Do I Look Terrifying?

Do I look terrifying? Right now, the cats take one look at me and run for their lives! It's awesome!! But....that is the ONLY good thing to come out of my fractured dew claw. We Great Pyrenees have double dew claws on our back feet and I broke one of mine off and it had to be removed...OUCH! My humans have forced me to wear this thing around my neck that keeps me from licking the sore place, and I am not a happy camper. However, it is almost worth it to scare the living daylights out of everyone!

We have a houseful of foster kittens too; but I don't frighten them nearly as much. The shelter has been full-full-full and so some of the kittens are staying at our house and other folks' houses to get bigger and stronger and get used to humans (and dogs). I have got to say, they are awfully cute, and I feel so sorry for them. They have no homes, and there is really nothing that makes me more unhappy than to know that so many animals in our community are homeless.

The shelter staff and volunteers have been working literally around the clock to try to find foster homes, adoptive homes, or rescues where some of the homeless ones can go. As much as we all hate it, there is only so much room at the shelter.

One thing that is helping with the overcrowded situation is our new Boarding Program. The terrific folks at LANDRUM VET have given the shelter a great deal so that some of the overflow animals can be boarded, which gives the shelter more room and the animals more time. It is a huge help to get those animals awaiting rescue transport out of the shelter to make room for the new ones. The LAKE LANIER TEAHOUSE is helping raise money for this great program by hosting “Paws on the Patio” every Thursday night from 5pm until 8pm on their gorgeous terrace overlooking the lake. A portion of the proceeds goes to support the Boarding Program. All of us well-behaved dogs-on-a-leash are welcome to dine with our humans! It is certainly on MY calendar, and you can find me there on any Thursday it's not raining.

If any of you folks reading this would like to be a Fantastic Foster or an Awesome Adopter, please call or come to the shelter. You can see some of the available animals online at www.foothillshumanesociety.org (click on “animals”). We have some fine dogs and a bunch of kittens in every color and attitude! And since June is "Adopt a Cat" month, they might even let you have two for the price of one! I can personally attest to the fact that having two kittens is a whole lot easier on everyone in the house than having just one.....

And if you are going on vacation and have a little extra room in your car (and your heart), maybe you can be one of our Terrific Transporters and help an animal (in a crate of course) get to a new home or rescue. Call the shelter and ask for Dana if you would like to be a member of this prestigious group.

And....FREE HOT DOGS (my favorite!) and Veggie Hot Dogs will be available at this Sunday afternoon's FATHER'S DAY FROLIC at the shelter on Little Mountain Road. We are showcasing Working Dogs so you can see demonstrations of agility and obedience. Polk County's own K-9 Unit will be there, and of course Yours Truly will make an appearance, so it will be a “Do-Not-Miss-The-Fun” afternoon. PLUS there are great door prizes, including ten "Get Your Pet Spayed/Neutered FREE" certificates. A big Woof to that!! Bring Dad! Heck, bring the whole family! See you there!

Woof!

Champ

In All Fairness....

April has been a whirlwind of a month! I have been busy....more than busy, actually, but I guess that is a good thing.

I enjoyed myself thoroughly at the Upstate Special Olympics this year. There were so many very special athletes in attendance.....so VERY many..... I thought the Ceremonial Opening Parade would never end! These special athletes brought joy, hope, and determination along with them, and their enthusiasm was contagious. One little boy was having a major melt down and I went over to cheer him up. He certainly forgot his troubles, at least momentarily, when a cold wet nose was presented, up close and personal. I mean, that is what a therapy dog is all about, right?

The Special Olympics renews my spirit in so many ways, I feel humbled before these incredible humans (well, as humble as I ever get, I suppose). I have never walked away from these games with anything less than the greatest respect and admiration for the athletes, their teachers, and their families.

I was invited (and was thrilled to attend) the Foothills Humane Society's annual fund-raising event, the Animal Fair on Sunday, May 3, as the "cultural attache" (go look that up in the dictionary!) What an amazing event! It rained cats and dogs (haha) for the first 15-20 minutes or so, but after that the weather was perfect. The food smelled delicious but not ONE solitary person gave me a bite.....not very humane, in my opinion! This year the Animal Fair was held at the Cotton Patch, and I would have loved to have been free to explore this beautiful place.

