The Zany Zukowski Weblog

I didn’t know this to be true,until recently, but I guess that black dogs (and cats I’m told) are the least adopted in shelters.(thus the color most often euthanized) I can’t even imagine why? Our beloved Oreo and Dutch were  both darker dogs. Oreo, the black dog, was our original intention. Dutch, the chocolate lab, was the after thought. Our girlie girl Alaska was blond or white, but she was the bonus rescue dog. Anyway I am proud of our  family for adopting a rescue dog and a black dog at that! The rescue society we worked with had the top 10 reasons to adopt/rescue a black dog:

TOP TEN REASONS TO ADOPT A BLACK DOG

10. BLACK DOGS ARE EASY TO FIND IN THE SNOW

 9. BLACK DOGS ABSORB HEAT… PERFECT FOR COZYING UP TO ON A COLD WINTER NIGHT.

 8. A BLACK DOG CAN MAKE YOU APPEAR THINNER

 7. BLACK DOGS EXCEL AT NIGHT TIME GAMES OF HIDE AND SEEK

 6.BLACK DOGS NEVER LOOK DIRTY

 5. BLACK GOES WITH EVERYTHING SO YOUR BLACK DOG WILL ALWAYS BE COORDINATED WITH ALL OF YOUR OUTFITS.

 4. A BLACK DOG ALWAYS LOOKS PRESENTABLE ON ANY FORMAL OCCASION.

 3. BLACK IS A COMBINATION OF EVERY COLOR IN THE SPECTRUM, SO YOU WILL ACTUALLY HAVE A DOG WHO IS BLUE, GREEN, RED, ETC.,

 2. BLACK DOG HAIR BECOMES INVISIBLE WHEN STUCK TO YOUR GOOD BLACK WOOL COAT.

  #1 REASON TO ADOPT A BLACK DOG … A BLACK DOG IS JUST AS LOVING, LOYAL AND TRUST WORTHY AS A WHITE, BROWN OR YELLOW DOG!

Copied from the Rocky Mountain Lab Rescue website! www.rockymountainlabrescue.com

Yay for new friends! We worked with a rescue society to rescue a lab. We first met Tater a completely sweet and lovable blond lab, but the boys just didn’t interact with him. We passed on Tater, although I could’ve brought Tater home. So we set up two dog meetings for today but were so taken with Sniffers, formerly known as Bobby, that we brought him home and cancelled the meeting with the second dog. He’s young, about a year old, black with a white patch on his chest, and completely amazing. We know he was picked up in a neighboring state by a dog catcher, we know he is always sniffing, and he’s keenly aware of birds. We wonder whether he comes from birding dogs  lines or someone had some bird training into him when he was lost? He has yet to bark, another bird dog trait. In the few hours we’ve spent with Sniffers he has learned sit, come, and responds to his name. We’ve managed to get him to do down as well. Other names under consideration were: Dobby, Scooby Doo, CG as in Curious George, but the boys liked Sniffers. So far he has been really mellow and I hope he stays that way. He’s fitting in nicely. It feels great to have a dog at home with us!

Freddy: 

Box trucks

‘Mommy the box truck drove by, it didn’t bring us any boxes!’ (box truck = UPS)

Elephants

Mommy a lot of elephants won’t fit in our house. Maybe one will fit in the backyard. We could have 1 baby elephant and I will feed it apples and peanuts! (I played along and suggested the elephant could spray him with water from it’s trunk) Mommy please can we have an elephant and a big bucket of water so he can spray me!

“yes but how  will you pick up the poop? “

I’ll use the poop scooper!

“not a shovel?”

No you can use the  shovel! 

Stephen

This is my play structure and I can do whatever I want to!  (this in response to me telling him to get off the top!) 

I didn’t realize that 5 year olds had so much attitude!

