Month: June 2018

Tally Thursday

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 48 Comments

Looks like the vote is in and Blogville has spoken! Hi there, Sam here. Unlike a few incumbent candidates who lost primaries this week, I, on the other hand, managed to get my worthy message out directly to the people and they agreed with me.

Mom said the count wasn’t even close, you all thought I deserved treats. She’s been sighing a lot since counting up the votes but I’m as happy as a clam at hide tide. You guys rock! Thanks so much for believing in my plea campaign for equality when it comes to the treat dispensing on our training sessions. When I excitedly told Elsa, she shrugged her shoulders and said. “pfft…I’m still mom’s favorite.” But you and I know better, don’t we? 

Thank you for all the fur-bulous comments. I am basking in your empathy good judgment. Let’s get the celebration started and quickly move on toward Friday. You with me? I promise not to upend anyone.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

 

 

Wish I Was There Wednesday

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 53 Comments

After two days of pleasant temps in the 80’s, we’re back to the scorching mid-90’s temperatures along with single digit humidity for the rest of the week. The dogs and I don’t do so well in the heat so we’re gonna huddle comfortably in the air-conditioned house for the better part of each day and recall cooler days on a trip to Southern Germany. On the plus side, it’s mid-week, only a couple of days until “Favorite Friday.” Enjoy a nice cool spot in Bad Rippolsau where I wish I was today.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Editor’s Meeting ~ June 12, 2018

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 59 Comments

Sam: Oh moooom.  I’m calling an editor’s meeting to discuss equity and fairness.

Mom: Umm, what part of “I’m the boss of the Ranch hands” do you not understand? I’m the one who calls these meetings.

Sam: Umm, we both know who runs this show but if you want to think it’s you, fine by me. Whatever gets you through the night, but I wouldn’t mention that to Elsa though.

Elsa: What…did someone call me?

Sam: I’m calling an editor’s meeting to discuss the issue of equitable treatment around here, or inequitable as the case may be.

Elsa:  Wait, what…there’s some sort of inequality going on? As the one calling the shots around her, I want to get to the bottom of this. Yes, let’s have a meeting!

Sam: See, what’d I tell you?

Mom: There is no inequity around here. Sam was just trying to be clever.

Elsa: Clever, schmlever. Ok, bro…I’ll bite. What are you talking about?

Sam:  I think mom may actually be giving you more treats than me on our walks so I’m registering a complaint.

Mom: You know I give positive reinforcement to Elsa so she doesn’t go nuts when we encounter another dog on our walks. And yes, I give her a treat to help her focus on me rather than going all Cujo on some neighborhood dog.

Sam: See I knew it! How come I don’t get one, huh?

Elsa: Look Knucklehead, I’m making up for lost time learning how to be a dog after all those years in the puppy mill prison. Those treats remind me that I’m loved and well taken care of and help me bond with my mom. They’re building my confidence.

Sam: “Our mom,” but I digress. [Displaying pitiful look on face] I just want to know why you get a treat and I don’t.

Elsa:  Well, I’m the one doing all the learning here. You’re just along for the ride. I didn’t realize wingmen needed treats.

Mom: Now, now…the treats are rewards and positive reinforcement. When you’re good, you get a reward.

Sam: Yeah, but…

Elsa: Oh put a sock on it, dude. I’m the star here. And I’m learning as quick as I can. It ain’t easy when you’ve never had exposure to dogs and people and strollers and…SQUIRRELS!!!

Mom: I don’t think we’re resolving anything thing. Maybe we should check in with Blogville and see what they have to say about this issue.

Sam:  Oh you mean let all my fans decided this. Hell, yeah!

Elsa… Let’s hold on to our top knots here, kids. As the resident Ranch baby and aggrieved puppy mill survivor, I think I should be getting treats all the time. For just being me.

Mom: Treats are given with good performance, Elsa. When you act appropriately and calmly, you are rewarded. We’re trying to teach you that life can be good and is not always a DEFCON 5 alert. It’s possible that you can walk nicely without going off the reservation whenever you see another dog out for a walk.

Elsa: I can…with the right treat.

Sam: See, I’m doomed here.

As a parent, you wouldn’t show favoritism with your 2-legged children, but what are the rules regarding the 4-legged ones? Are the rules the same? Is it possible that dogs know the difference, especially the more ‘simple-minded’ ones?

