Shaggy Dog Stories

Archive for the ‘follow-ups’ Category

Woohoo! Our faithful random number generator has just picked the lucky winnahs in our Premier toy giveaway…

• Beth Klaes and Deva and Baron the Rotties win the Pogo Plush Spider!
• Madeleine Gray and Cooper win the Roly Rope toy and bag of treats!
• … and Jayne Logan and Bella and Lexie win the Linkables toys and treats!

If you weren’t a winnah this time around, don’t despair. Our Kyjen Ginormous toy giveaway is still going on, and doesn’t close until December 18. I have even more toys to offer (even a couple for little dogs), so come on back and visit soon!

Congrats to Julie Chalpan, author of Titan’s Tales, for being the winnah of the copy of Awkward Family Pet Photos!

Congrats also to Laura Tappero for winning the copy of Following Atticus. The original winnah never responded, so we held a second random drawing and Laura won.

Didn’t win this time? Don’t worry. Wait till you see all of the dog toys and other great stuff we’re giving away in upcoming posts!

Big Shout-Out!

Today I received the nicest card in the mail for the holidays…

…and it came with hand-written thanks from the folks at Mr. Chewy! This might be a first. Thanks, guys!

Listen Up… It’s really important to note that Mr. Chewy does listen when customers and reviewers speak. You might remember from my review that I liked everything about the company — prices, selection, speed, and customer service — but that I couldn’t support them further because of their support for the Humane Society of the United States. I recommended that Mr. Chewy find organizations that actually help animals instead of just themselves, and they did! They even picked Bide-a-Wee, which is an actual animal shelter! If you’re in the NY/NJ/CT tri-state area, you can actually go down to Wantagh and look into the eyes of the animals those donations are helping. Well done, Mr. Chewy!

Congratulations to Mary Musgrave for winning the copy of Following Atticus by Tom Ryan, and congrats to Dianna Anderson for winning the gift basket of EO Pet Care Products!

Oh, and remember the Puppies vs. Babies contest? Well, voting closed over there today. I had three small prizes to give away, so Molly McNamara from Bounce Bark Run/Muppets on Parade and Sarah from Married With Dawgs have won two of them. They are bars of all-natural, locally-made dog shampoo made of goat’s milk and tea tree oil. The soap is gentle enough for a St. Bernard puppy’s coat, but you’d have to whip up some mighty suds to use it on a Beardie!

We have a whole new giveaway going on: the copy of Awkward Family Pet Photos. We also have a bunch of other stuff — including some great dog toys — in the queue, so be sure to come back and enter again!

I stumbled onto the Nature’s Variety Homestyle canned foods quite by accident. Charlie and I happened to be early for a vet appointment, so I stopped by a local boutique pet supply store nearby and found some Homestyle cans on their shelves. Of course I knew this formula existed online, but the local shop where I buy my Prairie kibble and Instinct raw doesn’t carry everything. Since these were the days following Charlie’s bout with vestibular disease. He needed plenty of palatable, easy-to-eat food in order to put some weight back on his old bones, I was tickled to find another Nature’s Variety formula that we could add to his diet, in whatever quantity he’d eat.

None of the Gang of Four are exactly picky eaters, so I’m not exactly giving away the punchline by mentioning that he loved it. With its chunks of meat and vegetables, it looked better to me than your standard can of Dinty Moore.

You already know how this story turns out: the Gang of Four loves this stuff, old Chuckles is beginning to put some weight back on, and this formula fits in perfectly with the rest of our rotation diet. And they lived happily ever after.

But That’s Not All!

Since we’re already on the subject of Nature’s Variety here, I just wanted to give a big shout-out and many thanks to Nature’s Variety (and especially to Kelly) for their kind and generous donation of samples of various kibble formulas for the Bearded Collie Club of America’s 2011 National Specialty. We were able to stuff the exhibitors’ welcome bags with L.I.D. (Limited Ingredient Diet) samples, and we had the salmon and chicken formulas at the hospitality table. People loved them — all of them were snapped right up! I hope this results in more devoted fans for the company; in any case, thanks to them for their generosity.

