Pet Thankfulness and a way to help pets in need

My dogs, Abby and Bonbon, are thankful for each other and for their happy, loving home with us and their cats.

The following is republished from PR Newswire:

What is Your Pet Thankful for This Thanksgiving?

Share Your Pet's Tale of Thanks, "Like" the Petcentric Facebook Page, And Purina Will Donate $1, Up to $50,000, to Adopt-a-Pet.com

ST. LOUIS, Nov. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- At Thanksgiving Day feasts across the country, families pause to reflect on the many things they are thankful for, and for millions of people that includes their pets.  This year, Nestle Purina PetCare® is looking at this holiday tradition in a different way – from the pet's point of view.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111121/LA10626LOGO)

Beginning on Thanksgiving Day, pet lovers are invited to visit the Petcentric by Purina Facebook page and share what their pet is thankful for.  Stories of gratitude will be accepted until Nov. 27, and for each "like" of the Petcentric Facebook page Purina will give thanks to pet rescue shelters by donating $1, up to $50,000, to Adopt-a-Pet.com.  Adopt-a-Pet.com is the largest non-profit homeless pet adoption website in North America*.

"Pet lovers show their appreciation for their pets every day, and on this special day of thanks we'd like to know what they think their pets are thankful for," said Danielle Behan, senior brand manager, Purina brand.  "This is a fun way to engage pet lovers and to support a great organization, Adopt-a-Pet.com, in its mission of finding forever homes for pets."

The program will be highlighted during the National Dog Show Presented by Purina®, which is scheduled to air at noon (local time in all time zones) on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 24, on NBC, following the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  Actor and National Dog Show co-host John O'Hurley will appear in a video during the telecast that features his four-legged friend Tater Tot and explores what the pup is thankful for at Thanksgiving.   

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the National Dog Show Presented by Purina.  NBC launched the two-hour special in 2002 and it became an immediate hit with viewers, more than quadrupling TV ratings for that time slot from previous years.  Nearly 20 million people tune into the show each year, making it a genuine family holiday tradition and America's most widely viewed dog show**.  Some 2,000 of the nation's top dogs encompassing more than 160 breeds will compete for "Best in Show" this year.

The Petcentric Facebook page, located at www.facebook.com/petcentricbypurina, is an online community where pet lovers get together every day to share their love for their dogs and cats.

Adopt-a-Pet.com has more than 1.7 million unique site visitors each month and assists more than 11,000 animal shelters and humane societies find homes for their pets*.


About Nestle Purina PetCare Company

The North American headquarters for Nestle Purina PetCare is located at Checkerboard Square in St. Louis, Mo., where it was founded as Ralston Purina Company more than a century ago.  Nestle Purina PetCare promotes responsible pet care, humane education, community involvement and the positive bond between people and their pets.  One of the leading global players in the pet food industry, Nestle Purina PetCare is part of the Swiss-based Nestle S.A., the world's largest food company.  Visit www.purina.com.

*Source: Adopt-a-Pet.com

**Source: NBC

SOURCE Nestle Purina PetCare Company

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Friday Flash 55 -- His Dear Martha

Andrea and Kirk were lifelong friends, separated by 2700 miles. Andrea was happily married, so she worried about Kirk’s divorce.......until he emailed about Martha.

Now his Facebook profile made Andrea smile! In a Relationship, it read.

Kirk described Martha as "perfect."

"She's playful, but she doesn’t play around. I totally trust her," he said.

                           

See the latest posts of weekly FF55s (works of fiction in 55 words)

at Mr. KnowItAll, the G-Man.

I now share my life with the second Old English Sheepdog that Michael and I have owned.
You can view a short (.46) clip of Abby in her summer cut HERE -- and that post includes a link with the story about how we rescued her at age seven after our dear Woofles died.
And THIS POST shows a short (1.57) video of Abby and our chocolate Standard Poodle, Bonbon.
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The Crystal Butterfly Lovers

Jack Frost
                -by Helen Bayley Davis

Someone painted pictures on my
     Windowpane last night --
Willow trees with trailing boughs
     And flowers, frosty white,

And lovely crystal butterflies;
     But when the morning sun
Touched them with its golden beams,
     They vanished one by one.

