Happy Spring!

This week the Spring weather arrived; Booker has a great openspace we take him to, everyday. It’s called wildcat Creek. The part we walk at is close to the Bay, the park is fabulously well maintained- they mow the grasses down regularly and have a nicely paved walkway for us humans.

This an older pix, shows his cute markings and conveys how utterly happy our sweetie is after his romp. He rolls around on his back in delight / ? to show us how happy he is/ --and we have labeled this behavior “happy dog”; now he can do the rolling on command.

Speaking of commands or words he responds to, I have started a list:

Some of the words or commands he clearly understands: many have associated body/hand / eye contact signals as well:

LOOK
sit
down
stay ( 100% on target -wow)
come

off
wait ( a very short stay)
FREE DOG ( release words)
move ( as in out of the way)<--very important command or he ’would be tripping us up all the time back ( moves backwards)

fetch ( however- does not understand the :give it up part: unless we switch with another item)

give ( NOT willing all the time- definitely working on this and the above...)

take

find it!

Close

walk

find (... Kong, Bone) /or “:where’s your...:
treat
tug ( we have given up this activity/toys due to his i extreme zealotness that borders on dangerous)
leash
right
left
food
NO
YES!!
paw
brush
bath
happy dog ( rolls on back for belly rubs)
good boy
up (invitation to couch )
spot ( where he waits until released via hand signal to jump into suv)
bed / matt
crate
blankie
bark
go pee
outside
inside
dog
car
ride
Stop ( combo of sit and LOOK) i.e. at crosswalks
let’s go
forget about it
leave it!!
chill
find fennel ( in an open space where he can run free and tear up fennel that grows all over)
with me ( stay heeled during walks)
close
say hello ( LOOKs at the person nearby)
thankyou ( acknowlegding he has alerted us to a sound - so he will not continue)
upstairs
downstairs


I am sure he reads our body language, facial expressions and has his routines from :reading: us; knows our usual daily routines well enough, and sounds ( car keys, refrigerator, rustle of plastic ) which leads to a response from understanding what may happen next.
For example:
I believe he whines a little in the morning, when I open the closet to get dressed, knowing I am leaving soon...
He will attentively LOOK as soon as my husband gets near where we keep the training treats.
Every weekend, when the dremel goes on ( he knows treats and a tug session will follow)- looks intently at the spot the tug is stored...

He gratefully came to us knowing that when people are eating- he has to be on his mat or bed until we are done. Good boy. He understands we do not want him near. Never challenges this.

We were blessed the day Booker came into our life!

My sista Juanita Ghotti

Busy

#1 dog site for dogs & bipeds!

We have been busy so no posts of our luvie lately. He as adorABULL as ever; healthy and happy- and sends you holiday greetings!

>>>A GOTCHA DAY AND BIRTHDAY TO REMEMBER>>>

Image is from our first trip to the beach........where we met up with a seal.

I had devised a little 4th of July greeting that i never posted- so will start with the display of enthusiasm...and then how it all played out.

Happy 4th! ---- B-Day and Gotcha day Celebration!

- July 4 - due the uncertainty of his birthday, we have settled on Booker’s happy days being celebrated together. In the early am we will head out to Muir Beach for the 2nd time ( you may recall the story of meeting up with a seal the first time!). He is around 6 now and we will all have been together for 2 years now.

In any case, I can hardly wait. It has been over one year now since we hit the beach. We never made it back, due to the long trial of reduced activity from rear knee (gratefully only one) / ACL injury and the subsequent December 08 TPLO surgery (with patellar repair) and again several months of severe activity restrictions. His leg is totally stable again, and the only real change is he doesn’t do his little jump up into the air and twirl around to greet me when I get home any more. Nixed that one!

Last year, he was so thrilled being at the ocean, and from his excitement as we turned onto the Highway 1 road (we often call him our GPS dog!) Booker definitely displayed he had been to the beach before. Boy did he love running out into the surf (gentle, in a protected cove) and swam like a champ.

