Scruffy The Legend

If you remember the chapter on “Cars” in Scruffy The Legend, you will recall Karen’s ’66 Mustang that we were going to “pimp.” In 1982, (picture below), it still looked and ran well. By 2007, it had become a rusted mess. It meant so much to Karen, that rather than junk it, I decided to completely re do it as a present to her. Today, after 2 years of work, it is almost finished. It boasts a totally new paint job, new interior, new V8 small block motor and drive train. Just about every part is new, so it really has no value as a restored classic car. The picture gives you some idea of how it will look, but the Cobra-style external exhaust pipes running along the bottom of the door were not in place for the photo. They add quite a lot to the appearance, and I expect, to the sound. You will see and hear this car coming!

66 stang in 82

In Progress

Almost done

2009 March, Uncategorized

Maybe so, but tricolor Beagles sure can.

2009, 2009 May

Hi friends,
If you read this blog you probably are a big fan of Keeshonds. So am I. The last thing I ever thought was that I would ever be as big a fan of Beagles – Beagles! – can you imagine. Well Ruby changed all that. Here’s what I think of Beagles now: Beagles are not as “in your face” loving or intelligent as Keeshonds. Maybe they are even lazy and slow to learn. If I may dare, I say that they may be even smarter than Keeshonds and certainly not lazy. Their intelligence is on a different level – a deeper one, I suspect. They don’t always show their emotions as easily as Keeshonds. If I ask my Keeshond Charlie for his paw (or whatever trick) he does it immediately with vigor. Ruby ponders the situation and only gives her paw (slowly) under the following circumstances: a treat is being offered and Charlie is giving his paw. If I reprimand Charlie, he looks very upset for about 3 seconds, and then goes about his business. If I reprimand Ruby she goes to her bed and wimpers for a full minute or so.

Please read the following and help if you can:

From the Happy Tails group on Yahoo.

Three days ago while walking my mini Schnauzer at Alley Pond park here in Queens NY, my partner and I came across 2 Beagles who seemed quite lost. One dog seemed more vulnerable than the other. She was visibly tired and disoriented. She would call out for her “brother”, and he would sidle up to her,and reassure her. It was poignant to witness this trust and dependability between the two dogs under the
circumstances.

They have a very strong bond with one another. Ultimately we shepherded the dogs into our car and took them to our vet for a once over. He proclaimed them to be generally healthy. We brought them to
our groomer who gave both a much needed bath. We have plastered the park and surrounding area with flyers, in the hopes of finding the owner(s).

We can afford to keep them for a few days to a week, but we both travel quite a bit during the year, and we cannot accommodate these dogs into our day to day reality.

They are so sweet tempered and loving. They are not rambunctious or loud. Their behavior with our dog Roshi has been impeccable, no squabbling over territory, toys or food.

We don’t want to arbitrarily “dump” them at a shelter that might have no option but to euthanize after a certain grace period.

Please help us do the right thing by these two sweet dogs.

Thank you very much,

*CONTACT:
Elena cell: 718-736-3882
Tina cell: 516-639-4591

2009, 2009 April Adoption

Of course, you know that Scruffy was a pack leader and had little time for what he considered mindless pursuits such as playing fetch. Charlie, on the other hand has no aspirations of pack leadership and loves to play ball. Ruby is a hound. She says hounds do not play ball – only retrievers do. Anyway, if you play the video, you will see that she eventually convinces Charlie that rolling in the grass on a particualrly good smelling spot ( I guess) is more fun than silly ball playing.

2009, 2009 April Charlie

Dash first appeared on this blog on Mar 11. He was in a municipal shelter at that time and his future was very bleak. Through the help of some wonderful people, his future is much brighter. I think you can see this it in his face. He is now being fostered by the caring people at Suncoast Keeshond Rescue. We do need a permanent home for Dash. I have never met Dash, but based on what his rescuers say, he is a gentle loving dog whose main fault seems to be that he may want to spend too much time in your lap licking your face.

If you think you have room for this kind of affection and can provide some of your own please contact:

Suncoast Keeshond Rescue
PO Box 82
Elfers FL 34680
Phone: 727-534-9002

Some post scripts:
Latest word on Maggie (several posts below this one) is that she has been adopted!

