Ace on-the-scene reporter would save their drama for serious weather catastrophies!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Abigail, Fat and Happy

In Memoriam

Abigail

circa 1994 - 2008

Ricky and I are entering a difficult period. Many of the babies who came to live with us in our early days together in New Mexico are now reaching the end of their time. And while they have had long, happy lives, it is never easy to let them go.

So it is with our sweet Abigail. She came to us from the Albuquerque Animal Shelter in 1995. She was full grown, probably a year or so old. She looked like a small black German Shepherd. But she never grew -- well, she never grew taller! We wondered if she had some Schipperke in her.

Abigail was one of those easy going dogs who never complained and never made demands. She loved to be petted and held, but she would never push you for it. She waited patiently and gratefully accepted whatever you gave her. She was a saintly dog.

She was equally magnanimous with other dogs. She never met a dog she did not like and could not get along with. Abigail was part of our large living room group in San Diego, and had many dog friends in her group.

But a few years back when former best pals and yard-mates, Ivy and Emily, had a knock-down, drag-out dog fight, it was Abigail who joined Ivy in the aftermath, so that Ivy would have a friend and would not be alone. Abby was just that kind of girl. She and Ivy lived together right up until we lost Abigail.

(There was actually an intermediate step that did not exactly work out. After separating Ivy and Emily for a couple weeks, allowing their superficial cuts to heal, we had the bright idea that since they had been such good buddies for so long, this fight must have been an aberration of some kind. We were certain they would be ready to kiss and make up. Ricky sat out on the porch holding Ivy, expecting Doug to bring Emily out on a lead and slowly reacquaint the girls. Instead, Doug opened the door, let go of the lead -- and watched in horror as Emily made a bee-line for Ivy, ears and tail in full vertical position! Unfortunately, Ivy was still sitting on Ricky when the battle was engaged. So when Round 2 of the Great Ivy-Emily Grudge Match began, Ricky was underneath an undulating mass of angry, biting dogs! We quickly separated the girls and determined that their relationship was permanently broken. But I am not sure who got the worst of the fight: Ivy or Emily or Ricky!)

Like many of us, as the years wore on, Abigail struggled with her weight. Our vets in New Mexico and California and Arizona would scrutinize Abby and tell us how much overweight she was, and try to frighten us into doing something about her weight. We had observed Abby at meal time, and it never seemed to us that she was overindulging.

Finally, we asked the vet to check her thyroid, knowing that sometimes hypothyroid will result in dogs and people becoming overweight from an underactive metabolism. We were certain the test results would conclude that Abigail had a malfunctioning thyroid, and with some medication, she would be her slim and sexy self once again.

We were wrong. Her thyroid was just fine.

So we did the unthinkable. We limited her food. We bought her special food, the equivalent of "Healthy Choice" with low calories and low sodium that I am certain was just as nasty as the "Healthy Choice" products for humans. We even started taking her for walks, to make sure she was getting exercise. Those walks resulted in a net loss of 5 pounds -- for me!! But nothing for poor Abby.

After a couple months of this regimen, it seemed to Ricky and me that the sparkle was going out in her little eyes. She would look at us so plaintively, as we served her "diet" food and she could see and smell the normal dinners of the other dogs around her. And she wasn't even losing weight!

One day, we could stand it no more. We vowed, like Scarlet O'Hara, that our Abigail would never be hungry again! It just seemed like she was destined to be our plump little girl.

And we figured that if being overweight shaved a few months off her lifespan, at least she would be happy while she was alive. From that day forward, Abby went back to her regular kibble and she got every treat that everyone else ever got. The sparkle returned to her dancing eyes.

Abigail lived with us for 13 years, and we thought she was at least a year old when we met her. So Abby was roughly 14 years old when it was her time to leave us. I don't think her weight affected her lifespan appreciably.

And I know that Abigail was happy, right up to the end. We miss our sweet Abby, but we are grateful that she had a long life with us.

Monday, July 21, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Marty Goes Back to the Future ?

