My human was looking at Instagram the other day. She doesn’t follow many sites, because REALLY – who has the time.   Now mind you – she is STILL attempting to go viral with one of her photos one day (of US) but given that we only have 234 Followers we are hardly in the viral category.   Once you have like a gazillion Followers you can actually make money posting photos.  I hope I live that long.  Anyway, one site she follows is National Geographic.  And she saw this interesting photo of butterfly catchers in Central Africa.  Who KNEW that the butterfly trade is big business in some parts of the world?  Some estimate that as much as hundreds of millions of dollars are traded each year.  Some of it is legit and is done through conservation efforts – but as in anything, there is also an underground trade in butterflies for rare species.  Lepidopterists (butterfly collectors) will pay good money for some species – like the Papilio bluenei which lives on an Indonesain Island and can easily sell for a hundred dollars.  A lot of people are into conservation, more than collecting, yet there still exists an obvious active market in the delicate winged beauties.

So WHAT does this have to do with dog poop you are asking.  Well – if you go to this site and scroll through the slideshow – you will see how we canines fit in to the equation.  You will also see how people can make art with butterfly wings.
https://widerimage.reuters.com/story/the-butterfly-hunters

So. Dog poop is used to attract butterflies.  At least in Central Africa.  Who knew?  I can’t say I have ever noticed butterflies on our poop – mind you, it usually ends up in one of the HANDLED poop bags pretty quickly – so the insects don’t have a chance to stop by.   I’ll have to do an experiment next spring.  I’m not planning to collect any of them – I can’t imagine killing one.  And the thought of glass cabinets full of dusty butterfly wings hanging on the walls in this house is beyond comprehension.  We have too much junk already.  Except for our fetch toys and bones and chew toys… Those we need more of.

So that’s your lepidoptery lesson for today. How many of you knew the connection between dog poop and butterflies??   We dogs REALLY are amazing.  Even our poop is valuable.  Now maybe my human can start selling THAT……

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 5

For example, my human has been pretty much a slug the past few days – although I am VERY happy to report that she is feeling MUCH better.  MUCH better.  And while we PONs were feeling sad that she was not exactly her usual self, the FG was REALLY sad.  He moped around like someone stole his favorite fetch toy.  Even when she fed him, he looked sadly at his food.  It was actually kind of spooky  – he was imitating her behavior.  Of course we PONs on the other hand dove into our food without a second of hesitation.   No sympathetic non-eating from us guys.

In fact yesterady, to get him feeling more excited, she had him do a little obedience routine before he ate.  Because at first he just stood there in a trance.   She came over and started his routine.  Which is pretty limited because his favorite thing to do is sit.  She told him to sit and he threw himself into  a sitting position.  She called him to come to her.  He ran over.  She told him to down and he threw himself on the floor.  A couple more sits and comes and he dove into his meal. He is clearly going to be better now that my human is better – she just had to show him that all is again right with our little world.

Meanwhile, my niece is demonstrating true PON behavior.  She is gaining weight daily.  Heck, she gained 31g in less than 24 hours after she was born.  She loves to eat.  AND get this – she is VERY vocal.   Didn’t I joke about that?!  Yup – she has inherited her father’s ability to strongly voice her opinion.  Perfect.

My human has started the Christmas explosion, although she thinks she may tame it down a bit this year.   We’re fine with that.  Less time decorating means more time for walks.

And speaking of walks, time for our morning constitutional. 

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 4

Thanks from my human for all the get well wishes.  She went to work yesterady or should I say she dragged herself to work yesterday.  She had too many things going on – so she couldn’t cancel everything.  Clearly she didn’t ask our opinion about it.

Well we have had a couple of pretty low key days. After the excitement of the puppy news, my human got sick.  I think it was all the excitement.

Well another good news/bad news post. Well it’s not BAD – just hmmmmm….disappointing. Well not disappointing…just unexpected. So here we go….

Well I’m afraid I have some bad news today .

So the official start to the Christmas season has begun.   Mind you, some of the big stores had Christmas stuff out at the same time as Halloween.  Pretty soon they will be leaving the Christmas trees out all year round…

So since it is that time of year, it is time to start thinking of gifts.   And of course, the first thing that you need to know is that a dog is NOT a good gift.  A dog is a lifetime commitment and the following commercial by the Dogs Trust in the UK makes the point quite well…Scroll down to click on the ad….

https://www.youtube.com/user/DogsTrust

That being said…my human and her sister DID buy their father a puppy for Christmas one year.  They had lost their old Irish Setter, Mickey and even though my human wasn’t living at home any more, she and her sister thought her Dad would REALLY want another dog.  With the agreement of their mother, of course.  So they brought home this Golden Retriever puppy.   Her father took one look at Midas and said “hey – I said no more dogs!”  (He was sad about the loss of Mickey.)  But within 3.5 seconds his heart melted and he was holding the little fella.  They became best buddies…and Midas lived to a ripe old age of 13….

Anyway, do NOT follow my human’s lead with the whole puppy-for-Christmas routine.  The results are sadly not all as positive…

And while on the topic of Christmas I have been looking at a VARIETY of sources for the best gifts for dogs.  I kept looking for one to share – and some had good ideas – but if they included rawhide chews, the list was eliminated.  Rawhide is NOT a good idea for dogs – but that’s a topic for another blog.

