The Things Nighmares are Made Of - The Conclusion

                                    R.I.P. Malka  9/14/2012


Malka never fully recovered from that nightmarish January night.  Mentally she recovered but physically she never got the um-pf back in her step.  On September 10th she stopped eating and couldn't sleep.  No  matter how she laid down she couldn't get comfortable.  This is the Facebook post from September 11th.

********************************************************************************
Back from the vet with Malka. Not good. We knew she had early stages of kidney disease and when she got caught in the leg hold trap in January it accelerated from the stress but the last thing I expected was an almost total shut down of her kidneys in the last two days. So the vet did "doggie dialysis" today and I'll continue it at home. She's sound asleep now, which is no surprise since she hasn't been able to sleep for two days. She even ate after dialysis and has kept the food down. She seems comfortable so for right now we take it one day at a time and do our best to give the end of her life the same love and comfort she has given us.
********************************************************************************

On September 14th her pain became unbearable to watch and we couldn't bear to let her go on that way.  She passed away peacefully with her family by her side.   I still grieve for her and think about her almost every day. 

The Stuff Nightmares Are Made Of- Follow Up.....

This morning I received a call from my vet.  She was wondering how Malka was doing and wanted to know if we had followed up with the local SPCA.

My personal beliefs are that you take responsibility for your own actions and as much as I was disturbed by what happened the facts are that Malka was not on our property and not under our control and that is why she wandered into a mine field of traps.  What ever my personal beliefs are, trapping is legal in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.  So anyway......

The vet was concerned because state law states that the traps have to be checked every twenty four hours once they are laid out.  Since several of the animals in the area were in various stages of decomposition obviously that had not been happening.  She suggested that I go over and take some pictures and forward them to the SPCA for follow up. 

She's right and I agreed.  I wasn't exactly excited to go there, to say the least, but I felt the purpose was worth it.  The Scientist agreed to show me the way. 

Baseball Boy, who has been working hard to come to terms with what he saw that night, wanted to go.  I didn't think that was a good idea at all, nope not at all.  He actually slept last night for the first time, why would he want to go back and refresh that picture.

Fortunately, I have learned from program and past experience to really listen when someone expresses interest in something instead of just blowing them off because of what I think. 

Baseball Boy makes his case.  He states that a large part of his fear came from the fact it was so dark he felt closed in and trapped.  He said he thinks he would feel better if he saw the area in the day light with me there to help him understand what had happened to the animals.  He also felt that seeing it without Malka laying on the ground would leave him with a better picture to replace the one in his head now.  I found myself agreeing to let him go.  I still surprise myself sometimes.  The Vet didn't want to go, so she stayed home, no explanation necessary.

As we are walking The Scientist and Baseball Boy are pointing out some of the areas they searched that day.  When we get close to the large branch pile we stop.  I confirm that they are up for this, since it's not really necessary for them to go any further.  Both feel they need to face their fear.  I am impressed by their courage.  I didn't want to be there and I wasn't there Saturday night.

As we walk around to the other side of the branch pile they pause.  It's not what they remember at all.  I am relieved.  As much as I would have liked to forward pictures to the SPCA for follow up I really didn't want to see the scene of the crime.  I am far from squeamish,  there was nothing there I hadn't seen before, I just didn't need to add another scene of carnage to the already full catalog in my head.

Who ever owns the traps must have heard what happened because there was not a trap to be found.  The only carcasses were the remains of two deer who had obviously been dressed, and they were together in the pile.  All the other remains were no longer there.  The innards of the deer that had been spread around as bait were gone.   The Scientist and Baseball Boy were able to point out where everything had been, clearly someone had put a lot of effort in cleaning up the scene. 

So there won't be a follow up with the SPCA who really needed pictures to start an investigation.  I don't care, I'm just happy that the traps are no longer laid out.  I'm not naive enough to think that they haven't been moved to another area but at least my children will not have to loose sleep wondering if any animals are losing their life back there every time they walk down that road.

So how's Malka doing:

Malka's injuries were worse than they first appeared but fortunately she's recovering.  Apparently she was in worse shape than we thought originally.  The swelling in her leg has slowly gone down, and she only has a slight limp.  But on Monday morning when I took her out to potty she peed three times in different spots.  Not normal for her.  So I grabbed a urine sample and took it down to the vets.  We had the results later in the day.   Her already weak kidneys had begun to shut down.  They are improving but this caused a sludge type substance (has a fancy name that I can't remember) to be excreted through her urine.  She also has a lot of blood in her urine too.  The kidney failure caused her to not eat.  She needs good food and lots of extra fluid to flush the crap out of her kidneys so they can hopefully heal.  So I broke out one of my get the dog to eat tricks.  You take a pound of chicken livers and put them in a big pot and fill it with water.  Bring it to a boil until the livers are well cooked.  It is gross but just what the doctor ordered for a finicky dog.  A couple of pieces of liver along with a couple of cups of the water from the pot in their regular food and ta da the dog eats and gets extra water too.