Our dogs don't always come to us in neatly planned moves. Sometimes our dogs just find us, through the chaos of everyday life. Such was the case with Marty.

Two weeks ago, Ricky and I were coming out of our local bank when Marty came galloping up to us, running pell mell across traffic with little thought to the cars braking and swerving around him! He seemed genuinely happy to see us, even though we had never met!

Marty smiled and allowed us to pet him and then hold him, so he would not take off into traffic again. We looked for identification, but found none. His fur around his neck did not look like he had worn a collar.

Yet, Marty was remarkably clean and his teeth were brilliantly white. We were certain he had shinnied through a hole in someone's back yard fence, and his family would no doubt be looking for him. The local newspaper was right next door, so we took Marty inside and introduced him to Helen and Ricki at the Wharton Journal Spectator. The local press usually has their finger on the pulse of small towns like ours, so we figured if someone lost their dog, they would probably call the Journal Spectator.

We went home, took Marty's picture, and then made "Found" posters which we took around town and posted, expecting to hear from Marty's owners right away. But no one has called about him. So it is starting to look like he may be joining our New Directions Adoption Program, if we cannot locate his family! He is a well mannered, loving dog who deserves a family to love him.

Ricky chose the name Marty for him. If you have ever been to Wharton, Texas, you know that one of our town's finest features is our fully restored 1880's vintage courthouse. "The Square" means the piece of ground where the courthouse sits, and generally the businesses which surround it on all four sides, in antique buildings from the same era as the courthouse. (If you have NEVER been to Wharton, Texas, you need to spend a weekend here at one of the bed and breakfasts and just enjoy a leisurely couple of days wandering through the antique stores, visiting our riverfront park and restored train station, as well as sampling some of the great local restaurants here in town!)

Ricky said that when he saw Marty dashing across the street from the courthouse lawn, it reminded him of the 1950s hometown scenes from the movie, Back to the Future. So he named him for the Michael J. Fox character in that film!

Maybe Marty, the dog, has a family back in 1955 and he has somehow, like Marty McFly, crossed the dimensions of time to land in The Future! That's all we can figure, because any contemporary family who had a beautiful, well mannered dog like this would be out scouring the streets of Wharton looking for him!

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Cow on the Blog: Edward is Born

These are baby pictures of Edward, Ruby's new baby. The video below and the photo above were taken just hours after he was born! It is amazing how fully formed and complete cows are when they are born, with eyes open and ready to follow their mommy across the pasture!

Ruby belongs to our friend, Burke, who is moving to Belize. We kept his cows and his horses here at the farm while Burke was making preparations for his move. Ruby has been expecting for a long time, and we have been thinking that she would have her baby anytime for the past couple weeks. Ricky has been going out in the middle of the night to check on Ruby and see if she is in labor, and if she might need some help.

But every time he checked, Ruby was just resting.

She finally had Edward in the early morning hours, all by herself. When we awoke, Edward was by Ruby's side, looking like he had been in the pasture for a month!

Burke is uncertain if Edward will make the trip to Belize. He may be too young for such a long journey, so Burke may leave Edward with us, so that Alma Cow will have a friend. Ricky and I worried that Ruby would be heartbroken if her baby was taken from her, but Burke pointed out how even the first day, Ruby will wander across the pasture, far away from baby Edward with little care or worry! Burke says that mommy cows are not overly attached to their offspring!

So I guess we will see. We would love for Alma Cow to have a friend, but we don't want to make Edward or Ruby sad by separating them.

Meanwhile, we will just enjoy having a new baby in the pasture. We remember when Alma was that size and would ride in the car with us and come into the house! They grow up so fast!

Friday, July 18, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Basha Made Lemonade

Basha

In Memoriam

1990-2005

You know that old saying: "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade". That was Basha's motto, and the words she lived by.

We met this very special girl late in her life. She was 13 years old when she came to live with us. Ricky met her "family" at the Petsmart in San Diego, when we were living there. The woman said she could no longer keep Basha because -- I promise I am not making this up -- "We just built a new house, and Basha is a digger, and we just can't have that."

