Luna's first vet appt.

Mommy tried to take Luna's picture.
But, Freddy got in the way.

Freddy, the wiener dog, was so glad that yesterday was Luna's vet appointment, and not his. Freddy's never been fond of the vet's office, but ever since he spent two days in the doggie hospital he has no tolerance. Thankfully, for Freddy, Luna went to the vet's office yesterday for her first appointment.

Luna didn't like going in the car without Freddy and Malibu. She didn't like it at all. She was shivering with fright and Mommy had to calm her down. When she arrived in the vet's office, the lobby was full. [Mommy was trying a new vet.] It had a few little dogs and a couple of cats, but it was full of big dogs, BIG dogs. The sweet, friendly Rottweiler was 122 lbs. There was a Golden Retriever bigger than that. Everybody was well-behaved except the Golden Retriever. He was friendly, but he couldn't stop barking and lunging at every dog. The Goldie really wanted to play with the Rottweiler, who paid no attention. Mommy walked Luna outside while they waited because Luna was too frightened of the big Goldie. Luna thought she was going to get eaten.

Luna was fine once she got into the exam room and there was no more worries about being eaten by big dogs. Mommy was a little surprised that Luna weighs 12 lbs. Daddy said it's because Luna has big bones. Hum. The vet and everybody loved her. They couldn't believe how sweet and friendly she was. The vet even said that "she's the sweetest dog I've ever seen." [Yes, well, thank you.] She's in excellent health. Although she needs a teeth cleaning, she doesn't need any extractions. [Yes!] They took two vials of blood [poor thing] for bloodwork. The vet called today and said everything looks great and she's approved for tomorrow's spaying. [Thanks, she'll be really happy about that.] Finally, they gave her a pawicure to trim those alligator-length nails. [Yay!]

Overall, Mommy liked the new vet's office. Everybody was friendly and treated Luna with kindness and gentleness. But, the wait was too long. They were also supposed to be substantially less expensive than Freddy's regular vet. Turns out that they're less inexpensive for some things, but more expensive on others. It's further away than Freddy's vet too.  Mommy said that once Luna is spayed, they'll stay with Freddy's vet. Mommy's very happy about that because when it's Diva Freddy's turn, he wouldn't have been so good in the waiting room. Freddy owns all that he sees and he would have snarled, growled and barked at that big Golden Retriever.

Freddy takes his girls to the beach.

Freddy loves the beach!

Freddy, his girls, and his humans plus one went to the doggie beach near New Smyrna Beach, FL. It has a great view of the lighthouse. Everybody piled into Daddy's truck. Malibu sat up front with Mommy, but Freddy choose to sit in the back with the big boys. Freddy was content to be in the truck with all his humans because he loves the beach. Malibu and Luna were a little stressed. They didn't know what "beach" meant or why they were taking a long ride. Malibu finally fell asleep, but Luna wandered around the truck and went from lap to lap.

Can you find Malibu?

Upon arriving at the beach, there were a couple of cars, but there was only one other doggie on the beach. Apparently, Freddy and his group were the only ones crazy enough to go to the beach on a cool February day with lots of wind and some drizzling rain, but the doggies loved it. Once the other doggie left, Freddy and the girls went off-leash and were wild. Luna chased a pelican. Malibu kept chasing seagulls, running up and down the beach, and running onto the dunes.

What?!

Freddy knew from prior experience that the water was cold and didn't want to go in, especially since his human brothers weren't swimming. Luna eventually checked out the water, but she didn't go into it either. Malibu had no interest in the water. She just wanted to run! She was like a crazy doggie running up and down the beach.

Happy girl!

Once the wind picked up and it started to drizzle, the doggies were ready to leave. So everybody started the trek back to the parking lot. The puppies were happy to be back in the truck - Freddy knew that meant snacktime! Luna was a pest trying to get everybody's food. When Mommy opened her sandwich, Malibu grabbed an entire piece of bread! Freddy, of course, was a perfect gentleman and waited for his share. With full bellies, Freddy and Malibu slept on the way home. Luna, again, wandered around the truck and went from lap to lap. Freddy enjoyed introducing Malibu and Luna to the beach, and they can't wait to go again.