* * *

I took this video of Abby and Bonbon (both ten-years-old) in our back yard on Thursday--our one day of falling snow this winter. It did not last long, but it was enchanting. The three giant Sequoias seemed pleased to welcome "crystal butterflies" where, in a few months, other butterflies of various colors and sizes will settle onto the boughs for sheltered naps on hot days.



Music (my latest favorite classical CD):  "Lagrimoso" movement from The Butterfly Lovers - Concerto for Violin, by Gang Chen and Zhanhao He. Gil Shahan-violin, Lan Shui-conductor, Singapore Symphony Orchestra


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Old English Sheepdog posing as couch potato

Michael took these shots of Abby last week when I was away from the house. She has cozy dog pads on the living room rug for lounging during the day and is not usually allowed on the couch. Today, however, if she wants to I will let her sleep there while I continue painting the kitchen/office and while Michael puts in yet another weekend day at the office. I think we all need a day at the beach soon, that is what I think, and I think Abby is dreaming of that too.

For those of you who don't know how Abby came into our lives here is Abby's Story (it includes a photo of us at the Oregon coast)...

Paul McCartney has raised Old English Sheepdogs for years, loves them dearly, and wrote Martha my dear about one of his favorites...

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Abby is our Old English Sheepdog

Mike put this video together last summer of our Old English Sheepdog, Abby, but she's enjoyed the same spot in the sun this summer. It's her favorite place to nap during the day.

Abby had her ninth birthday recently. Some of you may remember my earlier post, Abby's Story, about our bringing her into our family via a Rescue group. There was the saddest loss in the group this past May. Steve Schott died suddenly. He was the man who fostered Abby not once, but twice, and who, as president of Texas Old English Sheepdog Rescue, was instrumental in the vitality of the group . We still miss his calls and emails. The last time we spoke on the phone he lamented, "You know, some of the first Sheepies that I placed into homes are beginning to die." But there are many Sheepies all across the United States still living their lives happily with families who rescued them, all because of Steve. He had a heart full of love and compassion, and I think of him often when I look at our precious Abby. What a great legacy.

• If you'd like to know more about the wonderful organization where we found Abby click here for Texas Old English Sheepdog Rescue.

• Once there, please notice the special memorial page for the wonderful Steve Schott.

• Also, if any of my readers are in the Houston, Texas, area please consider the special appeal for a foster home for a dog named "Tank." If you can help out, or know anyone who can, well ..... that would be super.

• There are rescue groups for nearly any breed of dog. And don't forget your local animal shelter, where many dogs and cats await homes...or would appreciate your time as a volunteer.

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Make Our Garden Grow

You've been a fool and so have I
But come I'll be your wife
And let us try before we die
To make some sense of life
We're neither pure nor wise nor good
We'll do the best we know
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow
And make our garden grow

I thought the world was sugar cake
For so our master said
But now I'll teach my hands to bake
Our loaf of daily bread
We're neither pure nor wise nor good
We'll do the best we know
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow
And make our garden grow

Let dreamers dream what worlds they please
Those Edens can't be found
The sweetest flowers
The fairest trees 
Are grown in solid ground
We're neither pure nor wise nor good
We'll do the best we know
We'll build our house and chop our wood
And make our garden grow
And make our garden grow
-from Candide






We planted our small garden last weekend. It seems late but it was our best timing given the extremely wet month of May. I read that because of the kind of spring we've had it actually isn't too late to put in a garden in this valley.

We bought a lot behind and to the side of our house in 2001 from the woman who intended to quarter her property and sell off the three empty lots for development (one quarter contains the house next door where she'd lived for decades). We're not talking large lots here, and if we hadn't saved the one next to us three giant Sequoias would have been sacrificed for a small house and garage. That is indeed what happened to the two other empty lots, and one contained a fourth Sequoia that, when felled, shook the entire block. A neighbor teenage girl methodically counted the 77 rings on that tree, and since the survivors were the same size we knew their age too. It's more than an honor to share our time here with these three giants who will be 80 years old this year.

There's a clearing in the lot that gets sun most of the day in the summer and that's where we planted our garden. It's next to the old potting shed that came with the lot. The shed enchants me and I think it holds a lot of promise but we haven't done anything with it yet except to store potting and yard supplies, and shelter stray cats.

Abby was our only pet to show interest in the creation of a garden. She lay down in between the garden space and the potting shed and supervised our work. The three of us had a beautiful day!

