Caption this contest winner

Can you get this dog off my ass?

Whoops! I nearly forgot to post the follow up with the winner of our "caption this contest"! Congratulations to Foley Monster and Pocket! "Can you the this dog off may ass?" was the entry that made me laugh the most.

Thanks for all (3) entries!  I hope my writer's block for captions doesn't happen again anytime soon...but if it doe,s I know who I can call on!

Old age isn't so bad when you consider the alternative.

I think one of the most challenging things about pet parenting is that our pets are most certainly going to age and worse yet, suffer the pains of that age right before our eyes. Dogs and cats have incredibly short lives and as their caretakers we often need to help them in their twilight years. Of course we would all prefer this to the alternative and so we do what we can to make the best life for our pets.

Sharona will turn 13 in February. That’s 91 in people years. For the most part, she is in excellent health for her age. However, she is having trouble with arthritis. She was a bit of a wild child in her younger years and she had surgery for torn ACLs on both of her back knees. Now she has trouble getting onto the bed and couch. She’s been having trouble getting comfortable and unable to sleep in one place for long. Additionally the old gal has some urinary incontinence issues, which basically means wet spots when she gets up from a nap and the frequent and urgent need to go (that means our thumbs are called into duty to open the back door and let her outside more that I would like).

Oh the indignity for such a wonderful old lady to endure! I believe she was also suffering from a bit of depression at this decline in her body.

I may be old, but I am still gorgeous.

Luckily, with our Veterinarian’s help, we seem to have hit on a wonderful cocktail of drugs for her pain and discomfort, combined with a healthy diet and supplements, plus a nightly deep tissue doggie massage from yours truly. I’ve noticed a great change in her demeanor since she stated on the drugs and the massage therapy. I can see she is sleeping better and playing with Winnie Cooper a little more. She has a number of good years left and I look forward to being her Mom forever.

Do you have older pets? Do you have experience with arthritic dogs? Am I missing something that could help?



Happy Pet Blog Hop Saturday! Follow these other blogs too!

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Caption this...

Today I couldn't think of a funny, snarky, wise-ass caption for this photo. I feel like a failure. But I am hoping you all can help me out...add your thoughts on a funny caption in the comments. The winning caption, as judged by me and my panel of esteemed comedians (that's the dogs) will be featured on an updated post with the photo tomorrow.

Shih-tzu or Snub-Nosed Monkey?

I have for your consideration, side by side photographic evidence that Winnie Cooper could be part Snub-Nosed Monkey.

You decide.

Snub-Nosed Monkey photo from National Geographic on line.

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He's right behind me-isn't he?

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How you doin'?

Winnie Cooper Goes to Groton

This weekend we took a day trip to my hometown in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont.  Over the holidays I had forgotten to wrap and thus give several gifts to some of my nieces and nephews, so a return trip was needed.

As a general rule, we leave the dogs at home most of the time, but on Saturday we decided to bring Winnie to my Mom’s house. Winnie loves her Grammie (or she loves the table scraps she gets at Grammie’s house…) and Grammie loves Winnie.

Here’s a picture of Winnie’s face during our ride.

Are we there yet?

We stopped to take a picture of Groton’s welcome sign…yep, I grew up there and it is like a large family...a large gossipy family.

Population: 876

My Mom’s official greeter, Muffin was on the porch to say Hi. Winnie took a wide path to scoot around Muffin to get in the front door.

Fun Fact: Muffin is Walter's biological mom

When we got inside, Winnie discovered that she is no longer the only apple of my Mother’s eye. My Mom has a small, adorable beagle named, Shiloh. Winnie met Shiloh last year, but Winnie must have thought Shiloh was just a house guest and not a permanent fixture.

It took some butt sniffing and a few warning snaps before they decided to be buddies. Well, Shiloh decided right away, Winnie took a little while…

Uh, Grammie? A little help here?!

We also went to my older brother’s house, where Winnie peed on an area rug and terrified their Weimaraner, Boots. Then we stopped in at my other brothers house and Winnie taunted her doggie cousins, Gertie and Millie, the Boston Terriers.  Regretfully, I did not get pictures of these meet and greets.

The ride home was a long one, Winnie was exhausted! Truthfully, we all were.

Hello Dolly!

If you've been reading The Other Winnie Cooper or know me personally, you know my family includes Sharona, the pit bull. Back in October, 2010 on National Pit Bull Awareness day, I hosted, "Sharona-palooza!"- An all-day blog event where I posted information about pit bulls and generally gushed over the awesomeness of Sharona (her awesomeness is infinite).

