Wordless Wednesday December 24 2014

Okay, almost wordless.

We had a Christmas party at work after hours, and I went home to get Elka so she could see the library and mingle. She was good (mostly) and had a blast! We also did Secret Santas, and my Santa, in addition to my gifts, gave Elka some tennis balls!

Product Review: Primal Beef Liver Munchies

These Primal Beef Liver Munchies were on the list of treats to try out from Chewy.com, and while I'd heard of Primal as a brand before, we hadn't tried it yet. It's just the kind of treat I like getting for Elka, single ingredient, and the beef was raised in the United States and the treats were made in the USA as well (see on the bag)! They're grain free and gluten free which concerns me less, but can be very important for dogs with food allergies.

Product Review: Kurgo Skipping Stones

I had the opportunity to review Kurgo Skipping Stones, and as I'm always on the lookout for a durable thing for Elka to gnaw on, I leaped at the chance. The Skipping Stones themselves are designed to be fun water retrieval toys, and I did make them aware that I was interested for Elka's chewing purposes, not for water retrieval (especially not this time of year!) 

Winter Wellness Infographics from Just Right by Purina

Elka  appears to have decided Just Right by Purina is not to her taste, and so will not be continuing on the Just Right by Purina food. She continued to be perfectly fine on it and then there was just a point at which she stopped eating it. Not a huge deal, though I do feel bad abandoning the nice Purina people!

As a farewell for now, they've kindly provided two Winter Wellness Infographics for me to share. I'm a sucker for Infographics, as we well know!

"One day, we will see our animals again..."

When I was little, the movie All Dogs go to Heaven came out and briefly ruined my life. See, in it, Charlie the dog has died (this is how it opens) and, well, doesn't want to be dead and hijinks ensue. But to my seven year old self, the reality of "dying" and "dogs", though I didn't have on myself, was not a pleasant reality. It was a good movie, but the sadness of some of the details pervade my memories and color my perceptions of it. Granted, a lot of kiddie movies are like this. Arguably, Watership Down was not a movie intended for children (and I watched it as an adult anyway), but in general, the 70's and 80's could be a pretty freaky time for animated films aimed at the younger set.


I tried, but I just couldn't get Elka's halo on straight....

Wordless Wednesday December 10 2014

Things I never thought I'd say before owning Elka

Just a quick list of things I never thought I'd say before owning Elka. I'm sure these aren't Elka/Doberman specific, and I'm sure there's more, but this is what I can think of. I'm told parents also have similar lists (human parents, not "pet parents") but either way, feel free to share 'em!

Wordless Wednesday November 19 2014

Product Review: Blue Buffalo Wilderness Treats, duck flavor

We got the email from Chewy.com offering treats for review, and I selected the duck flavored Blue Buffalo Wilderness treats. It's a brand I've been happy with, and after a series of mostly chewy and/or freeze dried treats, I thought something along the lines of a crunchy biscuit would be good to try.

A new Elka-ism

Every once in awhile, the quirks of this dog just amuse me to no end. To some degree, I'm sure I'm "that" dog owner, you know, the one who thinks her dog is the only one ever to do such a thing. But, this is why I blog, so there (or dlog [portmanteau of dog + blog], as my fiancé would have me say). I have a new one to share.

Wordless Wednesday November 12 2014

Just Right by Purina product first thoughts

At the end of October, I posed this shot as a "teaser":

Well, it's because we'd just gotten our box of customized Just Right by Purina food. I was approached by a rep to see if we were interested in trying out Purina's new customizable food. I did a test run to see what the ingredients ended up as, and then said yes.

(these offers also always seem to come at a time when Elka has become bored with her current food)

Wordless Wednesday November 5 2014

NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow! (non dog related .gif post)

NaNoWriMo eve is upon us!

Are you going to participate? Do you know somebody who is?

(word warriors, perhaps?)

Wordless Wednesday October 20 2014

Special Needs Dobermans senior of the week: Spike

Spike is Special Needs Dobermans' Senior of the Week. I saw his picture on Facebook and...look at that face!

Product Review: NutriSource Soft & Tender Lamb Dog Treats

Chewy.com offered us the opportunity to try Nutrisource Soft & Tender Lamb Dog Treats. It's hard to say no to treats! We use them for training and just plain living (Elka is particularly fond of her post-potty treats and her bottle return treats), so it's nice to try a variety of treats with good ingredients, made in the USA!

Wordless Wednesday October 22 2014

I'm going to do NaNoWriMo again (I know you're not surprised)

October is almost done, and the website has rebooted, so it's NaNoWriMo time again. I know you're excited. (Well, maybe you are. Maybe you should participate?)

