Cat vs. Dog

Dear Diary,

Day number 836 of Operation Canine Torture: 

Harrison has proven to be more difficult to break than initially anticipated. Again this morning (at approximately 0300), under the cloak of darkness, I attempted an ambush on Harrison’s sleeping head. As he snored peacefully, I leapt from the bed, scampered across the room, and landed one well-placed swat on his nose before rapidly retreating to my safety zone beneath the bed.

Although successfully executed, with the intended goal of scaring the daylights out of Harrison achieved, my human minions were not at all pleased. Mom minion scolded me and then allowed Harrison to assume my position on the bed. Subsequently, I spent the remainder of the night sleeping on the couch.

It has become apparent that these nighttime ambushes are highly frowned upon. Perhaps I will have to rethink my approach.

I will keep you posted.

Sincerely,

Miss Kitty

(aka Guinness, aka Night Terror, aka Midnight Operative, aka Canine Torturess)

 

 

Wordless Wednesday

This is Napoleon, he is as sweet as can be.


 

Lennon Update

For several weeks, Lennon has been having hair loss over his feet and abdomen, and despite numerous tests, the cause of this issue has remained a mystery. Luckily, we are fortunate to have an excellent veterinary dermatologist (one of only 200 in the country) here in Kansas City so I took the afternoon off work yesterday to take Lennon to see him.

Lennon really enjoyed his afternoon outing. He was quite the hit at the vet's office. He made friends with two couples in the waiting room and charmed them into rubbing his belly while he waited for his appointment. Both couples commented on how handsome he was and I described how emaciated he had been and showed them pictures of what he looked like when he came to us. When the vet tech came to the waiting room to weigh Lennon, all six of us cheered when we discovered that Lennon had officially DOUBLED his starting weight (weighing in at a whopping 63 pounds). With that, Lennon said goodbye to his new friends and headed back to see Dr. Senter.

Lennon really turned on the charm for Dr. Senter. He rolled over on his back to try to encourage a belly rub, and when that didn't work, he jumped up and sat on Dr. Senter's feet to get his attention. Lennon sat quietly while they did two skin scrapings and plucked hair out of his tail to send for fungal culture. His good behavior was rewarded with several lamb jerky treats.

All in all, it was a successful visit. Dr. Senter felt that allergies and years of poor care may be the culprits behind his hair loss. He expects Lennon's skin issues to improve with just a little TLC. The skin scrapings were negative for mange (good news!) and we are awaiting the fungal culture results. In the meantime, Lennon was started on another course of antibiotics to clear up a superficial bacterial infection.

After returning home from the vet appointment, I took Lennon outside so I could get a few updated pictures of him. He is getting progressively more difficult to photograph because he never stops moving! He is always climbing into my lap, investigating the backyard smells, or chasing after falling acorns. So out of almost 200 photos, I got about 10 pictures of him sitting relatively still.

With the good news from Dr. Senter and the updated photographs, Lennon can now be officially listed as "available" for adoption. Now we begin the process of finding the perfect home for sweet Lennon!!

*****

 

Life of Drool would like to thank our awesome friends Joel and Laureen for sending a hugely generous donation to go toward Lennon's care. We are so grateful to have such wonderful friends. We love you guys!!!

 

We would also like to thank Dr. David Senter and all of the wonderful people at Veterinary Allergy and Dermatology Clinic (www.vetallerderm.com)

Lennon is available for adoption through Missouri Pit Bull Rescue.
His page can be viewed at: http://www.mprgroup.net/dogs/lennon.html

 

 

 

 



Snuggle Time

 

One of my favorite things about pit bulls is their need for constant physical contact. They aren't happy unless they are sitting ON you...and if they can't get to you, they settle for snuggling with each other. I snapped this picture of Harry and Layla the other night. They must have slept like this for over an hour!

Happy Friday!

The Drool Crew is resting up for an exciting weekend!

 

 

Product Review: Your Dog's Diner

This week "Your Dog's Diner"  (www.yourdogsdiner.com) sent us some of their delicious treat mixes to sample and review.

Rachael, the proprietor at "Your Dog's Diner", is also the human behind the blog 2travelingdogs.com, a website dedicated to the adventures of her two rescue dogs, Brickle and Digby. After a few years of successful blogging, Rachael and her husband made the jump to small business owners. They combined their love of dogs with their lifelong love of cooking to bring us "Your Dog's Diner".

The premise behind "Your Dog's Diner" is the concept that cooking for your dog is a rewarding, loving and healthier way to give your dog treats. Because you can control the protein source, you can be assured that what you are feeding your dog is safe. By combining "Your Dog's Diner" treat mixes with a few other basic ingredients, you can easily cook nutritious and delightful snacks for your dog...right in your kitchen!

I have to say, that the Drool Crew and I thoroughly enjoyed our first experience! Below are the complete reviews for both the Mutt Meatballs and the Mutt Soup. Enjoy!

Mutt Meatballs

 

 

1. Grab the meatball mix, 1 egg, and 1 pound of ground beef (or protein of your choice)



             

 

 

 2. In a large bowl, combine meatball mix, egg, and uncooked meat.

 

 

 

 

3. Mix well with hands

 

 

4. Form into bite sized balls with a teaspoon or melon baller and place into a greased  oven-safe pan.



5. Place meatball in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30-45 minutes.


 

 
6. Allow meatballs to cool fully before serving (probably the hardest step!)






 

Mutt Soup

 

 

 

1. Grab the soup mix, olive oil, water or chicken broth, and ground beef

2. Brown and drain the hamburger.
(This step is optional, however because I had a slightly fattier ground beef on hand, I decided to brown it and drain the grease prior to adding it to the soup mix)

3. Combine meat, soup mix, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and 6 cups of water or unsalted chicken broth into a large pot.

 4. Bring the ingredients to a boil and then lower the heat to simmer. Simmer, while stirring occasionally, for 30-45 minutes.

 

 

 

 5. Allow soup to cool fully before serving

 

 

 

 

 

 

**********************

I think the above picture says it all...the Drool Crew was very excited to try their new treats. After allowing the treats to cool, I put a small scoop of the soup on top of their dinner. I was lucky to survive this exercise as I was nearly trampled in their scramble to get to the bowls!! Even Ringo broke into a jog on the way to the kitchen!

Photo from "The Lion King"

 

From a human standpoint, "Your Dog's Diner" treat mixes are AWESOME! Even if you are the worst cook on Earth (which I might very well be), your dog will love you for making something special just for them. The added perk is that, unlike human children, they won't complain when you feed them leftovers for several days!!

I also waited a few days before finishing my review because I wanted to see how the Drool Crew's stomachs reacted. My dogs don't get a lot of rich treats, so I was slightly worried that we would experience some gastrointestinal distress. Thankfully, we have had no problems...even after 3 days worth of special dinner treats. As if these treat mixes weren't great already, this finding definitely pushes them into the totally amazing category!

 

I will definitely be purchasing more from "Your Dog's Diner" and I can't wait to see what other recipes Rachael comes up with in the future. So if you are looking for something new to try with your dogs, stop by www.yourdogsdiner.com to order your treat mixes today! 

 

SHOPPING TIP:
These treat mixes would make a great holiday present for any dog lover!!

 

 





Wordless Wednesday!

This is Guinness. She was very excited about her birthday. Now normally we are a dog blog, but who can deny the cuteness of this photo?