More Greyt Photos

I just had to post these photos. The top is Mr. Q in the hole he dug up against our new neighbor's house. He's staying nice and cool (and so is the neighbor). The bottom photo is our foster girl Star, just cooling off, lying in the driveway.

Dog Friendly In Southwest Michigan - Photos

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This week we went our favorite dog-friendly place, Sweethaven Resort in Union Pier, Michigan. While there, we went to our favorite dog-friendly beach, at Warren Dunes State Park (2 miles of dog-friendly beach!)

Dog-Friendly in Southwest Michigan

AR and Quasar and I took a quick 2-day vacation (came home last night). It's sometimes tough trying to find dog-friendly places to vacation, so I just had to tell you about this.

We drove from Detroit to Union Pier, in southwest Michigan. It's a very small town atmosphere, but very relaxing -- wooded and right on Lake Michigan (my favorite Great Lake!). We stayed at Sweethaven Resort, which is less than a mile off I-94, and less than an hour-and-a-half from Chicago. Sweethaven is dog-friendly, and has 5 cottages for rent that sit on 9-acres of wooded land. Your dog is welcome to be on the grounds leash-free. Plus, there's great stuff for people: bicycles and beach furniture, fire pit, plus our cottage had a hot tub!

Equally as great is the very nearby Warren Dunes State Park, which just this year began allowing dogs to run free on the dunes and in one small part of beach. Quasar had a blast, and proved to us that we have all bonded very well (he enjoyed running free, but came when called).

Woods, beach and dunes, bicycling, hot tub ---- and your dog! Who could ask for more? (Well, there's a great Mexican restaurant nearby with excellent margaritas!)

Quasar Sleeping

So I woke up about 3 a.m. the other night and had time to go downstairs and get my camera and come back upstairs and take a picture of the still sleeping Quasar! I suspect he must be getting comfy in his new home.

Quasar!

It's A Boy!

We didn't know we were expecting, so imagine our surprise when we fell in love with "Quasar."

He's now the brightness at the center of our galaxy!

Quasar is keeping his racing name; he knows it, answers to it, and it suits his quirkiness. He's nothing like our dear departed Bastet --in looks or temperament; we didn't think we could ever find another girl like her and, indeed, we did not. He is all boy. He's 66.7 lbs. of love, and dressed in a tux! He loves to fart and burp (it's a love fest with Dad), he barks (unusual for a greyhound), loves to "roughhouse," plays fetch with his squeaky hedgehog, chases squirrels, loves to be outside, and is quite the extrovert. At 4 years of age, he's still his puppy-self, but very well-mannered -- especially with "sit, stay" (treats help).

This past summer, we thought about the possibilities of adopting, but still weren't sure. In August, we received an email from Michigan ReGAP asking for additional foster families for some greyhounds coming out of the Second Chance At Life Greyhound & Inmate Prison Partnership Program. AR & I decided that we would foster as a way to figure out if we were ready for a dog. We completed our foster paperwork, and the next day I showed up at Dapper Dog Wash to pick up a dog. Quasar was assigned to me, and off we went.

I'll have to post more photos soon, and there is lots more to tell (his father was an Australian champion, he's an IVF baby, and he has over 5,400 siblings), but in the meantime, here is the letter Quasar will be mailing to his former handlers at the prison in Coldwater:


Hi,

I am writing to tell you that I have just been adopted! It is a case of "foster failure"; that is, after all these weeks my foster parents decided that I must be their forever dog. They tell me that is so because I am such a good-looking and well-behaved dog and there is probably not another one like me out there and they feel so lucky that they just can't believe it! (And did I mention because I'm good-looking?)

So let me tell you about my new digs and my new family.

I am just crazy about my new Dad; he is my best buddy. We go for 2-mile walks almost every day, and he is a firm believer that life is not worth living without peanut butter treats. I like to race up and down the driveway when he gets home from work. I love to play with Mom, and if I bark at her, she will roughhouse with me. Mom and Dad do not have kids, so I am an only child. They are creative types, though, and come and go throughout the day, so there is almost always someone home with me.

There are lots of beds here! I have one in the basement so I can be with Dad while he practices guitar, and a bed on the first floor so I can just hang out (usually looking out the front door at the neighborhood), and another really comfy bed upstairs. At night I like to sleep on my back with my legs up in the air. We go on day trips, and I've already been to the cider mill and to State Parks. I've come to love car rides, and yesterday Dad took me around the block just for fun. It was a blast!

