This is Sam...

This is me using the Furminator on Sam...and boy, does his fur need some "minator-ing"....
Even though he doesn't look too happy with me, he does enjoy being "brushed"...

and here is the gi-normous fur ball...


I love the Furminator...check out their site for more info...but check around for prices...i got mine new off of Ebay and saved some bucks...

I am excited about this week's contest! I actually get to enter one of my "kiddos"...see they are having their first pet contest this week. Below is one of my fur children, Sam. Sam loves to eat, sleep and SMILE...



For the people entries the contest is "The Eyes Have It" and my nephew definitely had to open his eyes wide this past Christmas to take in all of this food. We had just finished putting it all on the table and we turned around and he was ready to eat!!


So, go and check out other peoples' fur children and "eye" photos at the iheartfaces site...

I appreciate your comments!

Ok...I don't know the rule...if there is one...on what is appropriate/inappropriate to show on animals...so, I hope these pictures do not offend...maybe I should have drawn a black box over the unmentionable area...but I didn't...so, reader, you have been warned...proceed with caution...don't worry...there aren't any pictures of a corroded mouse carcass...

I took my dog, Holden, to the dog park yesterday...it was gorgeous and like 70 degrees...my friend and her 3 daughters brought their puppy as well...Holden is such a social dog and loves the dog park...he gets totally worn out...I should also mention that apparently he's not modest either...he zonked out on the couch when we got home:

It took all the energy he had left to barely lift his head to give me this look which I interpreted as, "Woman...leave me alone so I can rest..."

So..if you know of the rule for animal pics...if there is one...lemme know...

So a few days ago this horrible smell was engulfing my whole house...I searched high and low...I could tell the vicinity of the source...but had no luck finding the culprit...I Ousted and Febrezed like no other...by day two I figured it was a decaying mouse...that wonderful smell that I remember growing up...because we lived on some land and mice happen...

I searched again...no odor causing findings...I figured it was in the wall or maybe under the house and the stench was filtering through my floor vents or something...I was hoping this poor animal would just finish decaying already...

Now to yesterday...don't you just love this story??? Maybe I should have videoed myself telling the story and then blogged that...but I didn't so you have to live with the text version... I start moving some Christmas decor boxes that are in the living room closer to the garage...because they will eventually be put in the attic...I'm guessin in April or so...I had one leftover JCPenney gift box that I didn't use...so the thrifty me takes this box to my closet where I store wrapping essentials...I open that closet door and dang it if it didn't smell like rotting mouse flesh too...and it was strong...like in my face strong...I'm holding the box to move stuff around to look for a mouse body...as I move my hand on the box...I feel something kinda soft...

I freaked out...dropped the box...and ran to get a trash sack to dispose of the nasty smell...after I discarded the stuck on mouse and the box...I washed my hands for like 947 minutes...no joke...

After my heart settled and there were no germs possibly left on my hand...I thought I should have taken a picture of the mouse and the JCP box...but I didn't...so to all my bloggy friends who would have put your blog ahead of any emotion that comes along with unintentionally petting hole-y, blood dried rodent...I am sorry and pledge to do better when these type of occurrences happen to me...hopefully my description will suffice this once...


Here is Sam...Sam may have shown a burst of athleticism and killed the mouse...



But what I truly believe is that this mouse saw Sam's huge-ness and had a stroke...But either way...the stank is gone...I am apologizing now to the sanitation workers who will be picking up my trash on Monday...it's gonna be rank...

I saw this while shopping the other day....

Don't let this cute, sad face fool you...He is guilty...


guilty of thinking my bed is his...

See, Holden has a much earlier bedtime than I...so every night when I am ready to go to bed the blankets have been rooted and maneuvered to his liking...pillows & the comforter are on the floor and such...

I know he works so hard during the day and he is so beat that he just needs to rest...

It might not be so bad if he was shorter and would not sprawl across the middle of the bed...so, every night I get to remake the bed, have Holden move (which he gives the meanest looks when I have him get up) then put everything back in order...

He is adorable though...

So...I am all about the 100 calorie packs...give me thin, crispy, wafery Oreo crumbs or popcorn or whatever you want for a human to consume for only 100 calories...this is a major trend right now...I could not believe what I saw tonight while shopping...look who is now on the wave of low calorie packs:

You've got to be kidding me...Do other treats even have the nutritional value info on them? I honestly never even thought how many calories were in a dog treat...I have noticed lean treats, but come on...I'm focused enough on how many calories I'm consuming...I cannot start monitoring my dog too...Plus...they're 50 cents a pack...that's a penny a calorie...I might as well have a piggy bank...but I guess if my dog gets too fat from the other snacks he might become a piggy bank...Sorry...I just don't get these snack pouches for pooches...

