Welcome to this week’s edition of Follow-Up Friday, the post where I highlight reader’s comments, answer questions and generally just wrap up my week.

Blogging Can Be Challenging

I still haven’t read all the participating blogs, but the ones I have read all seemed to have the same reoccurring theme…..how do I get more traffic to my blog?  Hopefully we can figure this out together!  I think one of those ways is to get involved with new things.  Try a new blog hop or a new feature or share your posts in a new venue.  

You Make Me Laugh – January 11, 2015

Lauren Miller said, “If you have a manual setting on your camera, set it for the widest aperture and use a slower shutter speed, hold the camera steady. I will also increase my ISO depending on how dark the room is. ”

Oh Lauren, you are adorable.  I turn my camera on, point it and push the button.  I have no idea about settings. LOL

Emma said, “We were thinking about your post title for these posts and perhaps you should change it to I make you laugh as you always make us readers laugh ”

Oh Emma, you are so sweet.  I’m glad I make you laugh, that is my goal.  To make something funny out of something that is not necessarily funny and to show people how much love and laughter dogs bring.

Monika says, “Listen to me, I sound as if I know what I’m talking about but I can assure you some of my photos would beg to differ. ”

Well look at you!!  BWA HA HA, I love a girl with confidence.

Saved by Dogs said, “We get sprinkled with holy water just before the pic is taken, in the hopes of temporarily putting the evil spirits at bay ”

Ha ha ha, I never thought of the holy water!  Is it okay to take it from a church or do they frown upon that? 

Frankie and Ernie said, “OH that DARNED Flashy Beast…. We use the Scoot up Close method… it drives MOM Crazy… We get SO close she Can’t take our picture… BaaaaaWaaaah.”

He he he, I know that technique well.  Delilah uses it!

Donna O said, “Jodi, the secret is, you CAN’T get rid of the glowing eyes when your dog has a little bit of the devil in them, like Delilah. Believe me…I know. I’ve got Medi, the glowing eyed demon brat dog. ”

LOL Donna.  I never thought of it like that.

These Boots Are Made For Walking

MelFr said, “Daisy has had hers for at least 4 years (she wears purple too!) and they are still going strong. Jasper? Not so much. He pokes holes In them while chewing on sticks.”

I’ve already got holes in a couple of them. 🙁

Cupcake said, “Sampson’s first reaction to wearing boots is hilarious! I usually walk like an out-of-control-marionette with mine.”

Oh yes, they did that the first time I put them on, but they’ve adjusted fairly well to them now.  It is funny though.

Sue said, “Jeffie has worn boots for years and we’ve tried many different kinds and brands. Currently he wears a set of Comfy Dog Boots that we’ve had for 2 years now.

Thank you for that link Sue, I plan on measuring the dogs this weekend. 🙂

Emma said, “They don’t last long for us, a couple walks and they tear, or get holes so we flip them over for a few more uses, but we buy several packages on clearance in the spring which makes the short life span more tolerable.”

Smart thinking Emma.  Seeing as how we’ve already got holes in a couple, I can’t see us using these permanently (too expensive) but I think they’re great to keep around.  I’ll watch for the clearance in spring. 🙂

Tori said, ” I went to REI and bought the Ruffwear summit trex with rubber soles. They also had limited sizes available and I think the ones I got are a little big. But I got them on Lola and I don’t think she can handle it. She’ll get up and walk with them but in the most awkward way possible! So I’m going to go get the Large Paws today and go back to that idea. Hopefully they work as well for lola as they did for your guys!”

I hope so!  My guys adjusted fairly well, I hope Lola does too!!

Mary said, “I know you saw my Ruffwear summit trex boot review. I think they would be great in the cold and shit on the road days. ”

I love you so much. That is all.

Monika said, “Because Standard Poodle’s have hair that constantly grows in their pads, I definitely find dog boots to be a lifesaver. Best invention ever (plus there’s that whole comic relief effect if you’re bored and the dog tries to flick them off with each step)”

Or bite them.  The D-Dog tried to bite them off.  Oh and she did lose one on yesterday’s walk!

Blueberry’s Human said, “I do not use boots on Blueberry. Although I do use Musher’s Secret regularly.”

You aren’t the only one to suggest that.  Does it let her feet still sweat?  Can they breathe?  And it works well in the heat?

Sam asked, “Could a pair of socks (like kids socks) be worn under these for extra warmth?”

I imagine they could be.  So far the dogs don’t seem to be bothered with their feet being cold.   I think the bigger issue was the cold snow, since that is not touching their feet they seem fine.

Jessica said, “Chester and Gretel don’t wear boots. Mostly this is because I can’t fit any to fit their twisty dwarf feet/legs but also because dogs have a mechanism for keeping paws warm (in simplest terms – that is where they release heat – wish I could find the great blog post I just read about it). ”

Oh those poor puppies!  If you ever find that post, please share it.

