Category: Pet Advocacy

Purple Day ~ 2025

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 54 Comments

Although my precious angel left this earth just 16 days ago, I was and remain a big proponent of the Five Sibes’ Live Gib Strong Epilepsy Awareness Day. As many of you know, Elsa was adopted back in the autumn of 2016 and two weeks later was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy following several severe Grand Mal seizures. Having owned an epileptic dog before, I knew a little about what to expect. Because I was 100% committed to keeping Elsa and helping her enjoy a good life with me despite being offered the option of returning her to the rescue. That option never occurred to me. Instead, I became obsessed with providing her with the best life possible. Enter two fellow bloggers who are lay experts in providing the best life for their own epileptic fur companions. FiveSibes and Knotty Toys for Good Dogs became my go-to for info, tips and resources and I couldn’t have found two more dedicated advocates for the treatment of canine epilepsy. Both of these remarkable epileptic ambassadors provided Elsa and I with amazing info to manage her condition along with our vet. My vet once told me, the advice I was getting from them both helped me keep Elsa’s seizures manageable all the while providing me with some much needed hope when I needed it most. To both of them, I say thank you from the bottom of my heart. Please keep sharing your valuable info and resources for epileptic pets as well as their caregivers all over the world. Thank you for all you do.

Elsa, epilepsy

Many people don’t understand that epilepsy affects both the epi-warrior as well as the caregiver so having reliable and supportive info can make all the difference for us. I will always be grateful beyond words for their help as well as for all the resources they shared. Their advocacy makes me want to continue to be a supporter for Purple Day even though Elsa is now seizure free at the Rainbow Bridge.

For more educational information and a list of resources, please watch this  short video.

On a closer and more personal note, I also want to thank everyone who sent donations in Elsa’s name to RMOES Rescue as well as notes of condolences after she earned her angel wings. Your notes of gentle support have buoyed my heart and I know the rescue is equally grateful for your donations.  Your supportive thoughts of comfort have been so very appreciated. Blogville is the truly the best at supporting its own and especially at times of heartache. If only words of gratitude were as easy and heartfelt to express as what your support has meant. I’m truly at a loss for the right words of gratitude and will simply leave it with the humble but deeply sincere “thank you,” from the bottom of my heart.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

National Black Dog Appreciation Day

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 63 Comments

Cheers, mates. Wilson here to extol the virtues of the day…today is National Black Dog Day. Yes, there is a day devoted to black dogs and for good reason. Did you know that black dogs have the lowest rate of adoption and highest rate of euthanasia of any shelter dogs? What’s behind that craziness, you ask?

Celebrated annually on October 1st to combat Black Dog Syndrome, this day was founded by animal behaviorist and activist Colleen Paige (who also created National Dog Day and National Mutt Day). To encourage the adoption of black dogs, some shelters and rescues will waive adoption fees or host special events to benefit dark-colored pups.

Did you know that black dogs are often the last to be adopted in shelters? That’s why we celebrate National Black Dog Day each October to spread awareness that every pup deserves a fur-ever home.

While there is some debate over the veracity of black-colored dogs being readily adopted, the issue known as  Black Dog Syndrome (BDS) is real. It’s thought that black dogs are more likely to stay in shelters longer and may potentially be euthanized if they aren’t adopted soon enough. With space and other resources being limited and the real effort to get dogs adopted out as quickly as possible, black dogs are often overlooked by potential adopters.
Anyone can participate in National Black Dog Day. Even if you don’t have a black dog, you can use #NationalBlackDogDay on your social media posts to help spread awareness about BDS or by donating to your local shelters and rescues to aid in the adoption of black dogs, as well.

Black Dog Syndrome

What is Black Dog Syndrome? There are many negative connotations associated with black animals. Ancient superstitions often keeps someone back from adopting a black pet. All too often black dogs have been portrayed as guardians of the underworld in mythology.

Yes, it’s a real challenge photographing dark dogs and they are frequently  passed over. Light-colored dogs definitely stand-out a bit more in pictures. But in reality, a black dog is no different than any other pup regardless of their coloring. They all need love and care just like every other dog.

Ancient superstitions may hold someone back from adopting a black pet.  Black dogs have often been portrayed as guardians of the underworld in mythology much like black cats are associated with bad luck or witchcraft.

Likewise, black dogs in movies and television are often portrayed as aggressive, as well (i.e. the attack dogs in the movie The Dark Knight and Fluffy, the three-headed guard dog, in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone are all black dogs).

