Postcards From Arizona

Deep Sadness Here Today

2009-11-14T16:37:00.000-08:00

Casper
3/12/84 - 11/14/09
may he rest in peace

He taught my baby how to ride

Wade's Grandfather back in the day..

magnificent

His knees became so knobby from roping

Grandpa Ron asked us if 2 year ol Mercy would like him
and he could send him down to our warmer climate

it was a deal

Casper front and center of that Xmas card picture

riding in the arena with Daddy

Daddy swaps horses a lot
but it didn't matter
Casper was always an old steady

Grandpa Ron came down to see Casper

He and Mercy rode thru the desert

He loved seeing Casper doing so well for Mercy

they were starting gymkhanas

and Casper was just right

always wonderful with small children
seen here with the Carroll Farm girls

there was a lot of love here

he was always ready to go

a phenomenal horse
one I'd trust a 2 yr old child on any day
and I did

Casper spent 24 years in Wade's family
teaching 4 boys how to rope

he went to a lot of ropings and rodeos
and he won for those boys

he was worth his weight in gold

in the end
his knees gave out
and he had been retired to pasture

he was put back into action for Mercy
but eventually she outgrew him
in terms of speed

she wanted to go faster
and he just can't do that

so we retired him again

I considered us privileged to have him here
and we tried to give him
the retirement a horse like that deserves

lotta carrots

Mercy still couldn't help climbing on from the rail
and just sitting on him

today was his last day

we'd known it was coming
we held out
giving him bute more and more
so he would make it until our fall season
and before it turned bitter cold
we'd have him euthanized

I figured if he lasted thru the heat of summer
he deserved that beautiful fall weather

and it has been beautiful

but this past week the weather turned
his pasterns swelled/stocked up
and he wasn't getting around

he could still get up and down
but he was suffering daily to stand up

these past few months we've been babying him
lots of carrots, baths, brushings

a special brushing from Mercy

hitting all the itchy spots

Wade spent a LOT of time with him today
he took the day off for this
and it was very hard on him

He loves this old horse so much

Shortly after this picture was taken
the vet arrived
it went well
Wade held his head
I guided his back end
and it was quick and painless

a big thanks to our neighbors who
provided a backhoe
dug the hole and then left the backhoe
here for us

Wade buried him personally
as it should be

Casper

a better horse was never known

I don't know why I do this. It's like wrangling 3 yr olds.

2009-11-13T10:15:00.000-08:00

yesterday
The Wife
asked

"how do you pet all the dogs?"

that's a good question

I could go on and on about
how it works with the dogs here
how I manage 10 big dogs and 1 little one
I'm counting Lexi in this but she's usually kenneled

how do I pet them all?

well we're always petting them
I'm outside a lot
and they all come up for attention
and I give it out

I start early with wanting to touch them all over
we used to have a big tick problem here
and I'd have to inspect everyone
toes, ears, under the collar, armpits

the problem
thanks to Truly Nolan
is nonexistent now

so everyone gets handled a lot

I expect to be able to do pretty much
whatever I want with them

that said
I have one biter
Dan the Man
who prefers I not mess with him

he gets a muzzle and it gets done anyway

there was one exception
when he got cholla cactus in his gums
and I couldn't figure that out
how to not get bit and get it out
so I took him to the vet
where they sedated him

I maintain strict Boss status here

there is a lot of love given
but I'm also super clear
on what's not allowed

we'll have some manners!!

no super rough play
no growling or sniping
respect the elders
and do what I say

4 things every dog should know
Sit
Stay
Come
Go

enjoy my photo demonstration below

Left to Right: Thelma, Special Bean, YoYo, Shady,
Samba and Maggie

Shady's saying "See how good we sit!!"
and Special Bean is blowing it

6 of the 10
Lexi is not part of this and stayed in the kennel

Dan and his sister Nee Nee below are the working dogs
they live to herd anything

I can yell at a specific horse
from the porch
and Nee Nee will run out and start working
that horse

they really don't want to participate
in whatever nonsense I seem to be doing

but I say
"C'mon, it'll be fun!"

then I say
"Nee Nee COME!"
about 10 times before she actually does it..

she did not want to come sit

Dan says "Mom, Ben's sniffing me!"

Ok, I count 9 in this pic
who am I missing?

Shady! Quit licking yourself!

Maggie and Ben! Over there in the corner!
That's rude!

MAGGIE! and BEN!!

BEN!! Special Bean!
GAH!
Samba, you're the best..

Ah HA! Little Dude!
hiding in the corner
he wants no part of this either

Ok I got it
barely..

so it's not perfect
but there's 10 of them there..