Styrofoam Coolers, Not Just for Beer

Bethany said, “I am thankful that our weather is rarely too harsh for feral felines. A house like that any where in my neighborhood would end up full of rats… rats that are larger than most of the stray cats I’ve seen around. The rats also eat the food people leave out for cats and birds so they have it pretty good.”

Oh. My. God!  Where in heavens name do you live?  Why is there such a rat problem?

Rachele Baker DVM said, “It will be interesting to see if the cat uses the shelter you have provided. Please post an update in the future (with photos if you can get them) to let us know if the cat uses the shelter you made (or if other critters claim the spot).”

It will be interesting, I’ll keep my eye on the house and definitely post an update as well as try to get pictures.

That’s it for me folks, thanks for all the questions and suggestions.  Have a wonderful weekend.

Welcome to this week’s edition of Follow-Up Friday, the post where I highlight reader’s comments, answer questions and generally just wrap up my week. 

I’m going to apologize up front y’all, this post is long.  It was already over 900 words before I started responding to comments, but there were some awesome comments!

You Make Me Smile – January 4, 2015

Emma said, “At the end of the walk, we wait until we come in the house and Mom almost has the towel over us and then shake. It makes Mom all wild and crazy…something about snow everywhere. We think she loves it because she gets to clean the floor at that point. ”

LOL Emma, you girls are so nice to help your mom clean the house.

Frankie and Ernie asked, “OMD there is SNOW on you…. Where are your COATS??? ”

We still don’t have coats!  I need to talk to my sister-in-law and see if she can make us some.

Monika said, “Sam generally wears a ‘coat’ and boots if the white stuff is too deep to keep the ice balls at bay (he is a wuss, remember ) and rain or snow, he totally channels Taylor Swift…Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake…I shake it off, I shake it off. ”

BWA HA HA, do you sing that when he does?

Blueberry’s Human said, “We don’t get much snow here, but the one year we did, a single flake landed on her and she shook herself like a mound of snow had landed on her.”

LOL she’d never survive up here.

Rejuvenate Your Dog With Rejenease

Well here’s the sad thing.  Amazon only ships to the States. WTF Amazon?  I’m hoping that once Steve gets his website up and running he will get something worked out so everyone in the world that wants to try this will be able to. Remember the giveaway is open through Sunday, so make sure you enter!

The Wicked Wind Whispers and Moans

Kathryn said, “You definitely need Jack Wolfskin gloves.”

OMG I do. AND they have little paw prints on them.  SQUEEEEEE, except I haven’t been able to find them in the states. 🙁

Blueberry’s Human said, “I wish I lived near you. On windy days, I would totally hide in those woods and in the eeriest, sing-song voice I could muster, you would hear, “JOOOOOOOODDDDIIIIIIII…JOOOOOOODDDIIIIII…YOU ARE NOT ALONE JODI…”.  Bahahahahaha – of course, Sampson would probably totally find me and give away my location. Maybe you can get one of those life-alert doohickeys. I’d certainly look into it given that your dogs don’t seem overly compassionate and I can totally see them leaving you in the woods with a heavy branch across your chest. ”

HA HA HA oh that would freak me out and when I found you…..but yes, Sampson would definitely find you.  

Jan K said, “When I got home from work yesterday, a few things were askew in the house, and I know it’s because the dogs (especially Sheba) were freaked out by the wind.”

It was so windy and then it was windy again on Wednesday.  Poor Sampson he was so freaked out he had to be touching one of us all night.  If we left the room he’d jump up and follow us with his tail tucked between his leg.  My poor puppy, his tail is usually in one of three positions 1) up and happy 2) flat out and wagging or 3) wrapped around his body.  It breaks my heart to see it tucked.

2 Brown Dawgs said, “One day when hubby was out hunting the wind was pretty strong. He had no big trees around his ground blind but he had to walk past big trees to get to it or back to his truck. I said: don’t get hit by a falling tree or branch. They really need to go through that part of the forest and clear cut or really really thin it there are so many dead trees. He fluffed it off. Well walking out after dark he heard a giant branch fall very close to him. Next morning he realized it just missed him. That is why I make sure the life insurance is paid up. ”

What a scary thing to happen. But I did laugh about the life insurance comment.

Emma said, “On a serious note, last summer a real active woman (like mom, runner, walker, can’t sit still) not too far from here was walking her dog with a friend in the woods and bam. A tree fell, missed the friend, barely missed the dog, and the woman dead instantly.”

