This week was wonky on every level. Mabel felt amazing by Sunday night but needed a few more symptom-free days before safely returning to daycare. The replacement part that Cammie and Mark tried to put on Felix to repair our piston filler was wrong. The manufacturer sent us the incorrect part. Fortunately, the amazingness that is… View more
I woke up this morning on the tiniest sliver of the edge of my bed. I could hear Mabel mumble and sleepily stretch as she lay belly up, horizontally next to me, waiting for her pre-breakfast belly rubs. In the short time Mabel’s been with me, she’s shown me what a sensitive sweetheart she is,… View more
As Mabel and I continue bonding and learning to communicate, I’ve thought a lot about the beginning stages of the dog-human relationship, whether forever or fostering. It’s a lot for everyone, us, our dogs, the people we love. Give our dogs bones to relieve stress. Oh, but some pups swallow and choke on those bones…. View more
The day after I said goodbye to my spunky soulmate Finn, I needed to connect with him, so I went to the park, where he passed peacefully. In the spot where we ran into our beautiful neighbors John and Javier was a three by four foot perfectly shaped leaf-filled heart, in January, in Chicago. From that day on,… View more
I believe you get back what you put out into the world. I can’t tell you how many dogs I’ve met named Barkley who live up to their name, so I’ve been referring to my almost official rescue dog as my easy breezy Mabel girl. Mabel has settled in so remarkably well. The most challenging… View more
Saturday morning arrived, and I was so excited. I met was Stella-now-Mabel Tuesday night, and she seemed sweet and playful as she happily gobbled up the treats I took for her and her foster brother before leaning against me. After her foster mom left, Mabel was nervous about the new sounds in a new environment with… View more
The FDA inspected us last week (routine for registered products). I went into it thinking, “We’ve got this.” Following super strict food safety and production processes is a we-love-dogs-more-than-anything-the-world policy, not a business matter. However, there was some confusion about our filed paperwork which led the fear-authority part of me to become overly nervous answering… View more
I received an email last week seeking a donation for a shelter from a Girl Scout attempting to achieve a Silver Award. As I read what could have easily been a scam, I thought it also sounded like a child requesting treats to help homeless dogs. So, I asked a few questions, carefully choosing my words,… View more
