Just a quick note to everyone that I no longer have my website, but you are welcome to join me for LOTS of fun on facebook, my group PET PEOPLE at https://www.facebook.com/groups/peoplelovingpets/ and you can see my artwork on facebook at Judy's Art Adventures https://www.facebook.com/pages/Judys-Art-Adventures/137655456295638?ref=hl
Max is becoming the beautiful dog he was meant to be, just turning 5 years old on February 5 and my wonderful boy now for going on 1/2 his life!

Max's story: FOREVER HOME

FOREVER HOME

Lately the urge to share our story has been relentless so I must take action in order to sleep restfully again. For over 2 months, Max has graced my life with his presence. Each of those days I’ve marveled at his gentle, loving, joyful, intelligent and yes, even timid way of being, saying aloud to him, “How could I ever possibly love you more?”…and then I do!

---

HOW IT BEGAN:

I'd been feeling pretty alone and wondering how to give my life more meaning, longing to share the love I know I have to offer. One day in October I was disheartened that no homeless dog's photo was touching me and I still wasn't sure about the 'old age' commitment.
Then, on October 16, a good facebook friend, Mel, posted a photo of her foster dog Lady saying I'd be a good mom and praising shelties, so I just decided to 'browse'. I kept landing on Max no matter what site I went to--hard to put my finger on exactly what singled Max out (or how he ‘found’ me). I could try to analyze it--beauty, size, age, male (after Black Jack)/my infinite patience--or perhaps down deep we simply knew we needed each other most...but regardless, there was an unmistakeable pull. Even after doing some homework on shelties & being told of Max's rough start with resulting “issues”, I still felt the same.
The write up on ‘Petfinder’ described Max as…young, shy, in foster care for the last year--socializing him…was in pretty poor shape but has made strides…still very shy, does much better with the foster mom than dad…very curious with other dogs…should be fine with cats…uncertain about kids…best in a quiet home with patient family…housetrained, uses dog door (to escape the foster dad or unwanted advances)…can be a barker when people come or go…a gentle soul, no indications of fear biting.

Instead of letting my head stop me with the 'what if's' I was able to allow my heart to lead in a stronger way.

I inquired about him…

Mackenzie's art

Meet MACKENZIE who is deeply missed even having passed three years ago…

In his words: (3/9/11) ‘Through our very special mutual friend, Day, Mom Nancy & Judy met in March to discuss Judy’s doing artwork of me. My mom had a specific picture in her mind but no photo exactly depicting that. So with lots of snapshots and the best description she could verbalize, Judy was left to ‘do her thing’.

As is her creative way, Judy needed to ‘be with’ the idea and photos long enough that something ‘gelled’. But finally, I couldn’t wait any longer, so a couple of weeks later I woke Judy, gently prodding her to make arrangements to get together with my Mom Nancy again to clarify and finalize the design plans for my memorial drawing so the artwork could begin taking form.

Just days later, Judy met with Nancy.

Then later in the month, Judy & I had some alone time together so I could show her the way to shut my mouth which I had open in the mature photo Mom had chosen and make my eyes more round and soulful as my Mom & Dad remember me.

Additions, changes and suggestions like background, colors, etc. are never easy for an artist so work was slow since Judy always wants to be ‘led’ by her subject—me, in this case. I made sure that neither my Mom nor I pushed her.

On Mother’s Day I finally helped Judy want to work on the drawing for my Mom and great progress was made.

Then, gone for 3 years in June, I urged Judy to complete the drawing for my precious ‘Mom & Dad’. When they saw it, they were both well pleased. We all were a great team—my making sure no one pressured her even though we were excited for its completion and Judy being sure to work only when inspired.

Mom wrote on facebook, “Judy Nelson, the artistic genius, blessed us with a magnificent drawing of our Mackenzie, today. He is depicted as the ‘doodlebug’ (as we had named him) when he was a baby and his ‘goodbye’ pose, turning to look at us one last time before going to the bridge. We are eternally grateful for the time and love Judy devoted to doing this for us. I want [all my ‘friends’] to see how totally beautiful this is, although…much more spectacular in person... We can't stop staring at it.

[Judy] you are so special to us… have made us so happy..........it's like getting a little piece of Mackenzie back........he'll be looking at us from the wall every day! We will be doing Carlin and Minnie next for sure!!!!”’

Messages continue from my boy!!

