F is for Friday Furbabies #AtoZChallenge

Some of my favorite photos of the pack from the past year! 

Have a great weekend!!

E is for Ears and Eyes #AtoZChallenge

All my pets have the most beautiful eyes and ears. I think I need a t-shirt with that slogan! Like the one I have that says "All my children have paws"; or the other one that says, "Dogs are the only relatives you choose."

But seriously, my dogs have the most incredible eyes. All of them look like they are wearing eyeliner! My mom said that about the late, great, Hobie, and it's true. It was those eyes that made me fall in love with him at first sight.

The beautiful Hobie. Those eyes!

And then there are the ears. Cali the cat has the coolest ears. They are this gorgeous amber color. She is just so pretty. Cali's nickname is Lady Kitty, and sometimes I sing to her "Lady Kitty! Lady Kitty! She's so pretty! My la-teeeee-kitty!"

Cali's amber ears!

Petey, the newest pack member has ears like The Flying Nun's headpiece. I'm showing my age making reference to this 1960s TV show, that for some peculiar reason is NOT shown in re-runs, ever, at all. Weird, right?

Flying NUN? Really, Mom?!

I digress. Cooper's ears are starting to get flecks of white fur throughout. It makes me sad. He is only six, but he seems to be showing age (graying) faster than his twin brother, Charlie.

Cooper, how'd you get your ear to do that?

Charlie's ears are so soft, and he's got those eyeliner eyes. He is just so handsome!

Newman and Tux both have eyes full of love, and ears full of mites (I am kidding!!).

HUH????!

Tux is all eyes and ears in this photo

Gorgeous Newman 

D is for D-O-G spelled backwards #AtoZChallenge

Yesterday, I got some weird looks at my AA meeting when I said "Dog spelled backwards is God. Or, God spelled backwards is dog.... however it goes!" I never can remember exactly how it goes. But the point it, my dogs have been there for me through thick and thin. I don't know how I would have survived these last three years, especially, and my recent medical problems, without my beloved dogs.

One time, I saw a comment that somebody had written online about their dog. It was on some website that asked a question "Tell us how you feel about your dog" or something like that. It might have been pointing out that dogs are family members. Whatever the topic was, the person wrote: "He's like Jesus in a fur coat!"  I'm not sure if I'd go that far, but I sort of understood what they were saying.

How can you look into a dog's eyes and not see a SOUL in there? They have emotions, they have feelings, they experience fear, pain, and love -- just like we do.


Dogs have heart and spirit and they're waiting for us in heaven during the afterlife.

If there are no dogs in heaven, I want to go wherever THEY are!

An oldie == Charlie, Cooper and the late, great Hobie

C is for Cats #AtoZChallenge

On day three of the April 2018 A to Z Challenge, the letter is C.

I wrote about Charlie and Cooper yesterday, and toyed with the idea of just doing that again (C is for Charlie Brown and Cooper), but no.... I'll write about my cats!!

My cats don't really get equal time anymore.

I was a crazy cat lady WAY before I became a crazy dog lady. At one time, we had 28 cats at our farm... 7 were mine, a few belonged at the farm, and about 18 were "rescued" from an old lady who had too many cats. Yes, there really was a woman I knew who had over 60 cats! In a house!!

Out of that batch of cats came our favorite cat: Mister Kitty. Renowned for his acting more like a dog than a cat, and being my dog, Timba's, most faithful companion. How we loved him. I still think about Mr. Kitty every single day. No exaggeration!

These days, we share our lives with Cali, Tux and Newman. Newman is the one who behaves most like Mr. Kitty -- he comes when I whistle, just like he's a dog. He leaps on the window screen in the middle of the night when he wants to come in, just like Mr. Kitty did. I often wonder if he's Mr. Kitty, reincarnated!