*There's more pictures of the beach trip on Freddy, the wiener dog's Facebook page.

Freddy and the girls enjoy a gorgeous Florida day.

Freddy and his polar bear.

Freddy, the wiener dog, is enjoying a gorgeous Florida day. Freddy and the girls have been having fun in both the front and back yards. Freddy decided it was time to take his Christmas present (his polar bear) out for a little exercise. Well, mostly, it was Freddy shaking the polar bear around.

Malibu can't stop searching for lizards and frogs in the front bushes.

Luna thought she could sneak across the street and chase the neighbor's cat. Maybe she didn't realize Mommy was right behind her or maybe she thought that Mommy wouldn't mind. She got caught.

Silly Luna....

Crazy Bu!

Maggie's 2/21/12 update.

Exploring her new backyard

Let me just tell you that this dog is amazing.  She has learned to use the doggie door with no problem - goes in and out all the time.

She and Reese play endlessly.  Pit Bulls need other Pit Bulls.  They are the only ones who can really play with each other the way they need to play.  They run like nuts in the back yard and jump around on the bed.  Entertaining as hell.

She answers to Heidi, is sweet as can be and it is like we always had her.  I can't imagine living without her and my husband feels the same way.  

She does NOT like our other two cats - has shown some aggression toward them.  I am not worried.  This is new for her and we will train her how to behave.  It's already a little better.

Thank you and Jeff again for that long boring ride you took to bring this wonderful dog to us.  She is totally at home and thriving.

Fondly,

Judy

Maggie's 2/16/12 update.

Maggie helps herself to Reese's chewies.

I keep thinking how hilarious it is that all the behaviors that you observed and loved are all the Pit Bull things.  She has been nibbling on me constantly - always so gently. She's amazingly affectionate.   I think she's young.  I know they said 4, but I think she's younger.  She slept on the bed with us, I let her out during the night and we just finished breakfast and a walk.  She's fabulous!

I will stay in touch and I'm happy you like the name Heidi.

Fondly, Judy

______________________________________________________

Maggie now has 3 cat friends too.

This dog is absolutely amazing.  Took her to the vet today and he loved her - couldn't help but comment on her great disposition.  Vet staff also agreed that she is a Pit Bull - I know, not so important but it is THIS breed that has the personality I wanted in a dog.

She is very healthy and vet thinks (as I thought earlier) that she is NOT 4 years old - maybe 2.

She and Reese play often and then collapse with me on the sofa.  She nibbles on my hands/wrists and has millions of kisses.  She's hilarious - follows me all over - like all my Pits.  If I could have designed a 2nd dog, I could not have done a better job.  I'm NUTS about her.

She is starting to use the doggie doors - not a big problem, but she forgets.  Very relaxed dog.  I think whoever owned her must have treated her pretty well because she has no fear of people.  Walked all around the vet's office like she owned the place.

Barks at our cats, but we will train her out of that.

When you think of the problems you could have when taking in a dog - not a puppy - who you really don't know, it's amazing to think that this girl fits so beautifully into our family.  

You people are wonderful and I know you understand how happy I am.

I will continue to send info periodically and thank you (and Jeff) for your help in getting this beautiful dog to us.

LOVE

Maggie's 2/15/12 update.

Exploring her new yard.

2/15/12 - Just wanted to tell you that about an hour after you left I went outside with both dogs - to the back yard.  One of them heard someone in the neighbor's back yard and the two of them ran like hell to the fence.  That started the whole thing - chasing each other back and forth all over.  I have to move things out of their way because Pits can injure themselves with their craziness.  I knew Reese needed a playmate and Carol, you said Maggie did too.  It was so great!

