Ashleigh Jolie...

This has been a rough year...in more ways than one, but I'm specifically reflecting on pet loss. Many of you remember the tragic accident that took the infamous Buckley from us and not long after that another dog that i was close to, Hannah, passed away. Then there was the shock of losing Keily, and the dog who I witnessed get hit by a car... now today, I am extremely sad to say that the world had to say goodbye to Ashleigh, my best friends 9yr old doberman. I still can't believe it... :(

Ashleigh was not only my best friends dog, but she was my dogs best friend and the reason that we all came together almost 9yrs ago...in a parking lot in Encino...a sweet faced little dobie puppy with tapped ears - of course i went over to say hello!

Ash... i THANK YOU, love you & miss you!!



"Ashleigh Jolie Raba"
December 1, 2001 - November 17, 2010

Mama's Boy!!

Today was one of the longest work days I've had in awhile [8am - 8pm]... Every break that I get is generally spent at home hugging, kissing & walking pups - every now and then i get the "pleeeeease take me with you" face from one of my own dogs - today it was Tilden. This dog will make you melt.

First stop was Loki... a 7 month old brick house of a pit bull puppy who lives with two chihuahuas and was THRILLED to have big dog company! Lots of jumps, licks, snaps & side swipes... which my boy handled like a pro, and I finally got an excellent walk with the both of them.

Next was Madison & Sadie aka The Golden Girls... Tilden loves them. All three walked together great [i'm going to pat myself on the back here for controlling 3 retractable leashes], sat patiently when i was on clean up duty, passed several other dogs just fine, and gently greeted a couple of toddlers who were out walking with their grandparents. People watched and were impressed... as was I. The girls are always well behaved, but I was very proud of Tilden.

I was nervous about our next stop, as Tilden has never met this group of dogs before... and when I say group I mean: 3 Jack Russells, 2 Boston Terriers, and an Italian Greyhound. The energy was high, to say the least... but Tilden, was a star!!



Found myself needing a pick me up - hellooooo Peet's. While ordering I noticed a woman and her small dog standing aside my car. I was afraid that Tilden would start barking if he hadnt already but when I went out and asked I was told "No, not a peep, I didn't even know he was back there". Wow Tilden! I had to pinch myself.

Final stop was with Edgar and Zowie, my seniors. Tilden is so respectful of them... I'm always amazed at how well he's able to read other dogs and adjust himself accordingly. He knows that Zowie doesnt want to be bothered with him, and he knows that Edgar is fragile [Edgar doesnt even know he's fragile, ha!]

So all in all... Long day... but well worth it! I love when I'm able to incorporate Tildens socialization and training with work.

Happy Halloween, Happy Fall... Happy Autumn!

If you can believe it...

*drumroll*

for those of you who were brave enough to participate in my previous blog contest, here are the results:

the puppies in photo #1 are half GERMAN SHEPHERD (sally is the winner, her guess was a belgian shepherd) photo taken by a westside shepherd rescue volunteer... all of the puppies and mom have been adopted earlier this year.

the puppy in photo #2 (Rebel) is half KING CHARLES SPANIEL (heather is the winner, her guess was springer spaniel... but only because that was her childhood dog. pure luck!)

Rebel is a puppy that boarded with me a few weeks back and after seeing a photo and communicating thru e mail with his owner, i was dying to SEE him and hear how she'd come up with his breed mixture - that is when she confirmed that he was born at a rescue, to a king charles mama. my best guess is that dad was a piebald daschund / rat terrier / chihuahua... those ears, WOW!!

He's a fun and well behaved little guy, only living up to his name every now and then. Despite his pint size, he had a great time here with Gia, Tilden, Buzz and Gracey...

so much for my nap on the sofa:



Gia referees. Rebel commentates:

She's a WHAT??? (guess the breed game)

Its not uncommon to walk into an animal shelter and see every black dog listed as a Lab X, every dog with erect ears as a Shepherd X, and almost every small dog is a Terrier X of some sort. Before you take these descriptions and run with them, remember how tricky genetics can be in the first place, along with the fact that a dog can be mixed with not only 2, but 3, 4, 5, or 6 different breeds (and beyond).

Occasionally (and sadly) a mama dog will give birth in the shelter, or under a rescues care, (or at home, eek) and the game of "who's your daddy" begins...

Well my version is a little different.