And while she’s been known to nosh on some of the strangest things over the years and has seizures, this girl is beloved and Mum thanks her lucky stars she’s a Ranch Hand. So please join me in celebrating Black Dog Appreciation Day. Way to take center stage, little one.

Live, love bark! 🐾

World Purple Day ~ March 26, 2024

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 49 Comments

We don’t normally post on Tuesday’s but this year it seemed more important than ever to merit posting on a topic that is near and dear to my heart. Today we join our friends, Dorothy Wills-Raftery, the award-winning author, K9 Epilepsy Awareness Ambassador, and creator of the Five Sibes™️ blog along with CEO Olivia from Knotty Toys for Dogs  for this year’s annual celebration of Purple Day,® a global grassroots event created to increase epilepsy awareness throughout the world to dispel many of the common myths and fears associated with this neurological disorder. We can’t begin to thank Dorothy and Olivia enough for their ongoing advocacy, shared information and tips relating to seizures and epilepsy.

Purple Day® was created to reduce social stigmas many encounter while providing valuable assurance and resources to all those living with epilepsy by letting them know that they are not alone.  Purple Day® occurs every March 26 and honors all epi-warriors, be they 2 or 4-legged. Once again, we proudly support this event by wearing purple. As many of you know, Elsa, was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy shortly after she was rescued in 2016 as a puppy mill survivor with unknown lineage, (her story can be read here). Supporting epilepsy awareness and education has become a no-brainer for me and I continue to be committed to learning as much as possible about this condition, how to effectively manage it while providing a safe and loving home for this special dog by bringing attention to the condition. We are truly fortunate that despite some of the recent stressors she’s experienced that could trigger a seizure, my favorite ‘Ninja’ {knock on wood} has been mostly seizure-free of late.

You woke me up for this?

So again for this year’s “Purple Day®” event you are invited to join us by wearing purple for everyone who is impacted by seizures and epilepsy. Please check out the Epilepsy Foundation’s website for useful information for people and pets who experience seizures with a worldwide resource database can be found here. 

Live, love, bark! ❤︎

…and the numbers are in

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 41 Comments
Welcome to the 2023 Spring Fling
Somebody gonna turn this thing on?

We added up the numbers and were blown away by the generosity of so many who bid on gift baskets donated by a wide array of companies and organizations as well as silent auction bids made by attendees, and from donations received online at our website for those unable to attend in person. Are you ready for this? I nearly fainted when I heard the total. We raised just shy of $2,800! That’s  $1,000 over the previous picnic held back in 2021.

Thirty-nine people showed up in person to celebrate a fabulous day in a gorgeous setting in Elizabeth, Colorado along with a fair number of dogs who chased one other (and bubbles) while others nanny-sat people who attended. We are so incredibly grateful to everyone who made this event such a rousing success. Among the many dogs attending was ‘Conner’, the 2021 AKC winner of the Herding Group (click on the link to watch his Herding Group win at Westminster) who is still a total charmer and had a great time watching over uprights and a couple of babies who attended with their parents. There were even a few ‘honorary’ sheepdogs checking out the festivities including a Portuguese Water Dog and a mixed-breed Saint Bernard, brindle-colored pup who first checked each other out before checking out the ‘pawsome’ gift baskets.

Norman helped at the check in table and supervised the ‘Game of Bones’ game.

I’m not sure Norman realized Conner was waiting for his bidding paddle. He’s apparently not fazed by celebrities, even the nice ones.

Do you know who I am? 

Here are some of the donated gift baskets that attendees could bid on in the silent auction.

Some took a more clever viewing approach by going below the tables jumping the line to check out the baskets.

While others simply backed into their seats to view the tables from a distance.

The crowd visited with one another and then listened to a message by the Board president who welcomed attendees and shared the rescue’s vision as it gears up to fulfill its mission.

The local VFW served up BBQ that was a tasty hit with attendees. Does anyone know why food cooked outdoors always seems to taste better?

Another volunteer supporter made adorable desserts to follow lunch. Everyone absolutely loved those OES cookies.

After the event ended, the Board and its ‘advisors’ met to review how things went.

It’s a ruff life being an advisor.

Everyone agreed the event was a great success even before the numbers were compiled. Thanks to the hard work of so many people and supporting companies, our rescue will soon be able to begin to provide Old English Sheepdogs with a second chance at a great ‘fur-ever’ home. Thank you for your support-we very much appreciate it.