We took both dogs on a few walks.  Maggie does not seem too afraid of the doggie door and watches Reese go in and out.  I think we can get her to use the doors in a few days.  She is actually very gentle with the cats and only one of them hissed at her.  They will work this out.  They'll both learn how to deal with each other.

She ate a great dinner - same food as Reese and seems perfectly comfortable.  She is looking for Carol and Jeff - goes to the window next to the front door and has whimpered a few times.  Of course, this is natural.  Reese has tried to mount her a couple of times and I assume this is a dominance thing.  He's not at all aggressive and she handles it very well.

I am happy beyond happy.  Marc LOVES her and I can't thank you all enough.  He said I should have paid at least for Carol and Jeff's gas and I am sorry for not thinking about this.  I owe you guys!

I will stay in touch and let you know how she's doing.  I HOPE you don't mind, but we are going to call her Heidi.  I personally love the name Maggie, but want to honor Heidi Ward, the oncologist we used with Bitsy.  This poor dog must be confused with a new name every few weeks!  I know she'll  be fine.

So thank you all - so, so much.  She has completed our family and I only look forward to many years of canine bliss.

Love,

Judy

Maggie finds her forever home!

Happy Maggie

Freddy, the wiener dog, is glad that Maggie, the foster sister, found her forever home. Freddy got the call there was an excellent forever home for Maggie in Southwest Florida. Freddy was very excited about this. Although Freddy likes the girls, he hasn't enjoyed having a BIG foster sister. [The big doggies can take away his woobies.] He didn't like Mommy and Daddy being gone all day to take Maggie to her new home, but he was very glad they didn't return with her.

Big, gorgeous Reese

Maggie's new home has a feature that is extremely important to Maggie - a BIG boyfriend. Maggie wanted a big playmate so badly that she would sit in front of the floor-length mirror and try to get that doggie to play with her. So sad. Maggie's boyfriend is Reese. He's a Pit Bull. He's a very shy and timid Pit Bull. When Maggie and her foster parents arrived, Reese ran away and jumped on his Mommy Judy's king-sized bed. Maggie followed after him, jumped up on the bed, and started licking Reese's face. She was telling Reese that everything was okay. Poor Reese was so bewildered about what was happening. A couple of days before Maggie's arrival, Reese had to say good-bye to his older, 12-year-old sister Bitsy, who died from cancer.

Maggie's so happy.

Maggie obviously loved Mommy Judy from the moment she arrived. Maggie couldn't stop licking Mommy Judy, and Maggie helped herself to Reese's bones that she found around the house. Maggie explored the backyard and enjoyed her visit. She thought she was just visiting because she tried to leave with Freddy's Mommy and Daddy.  While Freddy's Mommy was sad to leave Maggie, she was so happy for Maggie's new excellent forever home and will post Mommy Judy's updates about Maggie.

Freddy babysat Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Bowser. Really.

Luigi

Freddy the wiener dog babysat four Pit Bull puppies for an afternoon and night. They went to their next stop the following morning, but Mommy couldn't say no to the puppies' sleeping over.

Freddy definitely could have said no. Upon arrival, Mommy and Nana set the big crate down on the ground for Freddy and the girls to see. Freddy wasn't happy. He immediately started snarling and growling. No, Freddy! Mommy separated Freddy and the puppies until Freddy wore himself out barking. Then, Mommy let Freddy come outside and hang out with the puppies too.

Luigi (far left), Princess Peach and Mario

Most of the time this wasn't a problem. Freddy would let them know if one got too close and he didn't want to be bothered. Unfortunately, there were many times when three or four wanted to pile onto Freddy. He wasn't tolerating that. Luigi was especially bad about corning Freddy under a chair or somewhere else. These were little, little puppies and they didn't know to take "no" for an answer. They were relentless, and Freddy was a really good sport about most of it.

Malibu couldn't care less the puppies were here. She didn't want her frog hunting to be interrupted.