With Spring promising to arrive any day the butterflies are becoming even more affectionate--my 'always kisses' from Black Jack. Just the other day, one at a time, a white one, then a monarch and then a black one flirted with me.
It will always bring a smile of comfort to my face.
THANK YOU, my sweet boy Black Jack--my love forever!

PetWise #11 Katie Lou’s Angels!

HAPPY EASTER everyone!!

Katie Lou’s Angels!

Next month, my beloved Katie Lou will have been gone for four years. She says it’s time for me to write of her two angels now. It’s comforting to know they were already around her during her illnesses and difficult passing.

When I picked up Katie’s remains, the beautiful little wooden urn made me think of a lovely ceramic angel I had purchased a while before as a possible gift for my daughter. It now sits atop the box as if made for it with another angel and light over it.

The vet’s kind sympathy card was adorned by yet another angel. My friend/pet ‘communicator’ told me that these two angels look just like the ones she saw around Katie before she left. In her last few days I often observed Katie looking up; just looking, not barking (which had become unusual)... Could it have been her angels reassuring her—as they still do me?

Before she passed, Katie had already decided to 'stick around' to be sure I know how much she loves me. Katie's spirit was communicating with me BEFORE she left, too! And it’s fun to know in this way she finally got to display her sense of humor both before and after she passed in her frequent antics coming and going in our house.

Often I was awakened by one solitary Katie-bark between about 2 and 4 a.m. The first few times I heard it of course I jumped out of bed as a vigilant mother would do only to find Katie still soundly asleep. And then several times after she died, the same thing happened. The final night of her visits I heard a huge, loud “WOOF!” that I knew couldn’t be her (and could NOT have been a dog outside). Since I’d not gotten the message thus far, I believe she brought Olga (our former Great Dane) along so that I’d finally realize what she was trying to tell me! Yes, she definitely ‘stuck around’—until I finally got the message--that she loves me deeply and is finally very healthy & happy!

Months later as I was taking my large bag of clothes to the Mission I spotted the big bag of comforters that were Katie’s bedding. I'd just not been able to part with them yet. I grabbed it knowing it was time. I didn't put it all together until I got home and 'felt' Katie's pleasure in her bedding being used to help keep others warm that winter.

Yet again I must say our pets are SO wise if we will just listen!

PetWise #10 “Cyber” dog talk?

4/17/11 Over my pb&j today, the kitchen seemed unusually quiet and empty (yes, I actually took the time to sit at the table and force myself to finish chewing before I got up!). I began to realize that as time passes, it’s becoming more and more okay to know there will never be another Bubbles, Katie Lou or Black Jack in this lifetime, but that there will be another with different very special qualities.

Right away, thinking of the company of another pet companion, my pragmatic mind began rolling up my decorative area rugs and covering my white furniture remembering the messiness of canine old age. Then my positive nature kicked in reminding me that there were many, many years needing no precautions such as these.

Strangely it doesn’t feel as if these three are the ones ‘talking to me’. Earlier in the day I’d posted on PET PEOPLE how Target’s tragic murder was making a difference hopefully for thousands of pets who are now brought in to the shelter where the crime was committed. And of course daily I look forward to updates on dear Patrick’s progress, rescued just in time from certain death after unthinkable abuse. So while they aren’t here in body—any of them—it feels as if they are here gently guiding and reassuring me that all is in the ‘right and perfect order’—perhaps sharing their wet, slobbery ‘cyber kisses’, too.

And the WINNER of the facebook PET PEOPLES’ FUNNIEST or MOST EMBARRASSING PET MOMENT

WINNER: CONGRATULATIONS Pete & Susan Rakay! Susan wrote: "I was feeding and getting fresh water for my birds one day an after I took out Pete's bowl I turned away to get another of the birds bowls. Well Pete thought he saw a silly sight, my naked bum, so he stuck his head out of the bowl opening and bit my butt."
So Pete & won (for one of the pooches in their family) a hoodie with up to 10 letters for a slogan from Poochpark Wear, http://www.poochparkwear.com

Yet another runner up in the Facebook PET PEOPLES’ FUNNIEST or MOST EMBARRASSING PET MOMENT