Live, love bark! 🐾

Check Your Chip Monday ~ August 15, 2022

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 50 Comments

Welcome to National Check The Chip Day — a day created as a reminder for pet parents to check their pet’s microchips, to make sure they contain the most up to date information with the provider. With last month’s July 4th celebrations where more pets are lost than any day of the year, microchips are especially important for keeping your pets safe. Pets are far more likely to be reunited with their pet parents when they are chipped. Personally I think National Chip Day should be July 5th, but that’s just me. Visit this website to find out how to check your microchip status.

The Ranch Hands say there’s no need to be scared, just make sure your pet is microchipped for their safety and your piece of mind. Have a great week.

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Purple Day ~ 2022

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 35 Comments

This weekend we are honored to join Fur Angel Gibson from the FiveSibes blog and fellow epi-warrior, Olivia at Knotty Toys for Good Dogs for the 2022 edition acknowledging Purple Day for Epilepsy (with apologies for being a day late of the actual date, March 26-I got my dates mixed up).

The Ninja rocking her purple bandana

You may recall, the Ranch’s resident Ninja (aka Elsa) was diagnosed with idiopathic epilepsy a couple of weeks following her adoption. You can read part of her story here.

We are so grateful for all the info Gibson and Olivia have shared on their respective blogs about epilepsy and remain appreciative for their leadership in sharing information and resources. Please visit the Purple Day website for additional information about epilepsy. Elsa is living proof dogs who have been diagnosed with this condition can live relatively normal and productive lives.

Elsa ‘reading’ the”What’s Wrong with Gibson” book

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Monday Musings ~ February 14, 2022

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 53 Comments

Happy Valentine’s Day. We hope you had a fun, sports-filled weekend. Fans were treated to a plethora of events from the Olympics, NHL hockey and NBA basketball games, as well as the Super Bowl. Whichever team you supported in yesterday’s big sporting event (Super Bowl LVI), we’re ‘pawsitive’ yesterday’s Puppy Bowl XVIII hosted by Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart was the most fun of it all. Team Fluff came from behind (much like that other team did in the Super Bowl). Long-time ‘rufferee’ Dan Schachner (himself a former NFL referee), was the only human to take the field at Sunday’s Puppy Bowl game along with over 100 pups.

View from the ‘water cam’

Puppies from both teams gave it their all, but in the end it was Team Fluff that slid into the end zone with 7 seconds to go for the last-minute victory. A lineup with photos of the on-screen competitors can be found here.

More than 100 adoptable dogs from 67 shelters across 33 states dragged various toys around a miniature field in the event’s largest competition yet. Nine special needs dogs were featured during the game, led by one year-old Benny, a wheelchair-bound Labradoodle. Benny was born with an abnormal and inoperable spinal deformity and is paralyzed from the shoulder blades but was a zooming dynamo on the playing field. Moby, a French Bulldog with a cleft palate; and Rocket, a deaf Chihuahua/Dachshund, were also part of the event designed to raise awareness about shelter adoptions.

Benny Photo courtesy of Discovery+/Animal Planet/’The Dogist’ Elias Weiss Friedman
Photo from Facebook

Kirby, a Labrador retriever and service dog in-training, was named Team Fluff’s MVP after helping his team win the coveted “Lombarky” Trophy.

It was a fun alternative to the Super Bowl and all the dogs and kitties were winners.

All best wishes from both the Ranch Hands for a ‘pawsome’ week as well as a love-filled day with your Valentine.

Happy Valentine’s Day!  
Happy Valentine’s Day!  

Live, love, bark❣️

Monday Musings ~ January 17, 2022

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 37 Comments

Welcome to Monday but today is not just any Monday.  Today we honor two giants of humanity, Martin Luther King (MLK) and Betty White. Around the country, parades are being held with an emphasis on the participants honoring the civil rights leader through a day of national service. Since 1994, the day of service is being coordinated nationally by AmeriCorps, a federal agency which provides grants to organizations coordinating service activities on MLK Day. The only other national day of service in the U.S. officially designated by the government, is September 11th’s National Day of Service (9/11 Day).

Today would have been Betty White’s 100th birthday. Fans of the “Golden Girls” star who passed away recently, have created a virtual event asking for donations of $5 be made to animal rescues or shelters in her name. White was a big animal lover and well known for her efforts of saving endangered species. She helped fix conditions at the Los Angeles Zoo.