I give up now

Wade has a better day

2009-11-12T08:54:00.000-08:00

Wade got to work from home yesterday

Snowbirds come thru town
and drop various equines to be shod

this was 3 mules and a horse

Wade loves to work from home

It's relatively safer than the other day

the final report on that is
3 people went to jail
1 person had a heart attack
and Wade may have to testify in court

we'll file that under
Crazy Farrier Stories
I need to compile into a book

to be honest
I'm going to hide from the world at home

I may take a serious interest in something
like gardening..
something safe at home

cause
people are crazy

************

Lexi had a good day yesterday

still meek and cowardly

lacking in some social skills

here she's really sniffing for hoof trimmings
while YoYo checks her out

remember Thelma?
former South Phoenix street dog?

she was the same way when she came here

Thelma loves Wade
a bit maniacally

get ready
Thelma's going to flip

pet my belly! pet my belly!!

Ben and Shady don't know why
Thelma has to do that

she always gets a belly rub
crazy dog

Lexi watches closely

she has graduated to off leash since yesterday
and she's getting it

she comes wagging her tail to me
but not consistently yet

still a lot to learn on her part
but her personality is coming out

Another day in the wild wild west

2009-11-10T18:25:00.000-08:00

Lexi learns about being in the house

with help from Special Bean

He's a good leader

Maggie

Wade this morning
cleaning out the nasty trashcan

I tried to wash a pillow
it got waterlogged
and made my washer off balance
so I threw it away
where it leaked all over
and smelled horrible apparently

I have no sense of smell

Wade had me put my head in and sniff
and I smelled nothing

he was gagging

*****************

then I call him this afternoon
and he answers the phone
tells me he was trying to shoe a horse
but at the moment
he's trying not to get SHOT
and can he call me back later?

I hear ruckus in the background

he says the cops are on their way

I said "Ok"
and hung up

I swear
I wasn't even surprised

he was late getting home
after giving statements to the police
and feeding the animals there

he came in with his shirt torn completely open

I said
"Was there a fistfight too?"

he said
"Yep"

long story short
a family feud erupted
shots were fired
a physical fight happened
a lot of cops came
and people went to jail

Wade's finally decompressing
and to be honest

I think he should bill double for this

The days fly by

2009-11-09T10:40:00.000-08:00

I did finally get my mommy back
from the hospital yesterday

thank you for all your prayers and well wishes
it was a tough time

once again
re-prioritizing in life

so bear with me while
I figure myself out

meanwhile
there is Special Bean

who very much knows his name now
and it has occurred to me
that the neighbors must think I'm
completely insane

calling out
"Special Bean! Special Bean get over here!!"

he is a monster

with teeth

at the moment he's playing with Lexi
in the house
with a ball

for the moment
two seconds later he's gone outside again

Dan says "Save me!!"

and Little Dude says

"It's a good thing that puppy can't get on the couch yet"

He's gotten into Samba's spot outside

she's the matriarch of this family
besides me
and she's a grumpy ******

she's tolerating this nonsense
barely.

see the video below for the sound effects

she's pretty clear in her warning
but she's a good girl with the pups
she just moves off when she's had enough
snarling the whole way

obviously Special Bean decided
not to tempt his fate with Samba today

Where have I been?

2009-11-05T11:39:00.000-08:00

Everywhere and nowhere

a quick post here

my mom is still in the hospital
still having a hard time
has run a fever every day

I'm all over the place
very worried about her

taking care of everything
including the little things

she had/has stuff up on Ebay
so I'm figuring that out this afternoon

meanwhile Little Dude has been sick
and his nagging/wheezing cough
despite antibiotics and two trips to the vet
turned into a collapsing trachea
we learned on the 3rd trip to the vet
and the medication for that isn't working
so we'll be going back for round 4 at the vet today

while I was in and out of there
I had Lexi (Starfish#2) spayed
and I'm proud to say she did great
and she is doing great

a very special
HUGE THANK YOU
to
Juli, Sara and Scott
and
Lori, Karen, Mary and Jody
who all donated either cash or dog food
to help these dogs

for those who always wonder
(and I'm one of those)

I gave Starfish#1's vet bill to his new owner
and didn't take a copy of it first
but
below is a copy of Lexi's vet bill
spay, pain medication, shots, rabies
the works
your cash contribution is listed on there
(except Jody, who knows I already used hers on Starfish #1)

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!

In light of all we've been forking out lately in dog bills
that cash sure helped a lot

I also have some receipts from Susan for dog food
if anyone wants to see them let me know

Lexi thanks you very much even if she doesn't know why

she's still living in the kennel
with hoof trimmings, blankies and a toy horse
which I have witnessed her play with

she's become excited about food
wagging her tail at dinnertime

today was our second attempt at going "outside"

our first attempt she was too scared to leave the kennel
it was just too much for her yet

today Wade was shoeing here at the house
and all the dogs were around him
and it seemed like a good time to bring Lexi out

none of the other dogs cared a bit
and Lexi relaxed
even sat down and had a nibble of hoof

she didn't want to leave when it was time
to go back in the kennel

we'll work on leash training
manners and the rest of it

I have no doubt she'll do fine

The Gymkhana Results are in!!!