Susan wrote: "I had had Princess for only a few weeks when one night, after I put my birds to bed, I was looking for her to give her the nite-nite cookie my dogs get every night before bedtime. I call her over and over and searched the house. She was no ware to be found. I found my flashlight and went looking for her outside, still calling her name. No luck. I got in the car, rolled down the window and started driving my neighborhood calling her name. No luck. I went down the large street near my house and drove it to town, looking and calling all the way. No luck. I saw some activity down one of the side streets so I went down to see if maybe she had an accident, Police said no but took her description and my phone number just in case. I started to drive further back in my subdivision calling her name. Still no luck. By this time I was horse from calling her name, after all it was January so the night was cold. I decided to go home and get something to drink and use the bathroom. Sitting on the commode I asked my other dog Oliver "where could Princess be" and it was then I heard the light scratching on the bird room door. I opened the door and there was Princess, safe at home the whole time. I had checked the bird room before closing the door but she outsmarted me by hiding behind the door the whole time. I never thought to look in there as the dogs are not allowed in there and I thought she would answer when I called. Well it happened again yesterday. Same scenario, but this time I checked the bird room and there she was. Save me from loosing my voice again."

Another runner up in facebook PET PEOPLES’ FUNNIEST or MOST EMBARRASSING PET MOMENT

Linsey Bise says, "My husband left his chip bag unattended for 1 minute and returned to find our 3 year old Sphynx cat, King Tut, helping himself! This picture always brings the LOL's!"

Runner up in PET PEOPLES’ FUNNIEST or MOST EMBARRASSING PET MOMENT Contest on facebook!

"My dog Pudder's not a barker and one day he went missing. My daughter and I scoured the neighborhood stopping people strolling down the street and working in their yards to no avail. I knew if someone found him they would never give him back because he is just too sweet and lovable. We went home to figure out another course of action when I decided to go back upstairs and look. Nope... but as I began to descend the stairs I realized that I had not looked in the utility closet. Lo and behold! There was Pudder. The little brat heard us calling and let us look forever! We were glad to have found him and laughed about it for some time. He's such a goofball. :)

PetWise #9 Patrick's influence!

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­PetWise 3/28/11 #9 Patrick’s influence!

So many times other pet lovers and I have been unable to deny that our pets have profound truths to teach us. Recently I’ve been wondering why Patrick’s plight has touched me so very deeply, to the point of feeling that I’ve almost ‘adopted him’ as my own. Perhaps this is a part of why I’ve felt no urge yet to find someone to fill the huge footprints my boy Black Jack left behind.

Today I happened to turn to one of the most FUN and most insightful books I’ve ever read, GUARDIANS OF BEING. With the light hearted cartoons of the gifted Patrick McDonnell, the words of renowned spiritual teacher, Eckhart Tolle the messages seem to take on a joyful life of their own.

The explanation for my strong affinity to Patrick just might lie in this statement from the book, “They have been with humans for thousands of years and now there is a link between dogs and humans much closer than it has ever been.”

I was also touched by a lesson already evident from Patrick voiced herein, “You just watch the tail…with some dogs you just look at them—just a little look is enough—and their tail goes ‘LIFE IS GOOD! LIFE IS GOOD!’ And they are not telling themselves a story of why life is good. It’s a direct realization.” REGARDLESS of what we humans may judge to have been Patrick’s tortuous life thus far, without these judgments he is simply being Who he is & loving life in each moment (like breakfast this morning)!

Oh, how I long to transcend the wild thoughts of my human brain to live more simply in this ‘joy of being’…the tail wagging part might be difficult—LOL!

Speaking to the hearts of CHILDREN seems to be one of the most essential tools I can think of for responding to the urgent need evident today for the transformation of consciousness and the creation of a more enlightened humanity to come. Patrick has written two children’s books that might be a wonderful way for us to help them understand our oneness and thereby become compassionate citizens.

This is the link to McDonnell’s website where you can sign up to get daily messages http://muttscomics.com/default.aspx

This is the link to checking out the book from which I’m quoting

http://www.amazon.com/Guardians-Being-Eckhart-Tolle/dp/1577316711/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1301338080&sr=1-1#reader_1577316711

Here is one of his children’s books, his 6^th picture book this one featuring his beloved Earl

http://www.amazon.com/Wag-Patrick-McDonnell/dp/B004HB1D4U/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1301338080&sr=1-6#reader_B004HB1D4U

And another children’s book offered by Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Gift-Nothing-Special-Patrick-McDonnell/dp/0316054410/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1301338080&sr=1-4#reader_0316054410

I strongly encourage you to check them out not only for yourself but for others in your life that you love and perhaps for future generations! I for one don’t want to miss any of the messages our pets so freely offer us…

PetWise #8 - IMAGINATION OR TRUTH?!