It is strangely quiet in our house.  I mean to say all the kids noises are here, but the woofs and tail thumps are not here. It’s odd. I’ve spent most of my life sharing my home with a dog if not dogs, and to not have any is just plain weird. Not to mention the floor is a lot dirtier. Who knew 2 kids created so many crumbs in a day when no one is cleaning up the crumbs. We have filled out a couple of applications to get a rescue dog. It’s a process and some have even joked do you have to give blood too? Well it’s a bit of a hassle, fill out an application, have a phone interview, have a home inspection, then maybe adopt a dog when you are matched. But this  process has some distinct advantages over say going to a shelter or paying big bucks for purebred. The dogs from rescues have been living in someone’s home and have some basic house manners and training, and the foster folks already know about the dogs. If I go to a shelter I won’t have much information and might bring home an aggressive dog. What’s the point it would go right back to the shelter. A purebred puppy would be great, but I remember mine as pups, they were a lot of work, and not house trained. The pups are expensive. We think this rescue idea will work, I’ll keep you posted!

I’ve heard it said that life is about letting go. It’s once again time to let go, this time to our remaining 2 dogs. Oreo and Dutch died this morning. The vet said it was a good decision to let them go together or else we’d be right back with the other one. They are litter mates, brothers. They were 12 years and 3 months old. They’ve lived with us in every house we’ve lived in since we were married. And a piece of the mourning is the mourning of our life passing by without our friends. While in the grand scheme of things the passing of a pet who has surpassed their life expectency is somewhat minor. There are bigger problems like people without jobs, homes, and families. It’s still a death of a friend. 

Oh the stories we have to tell. About the eating of nylons, and scunchi’s. The nylons had to pulled out, the scrunchi’s always seemed to come back up at 3 am. The 8 collars they tore off Alaska and ate, and we never did understand why. The time we came home from waiting tables and sliding into bed after a warm shower was sounding great at 2 am, to find disaster had struck and plants torn apart. The times they ran away, and ended up at the humane society or just reappeared on the front driveway. The couch they tore apart from boredom. Jumping on to the breakfast table when we had a house full of  company. The time one of them chewed on my wedding ring.  And for all this grief, we were able to laugh at their antics. We put up with all the trouble because it also came with love and hugs, warmth and protection or at least fore warning of approaching family, friends, and foe. They were our friends and companions on the journey. 

The dogs were all  7 years old when we had Stephen and they were great with him. He poked, proded and even tried to put his pudgy hands down their throat, and they let him. Stephen tried many times to ride the dogs, and given their size it was like mutton busten. They allowed it. They cleaned up the crumbs, and licked off fingers. The stole more than a few treats. And they loved our boys. Dutch with his diabetes went blind and slowed down but remained ever so gentle. Oreo was content to curl up on the couch or under a table. Alaska was always our fierce protector and Mike was her number one guy. We miss them. 

This allows us to have another younger dog that will play more with the boys, and I know it will work out, it always does. Today we’re sad and missing our friends.

Mother’s day was quite nice. We planted flowers in the garden. Michael cooked a wonderful breakfast. It was a nice family day. We had to take a quick jaunt down to the home depot and during our return trip Stephen announces he’s going to run away. Really run away. I love the timing of this comment, on Mother’s day, I can’t make this up. I tried to point out he might miss his bed and his dogs. Not to be out foxed, Stephen announced that he was taking Dutch with him! Even better! He’s taking the blind, half deaf, diabetic lab with him. When I asked about Dutch’s REFIRIGERATED medicine, he replied that he’ll carry it in his pocket! Freddy isn’t going to miss out on this grand adventure and is going too! Great! For Mother’s day I get peace and quiet, although I am sure it will be short lived and if I were a betting person, I’d bet the three of these guys won’t make it much farther than the driveway, maybe to the corner. At least they stick together these traitors!

Our  girly girl, Alaska, has gone over the rainbow. (just in case anyone is unaware, Alaska is a dog) She had 12 good years, and suffered horribly with painful hip displasia. As a young pup, the hips didn’t seem to bother her much, but as she aged it got worse. These last couple of years were rough, if the boys bumped into her she yelped, and our blind lab wasn’t much help either, as he tripped and stumbled around her. When she gave up eating and didn’t rally, we knew it was time. We will miss her spunk. I will personally miss having another girl in the house. I never would have picked a healer for a dog, but she had some great traits. She wasn’t a pest and she didn’t bug us for attention. She would gladly be pet, then move on, she was content to hang out on the fringe of the group. Shimming between the block wall and the wooden fence at our home in Albuquerque was just one of her many feats. She also was head mistress of the other two much larger dogs. Once her alpha position was secured, she used to grab on to Dutch by the scruff and push him around the hardwood floors in our old home. We enjoyed her company for the past 12 years.