Yesterday afternoon for the first time Malka showed definite signs of improvement.  She's eating more heartily and is acting more energetic.  She'll also be on antibiotics for a month so she doesn't develop any secondary infections.  She's had problems with her kidneys before.  In a few weeks we'll rerun the tests to see if her renal function has returned to her baseline normal. 

I'm just happy we have her back.  Even another hour out there and she probably wouldn't of made it.  Every day we have her is a gift.

The Stuff Nightmares are Made Of

Malka

Doesn't she look innocent.  Like butter wouldn't melt in her mouth.  In previous posts I've referred to her as Houdini.  A nickname that will have to change due to an addition to our clan who now bares the name.  Even though her nickname will change her ability to escape, sadly has not. 

Saturday almost became her last day on earth.  I don't know what was going through her head when she pushed the fence out and slipped away but it was almost a fatal mistake. 

If not for the persistence of three very tenacious children she might not be with us today.  One of whom got an ambulance ride to a local hospital for the effort and Malka who got a ride in a fire rescue truck for her part.  Yes, it was a very interesting day.

As most "interesting" days it started out as any other routine Saturday.  The Engineer and the kids had chores to do and errands to run.  They returned home around four in the afternoon.  Someone let the dogs out and about 15 minutes later the entire course of the next 10 hours changed dramatically. 

It's cold outside and Mickey does not like cold weather.  It took him fifteen minutes to burn off a little energy, do a perimeter check for errant squirrels and bunnies and do his business.  His latest trick is to jump up and ring the door bell when he wants to come in,  when we answer the ring both dogs are usually standing there patiently waiting.  That was not the case yesterday.

Only Mickey greeted The Engineer when he answered the door.  A few minutes later when Malka hadn't returned he started calling her.  The beginning of hours of yelling her name.

Faithful readers know this isn't her first escape.  The few times she has gotten out she returned after we called her.  When she didn't come this time the kids bundled up and started walking, calling her name.  The Engineer got in his car and started driving.  I was at work unaware of the drama playing out at home.

Later on when it became obvious that she wasn't coming back I received my first of many panicked phone calls and text messages from the kids.

As darkness fell along with temperatures the wind picked up and our hopes for finding her plummeted.  We notified local police departments and a large veterinary clinic in the area (the only one open late on a Saturday).   Her tags are up to date and she's micro chipped but that was little consolation with the weather and her lack of street skills.

At 11 PM The Engineer returned home to heat up some soup for some frozen kids who refused to give up.  About fifteen minutes after he got home the kids, who insisted on staying out looking, heard a dog bark.  A quick phone call to The Engineer and all four of them were slogging through a swampy field in the direction they thought the sound came from. 

The wind was whipping across the field so hard that even yelling it was hard to hear.  Nothing else could be heard above the sound of the wind. 

Even with flashlights finding a black dog on a dark, cloudy night seemed hopeless.  As they came across an area with large piles of branches they stopped to listen.  That's where they found her.  Laying silently on the ground, her front paw caught in a trap.  When they bent down to touch her fearing the worst, only the end of her tail barely wagged.  Relief was shortlived when they saw the trap and realized that getting her out of there was not simply going to be a matter of picking her up and hiking back out.  The trap had her paw tight and it was frozen to the ground.

The Engineer, shining his flashlight around looking for something to try and pry the trap up saw what can only be described as a horror movie come to life.  It turned out all three kids and The Engineer were standing amid an entire area layed out with traps all set to snare unsuspecting animals.  A recently gutted deer was spread around as bait, several skinned animals (believed to be foxes) were thrown about and numerous other animal carcasses in varing stages of decomposition were everywhere. 

At work my phone rings and I am instantly relieved that Malka has been found, but my relief didn't last long when the details of their situation became apparent. 

Fortunately, one of the pluses of living in a rural area is the local volunteer fire company still does animal rescues.  Describing their location was a little complicated but it wasn't long before help was on the way. 

As The Engineer tried to reassure the kids and block them from the frigid wind Baseball Boy said he didn't feel good.  Before anyone could respond his eyes rolled back and he fell backwards, passed out cold.  Lifting him up brought him around momentarilly, but Baseball Boy only mumbled something about being tired before going out again.  Once again my cell phone rang and the panic in The Scientist's voice was palpable. 