I love my cats so much. I don't talk about them as often as my dogs, but I don't know what I would do if I did not have the cats OR the dogs in my life. They are such a comfort. I love seeing my cats every morning as they perform their antics in an attempt to be fed "breakfast". And every night, I do a head count to make sure they're here and safe.

My cats are beautiful! They all have very unique markings, and I think that makes them so special. They are one-of-a-kind cats. All three of them!

The beautiful Cali-co!

Blurry, but cute! Newman.

Talk about whiskers! Tux. 

B is for Brothers #AtoZChallenge

Today's post for the April 2018 A to Z Challenge  is the lazy woman's way to write a blog post!

Photo!!!!

Seriously, my boys, Charlie Brown and Cooper (Brown ha ha yes I call him that sometimes) are the absolute loves of my life right now. I do not know what I would do without them. I adore them so much. They are my everything.

People say litter mates should not be adopted together, but I disagree. While these last six years have not exactly been easy, I wouldn't change a thing. I love looking over at them when they are snuggling or playing together, and you can't tell where one dog ends and the other begins. Sometimes, if they are in a particular position, I don't know which dog I'm looking at (even though Cooper only has three legs -- a dead giveaway!). Sometimes I have to double-check. And sometimes, I'm seeing double! We have had a very fun, yet challenging, six years together. And I hope for at LEAST that many more, plus plus plus.

Ok, without further ado, here is the brotherly love photo....

Tricked ya! It's not just Cooper and Charlie, it's their brother, Simon, and their mama dog, Katie!!!!

A is for April #AtoZChallenge

Good morning! April Fools! Happy Easter! Happy Passover!

I'm tired just thinking about it.

My first post for the blogging from A to Z April Challenge #AtoZChallenge, led by the folks at www.a-to-zchallenge.com , is "A is for April".  'cause, what ELSE would A be for?

April is my second favorite month of the year. July is my favorite. April SHOULD be my favorite, since my birthday is this month (the 21st, if you want to, you know, tell me "happy birthday" or anything like that).

My father and I had the same birthday, as many of you already know. He was born in 1918, and therefore, this April 21 he would be.... 100 years old!! In honor of his 100th birthday, I am finally releasing volume three of his World War II letters. Stay tuned for the big announcement the week of April 15th.

Don't forget to file your taxes ha ha.

The days following my birthday are difficult. My father died on April 27th (1987) at a young 69 years old. This makes our birthday week bittersweet. And, my dog, Hobie, died on April 25th, three years ago. So, not an easy week for me because of all the memories.

Grief has no timeline, and anniversaries always tend to bring the grief up to the surface. It's not raw anymore, but it is melancholic.

And that's a great segue to announce my new avocation. By the end of April, I will be a certified Pet Loss Grief Mentor! What does that mean? A mentor walks the journey with a person who has lost a pet and is grieving. A mentor is not a counselor, therapist, psychiatrist, psychologist or leader of a support group. A mentor is a good listener, and will support you and work with you to experience the grief process. So, stay tuned for more about that in the coming weeks.

Until then, stay safe and none of this was an April Fool's joke!

Thanks for reading!!

Cooper and Petey have formed quite the bond!

Charlie Brown and Petey -- I'm not sure if this is a bond, but they tolerate each other!

Brothers Cooper and Charlie Brown 

Meet our newest pack member!

*This post contains affiliate links. The pack and I receive a teeny tiny commission if you buy something. And we thank you in advance for doing so, if you feel like it!


Happy 2018! We are starting off the new year introducing our newest pack member, Petey, the chihuahua-Italian Greyhound mix (we think). And that's actually a designer dog "breed" called "Italian Greyhuahua". I'm not kidding. Look it up!

We're also participating in the #AppreciateTheMoments monthly themed photo challenge for dog and cat moms. Because, well, I'm a dog and cat mom.

So, I'm back to a six pack! hah and I do not mean my abs, let me assure you.

January's topic for #AppreciateTheMoments is "winter".

