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by winecountrydog
As my last paw-writin' act of the year 2008, I'm gonna give you a little corgi pun as well as endless dog photo fun.
I'm hereby introducin' you to my pick of flickr: 'Acts of Dog.' Below is a sample from the photostream to whet your appetite: what an arfully cute cardie!
Acts of Dog is the most awesome collection of photos of Cardigan and Pembroke Welsh Corgis and other dogs you'll ever see online.
These goshdog great pix come to us from a human who lives in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. The fellow's a gifted and prolific photographer!
Paw-leeze, pawse and enjoy Acts of Dog on flickr. See all the doggies fur yourselves by clicking this link to the cardie photo.
A very Yappy New Year to you. Woof!
Paw-note: Headin' into 2009, let's not furget all the corgis and other dogs who still need furever homes. Woof kudos to rescue organizations like PAWS, based in Sydney, NSW, Australia, a small group of self-funded rescuers, volunteer foster carers, and walkers who help lost or abandoned animals in NSW.
by pawlitico
Here we go again. The argument about dogs drinkin' beer.
If you know my buddy Tilin "winecountrydog" Corgi, you know that he occasionally needs some kind of sedative and relaxant. Tilin has episodes of arful back muscle spasms. Other times he gets the hypers 'cuz of a nervous disorder.
The hypers make Tilin get more and more wound up. Now, we'd love to see Tilin run around like a puppy if it weren't scary. He could re-injure his back. Or he could go into a seizure. Howl, you'd never know how serious this is by lookin' at Tilin, but his history includes life-threatening spinal problems and idiopathic epilepsy.
We're fortunate to know a veterinarian with uncommonly good sense. She told Tilin to drink 1/4 cup of quality beer to help sedate him. Such a marvelous solution! How much easier this is on Tilin's system than heavy-duty sedatives! And so effective that dog-ma can usually avoid giving him meds like narcotics.
Tilin says, "Fur some of my episodes, nothing's better than beer for calming me without knockin' me out."
Now, for dog health safety, you dogs shouldn't drink to drunkenness. And you shouldn't depend on this remedy for any length of time. We're talking here about a brief, conservative consumption regimen. A serving of just 1/4 cup of beer or ale is fine. (We corgis weigh between 25 and 35 pounds.) It's best to open the bottle ahead of time and let the beer go kinda flat, but the carbonation in 1/4 cup doesn't bother Tilin or lead to bloat. And the sugary malts and stuff don't bother Tilin 'cuz he's not diabetic.
Tilin gets his dog mug refilled up to every few hours. After a few days of this regimen, he goes back on the wagon. It's not difficult for him; he's a happy, busy dog who easily returns to his normal routines once he feels calm again.
This time, dog-ma gave Tilin doses of Union Jack India pale ale (IPA) for the hypers. Dog-ma let me taste Union Jack. After all, my birth name is Jack.
This IPA is doggedly aggressive but smooth. Comes from micro-brewery Firestone Walker in Paso Robles, California. Here's what the brew dogs say:
Citrus, pineapple, and a full chewy malt profile finish clean on your palate. . . . A beer true to its origins; deeply hopped and bolstered for a long voyage. . . . At the 2008 European Beer Star Award competition in Germany [in November '08] . . . Union Jack IPA took top honors in the extremely competitive India Pale Ale category with a gold medal.
The Firestone Union was inspired by the old Burton Union system, once a staple of British beermaking. The Burton Union was developed around 1840 as English tastes shifted from London porters to pale ales crafted in Burton-Upon-Trent. The Burton beers were bright and clear with a firm, satisfying bite: a taste unique in its time-and still unique today. We are the only brewery in the United States to currently employ the union brewing method. . . . Our patented Firestone Union uniquely incorporates 60-gallon oak barrels into the brewing process.
I'm glad dog-ma's buddy Joey at the store picked this India pale ale as one his faves. We want to suppawt small regional businesses like this microbrewery, which crafts great ale and delivers it fresh.
When Tilin Corgi woke up this morning, he was back to normal! No longer all hyped up. Dog-ma's ale therapy worked in a day.
So I have to pawlitely disagree with Louise Murray, DVM, Director of Medicine, ASPCA Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital, who has been quoted as saying that humans should never give beer to dogs. What humans should do is to check with their dogs' veterinarians! May you find a veterinarian like ours, who offers a different pawspective on practical remedies fur what ails you.