Another phone call to the fire company and an ambulance was dispatched along with them.  That's when I left work.   The 45 minute ride home took about 30 minutes.  About half way home The Scientist called me with an update.  The Engineer and Baseball Boy are on the way to the hospital and the fire company had brought Malka and the girls back to the house to wait for me.

I walk in the door and I'm greeted by Mickey, his usual exuberance muted, even he realizes that something is wrong.  I find Malka laying on the sofa.  She doesn't lift her head but the tip of her tail is wagging.  The girls are flanking her, both pale, and obviously exhausted, both emotionally and physically.  I quickly check her paw and am relieved to find it firmly attached, it was swollen but didn't appear deformed.  She's too weak to get up so I pick her up and carry her out to the van.  On the way to the emergency clinic I call ahead and they were waiting for us when we arrived.

She is an American Pit Bull Terrier.  Stoic doesn't begin to describe her.  The vet wanted to see if she could stand or walk.  I reluctantly put her down, she wobbles slightly, then pulls herself together.  With some urging she hesitently takes a few steps.  It's obviously painful but she puts weight on her injured paw.  The vet goes over her from head to toe and cleans her injured paw.  She was very lucky.  No bones appear to be broken.  We pack her up and take her home. 

The Scientist, The Vet and Malka all tucked in safely at home and I head to the hospital.  I find Baseball Boy awake and alert with The Engineer sitting by his side.  Baseball Boy is wrapped in what looks like a giant space bag inflated with circulating warm air.  It appears that Baseball Boy was overcome from the combination of hypothermia and stress.  A follow up this week with his doctor should confirm that diagnosis.

Malka's leg this morning was swollen to twice it's normal size.  She can barely walk on it but she's still so exhausted she not in any rush to go anywhere anyway.  We're all tired today and the kids are still processing what they saw last night.

Their tenancity, which can drive me insane sometimes, saved Malka's life.  She wouldn't have survived the night out there.  They wouldn't give up looking for her. 

I bought rebar today to secure the fence where she got out,  Mickey and Malka will not be outside unsupervised until it's repaired.

Who Am I?

I Defend WITH HONOR.

I Play TO WIN.

I Am Loyal TO A FAULT.

I Have A Heart MADE OF GOLD.

I Don't Know The Meaning OF GIVING UP.

I Am The Epitome Of STRENGTH, LOVE, AND COURAGE.

I Am THE AMERICAN PIT BULL TERRIER

by Faith Sylvester

Malka's Health-update

Yesterday I slid a dish under Malka as she squatted and retrieved a sample of golden liquid. I also got the over the shoulder look of disgust from her to which I have become accustomed.

This morning a call from our vet confirmed our fears. She continues to have a +3 protein reading. Her kidneys are failing. She is still asymptomatic so all news isn't bad but her kidney issue will not resolve itself. She also shows signs of having stones in her bladder so plenty of additional fluids will help the kidneys and dissolve the stone(s). There is no sign of infection or crystals and her PH and specific gravity are normal. All good signs.

There is the option of prescription diet but I gotta tell you after reading the ingredients there is no way. It is loaded with crap protein and fillers. And they have the nerve to charge an arm and a leg for it. I intend to do some research. There has to be some quality low protein foods out there. The vet also recommends adding additional carbs to her diet since it is a way to get her the extra calories her body will need to process protein without adding any additional load to her kidneys.

She still spry and can run Mickey into the ground. She can still do two miles on the bike barely breaking a pant. Squirrels and rabbits still fear for their lives in our yard. She is an American Pit Bull Terrier and true to her breeding she doesn't know the meaning of giving up.

She's not giving up and neither am I. We'll make some changes in her diet. Keep her fluid intake high and continue to make sure she gets plenty of exercise.

Right now she's right where she belongs, curled up on the sofa, sleeping. Oblivious to her condition. It's my job to keep her that way for as long as possible.

Where's Malka?

People Suck?

Years of working in emergency services have left me jaded and cynical. Or maybe I'm just not very forgiving. Could be I've been let down one to many times by people who I thought I should be able to depend on. Probably all of the above and some other things I can't think of right now.

I've had to deal with leaches, stupidity and self centered bigoted pigs through the course of my career. Family members who hurt you and friends who were really only interested in what they would get from the friendship. Through my work at the vet's office and my interest in dog rescue I have seen some pretty horrible offenses brought upon man's best friend.

I've learned to peel those people from my daily life. I no longer allow them to affect my day to day living. I think it's one of the reasons why I feel so close with my dogs. They accept me for who I am. They forgive me for my shortcomings. Really forgive, not say they forgive then toss it back at me at a later date. I look at them and their shoddy beginnings and say if they can shake it off and look ahead then so shall I.

