Adoptiversaries

These couple of weeks must be something special, because I adopted all three of the browns during this time of year. Wrigley's adoptaversary was yesterday, Probert's today, and Maizy's is in just a couple of weeks. So, I figured it was time to do some comparison photos. Then and now(ish - the now photos are from the past few months).

Probert was adopted 6 years ago at about 11 months old from a rescue in Columbus, OH called Measle's Animal Haven. He was a scrawny little pup who had been abused, rescued, and then contracted a mild case of parvo (mild due to being an older puppy) and been bitten by another dog in rescue. Now he's a little snugglebutt who still has issues from his past, but over just the past couple of years is really learning to be a DOG. Finally.

Wrigley was adopted 7 years ago at about 5 months old. He was a direct rescue from people who didn't want him. They said they were watching him for someone who went out of town and never returned to pick him up. Wrigley was living life underneath a trailer at the end of a tow chain and had never even been given a name. The people who had him did doxie rescue and had about 9 rescue dogs in their house, but never thought to bring Wrigley indoors because of his breed. To their credit, they did make some effort to rehome him and I was happy to invite him into my pack! Now he is a wiggly goofball. Definitely the most challenging of my dogs due to his guard barking, but he makes up for it by being one of the most genuinely sweet souls I've ever encountered.

 

Maizy was adopted 8 years ago at about 9 months old. She was a scrawny 27 lbs and smelled like mildew, probably due to the workers at Philadelphia Animal Care and Control hosing out her kennel with her still in it. She was shy and sometimes stubborn, but always a wonderful, personable dog. She grew up quickly, gaining tens of pounds in just a few months after her adoption. She is my most faithful companion and is definitely the pack leader. I have been so fortunate to have her to teach the boys the ins and outs of being a dog, as I see they have often studied her behavior and followed her example.

So, there it is. Happy Adoptaversaries to all of my babies. My life would simply NOT be the same without you. I love you all so so much.

Happy 6th Birthday, Wrigs!

Today Wrigley turned 6 years old! I can't believe he's lived with me for over 5.5 years. He's such a wonderful, joyful pup. Happy birthday, Wrigley Beans.

Vacation!

Well, in just a few short days I am off to Japan on what I think is a very well-deserved vacation! The dogs will be on vacation, too, on their first ever trip to a boarding facility. I put a lot of care into choosing a place for them and I am optimistic that everything will work out well in my absence. Nervous, but optimistic. It will be really good for all of us, I think, since I have never boarded them and need to lighten up and it will be a good "out in the world" experience for the browns. Cutting the cord... I will report back on how everyone does.

Last week at Doga Maizy was such a pill that this week I put in an untested rookie. Probert was up to the challenge and made a LOVELY Doga companion. He taught a wonderful class and he just might be my new Doga co-teacher.

My boyfriend brought over this poster for Probert this weekend and hung it above his crate. Probert came in from playing outside to see it for the first time, walked straight into his crate and stood there staring at it. I think he likes it!

Last week was my friend Flo's birthday and we surprised her with this photo (which was a huge pain in the butt, let me tell you!). ;)

Visitors

Her daddy is out of town this week, so Miss Addison Mae is back in brown dog land! Unfortunately, the browns were not too excited at all to see her and Wrigley even HID! She is doing great, though, and I was happy to see her after a month of her being away. The first night I couldn't remember how I did everything with so many dogs, but now I'm back in the swing of things and everything is going smoothly. She leaves again on Friday, so I am enjoying our time together while it lasts.

In other news, my neighbor is also a yoga student of mine and heard me talking about Maizy's work at the library (which she hasn't been doing since her tail amputation several months ago because it took her so long to heal from that surgery) and asked if she could stop by with her kids someday. I said sure and yesterday she stopped over with the kids who read to Maizy, petted Hannibal the cat, and were licked by Probert (who is crated in the living room until Addison's departure because they stress each other out). Maizy was ecstatic to have visitors who were paying attention to her and after only a half-hour visit, she spent the rest of the day in recovery sleeping. Some "nanny dog"! Hehe. Probert was less enthusiastic, but was very tolerant and observant. He is not so used to children, but I thought he did great. Only one growl when the kids were getting too crazy by his crate, but he is entitled to give warnings if he doesn't like something. Wrigley did not come visit because he would have steamrolled those poor children with his boisterous enthusiasm for all things. :D

In closing, here is an updated photo of all three browns. Do you know who is who?