So we will go early, swim, play with seaweed (he chomped plenty last time); we will have an early picinc brunch and head home before the beach gets mobbed.
~~~~~~
Wellllll, we got there- it was still foggy, and we had a small cove all to ourselves. It was also low upcoming/slack tide too, so no pounding waves to deal with- Perfect!. Quiet, no wind, gentle waves...

After setting up the beach mat I pulled out the huge plastic ball that we reserve for a rare occasional use- he tears his snout up if we use it anywhere else. He is totally nuts for this ball- recall goes out the window and we have to use a tug toy to get it back from him- he won’t give it up ....Normally he is extremely mild mannered and obedient. We call him our gentleman dog.

We were kicking it around at the shoreline and he nudges it into the surf ( I think he was a dolphin in a former life) and started swimming totally straight out, with the ball crazed determination he has....casting any recall to the wind. I quickly see how FAST he is headed out and jump into my suit and double caps ( too cold for a long swim without).

By the time I am swimming out, he is WAY out, headed straight out to sea! I called to him and he managed to go after the ball a bit more from side to side, rather than straight out. I notice I can BARELY make headway to catch up but quickly quell any sense of panic rising in me- no mean feat- and keep plugging away to try and catch up. I rationalize that he will tire and slow down and that my springtime return to major swimming training will be most helpful... (also fortunately I am a former competitive open water swimmer, which helped me be OK with being so far out at sea).

Oh man he kept on going but sure enough, finally did start to slow down. Whew. I devised strategy after strategy to keep my mind focussed and keep calm.

First strategy was to be as calm as possible when I caught up, and to circle around so he didn’t get a keep-away game kicked in -thinking he is such a little tenacious guy, I’d try to throw the ball towards shore, to turn this around.

2nd strategy was to go off to the closest shore area to rest him a bit before swimming back- but as the the walls of rocks showed up- scratch that one off...

3rd strategy was to avoid any sense of panic- to remain absolutely calm and focussed- to avoid him picking up on the anxiety this turn of events could easily induce in me.

I paced myself so I wouldn’t be worn out; backstroke is my most efficient stroke, so there I was, making headway to catching, hoping in time to turn him around before he wore out...

All of a sudden there he was next to me smiling away, with glee at how much fun he was having- I turned around and was saying Bookie come- let’s go- let’s go- and off he took towards shore, leaving me biting the dust in his wake. I was still very concerned that he might tire and go under but boy, he is so fast! I can swim a mile in 35 minutes- no kicking off from poolsides- last I clocked myself in a pool.

........He beat me back by a huge length.

I actually felt honored that he gave up his ball chasing to join me- it is probably half way to Hawaii by now..

Tom saw all this from shore, so far away now that he had judged that B-Boy was OK by the movement of the BIG ball- So when the progression stopped, his heart sank, thinking Booker had gone under....and seeing only me coming back in ( one set of splashes only), his heart sinking at what I must be feeling out there too..

Booker‘s head was not visible yet from shore- we were so far out by this time, he could barely make my splashes out either.

Well, Booker tore back to shore in surely record breaking time, if he had been a human! OMG- he had made it! For quite a while before that, I could no longer see him, not until he was on the beach again.....

I had tossed Tom a tug toy to wave around as I dove into the surf, in the hope that it might bring him back. Well, the little bugger ran ashore, vomited (probably had swallowed plenty of salt water) and proceeded to jump at the tug for his next set of fun and games. Totally ready for his next round of play!

Lesson learned- Booker has absolutely no recall when it comes to the ball and what a stupid human I can be. How fast he is...how we have to be so on guard at all times.

I was literally sickened by the whole experience- could not eat all day and and was probably experiencing adrenaline detox all the next day- Monster of a headache - and a sore throat from calling out to him.

THANK DOG he is OK....

Meet and Greet

Meeting and Greeting Dogs
by Andrea Kilkenny