I can't avoid these types of people through my day to day job. After all, I'm paid to help them no matter how ridiculously stupid their request or how big of a sponge on the community as a whole they are. It's hard to remember that not all people are like that.

I have a few close friendships that I cherish. I have a few close family members that I know will be there for me and I for them. I've tended to take a pretty negative look at the rest of the world. I try not to but I'm not very successful.

I hear ya, "okay, okay, so what's the point?"

Today I went to my second OA meeting. When I looked around the room I saw people who I would consider to be from all walks. But when they talked they all have the same core issues. And every one of them was courteous, listened and encouraging to those around them. I have no idea what these people are like outside but in that room they all wanted what was best for everyone there and a little help for themselves. During that period of time nobody sucked.

Randomness

We had a few weeks of beautiful warm spring weather. The other day a thunderstorm rolled through and dropped the temperature and it's been chilly ever since. I want my warm days back. I want to open my windows again and put my jacket back in the closet. Yes, I'd like some cheese with my whine.

Houdini escaped again! The little brat slipped under the fence in an area we are repairing after all the lawn damage from pool installation. Fortunately The Engineer was in the yard working and saw her visiting the neighbor across the street. I'm getting a complex.

Nibbles is old. Most guinea pigs owned by kids live to be about two. People who are really into cavies report they live from five to seven years. Nibbles is six. He lived the first year and a half of his life being ignored by a kid who wanted him then didn't. The kids parents took care of him until they got tired of it and then he came to live with us. When we got him he had an eye and sinus infection. He had cedar litter in his cage his whole life. Cedar litter is very bad for guinea pigs. We treated the infection but his eye and nose often have a discharge that are left over from the long term infection. If you have a guinea pig, please don't use cedar litter. Anyway, he's been losing weight and slowing down for a few months now. The vet thinks it's kidney failure. A change in diet slowed it down but there is no turning back once the kidneys start to go. The last few days he just hasn't been himself. His eye and nose are worse than ever and he is hardly eating. I got him kale, which is his favorite veggie, and he hardly touched it. So tonight it's back to the vet. She thinks he's coming to the end. She gave me some medicine to help his appetite and make him comfortable. It's just a matter of time. Say a little prayer for the Nibinator.

The son of a blogger I've read for a few years died last week. I've never met her but she's pretty open on her blog about herself and her family. I can't imagine out living one of my children. I feel weird because I don't know them at all yet I can't stop thinking about them and feeling bad for them. I'm not cold hearted but lets face it I've dealt with my share of death over the years and it doesn't usually weigh on me.

We added three chickens to our family today. The Scientist is doing a study for 4H and needed three chickens of the same breed and age in the prime of their laying years. Of course, it figures, our chickens don't fit that bill so we had to buy three chickens. Who knew it would be so difficult to find someone willing to sell three chickens of the same age and breed. Man, it took her over a month and countless phone calls by The Scientist to finally find them. In fact, it was her mentor at 4H who asked a favor of a friend to help her out. So right now three chickens are living in cages in my garage. After a few days they should be settled in enough to start her study. I'm sure you'll be hearing more about this in the future. Three chickens living in your garage has got to provide some good future blog fodder.

I got my fourth stripe in karate last week. That means that in the next few weeks I'll be taking my belt test. Finally.

I'm still sore from the seminar last weekend. I'm getting old.

Two of our chickens chased Mickey across the yard again today. They do not appreciate when he plays chicken bowling (picture a group of eight chickens standing around pecking the ground and doing what ever it is chickens do and Mickey runs through them and makes them all run off squawking). He got away unscathed this time, he wasn't so lucky last time.

The Scientist said to me today. "You're a pretty good mom. We're good kids and we're happy, I guess that means you're doing a good job raising us." I wanted to put that in writing so the next time she has a melt down and slams her bedroom door screaming she hates me I can refer back to it.

I met this guy who lost over a hundred pounds. Being overweight myself and nosy I asked him how he did it. He said he joined Overeaters Anonymous. So after putting it off for a couple of weeks I checked out their website. They had this little test. Answer these ten questions to see if you're addicted to food. I answered 7 out of 10 yes. So I figured, see I only agreed with seven out of ten, that's not too bad. Then I read the results part. It said, "If you answer yes to three or more you have a problem with food addiction." Damn....

Malka's Secret

Last night she didn't come when I called her. She added a few more gray hairs to my head and gave my cardiovascular system a workout. It's so not like her I knew there had to be a reason. She can tell me all the stories she wants but I know she can hear me calling her down there, especially at night when sound really carries. She ignored me until hit with the light. She knew she was busted and started running my way like it was the first time she heard me call. Yea right, do you think I fell off the turnip truck yesterday, my dear?

