Oscar the not so Grouch no more

I recently had to give up a dog of mine, and it was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do. She was a pitbull mix, and as many people know bull breeds tend to get a bad rap because of the number of careless owners out there, not because of their genes. Here in MN there is actually a movement to pass a bill banning all bull breeds, which would mean that thousands of dog owners would be forced to find an out of state home for their pet or put them to sleep. I have a major issue with that because I know first hand that these dogs don't deserve the reputation they've received. Here's one article that helps illustrate how these dogs not only can be balanced dogs, but can even be rehabilitated after going through traumatic situations:

The following article is from Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

Making history!

Okay, all you scholastic types. Picture this academic situation: You’ve crammed all semester long for the final exam. The big day arrives. But, right before the instructor tells you to pick up your pencil, you sit down on a chair full of thumbtacks while hundreds of fire ants come spilling out of your desk to nibble on your arms. Think it’d be easy to concentrate? Oscar the Vicktory dog didn’t think so either. Thank goodness he had another chance!

Oscar has been going through the Canine Good Citizen (CGC) classes at Best Friends. These classes teach dogs good manners, which helps them find homes and stay there. For Oscar, though, the stakes were higher. He is one of the 22 dogs who came to Best Friends after being seized from the property of former NFL quarterback Michael Vick.

The courts had very specific requirements regarding these dogs, one of which dealt directly with Oscar’s big day. Nine out of the 22, Oscar included, were required to pass their CGC tests with a perfect score before they could ever live in a foster home. One of Oscar’s caregivers, Carissa Hendricks, was determined to help him succeed. She attended the classes every week and then worked with him on the behaviors as often as possible. Oscar’s biggest issues were loose-leash walking, becoming too afraid at loud noises, and being confident around strangers.

Over the weeks, Carissa watched Oscar overcome his problem areas one by one. She felt sure he would pass his test with flying colors. Then he hit one little setback. Right before the big test, they plowed an area of land for the testing ground. In doing so, they unearthed a whole bunch of goatheads—nasty little weeds sharp enough to puncture car tires. During his final practice, Oscar stepped on a bunch of those nasty little things. No fun! But that really wasn’t the worst of it. When he had to sit and stay for that part of the routine, he sat unknowingly on a pile of red ants. Ouch! The poor guy, he was squirming and twisting in a hurry.

Safe to say, that wasn’t exactly his shining moment. He took a week to heal up and regain his focus before the big day (which they held at a different location). But once the main test came, boy was he ready. And guess what? He passed! A perfect score! Oscar is the first of all the Vicktory dogs to pass his CGC exam and he couldn’t be more proud.

This big loveable lug is officially now eligible to join a foster home once the right person comes along. Congrats, Oscar and Carissa! Glad that even the ants couldn’t slow you down.

Story by David Dickson

Photo by Molly Wald

Learn more about the dogs of former NFL quarterback Michael Vick on the Vicktory Dog page.

Bulldog Adopts Nest of Birds

I'm always a sucker for a good animal story. Today I read one that reminded me of a dog I used to have as a kid. She was a Shih-tzu named Dixie. When I was in high school, I got a kitten named Tricky and when I brought him home, Dixie's maternal instincts kicked in and she started to take care of Tricky as if he was a pup of hers...she even laid down and let him nurse (even though she had no milk to offer). Silly dog...I can't believe those tiny kitten claws digging into her belly weren't cause enough for her to run the other way. Anyway, it was cute, and the following story reminded me of it today and I had to share: (From PetPlace.com)

One Dog that Wants to Protect her Little Birds

By: Elizabeth Hoerske

Does every dog hate birds? Or is it instinct that can make dogs stock and prey some animals? Maybe some...but not all. We'd like to share this story with you from Elizabeth and Wayne Hoerske.

Casey Birds

Every night when I came home from work I always sat out back with my dog "Casey Girl". The evening was the best time for the best photos and I always had my camera near me. Casey was lying by my feet when we heard a crash. Suddenly she ran to the back of our house and came running back with a baby bird in her mouth. I thought she had killed the bird but instead she sat there looking at me with a tiny bird in her mouth. I ran and grabbed a basket for her and she gently put the baby bird in the basket then laid down by my feet again.