The experience over the weekend reminded me of "Make Our Garden Grow" from Candide by Leonard Bernstein. I tested many YouTube videos today and there are some marvelous versions of the song. But this one by Barbra Streisand was the only to get to the heart of us, Mike and me, and our days in the sun together.

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Study in Gray and White

While I'm working on a longer post I thought I'd post this photo. I took it last week when Abby, our Old English Sheepdog, was once again trying to establish a relationship with Pilgrim, one of the "strays" who adopted us. Pilgrim has the best of both worlds and is allowed to select house time or yard/sleep-in-garage time. The only hassle for me is figuring out at feeding time where exactly he wants to take his dinner meal, and adjusting portions and bowls accordingly.

This cat has decided that it is his job to protect Shiva Lullaby, the nearly full-grown kitten, from Abby's exuberant greetings. It's funny to see him chase Abby away from Shiva, as he's all hissing and hackles and paws in the air with claws ready. Abby took note. I think she respects Pilgrim for making her work so hard at becoming friends. They truly are gorgeous together, a soft study in gray and white.

Abby's Story

The sunset over the coast range tonight is so beautiful. I imagine it is wonderful over at the beach this evening. It reminded me of our first beach trip after we adopted Abby last September. She's a wonderful Old English Sheepdog, the second one we've been lucky to have in our family. We lost Woofles last May and we still miss him. (I posted a picture of Woofles with our Standard Poodle, Bonbon, on March 13, 2008.) The picture above was snapped from our tripod at the end of the day of that first beach trip with Abby. We've been so busy lately that we haven't been back, and intend to go in two weeks. Abby and Bonbon will be thrilled. Since my blog didn't exist yet last holiday season I am going to post "Abby's" Christmas letter here now, as it tells her story. (Well, ok, I helped her some . . . oh alright, a lot!).

December 2007

Happy Holiday Greetings to you!

I have been elected by my new family to tell you about what happened with us this year.

My name is Abby and I’m a beautiful and gentle Old English Sheepdog, age seven, who has settled into her third – and final – home after traveling from California to Texas in the summer, and then to Oregon in September. It’s true that my new Daddy and Mommy have had an interesting year. So has Bonbon, my new pal, their six-year old Standard Poodle. I guess all these cats have had a fine year as well, but the only one to have swapped stories with me is the new kitten, Shiva. She feels as fortunate as I do to have found this family full of love, but she is a darling little lovebug and who could have resisted her? I, on the other hand, experienced a great shock this year when I was returned by my owner in California to the Texas Old English Sheepdog Rescue foster home where I had landed two years ago after having been rejected by my original family in Oklahoma. So I think my story is the best in my family for its pathos, bravery, excitement, redemption, renewal, and love.

I lived in style for four years in Oklahoma, where I was born. My original owner was a successful contractor and he and his wife gave me a grand house and property. In return I accompanied her to puppy training classes and we won a gold star on our certificate for best obedience. My new mommy and daddy have my complete file with the certificate in it.

Anyway, I considered my life to be secure with those folks in Oklahoma after four years together until some terrible storm named Katrina struck a portion of this country and my owner went down to Mississippi to place bids on cleaning up afterward. While he was gone his wife, my obedience buddy, left me at the humane society near our home. Well, I wasn’t the average inmate and someone at the shelter was kind enough to contact the Old English Sheepdog rescue group in Oklahoma on my behalf. They were busy helping all kinds of animals who were lost in the storm so a call for assistance was placed to the rescue group in Texas, and I stayed with the nice foster dad there until my second owner adopted me. We lived in Texas for awhile, then he got married and we all moved to California. It was a good life and I was well cared for. But some country named Japan had a new job for my owner and they couldn’t take me, so the three of us drove back to Texas to that nice foster dad and the next thing I knew my bed, bowls, leash, and toy were put in his house and I stayed with my things.

In the meantime my new daddy and mommy had an Old English Sheepdog named Woofles, who got very sick and blind and they cried when they lost him in May. They showed me his picture and he was great looking with his pure white head. They must have missed him very much because they said that life just wasn’t the same without an Old English Sheepdog in their house! They began to look for a grown-up OES and completed applications in several states. Well, my foster dad in Texas thought we would all make one another happy and he called them to say that I could be their dog if they could transport me from his house to their Oregon home. My rescue organization absolutely will not fly dogs. He told my new folks about a company in Texas that takes pets door-to-door in a van. And that’s how I got here! Along the way we picked up and delivered pets, and we drove right past my former California town – I could smell that I was near and I was rather confused for a bit.