2009-11-01T14:37:00.000-08:00

Mercy and I warming up

this is the second time I've been back in the saddle
since the accident
but it's Monte I'm riding
and he's my good boy

I've told Wade that if horses were people
Monte would be "The One"

Wade doesn't care to hear that from me

Mercy trotting her poles nicely

Wade loaned his horse Olga out to a friend of ours

this kid normally rides a hot little horse
so Olga was just right for him

his sister Cora heading out

she's done real good with this horse
and he's patterned nicely
he just skips right thru them

this is what I get when I say
"Can you hold my horse?"

my turn

we did ok
stalled a bit on one pole
but otherwise our usual 32 sec run

Mercy doing the flag race

like a champ!

Special Bean was there

then there was my flag race

this is the part where I told you
in life in general
I don't quite get it right
but it's funny anyway?

yeah

we approach
and my horse always buggers somewhat
we've worked on it
but I think he does it for fun now

I got him up there
and he took the flag in his mouth

by the time I realized it
he'd dropped it
to everyone's delight

sigh

This is me saying "I swear I didn't practice that!"

they gave me a do over

especially since that's NEVER happened before

of course not!

we got it now

and made it stick

Mercy's barrel race
at a trot

Robert and Olga
I missed most of their run
but it was a solid 22 sec

my barrel run

going a bit wide on third
which was deep

heading it home

and the results?

that's HER buckle
5 yrs old and won her first buckle
I may burst

Heather from Carroll Farm made out pretty darn good

and me

Mommy won a buckle too!

even Daddy got a trophy

but I think he really wanted a buckle

they sure are pretty!

check out the lead line champ!

Is that not the cutest thing EVER?!

Mercy and the horse that won it for her

Mom and Daughter
hard to beat

Oh Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T22:55:00.000-07:00

First
my mom is still in the hospital
feeling much better she says
and sounding better
in a private room

Thank you all for your well wishes
and prayers
Thank you so much

they are gowning and gloving up
and treating it like it's H1N1 swine flu

at this point I can't go visit
until tomorrow due to hospital hours
but everything seems positive at this point
and she's in a good place to be

the best I could do was put it aside
and have a good Halloween

and we did

God help us all

I just can't ever seem to get things quite right

maybe that's what makes things in my life so damn funny

first off
this costume
I realized
has one leg 2 inches shorter than the other
???????
but ok
that I can deal with

it was the udder
and the reactions to the udder
that were unnerving

witness the udder in my lap

and you know what's shameful?

even I couldn't stop touching it

I looked over at Wade while he was driving and said
"You know. I get it now"

He said what and glanced over

I said "This!" pointing down

"Guys! They can't help but touch it! It's just there!"

I swear - Wade blushed

anyway
*ahem*

the kid was married to Spiderman this year

but then...

he saw the udders

we had some explaining to do

after that
and the jokes died down
we set out

Spideyman and his pretty pirate mama

Daddy and Mercy

could they be any cuter?

I love Halloween!!

*****************

in preparation for tomorrow's gymkhana
and my requisite new head attire

I thought we'd set a trend

we're not done yet
but it's a start

I showed them to Wade tonight and said

"Aren't these cute?! I shellacked them too,
with opaque glitter spray paint."

He blinked twice and said

"Of course you did"

In the blink of an eye, my focus changes

2009-10-31T16:33:00.000-07:00

This morning the flu hit my mom
and in her case it could kill her

she's lived with a form of Leukemia for 20 yrs now
17 yrs longer than they told her

when I talked to her at 8 a.m. she said she didn't feel well
by 11 a.m. she said she needed to go to the ER

so that's where she is
and they are holding her for a few days

if pneumonia sets in it's very bad news

meanwhile
it's Halloween
the kid is ready to trick or treat

I'm holding down the fort
and making sure everyone gets fed
and everything gets done

the gymkhana is tomorrow morning
I haven't ridden since gathering cattle
a few weeks back

Wade is last minute shoeing my horse for me

much to the delight of all the dogs

Special Bean gets his first taste of hoof trimming
and he likes it!!

Well it was interesting anyway

2009-10-30T17:32:00.000-07:00

Here's a shot last night
of how it should always be

everyone eating nice neat and orderly

and that IS how they eat at this house!

Special Bean has discovered the porch dog door

might have to redo this door soon, eh?

how cute is that little devil?

here's a quick video of him with Thelma

she plays very nicely with him

******************

so today we went back out to see about those dogs

along the way
when we were almost there
my Mom spots a donkey roaming

Susan had been told by a neighbor
that this guy also had an intact Jack donkey
but it had disappeared

so it reappeared today

Susan and my Mom cornered it
and got a halter on it

Susan says she's blaming it all on me
since I gave her the halter

tell me bloggers
she caught it
I just gave her the halter

is this all my fault??

