Friday, May 31, 2013

Feel-Good Friday: All Creatures Great and Small



We have some really unusual animal friends to share for this Feel-Good Friday post.  I know we've shared unusual friendships before and we will share them again but this one. . . . well. . .  if Hollywood made this into a movie people would call it totally unrealistic.

The friendship is between Bonedigger and Milo, and if for some strange reason you happen to have both a full grown lion and a wiener dog do not try this at home.

All photos are from the Daily Mail Online**

When Bonedigger was born he had a disease that left him slightly crippled. Milo and some other dachshunds at the G.W. Exotic Animal Park in Wynnewood, Oklahoma sensed his disability and began to care for him and protect him. Nearly 500 lbs and five years later, the friendship continues. 

All photos are from the Daily Mail Online**

The park manager of the G.W. Exotic Animal Park, John Reinke, says this friendship only exists because of the connection they have from Bonedigger's early life. It wouldn't be likely that such a relationship would develop, nor does it seem like it would be smart to try, with a new dog and Bonedigger right now.

Click on the picture below to watch a very (too) short video and Milo and Bonedigger in action. 

 
One other feel-good fact?  Even though this park was damaged by the storms that affected Oklahoma, it is still housing domestic and wild animals that are homeless because of the storm system. 

 Now go enjoy the rest of your day and remember to follow the example this little wiener dog set for all of us. He helped Bonedigger when he had nothing to gain from that relationship, and now he is best friends with the king of the forest. By forest I mean the G.W. Exotic Animal Park but you get the picture. 

Please look through your pet pictures and find some with your pets holding something in their mouths. Then share them with me and the blog. Email me at pabibliophile@gmail.com .


**Click here to go to the original article by Sarah Malm on the Daily Mail Online. The article contains much more information and some great pictures.

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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Marco



This is Marco. Marco's mom, Lauren, refers to herself as the "crazy dog lady."  I think that's a title to wear with honor, and from what I can gather it's a title she's earned. 


Marco has many siblings. We will share some of them with you in other future posts, but let's just say that if Lauren and her husband get one more dog she will need two hands to keep track of how many she has.


Ok so first of all, Marco was found digging through trash by the animal wardens.




They took him to the Marshall County Animal Shelter, and after no one claimed him Lauren's husband was there as soon as he became available for adoption. His Gotcha date is August 29, 2012. 


Lauren and her husband found Marco via the MCAS Facebook page. Shout out to MCAS-they have turned their euthanization rate around from a horribly depressing 81% in 2008 to around 12% now thanks to a new county commissioner and increased donations and adoptions, due in part to a Facebook page that is updated daily.  Well, it's also due in part to people like Lauren and her husband too!


So what else do you need to know about Marco?  Well, he's a little/big devil. 

 
He was chosen so that their Golden Retriever, Caesar, would have a playmate his own size. 

 
Together they have found plenty of trouble to get into. They ate the Halloween pumpkins and multiple packages that were delivered. In fact the delivery person no longer leaves packages. 



Marco eats everything. Shoes, cell phones, and an entire plate of brownies (and no-he didn't get sick). 


He hasn't learned to cover his tracks too well either. 



But as Lauren says, how can she be mad at that face?



Marco loves the couch and makes himself comfortable whenever he feels like it. 




He has no concept of his size and no concern for the amount of hair he sheds. 


Lauren and her husband love him all the same, and Lauren calls him "a big, oversized baby."  Yes, but he's her big oversized baby.



Wiley and I want to thank Lauren and her husband for being so generous with their home and hearts! As they know, however, these acts of generosity have a huge return, and Marco has touched their heart in a way only rescued pets can.

Would you like to share with the blog? We are always accepting rescue stories. There are no special qualifications other than having a pet (we have shared cats and bunnies too) that you rescued via a shelter or rescue group, or one that you found as a stray or took in when its owner didn't want it anymore. 

If you're looking for other ways to contribute, Wiley and I are looking for pictures of your pet with something in its mouth.  We will share these on the blog during our Photo Share. So far we've received submissions including toothbrushes, balls, toys (including humans'), even their own feet!  Keep them coming!  Email me at pabibliophile@gmail.com or click here to see other ways to share.



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Wednesday, May 29, 2013

New Photo Share: Oral Fixation

It's time to kick off a new Photo Share. Many of you know what those are, but if you need an explanation here it is: WE WANT TO SHARE YOUR PICTURES.  That's all. We want to create opportunities for you to share pictures on the blog of your pets, no background story needed or desired. You don't have to tell us if they are rescued or otherwise. They don't even have to be dogs. All we need is a picture and a name.

To that end, the next topic is:  What's in your pets' mouths? Wiley has an oral fixation. But even more than that, he likes to steal things when he doesn't think he's getting enough attention. For example, this is literally what I'm looking at as I type this:



I know you probably don't believe me. You probably think I'm taking some artistic license with my story-telling. All I can say is you need to take my word for it. 

The pictures below were taken over the course of one evening, an evening during the past winter when he obviously felt he was being ignored.  


I apologize that the photos are kind of dark. 




We don't get any light in our house during the winter. We hibernate in a cave. Ok so I am taking a little artistic license with that last statement.






So, what are some of the things that wind up in your pets' mouths?  Don't think it has to be ginger ale and peanuts.


 
 I'm looking for toys and bones and lettuce and carrots and sticks and stones. 

 
Email me at pabibliophile@gmail.com and take advantage of this chance to share your pet with everyone! You can also contact me via Facebook or Instagram, just click here.




As always, we welcome your rescue stories as well.



