More Melody

Here's a few more photos of Melody. She's such a little cutie!

She weighed 20 pounds at her last vet appointment. 

That's the exact same amount Blondie weighed at that age.

She often takes naps near her bowl.

It's as if she's telling us, 

"I don't want to sleep through any meals!"

If she's not napping there, she will probably

be cuddled up next to her "big sister" Blondie.

Today the girls were by the door. I felt like they
didn't want us to leave after all that time spent
together during the cold snap. It also reminded
me of this photo of Rusty taken in the same spot.

Well, it was time for me to get out of the house.

But I didn't get out before shooting this movie

of Melody climbing our stairs. This was a big

deal at our house because Blondie has been too 

frightened to climb stairs for a long time. We are

hoping she will conquer her fear now that she

sees the puppy doing it without any trouble.

Farewell, Dear Rusty

Rusty - final photo

Sad, sad news. My beloved golden retriever, Rusty died earlier this month. He was nearly 9 years old. He was part of our family for eight years. We had many good times with him, several of which were shared on this blog. Here are a few of my favorites:

The Brown Sugar Incident or Sweetest Dog Ever!

The Soggy Doggy Easter Egg Hunt

His first blog story, Pancakes for Puppy.

A short story of mine that included Rusty was published this month in the ALDAReader, a publication distributed at the national ALDA convention. The piece was based on this blog post in which dependable Rusty served as my "icebreaker" at a hearing loss support group event. I never dreamed when I submitted the story that he wouldn't be around when I received my copy. I'm really glad I picked that one to share.

Rusty and Blondie - final photo together

We are all heartbroken and Blondie is a little lost without her buddy. She stayed very close to him during his final days. In the first photo, you can even see her fluffy tail by Rusty's nose.  Everyone asks when are we going to get another dog. We are just not ready to think about it yet.

Skunk - 2, Dogs - 0

Recently, our dogs have had two unhappy encounters with a skunk in our backyard. P.U. Multiple baths later and hours outdoors drying off, they have been allowed back into the house. 

P.U. That skunk smell is hard to get rid of. We used a home made recipe from the internet which combines 1 qt. hydrogen peroxide, 1/4 cup baking soda, and 2 teaspoons dish washing liquid. We also used a product from the pet store. (We had to visit two stores because the first one was sold out of it. Apparently skunks are active right now around the area.) Then we used normal dog shampoo and conditioner with oatmeal. 

As you can see from the photos below, the dogs were not too happy about their cleanup. Maybe next time they will learn to run the other way when that skunk comes calling!

By Reader Request: Blondie & Rusty

I was asked by a blog reader to post a recent photo of Blondie & Rusty. So here they are! It's hard getting the dogs to pose together, so I hope you will enjoy these two separate portraits. The dogs were wearing flag bandanas in honor of a special family occasion.

Blondie is now a year and a half old.

Rusty is almost 9 years old.

Blondie and Rusty

Love is blind.
Love is Blondie!

My little miss at 4 months and 40 pounds.

Look how tall she's gotten.

"C'mon, Rusty. Let's play!"

Blondie & Rusty - best buddies

Enjoying each other's company in the backyard
It's going to be a wonderful summer!

Happy Spring!

Blondie, Rusty, and tulips

Hi everyone,
Hope you are having a lovely spring. Ours has been unseasonably warm and our spring flowers have all come into bloom a month early. Now, the trees are even coming into leaf. I haven't had as much time for blogging, because I've been spending all my free moments with my new friend Blondie (pictured above). She is a welcome addition to our family and Rusty's sidekick and shadow. One night the two of them double teamed me! While Blondie distracted me, Rusty ate the last half of my supper. As you can imagine, there have been lots of messes and laughs around our house. She's just too cute for us to stay mad at her for very long.
Wishing you the best in all that you are doing and thanks for reading my blog today,
Sarah

Sweetest Dog Ever

Sweetest Dog Ever

Rusty - after getting into a pound of brown sugar
that was left on the table.  Look at that guilty face!
My husband came home and caught him in the act.
He even had pieces of the plastic wrapping stuck
in his fur. Incredibly, he wasn't sick afterwards.

Rusty's Winter Coat

Rusty out in the cold last winter.

Remember that face? I couldn't let Rusty get cold like that this winter. Not after learning how to make a doggy coat. So, guess what I did? I made him another coat - this one for everyday wear. You can see him modeling it in the photo below.

I found this camouflage like fleece material in the half price section and used large snaps this time instead of velcro. The snaps were also on sale so the whole project cost about $8. I had enough material leftover to make him a matching scarf to wear around his neck as well as a scarf for the lucky person who has the honor of walking such a fine looking dog. Woof, woof!

Rusty's new winter coat and scarf

Happy Birthday, Rusty!

Rusty is 7 years old today! 

Earlier in the week, he was groomed from head to toe at the pet salon. Doesn't he look grand? His birthday presents (the first time we've ever done this) were a new leash and collar and this BIG BONE. This afternoon he enjoyed an outing to a soccer game. The crowd's cheering was very exciting for him and he is proud to report that his boy's team won. Then, it was time to come home for a nap and get back to that bone!

Dog Walk for a Good Cause

Portrait of Sarah and Rusty taken by Sarah's son.

Rusty enjoys meeting and greeting the other dogs
who have gathered for the dog walk.

The dog walk was organized to raise money
for a search and rescue dog (pictured below).

This bloodhound can help recover children lost
in the woods, locate elderly people who wander
away from nursing homes, and even track criminals.


It was a perfect autumn day for a walk in the
woods with our canine companions.

Have a great week, everybody!