My Back Yard

THIS IS MY BACK YARD. Scooterbug and Maggie are checking out what looking like waterfront property!

They always think something new must be in the ivy out there and that they MUST find it!

Starlight gets in on the act.

Look at the water! We must be special to live on the water.

Scooter and Cranberry check out the water.

Maybe we can go fishing! (The picket fence has been removed and there is a mesh fence that you can't see well-- don't worry, no Pekes were harmed when I took these pictures-- no danger of drowning!)

Starlight is still looking for treasures.

Maggie gets in on the sniffing adventure.

Now Scooter and Max are checking things out. (This could go on and on!)

Scooter stops to look at the water again.

They must think I buried gold out there!

Oh, no. Where did the water go?? It's disappearing!

It's getting skinny!

And there are fallen trees, too!

There was water here, I swear!

Mom, they stole the water!

Now Max has to see where it went.

Maggie is looking for the water! This is awful-- a water thief came!

Max is forlorn-- just a sliver of water left. :-(

It went that way.

Actually, I live on the end of a tidal fed "fiinger" of the river. So, sometimes, it seems I have a lot of water and sometimes it just disappears. Sometimes, we have ducks back there-- which really drives the dogs crazy-- but sometimes, there is just, well, almost nothing! Sometimes, I can sit and peacefully hear the water moving and running from the other end, and sometimes there is nothing to hear. But, I love my back yard, and I love all the Pekes running around in it!

Send me pictures of your dogs in YOUR backyard!

English Pekes

This is my English friend, Rita. I know her only through our Peke Rescue group. She lives in England, near Manchester.

Here she is with Tom. He's a show Peke and is beautiful! Below, is a picture of him as a baby.

This is Katie. She must like the snow! Look at her gorgeous mask on her face.

I asked Rita what Christmas was like in England. She said that like us in the USA, they also like to trim up. She trims all the bushes at the bottom of the garden with fairy lights. She said she didn't have as many indoors this past year, just the tree, christmas ornaments and garlands over the mirrors. Christmas morning her sons and daughter came and exchanged gifts. She said the post (mail) has been filled with more Christmas cards from family and friends. She had these on card holders decorating the hall. She had four Christmas stockings hung up: one for each peke and also two smaller ones for Jack and Jill the two kittens. She said they have had some lovely holidays in Scotland, the scenery is so beautiful. But, for the best scenery of all Cornwall can't be beat and it is warmer there also.

I've been to England, and loved it! I'd love to go to Scotland, too. For now, I'll enjoy the holiday through Rita! Here is a picture of part of her home during the holidays.

If I ever go back to England, I'm going to make a point of meeting Rita in person!!

Chloe, Our Newest Rescue Dog

This is Chloe, our newest rescue dog in our group. http://www.potomacpekes.org/ She came into rescue and was very close to dying. She has "turned the corner" and is doing much better. She will need expensive and extensive care. She weighs under 9 pounds and needs to put on about 4 pounds. Then, she'll see an orthopedic specialist to look at her hips and knees. She has a sweet nature and we are doing all we can do help her. If you would like to read more on Chloe, please go to our web site.

One of our members has three very compassionate Pekes and they wanted to write Chloe a letter. Here it is:

Tuesday, 24 February 2009

Dear Chloe,

Hello, we are Delilah, Angel Baby and Sassy Pants and we want to wish you well. We know that you are feeling very poorly and understand how that can feel. Sassy and Angel Baby have both been in your position, very sick, dirty, scared and surrounded by strangers. But you probably know by now that these strangers are going to help you, just like they did us. And if you are lucky, and patient, you will be rewarded with your very own loving forever mom, just like we did. So, you have a lot to go through yet, but you also have a lot of love to look forward to, as well. So here’s to you feeling better real soon and that you have a speedy recovery and a wonderful family in the near future. Our tail-wagging prayers are going out to you, so stay strong and we look forward to meeting you soon.

Blessings, love, and hugs to you.
Delilah, Angel Baby and Sassy Pants
(And our forever mom, Cat Ping)
From left to right: Delilah, Angel Baby, and Sassy (aka pant, pant)

If you would like to make donations for Chloe's care, please go to our web site for information. www.potomacpekes.org

My Husband, My Peke Helper

This is my husband, Matt. He is being kisses by Maggie. You can see Max peeking over the couch to see what is going on.