I took Susan back to get her trailer
while Mom waited with the donkey
and one neighbor came and confirmed
it is indeed the missing donkey
so Susan loaded him up to go to her rescue

and we went on to try and trap
at least one dog

we set the trap
did see one very skinny dog
but couldn't persuade him
to go anywhere near where we wanted

he went off into the brush

on our way out we were met by a neighbor
who wasn't so nice
and has read both these blogs

he really read us the riot act
with much yelling and finger pointing
and he made it very clear he'd not like us out there
anymore

so we agreed that it would be so

we will never come back out there again

he will
"take care of the dogs"
himself

there's nothing more to be done out there
and the remaining dog we saw
I'm sure we'll never see again

we've been run out of Dodge

but we did solve one mystery today

this was a small female we'd seen

Great news!

2009-10-30T06:48:00.000-07:00

Starfish #1 returned to his new home
last night

they found he had jumped back over the fence
and was waiting to come inside

full story over at Painted Promise Ranch

I sure am glad he came back!!

*********************
Also
while on a happy note
I'd like y'all if you wouldn't mind
to go over to this website
and vote for Suzanne McMinn to win

she's winning now
but I'd like it to be a landslide

this online blogging job pays $5,000 a month!!

applications are closed now darn it or I'd try too

here's the post she wrote about
what it would mean to her to win this

and you'll easily see
she's one of us
just regular folks
a single mom who's
doing her best

that $5000 a month would go a LONG way

much as I love to hate her and her seemingly idyllic lifestyle
I truly love the woman and what she posts

lets help a fellow blogger and animal lover out
and vote for Suzanne!

Good Mood Gig from SAM-e

A peek around the house today

2009-10-29T18:44:00.000-07:00

Mercy's fever broke this morning
and she's right as rain today

but I kept her home anyway

tomorrow will be back to normal
and I will be trying to trap dogs again
and life goes on

but here's a few snaps of my day

Little Dude

the mountain of now clean dog bowls

the nearly worn out mop
and it's friends in germ fighting
bleach spray and antibacterial hand wash

jingle-bob spurs on the wall

hitched horsehair headstall

the barn sign for Starfire
pictured below

my friend Susan in CA I bet remembers
that sign always hanging in the barn

Starfire
a good horse

her retired show halter

a view of upwards towards the
"things that I don't want broken or touched" shelves

a very old roller skate

Daddy, Elixir and Benne Wafers

Holly Hobby

just odd misc
the lunch box is full of old buttons
that I love to run my fingers through

and there's Special Bean

he is special

This guy has totally got me beat

2009-10-29T11:20:00.000-07:00

today's post courtesy of
Fail Blog

seriously
how does this guy do this?

see more Epic Fails

Power struggles and projectile vomiting

2009-10-28T10:25:00.000-07:00

Still having one of those days
or maybe it's just mornings?

yesterday
I hid in the house
because I know about those kind of days
and today is shaping up the same

Mercy's still running a fever
achy all over
and just basically super sick

so we're on the poor couch..

how do you get blood out of leather?
anybody?

Wade took LD to the vet yesterday
and I had video of his wheezing
but I'm too lazy to put it up

he has a chest infection
antibiotics to treat it
and his teeth need done AGAIN

no one told me little dogs require
such constant dental attention
but upon personal examination
they do need to be done

I hear that he snapped at the vet
and vaulted off the table too

oh boy
I'm sure I'll hear about that in the future

me and my unruly kids

****************

last night was projectile vomit all over
the bathroom night
with Mercy

and the puppy continues to amaze us
at his ability to pee everywhere
including on us

this morning he attacked ankles
before either of us had coffee

that was bad

I ended up spanking him with a roll of paper towels
which is quite effective
and what's most often in my hand these days

and then again
after he got under my desk
and started chewing cords

my patience is waning

then a gate got left open
Reba got out
Mequite was already out
and there was much squealing and kicking
over some hay

I ran out yelling at them
dogs jumped up to run out too
and there go the two old b*tches

it happens because of the doors

who gets to go thru first

it's a power struggle over who respects who
and neither one of them is giving an inch

only one dog
can be the alpha female
and these two half sisters are squabbling over it
ever since Tequila died

I caught Samba by the collar
making her last thru the door
and warned her about her behavior
but she only pretended to listen

she and Shady growled and started it up
so I yelled at them
yelled at the horses
who promptly quit and went to their respective spots
and so did the dogs

all while in my pink bathrobe

......

no one has bled yet this morning
but it's not yet noon

I share this because
Suzanne McMinn writes a fabulous funny blog
and she wrote about her lovely "day in the life of"
and I just want to smack her

WHERE IS MY LOVELY DAY?