Thanks and congrats to everyone who participated in the THREE DOGZ LLC giveaway! Our neutral party drew four numbers completely at random, and here’s what happened:

• Giveaway #1, the “Wild About Beardies” T-shirt, matching doggie bandana, and rhinestone necklace, goes to…(drum roll)… Tish Pollock!
• Giveaway #2, the “Greatest American Dog” towel and magnetic clip, the window decal, and a rhinestone necklace, will soon be headed for the mailbox of… Kathy Kiley!
• Giveaway #3, the carabiner water bottle carrier, the window decal, and a rhinestone necklace, will be winging their way to… Mary Witter!
• …and Giveaway #4, the rhinestone necklace, is going to… Quentin Lewis!

Congrats to all of our lucky winners! If you didn’t win, don’t feel bad… you should see some of the stuff I get to give away in future posts! I’ll have dog toys, grooming products… and you’ll have to come back and visit the blog to find out what else!

After reading my review of Freshpet dog foods and how much the Gang of Four liked them, did you think “Hey, maybe I’d like to try some of those with my dog/cat”? Welllllll… now you can, but you’ll have to hurry!

Freshpet is sponsoring a contest on Facebook called Protest 4 Fresh. You could win Freshpet food for your pet — or even more!

The Rules

1. Click on the Protest 4 Fresh button on Freshpet’s Facebook page.
2. Upload a picture of your dog or cat wearing, holding, or sitting next to a sign that expresses his/her feelings about eating fresh food. Keep your message upbeat, fun, and family-friendly, and you could win!
3. Better hurry! The contest ends at 12 AM ET on October 31, 2011. For more details, see the official rules on Protest 4 Fresh.

Here are some examples to inspire you…

Win Great Stuff!

You could win some really great prizes!

• FIRST 100 ELIGIBLE ENTRIES will win a free Slice & Serve 1 lb. roll. This is why you need to hurry!
• FAN FAVORITE will win a mini-refrigerator stocked with Freshpet meals and treats.
• GRAND PRIZE WINNER will win airfare for two adults and a pet, a two night stay at the Loews Coronado Bay Resort in San Diego, CA, plus a one hour doggie surfing lesson! (Oh, come ON. Winter’s coming. Tell me you wouldn’t go to San Diego just to see the sun and romp on the beach!)

Time is of the essence! If you want to win, better get out your boards and markers right away!

For more information about Freshpet foods and treats, visit freshpet.com.

Remember when I announced that Johann the Boxer was the lucky winnah of a Kyjen Invincibles™ gecko toy?

His owner Kate Bolduc was kind enough to take photos of what happened when Johann saw what came from Colorado…

Think he likes it?

A short while ago, I reviewed Carol Quinn’s Follow My Lead and gave away a copy to a lucky winnah who will also review the book.

Carol and I had a great conversation about dogs, dog sports, and a zillion other subjects. In addition, she graciously agreed to an email interview. Here’s what we discussed…

Shaggy Dog Stories: APDT (the Association of Pet Dog Trainers) has just created the Valor Project — basically a non-competitive agility league for special needs dogs and handlers, and for anyone else who might not want to compete in AKC/USDAA/NADAC, but who would like to benefit from the advice and camaraderie to be found in an agility club. Have you checked this out yet? If you have, what do you think?

Carol Quinn: I didn’t know about this project until now, and wow — what a great idea! Many dogs can’t handle the stress or physicality of competition, but they can fully enjoy the sport with their handlers.

My focus has always been to learn and have fun, and this league seems as if it’s focused on that. The sport is also so great for dogs. It keeps their minds active, their bodies strong, and deepens the relationship with the handler. It’s also pretty good exercise for owners!

Shaggy Dog Stories: How are you training now that your time with Irina has drawn to a close? Are you working independently, or have you found another trainer?

Carol Quinn: At the moment, we aren’t training in agility. Nairobi is getting older and I think I’m retiring him. I’m ready to start training again with Sheila. I found a new trainer and as soon as the weather is cooler, we’re ready to begin again.

