Happy Dance!

I am so PAWcited! Five lucky people won copies of my Toby The Pet Therapy Dog and His Hospital Friends from the Fido Friendly Magazine!

We love Fido Friendly Magazine. It is a PAWsome PAWbilcation for pet lovers, pet owners, and pet PAWrents. All of us furry creatures! You can check it out for yourself right here http://www.fidofriendly.com/contests/sin-one-of-five-books-for-back-to-school-time-from-charmaine-hammond

I'm afraid this blog post isn't going to be too long. I'm too busy doing my happy dance for the five winners. It's hard to type and dance at the same time!

Congratulations to the five book winners! I hope you PAWsitvely love it!

The Power of Play

As a dog, I have a very interesting view sometimes. Often, when we get somewhere, Chris will ask me to lie down beside him. At that time all I can see are people's feet rushing by. It makes me wonder, do those people ever take time to play?

As you know, I love my Kong! I think it is the most PAWsome thing, even better than puppies. Just the thought of it gets my tail wagging. I can't wait to start tossing it around and chewing on it trying to get that yummy treat out to enjoy. Nothing brings more satisfaction than the moment when I can crunch down that tasty morsel. But, getting to that point is so much fun! I get so focused on getting my prize out of that little piece of rubber. My brain must be completely alert to be that focused but I don't even notice I'm doing something good for my body. I just want to have fun and get my goody! When Wednesday comes and it's time to go to work, my focus is steady and unwavering. The people I meet at the hospital are PAWmazing and I have no trouble keeping focused on them. Being with them gives me the warm furries, kind of like my Kong does.

Do you take time to play? It seems funny to me that so few of my two legged FURiends do, especially when there are so many benefits to playing. You can't work all the time. Take some time to have some fun too!

It Takes Time

I love living at the lake! The only bad thing about it is that the storms are way more intense than in the city. The thunderstorms and lightening strikes are PAWsitively frightening. You see, I am terrified of loud noises. Thunder and firecrackers are the worst. I anxiously wander around the house nudging anything in my path (lamps, chairs, and items on coffee tables).

I am fortunate though. Char and Chris give me lots of SuPAWt while I do my pacing. They have discovered that they can sometimes distract me with games like hide and seek with my toys. It doesn't always work though. If my toys don't get my attention then they turn on music and try to mask the noise of the storm for me.

We all have things that make us uncomfortable. We can't always avoid those things, sometimes we just have to face them. Usually, we need the help and suPAWt of our FURiends to face our fears. Know what? Now that Chris and Char have been helping me face my fear of storms I have gotten better at coping with them. I have come a long way over the years...progress takes time, PAWtience, and accepting help

Adoption is PAWsome!

A few days ago I heard someone say that it is Pet Adoption Month in America. I know we live in Canada but it still makes me suPAW sad to think of all my FURiends stuck in cages with no one to love them. Fortunately, I was adopted from an organization that uses foster homes, NASAP. There are just so many displaced FURiends that not every adoption agency can use foster homes.

I remember what it was like when I first got to my foster home. I was really confused and didn't feel like myself at all. I don't even think I barked for a long time. I missed my people. The foster family was really nice to me but they weren't the family that I knew. I couldn't wait to go home again and have this whole situation explained. Of course, I had no idea that home was with Christopher and Charmaine, at that time I just wanted what was familiar again. But, when Chris and Charmaine came to see me I was so surPAWsed at how much I liked to be with them. It still took me a few months to dig up my true self but, I felt much better being at home with them right from the start.

I wonder what it is like for the FURiends that don't get to go to foster homes? If I was as scared and confused as I was, they must be absolutely PAWtrified! I feel suPAW sad for them.

If you or your family has been thinking about getting a FURiend for your home, please consider adopting. Help give good forever homes to to them. After all, many of us need more than love after our exPAWriences.

Another Bounce Forward Adventure

Yesterday afternoon was so PAWmazing! Mom, Charmaine, left early so I thought that dad, Chris, and I were going to spend the afternoon together at home. But, the next thing I knew we were in the car heading to Edmonton! I love car rides. There are so many things to bark at along the road. It wasn't long before we reached our destination, The Westin Hotel in downtown Edmonton. I was so excited for this new adventure! I was wagging my tail so fast and hard my hind legs could barely keep me grounded. Of course, I greeted everyone I could on our way into the hotel. People like it when you take the time to say hello. Why were we here though?

Imagine my surPAWs when we walked into a big room and there was mom and a whole bunch of people I didn't know yet! Mom was talking about Bouncing Forward and relieving stress and stuff. I don't know what the big deal is, doesn't anyone else play with Kongs? Oh well, we all have a different bark. There was also this big comfy pillow just for me! It was so big and soft. Dad sat right next to it so that I could snuggle in.

After mom was done talking I got to PAWdograph some books. I love PAWdographing! I also love to be photographed, which is what happens a lot when I PAWdograph. I had to bark my approval, what a perfect way to finish the afternoon.

So, that's what happened yesterday afternoon. I hope everyone else had as much fun as I did!