We have a small but nice home, and the yard is fenced so I can run free to chase the squirrels. I have a favorite tree which I will stand under for long periods of time just waiting to see those squirrels come out of their nest. We have discovered that I am quite the watchdog -- a real surprise to all of us. I patrol the house and windows, and I bark at squirrels, people, and strange sounds at night.

When I first came to live here, I really missed you guys, so much that I didn't eat for a few days and really worried everyone. But they got the idea to mix some canned food with my dry food, and now I eat two big meals a day.

Mom and Dad want me to give you a special "Thank You" for having spent your time and energy training me and letting me know what love is all about. It's a big exciting world out here, and I really appreciate your having prepared me, and I will remember you always for it. I hope there are other lucky dogs out there that will get to know you, too.

Best wishes forever,

Quasar

Lassie Come Home

Photo of Roddy McDowell with the original Lassie, from 1943 movie Lassie Come Home
(Photo kindly borrowed from the Wikipedia web site)

There's a wonderful story you can listen to on National Public Radio's In Character blog, titled Lassie, the Perfect Dog.

The 7-minute story is about the history of the collie Lassie through book and films, the standards her character set for real dogs and expectations by real people, and associated memorabilia.

Most importantly, we are given a brief glimpse of Lassie's legacy in our everyday lives - the trust and hope in our dogs to both love us and serve us well.

Trivia:

• The 1943 movie Lassie Come Home starred both Elizabeth Taylor and Roddy McDowell (one of detroit dog's favorite old movies)
• Lassie is one of several dogs that has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (others include Rin Tin Tin and first "dog star" Strongheart
• Lassie was originally a boy! (the name Lassie is Scotch/Irish for "young girl")
  

Laika the Space Dog, 50th Anniversary: Sacrifice and Inspiration

Let us say a prayer of thanks to and in remembrance of Laika, a dog and the first being in orbit. Laika was the only passenger of Sputnik 2, the USSR spacecraft launched into orbit November 3, 1957.

Whenever I've thought of Laika, I imagine a small dog, looking out the window at an increasingly small earth, wondrous and melancholy. The truth is, Laika is perhaps our best known creature that truly gave her life for science. Her death intensified arguments about vivisection and animal rights and welfare. She was a street mutt, later endured extreme and rigorous training, and was the chosen one of three to die very restrained, alone, and afraid. It was not until decades after her death that the original scientists who worked with her admitted that no plans had been made for Laika's return to earth.

Much has been written about Laika, and just as much inspired by her life and death - literature, film, songs, band names, businesses, and innumerable ideas and dialogs. (One of my favorite movies is My Life as a Dog (Mitt Liv Som Hund), about a boy that likens himself to Laika - powerless and afraid.)

To read Animals as Cold Warriors: Missiles, Medicine, and Man's Best Friend on the U.S. National Library of Medicine web site, click on this link. To read more about Laika, click on this link at Wikipedia, or this link at NASA.

Laika, the dog that launched a thousand stories.


Photo courtesy National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI)

Just a quick update to this post: Laika was the first living being in orbit (which we call "space"); prior to her mission there had been several dogs in sub-orbit (technically, not "space"). I believe you can read more about it at the above NASA link. At any rate, dogs were first in space.

news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080411/ap_on_re_eu/russia_space_dog

Update April 11, 2008

Read the Yahoo! News story Russia Opens Monument to Space Dog Laika. Though it doesn't show a photograph of the monument, the article mentions that it is of a rocket with a dog on top, and located near a military facility. In addition to news about Laika, there is also the following: "Several other dogs died in failed launches before the successful space flight — and safe return to Earth — of the dogs Belka and Strelka in August 1960."

Cinnamon!

This is a photograph of Cinnamon. "Cinny" is a 80-85 lb. greyhound that looks more like a small pony. He was staying at our house for a few days with his "sister" Bella. Cinny is a big goofy guy, very sweet, loves to play.

Squirrel

This is our new pal Squirrel. We first noticed him in May, when he and some other young squirrels were hanging out in our backyard. There's a squirrel nest in the neighbor's tree next to our garage; we think they were from a litter there. Anyway, he's the one squirrel that just stays in the yard while we're walking around and talking. Just goes about his business.

So one day I decided to talk with Squirrel. I made these clicking noises with my tongue in the side of my cheek. It's the same noise I made to call Bastet, and she always came when she heard it. So I clicked 3 times real quick, and Squirrel came running over. eek!