It gets worse. Turns out they took Basha home when she was only a pup, just 8 weeks old! Basha had lived with these people her entire life! This woman had a little girl, probably about 10 years old -- Basha had been a part of that child's life from birth...

And now the little girl's mom was going to provide a wonderful object lesson for the child: if you become inconvenient or bother us in any way, we will just dump you like an old bag of trash. I can only imagine how the child applied this object lesson to her own sad life in this dysfunctional "family".

Of course, Ricky agreed to take Basha home.

Basha was a beautiful golden lab with wonderfully expressive brown eyes. She was one of those rare dogs who only come along once in a great while -- she appreciated everything you ever did for her... and she got along with people, other dogs, cats, everyone whose path crossed hers. This exceptional girl was an untapped reservoir of unconditional love. How anyone could part with this noble dog is incomprehensible.

For Basha's part, she tried very hard to understand what was happening to her. But for her first month with us, she laid in front of our front door, waiting for her "family" to come back for her.

It is a sad and sorry thing when someone dumps a dog who has lived with them for 13 years. And let me just add right here, she NEVER ONCE dug in our yard!

Labs are pretty sensitive and intelligent dogs, and Basha was probably in the 95th percentile of labs when it came to intelligence and sensitivity. Once she realized that ours was her new home, she stopped pining for her old "family" and made lemonade.

She fit in with what we called "The Living Room Group" in the San Diego house. It was a large group of dogs who got along and all lived in the living room together. Basha became a popular member of her group. When it was their time outside in the yard, she would still race with the younger dogs up and down the yard.

She loved her toys and she loved her treats. Her only vice was that sometimes her exuberance for her treats superseded Miss Manners, and she snatched treats happily, if roughly, from your hands!

Her photo laying on her back shows her in one of her favorite poses. She loved to have her tummy rubbed. When it was her turn to sleep in the bed with us, she would nudge us with her nose if we quit rubbing her tummy too soon!

Her so-called "family"s loss was our gain. We had two amazing years with our sweet Basha.

I remember well the day that Ricky and I both sort of noticed at the same time that Basha seemed to have lost a little weight. It didn't seem serious. We figured she might not be getting her share of the kibble that was always out for them. But after a week or so of watching to be sure she was getting her dinner, and slipping her extra treats that should have helped put back some pounds, she was still getting thin.

We were concerned enough to take her to our vet. It was May, 2005. By then, we were living in Arizona, getting ready to visit Texas to shop for our Texas farm. The doctor did a number of tests, some of which we had to wait to get results.

When the results were all in, we were devastated. Basha had a virulent form of cancer. It had started in her lymph glands, and had spread to her liver and spleen. Because of her age, and the speed and spread of the disease, she was not a candidate for chemotherapy or any other treatment. The prognosis was the worst possible. There was nothing we could do to save her.

Part of Basha's weight loss was due to her lack of appetite. So I threw myself into a rigorous plan to entice her to eat by cooking special things for her. What I learned was that what would entice her to eat one day, might not the next. So I had to stay a step ahead, always planning something different the next day, hoping to pique her interest.

The time came for Ricky and I to leave for Texas. We planned to be gone for two weeks, and we knew Basha did not have two weeks. We got pain meds we could administer, if Basha started to hurt. (At that point, Basha was not hurting and showed no signs of her illness, except for her weight loss.) We put Basha on the back seat of the car and headed out across the desert for Texas.

Ricky and I will always remember that trip -- not because we ultimately purchased our farm, but because it was our farewell to our precious Basha. I remember her sitting up on the back seat so tall and proud, looking out at the changing scenery, as the desert slowly changed to green grass and trees. Basha loved to ride in the car.

At night, she slept in motel beds with us, and in the morning she rolled around in green grass, something she had not seen since we left San Diego! During that whole trip, as sick as she became, she never once had an accident in a motel room.

We looked at farms all over southeast Texas. Basha's smile was always present throughout our journey. When we got to Brazoria County, we stayed at a motel in Lake Jackson. Two nights in a row, we drove down to Freeport and the sandy Gulf beaches. By then, Basha could not walk very well, so we carried her down to the beach, and we sat in the sand together -- Ricky, Basha and me.