One of the pit bull stories we highlighted during Sharona-palooza! was about Dolly the Pit Bull. I found out about Dolly on Facebook, and started following her Facebook page. I watched Dolly's story on YouTube and sobbed. Dolly's rise from a bait dog in dog-fighting to a canine good citizen is amazing and now Dolly helps to ensure that other pit bulls do not suffer like she has.

Dolly lives in Florida with her Mom, Erica. Erica and Dolly recently launched Dolly's Foundation. Dolly's Foundation has a wonderful mission statement that reads:

"The purpose of Dolly's Foundation is to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome homeless, neglected, and abused American Pit Bull Terriers and other bully breed dogs. As well as preserve, promote, and bring positive awareness to the breed and the negative stereotype bestowed upon them."

Mad props to Erica and the rest of the human team at Dolly's Foundation. Read their bios on the foundation's website and see how hard these folks work to rescue and promote pit bull adoptions—it's truly inspiring.

Find out how you can support Dolly's mission at Dolly's Foundation website.

I also recommend that you like Dolly on Facebook too- to see all the wonderful work Miss Dolly is doing.

Hugs and kisses to Dolly and to the pit bulls awaiting their forever homes in Florida.

Saturday Pet Blog Hop-Pets and lovin' it!

Happy hopping everyone!

Today I want to share a fun new thing I created using paper.li. Paper.li is an online tool that organizes links shared on Twitter into an easy to read newspaper-style format.

Introducing: The We Love Pets and Pet Stuff- Daily-- my collection of recent news and posts from some of my favorite tweeps. All about pets and pet stuff, because that’s what I love. As the title suggests, the "paper" is updated daily. I will be sharing it via this blog and Twitter.

Are you on Twitter? Follow me at @TheOtherWinnieC. Want to be added to The We Love Pets and Pet Stuff Daily? Just ask. I will add you to the list (must be pet related, please). My hope is that this will be a place for more tweeps and others to find great pet info and drive some traffic to all of us (yay for traffic!).

Here's the rules to follow if you want to join the blog hop, and the list is at the bottom of the page for you to find new friends.

1. Link up your blog name and its URL using the Linky Tool below.
2. Grab the Pet Bloggers Blog Hop button from Life with Dogs and include it in your Saturday Pet Bloggers Hop post so that your readers will know what is going on.
3. Follow your co-hosts listed in the first 3 slots of the Linky Tool and comment on their blogs to say hello!
4. Follow as many other blogs on the linky as you'd like.
5. Take a moment to comment on the blogs telling them you're from the Saturday Pet Bloggers Hop.
6. Follow back when you get a new follower through the Saturday Pet Bloggers Blog Hop.


Thanks for hopping over here!

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You didn't want this blankie back did you?

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Today I am emo Winnie.
That Owl City song gets me every time.

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Seriously, I love this story, tell me more, YAWN,
No really, I am interested...ZZZZZzzzzzzz...

Who is the star of this blog anyway?

Be the Change.

Welcome to my first Blog the Change for Animals post.

Since starting The Other Winnie Cooper in September of 2010, I have been blogging about animal issues close to my heart. I have posted about a shelter in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont that is helping to foster and care for 20+ cats that were abandoned by a hoarder. On National Pit Bull Awareness Day I blogged about Sharona, my pit bull, and all the challenges that come with the misperceptions of owning this controversial dog type (I called it Sharonapalooza, read those posts only if you want to meet the best dog ever!). For Winnie's birthday, we asked you (dear readers) to help us donate dog and cat food to our local food shelf. I have mentioned/advocated for my local animal shelter, The Humane Society of Chittenden County on many occasions (like, here, here, oh and here).

So, what oh what should I write about for the Blog the Change for Animals event?

Today would have been the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.'s 81st birthday. This weekend is a holiday and a three day weekend for many people in the U.S. because this great man stood for what he believed in and inspired many others to do the same. A famous quote from Martin Luther King Jr. says that, "Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?"

The words and life of Martin Luther King Jr. resonated with me from an early age. I was born in the mid- seventies, many years after the Civil Rights era in the U.S., and I grew up in the 1980's which is not a decade known for its altruism and spirit of giving. Yet, somehow the 1950's and 1960's have always been fascinating and inspiring era to me, and Reverend King's message about doing for others is at the heart of this blog post.

One of the things I have been able to do for others (in this case, the animals, of course) is to raise money and awareness of their needs. Well, this weekend also happens to be my birthday too! For my birthday, I asked my friends and family to help me raise money for the Humane Society of Chittenden County. Honestly, I think my closest friends and family probably think, "Here she goes AGAIN with the raising money for animals!" and many haven't or won't donate because they think it's just another one of my many fund-raising ploys. It is, but it is also one of the events throughout the year that brings me great joy. I love that the day of my birth can bring food, shelter and eventually forever homes for animals that cannot live on their own, do not have a voice and need us, their human caretakers to help give them the best life possible. Ultimately the change I am blogging for today is the prevention of animal suffering (in my neck of the woods at least).