As a trainer and a shelter employee, one of the things I am often asked about is how to conduct doggie
introductions. Some dogs really enjoy meeting and socializing with other dogs, and other dogs prefer not to
meet unfamiliar dogs. Every dog has his/her own level of tolerance for other dogs. As someone who has had to
evaluate shelter dogs for compatibility, I try to always determine where does a dog fit along the continuum of
sociability with other canines? For example: is the dog: dog-friendly, tolerant, maybe selectively tolerant,
reactive, shy, or fearful of other dogs, does it have barrier frustration, poor greeting behavior, does it prefer to
play with dogs of the same size or age, or opposite sex? It is up to each owner to know his/her dog and
determine the dog's comfort level with other dogs. Here are a few suggestions that will make dog introductions
Teach your dog some basic obedience that you can then use in the presence of other dogs. Helpful cues
to know are: sit, down, watch me and either heel or polite loose leash walking. These cues are especially helpful
if you plan to do competitive events with your dog, as you may not want your dog to greet during events, but
rather stay focused on you and not other dogs.

Do not let your dog pull you towards other dogs to say hello. YOU as the owner make the decision as to
who your dog will greet. Assess the other dog first - does it look friendly? What does the other dog's body
language tell you? Is the other dog straining at the end of the leash, body weight shifted forward, ears back,
hackles up, rearing up off of the ground, tail up high and stiff, all or any of the above? Those are not good signs.
If the dog is 'soft' in its body language, what I call 'loosey goosey' behavior - soft eyes, open relaxed mouth, tail
wagging, body weight distributed evenly over the dog's legs, or perhaps even throwing a play bow, these are
generally signs of a friendly approach. If you allow your dog to 'self-release' and, thereby self reward, by
allowing him to drag you towards every dog, you will have a dog that thinks he/she should meet every dog, and
this is NOT socializing, it is actually teaching your dog bad manners! Socializing means selecting appropriate
dog buddies for your dog, and you the owner guide this selection.

Try taking a walk together, in the same direction first, with the dogs a few feet apart. Keep on moving
forward without letting the dogs greet initially. This parallel leash walking often diffuses any tension between
dogs. It is one of the most simple, yet powerful, ways to acclimate two dogs to each other. This is often how I do
introductions with shelter dogs and potential adopter's dogs, and how I introduce foster dogs, as well as how I
acclimate my dogs to a new canine friend. The dogs can see and smell each other across that distance and are
getting to know each other without the pressure of a direct interaction. Often, I will do several walks with a new
dog before I actually let the dogs meet. Taking a walk together is a great way to socialize!

When you do allow your dog to meet, keep the initial introduction brief. Allow the dogs to sniff, and then
quickly call your dog to you. Try to keep your leash slack, not tense, when the dogs are greeting. Reward your
dog with praise - and even a treat! - for good greeting behavior. If your dog has successful greetings with
another dog, it sets them up for future success as canine friends, whether on or off leash. However, if you and
your dog start off on the wrong paw, it is hard to undo a poor first greeting.

Try to avoid what I call 'head on collisions' wherein dogs greet each other straight on, nose to nose,
walking right at each other. Dogs should greet each other from a T-formation, one dog perpendicular to the other;
this type of greeting is more natural for them, and less confrontational, in terms of doggie body language, than a
face to face greeting, coming head on with each dog tense at the end of the leash, which is often how people let
their dogs meet, especially if they are out on a walk.

Try to avoid situations where you will feel you have to 'correct' your dog. So, if you know your dog
doesn't do well with face-to-face initial greetings, don't allow the behavior. Too often, I see people allow their
dogs to greet, and then when the greeting doesn't go well, the owner corrects the dog. If you do this, you will
make your dog LEARN to be more tense in the presence of other dogs if he/she begins to anticipate tension or
correction from you.

For some additional information on Dog Introductions, you can read my article on
