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  • Smarter Than Squirrels (Down Girl and Sit)
    Smarter Than Squirrels (Down Girl and Sit)
    by Lucy Nolan

    This is one of my favorite books about cool, brave dogs!

  • Bad to the Bone (Down Girl and Sit)
    Bad to the Bone (Down Girl and Sit)
    by Lucy Nolan

    I haven't read this book yet, but I can't wait to read more about these awesome and cool dogs!

  • On the Road (Down Girl and Sit)
    On the Road (Down Girl and Sit)
    by Lucy Nolan

    This sounds like a good book, too.  Car rides usually end in fun places like the Wiener Dog Races or the dog park!

  • The Art of Racing in the Rain
    The Art of Racing in the Rain
    by Garth Stein

    I haven't read this yet, but it was recommended by one of my people's friends.  She said it was great!

  • Nature's Variety Dry Dog Food, Prairie Canine Chicken Meal & Brown Rice, 30-Pound Bag
    Nature's Variety Dry Dog Food, Prairie Canine Chicken Meal & Brown Rice, 30-Pound Bag
    Prairie

    This is my favorite food!  I'm not sure if I love eating, walking, or playing more!

  • PX-1 MEDIUM POWER PET DOOR
    PX-1 MEDIUM POWER PET DOOR
    HIGH TECH PET

    My people call this the "Star Trek Door".  I love it because I can open it but the squirrels can't!

  • Easy Walk Harness, Small, Royal
    Easy Walk Harness, Small, Royal
    Premier

    My old harness made me want to pull as hard as I could.  This one is much more relaxing!

Monday
Mar152021

Cold White Stuff Everywhere

Hi Friends!  It has been a long, long, long, long time since I last reported on my life.  That is what happens when you get a SECOND tiny human you have to protect.  Still, I had to make time to tell you about the crazy, crazy week just a little bit ago.

Life seemed pretty normal, when suddenly, the outdoors got very, very, very cold.  I have to remind you that on very hot days, I love to lay in the sun.  When it gets just a little cooler and my people put on their thin coats, I think it's a bit too cold to go outside.  (They do convince me to go outside eventually because I hate to make messes in the house.)

Still, on this day, it was much too cold to go outside for any reason.  I was not going to go outside willingly.  It was colder than I ever felt!  

My people then got out my walking outfit, and I got excited.  Before I realized what happened, I let them put on my walking clothes and went outside.  The door locked behind me, and it was too late!

The upside-downTo make matters worse, there was cold, white stuff everywhere.  It was cold in the air, and it was cold on my feet, and it was cold everywhere.  I'm not sure what terrible thing had happened to do this to our home.  I was scared and felt a bit helpless.    I was able to take my walk, though, and was very glad to get home.

The next morning, I thought things would get better.  The sun was shining, so I looked forward to getting back outside. Little did I know that it would be even worse!!

The air was even colder than the day before, which didn't seem possible, and the white stuff grew!  However, I couldn't just walk on top of the white stuff, I kept sinking in to the ground!  Not only were my feet cold, now, my legs, and even my chest, were in the white stuff and it felt terrible.  It felt so terrible, in fact, that I sat down and cried after about 5 minutes and my person picked me up and took me inside.

Deep into the terrible cold stuff

Later that day, my person carried me out, and we found a trail through the white stuff.  It was not great, but at least the cold stuff only touched my feet I not my whole legs!

A path just for me!Friends, believe me when I tell you this was awful.  However, what was even more difficult was that each day, I woke up, and nothing got better.  Nothing.  It was this terrible world over and over again!

The only good part was that when I got back, I had the warmest spot in the house to recover!

Warming up after a miserable walkI truly thought that we'd never be warm again.  I saw a show with my little people recently where the queen froze the whole land, and I was sure that was what happened.  However, after what felt like a lifetime, the spell was broken and weather is normal again....Woof. Woof , Woof!!!

Thursday
Jun262014

Justice for Nano

My friend Nano and her person are being unfairly attacked by the postal service.  There's a reason why dogs don't trust mail carriers, and this story just confirms all of my worst fears! Read the whole scary, sad, Kafkaesque story here: http://justicefornano.blogspot.com/

My "Scary" friend Nano

Tuesday
Apr022013

A Chance for Chester

Hello Friends.  My name is Chester.  I’m a brown 14-year-old Dachshund.  Cody invited me onto his blog to tell my story.  Thank you Cody!  