Every little bit helps, and I will continue to hound (natch!) my friends, coworkers, family and complete strangers (hey, that's you!) to donate and help animals. If you are interested in making a thirty-something woman's (gulp!) young girl's birthday wish come true, go here. Donate. Be the change.

Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thoughts? Comments? Opinions? Yes, please!

Thanks for Your Support

I was telling Winnie all about the Pet Blogger Challenge that we took the other day and about all the kinds words and support we were getting from other pet bloggers and our readers...and she just wanted to say thanks! Here she is trying to read all the other fun blogs we've discovered through the challenge (go here for the entire list of 102 fantastic pet blogs, you won't regret it!).

Oh my, this internet kind of smells funny.

Winnie's favorite comments were;
1) "I'd say the thing I'd like to see most on your blog is more pictures of that adorable Winnie! What a cutie pie!" from Peggy at Peggy's Pet Place.
2) and, "Cute cute cute!" from fearfuldogs' blog

Winnie was very impressed with these insights into the blog and thought they were spot on. Go figure!

A special shout out to Will My Dog Hate Me and GoPetFriendly.com  for organizing the challenge and a hearty congratulation on it's success. The response to my post for the challenge has inspired me and given me hope that folks are out there and interested in this blog (and very interested in cute pictures of Winnie Cooper!).

You're welcome.

The Things Winnie Gets Away With

Here's Winnie, napping- on an area rug from our bedroom that she pooped on last night. That's right, the rug is sitting at the top of the stairs to be taken to the laundry in the basement and she decided to take a nap on it. This is after she got scolded for taking a dump on the very same rug.

Laa...dee...da, thanks for leaving this soiled rug
for me to nap on. I never even knew
I wanted to nap here before!

And here she is looking annoyed because I disrupted her nap!

Can't a girl get some rest around here
with out a camera in her face? Geesh!

This is just one of the things Winnie is cute enough to get away with and have me laughing at it instead of fuming mad.

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What's that you say? You want to give me a treat?

Pet Blogger Challenge

I decided to participate in a Pet Blogger Challenge brought to you by the blog Will My Dog Hate Me? to talk about...well the challenges of pet blogging. The idea is for a lot of pet bloggers to chat (via blog posts of course) about their blogs, share--and of course drive traffic! It was a great exercise in thinking about why I sit here day after day blogging to you, dear readers. The answers to the questions helped me understand better just what I am aiming to do by publishing this here blog, hope you enjoy my thoughts...

1. When did you begin your blog?
I began The Other Winnie Cooper blog in September, 2010.
2. What was your original purpose for starting a blog?
I had been thinking about starting a blog about my love for animals with my shih-tzu, Winnie Cooper as the star, but I didn’t want it to be too cutesy or self-serving. So I decided to broaden the scope to all things animal/pet related that interest me and my pet family. So far this has included fundraising for animal shelters, pit bull education, reviews of pet related products that I like and of course, a lot of cute photos of Winnie Cooper! The ultimate goal is to be interesting, so that I continue to be interested in blogging as well as hopefully adding something fun and interesting to the internets and pet blogging community.
3. Is your current purpose the same?
My goal has been to keep it fun and not too much of chore (for me or my readers!). I think the blog has captured some of that spirit.
4. Do you blog on a schedule or as the spirit moves you?
I started out thinking I would put together a very specific calendar of topics and schedule when I would post…but I have found that it’s been easier to be creative on the fly and post when the spirit moves me. So far “traffic” has not been an issue, it’s a new blog and I am just happy that my Mom and boyfriend read it!
5. Are you generating income from your blog?
No, not even a little! I am excited to see what some other pet bloggers say in answer to this question. I would love to grow into a place where the blog has a greater impact, and I could generate income and donate a percentage to my favorite animal shelters.
6. What do you like most about blogging in general and your blog in particular (bragging is good!)?
The thing I like the most is being able to express my love and adoration for my pets. Simply put, I am crazy about them and it’s nice to be able to shout it from the roof tops, so to speak. I think the strength of the blog is in the sense of humor and compassion I try to bring to the writing and the photo captions. I’ve always wanted to be a writer, I think I have finally found the right thing to write about…”write what you know?” Definitely!
7. What do you like least?
I am not overjoyed at the template from blogger, but I am trying to decide when I should spiff it up with a custom look. The design and technical aspects are challenging for me, writing is definitely more interesting to me.
8. How do you see your blog changing or growing in 2011?
My goal is to get out into the real world (as opposed to the virtual world) and volunteer, interview, and generally be a part of my local animal/ pet care community so I can communicate it all back to my readers. I hope that will interest folks and the blog will grow accordingly.