Have you ever had an idea or thought from ‘out of the blue’ that seemed either like it was too good to be true or too ‘far out’ to be do-able?

PART I: Mom did (and sometimes still does) often dismissing them, having grown up being told to be ‘realistic’. But working with our inexplicable “energy” always having surrounded her artwork of our images, we’re happy to announce that she’s finally learning to pay more attention!

“I helped!!” shouts Black Jack as he scurries past to his next duty. He suggested (through Kat) that Mom listen carefully during the artistic process so she could share that priceless interaction with the pets’ humans. “And she has (like with Mackenzie)!” comes the echo from afar. More about that later, but back to the message…

In the past Mom has had a couple of profound experiences with the energy of two of her ‘human heroes’, felt so strongly there was no denying it. Earlier this week her friend described a recent similar experience but decided she must have wanted it to be true so badly that it surely must not be the loved one she felt with her at all but a figment of her imagination instead. It took an unsolicited confirmation to convince her. This is Mom’s friend/massage therapist who can speak with other’s departed loved ones but ironically mistrusts her own intuitive gift for herself. This seems to be a problem with many of you ‘tuned in’ humans…

Now Black Jack stops by to share again, “Several times in the past weeks when Mom pulled into the garage, she vividly recalled how I would wait for her with my nose pressed to the garage door opening and upon hearing the car, howl my greeting. She also considered it only her imagination, deciding even if it were, it made her smile. I want her to believe I was really there instead of dampening the warmth of those moments with her doubt.”

“And,” he goes on, “what about those little black caterpillars Mom’s week pulling disturbed the other day? Could it just be, as she imagined, that I put them there to reminder her of the beautiful black butterfly I sent to her earlier?

Voices now unite to say, “Trust that when you think of us, we are there! We are One with you. Thoughts are indeed things and so we’re always with you.”

PART II Just like memories and imagination, Mom sometimes has ideas that seem to come from nowhere—but we all know they really DO come from SOMEWHERE. Until recently she has often put them aside immediately as being too grandiose.

First we need for her to know tif they keep returning she needs to take it as a sign that some Power bigger than she is wants her to take action on them.

While we pets just enjoy them in the moment, you humans seem to want to remember your dreams. Remembering dreams can be elusive, just like ideas. In fact Mom has a whole dream diary of her night time experiences, most of which are merely entertaining to her, sometimes, bizarre, rarely scary.

That “Bigger Power” (which includes us, of course) is what plants those seed ideas in Mom’s mind whether thought or dream. Then it’s up to her to nurture that seed with trust that the soil that is HER has what it takes to co-partner with the seed, creating something grand. Because these ideas can be lost in all the jumble of you humans’ busy minds and lives, we’ve urged her to keep paper and pen handy so she can take action—usually the next morning (sometimes in the middle of the night) as happened with the idea for this very blog article.

“Way to go, Mom!” comes the canine chorus.

SO our INVITATION to you all is: “IMAGINE what you “dream up” IS THE TRUTH! Then enjoy the warm comfort of being wrapped in that memory…OR move mountains with your ‘do-able’ idea!!”

P.S. this was going to be a short article, but once again, guess we had lots to say…

PetWise #7 - THE WAY OF THE ARTIST...

Mom’s natural gift for artwork has blessed the human families of our cousins, ancestors and buddies on the other side (sometimes human likenesses, too) for 25 years by preserving our memories on paper or in other mediums. “I get to take credit for that,” quips Bubbles, “since it was her grief and aloneness in my passing that started it all. Sure, she thought it was her own idea, but my image in photos moved her to draw me on paper to help her feel better.” We know her face will be red when we sing our ♫♪CONGRATULATIONS symphony♫♪ to her. We are so proud that she always honored that gift with only a few brief ‘detours’—but we were always able to get her back on course.

Now she has another very special love to memorialize with a pencil portrait. Here Mackenzie takes over, saying, “I got my momma and Judy together because I know they’re alike in heart. Seeing Judy’s artwork, my momma knew she wanted Judy to recreate my loving eyes for her to gaze into for the rest of her life. They agreed that it must be inspired (by me) so there’d be no deadline for completion.”

He adds wisely, “Since Judy has an otherwise full life I didn’t begin reminding her (speaking to her) until a couple of days ago and then I was all she could think about!”