Pit Bull Rescue Central: http://www.pbrc.net/dogintros.html
If you have a reactive dog, I highly recommend the booklet, Feisty Fido by Dr. Patricia McConnell.

CGC image on the web(<-hot link)

My man-person got his pix on the web with me! Linda was our BADRAP Canine Good Citizen teacher/trainer. Tom responded well to her training him ;-)

Gotta Luv It: You’re the One for Me

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

6 week post TPLO Xrays

What is totally great about digital Xrays is that our Vet was able to zoom in to where the bone was cut, and we could see very closely to what degree the bone tissue is growing over. We compared it to the day of surgery, where there is a definite dark line ( no bone). Now it has filled in very well. 6 more weeks to go, until he gets the all clear (or should I say is all grown in?) to do increasingly more full-on activity. No running, leaping, scampering, jumping or doggie play dates until we have him back at full functioning. He walks great, no limping at all since day 5 post op- trots well tho neither for very long, now up to 10 minutes max, 2-3 times per day, weather permitting. We do tug play lying down, which he loves- and he chews on indestructible items *Nylabones and Kongs*, maybe all day long, when not snoozing, to help keep himself happy. He is so funny , whenever he gets overly excited he will grab himself one, to safely calm himself down. He has never chewed up anything else at home. !GOOD BOY! Fennel plants are another story- he can’t resist them at all, although will LEAVE it when requested

Back to weather permitting activity....I should say Booker permitting!; the slightest moisture to the ground (much less any rain falling!).... and he immediately will turn right around and head back to his comfy bed by the heater right away. LOL. This is after a long, hard plaintive LOOK our way, ( boy does he have US trained!) then extremely joyful when the collar comes out.....He will do a quick business stop only if in dire need!

I wonder how he will fare in the snow. Next week we are taking a road trip to Oregon. He is being conditioned to some high tech booties, which we saw some IDITAROD mushers using. No snow here! I really do not think he has ever seen snow. Hopefully we can have fun in the snow. I’ll tell him it is just funny water, he loves even cold water swimming.

We are so happy we had the TPLO surgery done. He will be able to once again be his very active self, very soon. I really miss our all out romps too.

TPLO Xrays, peri-operative take 2

One more image from day of surgery: You can see the bend in the titanium plate, which the vet had to do, for it to fit properly.

TPLO Xrays, peri-operative

These are from surgery day, 12/4/08. Some done post surgery for confirming placement. Vet had to bend his titanium plate to fit properly. Note his right rear leg is bowed, most likely this contributed to his cruciate ligament being damaged, as well as his super speedy turns and general demeanor: scamper-gleefully-around-at-top-speed, at the slightest provocation.



Here you can note the major curve to the leg; this is not normal



one more...

-

Merry Pitmas

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Gotta Love it! From a great member of the pitbull list serve. opps- looks like it is cut off! You can see it in all it’s glory here:
Video - Direct Link


This list serve itotally rocks.IMPORTANT TIP! If you choose to have messages delivered: Create a mailbox to filter the messages. I personally made a secondary email account for the list!

PitBull-L Subscription, Guidelines and Settings: http://www.pbrc.net/pitbull-l/pitbull-l2.html

Merry Xmas to All

Many years ago (1987) SI had a terrible image on a cover, that many believed contributed to the downfall of the Pitbull breed. Well, this new issue brings a new image to the fore!

Link to Sports Illustrated Article

See my Bad Rap blog link for more insights!

Post Op Dog

I can relate to the relief when the call comes, that the pre-op labs and surgery went well. Our sweetie also his patellar area opened up and may need more surgery there later, per bad conformation and a more complicated Luxating Patella from bad conformation.

Our post op notes: Booker had his TPLO on Thursday 12/4 so we are at the 2 week mark already.