Geez, that’s awful!  But I agree with mom, when your ticket is up…

Pamela said, “Sailors have a saying you’ll appreciate. They call the weather we’ve had recently “blowing like stink.” I have a different image of Delilah if you were hit by a fallen branch, btw. I see her leash getting caught on a huge log and carving a path of destruction as she goes on her merry way.  Sorry, it makes me smile. But I’m not really wishing any ill toward you.”

I do like that saying and I appreciate you meaning no ill will, but I hate to burst your bubble, Delilah is actually the dog who would come back and see what happened.  She’s a very caring girl. 🙂

Jen Gabbard said, “Laika is not a fan of eerie sounding wind. Like Sampson I find her going from window to window, trying to find out what’s making that creepy sound.”

Poor little guys, you gotta feel for them!

Beth said, “My gloves are anything but good, but they are warmish. I get the Old Navy fleece gloves–they hold up fairly well, but they do absorb the smell of salmon treats, so I have to make sure I don’t accidentally put them on when I go somewhere without Barley, and if you have to wipe snow off the pups’ paws, they get wet, but they are way better than nothing and I think they’re less than $10, so it’s not a big loss if they take a beating.”

Good to know, thank you.  I see a trip to Old Navy in my future.

Celebrate the Small Successes

Cupcake said, ” I never care much when Mom fusses about me. Just like your fur kids, that part is all, “Wha-wha-wha. Blah-blah-blah.” It’s all about the treats when I’m a good girl. Just cut the chit-chat and gimme the goodies! ”

Are you sure you’re not a Lab, Cupcake? 🙂

Daisy said, “Daisy could never be allowed off-leash, she’s a silly girl first and an obedient girl second. I doubt we could ever train the silly part out of her!”

Delilah was like that.  And it’s baby steps, really.  Just little bits of off-leash in a place where the odds are stacked in her favor.

Leah said, “Nicely done! Sometimes I forget to celebrate the little things that actually make a huge difference after all.”

You are right,  little things actually do make the biggest difference.

Thank you all for hanging in there and don’t forget, tomorrow is the Pet Blogger Challenge sponsored by Go Pet Friendly.  

Welcome to this week’s edition of Follow-Up Friday, the post where I highlight reader’s comments, answer questions and generally just wrap up my week.

You Make Me Laugh – December 29, 2014

Genvieve said, “Oh please. Cupcake poses like a Kardashian when she sees the camera. Mood shot? Candid? Action shot? Eye on the camera? Over the shoulder? She’s all in. Diva.”

Ha ha ha, I suspected it was like that.  She’s a very cute Diva too. 🙂

Sue said, “I used to think my dogs were Amish. You know, no face photo shots. I finally realized they are in a witness protection program. (Preferably no photos.)

I love this comment, you really made me smile.

Monika said, “Sam tends to look away from cameras in a clever sort of way, but we all know he’s far from clever.”

BWA HA HA, poor Sam. I bet he’s a lot smarter than you think. 😉

Dear Friends

Cupcake said, “Even with all that happens, doggie things like walks and destuffing remain constant. It’s kind of our job..”

For Sampson destuffing is like therapy.  A lot of times he destuffs after we’ve had a houseful of people.  The noise and busyness of it all tends to get to him after a while.  Then of course there are just times when he feels like destuffing.  

But yes, the doggie things are important and I think especially during stressful times, it gives us a sense of normalcy.

Emma said, “My gramma was taken to the hospital on the 19th for heart issues and stayed 3 days, then we spent all last week at her house helping her out and finally got all caught up this weekend…oh yeah, Christmas was there too in the middle of it all.”

I’m sorry to hear that Emma, I do hope your Gramma recovered well.  I’m sure you being there was a tremendous help to her. Oh and Mom.  I bet Mom was a great help too. 😉

Jan K said, “Well, if you are going to be speaking at BlogPaws then I definitely have to go now!”

I sure hope you do!!

Cindy Lu’s Muse

 

Pamela said, “I’m hoping that by hanging out with Kim a little bit of her amazingness will rub off on me.”

Well I for one think you are pretty damn awesome Pamela!!  I’m hoping you and Kim rub off on me. 🙂

Put that Bitch to Bed-Barks and Bytes

2 Brown Dawgs said, “I am really surprised I made any top commenter lists. There were times when I was so very far behind. This Fall kicked my butt. ”

I’m not surprised that you were a top commenter, but I have to agree with you, Fall kicked my butt too!   I don’t think I’ve signed into my reader in a month.  I’m actually dreading it.  I may have to clear all and start fresh. 🙂  

Rama’s Mama said, “I agree, put that bitch to BED! ”

I’m assuming you have had a crappy year too.  I’m hoping this year is kinder to you.

I’m also hoping we all have better years than 2014.  If you had a good year, then I’m hoping 2015 is even better.  Onward an upward my friends.

It’s 2015, bring it on!