Lately my focus has been obedience training, believe it or not. Ridgebacks aren’t the most obedient dogs, but it is fun to work with them. We train about a half-hour a day. Ridgebacks get bored quickly, and if the “cookies” aren’t good, they completely lose interest. As long as the treats remain tasty, the training sessions are productive.



Shaggy Dog Stories: What are your next goals related to agility training? Do you think trialing will ever be in your future?

Carol Quinn: I’m open to trials, and my next ridgeback (yes, I have my eye on a puppy) will definitely compete. I’ve never enjoyed competition, but I think I’m ready to go out and try my hand at it.



Shaggy Dog Stories: Do you think you’ll try other dog sports, or will you stick with agility since it’s had such a profound effect on you?


Carol Quinn: I want to try lure coursing with Sheila because she has such a strong prey instinct, and she loves to run. You can also muzzle your dogs in coursing, so I won’t worry about Sheila going after one of the other dogs!

Competition isn’t in the cards for these dogs, but I will definitely compete with future dogs. There’s a wonderful ridgeback community in California, and the all-ridgeback agility competitions are really quite funny. Ridgebacks are quite playful — and serious — and their owners appear to have exactly the same qualities. It’s priceless.




Shaggy Dog Stories: How is Sheila’s health?

Carol Quinn: Sheila amazes me. She’s strong and funny; still a handful with other dogs, but her health is phenomenal. Her stamina is impressive, and it’s hard for me to imagine her sick. But any sign of illness still panics me.

Sheila is still on her holistic/Chinese herb protocol, but I think the better nutrition really helped her beat the odds with her disease. It was an important lesson for me to learn; healthy, fresh food makes a huge difference for dogs—and for humans.





Shaggy Dog Stories: What other projects are you working on at the moment?

Carol Quinn: I’m revising the novel I mentioned in Follow My Lead. I really love it, but I’m still tweaking it. And I’ve started a second novel — a light, funny, adventure piece.

I’ve set a goal to have the revised novel, and a credible first draft of the second by December. That’s a lot of writing, but other than running with the dogs, writing is my favorite thing on earth.





Shaggy Dog Stories: Is there anything else you’d like mentioned in the blog?

Carol Quinn: If anyone has read the book (and liked it ) please write an online review on Amazon or Barnes & Noble? Also, come visit FollowMyLeadTheBook.com and read about our progress. On Facebook, we are http://www.facebook.com/FollowMyLeadBook Come like the page, if you’re so inclined On Twitter, you can find us @FollowMyLeadcq.

If you like to get out and do things with your dogs, and if you’re filled with wonder at the depth and transformational power of the human-animal bond, you’ll want to read Follow My Lead. After spending time with Carol, Nairobi, and Sheila, don’t be surprised if your thoughts turn to the life lessons your dogs have taught you.

Congratulations Melanie Mock of Oregon for winning the drawing for the copy of Follow My Lead! Melanie said that she never wins anything, but her luck just changed. The publisher will be sending out her very own copy soon.

Next week is the Bearded Collie Club of America‘s national specialty show, and I’m a member of the hosting club. If there’s time before the festivities get underway, I’ll post another fabulous giveaway (and there are two here just waiting!).

Have a great week, and cross your fingers that we do, too!

Congratulations to Dianna Anderson of Minnesota and her mom! Dianna had the winning comment number in the giveaway for the Purina ProCare products. Dianna will keep the cleaner for herself (for her cats, actually) and share the pads with her mom’s Chihuahua. Those Minnesota winters can certainly give any of us pause when considering whether to answer Nature’s call outside.

While you’re here, go on over and visit Dianna’s blog, Memoirs of a Pet Groomer. You’ll gain a whole new appreciation for what groomers go through.

The Other Giveaway — It Ain’t Over!

Srsly? Only 4 people want to read Follow My Lead? It’s not too late to add a free, fabulous, brandy-new copy of Carol Quinn’s book to your reading list. Come on! The weather will be getting colder before you know it, and you’ll need a good doggie book to curl up with. I liked the heck out of this book, and you know how picky I am.

Entries close tomorrow, Wednesday, September 28.