Has Sam suddenly learned to count and is now calculating that Elsa is receiving more treats that he is? Should he be afforded the same number/same high value treats? He looks at me like I’m some sort of cretin with such a pitiful expression as to induce guilt. I swear that dog must have been a travel agent in a previous life since he is so successful at sending me on those guilt trips.

So where do you fall on this issue? Am I being a monster if I don’t treat him? Remember we’re dealing with a very simple mind and yet, I feel like maybe there’s some merit with his case. Do dogs understand the notion of equality?

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ June 11, 2018

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 66 Comments

Do you have one of these noisemakers? Sam clunks his tag against the bed, while Elsa turns me into a human dog pile. Time to get up, mom! Happy Monday.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Fab Friday ~ June 8, 2018

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 57 Comments

It’s Friday and like the song, summertime and the living is easy. After a very busy and full week, it’s time to sit back on the deck, take a deep breath and relax. Here’s to a terrific weekend full of the best summer has to order. Stay safe, stay cool and don’t forget the sunscreen. Oh, and pass the guacamole and chips, would ya?

Live, love, bark! 🐾

2018 Rocky Mountain Pet Expo ~ Highlights

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 43 Comments

Last Saturday I attended the 7th annual Rocky Mountain Pet Expo in Denver. You may remember Sam & I participated at Lutheran Medical Center’s Heroes of Hope benefit race earlier that morning and I knew I didn’t want to get totally worn out in ‘overload mode’ during the expo. Fortunately like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, this event was ‘just right’ with a nice mix of pet related products, food and treat manufacturers, retail pet stores, groomers, massage therapists, apparel and couture, animal wellness companies, non-profit pet organizations including a couple of rescue groups, a mobile dog wash and trainers. It was great to see some folks I knew and catch up on all the latest. Billed as a free event, all pets were welcome upon completion of a visitor waiver. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but figured I’d be in for a treat and was not disappointed. 

As I walked from the parking lot into the National Western Stock Show arena, I passed this car and it made me giggle a little. Sure enough, as soon as I got inside, I ran into that family who brought their ‘stick-people muncher’ inside. He was a very handsome specimen for the breed.

First on the tour was Gabe of Black Dog Botanicals who I’ve talked to on the phone and exchanged a number of emails. Black Dog Botanicals is one of the first Certified Naturally Grown CBD producers. Elsa is currently on their medium to large formulation (300 Mg) and has been doing well enough to be able to reduce her Phenobarbital dosage by 25%. Woo-hoo!

One of the more well-known highlights of this expo was the ‘fashion show’ where pets of all ‘flavors’ strutted their stuff. This little guy was pushed in a Mini-Cooper themed dog stroller because every dog deserves to ride around in a posh little Mini, right? 

One of the coolest mobile dog washing vans I’ve ever seen caught my eye. The young woman entrepreneur told me how she redesigned a used mobile grooming salon into this adorable business. It had the existing tub but that was it.  With a 55 gal. water tank (complete with heater) no doubt she’ll be super successful with this cleverly decked out business. Don’t you love the hot pink?

No pet expo is complete without a bevy of adorable attendees.

“King Louie” the Bulldog
This little porker was a big-time squealer on the runway
Sweet little Bella, a tiny red poodle-waiting her turn on the runway.

Multiple dog boutiques showed off some ‘fur-bulous’ fashions, proving that all pets can be quite fetching.
I loved these treat bags
“Bark-danas, Bone-ties, Coll-arfs & Pet-Cessories” LOL
Such a cute bunch of totes
Bark-danas galore

Treat companies provided plenty of samples and both Sam and Elsa gave their 4-paw approval for the ones I brought home. But I must have been busy petting ‘visitors’ and checking out the pups up for adoption to remember to take photos.

Perhaps I was distracted by the “Pawered by: Vodka for Dog People (Tito’s) sign.”

As expos go, this one was just large enough to offer a barking good time for everyone, without being too overwhelming.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Heroes of Hope ~ Event Highlights

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 52 Comments
Smiling for attention

This past weekend mom and I ‘pawticipated’ at Lutheran Medical Center’s Heroes of Hope race featuring a 10K, 5K and a 1-mile walk. Sam here. Like a few others in the pet therapy program we competed in the 1-mile walk. But first we had to check in at registration where this terrific volunteer had to have a photo with me. She told me I could help her check in the other pawticipants but it was such a lovely cool morning so I decided to ‘walk the walk’ with my peeps figuring there would be all kinds of fur-bulous adventures just for me. It was a good calculation on my part as you can see from mom’s gazillion photos below.

