http://dunnsmarshlabs.com/bbfarmblog/

I can add more of my own styling by doing this. So if you are signed up for this blog you may want to head over and check out the new version, too. I will probably keep this one going, too so I can “experiment” with both as my web provider only allows me one blog.
See you there!

Today I received two different posts that I think are more eloquent than what I could write about the attacks on breeders, dog shows, those of us who show/compete in perfomance events, etc. so I am quoting the one with permission and sending a link to the other for you to read for yourself.

Here is the link to the one and below the quote from the other:

http://endangeredowner.blogspot.com/2009/01/hsus-turn-in-breeder-program.html

Veterinarian speaks out on PETA & Westminister

By Libbye Miller DVM (Permission to crosspost)
“Adorable mixed breeds” get cancer, epilepsy, allergies, heart disease, and orthopedic problems just like purebreds. I see it every day in my veterinary practice but mixed breed dogs aren’t tracked like
the purebreds so they have a reputation as “healthier” that is actually undeserved in many cases.”

It is so sad that a lot of folks, including young veterinarians these days, buy into the “hybrid vigor” baloney. The vet schools have been infiltrated by the Animal Rights Extremists, who are teaching them this junk science in order to push their agenda.

All animals have a certain amount of genetic load, which is to say there is absolutely no animal without some genetic problem of some sort of another. Know anyone who wears glasses? Has allergies? Thyroid
problems? Weak knees? Flat feet? A skin condition? Arthritis? A gap between their front teeth? These are all genetic imperfections.

No human is genetically “clean.” Neither is any individual of any species on earth. So this idea that dogs should not be bred because they might have a genetic problem, and that breeders are somehow “evil”
for breeding them, is ridiculous. Every single individual of every single species has at least a few genetic conditions.

To use PeTA’s logic, all breeding of all kinds (including having human babies) should halt immediately. And to be honest, Ingrid Newkirk (the woman who founded PeTA) does believe exactly that. She thinks that humans should become extinct, along with dogs, cats, etc. This ridiculous scenario is precisely what she would like to see happen.

So folks, if that is what you want…if you agree with Ingrid Newkirk’s whacky views, send your hard earned money to PeTA. They will help to ensure you are not able to own a dog or cat or hamster or any
other pet in the future. They will see to it that you can’t eat meat or fish or eggs or any type of animal-based nutrition. They will work to shut down places like Sea World, the zoos, etc. so you cannot observe
the many wonderful animals on the Earth. Eventually, once they accomplish these things, they may turn their efforts to making it illegal for humans to procreate.

If you don’t agree with their extremist views, wise up and start supporting those who truly do love, care for and enjoy interaction with other species here on our little blue planet.

The fanciers of the breeds, those you see exhibiting their dogs at Westminster and other dog shows, work very hard to eliminate serious genetic conditions. They screen their breeding stock with every
available test. They research pedigrees before breeding into other lines, to check for similar clearances in those animals. They contribute money to research organizations to further the work being
done to track down genetic problems. They contribute blood, cell samples, etc. from their own animals to help with DNA and genome studies. They have made great progress so far, and they continue to
work hard at it.

Are there unethical breeders? Certainly, there are. Just as in any group of humans, you will find the good and the bad. United States VP Elect Joe Biden, for example, managed to find a not so good one when he
got his new German Shepherd puppy. I don’t know who did his research for him, but they obviously didn’t do their homework if they were looking for a responsible breeder. Joe has the right to get his dog
from whomever he wishes, but if he was trying to set an example of purchasing from a responsible hobby breeder he went off the track this time. That’s too bad, but it was his choice.

Unfortunately, breeders like that may be a lot easier to find because of their high volume and high profile. If you are looking for a nice family pet from a breeder who will be there for you forever, you need
to do due diligence. You won’t get that from a pet store. You won’t get that from the guy selling dogs out of his pickup truck in the WalMart parking lot. You won’t get that support from a high-volume breeder,
either. Yes, it takes a little more time and effort to find someone who really cares and does all the work to breed the healthiest, happiest puppies possible and then stands behind those puppies.