This afternoon I took a stroll down the the edge of the property to see if I could find what had her so fascinated that she didn't come when I called her the first time. I was mostly concerned that the fence had been damaged in some way or she was digging. Or maybe someone threw something into the yard that caught her interest. All of our immediate neighbors like the dogs and comment about how nice and well behaved they are. But you know as well as I do that all it takes is one nasty horrible person to throw something over the fence to hurt them "because they are pit bulls."

So I wasn't really sure what I was looking for as I walked the fence line. From what I could see everything looked okay. The fence was intact and there were no obvious holes. But as I got to the bottom I could see it. The object that my dear Malka had rejected me for just the night before.

Apparently not all the bunnies got the message that this was not a hare friendly yard. Or maybe this one felt a feast of chicken feed the kids had dropped in the yard was worth the risk. Either way it didn't end well for this cottontail. I just hope it was quick for the poor guy. Even the squirrels are not safe. Malka will climb trees to try to get them. It seems though that the squirrels have a better communication system because they have vacated the yard completely.

Rusty used to chase squirrels and quite a few bunnies lost their life on his watch. Field mice and moles were his favorite and I don't mean that in a good way for them. But we had an invisible fence when we had Rusty. So many of these animals could escape because they could cross the line but he had to stop.

No such luck for trespassers in this yard. They run smack into a fence. There are a few small places where they can get in and out but not many. So between that and Malka and Mickey's incredible speed this is just a bad, bad place for rodents to roam.

I hope for their sake the message finally gets around.

My heart can't take much more of this......

First some fucking idiot obviously visually impaired person pulls out in front of a large fully loaded dump truck.

Then my children melt down in a screaming ball of flames.

And the final blow to my already suffering cardiac system comes from my always dependable girl Malka. I put them out while I do a final check of my email. Mickey goes and does his usual race around the yard to make sure no squirrels and/or bunnies have invaded while he was inside, does his business and comes back in. Malka also does her nightly patrol but she likes to stay out a little longer so she normally doesn't come back right away. So I'm in here goofing off on the computer and Mickey is curled up on the sofa, snoring. All of a sudden I realize that it's been a while and no Malka. I wasn't to concerned, she doesn't always bark to come back in, sometimes she'll just sit on the porch and wait for you to realize she's still outside. So I check the back door, no Malka. I call her and she doesn't come. No biggie she's probably by the front door and she can't hear me. So I head to the front door, flip on the light, but no Malka. Heart rate increases slightly. I call her and there is no response. She always comes, heart rate increases. I go get shoes on and find a flashlight (miracle of all miracles the batteries actually work). I'm really nervous now because I half expected to find her standing at the front door when I return. I'm hoping the brat took her time strolling back after I called her. I open the door and am crestfallen at the empty front porch. I call her again, no response. The last time this happened she was across the road at the neighboring farmhouse. So I walk out in to the yard and pan the light around. I see two shiny eyes way down at the very bottom edge of our property. I call to the shiny eyes and they start running my way. You never, ever get mad at a dog that you have called to come. You can't even pretend to be happy and be mad because they can read you like an open book. So I do my best "so nice of you to come sweetie" impression, when really I wanted to grab her and yell at her not to scare me like that. She's curled up next to me now, snoring, oblivious to the years she shaved off my life.

I can't take this kinda stress anymore.

Rescued Dog Thwarts Car Jacking

A wonderful story about how even dogs that have been horribly abused can make a huge difference in someones life.

Prayers for my Puppies-update

We got the results back from the blood work. Malka's didn't show anything more than we already knew. She will continue on the antibiotics and extra fluids for two more weeks then we will retest her. Since we really don't know how old she is, we've only been guessing, and since pit bulls age so gracefully, she could be much older than we think. That's what continues to worry me. She's going to need your continued prayers.

Mickey's blood work came back great. That hunk of muscle is healthy as a horse and his liver function is perfect.

Prayers for my Puppies

Please keep my fur kids in your thoughts and prayers. Both of them are having some health problems right now. We thought they had urinary tract infections but the urinalysis came back showing Malka had a +3 protein in her urine and Mickey had a +2 bilirubin.A +3 protein means there is a problem with kidney function. It should be zero. A +2 bilirubin could indicate a problem with liver function. The number should be a negative number.

Later today both will be having follow up blood work.

Both are asymptomatic at this time for kidney or liver problems and the vet said not to worry because urinalysis isn't the most accurate way to test bilirubin and Malka had a recent UTI that may of caused some infection to travel to her kidneys. She will continue on antibiotics for now until we get a more accurate picture.

I'm trying not to worry. It's not working.