Lutheran’s Heroes of Hope Run/Walk is the largest National Cancer Survivors Day event in Jefferson County (which is just west of Denver). We had a good time and got to see some of our favorite therapy peeps. Naturally there were a ton of kids, dogs and folks walking along the scenic course through Lutheran’s tree-lined campus. This race, designed for fun for the whole family, celebrates and benefits the hospital’s cancer survivorship program including “genetic counseling program, patient navigation, survivor and nurse education and patient care on the oncology unit.” Following the race, we met some hopeful candidates wanting to join our therapy program. Woo-hoo, that means more cool dogs! Well color me happy on this gorgeous cloudless day.

Runners… take your mark, get set…GO!!
Post-race hydration

I finished first among the pet therapists though mom was a little cheesed at me since I stopped to say hi to a bunch of kids lined up along the curb several yards before crossing the finish line. She said I could check out my adoring fans AFTER we actually finish the race. Oops. Still it was only another 3 or 4 minutes additional time. Sheesh…talk about competitive-lighten up, ma!

After the post-race celebratory refreshment, I begin to mingle. This is our fur-iend Zoe, (whose mom is also a blogger (check out her blog here). She’s going to be joining our ranks in about 6 months (she’s a little under age now as dogs must be at least 2 years old). Is she just as cute as a button?!

Zoe, the adorably earnest Corgi

Here are some other photos from the event.

Spreading the word about pet therapy
Focused Kai, an agility champion and Dogtor
Little One, a beloved Greyhound racer from the program
A costumed team from the 5K

Little Riley below is waiting to join our ranks next year. Her mom had a Golden in the program up until last year when Roxie passed away unexpectedly. We’re looking forward to the day when she is old enough to follow in her sister’s fore-paws.
Look at THAT face!

Meet Calypso, a Keeshond who is currently a pet therapist at a non-hospital facility but who is interested in joining our group.

Meet adorable Calypso

Naturally I had to scope out all the cute girls. Here’s Jillian, who placed first in her race.

Last but not least, is our own little Bindy, who is the current Miss June in the calendar. You may remember I was Mr. May. What a cute little pocket dog! Everybody loves Bindy who has been a long-time therapy dog.

Little Bindy, 5 pounds of adorable with a long tongue

We had a great time, for a great cause. Mom took me home where I got to have a nice nap while she then went over to the Rocky Mountain Pet Expo. She’s working on a post showcasing that event for later this week. If you follow us on Instagram (you do follow us, don’t you?), you may have seen some of the photos posted there. Mom said it was a nice expo and she learned lots of interesting stuff.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 41 Comments

We’re trying a new cleaning tool around the Ranch…this one’s aim is a bit off target most of the time but works mostly as well as the commercial Swiffer version. When that tail gets going, boy the dust ends up…going, going, gone!

Sam and I ‘pawticipated’ at the hospital’s annual Heroes of Hope benefit race/walk for cancer survivor’s over the weekend. We hope to have a post chronicling our adventures soon. Let’s just say Sam is still a competitor, even if he has to stop along the route to administer therapy to all the well wishers and course volunteers. Knuckleheaded dog.

Hope you had as ‘wagnificent’  a weekend we did. Here’s to a ‘pawsome’ week!

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Flower Friday

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 57 Comments

It’s Flower Friday, which means there’s a great blog hop going on, hosted by our fur-iends over at Living Laughing Barking in Our Backyard. ‘Hop’ on over and visit some amazing gardens.

Our lupines have been in full bloom lately (despite a hail storm earlier in the week) but now my garden favorite is beginning to take center stage. Who might that be? Why…peonies and in second place, poppies. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the poppies but the peonies…SWOON…they are my absolute favorites! There’s nothing like a cut bouquet of these fragrant blooms on the table. Makes you want to sniff the screen, doesn’t it?

Queen of the Flower Garden

I love these gorgeous flowers and while they love sunny conditions, I have a few bushes that have managed to perform nicely despite some afternoon shade from a large maple tree. Not sure how these guys have managed to flourish since the soil is crap, the sunlight not especially ideal and I’m stingy as all get-out with water, but these guys bloom in shades of creamy white, pale pink, and a bright fuchsia number that just sends me. Click here for a link for info on how to grow these beauties in your garden.

Peonies, poppies, lupine and sage (with a few other flowers thrown in for good measure)

Do you have a garden full of peonies? What’s your favorite? How are your weekend plans shaping up? Hope it’s grand.

Live, love, bark! 🐾