We dogs are individuals, and we need healthcare and homecare to be carefully tail-ored to us as individuals. Woof.
by pawlitico
While humans are bizzy choosing their top picks fur 2008, I'm doggone far into faves fur 2009. After all, I'm a herder. I always want to git goin' on what's next.
I'm asking you to paw-leeze pawse and check out my calendar choice fur 2009: the Wheelcorgis Wall Calendar.
You can see this calendar at the wheelcorgis store on CafePress.com. It has the most amazing dog photos you've ever seen in your goshdog lives!
And this super-cool calendar contains an educational page on degenerative myelopathy (DM), a condition that some Pembroke Welsh Corgis, Cardigan Welsh Corgis, German Shepherds, and 40-plus other dog breeds develop.
The Wheelcorgis group and the CorgiAid Cart Program provide wonderful help and advice fur corgis who need DM testing and carting.
We learned a lot about corgi carts after Tilin Corgi's back trauma. First we had to worry that Tilin might not make it at all. It wasn't DM, but other acute problems. Then, luckily for Tilin, his lifesaving surgery enabled him to function again and eventually to get around on his own.
We're always reassured to know that corgi cart humans would help if one of us lost our mobility. Paw-leeze pass on the word about these talented wheel corgis and their dedicated humans!
Paw-note: CorgiAid supports the rescue and rehab of abandoned corgis and corgi mixes across the U.S.
by winecountrydog
One Christmas was so much like another in those years around the near-sea-towns of wine country, out of all sound except the distant speaking of voices and rattling of wine glasses I sometimes hear a moment before sleep, that I can never remember whether it rained for six days and six nights when I was six or whether it rained for twelve days and twelve nights when I was two.
All the Christmases roll down toward the two-tongued sea, like a cold and headlong moon bundling down the sky that was our street; and they stop at the rim of the ice-edged fish-freezing waves, and I plunge my paws in the sand and bring out whatever I can find. In goes my paw into that wool-grey bell-tongued ball of holidays resting at the rim of the carol-singing sea, and out come Sonoma County photos on a Christmas eve. . . .
Christmas eve afternoon, we wandered around on Cherry Ridge, northwest of Sebastopol, in the Russian River Valley.
After dark, we walked down Snowman Lane in east Santa Rosa.
Mouse, rabbit, and cat were caroling. . . .
Wine country dog friends were stringing lights. . . .
And Snoopy, whose doghouse is nearby, came by to put Mr. Snowman's hat on his head.
All's well that end's well.
Paw-note: Much thanks to dog-ma fur readin' to us the original story A Child's Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thomas.
by winecountrydog
Some goshdog good things come in two's.
It was a twosies kind of day, this nippy number-two day of winter, when the two of us, Jack Corgi and I, went out to do walkies.
Toward us pranced two irrepressible Italian Greyhounds. Five-year-old siblings. Two arfully nice furriends to encounter. Beautiful, happy dogs. And what were the duo wearin' to keep the cold at bay but fashionable yet sturdy "horse-blanket" coats. Same style, different colors. Very attractive. Very warm.
Beyond good looks is something more important, howlever: These coats double as walking harnesses! Double your pleasure. Woof!
Jack and I always walk on harness. We've never experienced the sensation of being tugged about by our necks. We wear collars to attach ID tags to 'em, not leashes.
I've dog-googled the brand name of the coat (pictured above) so I could tell you about them. Here you go.
The Canine Styles Horse-Blanket Reflective Coat is the ultimate cold weather protection. Available in water and snow-proof nylon, Madison Plaid wax cloth, or cozy Canine Styles signature cotton plaid — all with warm faux-shearling lining. Fully adjustable straps that criss-cross around the body (forming an "X" underneath) and adjustable fastener-and-buckle neck openings let you customize the fit. The leash can attach to a sewn-in D-ring, thus letting the coat act as a safe and comfortable harness. Machine washable.
Now, there's one possible drawback — and that's a pun, as you'll see in a second. If you're a big, strong dog who pulls back a lot on your leash, you shouldn't really depend on the coat as a harness.
Can you picture the consequences of straining too hard? You'd pull yourself right out of the coat, or pop it open like Dr. Bruce Banner's alter ego. In Banner's case, I can't say that good things come in two's. The Hulk's a bit scary.
Paw-note: There are beautiful Italian Greyhounds at IGCA Rescue and CIG Rescue who need furever homes. Paw-leeze take two!