Booker came home the morning after surgery. He had received a epidural anesthesia and a long acting antibiotic injection (no antibiotic pills). He had a fentanyl patch bandaged to his other rear leg for 5 days for pain control. No bandage was applied to the incision and we were given written instructions to leave it alone. I did a minor bit of icing on days 2 and 3 when a small amount of redness appeared below the patellar incision ( one stitch). There never was any swelling. His stitches are not staples. The incision itself is absolutely picture perfect- and you cannot see it from the outside at all either. Believe me, I am an RN and have seen much worse by human surgeons!

He did some toe touching for a few days, mostly holding the operative leg up but started full weight bearing on day 5. Now when he walks slowly, he looks like he is walking normally! If he picks up a little speed, he will want to hold it up again. Of course it is cold and wet out and he is on-eash only for a few potty break. He also left the incisions alone after a few “leave it” requests on our part, when he started sniffing around. GOOD BOY!!

We have a comfy cone we put on when we were not at home( xpen‘d as well) and had introduced these earlier,so he did not fighting the cone at all. Since it is attached to a collar and he has a blocky Pitbull head, no way he could have pulled it off! We definitely will watch him like a hawk after stitches come out (Saturday) and use the cone when he is alone for a bit after that.

Tramadol was the only real problem- seems it tastes BAD so was a bit tricky to administer at times. We gave it 3 x a day while awake , since it seemed to wear off in 5- 6 hrs. Today he only got it in the morning, per is now not shaky or displaying other signs of pain or discomfort. He is back to eating kibble mixed with our meaty /veggie/ eggy /seaweed /flaxseed oil/ loaf, after refusing anything with kibble for a few days. The addition of pumpkin helped with BMs. He also gets a few supplements and a homeopathic anti-inflammatory.

We did lots of Kong tug play in his blanket filled dogbed and rope tug action while in a down there too, so no stress on the back legs etc...and his beloved Nylabones to chew on- all have kept him relatively happy. Of course all the hugs and petting are good medicine too! Treats when the cone goes on. Weekly grooming of nails, ears and daily massage / brushing also - most of his regular interactions with us, outside of romps was fun to do. I miss the walks/ romp as much as he does!

He slept more too and was a bit more irritable about strange sounds but otherwise pretty much his usual, happy go lucky self, just the doggy bedbound version. He parked himself on his living room bed for the recovery time; a little safe propane “fire” nearby kept him basking happily there too.

Those plaintive, fully -attentive- to-us LOOK moments were the worst of it ( his hopeful for a walk plea). Since we had done conservative management over most of the summer, we knew how to deal with it all pretty well.

Booker earlier had a strange reaction to Rimadyl, so we received only Tramadol. Investigation indicates this medication has a mild antidepressant action that probably helped too.

Our Ortho vet is great- he has owned the very busy 4 or 5- man ( and women) Vet Clinic for 20 years; I called him a few times and received prompt answers.
Pix of Booker now

Pitter Patter

Family Dog portrait that was enhanced and added to a fun Pitbull website, where other similarly amusing images are posted.

Canine Good Citizen

Booker took the test on November 30, 2008 and is now an official Canine Good Citizen! We have been taking him for training sessions this year, except for a few months off when he injured his stifle.He is a lovie and destined to be a therapy dog one of these days.

He will be once again be bed bound; on Thursday he will have a TPLO surgical procedure.

I rescued a Human Today

I rescued a human today.
Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering
apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew
I had to help her. I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she
wouldn't be afraid. As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view
from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn't want
her to know that I hadn't been walked today. Sometimes the shelter
keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them.
As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about
my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make
a difference in someone's life. She got down on her knees and made
little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head
up against the bars to comfort her. Gentle fingertips caressed my
neck; she was desperate for companionship. A tear fell down her
cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well.
Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I
instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I
would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do
everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her
eyes. I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many
more are out there who haven't walked the corridors. So many more to
be saved. At least I could save one.

I rescued a human today.

Please consider a shelter animal.

CGC

Booker is doing well these days. He runs again, has regained his muscle tone etc. Each Saturday he goes to the BAD RAP meeting spot, which luckily is nearby. Our teacher, Linda, has Booker deemed destined for his Canine Good Citizen Certificate. He was so excited to be in Pit Ed 1, and has lots of training under his belt. Or should I say WE ( his dedicated owners) have been dutifully trained. He’s ready for the test. GOOD BOY!!

Booker is getting better

Update
Booker, probably 4 to 5 yr ( vet says 3.5!) , 48 lb American Pitbull Terrier Booker, has been resting and recovering for 7 weeks now, with limited activity and is getting better every day.

Story:
This spring, Booker had a few episodes of right rear leg limping that went away after a day or two ( extra hard day at the beach and a long hike another time). I also had noticed he was slowing down on the trip up/down the stairs too. Then one day- a BAD limp, off to Vet, 4 days of Rimadyl daze ( not going to use that again!) and he still was limping. X-rays ( bad hips) and a positive drawer sign. Ugh. he is not well conformed in several areas so we shall see over time.

So we opted for good supplements, extra good food, and Conservative Management as the first “move” (is that a bad pun or what?) The files here are very helpful! I also joined the Orthodogs list, which is another resource; however it actually strengthened my resolve to do the wait and watch pathway.......as in Conservative Management.

He was such a good boy, really well behaved, did not run around at all and were able to limit his activities- whew! For an active dog who lives for romps and run/walks, this was quite the transition.. My husband is home by mid day, or all day, most days, as he works from home, and of course that really helped too. I am the long hours away one here...

Booker has lost muscle mass on his affected side, but it is amazing how much returns every day, as we lengthen his walks, each day.

It is so exciting to see him sitting again at the door, totally in a stay via my husband, when I am get home. Before, Booker would freely race around the yard and do his tricks ( jump and spin) as my return home greeting. Then we would go for a walk. LONG, with some time for a good off leash run and a (controlled)fennel plant attack or two- LOL - THAT IS OUT FOR NOW, of COURSE!

The whole experience of having him be under careful watch has resulted in lots of additional attention and training opportunities. So interesting to see how he adapted; he really loves the increased personal contact and is so calm and mellow with lots of happy smiles for us. Since he can no longer independently go upstairs to what we called his rule free zone/ lair (LOL), and is right next to us all evening etc- his charming personality and desire to please has deepened to a new level. He always has been a great dog with a naturally very sound temperament, but is now even more well trained, and even more of a character than ever! He has a clown and show-off streak for sure!

ALSO I have noticed today, ( lazy me /Saturday-itis set in after a stressful work week)-I only walked him for a short potty break, or 2, and he was stiff legged when he walked late in the afternoon. So I definitely will make sure to keep to the regular schedule of 3 times a day potty AND slowly increasing, 3 therapy/ sloooow walk sessions! Bad, lazy Mommie today!

We also do PROM exercises, and I have had to definitley STOP his heavy duty, cover the poop action! That may have been a huge factor in wear and tear...anyway, hoping to not need surgery anytime soon. Ortho Vet consult will follow shortly re hip and some other issues, and how to keep things going in the right direction, now that at 6 weeks he is not limping, and is gaining strength

Live and learn- thought I’d share our “getting there”. Realistically, he is physically/ortho very challenged and I do realize he just may need surgery of one kind or the other in the future.

Claudia and Booker ( <--the best dog ever!)
multiple ortho issues, .....and probable CCL partial tear June 14 08

PitBulls Rock

Below is fab Posting from a PitBull advocate whom I admire. She gave me permission to post this, a listserve message she shared.