The big boy Bowser

Luna was the most motherly. She would constantly get into the pile of puppies. Bowser, in particular, thought Luna's head was a climbing post. Luna tolerated quite a lot, except for Princess Peach. She was the ring leader, had the sharpest teeth, and actually clamped onto Luna more than once. But, Luna wouldn't stay away. [She wanted to eat their puppy food too.] Luna wandered in and out of the puppy piles, laid down in their crate, sat up on a bed and watched them play. Luigi and Bowser were the barkers. Luna would be on a chair or bed and they'd bark at her....just sit there and bark at her.

Freddy and Luna stayed with the puppies while their two-legged brothers played with them for five hours! The puppies finally crashed and took a nap until 11:30 p.m. Then, they woke up, full of energy, and ready to play. Luna stayed with them. Freddy slept thru the whole thing, which was amazing because those puppies could bark loudly. Mommy finally gave up about 2:00 a.m. while the teenagers stayed up and entertained the puppies.

Peach [left], Mario, Luigi & Bowser

It was sad to wake up without any puppies in the house, but Freddy was very happy. He didn't even go looking for them. Neither did Malibu. Luna did, poor thing. Mommy told the rescue group that if they need help babysitting puppies again that we'd be glad to help. Mommy didn't mention this to Freddy......

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Freddy, the wiener dog, wishes everybody a very Happy Valentine's Day! Freddy would love to show you his Valentine Day picture, unfortunately he doesn't have one. He's still hibernating underneath the blankets in protest to Florida's actually getting a day or two of winter. [This morning it was 45.2 (F) degrees when Freddy woke up. He refuses to participate in winter.

Luckily, Malibu was very, very happy to take Valentine's Day pictures. In fact, Mommy couldn't get Malibu to stop taking pictures. Mommy would put Malibu on the floor and Malibu would jump back up for more pictures.

[Freddy would like a special shout-out to Malibu and Luna's breeder Mommy. She trains her doggies very well to sit still for picture taking.]

Maggie is an American Bulldog / Boxer mix.

Freddy, the wiener dog, and his Mom spent weeks trying to figure out what breed his foster sister Maggie is. There's a lot of misinformation on the net. People put a photograph on the net as one particular breed, but it's wrong. Thanks to Pit Sisters of Jacksonville, Mommy was able to figure out that Maggie's an American Bulldog / Boxer mix. She's part of the Mastiff family. Try their game: Find the Pit Bull. Of 26 dogs, it took Mommy 12 guesses to find the Pittie!  http://understand-a-bull.com/Findthebull/findpitbull_v3.html.

Mommy's favorite pic of Maggie.

Mommy researched Information about Maggie's breed at: http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/americanbulldog.htm. Temperament: "The American Bulldog is loyal, reliable, brave and determined. Not a hostile dog. Alert and self-confident, this breed genuinely loves children." Also under temperament it says that they can be aggressive toward other dogs. Maggie isn't. In fact, Freddy and his girls can bully her, especially Luna. My goodness, Luna can be downright rotten to Maggie. What is important about the breed is that Maggie needs LOTS of exercise.

Daddy's favorite pic of Maggie.

Maggie is still available for a forever home, but only to the very best forever home.

Freddy hates the woods, so Maggie goes hiking!

"Tiptoe thru the tulips..."

Freddy, the wiener dog, hates the Hundred Acre Wood. It such a big Wood for such a little dog. Jeff and the boys went hiking today. Because Freddy doesn't like the Wood, they took Maggie. The hike was 2.1 miles. Maggie was very nervous for the first half of the hike. Perhaps Maggie was afraid of being dumped again. Poor thing. She did better the second half of the hike when she started to enjoy all the outdoor smells, especially the bear poo. Maggie climbed up an observation tower very slowly, but she went down the stairs just fine. She was very glad to come home.

It's woobietime!!