There were many animals present (although I was the only one walking about doing meet and greet duties). Matthew Lytle's reptile display included many interesting-smelling snakes, including a very large yellow boa that made me just a little bit nervous, although she was beautiful and as tame as I am. I think. And he had a real live dragon too! He and his helpers were kept busy answering everyone's questions, and I learned a lot about snakes.
Wild at Heart is our local wildlife rehabilitation center, and they do a lot of educational outreach and teach respect for wildlife. They had an amazing display there, including a Barred Owl named Locket. I did not see Locket at first, but Locket certainly saw ME. When I finally looked up, there was a very penetrating stare being aimed at me.....hmm. I am fond of chasing birds, much to my humans' dismay, but not when they are looking at me like that!
There were some miniature cows and horses that smelled pretty good from a distance, and at the bottom of the hill they had an exhibit that included a very large rabbit, a turtle (this one was a lot bigger than the ones I see in the woods around here), and some baby goats and baby pigs. When the lady went to feed the babies I guess she wasn't fast enough for their liking, and the baby pigs squealed like they were being attacked! At the first squeal I froze; at the second, I simply had to go make sure they were alright. My human insisted on accompanying me and since she can't run as fast as I can it was like dragging an anchor, but I did get down there and smelled the piglets thoroughly and we all touched noses and wagged tails. Cute little things, and smart, too.

Unfortunately, I was forced to have a bath for this event, and the crew at Landrum Vet (who are personal friends of mine) apologetically washed all the great smells out so I was really clean. They really outdid themselves and I will forgive them. This time. I honestly tried to behave, although they KNOW I don't like any pulling when they comb me out!

This Sunday is Mother's Day! In addition to honoring and remembering Mothers, and wishing every Mother you know a happy day, it is also a good day to plan to spay and neuter your pets!!
Woof!
CHAMP

P.S. Please if you are looking for a dog or cat to adopt, please go to the Foothills Shelter on Little Mountain Rd. and check the dogs and cats out! They always have some wonderful pets there waiting for their very own home! They are open seven days a week, and on Mother's Day from 1pm until 4 pm.

Special OLYMPICS 2009

The Good, Bad, and Ugly

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

It has been a busy month for me, and it has most certainly had its share of ups and downs, at least in my world!

First, let me tell you about a little glitch I had....

Earlier in the month I had a really rotten day, because I insisted on counter-surfing. As it turns out, I had to pay heavily for my sins.

For those of you who are not familiar with the term "counter-surfing" , let me share the official Urban Dictionary definition: "counter-surfing: a habit of medium-to-large dogs whereby they stand on their hind legs to see what is on the kitchen counter". Ha ha, and my personal definition includes grabbing and eating whatever I please, which is a wonderful reward, or so I thought. Anyway, on this particular day, there were some very tasty-smelling freezer rolls rising on the top of the stove. It didn't matter one bit to me that they were still in a hard, frozen state -- I ate them anyway.

Now, how was I supposed to know that this was now a Medical Emergency??? Thankfully my humans knew and took immediate action. This occurred at o'dark thirty when none of the clinics were open (of course) so they called my Godmother, who happens to be a terrific vet as well as an understanding friend, and she told them I had to give the rolls back, immediately. Uh-oh, that didn't sound good......and let me tell you, it was not a fun time for any concerned! They took me outside and poured something down my throat, and my stomach felt really, really bad and....well.....1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 rolls....
yup, they got them all back, much to my dismay. I felt crummy ALL DAY.

So, did I learn anything from this misadventure, you ask? Heck, no! I would do it again in a heartbeat! Hopefully my humans have learned their lesson and will never again leave rolls out where I can reach them! Like most dogs, I will eat whatever I please without regard to whether it will cause me illness, or, as in this case, potential death.

I am a very lucky dog because my humans knew that rising dough is extremely dangerous for animals to eat -- it can kill us, and very quickly. I am also lucky that they knew who to call and were able to get the dough balls back, and apparently just in the nick of time. Humans, ask your vet what to have on hand in case your pet gets into this sort of trouble.

But let's forget that little incident, as I am back to my normal, glorious self. I had a really great time at Laurelhurst this month! The residents there were practicing for their St. Patrick's Day Bash and sang a song for me. It was "I'm Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover" and they were not only jolly, they were in tune! Got to love those Irish! Oh yeah...and they gave me my own little bag of doggie treats!! YUM! (No frozen dough balls either!)

I also went to two local schools this month. I was invited to Polk Central School, and let me tell you, these students rock! The students and teachers there raised over $700 for the animals at the shelter, and that is no small change! I was so impressed! They had a pet photo contest complete with the caption, "Whose Pet Am I"? under each photo. The photos were great! Of course, I personally am no one's pet, although I will admit that on most days, my humans are my equals. Maybe one day they will realize this.

I also got to visit at Tryon Elementary along with Jack, my funny Therapy Dog friend. There were a lot of students here and we were the only dogs, so it got just a little crazy! Most animals do best in a calm, quiet atmosphere, but I enjoyed myself anyway. And I do think the students did quite well on their animal test!

