Message From the Alpha Dog

Winter is here already. It's hard to believe that Christmas is just around the corner. Winter also brings alot of snow in many areas. Mine is one of them.

Often, the dogs life changes drastically when the holidays arrive and the snow flies.. He/she may be spending much of their day inside, when they were used to being outside alot. Not all dogs adjust well to this change and they become bored and listless.

When our dogs get bored, we need to find something for them to do, or they may find something to do themselves. What they decide to do, may not be to our liking. A bored dog may chew on things, get into your stuff and get pretty wild inside. It is up to us to keep them occupied and happy.

Finding things to do can be difficult. I know I'm always trying to figure out ways to keep my dogs happy during the winter. When the weather permits, we still take our evening walk. Inside activities can be a problem though. I like to hide treats throughout the house and have them try to sniff them out. This will keep them occupied for a while, depending on how creative I get on hiding. You can also hide yourself, and call your dogs having them come find you, or another family member. Another game I will play is fetch down the hall. If you have a long hallway, or even a short area will work, toss a toy and have your dog go get it.

Holidays can also affect our dogs, as there is alot of stuff going on...parties, food, tree in the house, gifts. All stuff our dogs like to get into. I block off the room with the tree when we aren't home. This way, I know there will be no unwelcome drinking of the water in the tree, or eliminating on the tree. Make sure you keep the chocolate out of reach or other treats that might be appealing to our dogs, but would most certainly make them sick.

With a little care and planning, our dogs can have happy holidays and a fun winter, just like us.

Hope everyone enjoys the holiday season!

Melody Golubski
DogHobbyist.com Site Coordinator
PH FasDog

New on DogHobbyist.com!

The lines at the bookstore getting you down? Don't have time to drive to the bookstore? Then check out DogHobbyist Bookstore! There is a wide variety of books to chose from and even calendars and magazines!

What's more, we have a new, free email newsletter all about books. And if you subscribe now, you'll get our premier issue, which features mysteries for dog lovers - the perfect gift for a friend or for yourself. What could be better than curling up in front of the fire with a dog lover's mystery?

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PetTales

Seventh Annual Chat Week: Who Would YOU Like to See?

The Seventh Annual Chat Week on DogHobbyist.com will be held a bit later in the winter than in previous years, from February 27-March 5, 2005, in order to allow our staff, users, and guests to spend the holidays with their family. We are already building our lineup of guests, but would love to hear your suggestions. If you would like to be a guest, or know of someone you'd like to see as a guest, or even a topic or subject you'd like to see covered during chat week, please use this link to let us know:

Contact PHChristy

Please be sure to give contact information for a guest you are suggesting, if possible.

As we confirm dates and add guests, the complete schedule for Chat Week 7 will appear on our main Chat Week page, with more complete site-specific schedules appearing at the links to the right. This page will also include a list of confirmed guests who are not yet scheduled for a specific date and time, as well as directions on how to attend the chat and where to find more complete information.

A Better Goodbye
by Leslie Bean

For the many years I was at the Cancer Center, pet visitation of any kind was forbidden. I begged, pleaded, cajoled, and offered to fund it personally; always with the same answer. So, I resorted to sneaking the tiny furry ones for patients who were never coming out, so that they and their beloved dog could see each other one more time.

One morning the Head Nurse on one of the units paged me to complain that the parents of a 28 year old man (only child) were insistent that they HAD to bring his 14 year old Yorkshire Terrier to visit him, as he was dying. She wanted to give me a heads up that they may complain about her to me and she wanted me to explain the policy to them, as she had.

They did, indeed, come to my office. They were not angry. Their grief had taken them past that. They were at the point of accepting what they could see so clearly was happening, although they were deeply sad. They explained that their son and this dog had been inseparable since he was 14 years old and they brought her home as a puppy. The dog was back at the motel, where they had been living for the past 2 months while their only child was receiving experimental treatment for stage 4 Lymphoma. The dog was grieving as deeply as they were, and was not in good health herself. They didn't raise voices, or threaten; they stated their case with their hearts, which were breaking.