I did find this site and although there are things I do NOT want, I did find THE best gift.  The GoBone.  Check it out by clicking on the video:

https://www.caninejournal.com/best-dog-gifts/

Can you just IMAGINE our house with one of those?!  My human said it is too pricey.  I suggested the price would be divided by 3 since we would all use it.  She still said it is too pricey.  She said one of us would probably eat the sensor.  I said we would only use it while she is home- so she could make sure we don’t destroy it.  She still said no.  I think she is just trying to pretend Santa won’t bring it. And then we will all be surprised on Christmas Day.   She said I am in for a disappointment.  We’ll see…

My human liked the headlight harness.  Sure she did.  It’s so practical.  We better not get one of those.

The gift boxes are cool and who wouldn’t like food delivered to your door?

Heaven help us if she gets us the clothing that we can wear and match her.  Right now I bet you are ALL thinking THAT would be great.  Forget it.  I do NOT want attire.  Of any kind.

We don’t need the DNA kit – and no amount of Aromatherapy will reduce stress in this houe.  She would be afraid we would knock the candle over and set the house on fire, so that would actually cause MORE stress.

Scrap the bathing gloves.   They imply a bath – and really who wants more baths?

So REALLY, the best gift on the list is the GoBone.  Right?  My human said we might get new pillowcases.  She’s so funny.

Anyway, if I find more cool gifts, I will be SURE to share them and give you my opinion.

Oh and by the way – thanks to those of you who are clicking on the ads on my blog page.  My goal is $100 by Christmas.  I’m at around 88 right now.  Hey.  Maybe I can buy a GoBone MYSELF!!!!

Have a good one.  Peace and paws up.
Seizure free days: 71

November 23.  The day after US Thanksgiving.  Also know as Black Friday – a HUGE shopping day when people share the true Christmas spirit by trampling each other to get bargains for things they don’t really NEED.  It’s a kind of strange human holiday.

It is also National Leftovers Day – which makes sense because the best part of big meals is the leftovers – and there are often plenty after Thanksgiving dinner.  Trust me – we dogs take inventory when it comes to leftovers.

It is also National Flossing Day.  Guess the dentists wanted to capitalize on the fact that people eat so much for Thanksgiving – so they definitely need to floss.  Flossing is important.  But does ANYBODY do it enough?  Just wondering…

But besides these holidays it is also Wolfenoot.   I must confess, I’m late to hear about this one – but I DO like the sound of it.  It was essentially started by a 7 year-old boy in New Zealand. It celebrates the spirit of the wolf – BUT the cool thing – it celebrates anyone who is/has been kind to DOGS. You eat roast meat and have a cake that looks like a moon.  Gifts are hidden around the house, and the people who are kind to dogs get extra gifts.  They even have an official website:
https://wolfenoot.com/

My guess is that if you are reading this blog (written by a dog) you definitely fall in the category of someone who is kind to dogs!  So cook up a big steak tonight (or a tofu version if you are vegetarian) and celebrate Wolfenoot.  And, of course,  don’t forget to share with your canine companion.

“Have a howly Wolfenoot”.  Peace and pawsup!
Seizure free days: 70!!!!

My human heard some sad news last week.  Charlie went to the Rainbow Bridge…

My human has an old friend who lives in British Columbia, Canada.  They have known each other for 35+ years – but there was a period of time where they lost touch.  That sometimes happens with humans. Anyway, they reconnected in 2009, and she went to visit him that year in the wilds of BC.

To describe this friend, there is only one word – “adventurer.”  He has climbed mountains, skied the Alps, sailed across the Atlantic and volunteered for more than one tour in Afghanistan with Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres.   In the heart of the action… He has seen  a LOT.  He is headed to Iraq in January…. My human feels honored to call him her friend.

Anyway, when my human went to visit, she was introduced to her friend’s new canine companion – Charlie.  Charlie was a cocker spaniel who my human’s friend rescued from a shelter in Missouri.  Prior to his 3 years in the shelter, he had lived on a farm and was used for “breeding”.  When he couldn’t produce puppies, at the age of 2, they sent him to the shelter.

When Charlie arrived on the plane, his eyes were a mess – and he was also found to have a tumor in his ear.   My human’s friend stopped at a Vet clinic on the way home from the airport- and saw to it that Charlie was treated for all of his problems.   He had surgery for his ear – and it saved his life.

And WHAT a life he had.  He went hiking.

He accompanied his human while ski touring.  He sailed.  He traveled across the country.  And to top it off – he was THE sweetest and most obedient dog imaginable.

My human recalls how Charlie followed her friend EVERYWHERE.  He NEVER needed a leash.  She was just a tad jealous – here she was spending a fortune on obedience lessons for her canines – who could never be let off leash in the places that Charlie went – and Charlie NEVER went to a single obedience class.  It was like he KNEW his life had been saved.

Charlie never growled.  And didn’t even bark much.  He never met a dog or person he didn’t like.

But as you humans know,  one of the hardest parts about being owned by a dog is the fact that you outlive us…. My human had talked to her friend this fall and learned that Charlie’s engine was beginning to slow.  His vision was poor and he could no longer hear.  He had an incident at home last week, that told her friend it was time to say good-bye….

So while this story IS sad – it is also happy.  Charlie was happy for nine amazing and wonderful years – and that can’t be forgotten.

And on this day, which is Thanksgiving in the US, we should all learn a lesson from Charlie.  His life started off hard.  Very hard.  And then he was saved.  And I think Charlie was so well behaved because he was thankful!   He was completely and utterly devoted to his human.  He knew what life was once like – and he gave thanks every day for his amazing luck. It was truly like a fairy tale…

We often take for granted the basic things in life.  Food, shelter, power, friends….So take a note from Charlie, today – wherever you live – and don’t forget to give Thanks….. And also don’t forget – sometimes fairy tales do come true.

Have a thankful one. Peace and paws up.

Sometimes my human just doesn’t think things through.