Wordless Wednesday October 15 2014

Black and White Sunday October 12 2014

So in my Internet wanderings, I found this website, Sporkforge.com , which said it had "image processing utilities". Okay. Like what?

Well, they've got an ACII image generator, which didn't work out so well with this particular picture. But the oil painting generator? Nailed it!

I mean, in a lot of ways, I guess it still just looks like the original picture (I selected the "medium" brush for this one. If you come back on Wednesday, you can see a picture with the "heavy" brush!)

Wordless Wednesday October 8 2014

Goodbye, Summer

Elka and I have different perspectives on fall. 

She likes pouncing at the leaves when they blow. She likes sniffing around leaf piles, because to her, they must just be this magical collection of smells.

Chelsea at Illinois Doberman Rescue Plus

I saw this all-natural girl on the Illinois Doberman Rescue Plus Facebook page and had to share! She just blew my mind.

Chelsea is 2 years old, natural ears and tail, black and tan. She was picked up as an underweight stray, and she's blind. But everything about Chelsea is what I love about the Doberman breed! Remember BRAINS and beauty!

(picture from Chelsea's page on the IDR website)

Wordless Wednesday October 1 2014

Doberman Rescue Alliance Wisconsin fundraiser for Lily's surgery

I posted about Lily with Doberman Rescue Alliance Wisconsin back in July. They were fundraising then to get her some expensive diagnostics, to figure out what was wrong with her back and why she couldn't walk. They didn't raise enough for an MRI but did get a CT scan. Here's Lily's page on the DRAWi site, detailing some of what she's gone through.

Well, Lily has been diagnosed with disc herniation with spinal instability, and surgery can allow her to walk again. Currently, DRAW, inc has a sponsorship page set up for Lily where you can make a one time donation, and are also having a t-shirt sale (21 days left!) wherein all proceeds will go to Lily's surgery.

Lily has been receiving regular therapy, and you can see her motorin' with some wheels in this Youtube video (I love watching her little tail nub go!):

Dogs-N-Ties Fundraiser for SFSPCA

I know some of you must be fashion forward. Or male, and require a tie. Or just like scarves; I can never get the hang of them myself. There's a point to this, obviously.

Bows-N-Ties is a company which makes scarves and (I know you guessed already) ties. Every year, they do a fundraiser for a charitable organization, and this year they're benefiting the San Francisco SPCA with a Dogs-N-Ties fundraiser. Their goal is to raise $38,400, which will aid 1200 dogs and cats in finding homes. That's a lot of money, and a lot of homes!

Dachshund scarf picture from Dogs-N-Ties website.

The designs are cute. They've got beagles, bulldogs, french bulldogs, poodles, chihuahua, and wiener dogs in silk scarf or silk ties. No Doberman, but that's the way it goes. It's like having an unusual name and looking for that personalized license plate. My understanding is California has quite the surfeit of Chihuahuas in their shelters, so it's a good idea to have selected that breed for a pattern.

Chihuahua tie picture from Dogs-N-Ties website.

So, if your work wardrobe is in the need of some sprucing up (barking up? I can't think of a good corollary here), check out the Dogs-N-Ties  web site. It might also be cute, if you're planning a wedding, to have the groomsmen all have matching dog themed ties, wouldn't it? I think so.

Wordless Wednesday September 24 2014

Product Review: Benny Bully's dog treats

I was approached by a rep at Benny Bully's dog treats to do a review of their products. Single (or limited) ingredient freeze dried treats? Check. Made in the USA and/or Canada? Check. I was excited enough for both Elka and I (she can't read packages, obviously. She just wants you to hand over the beef liver)!

We received the Liver Chops and the Liver Plus (in banana) and we could not have been happier with them.

(picture from Benny Bully's site. Photobucket is being unkind to me)

Wordless Wednesday September 17 2014

Iris, with Last Hope Doberman Rescue in Texas

Iris is a four year old, natural-eared fawn Doberman with Last Hope Doberman Rescue in Texas. She was found as a stray in Amarillo, Texas. You have to wonder how she ended up like that, poor little girl! But she's safe now. And look at that face!

(image from Last Hope Doberman Rescue available dogs page)

Miscues (or Missed Cues?)

The other night, Elka asked to go out, so I sent her to the back door. We have a routine, she sits and waits, and I either snap the leash on and have her wait some more, or I let her blast out the back door. I thought maybe I'd seen a deer or something out back, so I wanted her to wait after the leash was on. Typically, we hold up a finger, like "wait a minute", for signal purposes. I held out my palm instead.

