Strictly for our BELOVED friends and furiends

I, Twinkie, my dogs and humans, miss you! Time has become quite the luxury and we interrupted our blog abruptly. Even though things haven't changed much, I decided to take matters into my own paws. I hopped on M's computer to give you a quick update. First however, I want to make sure you can see our quickie posts on Facebook from the sidebar.  Look at the right column, other right!

THE UPDATE

With the exception of one of our kittens, Gigi Smudge, we're all doing great. Miss Gigi packed her bags and left us in the middle of the night. She was never happy here. She had been nicknamed, The Shadow, because that's all we got to see of her.

One of Gigi's last photos

M wants to think that The Shadow lives at our barn and comes home at night to eat. We all humor her and agree. Now that that's out of the way and the cat is out of the bag, the good news! And it's all good from here.

We have two half brothers! M met Mr. M who had two doggies, aka The Boyz:

Bubba, aka Cujo

Rocket, aka Smiley

M says they're the sweetest doggies, but the truth is that I've never met them. They keep us separated, but I can tell you that I'm in no hurry! I did overhear something about: The Boyz blah blah blah... Twinkie... SNACK...blah blah, Cujo blah blah...Twinkie, appetizer etc. I think you get the point.

As for the rest of the gang: All kittehs, young and old, rule at night. 

All of us doggies, just rule!

Senior Dog Linguini, the spotted girl, is turning 15 on November 1st. As an old geezer, she enjoys special privileges. She pretty much does whatever she wants. She also owns prime real estate, at the foot of M's bed. She is completely senile and happy all the time. I hope we all get old like that! It's pawesome, really.

Linguini

Ziggy, the oversized Great Dufus, we all love, has Wobbler's. Six months ago, he could barely move. Two days ago, he reached his personal goal. He was able to jump on M's bed! He was so shocked that he fell off the other side. He got back on and started doing the zoomies! We hope he'll be with us as long as possible.

Ziggy

Sasha, Ziggy's Great Dane sister, is M's little project. Sasha was suffering from major Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, food aggression, skin sensitivities, Pounce on small doggies Syndrome, and you can keep adding to the list. All of her conditions are improving every day, as are our lives and hers too.

Sasha

Pedro, the Terrorista, the self-appointed Great Dane guardian (and a wannabe Great Dane too), is . . .

...surviving 

BOL. This little dog is the cause of lots of laughter at my household

Frankie, our brindle Chiweenie, the Canine Good Citizen, is having a great time. She's happy, healthy, loves everyone, especially food, and she listens well.


Last, but certainly not least, there's ME. The Twink! I'm still tiny, but only when compared to the Danes. I personally feel as mighty as ever. A couple of months ago, I suffered a stroke, which made it appear as if I were d-e-d. I was just checking to see how much I was loved. When I was satisfied, I came to. I got to milk the situation for quite a while. I am a diva. I too now share prime real estate in M's bedroom; not just one but two small dog beds! I am Twinkie Tiny Dog, HEAR ME ROAR!!!

If you would pardon me now

it's my turn to do the dishes

Love you all....

Twink!

PS: We're turning comments off, because it's unclear when we'll have the time to respond next. I hope to resume blogging . . . as soon as possible!

Dog Beds

Living with a tiny teacup chihuahua, a chiweenie, and a dalmatian mix, being involved with pets, rescues, pet blogs and bloggers, and having many dog owner friends, I've been constantly trying to figure out the ideal dog bed. When I get stumped like that, I do, what I call, a human-comparison. What's the ideal human bed? Exactly! It all depends who it is for. It depends on the individual's size, shape, health issues, partner... That explains why I'm having such a tough time with my quest.
Even more so than humans, dogs vary in size and needs. Let's take my senior dog, the dalmatian mix (60lbs) as an example. She needs something for her joints because she's suffering from dog arthritis. Aha, then she needs an orthopedic dog bed! More specifically, she needs an orthopedic dog bed for large dogs. But that's not all. This particular dog also suffers from incontinence. So, for a while now, I've been using a bed mattress waterproof protector under her bed's cover. Lucky for me, for a senior dog suffering from arthritis and incontinence, they now make large orthopedic memory foam beds that are also waterproof, such as these ones:














Cesar Milan has come out with an orthopedic dog bed with a non skid bottom, but that one is not a waterproof dog bed, so it would need an extra liner. Even though it's cheaper than the ones above, I'd rather buy those because a. They don't need any alterations and B. they are really well manufactured. 