I am going to be at the Animal Fair this year! I was hoping I would be strategically placed next to the food, but in light of my recent escapades, my humans asked that I be stationed as far away from the food as possible. (Gee, thanks a lot.) Tickets for the Animal Fair are still available, and the best part is, you will get to hang out with ME. And feed me a treat, if my humans aren't looking.....

I am also going to be a judge at the April Fools Doggie Costume Contest on Saturday, April 4th. Judging will be at 11:00 am at St Luke's Thrift Store in Tryon. Don't laugh -- I take my jobs very seriously! Please come out with your best costume on! My friend Lennie Rizzo and Ziggy, my wonderful, crazy Therapy Dog buddy (whose photo won an award in the Po'Kitties All Pet Photo Contest last October), will share judging duties with me. It should be a fun time. And the BEST part of being a judge is -- I don't have to wear a stupid costume!


Woof!

CHAMP

Kelley Kitten - This One's for YOU!

I was thrilled last week to receive an email from one "Kelley Kitten". Granted, I was a little disturbed about what Kelley was saying, but nonetheless, I was still very glad that she wrote me. I am going to share her email here:

"Dear Champ the Therapy dog,

My name is Kelley. I am a three year old gray and brown tabby cat. I live on a horse farm in Campobello. When my owners are away at work, I read the Tryon Daily Bulletin. I like your column the best. Your last column was about caring. Being a cat, sometimes that is hard, but I try.

I am worried about a problem and I hope you can help me. I live on the farm with three other cats. We are all strays which were adopted. We all try to get along, but since we are all girl cats, we do have our disagreements. The problem is someone keeps dumping more stray cats at our farm. Sometimes there is a new cat every week. They are all big tom cats, and they are scary. I am small for my age. I asked my owners why I am so small, and they said it is in my genes. I’m still confused, because I don’t wear pants.

Anyway, they are mean and one chased me up a tree last week. Luckily, my owner was home to rescue me, but I’m still scared when I go outside.
I’m just a little cat with a little voice, but you are a big dog with a big voice. Maybe in your next column, you can ask people to stop dumping cats on other people’s farms. Maybe you can ask Uncle Leo to do the same thing in his next Humane Society update column. If things don’t improve, Ill have to get my own Great Pyrenees dog to protect me. I can’t wait to read your next column.

Thanks for listening.

Kelley Kitten"

Of course I responded immediately to Kelley privately and so did Uncle Lennie, but there are so many cats that have either been abandoned or have been born because the abandoned ones were not spayed or neutered, it's hard to say whether they were dumped out, or whether they just traveled from somewhere else to find Kelley's food source.

So, what can be done?

1) First off, I suggested that Kelley get a Great Pyrenees dog like me! I think that is a terrific idea! (C'mon, what did you think I would say?)

2) PLEASE get your dogs and cats (yes, I am talking about ALL animals) spayed or neutered! Call Foothills Shelter at 863-4444 and do your part to stop this cycle! If money is an issue, just call and they'll be happy to discuss your options. And seriously, run - don't walk - to get your cats spayed or neutered. One unsterilized cat can lead to....well, a real CAT-astrophe! Thankfully, Kelley's humans have done their part and made sure that Kelley and her cohorts are sterilized and can no longer add to the cat overpopulation problem. But every other cat owner needs to do the same!

3) Some people mistakenly believe that if they dump an animal out in a rural area, there are enough farms and barns that these animals will find food and shelter somewhere. WRONG! Dumping or abandoning an animal that is a pet and domesticated is unspeakably cruel. It is far better and much more humane to take the animal to the shelter where it will be cared for. If you can no longer keep your pets, at least give them a real chance to find a home through the shelter!

4) If they are feral cats and too wild to tame, call Foothills Shelter and get information about the Po'Kitties program, so these cats can be sterilized. Do your part to stop the cycle of unwanted cats! Sterilization puts an end to nearly all of the "unwanted behaviors" exhibited by these cats (i.e., fighting, spraying, etc.) and the sterilized cats rarely cause trouble for anyone.

5) Lastly, kittens are as cute as they come, but why subject even more of them to a life that is not the best? Don't they deserve the chance for a good life? If you want a kitten, go to Foothills Shelter and adopt one!

Kelley Kitten and her humans are the victims of irresponsible pet owners who either do not spay or neuter their animals or who dump and abandon their animals. The only solution is for pet owners in the community to take responsibility! In these hard times, we all have to stick together. Kindness and responsibility can go a long, long way to making our community stronger, healthier, and happier. Not to mention making Kelley Kitten's yard safer and more pleasant! So please be a good neighbor! (You can sing the refrain with me now: Neuter and spay, don't delay!) And please,don't be cruel -- take unwanted animals to Foothills.

Woof! (Meow!)