Basha was losing her vision. But she could hear the seagulls and the waves crashing, she could smell the surf. Her infectious, warm smile lit up the dusk as we sat by the water with our beautiful lab girl, drawn to the water by instinct and having the misfortune of spending the past year in the Arizona desert. She gave us a knowing look, her special smile, and told us how much she appreciated us carrying her down to the sea.

Basha's last day was a Sunday. We went to church in the morning, and headed out after lunch to look at more properties. Basha was riding in her spot on the back seat, but she was not sitting up. As she lay on the seat, we sensed that her time to leave us was very near. I stopped the car in someone's driveway, so that Ricky and I could both get in the back seat with our Basha and hold her until she finally had to leave us.

It was a bittersweet moment. I was grateful we could hold her, kiss her, tell her how much we loved her and how much she had given us in her short time as part of our family. But it was still hard to let her go.

We took Basha to a vet in Galveston who cremated her. The hand crafted wooden box that contains the earthly remains of our baby girl is still with us and always will be.

It has been three years since we lost Basha, but the pain of her loss never subsides. We were blessed to have had her gentle spirit with us, even if it was only for two short years. We will never forget our Basha.

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Belle's Indomitable Spirit, Even With Heart Disease!

Belle has lived with us for 13 years. She is from Albuquerque. Back in those days, I sold furniture at the La-Z-Boy Showcase and Ricky was a shop teacher for Albuquerque Public Schools.

One Friday I was listening to talk radio in my car, going in to work. A regular Friday feature was "Dog Mom", a volunteer from the Albuquerque Animal Shelter who would talk about dogs waiting for homes. This Friday she was telling Belle's story. Belle had been at the shelter for several months, and was a favorite of the staff. But week in and week out, she was always the bride's maid, never the bride. No one picked Belle to go home with them.

And now she was out of time. The next day, Saturday, would be her last if no one adopted her. There just was not enough space at the shelter, and every week brought a new onslaught of dogs. Every week that Belle was allowed to live meant that some other dog had to die, because there was only so much space at the shelter. It is the sad dilemma of shelters everywhere.

Now Saturday is the BIG day in the furniture business and I had to work. But Ricky was off, so I asked Ricky to please go to the pound and fetch Belle.

Ricky tells of Belle laying listlessly in her crate at the shelter. Nothing like the exuberant girl described by the staff, who had grown to love her. It was as if she knew that she had run out of time and was preparing for her death.

When I got home from work that Saturday, I could not help but laugh out loud. Dog Mom had described Belle as a "beagle mix"! Until that day, I had not realized than Dog Mom must be visually impaired! Belle is all nose. She seems to be a mix of a Shar Pei and a "Spuds McKenzie" dog!

And there was another new dog at our house, as well. Ricky had seen Grizelda at the shelter and she was also marked for death the next day, so he brought her home, too. We just lost our Grizelda about 6 months ago. She was a corgi mix who loved people but was not overly fond of other dogs.

Neither is Belle. It was an interesting ride home from the shelter for Ricky!

Belle has always been full of life and energy. In her heyday, Belle could jump from the floor to the dining room table top in a single, effortless motion. It was like watching a space ship just levitate upward and onto the table! (We tried to dissuade her from that, but we had only limited success in her younger days.)

I remember one day, shortly after she arrived, I was working at the desk when Belle was suddenly at my feet, wanting some attention. I picked her up and was loving on her, when I got to thinking: I don't remember letting her in the house. She is supposed to be out in the courtyard.

When I went to investigate -- thinking maybe she had somehow pushed open the door -- there was a gaping hole in the drywall! Belle had managed to chew through the exterior siding, push aside the insulation, and then chew right through the drywall to get into the house!

Belle had corrective surgery for her eyelids, because like many Shar Peis, she had more eyelid than she could use and it got in the way.