On to the small dogs in the family, a teacup chihuahua and a chiweenie, a dachshund/chihuahua mix.

The priorities with smaller breeds are usually temperature. Small dogs, like chihuahuas, don't just need any small dog bed, they love heated dog beds. They also love to burrow. At the moment, my scrawny four-pound girl mainly enjoys sleeping in a supple blanket on top of a heating pad. That's not entirely safe though. The other day, while cleaning, her heating pad exploded in my hands. If it hadn't happened that way, maybe we wouldn't have a home today, or worse. One can find many heated dog beds to chose from. A while back I ordered one to try. A few months later I got the following email:

Greetings from [Seller].

We have recently learned that Radio Systems Corporation, in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), is voluntarily recalling Power Adapters for heated pet beds. Our records indicate that you have purchased one of the products listed in this recall through our website.

This recall involves the Class 2 Transformers that were sold with PetSafe Heated Wellness Sleepers. The power adapters are identified by the markings "PLUG IN CLASS 2 TRANSFORMER," "MODEL NO: K12-800" and have a spring coil covering the length of the electrical wire that goes from the sleeper. Power adapters without spring coils are not affected by this recall.

These products were sold nationwide from September 2006 through April 2010 for between $70 and $110. When the metal connector is removed from the bed, it can cause arcing between the coil spring and the connector, posing a fire and burn hazard to consumers.

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled power adapter and contact the firm to receive a free replacement adapter at (800) 732-2677 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. ET Monday through Friday and Saturday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. or visit the firm's website at www.petsafe.net.

You may also find additional details about the recall in the CPSC bulletin at: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml10/10283.html.

If you purchased this item as a gift for someone, please notify the recipient immediately and provide them with the information in the CPSC bulletin concerning these safety issues.

We regret the inconvenience this recall has caused you but trust you will understand that the safety of our customers is our highest priority.

Thanks for shopping at [seller].

Sincerely,

Customer Service
Blah Blah

Great! They regret the inconvenience. I wonder how much they would regret a house fire! In any case, overall, a heating pad is not a good idea. I question my decision every day, especially when there are safer products around. Have a look at a couple of potential choices for heated dog beds:


 












In my experience, none of those beds gets warm enough for my tiny dogs. That's why I'm still using the dangerous heating pads. If your dog does not get as horribly cold as mine, I suggest you take your pick from the ones above and sleep peacefully at night.

I believe that's about it, as far as the indoors is concerned, but there's also the outdoors to consider. Outdoor dog beds have their issues as well. Some are not sturdy, some are dangerous, most don't last long enough to justify their price.

I bought a Petmate Durabed. A few weeks later, due to poor structural choices on the manufacturer's part, the legs started to fall off. Many people had the same problem. Some tossed their Petmate dog bed quietly, others contacted the manufacturer who helped out by shipping parts. In my case, I opted for bungee cords. I must say, while it does not look good with the bungee cord around it, it does it's job. I buy a soft pad and all my dogs sit on it to enjoy the sunshine. Below you can see photos of the Petmate Durabed in various sizes:














Before I realized that the bungee fix would last as long as it has, I did some research and according to my findings, the best outdoor bed is the Coolaroo dog bed.  Check it out:














The Coolaroo dog bed is simple enough to make it mainenance free and easy to clean. They also sell replacement covers. It also comes in Extra Large!















My next outdoor dog bed purchase will definitely be a Coolaroo.

I hope my insight, in combination with your experiences helps with your quest for the ideal bed for your dog. Trial and error are fun but costly, plus as I mentioned, they can sometimes be dangerous.

Best of luck!

The Ideal Teacup Chihuahua Dog Bed

The past couple of days, the weather got cold in Los Angeles and I'm freezing. Chihuahuas, especially short haired teacup chihuahuas, don't do well in cold temperatures. The sudden temperature drop  got me shivering. I must admit, I look pitiable. I'm tiny and scrawny, and the fact that I'm shaking like a leaf, does not help my overall pathetic image. Luckily, my mom (M) is like a hairless teacup chihuahua. To my benefit, she gets cold too easily, so she empathizes with me and makes sure that I stay nice and warm at all times.