Please understand that any dog you adopt has been through a nightmare. The dog has lost its original family or may never have even had one. Its not like raising a puppy. They are new to you and you are new to them. They may have faults; their initial behavior may not be perfect. Please try and make a commitment to your newly adopted dog to forever care for it, and to try to make it the happiest dog in the world. When your dog finally understands this commitment, you will know it, and it will be one of the most rewarding experiences you have ever had.

2009 April Adoption

I know you have all been waiting for the rematch between Charlie and Ruby (previous post). The previous bout ended in a draw. This time was different. Unfortunately there were boos and cries from the spectators that this second fight was fixed – that Charlie took a dive! You can see one of the disgtuntled spectators leaving before the end of the fight. That spectator missed the horrific end of the fight. Charlie rolled over and played dead! Charlie was fined by both the WBC and AKF 30 dog biscuits for unKeeshond-like behavior. This will really hit Charlie hard. His whole take from the fight was only one-half a dog biscuit. I am sure he will appeal.

2009 April Charlie, Ruby

Charlie’s “sister” Nikki is living with our friends, Margaret and Dave.  Margaret took this photo of Nikki.  She looks more like a mountain goat than a Keeshond.  We do not know if Charlie and Nikki are litter mates, but they were adopted from the same owner.  If they are not litter mates, then maybe good climbing ability and balance is an overall Keeshond characteristic (see my post entitled Good dogs gone bad, below).  I never noted this trait in Scruffy, but he was a larger dog and older when we adopted him. He also had hip-joint disease (of course you already know this since you all have read my book).

2009, 2009 March

What is as beautiful as a spring day?

Charlie at play on an early spring day.

2009, 2009 March

My wife posted this on her blog. I asked her to post a copy on mine.

Ruby is a beagle.  There are only 2 states of existence for a beagle – sleeping and eating.  Ruby spends about 23 hours in the first state and would spend the remaining time with her head in the food bowl.   If you are a reader of this blog, or my husband’s blog, you are already well acquainted with our gal Ruby.

We adopted Ruby in June ‘09. She had been brought to the shelter because her owner was no longer able to afford to take care of her.  She is larger than the breed standard, so we think she has another breed mixed in. When we took her home, she was a zaftig 44 pounds.

Over the past 9 months she has been on a diet and has lost 8 pounds. Her goal weight is between 25 and 30 pounds.

Given the opportunity, Ruby would spend her waking hours eating.  Charlie is her partner in crime.  Charlie has no problem jumping on the dining room table.  Darryl caught him in the act the other night.  A few weeks ago, Charlie discovered a container of peanuts on the table and with a little effort was able to remove the plastic lid.  Being the gallant boyfriend, he rolled the can off the table and on to the floor so that Ruby could share in the feast.

The next day while I was cleaning the back yard, I came across interesting dog stools.  They were shaped normally, but they consisted of 99% undigested peanuts !

A cautionary note about dogs ingesting nuts:

Walnuts can cause gastroenteritis and are considered poisonous to dogs.  Macadamia nuts contain an unknown compound, which can cause muscle tremors, weakness and paralysis of the hindquarters – luckily these symptoms last a short time.  In general, nuts are high in phosphorus and may contribute to the formation of bladder stones.

NOTE: Peanuts are a legume and considered not harmful when used in small amounts.

There are many foods which people eat without a problem, but which may cause serious complications in dogs.  For example grapes and raisin can damage the kidneys, onions can cause anemia, and chocolate can be deadly.  Read complete list.

2009, 2009 March Ruby

This post written by the wife:

So every time we come home, we find that the items on the diningroom table have been moved. We weren’t sure which of the animals was the culprit – some of the items were too large for the cat to have moved.

Darryl decided to conduct an undercover investigation and see if the perpetrator would go back to the scene of the crime. He placed food on the center of the table, opened the window blinds and went outside. Looking through the window, he found that it took no more than one minute for Charlie to start circling the table. Charlie is a very athletic and acrobatic animal. He easily hopped on the table to snag the piece of bread left as bait.

Scoping out interesting looking items on the table

Score ! Dinner left overs.

2009, 2009 January Charlie