Freddy, the wiener dog, and Mommy used to play woobietime when Freddy was the only doggie in the house. Once Daisy arrived, Freddy couldn't play woobietime because Daisy was bigger and would take the woobies away. Same thing with Maggie. Well, Daisy has gone to her excellent new home. And, today, Maggie went hiking with Jeff and the boys. With no big doggies in the house, Mommy and Freddy could play woobietime! Mommy throws the woobie across the living room and Freddy runs for it. Then, Mommy chases Freddy. He loves it! Mommy and Freddy were playing with his Christmas polar bear. Mommy kept it hidden so Maggie wouldn't tear it apart. Everything was going great until Luna wanted to join in. No problem. Freddy kept it away from Luna, then it was time for the old man to take a nap. Once Freddy stopped to rest, Luna took the polar bear and decided to guard it. What you don't see in his photo is that she's watching Freddy nap. Silly girl...Mommy has to put the polar bear away before Maggie gets home.

Freddy's worried.

Freddy, the wiener dog, is worried. He doesn't like the wind. It's a beautiful Florida day, but it's very windy. Freddy doesn't like the wind. Freddy sees the trees blowing and he barks. Freddy hears the gate creak and he barks. Freddy hears the trash cans rustle and he barks. Freddy sees the curtains move and he barks. Freddy doesn't like the wind.

Oh, good boy, Freddy Baby!

Exhausted Freddy

Freddy, the wiener dog, came to Maggie's rescue. About 11:30 p.m., Mommy let the doggies outside for a bathroom break. Freddy, Malibu, and Luna came back inside pretty quickly. Maggie was still out in the yard and Mommy couldn't stand the cold anymore. Mommy came back inside to get ready for bed when she heard Freddy's barking. It was Freddy's alert barking so Mommy came right away. Maggie is afraid to go through doggie doors, so Freddy had gone back outside to be with Maggie and bark at Mommy to let them back in. What a good Freddy Baby!

He came walking back with a big spring in his step, walking along side Maggie. He even let her go through the door first. He really looked like, "It's okay, Mom. I've got everyone back safe inside." It's so cute how he protects his women...big girl or Mini.

When Freddy finally fell asleep in Mark's bed, Maggie followed him and she's sleeping with Mark and Freddy too.

Taking the Pack for a Walk

Freddy, the wiener dog, and his doggie pack went for an afternoon walk.  Freddy and Malibu still hate having to put their noses through the harness.  Luna, however, is amazing.  Although she hasn't walked on a leash for long, she is excellent.  She patiently waits her turn, then puts her nose through the harness, let's Mommy click it closed, and then pleasantly and without effort (for Mommy) walks on her leash.  Mommy keeps Luna in third place so she understands pack order, but Luna's still a very good girl walking on a leash.

There were neighbors out in their yard when the foursome walked by.  They asked if Maggie was a new addition, but Mommy explained that Maggie was a rescue dog waiting for a forever home.  They asked if she was nice to the little ones.  Ha!  Maggie is awesome with the little ones... She's actually a little afraid of the threesome, but mostly Luna.  Luna wants Maggie to understand that Maggie is fourth in pack order.  Luna tends to be a little mean toward Maggie, yet the twosome love to play tug-of-woobie-war with each other.

But, Freddy, she didn't mean it!

Freddy, the wiener dog, was really, really, really, really mad at Maggie. Seriously mad. Killer mad. First, Maggie and Mark were playing together outside. Freddy didn't like Maggie playing with Mark, at all. Every so often, Freddy would chase Maggie away from Mark. Second, Mark tripped on Maggie's crater-o-dirt and landed on his knees. Maggie thought Mark was playing and tried the open-mouth maneuver. She barely touched Mark's head, but it was enough for Mark to cry "ow." Holy cow, that totally set Freddy off! He started chasing Maggie with all teeth bared...he was out for blood and you could see the anger in his face. Maggie ran for her life! Freddy eventually chased her into a bush and Maggie stayed there for a while. She was afraid to come out with Psycho Diva after her. Nobody hurts Freddy's humans.