“First the design” Mackenzie continues, “Momma wants me drawn as a puppy and also in my final years, standing looking back as if to say a final good-bye. (I may convince her to add a ‘teen’ picture yet…) But with the 2 poses she wants, my face will be pretty small to show my soulful eyes, so I need to help Judy figure out how to do that. Judy seems to be resisting, so I’m working with her to get past her preferences and that her gift really lies in expressions, not so much all the hair I had.”

“So,” the rest of the gang concludes, “as is Mom’s way, she’s mulling over the situation/visualizing what needs to be done. This always requires some quiet time, therefore the project has slowed…good thing there’s no time limit. Seems this is the way many artists do their best, most inspired work! We can’t wait to see it finished…no, wait, it’s agreed, no rush—ha ha!”

PetWise #6 - IS LOVE ENOUGH?

PetWise through Judy

2/27/11 #6 Is love enough…?

Katie Lou and Mom are both ready to tell her story now. They both have been reluctant because it’s sort of painful to remember this part of their time together. Katie’s ancestors were Lhasa Apsos that Mom would discover too late not only had physical/neurological problems, but also tended toward aggression.

“I was separated from Mom for a short period during my puppyhood, but she embraced me with her whole heart when I returned, even unkempt and flea ridden” Katie reveals.

“Early in my life I began teaching her what my boundaries were—for example, I wanted little to no attention once I had ’settled in’ for the night or I’d ‘come up fighting’. I always tried not to hurt her too much even in that state of grogginess. I also felt compelled to nip at other people sometimes,” she confesses, “until I became COMPLETELY unpredictable, which was doubly dangerous since I was too cute to resist >smile<. Eventually I had to be ‘quarantined’ during ANYONE’S visit!”

Then there was the shock collar incident Mom has a hard time talking about when she got talked into because Katie barked too much at a friend’s neighbors. I do believe she may have lost a little more of her mind over this. Katie suggests, “Humans really ought to try it on themselves sometime! When Mom reached her hand under my chin later on that day, without thinking, I reacted so fast I drew blood, but still Mom kept right on loving me!”

“Eventually Mom thought maybe I was having some sort of ear problem or perhaps even bad teeth because I did it again—a more severe bite and to make it worse, I couldn’t seem to let go this time!” exclaims Katie. This reaction was NOT understandable to either of them. Katie’s health was excellent, so Mom got her checked out and her teeth cleaned which helped for a while.

She goes on, “When I wasn’t having these episodes, I loved to love on Mom, cuddle, and be a normal canine ‘kid’ especially thrilled with ‘mothering’ all my stuffed toys. I even played with Black Jack sometimes. More often as time passed, though, I bullied him and made his life to be a bit like hell.”

So Mom simply had to do something. One of the pet communicators she sought out, who also tried a sort of electric type of therapy a sort of re-programming presumably, claimed to discover that in a past life I was devoured by my off-spring. “Well that would most certainly have given me a bad attitude for this life!” Kate shouts.

Another endeavor to control her behavior was obedience training, which was probably the most traumatic attempt to solve the problem. Mom was advised that all dogs need to be shown who is in charge. “Consequently for months we lived a nightmare nightly as Mom followed this program rigidly, keeping me CAGED through the night. I know she is now so sorry (more of that ‘guilt’) she listened to anyone other than her own heart. You see I had always had a phobic fear of being caged—even at the groomers.” She sadly admits, “It felt like I literally lost even more of her mind through this ordeal.”

“Our lives became so unbearable that Mom actually considered assisting me to LEAVE. Even when not caged, I began wandering the house at night barking at random and so Mom very rarely slept during these several years. She tried comforting me, even lying on the floor beside me, but nothing worked”, she continues. “I so much appreciate Mom for making a total commitment to me for my entire lifetime even at her own expense. But then regardless of this tormented time together she and I both knew we had an inexplicable bond that went even deeper than any of her other dogs.”

With sadness, she says, “Then just before my 16^th birthday it was finally time…that day after my daily walk, my body suddenly also began to fail. I was weak and didn’t want to eat or drink anything. Although Mom nursed me for days and had a vet try, her gifted healer friend told her I trusted her to quickly give me release not only from this physical decline but the mental agony as well. Since I was nearly uncontrollable in spite of my physical weakness, the kind vet who put me out of my misery for Mom told her it appeared to him that I may have had a brain tumor.”

There are so many messages for everyone in this story such as all the what ifs of hindsight… inbreeding… foresight (medical advancements now available)… mostly though, that love transcends all…

P.S. she adds, “I’ll have Mom write about my angels sometime.”