honestly
I do have them once in a while
but they seem few and far between of late

wait

I remind myself I have pictures

Saturday!!
we had a good day

Mercy got a different Halloween costume
at Walmart

and you'll see why she HAD to have it

she's really into this marriage thing

so we went to the Halloween Carnival
which is probably where we picked up this flu

the hardest thing to shoot
kids in a bouncy house after dark

the crazy obstacle course
NOT to be done in a wedding dress

she got hung up
and upside down
on the other side of this wall

but it was quickly overshadowed by her classmate
falling on the pavement and skinning his knee
resulting in 3 firefighters examining him

her upside down in a dress wasn't
so embarrassing then

and get this....
at the cakewalk
during two rounds
they gave away girls and boys bikes!

we didn't win

but we had fun!

and then it was back home
to Daddy
who didn't get to go

but who was there to be her knight in shining armor
carrying her from the truck

and over the threshold

how sweet is that?

now I'll go back to normal

my pink bathrobe and that spot
that needs mopping
and the sick kid on the couch

It's officially "one of those days"

2009-10-27T08:58:00.000-07:00

At 6 a.m. Little Dude was wheezing
enough that I couldn't sleep

he's been to the vet last week
but we may go again today

I got up
and started to clean up multiple
little puppy messes

Mercy woke up
and she's home sick
with a 102 temp

she came out to the couch
to watch cartoons

Wade got up and I told him
to give LD an antibiotic
which he did, in a big baloney bite

meanwhile Mercy fell back to sleep
and one of the dogs came flying in
jumped on the couch
didn't see her I guess
hit her in the nose

blood started pouring
she started crying

I got that handled
and then Little Dude
promptly puked baloney all over the couch

Wade got that mess to clean
and as soon as he got the garbage can
back to the kitchen
Mercy says
"I'm going to puke"

and she puked all over the couch

the couch is having a hard day

Wade was wide eyed by this time
and I told him
"Just run. Run while you can"

and off he went to work

on top of all that
I got bad news about Starfish#1

he jumped their fence
and has disappeared
they are actively looking for him
with flyers, phone calls
beating the bushes
but no telling where he is

Starfish #2 (Lexi)
is still here in my kennel
and I have a home for her
but it won't be until Jan
sooner possibly
but at least I'll have time to work with her

she's doing good
wearing a collar
learning to lead in the kennel
and learning people won't hurt her
she's still a very terrified dog in general
but she shows promise

she reminds me of my dog Nee Nee
with longer fur

and Special Bean

ahh
that little devil

he's a land shark

and he thinks he's one of the big dogs

flopped out after evening chores

he's so dang cute

now let's see what else the day can throw at me

I can only imagine...

All kinds of dog updates

2009-10-24T09:18:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to get here
to update y'all

but it's been busy as usual

here's Starfish #2
the young female

she does not appear pregnant
but she is of age
and she's a scruffy mess

nice scar on her nose too

I hear thru the grapevine
that the guy who died was NOT a nice person
so I'm glad these dogs are out of there

Susan is still feeding
and as soon as this female gets a home
we'll trap another one

"No Dog Left Behind"

speaking of which
the landfill dogs?

Haven't seen them!
last two times I went
none in sight

I'm wondering if the influx of phone calls
demanding something be done
got AC off their butts

I did mention how to trap them using the culverts
so maybe they actually did it

I'll ask next time I'm there

ok
back to the lil girl dog

I made Grandma go in and touch this dog

again
I doubt this dog has been handled

but we have a method

first
getting the dog in a new environment
and separated

give it overnight to settle
and watch what we do here

seeing other dog's reactions helps show them
what's expected of them

Grandma used a rope to start
just to touch
in case the dog decided to snap
like she did when I trapped her

note the tension in the dog
and the flies on her face

boy the flies love these stinky dogs

there's the relax moment
and Grandma moves farther
and starts petting her

once we get that far
the hose and the soap comes out

cause seriously
I can't have stinky nasty dogs here

since it's been 80-90 here every day
it's ok to do this

I wouldn't if it was cooler

she relaxed and got into it

"Oh that feels SO good!"

she really did like it

but she's still pretty scared of us

here's her "after" video

she did real good
and after that
I like to give them people food

the extra treat saying
"You did a good job kiddo"

that was all we did with her yesterday
and all we had time for
but I think that's enough

***************

meanwhile..
I ran to town late in the day and
picked up Starfish #1

he was to be picked up this morning EARLY
by Susan and her husband Randy
on their way to some kind of re-enactment deal

so much for my dreams of sleeping in

Starfish got to stay in my bedroom overnight
I opted not to introduce him to my dogs
because it's traumatizing and unnecessary

he was so scared anyway
so I left him in there watching TV

I was doing chores in the dark
and I peeped in the window

wouldn't you know that dog was
flopped out on the bed!!!
watching TV!!

he took to house life real well
and I'm pretty sure he's never been in a house
it took some doing for him to negotiate
hardwood floors

but he got with it

Wade nearly had a stroke
and made me put clean bedding on for us humans
and the dog settled by my side of the bed for the night
he really is like a new dog

no accidents at all
went out with me this morning on leash and
did his business properly

after I locked up my other dogs in the house of course

then Susan and Randy showed up
with a cannon on a flatbed..
yes, a real cannon.
Why did I not take a pic of that?

while Wade took a trailer of dead horses to be buried..
I ran around doing that job yesterday and got home
too late to bury so it must be done first thing
in the morning

ok
I admit it

it's a little Twilight Zone here

please don't tell Reality TV how nuts we are
umkay?
Thanx

Susan scooped Starfish up and put him in the car
I sent his meds, records,
and a letter to his new owner Janet

THANK YOU JANET!!