I have previously told you about my cat, Sam....so, here's the story of my other four-legged son...Holden:



I had been in my new home for almost a year with just Sam...while growing up I cannot remember a time I did not have a dog...I was definitely ready...I knew I wanted to rescue one...so I asked around to see where other folks got their dogs...I was directed to Pets and People...I looked at their pictures and saw Holden...I also saw other dogs I wanted to meet...I knew I wanted a Basset/Beagle mix because I had one before, Cricket, who was a great dog...I went to the shelter to meet the dogs I had chosen from online...I wanted to take them all home...but felt a connection with this little guy....



I didn't get him that day...I went back a few days later...knowing that he could possibly be adopted before I returned...I took my friend, Janice...She and I took Holden out to the play area and we both thought he was deaf or at least nearly deaf...He wouldn't respond to any of our calls or noises we would make...It didn't matter....somehow I knew he was the dog for me...plus, how could I say no to that face?




I was nervous about bringing him home and how he and Sam would interact...Sam was rather skittish at first but they have warmed up to each other quite well!...I prepared a pet bed next to my bed on the floor for Holden's first night...that lasted for about 2 seconds...he was up in the bed...guess he knew he was home...I took him to my vet for a check up and he wasn't deaf...just had selective hearing...I would be the same way from all the yelping going on at the shelter...


Holden has such a great demeanor...he is a very social dog...when we go to the dog park he is the official greeter (along with his cousin, Chloe)...he never meets a stranger...in fact Sam is the one who meows when someone approaches the door...Holden doesn't even bark...instead of a beware of dog sign...I need one that says watchcat on duty...Holden is also very smart...he and I participated in a beginner dog training class and he was voted the dog with the best tricks by the classmates...



Even though Holden has such great qualities...he can still be a trouble maker...like when he dug under the fence and walked into my neighbor's house...or knocking off a whole pan of brownies off of the counter top and devouring in 3.24 seconds...or how he will root the blankets for 3.24 hours to make the perfect bed, and they end up the same way as when he started...or when he get's into Sam's litter box for some kitty biscuits...

Like his brother, Holden does like to eat...

I am not sure of Holden's story prior to going to the shelter...but whatever path led him to me...I'm thankful...I do feel that he was with a very loving family...and I do feel sad that they lost him...but I gained a pup with a great personality and loves me wholeheartedly...even though he was "Holden" on for dear life...and I saved him...He has increased my life dearly...

Sam...the oh, so precious fatty catty introduced in a previous blog ....decided to have a night on the town this past Friday night...Yes...I did leave the doggie door up, but on the rare occasion that Sam has exited this door, he is quick to return...not even leaving the porch...Sam wouldn't even dart out the front door if it was propped open as I carried in Target treasures or groceries...



Well...not anymore...I noticed late in the evening that he was MIA...not in his usual spots...I checked outside...hearing no commotion from neighboring dogs and seeing no cat...Checked the front yard...still nothing...I took a drive up and down a couple of streets not sure if I would see him or not...but had to try...no luck...



I made sure the doggie door was open hopeful for his return...I knew he'd be hungry...I couldn't really sleep at all...every couple of hours I was checking in the utility room to see if my wayward son had returned...



Did I look long enough? What if he gets hit by a car? What if he totally trades me in for a new family...maybe one with kids that will play with him more...or one that won't give him the weight management food...these and other thoughts kept going through my mind...



At 7 the next morning I checked the utility room again...and yes...he did return...but with an attitude...he comes strutting into the kitchen talking to me...demanding food...so...all was back to normal...

Here's one of my boys, Sam. Sam was a man of the streets in my aunt's neighborhood as a kitten and honestly, I reluctantly took him to live with me in my new house. I really do love him...now...



Since he was a "wild" one he was used to fighting for his food. He was so little when I took him home.
After a few years, he definitely has evolved from a skittish kitten to a cat that is not afraid to gently paw at you until you pay him attention...

I can be a picky eater...I generally eat the same thing wherever I go...Taco Bell = 2 bean burritos with sour cream and mild sauce...Arby's = chicken salad wrap...and so on..I do venture on occasion...But, my dog is a picky eater too...I love my pets, but they do not buy the food. Here is Holden's bowl when I first feed him:

This is his bowl after he has sorted out the flavors he likes. He even likes to leave a few kibbles of the kind he doesn't like next to the bowl. I just pour the left overs back into the container, hoping eventually he'll eat it...
He's going to be real disappointed when all that is left is the kind he doesn't like. I did buy a different kind for him for the next go 'round...Hopefully he'll like it all...