This is a living being that will be part of your family, hopefully, for many years. Isn’t it worth a bit of effort to find a breeder who will be there for you and that puppy forever? And guess what? Shows like Westminster are a very valuable resource for finding breeders who do care and who use the best possible
practices, as well as for learning more about the various breeds.
Bravo to USA Network for broadcasting the Westminster Kennel Club show all these years. May they enjoy continued success through the ongoing inclusion of such programs. I will be eagerly watching this year’s
show!”

THANK YOU LIBBYE MILLER, DVM for sharing this post!

Having dogs in this weather is enough of a challenge (don’t worry, they all live in the house and several have coats they wear when they go outside) — they barely want to go outside to pee so are definitely not getting the exercise they are used to.  They walk a bit then hold their feet up pitifully.  The pugs all huddle against the door a minute after they’ve gone out.  Then add in the horses and donkeys and we can’t escape being outside in these sub zero temperatures.

Yesterday the high didn’t get out of the minus digits.  All the area schools were closed yesterday due to wind chill warnings of up to 40 below zero and they are closed again today although winds are pretty calm.   Kent bought he and I face masks at the UW Bookstore yesterday (his office is right above it) which I can see will be helpful as I just used mine for the first time while I did barn chores.

The horses and mini donkeys are used to going out every day, rain or shine.  They have 3 sided shelters for when they are out but with these extreme temperatures and wind chills they could easily suffer frost bite, especially those donkey ears.  I have seen donkeys who have had their ears frostbitten and lost part of them so it won’t be happening to mine.  So they are getting a bit stir crazy as this is day 4 of these temps.  Yesterday I turned the horses out briefly when the temp almost made zero and it was at least sunny out.  They went crazy running, rearing, bucking and actually didn’t want to come in so I left them out for 2 hours.  This a.m. they made it out for about 10 min. while I cleaned their stalls, took a couple of laps and were ready to come back in.  The donkeys are divas and if you turn them out they usually stand by the barn door and bray to come in when it is like this outside so they pretty much have been captive in the barn since Monday and it’s Friday now.

We also have 2 barn cats, Gadget and Beauty, who I have been watching carefully for any signs of being chilled.  All the barn animals have heated buckets/bowls for water and we keep a lot of food out at all times when it is like this as digestion produces body heat.  Gadget and Beauty have blankets to lay on and often are laying in the barn window in the sun.  They have the most gorgeous, plush coats right now so they seem just fine although we have a contingency plan of bringing them into our basement should they seem to be suffering from the cold at all.

I am taking a blogging class at LVSonline.com so hopefully that will get me inspired to keep up the blog a bit more.

Happy New Year everyone!

This a.m. I woke up to the sound of a lone Sand Hill crane flying by my bedroom window.  I’m glad to know Turbo is at peace and doing okay.  I like to think Lily, our precious pug, met him as he crossed over.

Turbo power lounging on his 12th birthday.

Today Turbo is 12 years old. Turbo is not a Lab or a Pug but a “Kiss Bull”. We rescued him from our local shelter when he was 5 months old. He has been a wonderful companion, earned his CGC and TDI (Therapy Dog) certifications and did visits to a nursing home in his younger days. He has helped raise litters of Lab puppies including doing the “clean up”, letting them tug on his ears and gently playing with them. Sadly, Turbo has cancer and we are just going one day at a time with him now. Acupuncture and pain meds have helped his quality of life — he still wags his tail, eats well, carries his favorite jolly ball around and gives his great kisses but the tumors are growing and the clock is ticking. We know this is his last birthday on earth with us and he has gotten treats on and off all day. I told him from now on every day is his birthday.

We had a lot of tree damage here and a bit of water in the basement on the worst day which had 6 storms one right after another and two funnel clouds out by our place. Thanks to some wonderful friends we finally got all the downed branches cleaned up, chopped up and off the lawn and fences. Kent almost has the fences mended as well. As we say, “never a dull moment” out here.

Til next time…….

