Trick or Treat

Listen! The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves,
We have had our summer evenings, now for October eves!



Halloween is here and some of us are dressing up to frighten away the ghosts and spirits, and of course to get some treats.


Honeydew and Sampson stand guard at their gate.



Mack is disguised as Robin Hood.


And would that be Maid Marion? Or is it Sally Ann?


This sweet little devil is Fuji.


Fuji couldn't decide whether to be a devil or a witch. She looks awfully cute either way.


Clementine is a banana.


Is that turtle actually Bluebonnet?


Sparkle's ladybug hat matches her collar.


Sometimes we ladies can't make up our minds which outfit to wear. Sparkle also liked the jester hat.


Charli looks lovely as a princess.


Where there's a beautiful princess, there must be a knight in shining armor. Doesn't Thunder look wonderful?


Little Gretchen makes an adorable bumble bee.


Sissy sports a purple bat hat. She didn't like the costume her Mom picked out without consulting her, so she chose to wear just her hat.


In the 'if looks could kill' department, Fudge models this bonehead hat.

Halloween

That big scary day is coming up at the end of this week. We know that some of you dress your dogs up in great costumes. How about sharing their pictures with us?

Either send me a picture at wilcoxhall@ymail.com or leave a comment with your blog address and I'll take the picture off your blog. We'd love to show them off.

Welcome Angus

There's another new addition to a lucky family.On October 3rd Sonya and her family welcomed this beautiful baby and named him Angus.


Angus was born on July 27 and he's going to be a big boy. He's part Great Pyrenees and part Saint Bernard. Isn't he cute?


Angus has some big brothers at home to play with and learn from. This is Starsky playing with him.


This is Hutch talking with him. Don't you wish you knew what they're saying?


Just remember Starsky and Hutch, this is going to be a big dog when he grows up. He may remember if you don't play nicely and someday he'll be big enough to get even. Congratulations to the whole family, Angus is beautiful.

Remember me?

It's been forever and a day since I posted here.

We're tepidly continuing our vehicle search. Edmunds is getting with the program, and their Top 10 Lists now include a Top 10 Pet-Safe Vehicles list. You can read the list yourself, but they collaborated with Bark BuckleUp, which is a new pet safety site to me. They do pet safety product reviews, and are promoting Bark 10-4, a program that donates pet oxygen masks to emergency service providers.

The Knight - my husband, who happens to be a fire chief - and I - a "retired" firefighter - each have rescued at least one pet in our fire service careers. My first was a nearly unconscious, massive black lab, almost as big as I was at that point, who came around as I was dragging him down the stairs in the fraternity house fire. Too bad the local TV station wasn't there to record it; Mr. Toad's Wild Ride is calm and serene in comparison. All he - my "patient" - needed was fresh air, but not all pet victims are so lucky. I'm also certified in pet first aid, but I can assure you, these masks are much more effective and easier to use than your own mouth and hands for delivering extra air to a pet patient...

Whew! I managed to get this up before the end of October and Fire Safety Month! (Also known as Fire Prevention Month. I won't link, because there are a host of different organizations that promote it and with my ties, I don't want to slight any of them.)

October Treats

Sorry that I missed posting a recipe last week. As most of you know Fudge and I are going for our Rally Obedience title next weekend and we've been practicing every chance we get. Something had to give and I'm afraid it was this blog. I promise to do better in the future.

This is the time of year when a lot of us are bringing home a pumpkin. Some families paint them and some carve them. Rob likes to carve ours and I toast the seeds for him to snack on. Rob also likes pumpkin pie so I usually make one for him, but I admit I use canned pumpkin. It's just easier.


Did you know that pumpkin is high in vitamins A and C and also Beta Carotene? It's used by many dog owners as an additive to dog food for dogs who have upset tummies or loose stool. It is also a good addition for dogs who are dieting. It helps them feel they're getting something special without adding a lot of calories. If you decide to feed your dog canned pumpkin, be sure it's the pure pumpkin and not the pie filling which has sugar added.

My dogs are in the minority that don't like canned pumpkin. Imagine my surprise last week when Rob carved our pumpkin and offered them some of the fresh pumpkin and they not only ate it but begged for more.

I found some recipes for pumpkin dog treats that I thought you might like to try.Pumpkin Dog Cookies

This recipe is from Dog In Sight Magazine

Ingredients:
1 15oz can of mashed pure pumpkin (not pie filling)
3/4 cup Cream of Rice cereal
1.2 cup powdered dry milk

Mix all ingredients. Drop cookie sized spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet and bake at 300F degrees for 15-20 minutes.