Thanks Lynn L!

Yesterday I had to take my cat to the vet and we stopped by Petsmart after. While shopping, yes he was in a carrier, we ran into one of the national *animal supply store* Trainers and her GSD client and the dog's owners and started chatting. Even though the national *animal supply store* trainer handles all breeds, she quickly let it be known that GSDs are her breed of choice. I had on a PBRC shirt so she started asking me about pit bulls. I quickly realized she was getting into a "competition" over the breeds.

She first asked if pit bulls could do search work. I replied, "of course - there are two pit bulls named Cheyenne and Dakota that are top in their field"

Regrouping, she stammered and said, "Oh, I meant search - like Narcotics and bombs"

Me: "of course, Popsicle made the biggest drug find in US history and he's a pit bull!"

It then became like a canine version of Password.

Her: "Schnuzund" Me: "Whitehead - just won the national championship"

Her: "Agility" Me: Wallace the Pit Bull - Purina Ultimate K9 Champion

Her: Flyball" Me: Pumble

Her: Dock dogs Me: Morgan (RIP sweety)

Her: Police K9 Me: Neville

Her: Therapy dogs Me: Murphy

Her: Assistance dogs Me: Pit bulls are increasingly being used as all types of assistance dogs. In addition to the traditional roles as sight or hearing dogs, they have also proved that their strong physical build as well as even temperament makes them the ideal breed for people who need the actually physical support that the dogs can provide. We then discussed a local case where a legally blind soldier with a prothestic was kicked out of a restaurant because of his seeing eye/physical support pit bull assistance dog. It wasn't because the dog was a pit bull but the young employee didn't think any dogs could be in the pizza joint due to health codes.

Her: Well, I don't think they'd be very good at any kind of search work since they aren't scent hunters.

Me: What a pit bull lacks in olafactory, they make up for in tenacity. You take a breed that used to be bred and trained to fight to their own death and now show them that their goal is to find that cocaine or that lost toddler and they just won't quit until they do.

Her: Hmmm, I guess I'd seen them in these jobs more than I had ever really thought about. I still love my GSDs but I'll give you kudos for all the great pit bulls out there too!

Me: That's all we ever ask :)!

Boo Hoo maybe Cranial Cruciate Ligament Blues

Hi It’s me. I just had a bath. It is in the 90’s here. Boy did that feel good.

Last weekend I was at my last PIT ED 1 class with BAD RAP, and all of sudden I could not walk on my right rear leg.

Vet said right stifle (knee) and hip joints were having a problem for sure, and sent me home to rest and come back if I didn’t get better in a few days. i didn’t so he put me out and took x-rays.

They are not entirely sure yet, what I have going on.

I am a young fella and not overweight. I sure like to romp around and RUN. I really don’t like this having-to-hang-out- on -my-new bed-all-day action, except for a few potty breaks, on leash only, where I limp around. I am getting better but if i walk too much. The limp returns.

I like my crate OK, but would rather not have to be in there too, when nobody is home. Fortunately, that is not too often. Usually I have the run of the house, since I am well behaved.

Now it looks like I was born with some bad hips too, so we shall see....

I have been taking Rimadyl pills ( my mom sure was proud of the way I just chomped them up but don’t tell her, they taste great, unlike those other pills she had to put peanut butter around, to get me to take them, when I had to have surgery for the foxtail in my paw awhile ago).

Anyway, boy was I messed up from those pills, Mr Smushy Stoned Dog, but they made it easier to just loll around and chew my Nylabone and hang with my black Kong.

I miss my mom; she is on vacation. I hear she is worried sick about my knee injury.

I will be a good boy.....

National Shame

This is a video aided appeal to all dog owners to spay and neuter their pets. PRONTO.

When I recently went to a shelter for a training group orientation, I had to look straight ahead as I walked down the hall with the dogs on either side. I happened to glance at the last door and saw of course the most adoraBull young pibble...I was in tears throughout the meeting.

The estimates of 5-10 million unwanted animals Put To Sleep each year, is a shameful tragedy, beyond imagination.

The below video makes it perfectly clear. No more imagining.