Crates and Crafts

So, I don't know if any of you have had the same experience, but those plastic crate pans that come with most brands of crate really stink! About two years ago, I replaced Maizy's (for around $60-70) and once again last month, it had broken. It didn't make sense to spend more money on a crate pan, so she was existing without for a few weeks while I figured out what to do. I considered trying to find the right size of metal crate pan or make some kind of metal floor for her, but I soon realized that it wasn't the best solution. Add to the situation that Maizy is a massive chewer and that I was buying her new blankets from the thrift store every few weeks, and I decided that the solution to our crate floor situation had to be dual-purposed.

After some discussion with my brilliant boyfriend, we came up with a plan. And so, this past weekend we cut down a piece of plywood (with the aid of a neighbor who couldn't bear to see me using the manual version, and rushed over with his electric saw in order to do the cut for me quicker than his estimated "three seconds"), dug a scrap of carpet from the depths of the boyfriend's basement, and created a masterpiece!

Tada!

I present to you: Maizy's shiny new carpeted floor. This was a simple and cheap solution (we already had all of the materials laying around) and is working out beautifully so far! And Maizy is very happy with the results as her initial reaction to her new floor was to hunch up into "resource guarding" posture lest one of the other dogs even THINK about relaxing on HER new carpeted board!

This obviously isn't a good solution for a dog that has regular accidents in their crate (Addison!) or who has a sensitive stomach that can lead to barfing (Wrigley!), but this is the perfect solution for all of Maizy's issues. If it isn't, I don't know that yet, but will keep you updated in the following weeks to see if there are any major issues with her carpeted floor.

I've also included one bonus photo, which includes all four pups in their crates with the doors shut and their dinners sitting in front of them waiting VERY patiently to be given the "okay" before diving in. They are such well-beahaved sweetstuffs (sometimes).

Sweet Bean

The universe is certainly mysterious and I'm not sure what I'm being told here, but since losing my full-time job and becoming a single parent, there sure has been a rash of dog injuries around here!

The most recent is a luxating patella (dislocated kneecap) which presented itself a few weeks ago in Mr. Wrigley Beans. At the time, I didn't know what it was and decided to keep an eye on his limp to see if it went away since there was no sense in rushing off to the vet if he was going to walk it off in a few days. However, he didn't get better, and it was time to see the vet!

I can't even tell you what a treat our vet visit was with the addition of one xanax to Wriggles. He had a few barking incidents, but he was the calm, happy dog that I knew he could be! Unfortunately, the vet had bad news for us when she diagnosed his knee issue. Pre-surgical bloodwork was done and we were referred to a specialist for the surgery.

Fortunately for us, the surgeon was willing to do the consult, x-rays, and surgery all in one day, which cut down on the travel, trauma, and overall expense. Wrigley was taken in last Friday, the diagnosis was confirmed (grade 3 luxation), and I left him for surgery. Surgery didn't happen quite as quickly as planned when there were two emergencies that popped up in front of him, but his surgery was completed Friday and I was told he was doing fine.

On Saturday, I called to confirm my ability to pick up Wrigley in the early afternoon only to be met with the information that Wrigley had experienced an adverse reaction to the morphine given during surgery and that he would require an extra day in the hospital. The medication had affected his spinal cord which was causing him trouble with his balance. I was worried, but the doctor assured me that this would have no long-term affects and that I could pick him up Sunday.

Sunday morning I showed up with my crew, paid the bill, and picked up my sweet Wriggles! He experienced a lot of bruising as a result of the surgery, but was looking happy to see us and even barked out the car windows like normal. He was also very swollen, poor guy.

It is only Tuesday now, but he is looking better all the time and the only major challenge that we are having is his intense resistance to getting his temperature taken (which needs to happen twice a day to check for infection). He has started putting his foot down and putting a little weight on it when he is outside int he grass and I know that he will keep getting better! Here is a picture from last night while he enjoyed a treat after cooperating (somewhat) with temperature taking.

So it's so far, so good for us! Please keep Wrigley in your thoughts as he continues to heal and get stronger! I can't wait for him to be able to try out his shiny new knee in a few months!

Hello everyone! Well, last month was a very busy month, so excuse my absence from the blog once again! All is well here with the pups. Maizy's tail is healing up well and Probert, who decided to follow suit with a more minor (non-surgical) tail wound of his own is also healing his tail. I am just not sure what is with those dogs, but the two of them are now referred to as the "tail twins" on most occasions.

Wrigley and Addison are also doing well. My boyfriend recently scored a whole messload of athletic balls from a trash pile and the dogs have been loving the unending supply of basketballs and footballs that appear from the garage every time an old ball is killed. It's adorable. And a cheap source of entertainment for sure!