Over the years, Belle has been a wonderfully entertaining baby girl. She has never been able to have a dog-friend, because she just does not like other dogs. But she makes her own fun, playing with her toys and chasing bugs and squirrels. We once built a special yard just for Belle. It was off our bedroom, through a set of french doors. We planted some beautiful flowering bushes all along the perimeter of her yard. Belle dug up every single one!

As she has moved on into her senior years, Belle has slowed down a lot, like most of us do. She can no longer jump onto the table top in a single movement. But she still patrols her yard when she goes outside with her head erect and her tail held high!

A couple months ago, we noticed that she seemed to be getting heavier, but when we picked her up she felt soft and "mushy". So we took her to Dr. Stern to see what was going on and discovered that, like many seniors, her heart is not working like it used to, or like it should. She has an irregular heart beat and fluids were building up in her chest cavity.

She is now on three separate heart medications, just like any other elderly lady. She takes Lasik, Enalapril Maleate, and Vetmedin, all prescribed by Dr. Stern. They have made a big difference in reducing the swelling in her chest and reducing the excess fluid around her heart. Fortunately for us, our good friend Jodie Richards from Dogs on Death Row paid Belle's vet bill and also paid for two months of medications, because Belle's meds are not cheap!

We know that our time with Belle is limited. We don't know how old she was when she came to live with us, but we know we can add 13 to that number to arrive at her age, so she is at least 14, possibly older. Belle lives in the house now, so that she can spend more time with us in her sunset years. We want to be with her when it is her time to leave.

When I look at Belle, I remember that ball of energy that came to live with us so many years ago, and I think about all these years that Belle has lived with such gusto and elan -- years she would have missed if I had not happened to hear that radio program back in 1995.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Dean and Jeanne - Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime...

Dean, left, and Jeanne, right, are an unlikely love story.

Dean came to us from the Animal Shelter in Savannah, Georgia. He was just one more dog who had not been adopted, had run out of time, and was going to be killed to make room for the next wave of dogs overwhelming the shelter. There was no reason to see anything out of the ordinary in little Dean, the tan boy with white boots and the lady-killer smile.

And that is where Dean's story would have ended, if Beanna, a rescuer in the Savannah area, had not stepped in to save Dean and arrange for him to come here to Smiling Dog Farms. He arrived in April with eleven others from his shelter. He needed a friend, and we thought of Jeanne.

Jeanne came to us from Dallas. From a woman who claimed that she had been evicted from her home, and her five dogs were still living at her former house. She assured us that her dogs were wonderfully friendly.

She lied.

The transport was an endurance test. Our friend, Mary Griffin, who drove the dogs from Centerville to Sugarland, had essentially a feral pack in the back of her SUV by the time I met her. We both got bit, just moving the dogs from her vehicle to mine!

I called Ricky on my way back to the farm to say that these dogs would NOT be candidates to live in the house for a while (like most newcomers) and we needed to clear out a yard so they could go directly into a play yard. We brought a group inside who were easy to handle, so that the feral pack could go directly into a yard when I returned to the farm.

We moved the dogs into their play yard by erecting plywood on either side of the station wagon, like a cattle chute. Then we opened the tailgate and just let them run into their new yard. We figured we were all set.

We were wrong.

A few hours later I was shopping at the grocery store when I got a frantic call from Ricky. The new feral pack had managed to break the connectors that hold the fence panels to the posts. They were now roaming the property!

I dropped everything and dashed back to the farm. We called in a worker, and from 10:00 pm until 1:00 am, with only the lights from our vehicles and our tractor to guide us, we managed to get four of the five dogs rounded up and back into their yard. Ricky secured the fence panels with a much heavier gauge wire, and later retrofitted all the yards on the property with same material.

Sadly, the fifth dog would not be corralled. In fact, she escaped down our driveway and the last we saw her, she was heading toward Bay City on Highway 60! It was Jeanne.

We thought there might be a chance she would return to our property to be near her friends. And that is exactly what happened. Within a few days, we spotted her roaming the farm. She would not let us get close. As time went by, she crept closer and closer to us. Soon, she was within 10 feet or so, but still not ready for us to touch her. Then she started biting people's ankles from behind as they walked on the property!