Here's Petey, wearing one of his sweaters. He is an odd-sized dog, so small is too small, but medium is too big. He manages to wiggle his way out of most clothing I put on him.

Owning a small dog is very different from owning large ones. I've never had a small dog before. It sure is a learning experience.  I'll write more about that, as time goes on.

For now, welcome to the pack, Petey, and happy winter everybody!

Petey has a unique trait of being able to walk with both hind legs off the ground! LOL!
For Pete's sake, let me in! It's cold out here!

DIY Holiday Treat Bag with BLUE Santa Snacks from Blue Buffalo #sponsored

This post is sponsored by BLUE Santa Snacks® and the BlogPaws® Pet Influencer Network ™ .  I am being compensated to help share information about Blue Buffalo Santa Snacks, but TravelingDogLady only shares information we feel is relevant to our readers. Blue Buffalo is not responsible for the content of this article.

Deck the halls with this super-simple DIY treat bag using Christmas stockings! Easy as 1-2-3!Anyone who knows me knows I am not artsy-craftsy, and I have always traveled during the holidays, so this is a unique opportunity for me to actually do something at home for the holidays. With that in mind, the non-artsy-craftsy part of me was stumped when presented with the challenge of creating a treat container for this project. Then, I saw our Christmas stockings in my holiday dog decoration drawer, et voila! An idea! As easy as 1-2-3, and anyone can do it... artsy or not! 

Step 1: Locate Your Christmas Stockings and Decorations

Because we all know where our dog Christmas decorations are kept, go to that place, and retrieve one stocking per dog. In my case, two dogs... so, two stockings. Obviously, you can use one dog stocking for your whole pack, if you want.

Charlie's stocking

Cooper's stocking. It says "Santa's my gnomie" lol

Step 2: Get yourself some BLUE Santa Snacks® at your local pet food provider

BLUE Santa Snacks holiday dog biscuits are available at Target, Meijer, Kroger, PetSmart, Chewy and your regional retailers.  These baked crunchy dog treats are packaged in an 8-ounce resealable bag, and typically cost $5.99 per bag. Blue Buffalo Santa Snacks are a great way to share the holiday season with your furry friend. These holiday dog treats make great dog stocking stuffers, as you'll soon see, and the ingredients feature holiday spices like cinnamon and wholesome oatmeal, barley, pumpkin and flax seed.

I'm not sure if I'm naughty or nice.....

But... can I have one of those? Pweeze?

Step 3: Fill stockings with BLUE Santa Snacks treats

These Blue Buffalo crunchy dog treats are made in such cute shapes! I love teasing my dogs with "What shape do you want today?" questions, and I try to give them both the same shape so everything is "even". The snacks are in the shape of stars, gingerbread men, and Christmas trees. These snacks are crunchy and good-sized. Not too big, not too small, but big enough where they are used only as a special treat around here. You just can't help having fun with these treats.

Wag that tail for some BLUE Santa Snacks!

Hang the stockings out of your dog's reach -- and don't open 'til Christmas! Well, ok, maybe Thanksgiving. Who can resist these treats? I know my dogs go nuts for these snacks, and I can't wait to put up our dog Christmas decorations and feed them a Santa Snack or two while we're decorating the house. For the first time in many years, I'm going to be home for the holidays. Usually, I travel every year. But this year is being devoted to my dogs and cats and grandkids. So, I'm staying put. More time with the hounds at home means more treat time, and let's hope we don't gain too much weight snacking on holiday goodies.

But wait, there's more!!

Enter Blue Buffalo's "Naughty or Nice" social contest. Submit a photo of your pet being either naughty or nice. Just for entering the contest, you'll receive an overlay image suitable for sharing on social media. Each week between now and the holidays there will be winners for a BLUE stocking with Santa Snacks and the potential to win the grand prize of a $500 gift card! Have fun with it, and enter a naughty or nice pic of your pet today!