Life has been great this year.  My persons have been taking me with them everywhere! Shopping, Parks, Restaurants, and Pet Events.  We are even going to the Drive-In soon to see a movie!   And that’s not even the best part. The best part is the toys, lots and lots of toys!  

There have also been lots of doctors.  My persons say I have something called a brain meningioma.  They took me to Texas A&M University to help me.   Everyone there was so nice.  They treated me like a Prince.  I had to stay there for a week and get a special treatment to slow down the growth of the tumor.   My persons kept saying I was so brave, strong and an inspiration to them.   They cried a lot, and I didn’t understand why.  

After the treatments, I enjoyed all the special attention.   They bought me a special pet mobile that I get to ride around in.  I have my own heated bed too!  It’s so great!  The only boring part is that I’m on a strict diet now.   But, it’s ok.   

I’m doing really well now.  I run, play, and chase my persons around the house.   I’ve also been doing 5K runs with my persons in my pet mobile on the weekends.  I enjoy that.   Sometimes they run slow but if I bark, they run faster.   

A couple of weeks ago, everyone gathered to have a Yard Sale on my behalf.  It was so much fun.  All kind of persons gathered together.  The money that was collected will pay for my treatment at Texas A&M and at Westbury, where I go to camp every day when my persons are at work.

One of my favorite things to do now is to be cuddled.  I didn’t use to like that but welcome any chance I get to be hugged, kissed or petted.  I’m also working on something persons call a Bucket List.  I learned that a bucket list is all the stuff you want to accomplish during your life.  A couple of things I’d like to do is run a weiner dog race, DJ a radio morning show, meet the Houston Texan football players and go to a drive in and see a movie.  That’s just a couple of things that come to mind.  My persons have done so much for me that I can’t imagine my list will be too long.

If you would like to follow all of my adventures, look me up on Facebook at ‘Chance For Chester’.  My persons upload photos and stories there all the time.

Until then, never give up…..never, ever give up!

Friday
Mar152013

Blankets and Pillows

I am very thankful for blankets and pillows.  There's no place that I feel more safe and warm than under a blanket or pillow.  (It's even better if I'm on a lap under a blanket.)

Five years ago, when I arrived at my new home, one of the first things I did was jump on the couch, knock a pillow over, and slip under it.  I looked so young back then!

Safe and warm in my new home

Soon afterwards, I found that it also felt nice to be under a blanket.

Under a blanket - so comfortable

After much experimentation, I found that I could combine pillows with blankets for an amazing level of comfort.

Does it get better than this?My people are well aware of my love for pillows and blankets, so they've given me a variety of blankets over the years.  One of my favorite is my dachshund blanket.

Doxie wrapped in a doxie :-)I know that I couldn't have made it through my kennel rest without the comfort of my favorite blankie.

My comforting blankie

There wasn't much good about kennel rest, but I did get to combine two of my favorite things while on rest: eating and blankets!

Sorry for droning on and on about pillows and blankets.  When I get on a topic that I love, it's difficult for me to stop.  I have a lot more to say on the topic, but I'll save that for later!  Let me know if you need any advice on how to best use blankets and pillows.

 

Saturday
Jan262013

Rehab - Yes, Yes, Yes!

After my IVDD surgery and 6 weeks of kennel rest, I was able to move my back legs.  I couldn't control them well, and I got tired quickly, but they worked! The told me that if I went to rehab I could walk better, so I said yes, yes, yes!

I don't have any pictures or videos of myself in rehab, but I went once a week for 6 weeks.  We did a number of things, but the strangest thing was a machine for walking in the water.  They would put me in a glass box, and then water would start coming in from the floor.  This scared me at first, but a person named Thai made me feel more comfortable.  Thai said everything would be OK, and I believed it.

Then, the floor started moving, and I started walking.  It was very strange, but it felt like my legs didn't have to carry my weight.  It felt like I was flying or something.  It felt great and strange.

Here's a video showing something like what I did:

The rehab helped me walk at home as well.  As part of my therapy, I got to finally go on short walks again.  Here's a video of my walking.  You can see that all my fur didn't grow back yet.  I am limping a bit and having trouble lifting my toes, but you can't tell much in the video.

After months of rehab and hard work, I am back to being healthy and active!  I'm also looking pretty good if I do say so myself.

Looking good

Having IVDD was a scary experience for sure.  However, if any other puppies out there get IVDD, please know that it can be overcome.  I hope that my story helps some other pups get better and not give up hope.  There were times when I almost did, but I pushed myself, and it all paid off.

I heard that some person with a strange name of Winston once said, "If you're going through hell, keep going."  I agree, but I like the musical version better.