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Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Rosie


Today we have Rosie!  Although Rosie is about 1 1/2 now, Kaylee's family has had her since she was a puppy. That means we get some puppy pictures with this post!

 
 Yay for puppy pictures!  I like when we can include stories of puppies because it debunks the myth that rescue pets are all older and that if someone wants a puppy they need to go through a breeder. That's a bunch of bologna! 








Rosie is a pit bull mix, and she and her brothers survived an October snowstorm in 2011 living in a cardboard box with their mom. :(


 She came to Hillside SPCA with her mom and siblings in early November. Kaylee and her family saw a picture online of Rosie's mom chained to a tree, ribs protruding, when Hillside rescued her. 


When they went to the shelter when the puppies were ready for adoption, Rosie was the one they knew they needed. She had scars all over her face and back, and her paw was chewed up.



 





 When she came home with them they were thrilled to see she got along well with their other two dogs, Brandi and Bruin.  Rosie was now officially a part of the family!



Today Rosie is a serious face-licker.  Another one of her favorite pastimes is chewing rocks and sticks.  
 


Maybe she is part goat! haha. In any case Kaylee, her sister Megan, and the rest of her family love Rosie, and Rosie loves them.














Thank you Kaylee for sharing Rosie's story!  And please thank your Dad for rescuing Rosie too. Who else has a rescue story they want to share? Email me at pabibliophile@gmail.com.


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Monday, May 27, 2013

Happy Memorial Day!


Happy Memorial Day!  That's it. That's all. No big exciting story today. 

Yesterday's story was plenty exciting enough.




Today all you need to do is take a moment to enjoy these pictures of Wiley.


Then take more than a moment to remember all the people you've lost in your life and we've lost in America's history in the process of making our country what it is today.  



Then spend the rest of the day with lots of people and pets you love. 



 Have a story to share? Email me at pabibliophile@gmail.com.

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Sunday, May 26, 2013

Sunday's Grab-bag: Take Nothing for Granted




Today's post was supposed to be about what we did yesterday. My husband and I decided to take Wiley  to visit my parents for the first time.  This would be, to our knowledge, Wiley's longest car ride to date (45 minutes), his first time in someone else's home, and his first time around two unleashed dogs. I was planning on taking lots of pictures and praying that everything would go smoothly. I am not going to tell you how that went for him right now. I will eventually tell you all about it. Today I am going to tell you why yesterday was an absolutely terrifying day, and how grateful I am that things ended well. 


My parents live in the anthracite coal region of Pennsylvania, and yesterday their town was having their annual Anthracite Heritage Festival. Part of the festival activities is a historical tour of the cemetery. My father, brother, sister-in-law, and niece Olivia all participate in these tours. Olivia is pictured in costume above with Wiley. They assume the personas of people buried in the old cemetery and tell their story, in costume. This is a picture of my brother, sister-in-law, and niece Sadie from last year's festival.


Yesterday, while Hubs, Wiley, and I were visiting, Sadie, now two years old, was feeling a little under the weather. 

My mom, her Nana, took her on a train ride as part of the festival. She was tired and not interested in eating. By the time we got there her nap time was getting closer, and she mostly just wanted to snuggle with her Nana and Pappy. 

When she saw Wiley she expressed an interest in petting him, and he was great considering this was the first toddler he had ever encountered.  The petting was a one and done thing though, so it happened so fast I missed the picture and only got the before and after!




Shortly after this, Sadie went inside and was snuggling with my dad on the recliner before he had to go back and give his second cemetery tour. And that's when things got really scary. They were eating popcorn Sadie had been given on the train ride, when Sadie turned blue and began to spasm.  Praise God my husband had just walked in the room. I was still outside with the dogs, unaware that anything was going on.  

Hubs is certified in infant and child first aid and CPR because he works with children. He turned and tilted her and did back blows, at which point she began gasping and moaning. In the meantime my father had called for an ambulance, and they were only six blocks away. This was yet another blessing from God. They were at the house before my dad had even finished the phone call. They did a finger swipe and pulled the popcorn the rest of the way out. 

Despite the fact that she was now breathing, she was still very lethargic and not herself. The EMTs (who were outstanding) made the decision to take her to the Geisinger Hospital, a huge and well-equipped place to deal with any kind of crisis. My mom and Sadie's mom rode in the ambulance with her, and my brother followed in the car. Keep in mind they were still in their Victorian costumes from the cemetery tours.

My husband, Olivia, my Dad, and I stayed behind. I was really angry with myself for bringing the dog because I was worried he would hinder anything we might have to do. In the end I'm so glad we had him.  Olivia was so upset to see her baby sister put into an ambulance, just like we all were. But while we adults had some coping mechanisms, Olivia didn't. I cannot tell you how many times she hugged Wiley and cried into his soft fur. Of course I don't have any pictures because it wasn't the time to be taking them, but you can see in this shot how much she loves him and he loves her.


As they got to the hospital, about 20 minutes away in the ambulance, we got the good news that Sadie was perking up. They were concerned that maybe the whole experience was more than just choking but rather a seizure since she hadn't been acting like herself all day.  After some tests and examinations the doctors discovered she had an ear infection and was now running a fever. They determined this was the reason for her behavior all day, and to everyone's relief the worst had passed, God willing. We still have to pray she doesn't develop any kind of infection.



To see a little girl who is always so full of personality and life blue and still is horrifying. The doctors said the back blows and finger swipe saved her life, so if you don't know infant and child first aid and CPR you need to learn it.


What a different outcome yesterday could have had. Thank God everyone was in the right place at the right time to save this precious girl. I know this isn't about a rescue dog, per se, but it sure is about a rescue, and one I thought was worth sharing.



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