She's an animal communicator
so I have no doubts she'll understand this dog

last text I got from Susan said
"Guess who's on my lap?"

*****************

back to the girl this morning

I came in and cleaned her kennel up
while she watched me

then we did some heavy petting

very submissive today

I also added some roll on horse fly spray

she was loving the rubs

I think she'll be ok

so who wants to give this poor girl
a good home??

Speak up!!

and what about Special Bean?

would I leave him out?
NO!

here he is
the little peeing terror

I'm thinking I should have kept the old dog
and given away the puppy

if only Mercy would let me...

and here's a nice video I took
right after Susan left

turn DOWN your sound
cause I yell at the two old females
who squabble every time

they're so damn grumpy
those two

you'll see

they get very excited to go run out and bark
even if the car is gone...

and disregard the junk on the porch
it's going to the Thrift store
when I get to it...

welcome to my crazy world

now I have a hot date with WalMart

anxiety pills
where did I put those things?

My smoke alarm says I'm on fire.

2009-10-22T16:44:00.000-07:00

As I was hustling it this morning
stripping the bed and heading for the washer
I rounded the corner and sent static electricity
up the wall

which set off the smoke detector

and I thought

"I'm moving so fast I'm on fire"

and that may be true

I ran around this morning
doing errands and appts that were necessary
and was going to go out and try to trap another dog

WAIT
must update on Starfish #1

he's still boarding at the vets
until he leaves for his new home Sat morning

I got him the works
the kennel manager loves him
he hasn't shown an ounce of aggression

the Dr. who did his neutering called me afterwards
to tell me about his teeth
she said she did 6 extractions
and he had a bad mouth infection
and tapeworms crawling out of his butt on the table

the tech today told me she was able to pull
some of his teeth with her fingers
and you could smell the infection behind them

it was bad

BUT

Doc assures me he will be a whole new dog now
he has pain meds and antibiotics
and I visited today
bringing Gravy Train and Vienna Sausages

he was wonderful
he went outside in the yard with me
and had a whole new NICE look in his eye
better than the hopelessness I saw before

so I'm super excited for him

THEN

I decided to head out on my own to see about the dogs
as I had a parent/teacher conference shortly
and didn't have much time to do anything

honestly
I thought I'd just leave food and water and go

I get there and there's 3 guys clearing the place
and I thought "Crap. Again, I'll have no luck"

I wasn't sure if they spoke English
but they did
and I hollered over the fence
"Have ya seen any dogs today?"

they were standing by this little trailer
and one looks over and says
"Yeah, right here"

my eyes bugged out
"REALLY?!"

so I ran around the fence and sure enough
inside the trailer was the smaller female dog

only one door in and out
so I said "Block the door!!"
and ran to get dog food

I reached in and offered it
and the dog went bonkers
so I had to slam the door shut

then we all peered in to watch the dog
shred the screens over the closed windows
frantically trying to get out

the guys said
"You got a cage?"

I said yep
and ran for it
while they blocked the door again

I'm quite sure they thought I was totally LOCO at this point

I fumbled the trap together
and opened the door

the guys went on the other side of the trailer
and banged on it
and the dog ran right out into the trap

I'm not even kidding when I say it took
a total of 7 minutes to get this done

they shook my hand
and even helped me carry the cage to the truck
the dog snarling and biting the bars

isn't that precious?

she's not so pretty
but we'll see what we can do

I'm going to give her time to settle
and let her watch me interact with my own dogs

she does show interest in them
and no aggression towards me or them
since she's been in my kennel

but I'm not sure she's ever been handled
and I hope like hell she isn't pregnant already

we'll just see what happens

Starfish #2

and yes
according to her teacher
Mercy is doing wonderful in school

No luck tonight

2009-10-20T21:54:00.000-07:00

Nope

as soon as we pulled up
the property owner showed up
to move his some stuff
and made a lot of racket

those dogs weren't coming near that trailer

I wasn't very happy about it

we walked around behind the property
thru a LOT of junk
and a lot of places to hide

we saw two large black dogs
one with an open sore on his hip
but we couldn't herd them anywhere near
the trailer where the trap was set

we did talk to the property owner
and he's fine
shook my hand
and told me to try in the mornings

I simply refuse to give up
so I'll do that

********************

Mercy wishes for a little brother or sister
so I got her one

He's the cutest lil thing ever!!