Champ

2009: "Learning to Care"

I know you all have been eagerly awaiting my "word of the year" for 2009; however, I noticed that not even ONE of my readers sent in a suggestion! Give a big old fluffy fellow a break, will you? I know it took awhile, but I thought of so many important and meaningful words that it took a while to choose, and I had to go with a slogan. Are you ready? Drum roll, please......my slogan of the year for 2009 is "learning to care".


I actually got (stole) this slogan from a couple of my friends that do the Foothills Humane education program, Ruth Kellick-Grubbs and Kathy Toomey. They were giving out pencils with "learning to care" printed on them to the students they visited in the schools. They are bright orange pencils and they are a nice little gift. And I think life is a lifelong process of "learning to care".

"Who cares", you ask? I do, for one! I think it is a worthy virtue to teach the children at our schools....not only to learn to care for the animals and those less fortunate than ourselves, but also about other people. There are some folks who become hardened by life and who lose their ability to care or be kind, but if you look around, you will see a whole lot of folks doing kind deeds every day. They have certainly "learned to care" and have not let life's issues cloud what is important.

If we all take "learn to care" as our slogan for 2009, our community will be enriched immeasurably. I myself plan to "learn to care" for the feral cats in the Po'Kitties trap-neuter-return program. It is a great program -- my cat-mates all tell me it is the cat's meow -- and well worth supporting. Let's all commit to learning to care about our community, and each other.

There are many ways you can help out your fellow beings in one way or another, and there are so many great organizations in our beautiful community to volunteer for! Of course I am more than a little biased towards Foothills Humane Society (where, as you may remember, I am privileged to be the Spokesdog) but any of the organizations around would be grateful for your assistance. And if you want to be a volunteer for Foothills Humane Society, just call 863-4444 and ask for Paula.

By the way, I visited over at Tryon Estates over the Christmas holiday. I enjoyed seeing everyone and I did, of course, don my Santa hat for the occasion. (Under only mild protest, as I was trying to be good!) I have also been to the Polk Central after-school program and plan on going to more schools over the next few months. So, students, see you soon!

Woof!

Champ

PS...It is starting to be that time of year when the shelter will gets lots of puppies and kittens in...so PLEASE consider having your dog or cat spayed or neutered...the price is right if you call the shelter @ 863-4444. It will help us save lives!

2008: Good Riddance!

Santa has come and gone.....I hope he was very good to each and everyone of you! I was expecting coal and/or ashes and switches, but instead I got a new Santa hat. BLECH! Gee thanks Santa.

I am not sure which is worse, probably the switches and my new hat does come in handy when I am visiting folks around Christmas time! Santa did not even bring me "spell checker" software which Mr Millwood at the Tryon Daily Bulletin strongly suggested I should have. Really Joey, oops, I mean Senator Millwood, the big paws just don't get it on the computer keyboard!

This year has been a year of ups and downs for many folks.....and as we all know "things" always flow downstream. This has affected the animals of the world as well. There are many more people and animals without a place to call their own.

I am blessed enough to have a home and a job, or two, maybe three, if you count my guard dog abilities. How lucky can one dog be?

Looking back over this past year, I have visited many different places. and this is my very favorite thing to do. I have met many new folks and enjoyed seeing my old friends as well. The Special Olympics probably had to be the highlight of my year as a therapy dog, but the FENCE Day Camp and local schools and assisted living places were all very special as well...and let's not forget the Farmer's Market with those wonderful doggie biscuits!

I have continued my old habits of stealing food, or paper towels, or whatever happens to be on the kitchen counter and chewing them into shreds.....and I have no plans whatsoever for any New Year's Resolutions concerning these forays.... Now that Santa is back at the North Pole until next year, why bother? You would think I would have outgrown this by now as I am no longer a pup, but it gets me the attention which I adore.

I have also been blogging this year.....although I will never make it as a twitter, mainly because I am too busy doing all my jobs to stop and twit. I am not talking about the TWIT that is "This Week In Tryon" here but I always look forward to reading their e-letter ( How's that for a plug, Doug?) I have often written about those less fortunate than I, especially the animals, because most of them truly have no voice....well, they do have voices, but sometimes no one listens! And I have tried to pass along information about "humane education", my word of the year, because I think this is a very important concept for all the beings on this planet.

I have been trying to decide on my "word for the year" for 2009, and I am open to suggestions. Please email me @ champtherapydog@gmail.com
with the word you think I should use and why you think I should use it. I don't know if there will be a prize for the winner, but there might be.


Happy New Year! I hope you have the best year yet!

As Oprah Winfrey says, "Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right!"


Woof

CHAMP


P.S. If any of you GOOD dogs out there would like to follow in my pawprints and try your hand at becoming a therapy dog, Petpals is going to be having a training session coming up after the first of the year. For more info on this, please call my "trainer" Katie Malone at 864-415-5804.