Wrigley Turns Five!

Wrigley had a momentous week last week. During our visit to the vet on Thursday, we learned that he has lost 10 lbs since the fall, which is great! He still has a few more to go, but he is on his way to being a lean, cuddly, licking machine!


On Friday, Wrigley turned five! He is such a handsome little guy I couldn't resist a few birthday portraits.

Gas

In recent months, I have made many changes to the house that I now share with my revised family of 4 dogs and 2 cats. No other people live with me, so I have had lots of freedom to move things around as they suit me (and my furry friends). Additionally, I was laid off from my full time job in January, so I also have lots of time to make these changes. The house isn't done, but has been majorly transformed in the past few months, that's for sure!

One of the changes has been moving the pups to the basement and starting to convert it to a "dog room." The basement is heated and is very comfortable and they all seem happy there, a bit more secluded from the outside noises that sometimes disturb them. They are still allowed into the main house, but their crates are in the dog room. It's working out really well and gives them more space than they had previously in my bedroom or the second bedroom.

So I was concerned one night a few months ago when I heard the basement carbon monoxide detector blaring in the middle of the night. It is so loud and I worried about the pups and raced downstairs. I got there to see that the "gas" indicator on the detector was lit, but I didn't smell any natural gas. What I did smell was poop. Dog poop. And it was located in Wrigley's crate. Poor Wrigley. Guess that carbon monoxide detector is good for multiple things, eh?

Springtime!

The magnolia tree in the backyard is blooming and the days here in Chicago have gotten so beautiful! The "little dogs" (Probert and Addy) are getting daily walks now and the "big dogs" (Maizy and Wrigley) are spending lots of time in the backyard while I lounge in the hammock. I was in Texas for a week, so it was nice to come back to similar temperatures here at home! Also, I missed my pups! Here are some portraits from yesterday:

Here is Addy on our walk today. She has taken to carrying her pink kong on every single walk that we go on, which is totally cute and charms the heck out of me (and some others).

This is Probert's move on a walk when he wants to sniff something and doesn't want me to drag him along. It is both totally cute and annoying to watch him army-crawl through yards taking in all of the sniffs and totally slowing down the pace.
Yesterday I was finally able to pick up a refill of Maizy's new meds and so she is back to feeling great! She had run out right before I left for Texas and her doctor hadn't written the prescription yet, but we got a donated bottle of the name brand as well as a written prescription for the generic (which is like $7 a month compared to over $50). Very exciting.
Wrigley still refuses to pay attention when I am trying to take a picture of him outdoors. There are SO MANY THINGS to be vigilant of, and he does not disappoint.

Precision Fetching

As demonstrated by Addison. Do not try this at home. :)

And Then...

Here's what happens when Wrigley tires out and Greta still wants him to play!

Wrigley + Greta = Love

Here is a vide of Wrigley and his new best friend, Greta.

A Real Live Update

Hi friends, we hope that you are all doing well. Things have been crazy and busy for us here, which is really no excuse for not updating, but I'm using it anyway. The dogs are all doing well and I am adjusting to being a full-time single dog (and cat) mom. It helps (I guess?) that I was also laid off from my full-time job and now have a lot of free time to spend with the pups! At least for the time being.

Anyway, here are some pictures that I neglected to share from recent months...

Here is Miss Maizy A in November after a day of vet procedures. She is FINE, but was feeling a little beat up when she came home. The no-bite collar was not popular.

In December, we had a lovely last-minute Christmas tree that was enjoyed (and not destroyed!) by all of the pets. Our first full-sized Christmas tree. It was a wonderful holiday. That is Justice admiring the tree.

Here are two recent pictures from last week. Maizy and Probert enjoying a delicious pear and Addy hunting for lost treasures under the love seat with a guest appearance from Wrigley's butt.

Also, we have had a very special new addition to the pack as of late, Greta! Greta is a three-year old GSD/mystery mix dog who belongs to my boyfriend (!) and comes to visit often. Her and Wrigley have really hit it off and I have some adorable videos of the two of them that I will share soon. So now we are a five-dog pack on some days! It's a full house, but we couldn't be having more fun.

Wrigley Beans, International Superstar

The other day, a mysterious envelope arrived in the mail addressed to "Mr. Wrigley 'Beans' Hopman." I was puzzled for a moment, but then realized right away that it must be fan mail from Wrigley's self-proclaimed biggest fan!!