In both photos, the pup or pups were born @ the rescue, the mama dogs breed is KNOWN and PUREBRED... although you'd probably never guess it in a million years. as far as who hopped the fence and got mama pregnant... well, the dads breed in both cases are pretty obvious (at least i think so).

OK...start guessing, and make sure to read game details at the bottom of this post. Good luck!!

Photo#1 (taken from a rescues organizations website which i will mention after the breed reveal) Hint: Mama is not an Australian Cattle Dog!



Photo#2 (taken by me of a clients dog) Hint: Mama is not a Rat Terrier!



...Winner, winners or whoever comes the closest will get a prize! Leave a comment on facebook, or e mail me at ipetsit.la@gmail.com Please specify if your guess is for photo 1 or photo 2. I'll reveal the breeds in Sundays 10/24 blog post. Again, good luck...you'll need it! Ha!

The Golden Girls

Back when I used to watch television, I often started and ended my day with these Golden Girls...



These days, I begin each day, and most times end each day with THESE Golden Girls...

Meet Madison & Sadie!



Both are as sweet as Rose, awesome and straight forward like Dorothy, Madison is as strong willed as Sofia and Sadie has the free spirit of Blanche. Its only been 3 days and I love them already!

Cats & Dogs

Call me crazy, this weekend I have 7 dogs! This is the most that I've intentionally kept, save for the 12hr "layover" I had a few months back in which there were 8. For those of you who have been here, you know that my place is small, which makes it extremely important for each n every dog to be properly matched and either a) take Tilden's lead and love other dogs, or b) go Gia's route and avoid other dogs. Never once have I outright required boarding dogs to be cat friendly (workable - yes - because i understand that not all families have the opportunity to cat test their dogs)... but between knowing my cat, knowing every nook and cranny of my house (escape routes), and having a good read on dogs general behaviors in regards to aggression and prey drive... never once have I had an incident or even a close call.

I've observed Mica (my cat) extensively. She has her post at the top of the stairs in which she'll sit and calculate the size, color, movements, scent and jingle of a collar, for every dog that walks into my house. If there are any doubts, she'll 'disappear' until they leave... but other than that - she trusts that I'll keep her safe (separated) from them if needed and she carries on as usual. She's either confident, or she's not... there isn't a bunch of hissing, batting, teasing, running, etc. If she makes an appearance, its because she knows the coast is clear.

This morning was pretty funny... i woke up and noticed that both indoor water bowls were low or empty and once i started to fill them up, i had a "line". well i shut the water off and returned to the main room... i hear a meow and down the stairs trots Mica right past the line of dogs and politely sits in the front of them. I put the water bowl down and normally several dogs will rush the bowl and all drink together... well today, 6 of the 7 waited patiently until Mica was finished before taking their turns. And here I thought I was the one in charge, hmph! Gia, of course, being the brainiac that she is, was already waiting at the kitchen knowing that i'd soon come to fill the 2nd bowl and that she'd get first dibs.

Mica is amazing cat. I couldn't have asked for one better! Now lets see if Simone turns out just as savvy. Who's Simone?

Ha...you'll just have to wait and see =^..^=

Happy Labor Day!!

(an oldie but goodie, the day Gia and Mica met, 4yrs ago)

September who?

I can't believe that its already the weekend and that in 1 week, August will be over... where does the time go?

Last weekend was a blast! My sweet girl Gia officially turned 11yrs old on August 15th [i just realized that i've been saying she's 11 all year] per usual, she requested no fancy gifts or sweet treats [a girls gotta watch her figure] but insisted that we visit the pool so of course a mini swim party was in order. tilden and walker came along for the fun and gia swam and swam and swam until her 11yr old dysplastic hips could go no more... a shot of adequan, doubled up springtime longevity and she was as good as new!!

...a few more lovely leos that i'd like to celebrate; tiger turned 4!!! gracey turned 1!!! nugget turned 6!!! charlie [P] turned 1!!! buckley [rip] would have been 3!!! and myself...embarking on year 29, eek! [if i forgot anyone, i'm blaming it on my old age, lol]

Have a great weekend everyone!!!


gia


gracey


nugget


buckley


charlie

ps. boarding spots for labor day weekend are almost full, please get in touch asap, as you know i give my current clients priority and hate to have to turn anyone down. thanks!

pss. speaking of labor day, oldie but goodies - inca & sydney will be here next weekend. so excited!