Years ago we fostered a wonderful elderly pug named Max after his owner passed away and the owner’s elderly friend could no longer care for him.  Max was already about 12 years old so we knew we would have him  for the rest of his days on earth as no one would want to adopt a dog of that age.  He was a dignified, sweet Pug who remained a bit aloof from our other dogs.  After we had Max about 6 weeks he became ill and was diagnosed with pneumonia.  Despite treatment he did not improve and on an x-ray was diagnosed with a tumor around his heart.  We sadly let Max go.  We knew it was time for him to go find his real owner — we had only had him on loan until he was ready to go.  That afternoon after he left this earth I took one of my Labs tracking.  As I pulled into the parking lot where my track was laid it began raining.  “Great” I thought, “just how my day is going”…….and then I looked up at the sky and this beautiful rainbow suddenly appeared.   I realized it was Max saying good-bye and telling me he was reunited with his precious owner.  Through my tears I also felt a sense of peace.

 Then when Lily suddenly died 2 years ago,  the next a.m. I went outside and 7 sand hill cranes suddenly landed on the hillside near our house.  We had never seen sand hlls there although we’ve heard them on occasion in the woods about a half mile away.  They have never landed on that hillside since.  I feel they were sent by Lily to check up on me.  Everytime I hear a sand hill crane now I feel Lily has been here to check on me and send me her love. 

 Fast forward to March 16th, 2008.  As I wrote previously my good friend, Karen, passed away that day.  Sunday a.m. when I got up the first thought I had was of Karen as I knew she wasn’t doing well and her time to leave was near.  It was a spring-like day so after I let my horses out I just stood in the sun watching them and thinking about her and her family.  A huge flock of geese flew over and then I heard sand hill cranes and knew in my heart she was gone.  The next day,  I was walking back to work by Hilldale Mall in Madison when 2 sand hill cranes flew over (I have two co-workers as witnesses).  Very unusual to hear sand hills in the city and this has never happened there before — I believe it was Karen’s energy in the area making sure her family is okay.

Karen gave a lot back to the sport of obedience and taught some wonderful classes at our kennel club including a much in demand “attention” class. She also got involved in tracking, hunt tests and agility and she and I traveled to some events together. Even when her cancer reoccurred she remained cheerful and optimistic. In fact I still thought she would beat this round of cancer but realized about 2 weeks ago it wasn’t going to happen. On Friday, after a rally obedience trial, a little voice in my head said to call her house and see how she was doing. I spoke with her daughter who was here helping care for her and realized time was short. Fortunately they said I could come visit.

Even though I realized she was dying it wasn’t easy to see her in so much pain. I won’t go into all the details of our visit but I learned something by going — if you have a friend who is terminally ill, go see them NOW. Tell them what their friendship means to you, if you love them tell them so, give them a hug, say your good byes. You will be glad you did. I know I am.

On top of that, today is the 2 year anniversary of my precious Lily’s unexpected death. They say time heals everything but apparently in some cases it takes much more time than others. There isn’t a day I don’t think of her at least once. Her photos, leash and collar and ashes are right by me here on my desk. I just haven’t been able to move them yet. Her daughters Sprout and Sprite are here as a reminder of her but they aren’t her or much like her. I have a tribute to Lily on my web page and a link to a story about her here: www.dunnsmarshlabs.com/lasttunnel.html

So today I am missing my friend, Karen and my precious gift from God, Lily. I love you both and will never forget either of you.

Erica and I went to Florida to spend Christmas with my family down there.  Kent joined us in time for the holiday after a challenging trip down.  We had the best weather we’ve ever had when down there at Christmas time.  70s/80s and sunny every day, most days involved some beach time.  It was very hard to come home although I did miss all of the animals alot.

Having both of us travel at the same time was a logistics challenge since we had to make sure all dogs, cats and equines had someone to care for them.  So Summer went to visit her co-owner/breeder,  Jazz and Cori joined Zamboni at my field trainer’s and Marley went to visit a friend’s boarding kennel.  We then had a housesitter here for the rest of the dogs, cats and equines.  She was great and Kent’s comment on arriving home (he came home 3 days ahead of us) was that everyone was very calm.

Since I’ve been back we’ve run the gamut of weather possibilities for Wisconsin in January and beyond…….snow and fog, snow and high winds (gust of 40 mph), high winds with cold temps under zero, a sunny 30 degree day, 54 degrees, dense fog for several days (and a 100 car pileup on the interstate near us), a thunderstorm with hail (drove to work in that one yesterday) and tornados about 40 miles away yesterday. 

If I could pick up the farm and move the whole thing along with all animals to a milder climate I would do it in a minute!