For bite sized treats, make cookies about the size of a quarter. Let cool and call in the tasters.
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Peanut Butter and Pumpkin Dog Treats

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
2 tablespoons peanut butter
1.2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 C)
Whisk together flour, eggs, pumpkin, peanut butter, salt and cinnamon in a bowl. Add water as needed to make dough workable, but dough should be dry and stiff. Roll into 1/2 inch thick roll. Cut into small pieces or cut with cookie cutters.

Bake until hard, about 40 minutes. Cool and ask you dog's opinion.
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Pumpkin Dog Biscuits

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons dry milk
1 cup white flour
1/3 cup corn meal
1/2 cup oats
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup water + 1 tablespoon water

Mix all ingredients in your mixer This dough will be thick like cookie dough.

When mixed thoroughly, roll into rectangular sheets 1/4 inch thick.

Using a pizza cutter, cut dough into 1/2 inch parallel strips. Don't move the strips - leave them on your cutting board.

At about a 45 degree angle go back and cut parallel strips about 1/2 inch apart. You will end up with diamonds that look like the biscuits in the photo. You can also cut little squares or use cookie cutters.


Transfer the biscuits to a lightly greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 250 degrees F for about an hour. Since the biscuits are small, they brown quickly. Check occasionally to be sure they're not getting too dark.

Turn off the oven and let the biscuits continue to dry overnight in the oven. When done they will be hard, dry and crisp. They can be stored for a month at room temperature.
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The recipes we post here are not for all dogs. If your pet has an allergy to one of the ingredients such as peanuts or wheat, of course you will want to skip that recipe. These are only for healthy dogs with no sensitivities to any of the ingredients. If your pet is on a special diet check with your vet before making treats.

We Have A New Home

While we're on the subject of rescue, we want to introduce two dogs that have just found their new safe home.


Meet Clyde and Bonnie.

This adorable pair were dumped by uncaring people, but fortunately for them they found Elizabeth and her family.

The duo had some health problems that needed to be addressed. Bonnie had an injury to her foot, probably caused by a trap and both had ear infections and worms. Those have all been resolved and a spay and neutering have made them ready to join the other four rescue dogs in the family. They also have several cats and a bird to call family. Clyde, as often is the case with white dogs, is deaf, but his new family accepts his handicap and will work with him.

Please join us in welcoming Bonnie and Clyde and congratulating them on finding their safe place with a loving family.

A Friend In Need

October is Adopt A Shelter Dog month. This is a good time to explain how rescue works.

There are organizations and individuals who work tirelessly to help homeless pets, dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, horses, goats. You name it and there is an animal out there that has been thrown away and needs a home.


Durrell

In some cases an animal can be surrendered directly to a rescue organization. Others work with local shelters to save the animal from death row. If you are just looking for a furry companion to share your life, check any shelter of rescue organization. Most of them have adoption days at pet stores and parks trying to reach the most possible families to adopt.


Pico

If you are craving a particular breed, there are rescue organizations for every breed. You can contact the breed club (do a Google search) and they will put you in touch with someone who handles rescue for that breed.

Some breeds have rescue organizations in every state and others like my breed, the PWD, have one central rescue with volunteers across the country who rush to remove a PWD from a shelter and place the dog in foster care until a home can be found.


Jake

Most rescue organizations have volunteers who regularly visit shelters in their area, remove the dogs they hope to place, keep some in a central location open to those seeking a pet and place the rest with a network of foster families.

The foster parents take the pet into their home, get it medical care, give it basic training and evaluate the animal. They observe it's health, temperament and any problems the animal may exhibit. They determine if the animal can be placed in a home with children or other pets.


Bruno

Once a home is found for the animal, the foster parent may work with the new family to make a smooth transition for the animal.

A couple of rescue organizations that accept all types of animals are Best Friends Animal Society and PetFinder.

For specific breeds there are many organizations available. For bully breeds try Mid America Bully Breed Rescue. For all you Basset lovers try Basset Hound Rescue. For those interested in my breed, contact PWD Rescue. Whatever breed you want, there's a rescue out there waiting to hear from you.

So you can have that purebred dog or cat that you've always wanted and still help a homeless animal that needs a family. Or you can do as we do and just fall in love with a furry face asking for help. Over the years Rob and I have taken in eleven homeless dogs that needed a home. We specialize in animals that have been abused. We give them medical help, training and lots of love. Three of them we placed in safe loving homes and we kept the others.


Conan

It's a very good feeling to look into the happy face of a dog that was once homeless and scared and to see a light in the eyes and a tail wagging in pleasure.

If you can't adopt right now, if you're at your limit of pets for the time being, you can still help. The shelters and rescues need money and supplies and most of all help. Maybe all you can do is spend a couple hours once a month walking dogs or tossing a ball for them to chase. That is an enormous act of kindness for an animal that has no family.

The next time you're thinking about adding a pet to you household, think about rescue. All the dogs pictured here are available for adoption.