I breed Yorkshire Terriers and Miniature Dachshunds and own 2 online pet boutiques. Dogs are my life in both of my businesses. But I also live in what is called "Tornado Alley". That is a difficult and possibly dangerous combination.
We are now in the Tornado Season around here and I dread this time every year. We are one of the lucky people who own a basement so at least we have a place to go to for shelter. A lot of people have to use community shelters that don't allow you to take your pet with you. I think that is very sad. I can imagine some of the problems that might occur with a large group of people and their pets but it would be so hard to have to leave to take shelter and know you have to leave your beloved pet at home.
My husband put a pet door in one of our basement windows. He then built a ramp that runs the length of the wall down into our basement. Our plan was that during a tornado warning all we would have to do is put the dogs in the pet door and they would run down into the basement and be safe. Sounds like a wonderful plan doesn't it.
Well we forgot to take a few things into consideration. First of all, we were putting together dogs that were not used to being with each other (not good). Not all the dogs would run down the ramp and have to be trained to get over their fear of it or be carried down the stairs. The excitement causes some dogs to have accidents (they are not trained to be in the house).
Now take into consideration that I am usually home alone when there is a tornado warning. You usually don't have a lot of time to take shelter after the warning. During the last two tornado warnings we had I spent quite a bit of time and effort getting all of our dogs down in our basement and settled. By the time I got the last dog into the basement I was exhaused, stressed and the warning was over and it was time to take them all back upstairs.
My husband worries that I will be so busy getting the dogs into the basement that I won't make sure that I am in the shelter when the tornado hits. He wants me to just leave the dogs and go to the basement with our house dogs. But how can I do that. I am not sure I could leave them to be hurt or die. Such a difficult decision. So far I have been lucky and we have all stayed safe without my having to make that difficult decision. Keep your fingers crossed that we continue to stay lucky.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author: Carol Goering
Dog Lover Boutique
Carlar's Cuties Dog Boutique
Carlar's Cuties Kennel
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Limitless Love
If you thought you were going to read about a romance...sorry. This blog is about real love without recriminations, love that has no limits. When a dog loves you there are no limits and only joy.
A dog doesn't care if you are black or white, cute or ugly. Dogs don't check your bank account to see if you are rich or if you are poor. You can be a college graduate or mentally deficient and they will still love you as if you were the smartest person in the world. You will be the center of their universe and the reason they exist. Even if you treat them unfairly they will still love you.
At 3:30 in the afternoon my dogs start watching the door, waiting for my husband to arrive home from work. They know that it is the time when he usually arrives. One of them actually screams with joy when he opens the door and speaks to them. It is so cute to watch. He has his arms full of his lunch box and thermos but he still stops to pet and talk to each one of them (we have 5 dogs in our home). He treats them all equally and they each eagerly await their turn. I am the last one in line. When they all have been greeted then I get my kiss. I don't mind waiting for my turn either.
They are used to his schedule and don't seem to mind his being gone during working hours. I on the other hand work at home and they are used to me being here most of the time. So when I do leave the house it is a big deal. It turns their world topsy turvy. But what a welcome when I come back.
They sense when I am upset and cuddle close to offer me comfort. When I cry they lick my tears away and try to comfort me. They are attuned to my every emotion. If I go into a room and shut the door I know they will be sitting patiently outside the door waiting for me to open it. They don't hold a grudge if I get cross or reprimand them. They eagerly accept my apology if I give it and love me even if I don't.
They love me enough to allow me the fun of dressing them in dog clothes. They don't care if I make them look silly or even care what other people think. As long as I am happy, they are happy. They don't complain about the food I feed them. They each the same food all the time but if I feed it to them out of my hand it becomes a wonderful treat.
If you treat a dog right, care for it and love it you will have limitless love in return. A companion that will never remind you of something you did in the past or hold grudges. They won't care if you gain weight or get older. They simply love you. This carries a weight of responsibility with it. You need to care for your dog, treat it fairly, love it, train it and you will have a best friend for life.
A dog doesn't care if you are black or white, cute or ugly. Dogs don't check your bank account to see if you are rich or if you are poor. You can be a college graduate or mentally deficient and they will still love you as if you were the smartest person in the world. You will be the center of their universe and the reason they exist. Even if you treat them unfairly they will still love you.
At 3:30 in the afternoon my dogs start watching the door, waiting for my husband to arrive home from work. They know that it is the time when he usually arrives. One of them actually screams with joy when he opens the door and speaks to them. It is so cute to watch. He has his arms full of his lunch box and thermos but he still stops to pet and talk to each one of them (we have 5 dogs in our home). He treats them all equally and they each eagerly await their turn. I am the last one in line. When they all have been greeted then I get my kiss. I don't mind waiting for my turn either.
They are used to his schedule and don't seem to mind his being gone during working hours. I on the other hand work at home and they are used to me being here most of the time. So when I do leave the house it is a big deal. It turns their world topsy turvy. But what a welcome when I come back.
They sense when I am upset and cuddle close to offer me comfort. When I cry they lick my tears away and try to comfort me. They are attuned to my every emotion. If I go into a room and shut the door I know they will be sitting patiently outside the door waiting for me to open it. They don't hold a grudge if I get cross or reprimand them. They eagerly accept my apology if I give it and love me even if I don't.
They love me enough to allow me the fun of dressing them in dog clothes. They don't care if I make them look silly or even care what other people think. As long as I am happy, they are happy. They don't complain about the food I feed them. They each the same food all the time but if I feed it to them out of my hand it becomes a wonderful treat.
If you treat a dog right, care for it and love it you will have limitless love in return. A companion that will never remind you of something you did in the past or hold grudges. They won't care if you gain weight or get older. They simply love you. This carries a weight of responsibility with it. You need to care for your dog, treat it fairly, love it, train it and you will have a best friend for life.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)