BSL - The Harsh Reality

Breed-specific legislation (BSL) bans or restricts certain types of dogs based on their appearance because they are perceived as “dangerous” breeds or types of dogs.

It is a cruel type of law that does nothing to protect people and punishes responsible dog owners. It's just another example of a feel good law. They are costly both financially and to the responsible owners of the targeted breeds.

Picture this if you will. You've had a dog for years. It is a loyal family pet. Your town has a problem with loose dogs roaming the streets. You never paid much attention to it though because you don't let your dog roam. You're pet is neutered and receives regular veterinary care. Some of these roaming dogs attack a jogger and he is severely injured. The person identifies these dogs at pit bulls. The local media grabs onto the story and they next thing you know some legislator is writing up a law to ban "pit bull" dogs in your town. Right now let's just gloss over the point that a "pit bull" isn't even a breed. People are freaking out. They demand that something be done.

Now in the beginning pit bull owners didn't believe that something like this would happen. This is America after all. Common sense would prevail. They were sure of it. They wouldn't punish responsible dog owners? After all, even identifying a "pit bull" is not as easy as it sounds. Jump on over to this site and take the test. Then let me know how many times it took you to get the right answer.

Well, in many areas common sense didn't prevail. Laws were passed and thousands of family pets were turned into shelters and destroyed. Or confiscated by animal control to meet the same fate. All it took was a phone call from a disgruntled neighbor and you're beloved family pet could be seized. Pit bull owners who wouldn't part with their dogs moved out of the towns or went underground with their dogs. Afraid to walk them in public they hid them. They would forgo veterinary care for fear of their pet being seen in public. As I type this I am reminded of how Jews in Europe hid and feared for their lives as the Nazi's took control.

Let's not feel comfortable by thinking you're safe because you don't own a pit bull. They are not the only targeted breed. There are 75 breeds of dogs that are targeted by BSL for one reason or another. Some you would expect to see on the list. Pit Bulls, Rottweilers, German Shepard Dogs, and Akitas are a few. What caught me by surprise was seeing the Labrador Retriever, Airedale Terrier and Australian Shepherd on the list. Want an eye-opener, google "BSL lists" and take a look at how ridiculous it is. Somewhere in this country some town has decided that the Pug is just to dangerous to live there.

One thing that scares me is you don't even have to live in these towns to have your dog taken from you. If you're breed is on this list and you travel through an area with BSL they can and will take your dog. There are many stories of this happening but one story sticks in my mind. A couple was traveling down Int 95 through Prince Georges County, MD when they got a flat tire. Their dog a female American Pit Bull Terrier was in the car with them. A police officer pulled up to help them and seeing the dog confiscated it. The next morning their lawyer filed an appeal to get their dog back. They were notified that the dog had been destroyed after being brought in the night before.

There are groups all over the country fighting these laws. They have had some success, but it isn't easy. Study after study has shown that these laws don't work. There are laws, when enforced, that will protect people from dangerous dogs. They are working.

Dog bites in this country have been on the decline for years. Even as the number of dogs in this country has more than doubled during the same time period.

So what do you do? Be proactive. Get to know your lawmakers and talk to them about your concerns before something happens to bring up the subject. Make sure your dog is a breed ambassador. Get them out in the world so people can meet real pit bull owners and their dogs. Most importantly don't pretend that it can't happen where you live.

In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania BSL has been deemed unconstitutional and is against the law. That hasn't stopped several communities from enacting these laws. They are being challenged in the court systems. I watch these cases like a hawk. Where we used to live our local representative knew me, how I felt and had met my dogs. The kids wrote letters asking him to protect our dogs from BSL. Now that we live in a new area we have to start over. But that's okay it will just be another person on our side.

Punish the deed, not the breed.

Under the snow

After a string of warm days our wonderland of white has melted away. Leaving in it's place a muddy wasteland.

Many treasures were found once the snow was gone. My husband's knitted hat, my gloves, an egg cleverly hidden by our chickens, a couple of baseballs and a softball. Several of our snowstorms were nor-easters so there are plenty of small tree limbs and branches scattered about too.

Our yard went from a white beautiful wonderland to a cluttered wreck.

But by far the most abundant item out there is piles and piles of dog poop. There is no scooping of poop during snowy times. As they go it is often quickly buried by another layer of snow. Or the warm mass sinks down into the layers.

Our three month reprieve from yard work is over. Break out the rakes, rototiller, shovels, lawn and leaf bags and the pooper scooper, of course. We're also going to need some weed and feed to help repair this pathetic excuse for a lawn.

It's going to be a lot of work this year because of the added repair needed from the pool installation but we have a great yard and I can't wait to enjoy it and share it with our friends.