Squirrel comes around once or twice a day, that I notice. If I see him across the street and "click," he comes running over! We will give him a couple peanuts, maybe a shelled walnut. Today he stopped by so I ran inside to get him some nuts. I set the nuts on the porch for him and then went on with my yard work. He ate the nuts, then lay "spread eagle" on the front porch: belly down flat with legs spread out! His front paws hung over the side of the porch and he just lay there watching me for about a minute and a half.

Squirrel....

Red Rose From My Garden

Indigo the Leader Dog

We are enjoying the company of my sister's guide dog, Indigo, while my sis and her family are visiting the wonders of the Yucatan peninsula. Indigo is a sweet Lab, 5 years old. She's very friendly. I believe she's never before been off-leash outside. Since we have a fenced yard, she's been running around like crazy. She seems to really like to lie in the ivy at the side of the house. It's nice to have a dog around.

girldog

The Birds

Almost every day for the past two (?) weeks, my husband has been photographing a robin mom and her chicks, nesting at the back of our house between the electric and gas meters. Here are some of his photos.

You'll notice in the last photo that there is only one chick left in the nest, and one egg. I was fortunate enough to see the first chick leave the nest. It just popped up out of the nest, stood on the meter for about ten or fifteen seconds, then flew to a tree in our neighbor's yard.



















































We assume (hope) that the second and third chicks left the same way, since they were so big. We figure a local crow or blue jay feasted on the egg.

Here's the robin mom.

a bit of wildlife in the woods

A robin keeps her chicks warm and safe. She made her nest at the back of our house, nestled between the gas and electric meters, below the roof overhang.



A rabbit in the front yard.

A Herd of Bunnies

Tonight, my husband and I were outside checking out the stars (The Pleiades), when suddenly we saw something we'd never seen before (well, we weren't looking at the stars at that moment). Three bunnies were chasing each other through the yard, and a fourth bunny ran over from across the street to join in the fray! This went on for over 5 minutes - bunnies running all over the place, up and down the street and around the front yard. They seemed to like our neighbor's yard a lot. Well, we're about 10 blocks outside of Detroit, so this was a real treat. But, it got me to thinking about "rabbit society," so to speak - behavior, personality, etc.

For more rabbit info, check out this great web site: www.rabbit.org
For rabbit toys (lots of them!), supplies, etc., click on this website: www.rabbitcentral.com

Bastet R.I.P.

Bast Mahlet “Bastet”8/1993 - 3/2007
AKA “GirlDog,” “Boobalah,” “Sweet Pea,” “Lady,” “Pookie-Girl” and “Nose in Holes.” Professional Name: Pa’s Ions Cash.

Our much-loved girl, our Sweet Pea, Bastet today has gone on pilgrimage. We cannot thank her enough for the joy she has brought us, the lessons she has taught us, and the comfort and unconditional love she gave us.

Bastet was adopted in NYC by Veronica in 1997, a week after retiring from professional racing life in Plainfield, CT. She settled into an adventurous and busy Brooklyn life before moving to Michigan in 1998. She was a New York gal! In May 2002, Bastet gained a Dad, when Alex and Veronica married. Although in her prime, Bastet demonstrated great speed, agility and flexibility (as demonstrated by a very impressive maneuver known as "the deceptive pirouette"), it was clear that the gifts to her adopted family were her greatest source of pride.

Bastet lived a good life, and enjoyed long and wonderful neighborhood walks with her Dad and visits to the park with her mom. She loved napping in sunlight, rides in the car, plain yogurt, peanut butter sandwiches, the occasional seedless red grape, and scrambled eggs for breakfast. She enjoyed the World of Smells, and we enjoyed the chattering of her teeth when she was happy. Bastet was a companion to Alex, assisting him on many occasions in practicing guitar and transcribing music. She loved to run errands with her Mom and assist her in many endeavors such as gardening and office work, and most importantly just hanging out with her. Bastet also loved to run free at Oval Beach during the cool weather of Spring.

Much loved, forever missed, a happy and sweet girl, affectionate, generous, loyal and content, she passed peacefully in her comfy bed with her head in her Mom’s lap and her Dad by her side.

Surviving close family members include: Peeps Mom and Dad, Uncle Albert, Aunt Christi and Uncle Lenny, cousins Draper and Dora, Godmother Tracey, and best pals Lola and Cinny. Her loving “grandmother” Ruth, and best friend Atticus predecease Bastet.

"Let's go, girl!"