I didn't get to keep him
darn it all

but we enjoyed him while he was here

I had forgotten the energy of a two year old

whew
they are something else!

******************

tonight
as I was fixing dinner
we had discussion about marriage

and Mercy said she's going to marry Daddy

I said she can't
because he's mine

then I don't know what possesed me
I wasn't paying attention
and I said
"You can marry Daddy when I die"

she promptly burst into hysterical tears
and Wade hissed "Mikey!"

well. hell.

so we had to have a wedding

I officiated

with the Children's Bible yes

the happy couple

and their
attendant Special Bean

the exchange of rings

their first dance

now doesn't that make you smile?

Going back for more

2009-10-20T16:01:00.000-07:00

As we drove into town this morning
Wade and I were listening to a song
that mentioned
"The woman of my dreams"

and I said to him
"Honey, am I the woman of your dreams?"

he looks at me sideways and says
"Yeah. The scary ones"

he's so funny

******************

we took Starfish and Special Bean
to harass my poor vet
who hides in his office
every time I walk thru the door

I technically still work there
but am taking time off helping
my friends hauling deceased horses

I carried Starfish in
as he has no idea about leash walking
he was very good
no carsickness

I left him with instructions to do "the works"

he seemed to do ok in the kennels
just cowering in the corner
but I have faith
the kennel manager is excellent
and will help him adjust
she's very very very good with dogs

and Special Bean
I asked the vet if he was old enough
for me to poke with his first vaccs
and he said he was
so I promptly poked him in the parking lot
and he screamed
but he's gotten over it now
and commenced to biting my ankles

and in a few minutes
us ladies are headed back out to find
Starfish #2

we'll keep you posted!!

Confirmed!!!

2009-10-19T16:04:00.000-07:00

Starfish has a new home

"J"
God Bless You!!

Starfish will indeed go to the vet tomorrow
and get his shots and neutering
and hopefully by Friday
you'll see pics of him
with his new owner

Thank You
Thank You
Thank You!

1 down
at least 6 more to go out there (or 11, we're not sure)
and possibly as many as 10 more
at the landfill

we'll keep at it

one Starfish at a time

Starfish, dog - same thing

2009-10-19T13:26:00.000-07:00

It's just like the Starfish poem

It makes a difference for this one

one dog at a time
we'll get this done

here's Starfish
as I call him now
last night after settling in the kennel

he looks so pathetic here

today
when it was light out
Grandma brought down some chicken livers

and with her supervision
in case he tried to bite
I touched him

and then I touched him some more

and he said
"GAH! This woman is a pest!"

little does he know

but he never once offered to growl or bite
even though he's scared to death

and you know me...

give me an inch
and I'll take a mile

"You are stinky dog and you really need a bath"

with soap

he's probably thinking
"What in the hell?? but it feels kind of good"

he did enjoy the massage

"Whoa! That's very personal, lady! But ok"

fyi
intact male
but not for long...
no worries
I didn't neuter him right then, geez people

pick, pick, pick

pee pee gets clean too

the dog says "Aww geez"

ears look decent

gimme a hug you big wet dog

he's skin and bones under all that fur
but he's cleaned and conditioned
and he sure smells a lot better

I made him a reservation at the vet clinic
he has a suite for a week booked for tomorrow
and he'll get vaccs, rabies, kennel cough, wormed
and neutered

he's still a big scared dog
but he's not going to hurt anyone

now if we can only find him a home
quick

cause not tonight
but tomorrow night
I have plans to try and trap another one

one at a time
we'll git r done!!

so c'mon folks
who wants this sweet scared to death dog?

****I'm hearing from Susan there IS a home for him****
****details upcoming****

Just call us the Trappers!!

2009-10-18T19:25:00.000-07:00

Got one!

as the sun sets in Arizona

we all cheer and give a thumbs up
HUGE thanks to Grandma, Susan and Mercy
cause this wouldn't have worked without them

an old male dog
flushed from under a trailer

***edited content****

" Hey Animal Control, are you seeing this?"
"Do you need lessons??"

took us a whole 1/2 hr total

Susan blogged it over here

dog is here at my house
in my big kennel
cushed up on a dog bed
and seems fine

I touched him thru the live trap bars
and he was ok
just scared

he's really old

we'll see what tomorrow brings
there's a flurry of calls
and talk of Best Friends
and quarantine kennels while we catch the others

we'll see how this plays out

and yes
my life IS like the Twilight Zone
ALL THE FRIGGIN TIME

that's why I blog
cause some days are so unbelievable
I just have to share it with the world

the good, the bad, and the ugly
y'all see it all here

********************
and because I have to be a show off

the other day I was out w/my friend Faith
and she went into Home Depot to get some rope

now we'd been talking about painting Mercy's room
and Mercy said she wanted pink and yellow walls

lo and behold
in the "leftovers" paint section
there they were, those exact colors
$5 each per gallon

so this morning we cleared it out
and it looked like this

and then this...

notice the child, washing windows...

and whaaa laaaa

pretty!!

still needs a dust ruffle on the bed
but it's as done as I'm doing today

now you see why I'm so flat out tired all the time

day is over
heeellllooooo Desperate Housewives night!

ta ta!!