Shortly we heard another crash and she came running with another baby bird in her mouth and added him or her to the basket. I was floored as I thought dogs killed birds by instinct.

Again about five minutes later there was a loud crash and the entire nest fell down from our gutter with two more baby birds in the nest. Again, Casey Girl added the last two birds to the basket.

They seemed to be okay and screaming for food so I went inside and grabbed a slice of bread and rolled up some BB size balls of bread and they were pecking at me for it. Casey laid quietly next to the birds.

The birds were trying to fly but one did not make it and fell in the pool. Casey Girl stood by the shallow end and barked and barked until the little guy jumped out. I could not believe this but the baby bird followed Casey's voice. I grabbed a towel for the tiny bird and Casey Girl laid down next to the bird licking it dry and nudging it constantly.

The next day all the birds were trying to fly and found their way under our fence. Casey Girl laid there and whined for them to come back. A few weeks later four black birds swooped down over Casey's head as she was sleeping by the pool. They were thanking her for taking care of them I am sure.

Elizabeth and Wayne Hoerske
Germantown, TN

More pics of Casey and her birds

Get up you lazy bum!

I really need to get off my ass and do something already...and while I'm at it, so should everyone else who's actually reading this. I don't think I'm fat, and I'm not accusing anyone of being fat...I think it's time we all put some plan, any plan into motion. Am I sounding ridiculous yet? Well, it's been 3 years since I actually posted anything on this blog, so I think it'll take a while to wear out some of my excessive ramblings--this is a place for me to "rant" after all. [and speaking of, that reminds me...my recent birthday has me much closer to being a 30-something rather than a 20-something...SCARY. Recently I was having a conversation about having kids, and I realized I don't have that many more prime years left to do so (not that I'm in any hurry, because I'm not), but it just makes me feel old :( ]

Okay, so back to my original rant...My boyfriend, Mike, and I have been talking (while trying to avoid talking) about politics and more specifically the recent "Clean Water" bill that passed to change a constitutional amendment here in MN by raising the sales tax to pay for a variety of special interests. To begin with we had different views about it, but that was mainly because I honestly didn't take the time to learn much about it. I only went by what my brother (a DNR manager) filled my brain with. So, naturally I was hypnotized into thinking. "Save the water, save the world!" (Can you tell I watch too much "Heroes"?) But, after Mike and I discussed it, and batted ridiculous hypotheticals back and forth at each other, I was able to look at the whole thing from a different perspective. I don't think the Government should decide how we spend our money or who should get to use it...we should. That's supposed to be the whole point in voting right?...to put your say in. Well, in my selfish way of thinking, I and a majority of Minnesotans voted to decide what will happen with a part of every Minnesota consumer's money--let the government have it :( Now don't get me wrong...I care a lot about what happens to this state and this country...I want to have clean water, plenty of natural resources, wildlife preservation, well kept parks and historical sites, etc. So, it's time for me to act. Otherwise, I'm just a hypocrite. If I care so much, why haven't I done something about it? Not enough money? Yes, that's true. But something Mike pointed out to me is that there are all sorts of people out there doing great things...It's too late now to go back and change my vote, but I know what I can do for the future. I can do what the government should be doing, which is ENCOURAGING people to take action. It doesn't take the Donald Trumps of the world to make things happen. We all have a voice, and we all have a pocket book, no matter how small some of ours may be. Thankfully for some of us, our voices can be heard louder than others (I knew there was some reason I was born with these pipes) This is our town, this is our state, this is our country...so shouldn't we "stand up for what we believe in", "put our money where our mouth is", or do whatever we can to at least spread the word about whatever cause(s) we feel strongly about? So, here's what I've decided to do...

I always have change that is filling up my pockets or the bottom of my purse, and occasionally I collect it in a jar and cash it in at the bank. Well, for the new year coming up I'm going to keep collecting it and whatever I have at the end of each month, I'm going to donate to an organization I feel is worthy. I will keep track of my donations on this blog by highlighting the organization I choose each month.

So how did I get on this subject today? Well, I was checking up on my favorite author (Nicholas Sparks), when I discovered that not only is he an amazing writer, but he has done some pretty amazing things for others. Here's the story that inspired me today: "Heroes of Running 2008: The Philanthropist: Nicholas Sparks" from the December 2008 issue of Runner's World. And a video about it.