Our Furst Born

There was a little puppy dog, and he was brown all over

His parents couldn't find a name, and wouldn't call him "Rover."
They looked through sources everywhere, found nothing that would suit
By waiting too much longer, though, the point would soon be moot.

He won't be "Lilliputian", maybe "Gulliver" would fit
(that name would tangle up your tongue when telling him to "sit!")
Some people like a funny name and others like them regal

The same dog you name "Bismarck" would seem different if named "Fleagle"

There's doggie heroes too, you know, "Benji" and "Rin-Tin-Tin"
King Arthur's court had "Merlin," "Lancelot" and "Dinadin."
The Military names are nice, like "Admiral" and "Colonel"
Mythology has lots of names of gods and beasts nocturnal!

So don't lose heart in choosing, there's lots of names out there
From quirks in personality to the color of his hair.
He'll be your most devoted friend, dependable and trusty
A good name for a dog like yours is definitely "Rusty!"

by Just Me, March 1995

On March 24, 1995 we met a woman in a parking lot of a local theater and she handed over a 3 month old ball of fire. He had already had 3 homes in one month. Two days before, our vet (who knew we were looking for a puppy) called and said one of her clients was looking to rehome a male German Shepard/Lab mix. They said he was a hand full, but we thought to ourselves, well yeah, he's a puppy, aren't all puppies a hand full? He came with a blanket and a twelve foot long nylon rope as a leash. He gave the phrase "hand full" new meaning.

He was afraid of the car, probably because every time he got in a car he was left with another owner. We spent weeks getting him used to riding in the car. At first he wouldn't even go in the garage if the car was parked in it. Several hundred slices of cheese later and he decided maybe the car wasn't such a bad place after all. Over the next 13 years he travelled up and down the East Coast with us, always jumping in the car with adventure in his eyes.

We signed him up for training classes as soon as we could. I had spoken to the trainer several times before our classes even started looking for advice. The first night of class The Engineer was away on business and I had to take Rusty by myself. As I was pulling into the driveway of the training center Rusty vomited across the dashboard and it ran right down into the defroster vents. Oh gross, and it was only the start. I walk to the office door and as we enter I see about 8 people and their puppies standing around nicely. Rusty bursts through the door and chaos erupts. Before anyone can react 9 puppies have tangled leashes, everyone is tripping over each other and a temporary folding wall is knocked to the ground. The only one calm is the trainer who is standing behind a counter. Once everyone has their pups under control she turns to me and said, "This must be Rusty." It was the beginning of a long relationship. Two puppy kindergartens, three basic obedience classes and two advanced classes later we finally had a dog we could take out into public without embarrassment. Two years later he earned his CGC (Canine Good Citizen) and became a certified therapy dog.

Let's just talk about those two years for a moment now, shall we. For two years this pup spent all his time on a leash when in the house. If left to his own devices he could dismantle anything in the house within minutes. I would say that if it was edible he would eat it but the truth is, it didn't really matter if it was edible, he'd eat it anyway. Some of the things that passed through his gullet were underwear (two pairs in three days), a light bulb (don't even like to think about what it felt like coming out the other end), an unknown amount of trash, tissues (used were his favorite), chicken carcasses, half a lawn sprinkler and the owners manual for the lawn mower, just to name a few. We had to put toddler locks on the fridge and freezer long before we had kids because he would open the doors and help himself. Tupperware containers didn't stop him, he'd pull the lid off with his teeth. He also liked to take the jar of peanut butter from the cabinet and open it up and lick it clean. Came home once and and found blood all over the carpet in the family room. Holy crap, what did he do to himself? Turns out he took an eye roast from the freezer and ate it.

His favorite thing to do when someone came over was to "retrieve" pillows from the sofa and present the slobbery things to our visitors. It was a big improvement over the first two years when he would run upstairs and grab one of my bra's or underwear to show off to his new "friends."

Rusty grew up to be the best dog I have ever owned. All the hard work and frustration turned him into a wonderful pet. He was so smart if he tangled his lead around something he would back track instead of just pulling. He knew if his feet were dirty he had to wait at the door to get them wiped off instead of just running into the house. We could take him any where, any time. His patience with the kids went beyond the call of duty. The super sized hugs, the clothes they dressed him in. The earrings they hung from his ears to match the necklaces and hair ribbons clipped to his fur. He will always be their softest pillow.

Until we had kids he was the worst watch dog ever. If someone knocked on the door the most you would get out of him was an annoyed look because they woke him up. After the kids were born that all changed. A perfect example was the time my mother in law wanted to take The Scientist for a walk and he wouldn't let her leave the driveway with the stroller. He stood in front of it and growled at her. I had to drag him into the house so she could go and he spent the entire time they were gone pacing back and forth in front of the windows looking for them. If he was in the yard with the kids nothing or no one could enter our property.

