Dear Twinkie | A Dog Advice Column

A dog advice column

houndstooth asked...

Oh darn it! I really thought you were going to mail me my kitten! I had such big plans for things we'd do together, like taking long naps on the couch!

Lilac would like it to be known that she insists upon having the fan on and the a/c at all times! She gets barking mad just thinking about having to go outside for turn out. She does feel much better about recycling those green papers, though!

My question this week is about something I know you are very knowledgable about. We have been doing a lot of hiking lately and we've liked it so much, we plan to do some more. What are the things you think every hound should have in her back pack when she goes on a hike?

Bunny

TVT

I love talking about dog hiking! Oh, the joys of hiking with dogs! But just in case, one should always be prepared for . . . anything. 

I think this will do it

PS: Bunny, you should always pack a copy of the last Cat Fancy magazine. Just in case there are any dull moments. 

the booker man asked...

miss twinkie,
i'm starting to get filled with the nervosity. see, i woofed to sam and pippen that i'd help police miss ruby and miss penny's bachelorette pawty. we even came up with a super cool dance routine. and after all, my lovely miss mayzie is gonna be there, and i just can't take my eyes off of her most beautimousness. but now all the ladies are woofing about green papers and cheese and throwing these thingies at us dudes?? what has the booker man gotten himself into?!
*woof*
the booker man

TVT

I think we've all seen the aforementioned "dance" routine. If I may add, you looked spectacular! Rest assured my friend, there will be no throwing of green papers. We've agreed to recycle those. As for the cheese, who does not desire cheese thrown at them. Go with the flow. Enjoy. 

The booker man is going to get extra cheese! 

♥♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥♥ asked...

Awww, that is bittersweet about the kitties. M is a good woman - but we know it was hard for her to do.

Now about that ball and chain party - TD and Phantom are planning to go, but we are worried what the guys will think of this lampshade dude showing up. Any idea what we can do?

Woos ~ the OP Pack

TVT

I got a great idea. We'll ask the organizers to respectfully rename it "Frankie's Ball, Chain, and Lampshade Pawty! Phantom will be the best dressed party animal. 

Wow, Phantom! Who's your stylist?

Tank asked...

You're so good at answering questions Miss Twinkie. I would like to know why there are so many idiots in the world. I find myself getting depressed about this. Do you think we could herd them altogether and bite their ankles? I think this would make me feel better.

Sincerely yours,
Tank

TVT

Bitey ankle? Why not! Too bad you're over your kennel cough, I was going to suggest you cough on everybody.

 Tank day dreaming about bitey ankle

Cocorue asked...

TwinkTwink,

You ARE one smart cookie!

i'm still giggling over Tank's comment about the "idiots" in this world. i thought i was the only one thinking that!

Q: how do i Stop mumster from humanising us????? Coco is more hooman than the hoomans themselves!!!
bad enough that Coco has a vast wardrobe and has her own 'armoire' ( exCUUUUSE ME...)
AND now, i haave to wear a Sock to cover my wound - her excuse is that to go 'coneless' i'd have to wear the socks to prevent me from licking my wound.
my FEAR is this is an excuse and Before i know it, i'll be behaving like a hooman - clothes, behavior, eating habits....pls help wise Twink
i'm only 7mths and hoping for a loooooong Dawg life!
pookisses
Tiffy

TVT

TiffTiff, my dearest poor spayed, toothless, and declawed little girl! My heart goes out to you, as I've been through similar ordeals myself. Don't worry, baby. Having more small dog clothes than dad is common, especially for little princesses like your sister. Listen carefully now. This is the perfect opportunity to train your humans. You can train them at any level. I'd start with your main concern. Instead of allowing them to humanize you, I suggest you puppy-ize them. I won't rest until I see a photo of at least one of them in a dog cone and a baby doll dress. As for "The Sock", keep giving them the sad puppy eyes that I see all over your blog and while staring them right in the eyes, softly start chewing on your sock. I've tried it and mom was too busy laughing to get mad. 

As for the armoireS, OMD you're right. But your wise older sister offered to go naked for you. If that's not self-sacrifice, then I don't know what is. 

"The Sock," a new film by Stephen King. As for Coco, a special plea: no more going naked. There are children visiting our puppy blogs.

Khyra And Sometimes Her Mom asked...

How do woo do it week after week after week!?!

Hugz&Khysses,
Khyra

TVT

Right back at you, you royal fluff ball, you! And I don't even do transports in the weekends. How do woo do it? 

PH That's probably NOT the way Khyra does it

Frankie The Chiweenie asked...

Are you forgetting something again, Twinkie? Weren't you supposed to mention your blog feature at Carnival of Shopping, along with a description of the Beloved Pets blog?

TVT

Dang! The chiweenie is right this time. Thanks, Frankie. I see you're maturing nicely. Our blog was indeed mentioned in Carnival of Shopping. As for the animal blog you mentioned, you can find it by clicking HERE. It's a blog geared towards information and tips that pet owners might find helpful and useful. 

Now, go take on the day!

Twinkie

Just Hanging With the Cats

Hey, whatcha looking at? Both of yous!

I'm just hangin'.

Same here, dude. Whassup?

You did notice this isn't catnip, right?

It's pizzle! My dog treat.

Can I have some of that?

It's not over until the chiweenie sings.

Twinkie

Happy Chiweenie

At last, the pressure is off Frankie, the brindle chiweenie. She is no longer the center of attention. Our family has even cut back on the pranks. All that happened overnight and she has the kittens to thank for it. Let me demonstrate with a few pictures.