I am all settled in now and am loved beyond measure. My new neighbors and veterinarians think I am great and I smile for everyone. I wash Bonbon’s face and I cuddle my cats. We have a Christmas tree and soon I will add to my growing collection of toys that I nuzzle and treasure.

One of my favorite things to do is to be very still and study my mommy and daddy to intensify my learning curve about this new home. I have very dark, very wise eyes that help me to stare deeply at them. When they become aware that I’m doing this we share special moments of soulful reassurance that I am truly home and that all is well.

They took Bonbon and me to the Oregon coast once since I came here and I had a wonderful time. We are going to go there and stay all night sometime soon. Daddy took a trip to the beach in a private plane this year. A friend from work was the pilot, and, WOW, they flew right over a whale jumping out of the ocean! Mommy had a four-day quick road trip in to Reno in June. She stayed with a childhood friend who was having a surprise 80^th birthday party for her mother. Mommy loved being a part of the surprise, and she had a wonderful visit in her hometown.

A marriage happened in our “family” recently. The girl in Bangladesh, named Seuli, sponsored by my mommy and daddy since 2003, got married and moved away from her childhood village. She is only 15 and this news was a disappointment for us. I’m going to send my picture to the kids we still sponsor: Wellington, our boy in Ecuador, who is now 6, and Huwaida, our girl in Sudan, soon to turn 16.u

Daddy has joined a professional organization for accountants and will be more involved in a leadership capacity in 2008. Mommy took a fiddle workshop in the summer, got her own violin afterward, and will begin violin lessons in 2008. They are busy and happy.

We all wish you good cheer and a great new year.

Love,

Abby

Blog and forum links

I had a comment from Adam with instructions on how to provide a link for my reader(s) to his blog. (Adam uses a bobblehead for his blog photo, which I think is hysterical. Some brief history on bobbleheads from Wikipedia.com:

The earliest known reference to a bobblehead is thought to be in Nikolai Gogol's 1842 short story The Overcoat, in which the main character's neck was described as "like the necks of plaster cats which wag their heads". The modern bobblehead first appeared in the 1950s. . . )

Since I was dumbfounded in trying to get a link to work in my blog the other night I was glad to have Adam's advice. Being new at blogging and semi Webworld-literate compared with kids and young adults, even the montage of information at the Help Group seemed daunting. So, thank you Adam, for being instructive in plain and simple terms that a middle-aged neophyte can handle! I really hate that term -- middle-aged. Not neophyte, however, because if I'm not open to new experiences each day then the gift of my life is squandered.

Adam has a relatively new blog that looks great and reads well. I'm not sure how I found his blog now, I mean which category I was looking at in blogger.com - but it jumped out at me. He is a teenager with an uncanny ability to appreciate and relate to other age groups, cultures, and ideas. Adam claims that his life is boring but reading about it is certainly not! I think he has something special going on in his blog.


I also had a comment from Ron (one of those warm and wonderful Old English Sheepdog lovers) in response to my earlier entry about my head injuries, and about my OES Woofles. Ron has his own blog but I won't reference it here without his permission. He is the webmaster of a forum for Old English Sheepdog people and he invited me to enter there to compose thoughts about Woofles, who we lost in May 2007. I may just do that because there's so much to say about Woofie and so much heartache still, just missing him.

We were, however, absolutely blessed to have another Old English Sheepdog join our family in September 2007! We adopted her from an OES rescue organization after deciding against getting a puppy. Abby is seven years old and . . . well, she is perfect. Ron says on his information page that he wanted an Old English Sheepdog since he was about 10. I was just about that age when I got a huge blue stuffed sheepdog from my babysitter's husband, and he suggested that I name my stuffed animal Woofles. I still have the stuffed toy, no kidding. So from that time on I also wanted a real sheepie and when we got Woofles as a puppy in 1998 the dream was realized. BUT, once you have an Old English Sheepdog it's nearly impossible to be without them! Even our Standard Poodle, Bonbon, agrees. She and Woofles were inseparable, and now she and Abby are the best of friends - - - and the same age. The picture here is of Bonbon and Woofles about six years ago.