Enter the contest here! Bluesantasnacks.com

Love them like family. Feed them like family. With high quality, natural ingredients. We love our pets, which is why everything we do always comes back to the idea that we think of them as family.

BONUS FUN FACT: 

Where did Blue Buffalo's name come from? The founders of Blue Buffalo, the Bishop family, had a dog named BLUE that unfortunately developed cancer. The family developed a special natural pet food formula with their veterinarian and an animal nutritionist (Blue Life Protection Formula). That natural pet food became the number-one selling in the U.S. and underscored Blue Buffalo's commitment to Pet Cancer research and awareness. Learn more about the Blue Buffalo story here. 

This post is sponsored by BLUE Santa Snacks® and the BlogPaws® Pet Influencer Network™.
This post is sponsored by BLUE Santa Snacks® and the BlogPaws® Pet Influencer Network™. I am being compensated to help share information about Blue Buffalo Santa Snack, but we only shares information we feel is relevant to our readers Blue Buffalo is not responsible for the content of this article.

Debunking Five Myths About Three-Legged Dogs

Originally published on DoggyWoof (doggyloot's blog) which is now owned by Family Pet. I wrote this for them and am re-posting it here today, nearly six years later. Kathleen S. MuellerMandell, Author, Blogger, Writer

We recently adopted a three-legged “tripod” dog. He is only 10 months old. He lost his leg due to a bad break caused by an accident, and the leg was unable to be repaired.

Most three-legged dogs are not so young. The majority of dogs who lose a leg are older, and most develop cancer in the leg or shoulder area, which requires amputation.

Regardless of their age, these dogs are remarkably well-adjusted creatures for the most part, and having only three legs doesn’t slow them down.

Here are five myths about three-legged dogs:

• They fall down, a lot. So far, this has not been our experience. Granted, we’ve only had the dog for a couple of weeks, but he has managed to stay upright except for perhaps two times when he lost his footing on a wet surface or was just clumsy.
• They can’t go up or down stairs easily. Think again! Our guy runs up the stairs three-at-a-time, and actually gets to the top faster than his litter mate who is the same age and has four-on-the-floor. Descending stairs is a tiny bit more difficult, but just a tiny bit.
• You can’t take a three-legged dog on a walk. Wrong again. Our guy loves to see the leash and sits proudly waiting for it to be put on. Out the door, he pulls just as hard as his brother, and can keep up on the walk just fine. We don’t go for LONG walks, that would not be smart. But a brief, gentle walk, around the block, say, is just the thing to keep your tripod in shape and on the move.
• Three-legged dogs can’t swim. We live on a lake, and while we have not actually tried swimming with our tripod yet, he has stepped into the (very shallow) water and got his feet wet — all three of them! There are a lot of online resources for three-leggers, and a few of them sell flotation devices for “tripawds.” We can’t wait until next summer to try out one of these flotation vests on our dog!
• He wants to play fetch, but he can’t.  He CAN get to the ball even faster than his four-legged counterpart. Just use common sense and don’t play for too long of a period of time. Be creative and bounce the ball on a hard surface so he doesn’t have to run as much, or throw it up in the air and have him catch the ball mid-air. There are lots of ways to have fun with a ball-crazy dog other than just throwing it long distances.

You get the picture. Having three legs doesn’t phase the animal. We humans can take a lot of lessons from our dogs. This creature lost a leg and didn’t even think twice about it, he just lives in the moment and does what he wants to do. He doesn’t ruminate the loss of his leg or need psychological therapy. He doesn’t need to know “what happened” like every human we encounter on our walks!

If you have a three-legged dog, be prepared to tell his “story” to every human you meet. Be ready to see the looks of shock on people’s faces (especially children). Have a script ready for people who “feel bad” or children who seem frightened. I always say “He’s fine, it doesn’t bother him, so why should it bother us? Look — he can run, and jump, and play just like his brother. In fact, he’s even FASTER!”