Maggie loves to be touching someone. Being held on your lap is the BEST, and she will just fold over as she relaxes.

Now Scooter, Maggie and Max are all attacking Matt with kisses and licks. Scooter, on the right, had surgery, so he still has a lot of "bald spots". But, he's doing great. Below, it looks like the 3 musketters are letting Matt up for air.

We were on a trip to Vermont last fall. No, we didn't go to see the colors, althought I would have loved that! We went for my sister's birthday-- unfortunately, the fall colors happened AFTER we were there!

Matt is my helper! He doesn't do all the feeding, or bathing, or cleaning up after the dogs-- but he sure is a great support for me and the Pekes love him!! Matt is also great with our grandkids-- oh no, how did another grandgirl picture get in here!? Here he is with Addie, who is helping him put a bookcase together. You can see how careful she is to get the screws in just right!

Matt is hold Snuggles, who was with us for several weeks for surgery. She is now being fostered in Richmond. She loved my husband-- not me so much! I think it's because I was always surrounded by the other five! Matt says I'm a Peke magnet. Or maybe the Pied Piper for Pekes. (kind of clever, don't you think!)

And here he is with Starlight-- our long term foster dog. She will curl up like a baby on your lap. She fully trusts us. She's a little doll baby.

Thanks Matt!! I love you!

I Adopted Your Dog Today

This is my friend, Cherry. She has an incredible love for those Pekes that have been abandoned or are older. She wants to give them a place to live and be happy. She has taken in four-- Muffin, Kibbles, Weezie, and Lovie. She says that her pack is "healthy, wealthy (in love) and wise (in choosing this as their 'forever' home)!!!" I think they are incredibly fortunate to have her as their mom. And no, she didn't adopt this camel. :-)

I sent this poem to Cherry--
I ADOPTED YOUR DOG TODAY

I adopted your dog today,

The one you left at the pound;

The one you had for ten years

And no longer wanted around.
I adopted your dog today…

Did you know that he’s lost weight?

Did you know he’s scared and depressed

And seems to have lost all faith?
I adopted your dog today…

He had fleas and a little cold;

Guess you don’t care what shape he’s in—

You abandoned him I am told.
I adopted your dog today…

Were you having a baby or moving away?

Did you suddenly develop allergies,

Or was there NO reason he couldn’t stay?
I adopted your dog today…

He doesn’t play or even eat much;

I guess he’s very sad inside and

It’ll take time for him to

And here he is going to stay;

He’s found his FOREVER home

And a warm bed in which to lay.
I adopted your dog today…

And shall give him all that he will need—

Patience, love, and security,

So he can forget your selfish deed.
Author Unknown

Cherry is my dog hero that I wrote about before and she's become a special friend to me. She takes in those that others have decided they don't have time for anymore. When I sent this poem to her, she wrote, "Ohhhh! Someone looked into my heart and wrote down what they saw!!! My-o-my!!" Above, you can see Weezie, a stray found wandering down a highway. She was at least eleven years old, but Cherry didn't flinch when I asked her to take Weezie. Now she and Weezie sing together!

And this is Muffin (playing with my robe tie), who was heartworm positive, a stray I got from a local shelter. She had an injured eye from being shot with a BB gun. She had a BB lodged in her back also. But, Cherry didn't hesitate on her either! The shaved part on her back is from her heartworm treatment.

Don't feel badly for Muffin, though. She is doing just fine!

And this is Kibbles. He was eleven years old when I got him. The owners had had him since he was a puppy-- but didn't want him anymore. He was too much trouble. He was hard of hearing. And when I got him, they said they contact me later to get a puppy--I DON'T THINK SO! I will never adopt to someone who has turned in a dog to me for no good reason.

Look at this happy face! How could an owner turn him in??? Too much trouble? No. They just didn't want to be responsible anymore. (I AM glad they called me though instead of taking him to a shelter!!! I have to give them credit for that.)

Just remember, the dogs you see on my blog ARE safe, ARE loved, and most have been adopted. The rest are safe in foster care. If you want to see more of them, just go to http://www.potomacpekes.org/ We have some special needs dogs and some that just need love. Maybe you're the one they're waiting for.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

We want to wish you a Happy Valentine's Day!! All the dogs who have been adopted are having a special day with their new families. We have some who are still waiting, but their foster families will give them a wonderful day also. Here are some pictures to make you smile and to thank you for loving these precious dogs!