PetWise #5

All One Spirit?

Mom really loves her time spent with Day, the spirit communicator who helped with our passing, Katie Lou and Black Jack agree…not to mention the amazing healing massages she gives. Well, she shared that a lone small white butterfly accompanied her on a portion of her walk the other day which we all know is simply going to always be Black Jack and her ‘thing’ (just like leaves skipping along with her are Katie’s messengers)!! Then Mom wanted to show Day the little red rock heart that she had discovered in the street a while back. It was resting on Kate Lou’s special shelf, positioned for best display. As they were admiring it, Day saying she’s always thought of it as a ‘gift’ to her, Mom noticed she’d inadvertently placed it right next to the red heart shaped name tag that Katie always wore—she was filled with gratitude to Katie for giving her such a precious gift, even if it took her a while to realize it was from Katie Lou!

Then Day shared a recent very special experience involving the spirit of a loved one who arrived ahead of her to assist with a big purchase! This began a discussion about whether spirits of loved ones are still here with us after they’ve passed on to possibly another life and time. After Mom’s experiences with us—all of us lately—she assured Day she thought the we must all have ‘moved on’ by now but because Spirit includes all of us from forever into eternity, they could surely still be with us, too—in more than one place/time at a given moment. So the two of them simply agreed to leave it a mystery, choosing to believe what was in their hearts that gave them the most comfort.

Then just yesterday Mom saw the lone white butterfly again...and this time ALSO, in a different location, what appeared to be a magnificent Monarch (although Mom isn’t up on butterfly species very well)!! She just knew this butterfly was very large with brilliant blue flecks in its yellow & black tail. It allowed her to get very close and she admired it fully.

Now, could we say maybe, just maybe these ‘gifts’ are confirmation that trusting we are always with our beloved humans, no matter what experience the ‘other side’ is providing, could be true?!

Or do we have to send bigger, more beautiful or whimsical messengers yet??!!

PetWise #4

PetWise through Judy

Time for a new ‘love’?

“Hey, this feels very strange! I finally ‘get it’ that I don’t have to rush home from my grocery shopping because someone is waiting, depending on me!” After living her life for others beginning with her birth family then husband and child, and always her beloved pets, Mom is finally just beginning, for the first time ever, to understand the mixed blessing of freedom. She can get a full night’s sleep and begin to give to herself.

While the reality is that there is NOT someone waiting to love her when she comes in the door or accompany her on her walks and trips can make her feel sad, in her case, it’s important for her to feel all the ramifications of that freedom so this time she can choose that responsibility for herself when the time feels right to her.

This can be a really confusing time for her, too. Recently celebrating her friend’s newly adopted Layla, who is the ‘spitting image’ of Bubbles, certainly gave her pause. She was left wondering, will she know when the right time for a ‘new love’ IS. Well, the obvious answer is that it’s unique to all humans AND us animals, too.

Bubbles, no longer able to remain silent, suggests, “Here’s one example of choosing too soon (which--no accidents--happened to be the RIGHT time for Mom and me!). I was adopted with the best intentions for the family’s only child, Robyn, when she was just 7 years old. As is so very often the case under those circumstances, after all the snuggling and cuddling on my adorable fluffy puppy hood, the child lost interest and my care and feeding fell to my Mom.”

“Years later,” Sugar I takes over, “Robyn felt ready so I became a member of the family. Then the Dad had Olga the Great Dane, Mom had Bubbles and the child had me, in the fluffy little white cockapoo body. I suppose we looked a bit like a canine version of the 3 bears!”

“Through the fun times and some health challenges, my best friend Robyn grew to womanhood, leaving for college and work”, Sugar continues. “She labored over whether I’d be happier in a more stable home, better able to manage my health, but she just couldn’t bring herself to make such a choice, my care and maintenance once again falling to Mom—for a while. Boy, I had lots of adventures with both of my girls for a whole 18 ½ years! Tenderly, peacefully passing in my child/woman’s arms was devastating to her after such a long, meaningful relationship. It was four whole years before she could even entertain the thought of ‘replacing me’.”

Thinking maybe a retriever would be a nice companion, one day Robyn found herself just ‘browsing’ the internet for such a dog who might need her. Sadly, finding no one in Arizona, she was about to turn from the computer when she decided to just check out one more Retriever Rescue organization.