RememberMeThursday is September 28th

*This is a sponsored post. The pack and I received a box of goodies from Helen Woodward Animal Center in exchange for spreading awareness about adoptable animals waiting in shelters. All opinions and words expressed here are mine and the pack's!We write because we think what we have to say will have some value and interest to our readers. There are no affiliate links in this post.

When I attended BlogPaws in Myrtle Beach this past May (at the beginning of summer!), I was fortunate to meet up with the folks from Helen Woodward Animal Center. At first, I thought their Remember Me Thursday campaign focused on memorials for lost pets, but I quickly learned that the pets they are remembering are the ones stuck at shelters throughout the U.S. waiting for someone to adopt them and give them the lives they deserve, safe and secure; loved and cared for; forever.

To help spread awareness for the #RememberMeThursday #RememberTheRescue campaigns, they were kind enough to send me a blogger's kit so I can help them with their campaign. I shot some video of me unboxing the kit, and you can watch that below.




I've been rescuing pets ever since I was a child. Too many pets to count. You can see my past pets on the Traveling Dog Lady website: Dogs are here; cats are here. This is just to give you an idea of how long I've been actively rescuing adoptable and unwanted pets -- even before it became "trendy".

Everybody already knows the stories of both Charlie Brown and Cooper, my current dogs that came to Massachusetts from Tennessee via Great Dog Rescue of New England. GDRNE is an organization that is near and dear to my heart. I volunteer for them, processing intake forms for dogs about to be transported to New England from southern states where there are high-kill shelters. We are fortunate to live in Massachusetts, because there are few (if any) kill shelters here. Great Dog is a shelterless rescue, which means that all dogs go immediately into foster homes. Litters get fostered together, with their mama dog, until they are weaned and ready for adoption. Because of my unique volunteer position, I get to see every dog that's on its way up to New England before anyone else. Let me tell you it is so hard not to want to adopt every single last one of them! Not only are they cute, cute, cute, but their stories tug at my heart every time. Even the littlest ones who usually arrive here as a whole litter, just like my hounds did nearly 6 years ago.

My rescued tripawd, Cooper, wants you to #RememberTheRescue 

Then, there are the cats. Again, you probably know the story of my three current cats, Cali, Tux and Newman. They were all motherless kittens that my friend's daughter found on three separate occasions. It is unclear whether they are related, or not. Since they were all found at approximately the same time, one would think they are related, but apparently they were found in three different locations. In any case, she bottle fed them, and was going to keep them, but then she realized she was having her own (human) baby, and they didn't want cats in the house with the baby for whatever reason. When asked if I wanted to adopt ONE of them, I told her I'd take all three.... sight unseen! It's hard to believe they are eight years old already. Seniors!?  These are just three of the DOZENS of cats I've rescued and shared my life with. Yes, I was a crazy cat lady before I became a crazy dog lady. Although, I have had both dogs and cats my entire life.

But I can't adopt them all, and that's where you come in. Help raise awareness for the plight of forgotten animals in shelters by participating in the #RememberMeThursday campaign on September 28, 2017. Use the hashtag #RememberMeThursday and #RememberTheRescue when sharing about the event with your friends and followers.

I write to save lives!
Counting down to #RememberMeThursday on the left side of my computer screen.
On the right is PetPoint, the database for dog and puppy intakes for Great Dog Rescue of N.E.
Framed photos of all my dogs, including Hector (l) and Hobie (r) give me encouragement while I work.
The current dogs just bark the whole time I'm working. lol

Don't forget to enter the #RememberTheRescue photo contest! Winnings go to your chosen shelter. The contest is on now, through September 30th, and you can find out more details here. 

Join us in lighting up social media on September 28th. Use the hashtags mentioned above, and light a candle for the forgotten animals that need everyone's help. You can light a virtual candle or a real one, or one of the handy battery-operated candles as shown in my video.

So, mark your calendar for September 28th, 

and join the contest today! 

