Franklin/Vote for Lenny!

My cousin Franklin, who is 7 months old, has not yet developed a stomach of steel like I have over the years. He got in to the Easter candy and ate a lot of dark chocolate yesterday! (The cat knocked it off of the high counter top it was sitting on.) He got really sick and had to spend the night in the ICU with the vet. The good news is that he is doing better and he can come home today from the hospital. Please keep your paws crossed for him, and stay away from those human treats!

I am in the running in a fashion photo contest by the website BaxterBoo.com! I entered my Christmas picture in my dashing argyle sweater. Would you please vote for me?

http://wildfireapp.com/website/6/contests/27576/voteable_entries/3688024

The contest ends April 15th, and you can vote every day until then.
Thanks a lot!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I don't have a green bandana to wear, unfortunately. My mom is part Irish so she is enjoying the day. She and my dad are off this weekend to Louisville, KY to see the Kentuckiana Cluster Dog Show!!! WITHOUT me!!

I went to the Vet for a checkup on Saturday. I was expecting my usual "he looks great for his age!" That didn't happen. He did say that my skin looks great - but allergy season is about to start up again with springtime. Anyway, my back legs are a little creaky and sore and my teeth are building up plaque - but I am "too old" to have the anesthesia to get them cleaned. Also, I now have a heart murmur which we will monitor. I don't have any symptoms yet, but in the future it might slow me down a little bit. I may be a distinguished mature dog of 11 1/2 but I think I look great.

Winter blues

It has been a rough new year, hasn't it?
I am missing my friends who have crossed the Rainbow Bridge. I am especially sad that Wally is gone. He was so funny and so smart.

Do you remember I told you that my friend Tobie crossed the Bridge? Well, a couple weeks later, her brother Stoney followed her. He had been really healthy but suddenly cancer developed in his bones.


I am glad that they are together now, but sad too.
My family has several people friends who are fighting cancer right now too, so we are thinking of them. Two are doing quite well but one is just beginning treatment and it is very hard on her. If you have an extra prayer or thought to send their way, that would be pawsome.

But there are happy things going on too.

My new cousin Franklin is getting really big! He's grown to about ten pounds! He's a piebald dachshund. I'm happy that he is healthy and getting along well with his kitty brother and my Uncle Walter, my nana's wiener dog.


Have you been watching the Olympics?


My dad and I have been. He likes watching all the skiers. My mom likes the speed skaters. I am cheering for the United States and Canada mostly, but for nice people from all of the other countries too. My nana gets to go to the Olympics next week for her job! She will get to see some hockey games.

Me in my Pawlimpics shirt

I'm not sure the people are as talented as all of my canine friends, though. Do you remember the 2008 Pawlimpics? A very talented bunch, all of us. For some nostalgia and good will and world peace I am re-posting the original Pawlimpics Bone Relay. There are some friends in there who have gone to the Rainbow Bridge since then; we can remember them fondly and be thankful for all of our DWB friends around the world.

Reporting from the doggie hotel

My people left me at the kennel so they could fly away and have fun with their family at Christmas. I'm stuck here at the local "animal country club" until the new year. It's really not so bad but I wish they would hurry back.

I did get a very cool holiday gift before they left - a Dog Spinny by Nina Ottosson!! I have wanted one of these kinds of toys ever since I saw the video of Jackson playing with his Dog Brick.

My mom got to help bring a wire fox terrier home from a shelter. His name is Oscar and you can read all about the organization that got him home - Wire Fox Terrier Rescue Midwest. This "before" picture of him is from their website. I hope he gets a really nice new family.


Thank you to my buddies for all of your wonderful cards! I hope you are having very happy holidays, and best wishes in the new year!

Good and bad, happy and sad

I met Santa Paws this weekend!

I have been a little bit naughty so I tried not to ask for too much. :) Plus I look like a devil dog with those eyes! My mom was not Santa at the event; she got to be the "line coordinator" - boring!

I also got some sad news today. My old friend Tobie, who used to be my neighbor, is crossing the rainbow bridge today. She got bone cancer that progressed really quickly. Five years ago, she was diagnosed with salivary gland cancer, which went into remission, so I am glad she had those extra happy years with her dad and brother Stoney.


I wish I had more pictures of us together. She is on the left in both pictures.

Have you seen this video on YooToob? My mom and dad BOTH cried. It is a really nice doggie story.


I finished my DWB Christmas cards yesterday and put them in the mail! I hope you get them soon!

My new cousin!

Hello! I am slowly trying to catch up with everyone but I have not made much progress. I hope to over Thanksgiving!

I am very excited because today my new cousin arrives! He will live with my mom's sister and brother-in-law in Connecticut, so I might not get to meet him in person for a little while.


Franklin is a piebald miniature dachshund. "Frankie" for short!

Don't forget, if you're looking to add another dog to your family, you can always go to your local shelter or petfinder.com and save a life!

Some funny news - my mom is going to be taking pet pictures with Santa at our local PetCo on December 5th, to raise money for our local animal shelter. She will either be the photographer, the elf, or Santa!!! She doesn't know yet!

Happy Halloween!

Hi everybody! Thanks everybody for asking about how I am doing. It is nice to know I have such nice friends who care about me. I am fully recovered from the incident this summer and I am doing great, but nobody has had time to help me write or read blogs. My mom is taking a class called Organic Chemistry and she is really stressed about it. But that is no excuse. I can't wait to hear about what everyone has been up to because I've missed you so much!


Here it is, my most humiliating picture of the year - in my Halloween costume. Lenny the Lobster. This is the one time of year that my mom gets to dress me up. (That and when Ohio State plays Michigan - I have a special Buckeye sweatshirt for the game.)


You have to admit, I make crustacean look GOOD! But it did take a lot of bribing before I would tolerate a photo session.


I think I would feel a little more dignified if the costume didn't have the googly eyes.

In other news, the nice people at National Geographic sent me a new book that is being released today, called "DogTown." There is a TV show on the National Geographic Channel with the same name, which I had seen and enjoyed before via the magic of Netflix. Dog Town is part of the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Utah, a very large and successful no-kill facility.


This book gets two big paws up from me! Each chapter introduces a dog that arrived at Dog Town, what help they received, and their story of what happened to them after they arrived. You learn the individual personalities and stories of the dogs, and you also get to know many of the people who work at Dog Town through their interactions. You get very connected in just a few pages!

While the book obviously is praising all of the good work that Dog Town does, it is not afraid to deal with controversial topics as well. Right off the bat, the first chapter is about Michael Vick's pit bulls and efforts to rehabilitate some of them. What impressed me was that when Best Friends disagreed with the Humane Society or PETA, or another group working for animals, they presented the other viewpoints very fairly, explaining both sides of the issue. I appreciated that.

There are a lot of successful adoption stories for dogs that probably wouldn't have had a chance anywhere else. The dogs that make it to Dog Town are very lucky for all of the care that they receive and it's too bad that they don't have room for everybody who needs a new home! It is evident that the people at Dog Town know that every dog is special and deserves a chance to heal. There are definitely some tear-jerker moments.

So I recommend this uplifting book, and the TV show as well if you have not seen it! I liked it so much that I would like to share it with someone. If you would like me to send you the book, leave me a comment by November 1 and I will pick one lucky pup at random. Or you can find it anywhere books are sold, and get more info at www.nationalgeographic.com. Thanks National Geographic!

Have a very happy Halloween, and remember - no chocolate!!