“Well, it was instant passionate LOVE when she saw my beautiful red face!” a voice exclaims. “Only trouble was I was in Louisiana. And another slight problem—my name was also SUGAR!”

But the connection was so very strong there were no insurmountable problems.

“Surely some real magic was happening here”, the second Sugar goes on, “Turns out I was a pure Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever NAMED SUGAR II! Yes, my new Mom had thought of giving me a different name, but when she discovered it actually written down as Sugar II on my health records, it was sealed. We’ve been a perfect match from the git go, too.”

So we’re telling our stories today to remind Mom and anyone else who may be struggling with ‘WHEN is the right time for a new love’ to relax into memories of us until the mind will allow us through your heart to choose—whether it turns out to take just one day or a whole decade!

And Mom wants to add a special footnote today: “I wondered again why it felt like I was procrastinating finishing this article and understand now that my job is taking care of unresolved issues from my past in order to even more fully give as well as receive love the next time around. But even more importantly to remember to thank my sweet, troubled Katie Lou for showing me I am capable of a magnificent unconditional love and my devoted boy, Black Jack, for reaffirming that lesson for me.”

Surely there’s a higher wisdom at work here…

PetWise #3

BUBBLES'S OVERDOSE!

Our ideas have really been interrupting Mom’s thoughts lately…or could it also be her artistic side that we all learned to appreciate during our lives with her? Sometimes it looked (and felt to her) like simple procrastination, however more often than not, after such a delay she was able to say, ‘Okay, now I see why I waited.’ Then because it was 30 some years ago, she had search for just the right photos! But we digress…

Days ago, Mom could sense that Katie Lou was no longer as anxious to tell her mental health story, no doubt off doing something else which was her bent during much of her earthly life—spent in a ‘world of her own’. Consequently Mom once again had to relax into this quandary before retiring one night.

“SO I had her dream about ME,” Bubbles quips, “as a very old dog, but with enough energy left to lick her madly with my healthy teeth and gums as she picked me up from a babysitter.”

And that was a loud enough message for Mom to be inspired to let Bubbles share the first memorable health experience of her life.

“From the first time they saw me as a fluffy puppy, naming me Bubbles, I was exuberant, even ‘talking too much’, I’m told. I never wanted them out of my sight, either, so it was no surprise they enjoyed taking me with them to places like the Oregon beach as well as into the Idaho mountains to pick huckleberries or mushrooms.”

At this, Olga, Sugar I and Lobo all get dreamy looks remembering those same happy-go-lucky times with the family.

Not only mushrooms flourished in the cool, moist climate of the wooded hills, however, but also ticks, not to mention gigantic mosquitoes, so they tried a preventive measure this one time. Meant to keep those pests from Bubbles’s very curly coat, their favorite veterinarian mixed a concoction he used for horses, theoretically reducing the dosage to suit the size of a medium to small dog.

“On this week end”, Bubbles continues, “I typically bounded exuberantly out of the car running down the gravel road as fast as my feet would carry me! Mom laughed as my U-turn skid sent me sprawling. Then up the hill I raced with my family close behind. Always sure footed, Mom was surprised when I stumbled and fell. Looking more closely she saw a bit of blood on my lip and thought I’d fallen in a small hole nearby. But they realized I was in trouble when I growled at Dad as soon as he approached me. So Mom had to carry me (not a small dog) in her arms all the way back down the mountain.”

Everyone nods, wisely agreeing that love (and adrenalin) gives humans and animals alike the strength to do mighty things!

“My body quickly became lifeless and I began having trouble breathing!” Bubbles quickly goes on. “Mom was more afraid than I, not only because I was in her comforting embrace, but probably because she knew the vet’s office was 20+ miles down the mountain and in addition, it was a week end! Soon she heard a gurgling sound coming from deep in my chest and wondered desperately if I was going to die in her arms.”

The ride and the wait to rouse the vet seemed endless to everyone. The diagnosis was a strychnine-like poisoning brought on by the error in dosage—an ‘overdose’! “All just to keep the ticks & mosquitoes off me!”

Bubbles adds, “Of course the veterinarian was remorseful as he administered an antidote which took a bit (seemingly much longer) to restore all my vital signs, too. There were no charges…and no side effects, but I don’t recall seeing that vet again, either. I’m happy to report that I continued to hike, carefree, with the family—pests and all!”

Moral of the story: maybe experimenting with beloved pets, blindly believing those with lots of initials behind their names (without a second opinion) isn’t a very good idea!