After a couple months of this, Jeanne finally allowed us touch her. At first, it was just a quick touch and then she would run away. But over time, she came to trust us. Finally, she allowed us to hug her and pet her and love all over her. We got her into a yard so that she would be safe, and not be roaming the property any more.

The irony is that Jeanne, the most feral of those dogs, the one who ran away, is now the most gentle, friendly baby of the batch! When we visit Jeanne, she puts her paws up on us and kisses us with wonderful big kisses.

When we introduced Dean to Jeanne, and it was love at first sight! Jeanne adores Dean -- they play together, and nap side by side in their cottage. They stick their heads through the fence panels and bark at the cats together.

The picture above captures their feelings for one another. Jeanne and Dean came from completely different backgrounds, and yet it is as if they have always been together. Theirs is a love that was worth waiting for.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Abandoned Babies...

These three brothers were abandoned in a rural area, not too far from our farm. They were taken in by a couple who came out to our farm and asked if we would take them.

We explained that we would -- but we would really appreciate some donations to help defray the costs of caring for each baby. The couple readily agreed, and said they could get us lots of dog food and that they could get us some round bales of hay for the horses and cows.

We explained about Smiling Dog Partners and how important they are to maintaining our operations. Our partners agree to donate a regular amount every month. Our website has a donations page where they can select an amount for a monthly "subscription", and it will automatically be drafted every month by Paypal, so they don't have to remember to write us a check. Partners can sign up for $10/month, or more if they prefer.

The couple agreed that they would be happy to help us out and would sign up as Partners, if we would just take these puppies.

And so the couple returned next day with the puppies -- and a single bag of dog food. And we have not seen or heard from them since. Which is sad, but not unusual. People often "forget" about their promises to support us, once they unload their dogs and move on.

Fortunately for these three beautiful babies, they are now in a safe place. They are part of our New Directions Adoption program, and we hope to find caring families for each boy.

And while they are lilving here, waiting for their families, they have their play yard to race around in, and chase one another. The brothers are energetic and playful. They give wonderful kisses, too!

In the top photo, they are from left to right Gerald, Edwin and Wilfred. They seem to be beagle/hound mixes. I don't think they will grow to be more than 30-40 lb, if even that. These are happy, gregarious puppies who love to run and want to explore.

If you might be interested in adopting one of these babies, you can email us at Intake@smilingdogfarms.org . I will pass your information on to one of our adoption partners, who will arrange a home study.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Dr. Herschel and Mr. Hyde!

This is Herschel. He came to us from the Texas City Animal Shelter, through the good offices of Tom English, a volunteer at that shelter. Tom has a special place in his heart for Rottweilers, and he saved Herschel from being euthanised.

Herschel is one of those babies who truly belongs here at our farm. He could never be placed for adoption. That is because Herschel has multiple personalities! Well, really, only two -- which makes him the doggie equivalent of The Two Faces of Eve!

What we are seeing in these photos is the good boy, Dr. Herschel. He smiles and wags his tail when he sees you. He will come to meet you at the fence and deliver big, sloppy kisses.

But you must always be watching Herschel's eyes and never allow yourself to get distracted. Because you will see the evil spirit of Mr. Hyde flicker across his eyes, just before Dr. Herschel slips into Mr. Hyde mode -- at which point, smiles and kisses are a distant memory and he will lunge at any part of your body he can grab! It is startling and more than a little disconcerting the first time you witness Herschel change personalities!

As you step back from him and watch him snarl, snap, bark and slobber, in a matter of seconds, you will then see Dr. Herschel reclaim the upper hand, and Herschel will shift back to the good boy with the big smile and be ready to give kisses again! He doesn't seem to remember his Mr. Hyde episodes!

None of us can figure out why Herschel has this split personality. It is just a part of who he is, and I don't think we are likely to change him.

So we enjoy him when he is having his happy, Dr. Herschel moments. And when he slides into Mr. Hyde, we just give him room and let him work his way through it and back to the sweet Dr. Herschel, as he always does.