And just check out how happy he was! Wrigley is typically the dog that doesn't insist on being paid attention to the way the other dogs do, so he sometimes fades into the background. But for a few minutes, it was all about him!

In unrelated news, I feel like I should mention that the Brown Dog Dad and I have split up and he will be moving out this week. I say this only because I might mention it in a later post and forget that I haven't said anything previously, so there it is. I will be staying in our house with all of the brown dogs (and Addy!) for the foreseeable future! Their lives will remain pretty much as-is, though I am thinking about turning the basement into a doggie playroom and also moving all of their crates into the second bedroom so they're not all watching me when I sleep. But yes, the same other than that!

Hello to all of our two-legged, three-legged, and four-legged friends (and anyone we missed)! A few weeks ago, my computer broke and then I went out of town for a week, so I haven't been able to update the blog. As it is, I still haven't set up my newly repaired computer so that I can get the photos off my camera, but that is coming. You will have to settle for words for now.

The pups are doing great. It is "vet season" I guess because in the past two months Wrigley, Maizy, and Probert have all been in to see the vet for their necessary yearly visits. Wrigley's visit was mostly uneventful minus the news that he is overweight. Since he is getting the same level of exercise as the ideally-weighted Addy, Maizy, and Probert, our only choice was to cut his food down. Poor Wrigley. Though, having been away from him for nearly a week last week, when I saw him again with "fresh" eyes he looked thinner to me! I guess we'll see how he does!

Maizy's visit was exciting in that she required a tooth cleaning, x-rays (to take to a new ortho doc), had an ear infection, and had a little arm scab that she kept tearing open. She came home from her tooth cleaning appointment in a No-Bite collar limping from hip manipulation and having lost a tooth that just fell out during the dental! Only six years old and she is falling apart! She is an angel about her ear medicine, though, and her arm healed after a few days in the collar (which she hated. a lot).

Probert's visit last night was good. The doctor took blood in order to test his liver as she thinks he will be on his medication long-term and wants to be sure it's not affecting his liver. He also needs his teeth cleaned, so I will be scheduling a dental for him soon. He also had a little mass aspirated and we'll find out what that was. Luckily, everything else is great, so we got out of there relatively unscathed!

Addy doesn't see the vet until April, so she is plenty happy about that!

A Busy Week

It is a busy week for us this week in terms of anniversaries. Yesterday was both Justice kitty's (guesstimated) birthday as well as the 3rd anniversary of Probert's Gotcha Day! And today is the 4th anniversary of Wrigley's Gotcha Day! Glad to have them all in the pack and I am reminded every day of how much I love their furry butts.

Puppy Wrigley.

Puppy Probert.

A recent picture of how I can often be sitting while working on the computer: knees up, Justice sandwiched happily in my lap.

Epic Biteyface

No dogs were harmed during the events portrayed in these pictures. Addy and Wrigley are great friends, they just both like to play rough.

We Act Fast

By popular demand (or rather, by the consistent demand of Wrigley's biggest fan), here are some pictures of Wrigley Beans. I am posting them in sequential order as I took them so that you can see what his normal behavior is. He is not the kind of dog that lounges around outside, oh no! For danger lurks in all directions, he must remain ever vigilant. He is only sitting because I required it of him and he was feeling like being obedient today, apparently.


Now was that a variety of emotions or what?! Worried to alarmed to concerned to suspicious... you have to admit that the guy's got some range!

Well Hello!

Wow, we have been slacking on updating this past weeks! Sorry about that. I saw that some people asked how Probert is doing in his new crate and the answer is "pretty good"! There have been a few incidents where we've come home and the crate is moved (and a little bent), but overall, things in crate land seem to be better than they were. **Knock on wood.**

Nothing of particular interest has been going on. The pups have been playing, biteyfacing, walking, running, tugging, and chasing more than ever now that the weather has cooled down a little bit. In fact, Maizy was outside helping me in the garden the other day and I took this picture.

"Nope, not done yet!"

Addy has been doing well in advanced obedience classes. There is only one other dog in class this time around, which has been fantastic. Lots of space and attention for both dogs. We are still working on some of her barking, but everything seems to be going well! Last week on our way home from school, Addy and I saw a huge rainbow that went right over the Chicago Loop. I could only get a picture of half of it, but managed to get the passing El train as well as the Sears Tower.

Addy enjoyed it, too:

And since Wrigley is the only one I haven't mentioned in this entry, I should mention that Wrigley is doing good, too. He and Addy have been wrestling and biteyfacing and generally creating chaos every free second that they have together. It is both adorable and a constant tripping hazard!