^^ Kitty looks like Tux!! ^^

August 28 Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day

** This post contains affiliate links.We get a teeny-tiny bit of compensation if you purchase something from one of the links. And if you don't, that's ok, too!**


Today is four years since Hector died*.  I of course posted a picture of him on Facebook today, and I still cannot get my mind around the huge hole in my life left by him.  I loved him so very much.

On my news feed, another blogger shared that today is The First Annual Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day, hosted by our pals over at Zee and Zoey's Cat Chronicles.  I have always said, there are no coincidences.  What was to be a quick photo on Facebook of Hector, now becomes a blog post.  (Maybe this will get me past my writer's block since the other two huge losses I'm still reeling from, from earlier this year -- I have basically been unable to write since I lost my beloved Gil and Hobie.)

If I ever DO get past the writer's block, I will finish my book, which includes Hector's Story.  Until then, if you have the patience to read an unedited version in which the photos don't display (!!) then you may do so here.  Or, you can just go up to the menu on this blog and click on the "Hector" tab.

As most of you already know, my beloved Hector died on August 28, 2011 just one week before his 10th birthday, due to a brain aneurysm.  He had tripped on the stairs a few months earlier, and evidently hit his head, sustaining a head injury, and began having seizures which were frequent and frightening, throughout that whole summer.  We had a wonderful summer that year, and I am grateful to myself that I had the aforethought to spend so much time at the lake and the ocean with my two dogs, Hector and Hobie.  Hobie, being the elder of the two, I never imagined in my wildest dreams that he would out-live Hector.

Hector and Hobie, carrying on during a snowstorm "back in the day" (before we had a fence!)

If you've ever seen anyone having a seizure, it is extremely frightening and disconcerting.  With a dog, it can be dangerous during the post-ichtal phase (after a seizure) because they can bite and snap, knock you over, etc.  This is because they sometimes have a short time of disorientation afterwards, and Hector actually had temporary blindness after a seizure.  After he regained his sight, he would then try to crawl into small spaces:  under a desk, into a closet, into the fireplace!  He did not realize what a car was, or how to get into the car, the first time he seized.  He would also run around the house, or the back yard, for up to 30 minutes after a seizure, and would drink tons of water and urinate repeatedly.  But the worst part was the biting and running at you at full-speed, knocking you to the ground post-seizure.  All of these memories are very hard to extinguish all these years later.  And, I can't believe that "all these years" is a phrase I just wrote.  It seems like he left us just yesterday.  I still feel him in my heart, and now he has the company of Gil and Hobie.

Enough about that.  I was going to wait to announce this, but I have learned that there is no time like the present.  So, here it comes:  My long-term goal, which I have been planning since Mr. Kitty and Timba died, is to become a pet grief and loss counselor.  I am hoping to finish the educational/certification part of that within the next year, and begin helping others (if they'll have me) live with the pain and grief of losing a beloved pet.

In the meantime, I devote this website to my beloved pets who I miss every day, and of course those who are still with me:  Charlie Brown, Cooper, Cali, Tux and Newman.

But for today, this is Hector's day, and I just want to say, "Mommy misses you, buddy, every single day.  I love you to the moon and beyond."

Hector

September 4, 2001 - August 28, 2011

In honor of Hector's birthday, through September 4th, get 10% off your entire order at perfectmemorials.com !! Use Coupon Code LABOR2017

Hector passed away during Hurricane Irene in 2011. His passing was not due to the hurricane, however. Here we are 6 years later, and Harvey has devastated parts of Texas. Through September 4th (Hector's birthday) 25% of your purchases at Jacksongalaxy.com will help victims of Hurricane Harvey. See below affiliate link.

And also the Teddythedog.com link below to help support SPCA of Texas.

Help with Hurricane Harvey: 25% of all sales now through 9/4 will be donated towards these efforts. Click here to learn more and donate.











*This is a re-post from two years ago.