Herschel will have a place to live out his life in safety, here. Even if he slips into Mr. Hyde and one of us doesn't move fast enough to get out of his way, Herschel will never be penalized if he bites us.

He has neighbors all around him, and he is next to the horse pasture, so he can see the horses galloping by and the donkeys meandering past him as well. The roosters strut by his yard all the time, so Herschel can bark-bark-bark at them. He has lots of stimulation and interesting things to see and bark about!

Because of his personality disorder, he really cannot live inside a house with a family -- because when Dr. Herschel leaves and maniacal Mr. Hyde takes his place, no one would want to be within biting range of Herschel! But even with his idiosyncrasies, Herschel deserves the right to live.

So Herschel has a play yard and a cottage, and he can enjoy his remaining years here on our farm.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Thank You, 5 O'Clock Phlock!

Our good friend, Deana Flak, recently organized a pool party at her house for a group of her pals, who call themselves The 5 O'Clock Phlock. Deana's unique twist was to make it a benefit for Smiling Dog Farms!

Everyone who came to the pool party brought items from our "Wish List" of things we use here at the farm for our babies.

And what a HUGE success it was! We received towels, shampoo for dogs, paper towels, disinfectant cleaners, disinfectant wipes, dog food, hot dogs for administering medications -- and some cash. When I met Deana to pick up the things her friends donated to us, it filled up the entire back of our station wagon! (That is our "dog car"... it is a 1994 Buick Roadmaster station wagon that is almost as long as a 747, and equally wide!) There are so many things that we use around here on a daily basis, and it really helps to have them donated!

Deana also sent along a package of bratwurst from the party, but Ricky and I ate that!! : )

We are grateful to The 5 O'Clock Phlock for their generous donations for our babies. And to Deana who is always there for Smiling Dog Farms when we need something!

Friday, July 11, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Augustine's Day at the Beach

You can imagine the excitement Augustine must have felt as everyone prepared for a day of fun at Crystal Beach. You can envision her little steps from one part of the house to another, as the cooler was readied, the towels and blankets were packed, people bustled about preparing -- her little head looking up at them in excited anticipation. You can picture her riding in the car, wearing that smile you see in the above photo, watching the scenery pass by, just happy to be in the car with her family.

You can just see little Augustine roaming the beach, testing the water with her toes, then returning to the warm sand for a nap. Augustine sleeps very soundly, because she no longer hears.

What you can't imagine is how someone could just leave her behind -- how she awoke from her nap, and looked around for her family. But they were gone. How she frantically ran up and down the beach, searching for her family or someone she recognized, the panic rising inside her.

Can you begin to imagine the sorrow and pain she felt when at last she understood what it all meant... that she had been abandoned by the family who had cared for her all these many years.

Maybe because she could no longer hear when someone called to her. Maybe because she was starting to have "accidents" in the house, as seniors sometimes do. Or maybe it was just because she had gotten old.

The searing sadness of not being wanted, of having no one to love you is hard enough for any dog. But from the family who has cared for you since you were just a pup? How could they just dump you at the beach and walk away?

A grieving Augustine was picked up by the Galveston County Animal Control Officer. It was recognized that she was not likely to be adopted, when she had so many younger, healthier dogs to compete against at the shelter. So Laurine Murtaugh, the patron saint of the elderly and infirm dogs at the Galveston Shelter, arranged for Augustine to come live out her days at Smiling Dog Farms.

Like any senior citizen who is set in her ways, Augustine can be snappish if you ask her to do something she doesn't want to do! But she can also be a loving girl, who appreciates that she is no longer abandoned and alone.

We had quite a scare after only her first week with us. She was standing in front of the refrigerator in the kitchen when she had an apparent stroke. He legs just went out from under her, and she tried and tried, but could not make them work. We carried her to the bed because she could not walk or use her legs at all. She had no appetite. And we prepared for the worst. We figured she had reached the end of her long life.

We started giving her Flax Seed oil in really high concentrations. We had learned to use Flax Seed oil with dogs who have seizure disorder. There is something about it that helps reconnect circuits in the brain. We figured that it couldn't hurt Augustine, and it might help her brain reconstruct itself after her stroke.

