TrixiesMom
01-04-2005, 09:03 AM
I'm new here so I thought I would introduce myself..
My name is Lisanne and I live in Ontario, Canada... I've been coming to Pet of the Day for roughly 4 years yet never seemed to make it to the forums =)
Growing up my parents had cats and we bred and showed guinea pigs and fish, so taking care of an animal was second nature to me. When the big "C" came in 1990 and I had to have a hysterectomy at age 21, I wanted a dog to call my own.. my ex-husband wouldn't let me have one, but it worked out in the end. To sum it up, I have a coaster I had bought that says 'I got a dog for my husband. I think it was a fair trade' :) Hubby left, doggie moved in.
My first dog was Chakita, a smooth-coat Chow.
http://www.etherealhosting.com/images/chakitacollage.jpg
Chakita was undernourished when I rescued her from a shelter. The previous owner kept her crated 18 hours a day, never had time for her, no shots, but she was spayed. Over the course of a year, with proper diet and exercise, she had gained 8 lbs of muscle, and dislocated my shoulder going after a squirrel. After days of tears and thinking, I had decided that with my disabilities, I would be unable to handle her going after any more squirrels, and I found a new home for her with a nice backyard and a strapping young lad who can handle her :)
Just before I booted out my husband, I had Social Anxiety Disorder. That was one of the main reasons why my parents also wanted me to have a dog, so I would HAVE to go outside and wouldn't stay inside all day.
After weeks of crying, the little girl in my sig plopped in my lap from another shelter. Again, very thin (you could count her ribs, put your fist in her hip joint and feel every disc in her spine) and constantly vomiting, didn't know how to play, someone had 'abandoned' her in front of the shelter the day before. She went for fixing, this 'Pekingese" I had adopted. A week later she came home (it was before Xmas, she had to wait a week for the first available spay appointment, but I visited her every other day at the shelter). On the 14th I picked her up, and for 10 days, it was eat for 2 days, vomit for 2 days, not eat for 1. I had had her to the vet twice who had checked for everything under the sun, and was told she was a perfectly healthy girl, heart was fine, breathing was fine, no worms, and 9.6 lbs but very thin. On Boxing Day I was starting to get upset, so I had gotten a hold of a Pekingese breeder in Ontario, called her and apologized for bothering her but I had a couple questions. She had answered them for me and I had sent her a picture of her. I had gotten the reply of 'She's adorable, she'd make a cute Peke, but she's a Tibetan Spaniel. Maybe not the most perfect speciment, but she is one.' So after picking my jaw up off the floor, I did some online research and lo and behold! Food allergies are prevalent in Tibbies! I found a breeder named Linda Matthews up in Muskoka, and emailed her. She had explained some more to me about Tibbies, and on the 27th, I headed off to Petsmart. Eight bags of food later purchased from the 14th to the 27th that she couldn't keep down, I had bought some Rollover Lamb and Rice because it has superior digestion, no corn (I found out Tibbies have an issue with corn and corn products like meal, gluten, etc.) and is for dogs with food allergies, and some Nature's Recipe Easy-to-Digest Lamb Meal with Rice and Barley.
I am proud to say we have been vomit-free since then, nor can you count her ribs, her 'hip hollow' is filling in, and we now know how to play. :) Since we stopped vomiting I have housebroken her, almost have her crate-trained, have taught her 'pattycake', 'up', 'down' and 'Come on, let's go!' She plays with her stuffed hedgehog and we're learning to get him when I say 'Where's Mr. Prickles?" We play with our rope toy, Nylabones, Kong, and have built up a nice little wardrobe of coats and shirts for all occasions and seasons. :)
So that is mine and Trixie's story.
Lisanne
My name is Lisanne and I live in Ontario, Canada... I've been coming to Pet of the Day for roughly 4 years yet never seemed to make it to the forums =)
Growing up my parents had cats and we bred and showed guinea pigs and fish, so taking care of an animal was second nature to me. When the big "C" came in 1990 and I had to have a hysterectomy at age 21, I wanted a dog to call my own.. my ex-husband wouldn't let me have one, but it worked out in the end. To sum it up, I have a coaster I had bought that says 'I got a dog for my husband. I think it was a fair trade' :) Hubby left, doggie moved in.
My first dog was Chakita, a smooth-coat Chow.
http://www.etherealhosting.com/images/chakitacollage.jpg
Chakita was undernourished when I rescued her from a shelter. The previous owner kept her crated 18 hours a day, never had time for her, no shots, but she was spayed. Over the course of a year, with proper diet and exercise, she had gained 8 lbs of muscle, and dislocated my shoulder going after a squirrel. After days of tears and thinking, I had decided that with my disabilities, I would be unable to handle her going after any more squirrels, and I found a new home for her with a nice backyard and a strapping young lad who can handle her :)
Just before I booted out my husband, I had Social Anxiety Disorder. That was one of the main reasons why my parents also wanted me to have a dog, so I would HAVE to go outside and wouldn't stay inside all day.
After weeks of crying, the little girl in my sig plopped in my lap from another shelter. Again, very thin (you could count her ribs, put your fist in her hip joint and feel every disc in her spine) and constantly vomiting, didn't know how to play, someone had 'abandoned' her in front of the shelter the day before. She went for fixing, this 'Pekingese" I had adopted. A week later she came home (it was before Xmas, she had to wait a week for the first available spay appointment, but I visited her every other day at the shelter). On the 14th I picked her up, and for 10 days, it was eat for 2 days, vomit for 2 days, not eat for 1. I had had her to the vet twice who had checked for everything under the sun, and was told she was a perfectly healthy girl, heart was fine, breathing was fine, no worms, and 9.6 lbs but very thin. On Boxing Day I was starting to get upset, so I had gotten a hold of a Pekingese breeder in Ontario, called her and apologized for bothering her but I had a couple questions. She had answered them for me and I had sent her a picture of her. I had gotten the reply of 'She's adorable, she'd make a cute Peke, but she's a Tibetan Spaniel. Maybe not the most perfect speciment, but she is one.' So after picking my jaw up off the floor, I did some online research and lo and behold! Food allergies are prevalent in Tibbies! I found a breeder named Linda Matthews up in Muskoka, and emailed her. She had explained some more to me about Tibbies, and on the 27th, I headed off to Petsmart. Eight bags of food later purchased from the 14th to the 27th that she couldn't keep down, I had bought some Rollover Lamb and Rice because it has superior digestion, no corn (I found out Tibbies have an issue with corn and corn products like meal, gluten, etc.) and is for dogs with food allergies, and some Nature's Recipe Easy-to-Digest Lamb Meal with Rice and Barley.
I am proud to say we have been vomit-free since then, nor can you count her ribs, her 'hip hollow' is filling in, and we now know how to play. :) Since we stopped vomiting I have housebroken her, almost have her crate-trained, have taught her 'pattycake', 'up', 'down' and 'Come on, let's go!' She plays with her stuffed hedgehog and we're learning to get him when I say 'Where's Mr. Prickles?" We play with our rope toy, Nylabones, Kong, and have built up a nice little wardrobe of coats and shirts for all occasions and seasons. :)
So that is mine and Trixie's story.
Lisanne