In addition to her efforts at the LA Zoo, White was also a big supporter of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. The zoo’s entrance to the “Heart of Africa Exhibit” was named Betty White Way in 2014 in her honor.

We typically use Monday’s for sharing a smile, but today we also support of the efforts of both of these legendary Americans. Everyone at the Ranch supports the essence of MLK Day as well as the remarkable work of Betty White and hope you’ll participate in a meaningful way to honor both of these special people. May your Monday be the beginning of a good week filled with smiles and positive actions, just go easy on the mice, okay?

Live, love, bark! 🐾

Whoopee Wednesday!

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 62 Comments

Hello there mates, Norman here sharing the final total figure raised as a postscript to yesterday’s post recapping the OES Picnic and Fundraiser. We in fact raised…ahem…drumroll please…$1,812 which will help provide resources for Old English Sheepdogs who come through our rescue. It was a well organized event for which I offer my deepest gratitude to all who helped, donated and attended this event.

Congratulations with loads of butt wiggles to all who work tirelessly all year long to benefit these remarkable pets who, through no fault of their own, come through the rescue. To everyone who has a special love for this wonderful breed and to all the vendors, supporters and attendees who have contributed to the cause, thank you from the bottom of my OES 💙.

Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue

Live, love, bark! 🐾

2021 OES Picnic Recap

~ Tails Around the Ranch ~ 55 Comments

It’s unusual for us to post on Tuesday but Norman ‘insisted’ we post a recap about the weekend’s OES Rescue Picnic and Fundraiser so I’ll let him take it from here.

Norman:  Over the weekend, mum and I went to quite the event. We’ve been visiting our sheepie friends, Clifford and his  brother, Sully helping put together a bunch of gift baskets so had no idea what this adventure would be like. I always enjoy seeing Clifford and Sully since they have the BEST toys that I take full advantage of when we visit. Sometimes, mum has to take them away from me. But this event had so much space and so many sniffs to investigate, I could have cared less about toys.

I now think I’m in love. Check out this gorgeous girl! Mum said I’m a bit of a cad since I didn’t get her phone number (or name sadly). I told mum she was in charge of names since she has the thumbs to write those things down but she apologized saying she was too busy checking everyone in and keeping the water bowls filled. It was a gorgeous but warm day and if you know sheepdogs, we like to party and can drink like fish.

Isn’t she gorgeous? Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue

Taking my welcoming duties seriously I posed at the entrance making sure everyone knew where the fun was.

Here’s my pal Yogi who got the award for best dressed sheepdog.

Well dressed ‘Yogi’ Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue

Once folks came inside the party area, they checked in at the registration table. Notice those ‘welcome bags’ on the right? They each contained an OES fridge magnet, either a photo frame or collapsible dog bowl as well as a donated product from our pals at Licks. Everyone who attended received one.

Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue

Let’s check out all the amazing gift baskets! There were all sorts of cool things including donated pro-sports tickets and athlete autographs, brewery/spirits tours, bandanas, hand made sweaters, knit hats, dog treats, original artwork, and dog-related items. Bids were made on various baskets raising funds for the rescue with some folks engaged in ‘bidding wars.’

I want No. 7, no, that one’s mine! Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue

There were loads of sniffs to be had, games of chase, corn hole, golf cart rides around the neighborhood, a kissing booth, a BBQ for peeps with some special sweet treats.

Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue
Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue
Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue
Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue

My pal Sully knew just what to do.

Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue

And look at these adorable ‘kids,’ our pals, Anastacia and Dave with Clifford and Sully (along with doggie friend, Gracie, owned by the owner of the home that held the event).

Lots of peeps got into the spirit at the Kissing Booth, even  mum and I.

Mwah!
I give the best kisses.

The baskets were given a good once (or three times) over for all the amazing items that were donated.

And consultations were held on bidding strategies.

Did you see Basket No. 12?!

Everyone was well behaved, enjoyed one another’s company and had a great time. We sheepdogs come in all shapes, sizes and shades of grey but we all have one thing in common. We 💙  peeps.

Yes, I am a lap dog. Photo courtesy of Colorado OES Rescue.

Don’t you wish you could have attended? Join us tomorrow when we’ll report how much was raised to benefit the Colorado Old English Sheepdog Rescue.

Live, love, bark!  🐾