Every pet owner needs to see this.

The lastest comment I received, when I offered a young man to help with a neutering, was that he is such a good dog, I want to breed him once( so he could then have one of his puppies when he died). Any information about fate of the other 9 or so puppies, and their potential offspring....was blocked. 8-(

I so admire those who work at shelters.

TISSUE WARNING_ get out a whole box for this...

Pit Bull Blues

This is so cute and so true! ENJOY!

Family Portraits

(Pre neutering) Booker on the left, Juanita and Konaloni. These are the family dogs, the girls are my son’s. Due to circumstances beyond my control (poor crate design and obviously determined dogs)...... there was a litter.

Booker was adopted by me when that occurred. And immediately altered......He is such a love, headed to a therapy and possibly a service dog “job”. He could then be at work with me at times. We are in the BAD RAP pipeline with training. His most challenging aspect is that he is easily distracted by other dogs and humans- he wants to play.

Kona was the mama. She is blue fawn. Below is the only one (Buckertte was her puppy name since Bucker was his name at the time) that had B’s coloring. She lives with a dog trainer who adores her, and has the happy go lucky nature of her daddy dog. She lives at a beach. Lucky her!



I helped out my son, who lives 30 minutes away, during this time, and suffered greatly when 3 pups were determined to be bilaterally deaf. One found an experienced home, 2 were PTS tearfully in my arms. My son did carefully screen new owners and has made sure they all received and continue to receive good care. I can only hope all were altered.

I am hoping no more litters will occur but my son has not taken what I adamantly believe to be the appropriate steps, and I have to keep up the vigil. Dang!

Beach Bums

Yesterday I took Booker to the beach- Muir Beach.

Our first time, tho it was obvious he had been a beach dog before from the excitement as we turned onto Hiway 1- he KNEW.

He frolicked in the waves, jumping over the waves, swam a bit at times and chomped on the seaweed attached to the rocks.

I had him leashed up to avoid accidents with other dogs but we did nice introductions to a few other dog owners with dog friendly pooches, so he got to run around with a few new pals at times.

We were alone on the beach and started to hear this odd yelping, sounded like a dog in some kind of hysterical fit. I looked over at the cliff, expecting to see a dog smashed on the rocks, having fallen off the cliffs. The weird noise continued, and off we went to investigate.

Low and behold, a young seal had beached him/herself.

Knowing this is a wild animal and one must let it be alone, not let be alarmed by a dog or human, we walked away quickly. I did not see any sign of injury but there was an orange tag on it’s tail- a-ha! Has had human contact! Well, he started to follow us down the beach, I was snapping cell phone pictures as we walked away and the darn thing broke into quite the gallop, BOY CAN THEY MOVE! We had to run!

For the life of me, I think he wanted to play!. Of course Booker was ready for more playtime and happily pranced back an invitation to play....which may have alarmed the seal into an attack/ pursuit.

We attempted to steer his pursuit into the water but he turned around and headed up to the warm sand. Still moving at quite a clip. I assessed he could not be very sick or injured with that much energy!

A quick call to the Marine Mammal center confirmed my suspicions, - young animal not old enough to have learned to fear humans. Very common for them to go ashore to sun themselves. I learned they only vocalize, like we heard as he was coming in, when they are excited/happy.

Wow. I had seen them in the water when I was swimming there before, when they kept their distance but not in the middle of our old sunning spot!

I spent the remainder of the day reminding folks strolling by, to keep WIDE away from the wild animal.

He lolled in the sun, tossing sand about in play, and was still there when we left at 4pm.

BAD RAP

This is a nice Video of BAD RAP and the Vicks dogs. See their website for details.

Vicks and Bad Rap

Below find a link to the west coast group called BAD RAP
Bay Area Doglovers Responsible About Pitbulls
and what they have done for a group a dogs.

Now that the gag order has been lifted ( last defendant sentenced in Virginia) the story is revealed.
The videos/slideshows are very touching as well.
Bad Rap Timeline: The Michael Vick Dogs

B S L