I also wanted to add the following to our "dictionary" that I posted a few days ago. This is from Willie Wonton in New York. "no" = a meaningless sound that our owners make, has no translation into "Pekingese". This strange sound is usually accompanied by shaking of the head. Humans are strange creatures with a bizarre language!

This is Cooper and Dexter-- two former PVPC dogs (Potomac Valley Pekingese Club, rescue). They are becoming wonderful friends! And Cooper is going to be going into training to learn how to be hearing service dog for his owner who is hearing impaired. We can't wait to find out more about this new venture in his life!
This is Jelly Belly-- Cooper and Dexter's sibling. She assists her owner when she hears a sound and will be helping Cooper learn his new job.

This is Pearl AFTER she was completely shaved down (more on her in another post). She is the happiest girl. One of our members paid to have her DNA tested-- so she is our first DNA dog! We knew she wasn't full Peke, and found out she is half Peke and half Llasa. It was just fun to do. Pearl does have a heart murmur, but she is going to live with her daughter, Taffy (now Maggie). We are so glad they are going to be back together!!

This is Leo, the Lab. He belongs to my daughter. He was on his last day in animal control when we rescued him out of there. He is playing with two of my former foster dogs, Weezie and Jinji. Scooterbug, my Peke, is at the top of the picture (he's the one who just had bladder surgery).

And here is sweet Oliver with his new family-- Cuddles in front and Snuggles, his best pal, on the right. It looks like they were just waiting to jump off the chair!! Oliver waited a long time for his forever home, and he is so loved there.

Thank you to all of you who have adopted from us, who give our rescue dogs the love they deserve. HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Belly Bands and Pekingese

Bladder issues are not uncommon in Pekingese. Many Pekes are unable to process certain minerals and they can form crystals or stones in their bladder. Sometimes, food can be used to dissolve them, but there are other times where surgery is necessary. Otherwise, the dog will be in pain and will have multiple infections.

Starlight is one of my foster dogs. She doesn't have a bladder infection or stones, but she does have bladder spasms. She takes a small dose of diazipan twice a day to calm these spasms and I think we finally have her house trained!

Maggie (with Max) are my other foster dogs. Maggie has had three bladder infections-- well, maybe it has been one long infection. Her bladder walls are thick from long term infections (before she came into rescue) and now we are doing a month long treatment to hopefully resolve this problem. She is absolutely adorable, along with Max (who loves to play fetch). She sleeps in a baby "crib" in our room-- she has to be near, and loves her special bed. There's often another Peke in there with her for company.

Cranberry is one of my Pekes-- she has to be on a special diet to keep her bladder clear. She's on the Waltham's S.O. diet. It doesn't ahve the calcium or other ingredients that she cannot process. She is doing great and hasn't had an infection for a long time.

And here is my Scooterbug. Scooter was on a hypo-allergenic diet. He's one of the few that didn't seem to have bladder issues. He's almost eight, and was just not feeling okay. I couldn't figure out why. We checked him out and thought it might be his back, so we did a back x-ray. There were four stones in his bladder! I was shocked! We tried a food that can dissolve certain stones (S.D. by Royal Canin/Waltham's) but his stones did not dissolve. He had bladder surgery last week to remove the stones. He also have several cysts removed, and has stitches top and bottom. He is my therapy dog for the new fosters who come into our home for fostering. He has an important job, so he is determined to get back on the job quickly!

Starlight is giving him encouragement and support while he rests.

Most of the foster Pekingese I have at my house have had bladder problems. Some are not able to be housetrained because of this and we can begin that AFTER the bladder issues has been resolved. Some dogs just become incontinent and cannot help having accidents.

Mid-atlantic Pug Rescue (http://www.midatlanticpugrescue.org/) does many fund raisers to help support their foster dogs-- one of these is to make and sell belly bands and female panties. You can go to their site and click on Click here: MAPR Fundraisers, Events, Contests, Etc. - Mid-Atlantic Pug Rescue to "hand made pug clothing" and then scroll down to find the belly bands. These can be a life-saver for your carpets and furniture!!

Here's some handsome pups in their apparel. :-)

This is Oliver with Snuggles below wearing his colorful belly band. Look how handsome he looks.

Here are some web site you can check out to find out more if your dog has bladder problems.
Click here: Treating Bladder Stones in Dogs With Diet
Click here: Bladder Stones

Click here: Cystinuria