After a few days, we got her to eat something. We normally keep Karl Budhig sliced ham in the refrigerator for dogs who are not eating, because they can sometimes be tempted with it and it is relatively inexpensive. On that particular day, we were out of Karl Budhig ham -- but I had some Oscar Meyer ham that I gave Augustine instead. She happily ate it.

The next day, I went to the grocery and got more of the Karl Budhig inexpensive lunch meat and offered it to Augustine... but she turned up her nose at it! I had to get her more of the Oscar Meyer ham before she would eat it! We figured she must be on the mend for her to be that discerning about the meat we served her!

After a week, she began using her front legs, although her back legs were still very shaky. And in a few more weeks, she finally regained complete use of her legs, front and rear.

It has been an amazing recovery for Augustine, who now gets around with the ease of a puppy! We are pleased that she will have more time to enjoy her new life in her new home, where she will always be loved and will never be abandoned again!

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Dog on the Blog: Sometimes You Just Get Lucky!

This is Lucky and Warren. Lucky came to us about three years ago from an excellent dalmatian rescue in Phoenix, called Dalmatian Station. Lucky was considered a candiate for Smiling Dog Farms because she was dog aggressive, and had a history of run-ins with other dogs.

Adoption placement is always a tough call when a dog reveals that he is dog-aggressive. You can place him in a home where he will be an only dog and make sure that the adopting family understands his aggressive tendencies toward other dogs, so that they can try to get training and until the dog changes, avoid situations where the dog will be in contact with other dogs.

But there is always the risk that the next door neighbor's poodle will be pulled through the fence by a dog aggresive canine. And that could quickly and easily lead to a death sentence for the offending dog.

When Lucky arrived, we could see she was charming with people. And we could also see her antipathy toward other dogs. Still, from time to time, if we see a new dog who may be a perfect match for another dog -- even one who does not like most dogs -- we will at least try introducing them to see what happens.

Enter Warren, the big, elderly, golden lab. Warren came to us from the city of Wharton Animal Control. He was picked up roaming the town, and when no one came to claim him, he was scheduled to be euthanized. Mr. Reuben Jones, the Animal Control Officer for the city of Wharton, has a heart for dogs, and he will do anything he can to keep them from being killed. So he called me and I went and got Warren.

That was about two and a half years ago. Warren was really old then. But Warren had the heart of a puppy. In spite of his age and his creaking bones, Warren still liked to play and to run. He was such a gentle soul, with the wisdom that accumulated with age, even in dogs.

We thought this might be the perfect match for Lucky. So with trepidation, and both dogs on leads and one person for each dog, we inroduced Lucky to Warren and held our breath.

Against all odds, Lucky accepted Warren. They lived together in a play yard and cottage of their own. They actually played together. There was never any fighting over food. Lucky would make it clear which was her bowl, and Warren would tell her, "That's fine with me, dear. This bowl over here will be just fine for me."!!

I think the moral of this story is that while we always respect the history and nature of a dog, our thinking is not so set in concrete that we are not willing to try new possibilities. In spite of Lucky's track record with other dogs in the past, Warren turned out to be the one dog whose company she could enjoy.

They had two and a half magical years together, barking at the roosters and napping in the sunshine with one another. Two weeks ago, it was Warren's time to leave us. And at his advanced age, it would be unfair for us to feel cheated, even though we wished he could have lived another 10 years here at the farm with Lucky.

Lucky will probably live out the rest of her days a widow, having to content herself with her memories of the good times she enjoyed with her beloved Warren.

This week, we thought Lucky might be ready to meet another friend. We thought Blondie, a male yellow lab mix, might be a good fit, since Lucky did so well with Warren. In typical Lucky style, we got Blondie as close as the outside of Lucky's play yard and Lucky reached through the fence and grabbed his lip between her teeth and would not let go! It was clear that Lucky was not ready for a new friend -- at least not Blondie!

Dogs like Warren are few and far between. We are glad that Lucky and Warren had those two and a half magical years together!