More on the dogs

2009-10-17T17:34:00.001-07:00

Susan just did a great post
with more pictures of those poor dogs
and pictures of their living conditions

**edited content***

it was as bad as it gets

as I write this
my Mom, my friend Cathy
and Susan are out there with bags of dog food
trying to catch these dogs

go read what the Sheriff told the neighbors
here

I got myself a nap
and I'm ready to carry on now

man I was tired today...

but I can't stop thinking about these dogs

Latest news

2009-10-17T12:14:00.001-07:00

At the landill there are approximately
10 dogs needing to be trapped
and removed

at the house in the post below
it turns out there aren't just 3 dogs
there are TWELVE

A/C won't go w/o Sheriff
Sheriff won't go w/o a street address
(we're working on that)
and a lot of people are coordinating to
do something

they have been fed this morning
by Susan from Painted Promise Ranch
and we'll go out this evening to dump more food

however
I feed 11 of my own right now
and feeding 12 more for an undetermined
length of time is not feasible

we're working the phones to make things happen
but I give it until Wed and then
I'm calling the media

**********************

The tip of Special Bean's tail fell off
I thought it was mud caked
but it looks like some kind of trauma

Mom thinks rats chewed on it

the tip just withered and fell off last night
so sad

I'm just fully disgusted right now by all of this
and so tired I can barely stand up

very very upset and disappointed
in the people who get paid to do this job
and aren't doing it at all

but the rest of us aren't giving up!!

The Crazy - It continues

2009-10-16T20:32:00.000-07:00

I've been so busy that seriously
I haven't gone to the
*ahem*
bathroom
in two days

no time for that!!

here's the lil man
he's teething
and he's a terror

not to mention how he can EAT!!

he's doing good
two more weeks and he can have his first shot
according to the vet he's still too young
he'll also be wormed
even though I haven't seen any

we do have a big dog live trap in our possession

BIG thanks to K9 Korral in Wickenburg!!

you ever want the best doggie daycare?
go look them up

am waiting on permission from the dump manager
early next week
to put our plan into action

I even got my wonderful vet to agree
to board a couple feral dogs providing they
aren't aggressive

********************

so today I got a call to go out
in my truck and the business trailer
and pick up a deceased horse

My friend we'll call "Faith" went along
since it is her business

the horse was in a pasture with pipe rail fence
and the gates were too small to get into that pasture

there will be a PSA upcoming on dead horses
and making them easy for a person to get to
to dispose of them

anyway
after much discussion
we ended up digging a hole under the fence
and squeezing the horse under it

it was a very challenging pick up

after that it was pretty mundane
errands in town
swapping trailers around
changing tires
bank business
vet business
etc.

as I'm leaving town I get a call from Susan
at Painted Promise
and she said
"Whatcha doing?"

in that voice....

long story short
she needed help getting a donkey
out in the middle of nowhere

the owner died
the neighbors called Susan to take this Jenny

I pull up and there's this
she'd managed to capture it
and that was no easy feat

she'd told me I might have to rope it

alas no
but....
this girl's never been in a trailer

neighbors stood by to help
and they were needed

with much pulling and prodding
we basically lifted Jenny in
after she'd slid down
and sat down
in a show of displeasure at what we were
coaxing her to do

that's Susan
relieved

and Jenny
who wasn't so pleased

the neighbor thought there was another donkey around
so we traipsed around to see if it was nearby

as we passed the trailer the man lived in
the stench of death was overwhelming

turns out the man died a week ago

his 3 black dogs were milling around
friendly, but not to us
they were still looking for him

the neighbors told him he needed to feed them more
this was before he died...

***content edited****

and me
I couldn't stand to leave these starving dogs

they looked bad, folks

so I attempted to catch them
and they went in that trailer
and I stepped in after them
and
O.M.G.

I stepped right back out

it was bad people
really bad
I could see where they had eaten him

the dogs slipped out a window
and I never got one to come close

they did investigate my open truck
looking for food
and Susan threw them two chicken tacos
from her truck

so once again
3 dogs abandoned

A/C has been called
but you know damn well they'll never get them

so Mom and Susan will be out there tomorrow with food
and since we can't trap those dump dogs till Tues
at the soonest
maybe we can use the trap out there

I don't know
I'm tired
I have a 6 a.m. pickup in the morning

I'm a little disgusted by A/C
and considering making a big stink
and calling the news channels

this is ridiculous!!!