Before they finished I asked them how big she was, and if she were noisy. She weighed 4 pounds and never barked. Soon, Dad had returned to the motel, and brought her to me outside the hospital at the agreed spot. I quickly explained to the little dog that she would need to hide under my jacket and be very quiet. She looked up at me with big brown eyes that blinked with great wisdom and understanding. Tucked away from sight, we hurried through the halls and up the elevators to the young man’s room. I instructed the parents to stand with their backs to the door of the room, blocking the natural view of those entering, and to say to anyone who saw the little dog, “Leslie Bean brought the dog and says for you to call her.”

The patient was very, very weak. His bed elevated his upper body at 45 degrees. IV tubes and an infusion pump dominated his left arm. When we entered the room I placed the Yorkie on the bed on his left side. Her whole body trembled with happiness and she made tiny cries of joy as she quickly moved up to his neck and buried her nose under his chin. Her little tail was wagging so hard.

Then this young man, who had been semi-comatose for days, very, very slowly and laboriously, lifted his right arm from beside him on the bed, and moved it painfully across his chest to rest on his dog, as he just as slowly turned his head to her. A tear trickled down his cheek. My composure was gone. It is a scene I will never forget. The sight of absolute love, reunited. There was nothing else in the world that mattered to them, or, frankly, to me, at that moment. The faces of he and his parents and that amazing little dog are forever burned into my heart.

Before I left I told them to call me immediately if anyone challenged them and that when they were going to take the dog back to the hotel, to call me and I'd walk her out myself to prevent them from breaking any rules. Before leaving the unit I dropped by to visit the nurse and reminded her of a few things she "owed me" and told her I was cashing in. Then I paged his physician, who also owed me some ‘favors,’ and made certain he was aware and free of blame.

The patient rallied the next day, after having spent several hours with his best friend the day before. He and his parents were able to talk for the first time in days. The dog rallied, too. They said it was the first she'd eaten in 3 days. When I visited he was alert, the dog was sleeping peacefully, curled between his shoulder and chin. There was a peace in that room that had not been there before.

The next day, in the wee hours of the morning, before the sun, the young man breathed his last breath before his dad brought the dog. Before his parents left, they hugged me until I was certain my ribs would break, and we all cried together. They told me that for as long as they lived I would be in their prayers - those couple of days were the best hours they had with him in weeks. They said their goodbyes. Later, I learned that little Yorkie, too, died on that very same day. Like her beloved master, she slipped away. I know they went together. Several days later my boss called and asked me about something he needed and before he hung up he said, “Leslie, I know about the dog."

"What dog?” I replied.

“Leslie, I know about the dogs .... Could you just let me know first when you do these things, so that I'll be expecting the calls, OK?"

With a huge smile on my face, I said, “I can do that!” It was as much a sanction as I'd ever get, and I was grateful for it.

Copyright 2004 by Leslie Bean. Used with permission. May not be copied or reproduced without permission.

Featured Rescue Group
For the Hounds - Sighthound Rescue
We here at Pethobbyist.com are great advocates of rescue groups, and in each issue of our newsletter we feature one of the many wonderful rescue groups listed in our RescueNetwork.

This newsletter we are featuring For the Hounds-Sighthound Rescue

For the Hounds is a sighthound rescue group, consisting of sighthound owners from South Carolina and surrounding states. Their primary rescue effort is finding loving homes for retired racing Greyhounds. In addition they also have experience living with and placing other sighthounds such as Italian Greyhounds, whippets, and Borzois.

Racing Greyhounds adopted through the program are usually between eighteen months and five years old. These ex-racers are sensitive, intelligent, quiet, clean, good-natured, adaptable dogs who adjust readily to their new home environment.

All of their Greyhounds come from out of state. They have working relationships with trainers, other adoption organizations, kennels, and owners throughout the United States. They also rescue any sighthounds that are left in local shelters or owner surrender. Their first commitment is to former racers, but they would help any Greyhound or Sighthound in need.

If you work or volunteer for a rescue group or shelter, or are looking for a dog to adopt, be sure to visit the RescueNetwork! All listings and other services are completely free, and provided as a community service by all of us at PetHobbyist.com.

Deskunking Your Dog

We hope - we really do hope - that you'll never, ever need this recipe. But in case you do, we recommend you keep the ingredients on hand. You can't store the mixture once it's been made.

1 quart 3 percent hydrogen peroxide
1/4 cup baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
1 teaspoon liquid soap

Wet the dog, and work the formula through their fur. Leave the mixture to sit on the dog for four or five minutes, and then rinse thoroughly. Throw out any leftover remedy.

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