(just a picture of Elka sitting, not from "The event")

Wordless Wednesday September 10 2014

Stray Comments while Walking

"That's a beautiful Doberman. I used to love those dogs in the 90's."

"What kind of a dog is that?"

"Sure, she's friendly, as long as I don't come near you."



"Is that a Great Dane?"

"Oh, a Doberman! You don't see too many of them anymore."









"Awww, she's such a cutie!"

"She's so well behaved."

"Is that a Greyhound?"

In Which Elka understands "If you do X, then Y" consequences

I shared this on the Facebook, but figured I'd make a post about it as well to get the most eyes, because obviously I thought it was cool and thought it was further proof of Elka's smartness, dogs' understanding of things, etc.

We had visitors over the weekend, friends who used to come regularly when they lived closer, but who moved at the end of last year. We've seen them only once or twice since the move. Elka is SUPER EXCITED every time people show up, because she loves all our friends, and she knows their names (even when there are doubles, i.e. more than one Eric, more than one Bryan, etc.)

Wordless Wednesday August 20 2014

No, I don't think that's the right book for your puppy

At the library, I have an awkward problem sometimes. A person who's gotten a puppy or a new-to-them dog comes in looking for dog training books. Oh good, right? My favorite topic! (well, one of)

Not so good: the only dog trainer they've ever heard of is Cesar Millan.

I've given my opinions on Mr. Millan's methods before. And yes, I have read his show, and have read a bunch of his books. If I'm going to be opinionated about something, I prefer not to be factually inaccurate. And his methods, in practice, do not mesh well with mine.

Good news! Mordecai with DRM adopted.

Good news, everyone! Mordecai is now listed under the "Adopted Dogs" section of Doberman Rescue Minnesota.

(picture from Doberman Rescue Minnesota site, in all his eye boogery glory)

Congratulations, Mordecai and his family! I hope they have a long and happy life together!

There are still other dogs at DRM looking for loving homes. If you or somebody you know in the vicinity is looking to add a Doberman to their home, Doberman Rescue Minnesota is a great place to start.

Wordless Wednesday August 13 2014

Other Black and Tans in the Dog World

For me, when I think of dogs with black and tan markings (or black and rust, or black and rust markings are "fuego", flame, if you're in Spain), I think of Dobermans and Rottweilers.

Just a quick post: a couple of adoptable Doberman follow-ups

Good news, y'all! Remember Hawk? Well I clicked on his listing link the other day, and he's been adopted! Other good news: Duchess has been getting some interest! Maybe the pretty girl will have a doberman-savvy home of her own very very soon (fingers crossed).

In April, Ruthie was adopted! I wrote about her in March, so that's awesome, and fast. I posted about Obie in January, and he found a home as well! He was with Dreaming of Better Endings Rescue, in Pennsylvania, where you can still read his story and see other Dobermans in need of homes.

Congrats to the lovely Dobermans in need who have found their forever homes! Elka knew they could do it. Here's to many long walks and many nights snuggling on the couch.

Wordless Wednesday July 30 2014

(she chewed the ball until it broke and then lay like this)

Gunner, red boy with Doberman Rescue LA

Doberman Rescue L.A. is the oldest Doberman Rescue in the country! It's a 501c-3 non-profit which was founded in 1968. They have a range of ages in their available dogs, and the dogs are always spayed or neutered before they go to their carefully screened homes.


This is Gunner. He's a natural eared red boy who was turned in to rescue when his family moved.

(picture from Doberman Rescue LA web site)

Black and White Sunday July 27 2014

Wordless Wednesday July 23 2014

Lily with Doberman Rescue Alliance Wisconsin needs sponsors!

Lily is a cropped and docked, black and rust Doberman with Doberman Rescue Alliance Wisconsin, inc. 

She was super skinny and in poor health when they took her in, but even now that she's safe and sound in a foster home, she can't walk! She can stand with assistance now, and has improved marginally, but they aren't really sure of the underlying cause, and feel an MRI for diagnostic purposes is the way to go.

(picture from DRAW web page)

Guiding Eyes Library visitor

In my town, there are people who raise puppies for Guiding Eyes for the Blind. One of my regular library patrons frequently ends up as a puppy sitter for the weekend, or for a couple of weeks, and the library is a great place for these puppies (of all ages!) to learn. We've got stairs, people, lots of new smells, and an elevator!

Wordless Wednesday July 16 2014