My Fur Babies

Jada

Jada is my little boxer mix rescue I got from one of the rescue groups in Puerto Rico I was working with.  She was found with her siblings in the woods. This little fur baby beat so many odds.  She was born with a heart condition and was supposed to be euthanized.  Somehow after getting her physical she was put on the list to be transported to Boston.  I told the rescue group that I would take her even before I saw her.  Her siblings were all very healthy and I knew they would be adopted very quickly.  No one really wants a dog with issues never mind one with a heart condition.

This little one is as feisty as they come. She will either lick your face off or bite it off.  She is totally a love when she's not destroying my couch and chewing anything that's been accidentally left out - that I will blame my daughter on - haha!

Shadow


Shadow is our first lab.  When my Angel - my special needs boxer passed from MegaEsophagus we were asked to pet sit shadow for a "few weeks".  Having worked in rescue for now almost 18 years I knew the BS I was getting.  Two weeks later the owner asked we if wanted to keep him.  I will never say no to a dog in need so of course we kept him.  For our first lab experience I have to say that he is absolutely amazing!  Truth be told, if you were to ask him if he wanted to go back to his home he would've definitely say "hell no!"

Shadow was a complete mess when we got him. He stunk like cat urine and the poor baby had quite a few scabs.  Thank goodness I still had antibiotics from Angel and I was able to give them to Shadow and heal this boy up. Getting used to all the lab shedding, bottomless pit and water slobber is a work in progress but this 8 year old handsome fella is definitely a Mami's boy.  He follows me everywhere.  He really is amazing and the biggest love, everything they say about Labs is true!

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Rainbow Bridge

The Rainbow Bridge Poem 

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Author unknown... 


Tasha - 5/14/97-10/21/2011 - RIP My Sweet Baby Girl. I Love You

Chilling out with Buggy in the crib

Here is my Tasha - aka - Tash-Majal - my first born fur-baby.  As I mentioned, I have four dogs, all females. My girls are my kids. I've had my westies since they were 8 weeks old and both my boxers are rescue dogs.  I volunteered with rescue for 8 years and it was the most rewarding experience.  My girls are now older ranging from 14 to 9 and a few of them have health issues and that is tough. For those of you with four-legged babies I'm sure you can relate.

My daughter loves her older sisters and they love her, probably tolerate is more like it. But they really do love her when she shares her food with them.

In February my 14yo was recently diagnosed with bladder cancer and Cushions Disease. I was told she had 3-6 months. I cried hysterically right then and there at the vets office. With the power of the internet I started doing some research and joined a canine cancer support group.  As if that isn't bad enough, just recently we found out she also has a collapsed trachea.  Apparently many toy and small breeds suffer through this.

Right now I can say that Tasha is doing great. I have her on some holistic herbs and some medication and she is responding well and for that I am grateful.  Looking at her you would never think she has any issues. Hard to believe she turned 14 in May huh?

Tasha is the most amazing dog ever.  She is my shadow. Always needs to be right near me and follows me everywhere.  She is my little social butterfly and the only one that sleeps in bed with us. Thinks that everyone is here to see her and will shower you with kisses. Training her was so easy.  But don't let this cute little face fool you. As with most small breeds she's a feisty one and has no problem putting the boxers - or any large breed in check.



Pebbles - 4/15/2001-2/18/2012 - RIP My Precious Baby. You are now running free. I Love You.

Pebbles turns 10

Here is my Pebby-webby.  She is my very sensitive child.  When I was with Boxer Rescue, I picked Pebbles up with her brother and sister at 10 mo. These babies were a sad case as you generally see in puppy mill cases.  They were so skinny that you can count every bone on her. It was horrible. We had to carry them out of the car to go potty as they have never been out of a cage.  Walking on grass was a new experiment for her.

At the time, my husband and I were dating and I was trying to convince him to foster her. He was trying to quite smoking and I thought this would be a great distraction for him.  Nothing I said would convince him. He said it would interfere with his golf game.  Pebbles must have been paying very much attention to our conversation because she untangled herself from her siblings, stood up in the back seat and put her head on top of hubbys head. He reached up and said "ok, I'll take this one".  So Pebbles chose him.  She is definitely a special boxer and has amazing instincts.

Within the last few months Pebby seems to have lost some muscle on her back end.  At first we thought it was arthritis but there are other issues going on.  We think it is  the onset of Degenerative Myelopathy. DM is similar to Multiple Sclerosis in people.  It is tough to watch your baby go through something like this.  A few weeks ago she suffered her first seizure.  I don't believe it has anything to do with her condition - may be just the fact that she is 10.  Sometimes I do have to help her with the stairs and make sure she doesn't get overly excited - not easy with this crew.  But the good thing is that she is not in any pain.  Now Mami just needs to look for a doggy wheelchair - just in case.

I am happy to say that Pebbs is doing well though. I am watching her like the Mami hawk I am.  Wow, it does feel like I have triplets at times but worth it. These babies bring so much joy into my life.

Allie

Allie turns 13

Allie is a year younger than Tasha. They are not related.  When I brought her home I thought she was the dog from hell. So defiant and she totally had to have the last bark.  I used to call her my problem child.  Tasha is her bff and Allie does not go anywhere without Tash. Al is quite independent and is not as touchy feely as Tasha.  She likes to be petted on her terms and she will let you know when. She is silly goofy in her own way BUT Allie is the instigator of all trouble.  All she has to do is bark once and she gets them all going and she doesn't even have to bark at anything in particular - maybe because she saw a leaf blowing or heard a car door closing. As she got older she has mellowed out a bit. She now loves to cuddle and give kisses more than ever



Chantal

So last but not least is Miss Chantal.  Chanty is 9 years old. We don't know when her birthday is but we celebrate it in November when she came to us at the age of 3.  I started fostering Chanty but she was NOT supposed to stay with us.  My husband felt bad for me because we had lost my male boxer in February. Nick was an amazing dog and I adopted him at 8.  He past at 12. He gave me an amazing 4 years - well I'm sure we gave each other an amazing four years.  Nickademus was definitely a Mami's boy.

Ok, back to Chantal, well she came to us from a rescue in Puerto Rico. When they have a boxer they call me to see if we can bring them in. She was so sweet and little.  Once she got comfortable - oh boy she was quite a different dog.  Chantal was very aggressive when we would go on walks to other dogs and sometimes would lung at people.  If she couldn't get to them she would turn and attack me.  After working with her we realized that she just wants to play with everyone and meet everyone but didn't have the proper socialization. Having play dates at the house in our fenced yard worked well for us.  We took to doggy daycare but after a few days she got kicked out!  Can you imagine that - my dog got kicked out of daycare because she kept climbing the fence to go on her own adventure.

Chantal is definitely my wild child and as crazy as she is, she is the best one with Buggy.  Buggy can sit on her, play with her toys around her, just do absolutely anything and Chanty is great.  I believe when she was in Puerto Rico she lived with children so she was used to it and I'm sure missed them.

Regardless of how different my babies are, they give us unconditional love.  They don't ask for much in return - feed me, love me, play with me and spoil me.  I can say with certain that in this house we do all the above - well Mami and Buggy do anyway - daddy - at times.

The minute I found out I was pregnant, I had two babies on each side of me on the couch for 9 months. That was the best.  Chantal would lay her head on my belly almost every night.  Hmm maybe that is why she has such a strong connection with Buggy - perhaps - who knows.