So what do you all think about this? What would you like to see on The Other Winnie Cooper in 2011? What do you like best? and least (feel free, I can take it!)?

Spa Day at Doggie Styles

We went to the groomer's today. I like to call it Winnie's Spa Day. I try to tell her how great it is and how much they love her at the salon. She isn't quite buying it and usually tries to make me feel terribly guilty for bringing her there by quivering and looking at me with those big wet eyes.

One of the special things about having a froufy dog such as a shih-tzu is that they require regular professional grooming. You could try to learn how to do it at home, which I did when I first got Winnie. I bought the clippers and a video...but I was terrible at it. And Winnie HATED when I groomed her. So I realized that despite the cost, professional grooming was a necessity.

I tried out a few different places in the first year I had Winnie. The first place I went was in a small strip mall sort of place. I just did a walk in appointment. They were nice, the place had just opened up and seemed clean and reasonably priced. Unfortunately, the groomers there cut Winnie's sensitive skin under her back legs with the clippers. Which they didn't bother to tell me about and I only discovered once we were home. The clipping they gave her was so short she got a rash from the irritation. This ended up in a Vet visit to get a topical medication to help the redness and irritation. The "reasonable" price of that grooming experience soon ballooned into a $250 vet bill. Needless to say that place didn't get our return business.

Another place we went to was a nice and they did a pretty good job, but from what I could see they mostly dealt with large breeds. Winnie was not getting a quality puppy cut from this place and for $50 a pop, I wanted a bit more out of the grooming experience.

So, I asked around a bit and a friend recommended Doggie Styles Pet Grooming in Colchester, VT. My friend told me they were friendly and did a great job grooming his Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Koko. I think Koko is adorable and always looks wonderful, so I decided to give Doggie Styles a try.

After one trip to Doggie Styles we were hooked. Well, I was hooked, Winnie is still not sure. But to be fair, If you recall this blog post, she's a bit of a Pig Pen.

Here's the front door at Doggie Styles:

Yep, the name really is Doggie Styles.

This is the typical greeting when you enter the salon:

 

 

Oh Hai! How can I help ya?!

Here's a few snap shots of Winnie's grooming experience at Doggie Styles:

Seriously Mom, You're just gonna LET this happen?

OMD! I hate you so much right now.

To wrap up, we are big fans of Doggie Styles Pet Grooming and highly recommend it to anyone in the area. The staff and the especially the owner, Joanne (Winnie's personal groomer of course) are awesome. Professional, helpful, kind and best of all they love Winnie. Which is worth all the money in the world.

And for the BIG REVEAL. Here is Winnie before and after her big spa day!

 What to you think? Doesn't she look great? Well, she smells great too (well, not her breath but that's a completely different story...) and her coat is shiny and silky too.

Tell me what you think, please share any grooming secrets and tricks you have in the comments!

Not Just Another Birthday Post....

I lied, this is totally just another birthday post! This time the birthday is mine. Me being the human, with the thumbs behind this here blog. I thought long and hard about whether I would share this with blog readers, but I finally decided, what the hell, why not.

Every year I ask my friends to forgo gifts and to donate to the local Humane Society- and for the past few years I have been using the internets, in the form of the Facebook Causes application to help facilitate donations. Last year my birthday wish collected $225 for the Humane Society of Chittenden County. This year I set the goal at $250.

I certainly don't expect blog readers to donate for my birthday (unless you are my Mom or the other 2 or 3 friends that read this blog, then I do actually expect you to donate!). I only wanted to share one of the ways I try to help out animals through out the year. It's my hope that this blog will allow me to reach out and share more of what I do, definitely share more of what's out in the universe of animal related things that interest me and  even spur me to get more involved in causes I love. 

There's just 11 more days until I turn (mumble mumble). I am excited for this next year and kicking it off with a big fat donation for animals will kinda rock (and roll!). Tell me in the comments if you have ever done a birthday wish like this? Has it been successful?

Sharing is Caring

I have been so busy before, during, and after the holidays that I hadn't gotten a chance to show you what Winnie and Sharona got for Christmas. Well, they got several presents (including pajamas!) and lots of biscuits to fill their stockings...but by far their favorite gifts were the TOYS!

Time to sleep with the fishes,
Mr. Big Mouth Giraffe

I love it! But I just know Sharona is going to steal it
in 3, 2, 1...

Sharona got a Big Mouth Giraffe and Winnie got a sweet bunny rabbit.Plus, their Grammy Louise spoiled them each with some toys. All these are now shells of their former selves. just the way Sharona likes them!

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I guess he's an xbox and I'm more atari.

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Happy New Year my ass!