Let me tell you about the ideal teacup chihuahua dog bed: it's anything that is soft and warm. We like to burrow and we love heat. In theory, a heating pad and a soft blanket are the ideal bed for us. Forget all designer dog beds that are nice to look at. Don't even bother with store-bought small dog beds. There are many heated cat beds in the market, but even those do not get warm enough for my taste. I prefer heating pads you can buy at any drugstore, except, in recent years, they mostly come with a timer that shuts them off automatically. To my bad luck, yesterday my last heating pad that did not shut itself off blew up on M's hands. To our good luck, it did not cause an electrical fire. It was late at night, so M and I had to improvise. I told her I'd be fine if she found got me a nice clean blanket and wrapped me in it. Of course, I also told her that today I expected her to go buy me a new heating pad for the long winter months ahead of us.

This is the improvised dog bed we came up with last night:

What do you think? Cuddly enough?

Ample room to stretch . . .

. . . make adorable faces . . .

For a makeshift bed, I couldn't have asked for anything more luxurious.

M kept touching me at night to make sure I was warm enough. I was toasty warm, but I didn't let her know. I love it when she goes out of her way to take care of me. So, if you or someone you know is looking for the ultimate chihuahua dog bed, tell them to get a heating pad. The rest is details. We shall discuss outdoor dog beds next summer and not a minute sooner.

Twinkie

Chiweenie Friday (2)

Yay, Twinkie let me post again and I'm happy. It's Frankie the chiweenie, in case you forgot. It's been raining around the clock for days now. Linguini doesn't seem to care. She tucks herself in her extra small dog bed and sleeps. Twinkie's doing fine too. She spends most of her day lounging on her heating pads. I'm stuck at home all day long with nobody to play with. I feel like this:

This photo expresses my emotional state

(It's my beloved furiend Jude the mastiff, by the way)

That's why I decided to react. I'm not one to get bored easily, so I put together photos and videos to better introduce you to our latest barn furiend:

Cookie! A blue heeler puppy!

She's a bullet. She's a tad faster than I am. She runs like the wind. I think Mama's camera couldn't have done a better job capturing this:

Cookie's training for the Olympics
I wish I could see blue heeler puppies competing for real in the Olympics!

Cookie was saveded by local authorities. She was removeded from her home and taken to a dog shelter because a good person turned her awful owners in. Cookie is the only survivor. She lost her mama and her siblings who were even more abused than she was. She's got chronic dog mange, among other things, and nobody wanted to adopt her. I'm very happy to report what I overheard: she lookeded much worse when she was rescued. She's even put on weight already, of course she also gets regular meals now.

Okay, now I have to be honest like Twinkie's taughted me. I was in fear for my life when I first met The Blue Heeler Bullet.

In this video, Cookie comes to say hello for the first time.

If you could stop paying attention to how filthy our car is for a moment,

then you can witness my panic.

After a couple of nanoseconds, curiosity won. I decided to come out from hiding and face my fear.

But then I noticeded my dog treats Ha ha

Sweet, Cookie. I'm so sorry that I was afraid of her. Now I know how nice she really is and what a wonderful barn family addition she has maded. I can't wait to see her again--as soon as the yucky rainy weather goes away.

I love this bloggy stuff! This was much fun.

So long, my friends... Talk to you soon.

Adopt a dog!

Frankie The Chiweenie Bratwurst

Linguini's Recession Small Dog Bed

We're all affected by the recession. With foreclosures on the rise and peoples losing their homes, dog rescue and animal rescue organizations across the country believe us furiends to be the newest victim. Duh! Linguini has taken all this to heart. She's got all the dog food  (kibble) she needs and a roof over her head. She now wishes to make a statement.

She decided to give up this:

a deluxe large dog bed

In exchange for that:

a ratty small dog bed

What on earth? Our Linguini always has her own approach to life. She's unique, as Momma says while shaking her head. Designer dog beds aren't her style! BOL

Linguini's take on the recession and a message from her:
I have empathy for the economy and I prefer my small dog bed

Just for giggles

There, I even gave you a sneak peek of your Frankie. We're all doing the best we can, but we must also maintain a good sense of humor.

Twink!