This is the chiweenie's happy face.

The constantly growing calico kitten, Puddles, like her namesake, is constantly getting into trouble!

That's when she's not being lazy.

Even nursing cat mom is a handful as she's getting used to her surroundings.

The kittens are evil, as demonstrated by tuxedo kitten, Mr. Trouble Splitz.

Plust they're terribly rude!

"Who me?"

(faking innocence)

That's why the chiweenie is so laid back and happy lately.

Chiweenie joke of the day: What do you call a chiweenie that is not yet potty trained? A chiweewee! BOL

And let's not forget that today is World Cat Day! Happy cat day to all our feline furiends out there.

Have a great Sunday!

Twinkie

Himalayan Dog Chew Review

Always on the lookout for the healthiest and safest dog treats, I recently stumbled upon the Himalayan Dog Chew. The Himalayan Dog Chew comes from an ancient recipe of the people of the Himalayas and Nepal, in the mountains surrounding Mt. Everest at more than 15,000 feet. It is made using traditional methods with yak or cow milk. They are all natural with no chemicals or preservatives.
Guaranteed Analysis: crude protein min 52.6%, crude fat min 0.9%, ash max 6.0%, moisture max 10.2%
Ingredients: yak and cow milk, salt, lime juice
NO preservatives and NO additives (Who does not prefer all natural dog treats?)

After reading this, you're probably wondering: Isn't this like hard cheese? Yes it is! What is wrong with that? The milk used in these dog chews is cooked therefore the protein is not in it's raw form and your pooch should have no upset tummy or dog diarrhea.  The salt and fat content is so low that it is negligible. Because of their make up, these dog chews that have been around for 6 years now, are not known to cause any intestinal blockage, unlike other dog chews, as for example rawhide dog chews.

The Himalayan Dog Chew comes in a variety of sizes. I always go up a size. I always give my small dogs larger chews. They are both more economical and safe that way. However, there are many sizes to pick from.

Product list: Himalayan Dog Chew Small (3-5 pieces), Himalayan Dog Chew Medium (1 piece), Himalayan Dog Chew Large (1 piece), and there's the Himalayan Dog Chew Mixed (3 pieces).




I have nothing but positive feedback about the Himalayan Dog Chew. My dogs, that range in size from extra small (teacup chihuahua) to large (dalmatian german shorthaired pointer mix) love it and all spend hours licking and chewing on this pack favorite. Another plus, is that this product is not offensive to the humans. Unlike, bully sticks or pizzle for instance, that reek, the Himalayan Dog Chew does not have an unpleasant odor. It's rather subtle.

I just placed another order for Himalayan Dog Chew treats. I am convinced that it's one of the top choices if not the best dog chew for my pack.

Twinkie

A WARNING AND AN UPDATE (July 2, 2013) Here is a reader's recent comment: just wanted to add, found your site while doing research.. my 7 month old labradoodle is recovering from intestinal blockage surgery after swallowing a chunk of Everest Chew... we have it in a pill bottle as a reminder... I would NEVER feed these to any dog again.. we were very close to losing him... just a warning...

Thank you for your comment! As with all dog treats, chews, toys, even collars, we, your precious pooches NEED supervision. Any and all treats are potential threats if they are the wrong size, or if you do not remove them as they get smaller. Let's use our judgment and get better educated and we can all live happily ever after. Twink!

Guilty Or Not Guilty

Haven't you ever thrown a party that left you with food you had to get rid of? For us it's usually the cake. We're not big on sweets, plus this one was a chocolate cake which meant that we, the dogs, couldn't even have a taste--not that we didn't want one.

I asked the chiweenie to give me a lift up to the trash compactor, but she was squirming too much and I was sliding on her brindle furs. Linguini, our spotted senior dog and expert counter surfer, didn't face any such difficulty. Her trouble developed after she was discovered.

The trash compactor

"It wasn't me.

I believe it was the kittens."

I ask that you examine our senior dog's nose paint and body posture and tell us your honest opinion.

For the record, Linguini wasn't affected by the chocolate. She didn't get sick, there wasn't any dog diarrhea, heck, we watched her like hawks and she didn't even burp. No emergency dog vet visit this time.

Twinkie

How To Make A Scary Pop Up Video

Recently, M became painfully aware of the existence of certain videos that are called "scary pop up videos". The video M watched on accident had such a devastating effect on her nervous system that she almost joined our furiends at the rainbow bridge. I don't like drama, so I decided to do my version of a pop up. Watch and you can easily figure out how to make a scary pop up video of your own.

Twinkie's "Scary" Pop up Video

I hope you enjoyed the teacup chihuahua edition of a scary pop up video.

Twink!

Tall As a Tree

There are plenty of tall folks out there living a normal life, but our M always seems to run into issues that extend beyond her clumsiness. She's a rather tall gal surrounded by tree climbing cats. Recently she thought she was viscously attacked by Farrah, the pregnant cat we were supposed to foster. A careful breakdown of the situation and after talking to many cat savvy persons said otherwise. Farrah did not attack M. She tried to climb up her long leg. That was quite a relief.

Having just recently established that  M's leg doubles as a tree trunk, we were more entertained rather than shocked when Hank, the rhodesian ridgeback, a dog, got confused just like Farrah, the cat. 

The evidence is worth a thousand dog treats:

M's trunk

Hank

I asked M not to wash her pants that were saturated with the aroma of my guy, but for some reason, she didn't listen to me this time. I guess I need to train her better. 

Twinkie