The kids in the neighborhood loved him. They would bring dog biscuits to school and when the bus would stop in front of our house they would call him over and throw the biscuits out the window to him. He would get all excited whenever he would see a school bus. The UPS truck also got him all worked up, they never came to the house without dog biscuits either.

His favorite time of year was winter. he loved the cold and the snow. King of the Mountain is a nickname he earned for his love of climbing to the top of the biggest piles of snow he could find. When summer came he'd hide out in the air conditioning. We got him a baby pool so he had a place to cool off and he never minded sharing it when kids came to visit.

He always knew when you needed him to be there and rubbing your fingers through his fur would just drain away the stress after a long, hard day.

Two years ago today he had surgery to remove a large tumor from his hip. When they opened him up and removed the benign tumor underneath was a large vascular malignant tumor. He never completely regained consciousness after surgery and passed away quietly in my arms later that evening.

There will always be a special place for him in my heart. He taught me to be patient and consistent. He made me a better parent. I still miss him and think of him every day.

Rusty 1994-2008

Rest in peace my friend, we'll be together again one day.

A Lost Dog

There are posters up all around for a lost dog. It's a white pit bull. She's been missing for a while now, since the end of January. Pit Bulls are not good outside dogs, they're more like, sleep on the sofa kinda dogs. We've had such miserable weather the last two weeks and I can't imagine how she has survived.

The kids look every where for her. I find myself scanning the fields as we drive around hoping to catch a glimpse of her. Today, The Vet and Baseball Boy spent two hours, outside, walking around calling her name. They got some local dogs barking and Baseball Boy thought he caught a glimpse of a white dog running through a local farmers field but I think it was just wishful thinking. With so much snow on the ground spotting a white dog isn't going to be easy.

Yesterday I let our dogs out in the yard and Mickey came back pretty quickly but Malka wanted to stay outside. After a while I realized she never came back in and called her. She didn't come right away, which started to make me nervous. I got my shoes on and went outside and didn't see her in the yard. Now I'm repeating to myself that I will not panic, then I notice a small section of the construction fence that has served as a temporary repair for our fence for the last two months is lying on the ground. I'm starting to lose the fight against panic and call her one more time. Trying to keep my voice happy so she'll come was my main focus. The Engineer was looking out the front and spots her across the street. When I call her she starts running towards me. She ran across the road without pause. Thank G-d no cars were coming. It happened so fast I didn't have time to react and if a car was coming she would have been slammed.

Last night I go to bed and can't stop thinking about the missing dog and how close we came to losing Malka. I even had a nightmare that I saw the posters for the white dog and they looked different. I was excited because I thought maybe they wrote found across it but then we got closer and it had Malka's picture on it instead.

The first thing I did when I woke up this morning was call the fence company to come fix the fence. We had been holding off to fix it ourselves in the spring after the ground thawed to save some money. I didn't care anymore. They came out an hour later and fixed the fence. It was the best $100.00 we've spent in a long time.

My dogs

When I was a kid I had a Great Dane. She was big, black, and beautiful. Like most Great Danes she didn't live long enough. She passed away at 7, much too young. I loved her and she saved my life, twice. I owe a debt to dogs that can never be repaid, but I'm trying.

You've met Mickey and Malka but two other dogs have played a large part in my adult life and I'd like to introduce you to them.

This is Rusty. He is the only dog I have ever raised from a puppy. He holds a very special place in my heart. He has been gone almost two years and I still think about him every day.

This is Molly. Her first family had a huge breakdown. Her owner went to prison (for some pretty horrible stuff) and his wife fell apart and was unable to care for her. She was 10 years old and had surgery for cancer. She was grossly overweight and they thought she had severe arthritis. None of the rescues wanted her because of her age and the cancer. Lets face it they only have so much room. She was going to wind up at the SPCA (which around here is a kill shelter) and with her age and history she didn't stand a chance. So I worked on The Engineer and he agreed we could take her. She was an absolute sweetheart. We got her down to a reasonable weight and lo and behold her "arthritis" went away. She made the last few years of Rusty's life wonderful. They became inseparable. She lived 3 1/2 years after we got her. It was very hard losing her after such a short time but knowing how happy she was with us made it worth it.

This is how they spent most of their time. It was rare to find them seperated. Molly passed away at home while laying on the floor next to Rusty. After she died he was lost for a long time. Malka came along and made that better for him.

**We did have another dog for a few months but we had to return him to the rescue. It was a very difficult time and I'll have to talk about him later.**

I Swear I Didn't Do It Mom....

I have witnesses...It was Malka, I swear!

Pit Bull Blues